FU 2025 (feat. Adam Klasfeld)

Summary

The Daily Beans

Episode: “FU 2025” (feat. Adam Klasfeld)

Date: January 1, 2026
Host: Allison Gill
Co-host: Dana Goldberg
Guest: Adam Klasfeld (All Rise News)

Episode Overview

The first episode of the year centers on political turmoil and legal bombshells, especially the release of Jack Smith’s full testimony and new revelations in the high-profile Kilmar Abrego case. The hosts, Allison Gill and Dana Goldberg, dissect national political developments—from Trump’s controversial National Guard withdrawal, a Democratic landslide in Iowa, to the Department of Justice’s handling of the Epstein files—and then dive deep with legal journalist Adam Klasfeld on abuses of prosecutorial power and questionable DOJ maneuvers in ongoing cases.

Tone: Fierce, sharp, sarcastic, and at times, marveling at the absurdity of current events, with a strong undercurrent of hope and activism.

---

Main Topics and Key Discussion Points

1. Jack Smith Testimony Released

• [02:02] Allison highlights the significance of the House Judiciary releasing the full transcript and video of Special Counsel Jack Smith’s closed-door testimony.
• Allison calls out Jim Jordan for being "scared shitless" to question Smith in public, noting Smith “handled that little man” (02:55).
• Listeners are pointed to the Beans Talk video podcast for highlights.

2. The Abrego Case & DOJ Misconduct

Interview Segment with Adam Klasfeld (19:50 – 52:50)

• Background: Kilmar Abrego’s criminal case, with the DOJ accused of vindictive prosecution after a traffic stop investigation was revived post-Supreme Court loss.
• Bombshell: Newly unsealed order reveals direct involvement of Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s office despite previous denials under oath.
• Key Quote [23:00] (Klasfeld):
  “The headline for me, Allison, and you saw it, it’s that bombshell email from Mr. Singh…calling the charging of Kilmarber Garcia a top priority.”
• Timeline details, case closure, and then re-opening after losing in courts; suggestion this was retaliation for Abrego’s legal victories pushing the DOJ to comply with court orders.
• [26:56] (Gill): “Once Abrego makes a prima facie showing of vindictiveness…the burden shifts to the government… the remedy is to dismiss the charges.”
• If DOJ can’t rebut presumption of vindictiveness, charges may be dismissed; possible sanctions then loom for DOJ misconduct.

3. Trump Withdraws National Guard — Obeying the Courts

• [03:50] Trump pulls National Guard from Chicago, L.A., and Portland after a Supreme Court order.
• Dana mocks the media:
  [03:58] “Congratulations, you’re following the law. You want a fucking cookie?”

4. Epstein Files Transparency — DOJ Delays & Political Fallout

• [12:51] DOJ delays release of vast majority of Epstein files, with only 1% released by deadline.
• [13:51] New files suggest Trump traveled on Epstein’s jet more often than previously known, but DOJ slow-walking release citing redactions for privacy.
• Bipartisan outrage and looming lawsuits anticipated.

5. Debunked Somali Daycare Scandal in Minnesota

• [06:01] Right-wing influencer Nick Shirley’s viral fraud accusations against Somali daycares debunked by CBS, despite CBS’s management shift to the right.
• DOJ under Biden had already investigated and prosecuted actual fraud, which turned out to be run by a white woman.
• [07:26] (Gill): “Stop it. Just stop it.”

6. Trump Vetoes Colorado Clean Water Bill

• [07:57] – [12:43] Trump vetoes a unanimously-passed bipartisan water project in Colorado as apparent retaliation against those holding his allies accountable.
• Outrage from both Democrats and Republicans, including Rep. Boebert (R-CO):
  • [10:12] Boebert:
    “President Trump decided to veto a completely non-controversial bipartisan bill... If this administration wants to make its legacy blocking projects that deliver water to rural Americans, that’s on them.”
• Democratic and GOP leaders decry move as a “revenge tour” and “partisan games”.

7. Democratic Victory in Iowa Special Election

• [14:44] Renee Hardman secures landmark Iowa Senate win by 43 points, denying Republicans a supermajority.
• First Black woman ever elected to Iowa’s Senate.
• [15:24] Hardman:
  “This race was never about me… it has nothing to do with my ability to lead the state of Maine."
• Democratic overperformance gives party renewed hope for 2026.

