Dana Goldberg (2:36)

and Ghislaine Maxwell, which is fucking bizarre because there's a lot of photos and emails that say different than we can actually see. Yeah.

Alison Gill (2:44)

That have already been out for a while. So it's not like something just came out and she's responding to it.

Dana Goldberg (2:48)

Yeah, it's very, very strange.

Alison Gill (2:50)

I. I have some theories. We have some theories. And we're going to go over those theories on Beans talk today, so you can check that out over on our MSW Media YouTube channel. All right, everybody, we have a ton of news to get to on this Friday, so let's hit the hot notes. Hot notes. All right, first up, House Democrats did something, but they unsuccessfully attempted to pass a resolution to halt Trump's war with Iran on Thursday, a response to the president's shocking threat two days earlier to annihilate a whole civilization. House and Senate lawmakers are at the tail end of a two week spring recess, but Rep. Glenn Ivey, Democrat from Maryland, and other Democrats returned to Washington early for a routine pro forma session to try to pass the resolution by unanimous consent. However, the Republican lawmaker presiding over the session, Chris Smith of New Jersey, gaveled out the brief session without calling on Ivy. Democrats howled in protest. Some were shouting shame. Now, outside the Capitol, the Democrats slammed Trump for vowing to strike civilian infrastructure targets and blast Iran, quote, back to the stone Age, unless its leaders agreed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which was open before Trump started the war. As we know, that's the critical shipping lane connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman. And Democrats beseeched Speaker Mike Johnson to cut short the recess and call the House back into session to take up a war powers vote. Johnson has ignored the Democrats. Please, quote, we've been at war for 40 days. We've only been in session for 33, which is another part of this pattern for the speaker being away and being on vacation instead of being here getting the people's work done. That's what Ivey said to reporters, quote, the threats of total annihilation were beyond the pale. It's time for Congress to step in and take control of the wheel, he said. Democrats and even some prominent conservatives outside of Congress have called on Vice President J.D. vance and the Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from power over his stunning comments. And I will say way leader Hakeem Jeffries had said earlier today on Thursday that they are getting together to discuss ways to stop this and to remove the president, including the 25th Amendment. So I'm glad he's on board. The House Democrats push precedes a more serious effort to rein in Trump next week when Congress is set to return to Washington. And Senate Democrats say that they will force a vote on their own war powers resolution. If successful, it would halt Trump's military operations in Iran and require Congress to vote to approve any future military actions. In theory, it would halt Trump's military operations in Iran.

Dana Goldberg (5:20)

Seriously.

Alison Gill (5:20)

The exact day and time of the war powers vote has yet to be set, but can be triggered by a member of the minority party at any point. A simple majority vote is required to pass the resolution. So Democrats are doing something they did. Because, you know, Dana, I was like, are they going to come back? They did. They came back to D.C. before the recess was over, tried to put forward a war powers resolution in the House, got shut down by a single Republican who was gavling in and out the session, a pro forma session, which pro forma means, like, while you're on recess, you come in, you do these pro forma sessions just in case the president does something stupid, which the Republicans are ignoring. And they're going to force a vote in the Senate next week. So.

Dana Goldberg (6:04)

Okay.

Alison Gill (6:05)

And Jeffries coming out talking 25th amendment. I was kind of surprised and unhappy about that.

Dana Goldberg (6:11)

Good. This one's from CBS. Survivors of the deadliest Iranian attack on U.S. forces since the war began have disputed the Pentagon's description of events and said their unit in Kuwait was left dangerously exposed when six service members were killed and more than 20 wounded. Speaking publicly for the first time, members of the targeted unit offered CBS News a detailed account of the attack and its harrowing aftermath. After the perspective of those on the ground now, the members CBS News spoke to disputed the description of the events. From Pete Kegseth's, who described the drone as a squirter in that it squirted through the defenses of a fortified unit inside Kuwait. I know, I just.

Alison Gill (6:55)

Are you having a hard time with that one?

Dana Goldberg (6:56)

Yeah, I think he's just been waiting his whole life to be able to say that at a fucking hot mic, anyone? I was painting a picture. That one squeaked through is a falsehood. This is, by the way, from one of the injured soldiers. That's what they told CBS News. He said, I want people to know the unit was unprepared to provide any defense for itself. It was not a fortified position. This is the fucking military coming out and saying they're lying. We were not protected or prepared. This is a big deal.

Alison Gill (7:23)

I've never seen anything like this. I've never.

Dana Goldberg (7:25)

I know that service member who, like others on spoke on the condition of anonymity because of rigid media restrictions within the military, said that in spite of the carnage that ensued, those inside the charred and splintered compound responded with swiftness, ingenuity and valor. And it saved lives. And I quote, I don't think that the security, environment or any leadership decision diminishes in any way their sacrifice of their service. This is the member of the Army's 103rd Sustainment Command. That's what they said in an interview and went on to say, those soldiers put themselves in harm's way and I'm immensely proud of them and their families should be proud of them. These first eyewitness accounts, along with photos and videos of the attack's aftermath obtained exclusively by CBS News, they offer the first descriptions of what occurred March 1 at the thinly fortified Kuwaiti port facility on the day of the Iranian drone strike. In the hours before the attack, incoming missiles, alarms. They had signaled to a crew of about 60 troops to take cover in a cement bunker while a ballistic missile flew overhead. But around 9:15am an all clear alert sounded. Officers removed their helmets and returned to their desks in the wood and tin workspace about the width of three trailers. About 30 minutes later, everything shook. This is what one soldier told CBS News and it's something like what you see in the movies. Your ears are ringing, everything's fuzzy, your vision's blurry, you're dizzy, there's dust and smoke everywhere. Days. The service member surveyed a grisly scene and I quote, there were head wounds, heavily bleeding, lots of perforated eardrums and then just shrapnel all over. So folks are bleeding from their abdomen, bleeding from their arms, bleeding from their legs. Jesus Christ. A video shows smoke billowing from the building fire, smoldering. The blast killed sixth and that was the deadliest attack on US troops since 2021 and injured more than 20. Word of Kegseth's description of the events at a press conference in Washington. They did not sit well with some of the survivors. The secretary had described the drone as a squirter that happened to hit a tactical operations center that was fortified. But these are powerful weapons. And while several of those families with the events on the ground did not agree with the description, they didn't want their remarks to be misconstrued. And I quote, it's not my intent to diminish morale or disparage the army or the Department of War more holistically. But I do think that telling the truth is important and we're not going to learn from these mistakes if we pretend these mistakes didn't happen. That was from one of the soldiers. Asked if this attack was preventable, the soldier added, in my opinion, absolutely, yes.

Alison Gill (10:10)

Yeah. So it wasn't fortified. You know, like I said, Dan, I've never seen members of the military Speaking out to the press against something that the Secretary of Defense has done more and more.

Dana Goldberg (10:23)

I'm happy to see this happening because I think it's going to give other soldiers the power. Permission. Yeah. To say something.

Alison Gill (10:30)

Yeah. Permission for sure. All right, next up from tnr, relations between the United States and the Catholic Church have not been the same since January, when senior U.S. defense officials shared an abrasive message with a Vatican official. Days after Pope Leo XIV delivered his State of the World speech, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby summoned Cardinal Christopher Pierre, that's the Vatican's U.S. representative, to a closed door Pentagon meeting for a bitter lecture. Quote, the United States, he said, according to a blistering new report by the Free Press, has the military power to do whatever it wants in the world. The Catholic Church had better take its side. One US Official president. The meeting brought up the Avignon Papacy. That's a period in the 14th century in which the French monarchy bent the Catholic Church into submission, ordering an attack on Pope Boniface VIII that led to his downfall and subsequent death and forcing the papacy to relocate from Rome to Avignon. That's a region inside France. The blatant intimidation tactic is the first of its kind ever made by American officials to the Catholic Church. There are no public records of any previous meetings between the Vatican and US Officials at the Pentagon, let alone an instance in which the world power suggested it could force the Bishop of Rome into captivity. The Vatican was also alarmed by the Pentagon's warning that Pope Leo canceled his plans to visit the US later this year. That's from Hale, who noted that, quote, many in the Vatican saw the Pentagon's reference to an Avignon papacy as a threat to use military force against the Holy See. Tensions had not been mended by February, when the Holy See rejected the White House's invitation to host Pope Leo, the religious order's first US born pontiff, to America's 250th anniversary celebration in July. Instead, the Catholic leader has arranged to visit a very different locale on the fourth of July. Lampedusa, a tiny island between Tunisia and Sicily where North African immigrants wash ashore by the thousands. Quote, Robert Francis Prevost is too deliberate a man to have chosen that date by accident. That's what Hale said.

Dana Goldberg (12:40)

I was sort of joking that we've got a Pope that grew up in Chicago and he doesn't feel safe to fly back to the United States. Yeah, I mean, he's from Chicago. I don't know if that's where he grew up. But we know that's where Bob's from. Now from the Times. President Trump has championed the US Steel industry, prompting promising to strengthen it and to impose steel tariffs if foreign metals to shield manufacturers from overseas competitors. Yet the White House has secured tens of millions of dollars worth of donated foreign steel for what? Mr. Trump's $400 million ballroom project. That's according to two people familiar with the plans who obviously spoke on the condition of anonymity. This is our seller, Matal.

Alison Gill (13:20)

Yeah, sounds good to me.

Dana Goldberg (13:22)

All right. Arcella Matal, which is a Luxembourg based firm that is the world's second largest steel maker, is providing steel for the Structure Room project. This is what the people said. They said the steel was produced in Europe, where the bulk of our seller Matal's production is concentrated. The White House has not disclosed details of the donation. Of course they haven't. But Mr. Trump said last October that he had been offered a donation of steel for the ballroom valued at $37 million. Uhhuh. What did they get for that? Maybe a. A box of folders that was being held in the. At Mar A Lago, probably. The president's comments came just days before the White House made adjustments to its tariffs that could benefit from our seller Mattel by cutting in half the tariffs supplied to exports of automotive steel from its Canadian plant.

Alison Gill (14:07)

Oh, I thought, though we had to have tariffs against Canada because they were sending us so much fentanyl and we were going to make them the 51st state.

Dana Goldberg (14:13)

Now, now, now, Alison, why would you believe that? Just because they said that.

Alison Gill (14:17)

So they're, they're bringing foreign steel through Canada for his White House. Okay, so just like his Bible and his ties and his stakes and his wine and his merchants, it's all.

Dana Goldberg (14:29)

And his wife. Sorry.

Alison Gill (14:35)

High five, high five. Next up from the Daily Beast, J.D. vance's trip to Hungary to help boost its pro Trump leaders election hopes has

Dana Goldberg (14:43)

been marred by the leak of a.

Alison Gill (14:45)

It's been marred by J.D. vance. It's been marred by the leak of a phone call showing the right winger sucking up to Putin. The right winger being Viktor Orban.

Dana Goldberg (14:57)

Right.

Alison Gill (14:58)

The vice president arrived in Budapest on Tuesday morning to show support for Orban, the far right leader facing a serious risk of losing Hungary's April 12 election, which could end his 16 year rule. He's 23 points behind in the polls right now. He has seriously gerrymandered that country, though. On the morning of Vance's European trip, Bloomberg revealed that Orban told the Russian president in October 2025 that he was prepared to help Moscow in any way to win the war in Ukraine, adding, in any matter where I can be of assistance, I am at your service. That's Viktor Orban to Putin. According to a leaked transcript of the phone call, Orban also compared himself to a mouse rescuing a trapped lion after it spared the rodent, a reference to a European fable which reportedly drew laughter from the two allies. So now everyone's referring to Viktor Orban as Putin's mouse.

Dana Goldberg (15:50)

Oh boy.

Alison Gill (15:51)

Orban also told Putin that his hopes to hold a summit in Budapest to show support for Russia amid its four year invasion of Ukraine and even discuss plans to involve Trump as well. The event in the Hungarian capital never took place. And CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten found Thursday that J.D. vance's campaign trip to Hungary to stump for Orban may have actually coincided with his numbers dropping by about three points.

Dana Goldberg (16:20)

Oh man, I love how there's some schadenfreude and all these shitty stories we have to bring you. All right, this one's from the Post. Some Trump administration officials, they're going to be able to use 70 million dollar luxury plane that former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was probably Corey Lewandowski in allegedly. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said Wednesday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement bought the plane for $70 million before the new DHS Secretary Marqu was confirmed last month. And I quote, this aircraft will be available to cabinet members who need secure command and control and rapid long range mobility.

Alison Gill (16:59)

And a big old bed in the back.

Dana Goldberg (17:01)

That's right. They need some fuck space. The spokesperson did not respond to questions about who will approve use of the plane and exactly who will be able to fly on it. The Wall Street Journal, which first responded on the arrangement, said that the White House officials, not DHS officials, are going to approve use of the plane and that First Lady Melania Trump will be among those close to President Donald Trump to have access to it.

Alison Gill (17:26)

She got the keys to the fuck jet, huh?

Dana Goldberg (17:28)

Hey, she does love the jets. I mean, maybe she's going to do another photo shoot.

Alison Gill (17:32)

Oh yeah, that is true. That is true. Yeah, maybe. Maybe that's where she'll be when whoever is about to release a bunch of photos of her and Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Yeah, you know, all I could hope is that whatever comes out about Melania, whatever she's preempting, because I'm sure she's just preempting some. Whatever it is, I hope it shakes loose a clot somewhere.

Dana Goldberg (17:56)

Yeah, no kidding.

Alison Gill (17:57)

In the tangerine, Caligula's cardiovascular system. We can all hope.

Dana Goldberg (18:02)

I did a little video on Instagram about what cocktail you might have when it happens. So if you're not on Instagram DG comedy, go follow me and share it because it's worth everyone's thing. But I also want to know what you're preparing. Even if you're sober, what are you going to have?

Alison Gill (18:17)

Yeah, and chill that champagne. Cause something.

Dana Goldberg (18:19)

Oh yeah.