8. DOJ Handling of the Alleged January 6th Pipe Bomber (Brian Cole) Case

• [39:26] – [52:32] Gill & Klasfeld question unusual DOJ tactics trying for a local indictment in D.C. Superior Court instead of federal, possibly to bypass a grand jury that might not indict.
• Concerns DOJ is “hiding” the suspect’s MAGA motives and risking the case on a technicality.

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Trump obeying the Supreme Court:
  “Congratulations, you’re following the law. You want a fucking cookie?”
  — Dana Goldberg [03:58]
• On Somali Daycare Fraud Claims:
  “Stop it. Just stop it.”
  — Allison Gill [07:26]
• On Clean Water Veto:
  "He’s just an idiot. Actually, that’s insulting to children."
  — Dana Goldberg [08:24]
• On DOJ Misconduct in Abrego Case:
  “The fact that they wanted to hide these communications is what led to this delay.”
  — Adam Klasfeld [22:04]
• On Political Courage:
  “What an incredible legal team this young man has. I’m so impressed by his standing up to this administration.”
  — Allison Gill [39:26]
• On Pipe Bomber Case:
  “You want there to be justice over a long unsolved act of, of a pipe bombing. It doesn’t get more serious than this… the fact that when this Department of Justice does something so unusual…”
  — Adam Klasfeld [44:39]

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Jack Smith Testimony & Reaction:
  [02:02] – [03:42]
• Trump Withdraws National Guard:
  [03:43] – [04:23]
• Epstein Files Delay & Susie Wiles Controversy:
  [04:50] – [06:49]
• CBS Debunks Somali Daycare Fraud:
  [06:01] – [07:57]
• Clean Water Bill Veto:
  [07:57] – [12:43]
• Epstein Files & DOJ Delay:
  [12:51] – [14:44]
• Iowa Special Election Democratic Win:
  [14:44] – [18:28]
• Adam Klasfeld Interview (Abrego case, DOJ, Pipe Bomber):
  [19:50] – [52:50]

---

The Good News Segment

• [54:00] – [73:22]
  The hosts share uplifting listener stories: small acts of kindness (like a stranger paying a vet bill), family accomplishments (expanding broadband to tribal communities), and fun discussions about pets. Shout-outs to listeners’ activism and resilience, and call for community solidarity as 2026 begins.

---

Closing Reflections

• The hosts express hope, grit, and call for unity and activism in a year promising to be “a fucking ride.”
  Dana Goldberg [73:10]:
  “Hold on to the people that you love. Keep this community close and just know we’re going to help you get through it. Happy New Year, everyone.”
• Allison promotes Dana's annual “breakup letter” to the old year—wry, cathartic, and on-brand.

---

Takeaways

• The episode fuses sharp political commentary with legal analysis, regularly circling back to calls for action, oversight, and community support in dark political times.
• Listeners are encouraged to stay vigilant, participate, and carry each other through uncertainty and conflict.
• “The Beans” community remains a space for both fierce truth-telling and mutual cheerleading.

---

Endnote: This summary excludes advertisements, generic intros/outros, and focuses centrally on substantive discussion and featured listener stories, preserving the podcast’s signature voice and high-energy wit.

Transcript

[Martin Sheen]

It's Sunday morning and that wonderfully relaxed feeling of a long, lazy day lingers in the air. If you want to make the moment last, may I suggest the perfect solution, The Martin Sheen Podcast. Join me, your host, Martin Sheen, for beautifully crafted 20 minute programs filled with never before heard stories of my life, along with personal reflections and poetry that inspires. The Martin Sheen Podcast is the perfect Sunday refresh. A chance to take a deep breath, relax and know that the stress of Monday may be just around the corner, but not here, not now. So make this your weekly moment of calm as we explore faith, hope, love, and what it means to be human. And know this, this journey is ever unfolding as I invite you to see what's next with me, Martin Sheen.

[Allison Gill]

And thank you, MSW Media. Hello and welcome to the Daily beans for Thursday, January 1, 2020. Today, the house judiciary has released the full transcript and video of Jack Smith's behind closed doors testimony. A Democrat won an Iowa special election for state Senate by 40 points, holding off a Republican supermajority. Trump announced he's withdrawing the National Guard from Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland. CBS has debunked the Somali fraud claims in Minnesota. Trump has vetoed a clean water bill in Colorado that passed unanimously. And the Department of Justice has released a whopping 1% of the Epstein files. I'm Allison Gill.

[Dana Goldberg]

And I'm Dana Goldberg.

[Allison Gill]

What a way to kick off 2026 with the full video testimony of Jack Smith.