Alison Gill (18:19)

This weekend. Oh my goodness. All right, everybody. We have John Fugal saying after this quick break followed by the good news. Stick around. We'll be right back after these messages. We'll be right back. This episode is brought to you by IQ Bar, our exclusive snack and hydration sponsor. IQ Bar is the better for you. Plant protein based snack made with brain boosting nutrients to refuel, nourish and satisfy hunger without the sugar crash. And right now, IQ Bar is offering you an exclusive deal. 20% off all IQ bar products plus get free shipping. Just text Daily Beans to 64,000. One of the things I like most about IQ Bar is that it's built for real life. If your days are busy and you want options that are easy to reach for, this lineup has what you need. And with over 20,000 5 star reviews and counting, plenty of people are already using IQ Bar's hydration mixer mixes, the bars, the mushroom coffees, all to help support their full schedule. Their Ultimate Sampler pack is a great place to start because it includes all three categories in just one box. It's nine IQ Bars, eight IQ Mix sticks for hydration, and four IQ Joe sticks for the morning. Now the bars are a smart snack option because they combine plant protein, plenty of fiber which we all need these days, and no added sugar which makes them better than a lot of the usual grab and go choices. I also appreciate that all IQ Bar products are clean label certified. They're free from gluten, dairy, soy, GMOs, and artificial ingredients. And that's the kind of ingredient list I like to see. And across their line of products, you're also getting ingredients like magnesium, which really helps get better sleep at night, and lion's mane, which helps keep you mentally and physically fit. Personally, one reason I love I.Q. bar is how naturally it fits into my routine. I.Q. joe is an easy way to start the morning. 200 milligrams of clean caffeine. Later in the day I can grab an IQ Bar and then mix up an IQ Mix Mix stick when I need some hydration. It's really amazing the flavors are incredible. Mint Chocolate Chip bars, Blueberry Pomegranate Hydration mixes, the Vanilla Spice Coffee. The hazelnut's really good too. It never gets repetitive. And right now IQ Bar is offering our special podcast listeners 20 off all IQ bar products, including the Ultimate Sampler Pack, plus free shipping. So to get your 20 off, text daily beans to 64,000. Text daily beans to 64,000. That's daily beans to 64,000. Message and data rates may apply. See Terms for details. Hey everybody, if you've been listening to this show, Back to the kitchen table days and Mueller, she wrote. You know I've been sleeping on a Helix mattress for many, many years and it's one of those purchases that keeps proving itself over and over again. Before Helix, I was dealing with the kind of sleep that looked fine on paper but didn't feel good in real life. I would shift around too much during the night. I didn't get deep sleep cycles. I'd wake up feeling sore. I would sweat during the night and the morning felt like I had a giant cloud over my head. But after switching I noticed a real improvement in I slept and how much better I felt in the morning. And I love sleep now. That was the biggest change for me. I was actually getting better rest and even my sleep tracking started to look better, especially around deep sleep, which made me feel like I was seeing a difference and not just imagining it. Helix also backs up that idea with research. Their site says an independent third party study found that 82% of participants increased their deep sleep cycles with their Helix mattress. That is a strong result and it backs up my experience as well. Sleep feels very different when your mattress is actually supporting you the way that it should. I also appreciate that Helix makes the whole process easier than mattress shopping used to be. The sleep quiz helps narrow down the right fit for your sleep style and they deliver the mattress straight to your door with free shipping in the United States. They also offer the Happy with Helix guarantee. They have 120 night in home sleep trial and a limited lifetime warranty, so there's no risk here. And on top of all that, Helix has been recognized by outlets like Forbes and Wired. For me, the biggest endorsement is simpler than that. I've had mine for years and I still don't want to sleep on anything else. So go to helixsleep.com dailybeans for 20% off site wide this is a spring savings event. That's helixsleep.com daily beans for 20% off site wide helixsleep.com dailybeans you'll be glad you did.

Brian Caram (22:21)

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Brian Caram (22:38)

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Podcast Narrator (22:53)

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Alison Gill (23:07)

Hey everybody. Welcome back. It's Friday on the Daily Beans, which means it's Fugal Sang Fridays. Drumroll please. Joining me today on Fugal Sang Fridays is the man, John Fuglesang. He is the author, New York Times best selling author of the book Separation of Church and Hate. New book coming out soon, by the way, that we're going to see how that sophomore release does. 2 times 2 time New York Times bestselling author. I bet. He also hosts Tell me everything on SiriusXM channel, progress channel 127. That's weeknights, 9pm Eastern, 6 Pacific. Jon Fugal Sang Show Podcast John Fugelsang Substack probably on a stage near you sometime soon, please.

John Fugelsang (23:42)

I hope so. I gotta get back on stage. This writing books thing, this is you. I don't know how you real grownups do it. My God, this is just eats up the world.

Alison Gill (23:50)

Yeah, it's a lot. It's so much work. And then there's that whole editing thing and you have an editor and that doesn't even touch the whole proposal process. But I'm assuming if you're doing a second book, I don't know if you'd necessarily. Do you need a proposal for that?

John Fugelsang (24:05)

No, my proposal for this was when I sold the first one. I went into a meeting and there were three people there and I pitched a book verbally for this one. I went back to the same office and there were 15 people in there this time. And I pitched another book verbally, but I have the same editor as the first one. The next one's really all about the fake Christians. It's about the history of Christianity being so hungry for power that they will sanctify any evil thing that empires do. From Rome through Hegseth through Paula White going to the White House Easter week and saying, Mr. Trump, you're just like Jesus. And again, Donald Trump can threaten Nuclear war on Easter Sunday. And there will be clergy who will sanctify this and make it seem respectable, because that's how they get paid. So it's a long, ugly history.

Alison Gill (24:53)

You saw that press conference, I assume, 1pm Eastern on Monday, where Hegseth compared the pilot that they rescued to Jesus, saying he was shot down on Good Friday, he climbed and hid in a cave on Saturday and then was taken up in the air by a rescue plane on Sunday. And I was just like, oh, man.

John Fugelsang (25:14)

Yeah. Except the only difference is that Jesus was the victim of state violence and Pete Hegseth is the one imposing state violence. So not really quite that similar. But, I mean, it was amazing watching Donald Trump threaten to kill all these people, because I always thought the whole point of Easter was coming back from the dead, not sending lots of people to it. But you know what? This is what Easter needed. More Bond villain threats like it was written on angel dust and Red Bull. I mean, and then he backed down, you know, threatening more fire and fury, just like Kim Jong Un. And then he backed down and announced a ceasefire. And the best part, it was all Iran's plan, all of it, not even his, Pakistan's.

Alison Gill (25:53)

And.

Dana Goldberg (25:54)

And.

Alison Gill (25:54)

And he just sort of jumped on board and took like, oh, yeah, and then didn't even read the 10 things, and then was opposed to three of those things and said, oh, the discussions, Vance. Now, the discussions never included those three things. It's like the discussions never included you.

John Fugelsang (26:07)

Yes.

Alison Gill (26:08)

But again, just postponed it for more discussions.

John Fugelsang (26:11)

That's all it is. It's two weeks. Two weeks. That's. That's our cry for help. Two.

Martin Sheen (26:15)

Two weeks.

John Fugelsang (26:16)

You'll get infrastructure. We really do need to stop being smug liberals and admire the achievement here, Dr. Gill, because it is not easy, historically or morally or logistically to start a war that solves none of the original problems, creates brand new problems, and then to declare victory over the problems you just invented. And then we're saying that Lebanon was never included in this deal, except for the small detail that it was literally included in the written agreement. But Netanyahu, you know, he's like, I'm not going to stop killing Lebanese for nothing.

Alison Gill (26:48)

Well, the. The way I think he split that hair was by saying, oh, no, no, no, no, we're not attacking Lebanon, we're attacking Hezbollah.

John Fugelsang (26:57)

Oh, yeah, civilians are in the way. I know, I know. And again, this whole ceasefire, this was like the lifespan of a Snapchat, you know, like, there was no ceasefire. By the time Trump finished saying, we win this deal, was already falling apart like, like Kristi Noem's anniversary plans, let's put it that way. Falling apart. More Americans dying, thousands of Iranian civilians killed, and 45 billion taxpayer dollars already gone. And nobody can tell us why we're there.

Alison Gill (27:27)

No. And then as if comparing this pilot to Jesus, even though, I mean, maybe instead of like Air Force pilot, he meant Pontius pilot. I'm not sure how that works when you are the aggressor, but he's the

John Fugelsang (27:44)

punches pilot in this scenario.

Alison Gill (27:46)

But yeah, that's what I mean. Right? Yeah, yeah, I digress.

John Fugelsang (27:49)

Although I guess he's like Pontius pilot and that he's giving, he's, he's giving the, the local leaders in Iran all these new revenue streams. I mean, my God, the Strait of Hormuz was not a, that was not a toll road two weeks ago. But now $2 million per ship, man.

Alison Gill (28:01)

30 pieces of silver to get through.

John Fugelsang (28:03)

Right now it's, now it's Iran's easy pass lane. Well done. Well done, Hagseth.

Alison Gill (28:08)

Right. And halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli. That whole Tripoli part of that entire song for the Marine Corps.

John Fugelsang (28:15)

Yes.

Alison Gill (28:16)

Comes from the absolute historic rejection of a toll through Barbary.

Dana Goldberg (28:23)

So.

John Fugelsang (28:23)

Oh my God, you're right. You're right. This is five dimensional chess. Alicent you understand that, right?

Alison Gill (28:29)

Yeah, sorry. But aside from just, you know, threatening entire civilizations, they threatened the Pope and the Vatican.

John Fugelsang (28:36)

They sure did talk about that because

Alison Gill (28:38)

this was a batshit crazy story.

John Fugelsang (28:41)

Well, we now know that in January, before all this began, and they were probably planning this even before Netanyahu talked Trump into doing it. The Times is doing great reporting on that. But they called in the Pope's senior diplomat to the US and they more or less said, you guys better play ball and support what we do. And this is how Rome did it. It, you know, this is how the Inquisition did it. This is how all the empires have done it. Rome turned to the Christians they've been persecuting and said, hey, how would you like big cathedrals with gold ceilings and some nice silks to wear and tax free eminence and a lot of status. Agree to our wars. Say the Crusades are sanctioned by God, say the Inquisition sanctioned by God and all this I will give you. These guys can't stop violating the big teaching of Jesus, who was offered all the world by Satan, said no. After he does the loaves and the fishes, they offer to make him a king. He says no and goes off to the mountains. Because Jesus was about no kings before that shit was trendy, but now they bring in the Pope's emissary and they essentially threaten him. Okay, they talked about the Avignon Papacy, which is a really important and creepy thing for our government to bring up to the Holy See. This was in the 14th century, where the French kingdom literally, literally physically relocated the Vatican to Avignon and controlled it for 67 years, more or less. It was a hostile takeover of the Roman Catholic Church. So this was not like some slip of the tongue. This was a deliberate historical reference about violence and control and authoritarian power. And, man, Pope Leo got the message, because this guy has spent all year, I mean, delivering the most incredible arguments, theological arguments about power and about imperial violence and what he did on Palm Sunday, saying that Jesus rejects the prayers of those who wage war, that you've all got blood on your hands, that you need to go to confession right now. The same morning on Easter when Trump is putting this, this vulgarity series of threats up on Truth Social, Leo told the world's leaders to lay down their weapons. And Tuesday, he said this was totally, truly unacceptable. I mean, I mean, like, the American Pope has said he will not come to America for the 250th birthday. And we know it's because he probably won't visit while this President is in office.

Alison Gill (30:58)

And he doesn't want to sanction that political party ahead of a midterm.

John Fugelsang (31:02)

No. He doesn't want to see no photo ops. No. The one time that Francis posed for a photo with Trump, Francis looks like a hostage in the video. And Trump used it to say, look, I've been sanctified. Here's my permission, structure a picture of me with the Pope. And that's how it works. That's how it's always worked for the imperials who don't want to follow Jesus, but they really want to use him. What we're witnessing now with these guys bullying The Vatican is 1700 years of Christian nationalist bullshit. And it's pretty inspiring, after all the negative press the Catholic Church has earned for the past several decades, to see them not just getting back to basics, but actually willing to suffer the slings and arrows of maga hatred because this guy's going to follow Jesus over doing something to make him more popular with right wing douchebags.

Alison Gill (31:48)

Yeah, and, you know, this is totally related to Hegseth having the Holy Chapel

John Fugelsang (31:52)

on Easter, but not totally for Protestants, not for Catholics. Like, literally, they're discriminating against the Catholics. And again, he invited Doug Wilson to come speak in the Pentagon, which once you get past how creepy that is on a First Amendment level and how creepy it is because Pastor Doug Wilson says slavery was great and women shouldn't be allowed to vote. These people also freaking hate the Catholic Church. And it's really good for folks to see that this is a Protestant only club. Not even Protestants only because they hate other Christians who aren't white. The Haitians they're trying to deport, the undocumented refugees they're trying to deport. These people hate Christianity. They care about white, conservative, Christian power. That's it.

Alison Gill (32:34)

Yeah. Even though that big stupid tattoo on Hagseth's chest is a Catholic thing, but

John Fugelsang (32:38)

that, you know, it's a Catholic thing and it's a Crusades thing. Deus vult. God wills it.

Alison Gill (32:42)

It.

John Fugelsang (32:42)

He's not going to quote Jesus on his ink. You know what I'm saying? He's not going to talk about love and forgiveness. Deus volt was what the bullshit Pope created to say God wants us to go forth with armies and slaughter pagans and Muslims and Jews to reclaim land. It's literally anti Jesus Old Testament violence made up by a dead old white guy. And the best part about it is the Crusaders were losers. They all lost. Like Monty Python and the Holy Grail getting mauled by a. A crazy rabbit. The Crusades were losers, but these guys are so drunk on white supremacy, to them, it's. It's this creepy crusader cosplay. And I spell that with three K's, if you know what I'm saying.

Alison Gill (33:21)

Yeah, well, sometimes the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch doesn't have the impact that you want it to have.

John Fugelsang (33:29)

But you're. Thank you for bringing that up, though, because, I mean, like, this guy literally threatened. It's a threat to take over the Vatican. And the Pope responds by calling them more mongers with blood on their hands and tells 1.4 billion Catholics to call Congress people. I mean, it's going to be a very interesting couple of years.