[Dana Goldberg]

I mean, good stuff. Not everything in the news today is bad. And I know I usually say final thoughts till the end. And this isn't a final thought, but happy New Year, everyone. It's going to be. It's going to be a crazy year ahead. It's going to be an ugly year ahead. You think 2025 was bad with the Heritage foundation and Project 2025, they have a who because they're gonna get scared aired. So just lock down. Know that we're gonna do everything we can to fight what's ahead. And you've got a big, big job to do in November and that's to get everyone you know out to the polls.

[Allison Gill]

Yes, absolutely. The big schlep, as Sarah Silverman calls it. Yep. So, yeah, most of today I've been buried in the Jack Smith transcript. I'm trying to pull out some of the highlights so I can put together a highlight reel for y'. All.

[Alison Gill]

Great.

[Allison Gill]

Maybe a bonus episode of Unjustified. And now I'm like halfway through it and I realize why Jim Jordan was scared shitless to Interview Jack Smith publicly. He handled that little man. So I'm gonna see what I can put together for you for the highlights, and you can watch the Entire video on YouTube. I've shared it on Blue sky as well. And we're gonna play some clips for you on the Beans Talk today. So check out the Beans Talk. It's our video podcast. You can find it at MSW Media YouTube channel. Just search for MSW Media Beans Talk, and all of them will come up. So there's a lot going on today. Later in the show, I'm going to talk with Adam Classfeld about the Abrego case. This is the substack live that I promised you. We're going to run that audio for you today in case you missed it as well.

[Dana Goldberg]

It's.

[Allison Gill]

It's a lot. And the trial's been canceled, and I think they're on the precipice of dismissing these charges against this man.

[Dana Goldberg]

Amazing. Also, another sort of strange thing. Trump just announced he's actually withdrawing the national troops from Portland, Chicago and Los Angeles.

[Allison Gill]

Meet.

[Dana Goldberg]

Media outlets are treating this like a fucking news break, which is crazy. I guess the Supreme Court told him that he doesn't have authority under 12406. And for once, Trump's actually following the court order. And apparently that's news. Like, congratulations, you're following the law. You want a fucking cookie? What the hell is going on with mainstream media? But I'm glad he's pulling the troops. We'll see what happens.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah, I totally woke up and it.

[Allison Gill]

Was like breaking NBC. Trump is withdrawing the troops. He's like, yeah, the. Because Supreme Court told him he had to. Oh, my God. So now we wait and see if he, you know, invokes the Insurrection act so he can try it again. He'll, he'll, he wants to do it. So we'll see what he tries to get passed to get it done. Also, Senators Durbin and White House are demanding answers from Susie Wiles about what she told Vanity Fair. Remember when she's like, I looked at the Epstein files and Trump's in them, but it's all fine. You remember?

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh, I remember.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah.

[Allison Gill]

So they want to know when, how, and under what authority she accessed the Epstein files before they were released to the public.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh, I love that. Oh, that's what happens when you, you cannot keep your lies straight. You don't remember what you are and are not supposed to say publicly. And then, Cynthia, you can say all of a sudden announce that you may have broken a law. And they're like, I'm sorry, what?

[Allison Gill]

Yeah, I was like, how did I miss that? Like, when I read that Susie Wiles.

[Alison Gill]

Part two, part article.

[Dana Goldberg]

I know usually we put A and B you know, together, but not that time.

[Allison Gill]

How did she get the Epstein file? I thought figured maybe she was just talking about what we already knew. I don't know. I don't know. But she that now the Senators Durbin and White House were like, you mind telling us how you got your hands on these files before the rest of us did? That'd be cool. Thanks. There's 5.2 million of them and we'll talk about that in a minute, but Jesus. All right, we have a ton of news to get to today, so let's hit the hot notes. Hot notes. All right, first up from Raw Story, despite a right leaning change in the management at cbs, namely Bari Weiss, the network disputed disputed claims made by MAGA influencer Nick Shirley.

[Alison Gill]

Surely you can't be serious.

[Martin Sheen]

I am serious, and don't call me Shirley.

[Allison Gill]

About alleged fraud at Somali daycare facilities in Minnesota. Shirley's video investigation, which reviewed tens of millions oftimes on YouTube and Twitter, suggests that the facilities were taking funds from the government without caring for children. On Tuesday, CBS News posted a fact check of Shirley on Twitter, the same platform that members of the Trump administration has used to bolster the fraud claims. CBS News correspondent Jonah Kaplan noted that Somali businesses had been prosecuted for fraud in the past, but, quote, now you have this viral video getting attention and getting traction online. It's from influencer Nick Shirley. And he visited several daycares, Somali owned daycares in the Twin Cities, and basically accused them of doing the same thing, running these sham operations where kids don't show up at all. It was closed, by the way, when he showed up and said there was no children. There's no children.