Dana Goldberg (33:46)

Yeah.

Alison Gill (33:47)

What is it? You can't fold your hands in prayer if they're covered in blood. Very, very well said, sir.

John Fugelsang (33:52)

Nice.

Alison Gill (33:53)

All right, before I let you go, you and I talk a lot about the Epstein files. We've talked a lot about Melania Trump and her connections to it. We've talked a lot about Ghislaine Maxwell having her sex offender status waived. I was the one who put out the screenshot of that Bureau of Prison.

John Fugelsang (34:09)

That's right.

Alison Gill (34:09)

Point screen that showed that her sex offender status was waived and that she was given out custody and, you know, things that have to happen if you're going to be moved to, you know, a Girl Scout camp down in Texas and have a puppy. But something happened today, just now, a minute ago, as a matter of fact. I'm really interested in what you have to think of what have to say about this, because Melania Trump gave a press conference and seemingly to do something that I used to call lubing the truth.

John Fugelsang (34:36)

Nice.

Alison Gill (34:37)

Nice meaning drawing the sting. Right. As they say in court. But the thing I applied that to a very, very long time ago was when Don Jr. Was on a plane and the New York Times called him up and said, yeah, you were part of this whole Trump Tower meeting in June of 2016, and we're gonna publish this whole story. So Don Jr. Took it upon himself to tell the world about it before the New York

John Fugelsang (35:00)

Times published in front of the story. That's what smart guys do, Don Jr.

Alison Gill (35:03)

To get in front of the story. And so Melania's up here in a press conference talking about how she barely knew Ghislaine Maxwell. She only had one email exchange with her, and it was just a tribal email, whatever that means. Maybe she meant trivial.

John Fugelsang (35:17)

I think so.

Alison Gill (35:18)

But she was like, it was, you know, this. We never talk, blah, blah, blah. And she gave this whole speech apropos of nothing. Right. That whole meme. Nobody, absolutely nobody, nobody ever Melania Trump. I didn't have any real, you know, connection.

John Fugelsang (35:35)

I had no social relations with that woman. Ms. Maxwell.

Martin Sheen (35:39)

Yes.

Alison Gill (35:40)

And so this is very, very curious to me because it feels like she's trying to get out ahead of something.

John Fugelsang (35:45)

Oh, yes, he is. And let's just point out that this is the woman. I'm looking at the email right now. October 23, 2002. Dear G, how are you? Nice story about Jeff in New York Magazine. You look great on the picture. I know you're very busy flying over the world. How was Palm Beach? I cannot wait to go down. Give me a call when you're back in New York. Have a great time. Love, Melania. That's the person she had no relationship with and never knew. Love, Melania. I do want to point out, in fairness, this woman spent a long time spreading racist lies about Barack Obama not being a citizen. And she's married to the most famous liar in the history of American politics.

Dana Goldberg (36:26)

Yeah.

Alison Gill (36:26)

And don't forget you and I talked about when the Wall Street Journal was breaking those stories about the birthday book and the drawing that Donald Trump wrote with a poem in the birthday book and that was right around the time that Ghislaine Maxwell got her sex offender status waived. And we were wondering aloud if it was Ghislaine Maxwell that was leaking this stuff.

John Fugelsang (36:46)

That's right.

Alison Gill (36:46)

To the Wall Street Journal and with Rupert Murdoch, who Trump sued.

John Fugelsang (36:51)

That's right.

Alison Gill (36:51)

Owner of the Wall Street Journal say, no, we stand by our reporting.

John Fugelsang (36:54)

And by the way, what did, what did Murdoch do the day after Trump sued him for that birthday card story? The day after Murdoch printed that Pam Bondi had told Trump he was in the files in May of 2025, the next day. Murdoch is not afraid of this guy.

Alison Gill (37:07)

No. And so I think that might have had something to do with Ghislaine Maxwell and maybe why she was moved to this low security prison or camp, whatever you call it. But then also, you know, I just have to bring up the fact that, that all of the really bad, the worst Epstein files that were released at the very end, after they said they were done releasing, they released another batch and they included all these really bad things about Donald Trump. All of those documents have Ghislaine Maxwell Bates numbers on them. They all came from Ghislaine Maxwell discovery. And I had to wonder, did Ghislaine Maxwell show these documents to Todd Blanche and say, if you don't give me my pardon, I'm going to release these? Forcing the Department of Justice to release them themselves and control the narrative and say, oh, these are just allegations. They're wild allegations. These are anonymous tips to an FBI hotline. So I thought that was also odd. And now today, with Melania coming out and saying, I don't know anything, apropos of nothing about, I didn't have a very in depth relationship with Ghislaine Maxwell. I'm wondering if there's a threat there again from Ghislaine Max Maxwell.

John Fugelsang (38:19)

Yeah, I mean, this is when you first pitched this theory to me. I will admit that it never occurred to me before, but yeah, I mean, Ghislaine Maxwell, she knows where lots of bodies are buried and lots of videotapes are hidden. I mean, she probably has a few cards up her sleeve, you know, and I guess she could not have deployed these with a different presidency. What I'm fascinated by is this same guy, Todd Blanch, who sat down and broke bread with her in a prison cell and transferred her to this cushy club Fed prison cell where, you know, child rapists and child sex traffickers aren't supposed to get upgrades like this. Boy, MAGA forgot to be mad about that. Now, Todd Blanche is going to be the acting Attorney general. It's like they thought, hey, you know that picture of Pam Bondi refusing to look at the Epstein victims? Can we find someone with even more contempt than Pam for this job? And hey, you know what? Let's get the guy who says, you're not getting any more information out of the government. We don't care that we're breaking the law. We're not going to release the rest of the files, and the case is closed.

Alison Gill (39:17)

Oh, and by the way, with Epstein's not a crime.

John Fugelsang (39:20)

Yeah, and by the way, I gave her a cushy upgrade to a nice prison. I mean, it's such a middle finger, and it, to me, guarantees the story won't go away. But it also proves something we've talked about a lot, that Trump only hires these flunkies and henchmen so they can be the fall guys and take all the blame. And this is what we predicted. I mean, Pam Bondi will take the fall for Epstein, but it's not going to go away. Someone else will now have to take the fall for Epstein, just like Pete Hegseth will take the fall for Iran and then be replaced by someone else who'll take the fall for the next thing Trump screws up.

Alison Gill (39:53)

Yeah, so I'm going to be looking for another release of Epstein files from Todd Blanche in the Department of Justice

John Fugelsang (39:58)

that have to get ahead of the story.

Alison Gill (40:00)

Ghislaine Maxwell Bates, numbers on them that have to do with Melania Trump. It's, you know, I'll grab my tinfoil hat.

John Fugelsang (40:06)

But no, it's. It's. But why else. Why else would she hold a press conference now, randomly and again, to bring

Alison Gill (40:15)

up Epstein back into the news?

John Fugelsang (40:17)

Right, but notice in this press conference, she.

Alison Gill (40:19)

She.

John Fugelsang (40:19)

All she talked about was how unfair it was for her. The whole press conference was about her. Okay, I'm innocent. I'm innocent. But did Melania call for releasing the rest of the files? Did Melania say anything about the victims? This was all about herself and herself only. Which tells me that your theory has a lot going on, and I'm going to be thinking about it in the days to come.

Alison Gill (40:40)

Yeah, unless this press conference itself is drawing the sting without having to release any of that.

John Fugelsang (40:45)

But, I mean, but all she had to say is, like, the victims deserve justice. Release the rest of the files. Like, I'm confident that I'm innocent. Really? She didn't do that. It was just about her.

Alison Gill (40:54)

Yeah, there's no reason for her to bring this up and put it Back in the news, if it didn't have anything to do with trying to, you know, lube the truth, as we used to say.

John Fugelsang (41:02)

I have. Yeah. I have not talked about Melania and Epstein. Haven't thought about them in a while. What is getting into her right now? That she would get on a plane, fly to the White House she pretends to live in, and actually go on camera with this and lie about it? I mean. I mean, people I only met once. I don't write love Melania myself, but okay, maybe she's really friendly. She seems warm.

Alison Gill (41:25)

Yeah. Super warm.

John Fugelsang (41:27)

That's got to be it. She just. She just. Once you meet Melania, it's love. You're in the club forever. I'm sure that's what this was about.

Alison Gill (41:33)

Her smile lights up the room. Yeah.

Dana Goldberg (41:35)

Okay. Oh, my God.

Alison Gill (41:37)

That girl. Yeah, that's.

John Fugelsang (41:39)

But, I mean, story is not going away. Like the gas prices and probably like Iran.

Alison Gill (41:44)

No. And she's the one bringing it back.

John Fugelsang (41:46)

She's the one bringing it up. And who told her to bring it up? And why was she told to bring it up? And what was the chain of events? Oh, my God. Can Michael Wolf and Bob Woodward just publish their 25 books about this already? So we know what happened because. Yeah, I mean, we're. We're. They're going to have to have another war to redistract from Epstein over this. I think this maybe. Maybe the Epstein files was to distract from the war that was there to distract the Epstein files, because it's not really a ceasefire. It's more a.

Alison Gill (42:11)

A.

John Fugelsang (42:11)

It's more a ceasefire flavored propaganda. I think it's a ceasefire shaped object.

Alison Gill (42:16)

Well, that's why they're saving Cuba for whatever, whenever that's for sweeps, whatever hits about Melania.

John Fugelsang (42:22)

Well, they got to invade Cuba because you have to make sure that Marco Rubio can never, ever be president. So go. Go for it, guys. Go for it. Let him be, Viceroy. I can't wait. They're not suffering down there enough. I mean, in many ways, it's incredible how insulated we are from what's going on in Cuba. And the fact that they finally let a supply ship come through and it was Russian. I mean, wow, the people who are controlling our media. It makes me all the more grateful for independent media and for shows like yours, where I can get my head filled with these crazy Melania conspiracy theories and go forth and spread them as my own.

Alison Gill (42:54)

And shows like yours called Tell me everything. Weeknights, 9pm Eastern, 6 Pacific, on SiriusXM. Progress channel 127. Make sure you pick up your copy of Separation of Church and Hate. So New York Times bestseller. You don't want to miss it. Do I have to read Separation of Church and Hate to get the second book, or can I?

John Fugelsang (43:13)

No, no. I just have to finish the second book for you to get it. So I'm working on that. I'll be hiding in a hole for the next few months.

Alison Gill (43:19)

Now the answer is yes, you have to read both. But I appreciate your time, my friend.

John Fugelsang (43:23)

There you are. Good. Fine companion set. Thank you.

Alison Gill (43:25)

It's always good to see you. We'll see you next week. Okay, Peace.

John Fugelsang (43:29)

Thank you. And thank your very attractive listeners.

Alison Gill (43:31)

Very attractive. All right, everybody. Very attractive, everybody. Stick around. We'll be right back with the good news.

Martin Sheen (43:37)

Filming the Way on the Camino de Santiago de Compostela was one of the most important and rewarding experiences of my life. And it was by far the most satisfying role of my career. The Way was filmed in 2009 over an eight week schedule and followed the pilgrimage route from St Jean Pierre de Port in the French Pyrenees across northern Spain to Santiago and then on to Muchia for the final scene. And the entire production was a family affair. Those are the opening lines of a story I share and they reflect the very heart of my podcast. And through sharing autobiographical stories and inspired poetry and personal reflections, that is the theme I find myself exploring again and again. But I do so in the hope that it sparks listeners to see how it relates to their own lives and their own story of joy. So please join me each Sunday for a beautifully crafted 20 minute journey of personal exploration. I'm proud to announce the Martin Sheen Podcast, Season two. I've often said if it's not personal, it's impersonal. And that is how I choose to approach my podcast. With all its contents, from storytelling to poetry and book selections, each unique episode is a journey we will share together. And I think it's important you know that I have no intention of leaving who I am at the door with this podcast. Anyone who knows me knows I cannot tell a personal story that doesn't have at least some social justice connection at its core. I have my convictions and issues that draw on my empathy and compassion. Frankly, that's what drives and informs my conscience and makes me who I am. How could I bring any less to this endeavor? So tune in Sundays as I invite you to follow, subscribe and receive notifications about what's next for me, Martin Sheen. Oh, and for more information, please visit themartensheenpodcast.com and thank you again, everybody.

Alison Gill (45:45)

Welcome back. It's time for the good news, everyone.

John Fugelsang (45:48)

Then good news, everyone.

Alison Gill (46:03)

And if you have any good news or good trouble suggestions and really, your good news can be big. It can be small. It can be from recent or in the distant past. It can be a fun story you like to share with friends when you're sitting around, you know, sharing, swapping stories, something that'll make us laugh. Maybe a favorite joke, a favorite, your favorite comedian, maybe your favorite one liner from your favorite comedian. Misheard song lyrics. It can be anything. An embarrassing moment that you've had recently. A shout out to a loved one or a nonprofit or yourself or a government program that's helped you or a loved one. It can be anything at all that'll bring a smile to our face. We need to microdose within your hope, so send it to us dailybeanspod.com click on Contact. All you gotta do to get your submission in is pay your pod pet tariff, which means these days, attach a photo of anything. Anything that'll bring a smile to our face. Some ideas it can be your pet, an adoptable pet in your area. We can try to guess the breeds in those pets. It can be a photo of what you're making or creating. We have so many amazing makers and creators that listen to this podcast. We would love to see what you're quilting or knitting or sewing or growing in your garden. Or do you have hen laying egg laying hens? Hen laying eggs? Do you have hen laying eggs? Because I would really love to see a photo of that. It can be an animal, a random animal on the Internet. Goats, birds, secretary birds, pandas, any kind of pandas. We love all the pandas. But just, you know, send DailyBeansPod.com click on Contact. First up is your good trouble. Good trouble today comes from friend of the Step lab, a pronoun she and her hi Beans team. I'm in academia where I study rehabilitation for communication disorders. Think Parkinson's disease, laryngeal dystonia, and hyperfunctional voice disorders. I want to let you know about a colleague of mine, Dr. Kara Stepp, at Boston University. She's an amazing scientist and ally. Dr. Step unfortunately fell victim to the Trump administration last year when they terminated her large research grant studying the effect of hormone therapy on physical and mental health in the transgender community. Oh, that was such valuable research. The goal of this study is to better understand both the benefits and potential risks of treatment so that care can become safer, more effective, and tailored to the individual's needs. The project is longitudinal, meaning they're collecting data over the course of multiple time points in a participant's therapeutic process. When the grant was abruptly terminated last year, they were in the middle of the data collection process. For many of the participants, losing funding put the entire project at risk. They've received some funding funding from a private donor to continue the project, but that money only went so far. I'm wondering if you'd be willing to put their lab donation link up in your show notes. I know many of your listeners would support this research and funding this important research, in spite of the current administration, is a form of good trouble. Absolutely. Nice. Here is a link for their fundraising site through Be youe's Day of Giving. And so we will have that link for everybody if you want to support this research in the show notes. That's such a a good bit of good trouble. Thank you so much, friends of Step Lab.