[Dana Goldberg]

Stop it. Stop it. They're like, we're closed, bro.

[Allison Gill]

And why, why can't I just come in? Well, we lock the doors in a daycare because of you, because of people like you.

[Dana Goldberg]

You weary be fuck.

[Allison Gill]

He goes on to say, running these sham operations where kids don't show up, but still built the federal government and collected millions of dollars in Medicaid funds. That was his. That was Shirley's accusation. CBS says we visited those sites too, as did state inspectors, many times over the last six months. And we found the facts on the ground tell a different story. Those daycares, many of them have been written up for safety violations, like maybe a busted equipment or staff training issues. But that's not the same thing as being fraudulent. So I just want to say about this. Biden's DOJ investigated this. Okay? This was. So when you see the right people on the right saying Biden didn't do anything, Tim Walsh didn't do anything, they both did something. They investigated this and charged over 90 people and arrested and imprisoned the ringleader and her name is Amy Bach and she's a white lady. So stop it. Just stop it.

[Dana Goldberg]

Just stop it. All right. This next one is from nine News NBC. President Donald Trump is using his first veto of his current term to kill funding for a major drinking water project in Colorado. Now this story is really interesting and you'll understand why. That finished the Arkansas Valley Conduit, which is abc. That act passed unanimously, unanimously in the House and the Senate.

[Allison Gill]

Clay Higgins didn't even vote against this thing.

[Alison Gill]

Nope.

[Dana Goldberg]

Monday's veto comes after Trump promised retaliation against Colorado for keeping his ally Tina Peters in prison. He's literally vetoing clean water because he's a fucking child. Actually, that's insulting to children. He's just an idiot. Peters was convicted on state charges for a scheme to tamper with voting systems. In the search for election rigging in the 2020 presidential RA, Trump is killing the bill to finish the Arkansas Valley Conduit. That's a decades long project to bring safe drinking water to 39 communities on the Eastern plains between Pueblo and Lamar. Now the groundwater there is really high in salts and well, sometimes unleash radioactivity into the water supply. What the actual fuck? Now the Arkansas Valley Conduit is the final component of the Frying Pan Arkansas project, which was first approved in 1962. In recent years, the cost estimate nearly doubled. The pipeline is in Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert's district. Boebert recently stood up to Trump that administration to force the release of the Epstein files. Colorado's Democratic senators have chipped away at the funding gap on the project for more than a decade. Boebert sponsored the House bill to finish the project. In his veto letter, Trump wrote, and I quote, my administration is committed to preventing American taxpayers from funding expensive and unreliable policies. Ending the massive cost of taxpayer handouts and restoring fiscal sanity is vital to economic growth and the fiscal health of the nation, but apparently not the actual health of the fucking people drinking water in Colorado.

[Allison Gill]

What he's saying here is keeping the water clean costs businesses money and that's bad for my rich friends. That's exactly what he's saying now.

[Dana Goldberg]

In a statement, Boebert responded President Trump decided to veto a completely non controversial bipartisan bill that passed both the House and the Senate unanimously. If this administration wants to make its legacy blocking projects that deliver water to rural Americans, that's on them. Boebert said she hopes. And this is a quote, this veto has nothing to do with political retaliation for calling out corruption and demanding accountability. Americans deserve leadership that puts people over politics. The Senate and House, they sent the bill to the president by voice vote suggesting there could be wide margins to overturn his veto if Republican leaders in the House and the Senate allow an override vote. It's rare for presidential vetoes to be overridden by Congress, but it's also really rare for a president to veto a bipartisan unanimously passed bill as he promises retaliation against a specific state. Democratic Senators John Hickenlooper and Michael Bennett, they sponsored the Senate version of that bill and I quote, donald Trump is playing partisan games and punishing Colorado by making rural communities suffer without clean drinking water. That's from Hickenlooper. He said that in a post on social media Tuesday. Bennett also posted on social media saying, this isn't governing, it's a revenge tour. It's unacceptable. Democratic Governor Jared Polis said Tuesday that he would continue to fight for the project. He said it's very disappointing that the President is hurting rural Colorado by vetoing this bipartisan and non controversial bill passed unanimously by both the U.S. house and Senate, which would have delivered on the decades long promised Arkansas Valley conduit and secure this much needed supply of clean drinking water for rural southeastern Colorado. That was from the governor. He's a. He's a petulant fucking asshole.