Dana Goldberg (49:04)

Yes, I love our people. All right. This is from Gwen Pronoun. She and her hello. It just occurred to me to wonder if AG and DG are, as others have suggested, queens of the beans. Can we say that Desiree et al are behind the beans now? Norfolk, Virginia is home to the North American headquarters of NATO. The NATO Festival is a yearly event here. This is from their website. Norfolk NATO Festival is the longest continuously running festival in the Hampton Roads region and the only one of its kind in the United States, which honors the NATO alliance and its member nations. What with everything, I think it's really important to have the biggest crowds ever turn out to show support for NATO. We're going to have a link to this in the show notes. There are events on Sunday, April 12, Thursday, April 16, Saturday, April 18. My pet terrap is Iris, caught mid scamper with her yellow puffball. And Clancy just Clancying.

Alison Gill (50:02)

Oh, I love these babies. I especially love Clancy. He looks very snuggly.

Dana Goldberg (50:08)

Yes, very comfortable.

Alison Gill (50:10)

Thank you so much for that. Next up is Bruce. Bruce pronouns he and him hello ladies. A slight correction. I'm pretty sure it's not Firestorm Coop as in chicken coop or wooden barrel maker, a cooper, but a co op. Oh, the Firestorm co op as in cooperative. Thank you. Also, ladies, April 9th is an important day in history and I quietly celebrate it. It's the anniversary of Lee's surrender to Grant in the village of Appomattox Courthouse. Heather Cox Richardson's last paragraph of her April 8 post makes me think of our current struggle and we're Going to have a link to that particular Heather Cox Richardson post. Quote, the Civil War was not won by the dashing sons of wealthy planters, but but by men like Grant, who dragged himself out of his blankets and pulled a dirty soldier's uniform over his pounding head on an April morning because he knew he had to get up and get to work. You two keep getting up and doing the work and I'm happy I found your podcast after the election. Cod Pet Tariff is the late Scooby a rescue breed? Obvious blank. Who is who was a lap dog and he would prove it to you. Oh, look at this beautiful German shepherd, I'm guessing.

Dana Goldberg (51:19)

Yeah, I would think so.

Alison Gill (51:20)

Let's see. Yeah. Oh, thank you so much for that Firestorm Co Op. Not Coop. Got it.

Dana Goldberg (51:27)

Love it. All right, this is from Kate Pronoun. She and her greetings AG and dg. A gentle correction if I may. Years ago, when I lived on Long Island, New York, I listened to local radio stations as well as the major New York City market stations. One Sunday morning, I heard what I'm sure was the new guy reading an ad copy which he obviously hadn't seen before that moment. He read an entire 30 second spot flawlessly, except that he pronounced the name of the sponsor, a local chicken joint, as the Chicken Chicken Co Op all the way through. That's funny because of course it's the chicken coop. That said, I'm sure that the Firestorm Co Op is a co op and not a coop. Clearly an understandable mistake. My Pot Pet tariff is a photo of my breed below. Ruby. Oh, look at that. Yorkie and her new friend. Thank you for every damn thing you do. You are both loved and appreciated.

Alison Gill (52:17)

Well, I have to say, if it had had the hyphen in it, it, yeah, I'm pretty sure we would have gone with Co Op. Look at this sweet baby. What do you think, Yorkie?

Dana Goldberg (52:27)

That's a Yorkie. Let's see, like full on Yorkie, black

Alison Gill (52:31)

and tan Yorkshire terrier.

Dana Goldberg (52:32)

Oh, I love Yorkies. I think they're so Damn cute.

Alison Gill (52:35)

We're 100. We're batting a thousand on dog, so it's time to go home. Oh, okay. We have more good news though. Next is from anonymous Pronoun. She and her. Hi, ladies. Heard you speak about about a Swiss shepherd. I'm a proud owner of a white shepherd. And I want to tell you about my Lucy. Full name Lucy Fur. The E stands for her father's sire, Eddie Van Halen. Anyway, Lucy has gone to all new kings and also got to see the peace monks with me. I remember this. The backstory to White Shepherds is that the Nazis tried to kill them off. Feeling they watered down the breed. A man in Switzerland and in Canada kept breeding the White Shepherd. Swiss shepherd and White German shepherd are really just names. They are beautiful dogs and so sweet. I have been Lucy's mom since she was six weeks old. Now she's three years old and 94 pounds. Holy shit. I have many posts of Lucy on my Bisky page, my blueski page, My pin post tells the history of the White Shepherd. Oh, thank you so much. Thanks for making my mornings. And then we're going to have robinroar BSKY social so you can see the pinned post and get more info from Robin Rohr. Look at the baby.

Dana Goldberg (53:47)

White Shepherds are just beautiful.

Alison Gill (53:49)

So, so beautiful. Thank you so much.

Dana Goldberg (53:52)

All right, from tx Blind boy grunt, no pronouns given. I work in crisis services for intellectual and developmental disabilities. ID'd in Texas. Since RFK came into the picture, we have seen an uptick in families seeking services for their individuals due to supposed vaccine injury. The current waiting list for the most comprehensive support for IDD has over 132,000 thousand individuals trying to get these services covered under Medicaid.

Alison Gill (54:19)

Holy.

Dana Goldberg (54:20)

This is as far as I'm concerned, criminal. I agree. If your parents get you on the list the day you're born, you'll have. You'll still have to wait 20 to 22 years to get those services. The misinformation propagated by this administration has severely hurt the chances of the most vulnerable individuals seeking services because now there are so many more families seeking exemptions to the process. Process. The administration and Robert Kennedy Jr. Have harmed our ability to serve the IDD population in ways that will take decades to repair. Anywho, here's a picture of the noggin our blank rescue. We call him an. An Angie Cream puff.

Alison Gill (55:01)

Oh, An Angie Angie.

Dana Goldberg (55:03)

Thank you.

Alison Gill (55:04)

Right, that's how I used to say angry when I was a baby. That's so funny.

Dana Goldberg (55:08)

Looks like a Siamese. But I don't know, kitty.

Alison Gill (55:10)

I. It's. He looks like a Siamese to me. Let's see what we've got here. An apple head Siamese.

Dana Goldberg (55:16)

Because look at his little apple head.

Alison Gill (55:18)

He does have an apple head, you apple headed ninny muggins.

Dana Goldberg (55:24)

Start calling people you little apple headed Siamese cat.

Alison Gill (55:27)

Angi Cream puff. Thank you so much. And yeah. Boy, that is fucking criminal. How disgusting. God, I hate. I hate them. Burning fire of a thousand suns. Okay, next up from Dada Diva pronoun. She and her shout out. I want to give a shout out to Earlham College. Pronounced Earlham. Okay, thank you. Earlham College. Yes. 42.8% of the letters are vowels. You don't pronounce any of them. Earlham. It's a Quaker school. It helped make me who I am today, a social justice nerd with good Excel skills. It's one of the best schools in the country for LGBTQ students and used to get a ton of international students because you could get an amazing education at way less cost or pressure than the Ivies. They have a very cool program called Earlham Summer where high school students can attend for a week in June. I did it at 16 and it made me so much more confident when I went to college at 18. If any of the Leguminati have bean sprouts looking at colleges, they should check it out at Earlham. That's E A R L H A M Edu Summer. We'll have a link in the show. Notes for my podpet tax I submit a paint by number I did of my first cat, Crookshanks. He joined me on campaigns from 04 until his death in 12. Given him a longer resume than most campaign workers. He was great at hanging out in the window and attracting volunteers. I have no freehand painting skills, but as long as it's paint by number I do fine. Look how beautiful. Oh wow. That is a really cool painting.

Dana Goldberg (56:59)

Nice job.

Alison Gill (57:00)

Thank you.

Dana Goldberg (57:02)

All right, from Anonymous. No pronouns given. Without giving too many details, I wanted to share some perspective from family members who work in the armed forces. They think he is crazy too. They are service people who will refuse illegal orders and talk about dementia. Dawn behind the scenes. I hope that brings a small measure of comfort to someone. While the mainstream media tries to normalize Trump Hex. That's insane behavior. Our service members can still smell. Thanks for all you do and your detailed reporting.

Alison Gill (57:31)

Okay, Very cool. And that's so interesting that we had that CBS story earlier in the show.

Dana Goldberg (57:37)

Yeah.

Alison Gill (57:38)

About the service members going and telling CBS that Hegseth was lying about that attack in Kuwait. Thank you for that. Anonymous. Next up, K. Hey friends. Thanks for being here when life is overwhelming. Here's my good news. I was able to get into the local lottery for the 2028 Olympics. I bought some tickets for me and my family to see women's soccer in San Diego and I'm excited to share the with my two daughters. Provided Trump doesn't it up like a narcissist on Christmas for pet tax. Here's a cute pic of my dog who's no longer with us, but these are my favorite pics of her sticking her head through a cat door every time I got home from work. This is how she greeted me, and in her PJs when she wouldn't stop biting her tummy and we didn't want to put a cone of sh.

Dana Goldberg (58:23)

Oh my God,

Alison Gill (58:27)

the DJs.

Dana Goldberg (58:32)

Oh my God, it's so good.

Alison Gill (58:35)

I don't know. The cone of shame seems cooler.

Dana Goldberg (58:38)

I know. I don't know how we're not ending on that. But we've got more. There's more.

Alison Gill (58:42)

Oh, amazing.

Dana Goldberg (58:44)

This is.

Alison Gill (58:45)

Oh, I hope y' all are patrons and you can see.

Dana Goldberg (58:47)

I know.

Alison Gill (58:47)

So fucking great.

Dana Goldberg (58:48)

This is from Ed Pronouncy and him Greetings Bean Squeam means it is. Wonder why I've had a pounding headache for two days? In a normal timeline, I would be wrapped in a wonder that I haven't felt since I was in my single digits. Age wise, I was enthralled by the Apollo missions. I knew all the astronauts names, collected the mission patches, drew countless pictures of the spacecrafts. All of it. And Artemis has reawakened that all. It should be a time to look to the heavens and dream. It should be. But that feckless maniac and his cadre of enablers have all but extinguished that wonderful beyond the fear of some imminent catastrophe with repercussions far beyond what we can even imagine is something much more pervasive and insidious. It's the sapping of our collective strength. It's the diminishment of pride in humanity. It's having a good day and then somehow having to qualify it. If someone asks, how are you? I sometimes feel smothered by this. At times it can be all too much, too frustrating, too infuriating, too damn scary. And yet, when I looked up at the moon this morning, I imagined that I could see that little spacecraft returning home. May they return to a world they can throw off these shackles of fear and ignorance and where accountability and justice apply to everyone without fail. Where a new generation of children can be wrapped in the wonder of our own creativity, ingenuity and desire to explore the unknown for the good of humanity. A couple of pictures from Artemis for you. They make my heart lighter. I hope they do the same for you.

Alison Gill (60:20)

Man, Ed, you should be a writer.

Dana Goldberg (60:22)

Yeah, Ed, this is extraordinary. Thank you for this submission. And these pictures really are just absolutely extraordinary.

Alison Gill (60:30)

They are truly stunning. And I've been watching like, Ed, it's been my escape from the real world, even though it is the real world, to watch what they're doing. That hug that they gave each other this morning, that hilarious video of when Trump was talking to them, then popping

Dana Goldberg (60:49)

around that mic, the speaker and then

Alison Gill (60:51)

see that, I mean they're all dead silent standing there and he's like, yes, you guys are great. What's amazing I did all this. It's because I'm wonderful. And then they all just sat there like, huh. For a really, really uncomfortably long time. So. But the photos have just been astounding. And somebody had posted, you know, that these astronauts took a photography class so that they could best capture some of these photos. And that is another great reason to put the a the arts in STEM and keep it steam.

Dana Goldberg (61:26)

Yeah, that is so cool.

Alison Gill (61:28)

Very, very fascinating. And I have felt the same. Ed, if you saw our Beans Talk episode of the launch, I was just enthralled with it as well. Thank you so much for that and thanks all all for your for your good news. We need it. Send it to us. We're going to have a probably a pretty busy weekend of jet photos of Melania and Ghislaine Maxwell coming out. Oh yeah, I'll have an episode of the Breakdown on Sunday on Midas Touch. We'll do unjustified with Andy McCabe on Sunday. It's we got a lot going on, but we will be back in your ears here on the Daily Beans on Monday. So send all your good news to us dailybeanspod.com click on contact. Dana, do you have any final thoughts for the weekend before we get out of here?

Dana Goldberg (62:11)

No, I do not actually.

Alison Gill (62:12)

All right, well everybody, we'll see you over on Beans Talk. You can check that out on our YouTube channel, MSW Media. See you then. And until Monday, please take care of yourselves, take care of each other, take care of the planet, take care of your mental health and take care of your family. I've been ag, I've been dg and them's the Beans. The Daily Beans is written and executive produced by Alison Gill with additional research and reporting by Dana Goldberg. Sound design and editing is by Desiree McFarlane with art and web design by Joelle Reader with Moxie Design Studios. Music for the Daily Beans is written and performed by they Might Be Giants and the show is a proud member of the MSW Media Network, a collection of creator owned podcasts dedicated to news, politics and justice. For more information, please visit mswmedia.com msw media.