[Allison Gill]

It would be quite something for a Republican controlled House and Senate to override this veto.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yes, it would.

[Allison Gill]

That would be quite something.

[Dana Goldberg]

Could you imagine though, if Biden had done this and he would not have ever done that. I always hate making that comparison when people are like, could you imagine if Obama would do. And I'm like, Obama never would have done that or Biden would have. I'm like, Biden would have never done that. But man, Trump, he is a. He really is just a piece of shit. Right.

[Allison Gill]

Like if he's like that Oklahoma thing, we're not gonna do that because there's too many Republicans in Oklahoma. So veto stupid. And there just aren't that many unanimously passed bills.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yeah.

[Allison Gill]

Now, I mean, you know, Trump wants to kind of veto the Epstein Transparency act after the fact. But he already signed it.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yeah.

[Allison Gill]

Anyway, from the Hill, the Department of justice still has 5.2 million pages of files to review in the case of the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to Reuters. The Epstein Files Transparency act passed by Congress, signed into law by Trump Saturday, set a Dec. 19 deadline for the DOJ to release all the documents it collected as part of the Epstein investigation. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who co sponsored the legislation, have slammed the department for its delay in releasing relevant documents. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanch, known documented liar, said Wednesday in a post on the social platform Twitter that lawyers from doj, FBI, Southern District of Florida and Southern District of New York are working around the clock through the holidays to review documents in compliance with the law. We talked about that yesterday. Remember how he was like hey, Hanukkah's over Jews. Come on, help, help us out. The Trump administration released a third trove of files relating to the disgraced financier, no, the convicted sex offender last week after releasing the first and second batches on December 19th and 20th. DOJ earlier this month also discovered more than a million additional files and I still contend that that's not true or they were being hidden on purpose. In the latest batch of files. A federal prosecutor said in an email to an unnamed recipient that Trump traveled on Epstein's private jet many more times than previously had been reported. That was in the 90s. The aforementioned email disclosed information regarding a flight on which Trump and Epstein, the only listed passengers, were accompanied by a 20 year old person whose name was redacted by the Department of Justice. Lawmakers in both parties and chambers of Congress have pushed back on the delay of the files despite Todd Blanche's justification that redactions are necessary to protect victims. Names like you've had them for a year, bro.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yep.

[Allison Gill]

Some have also threatened to take legal action and I imagine we will get a lawsuit as soon as Congress is back in session.

[Dana Goldberg]

I imagine you're right. All right, this one's from the Associated Press. Democrat Renee Hardman was elected to Iowa State Senate on Tuesday in a year end special election, denying the Republicans from reclaiming 2/3 control of the chamber. This was a really important election. Hardman bested Republican Lucas Lofton by an overwhelming margin to win a seat representing parts of the Des Moines suburbs. The seat became vacant after October 6th. That was the death of State Senator Claire Selsey and she happened to be a Democrat. Now Hardman, the CEO of a nonprofit Lutheran Services of Iowa and a member of the West Des Moines City Council, becomes the first black woman, the first black woman elected to the 50 member Senate. Can you imagine ever? I know this is a quote. I want to recognize that while my name was the one on the ballot, this race was never about me. This is what Harmon told a room for supporters in West Des Moines after declaring victory with 99% of the votes counted, Hardman led by about 43 percentage points. Her win is the latest in a string of special election victories for Iowa Democrats, who flipped two Senate seats with this year to break up a super majority that had allowed Republicans to easily confirm GOP governor Kim Reynolds appointments to state agencies and commissions. Democrat Mike Zimmerman first flipped a seat in January, winning a district that had strongly favored Republican President Donald Trump in 2024. Then in August, Democrat Caitlin Dray handily defeated her GOP opponent in the Republican stronghold of northwestern Iowa, giving Democrats 17 seats, the Republicans 33. Selses death brought that down to 16. Republicans would have regained 2/3 control with a loft in victory Tuesday. Without a super majority, the party's going to need to get support from at least one Democrat to approve Reynolds nominees. That's a big deal. The GOP still has significant majorities in both legislative chambers, though. Ken Martin, who's the chair of the Democratic National Committee, called Hardman's victory a major check for Republican power. With the last special election of the year now decided, one thing is clear. 2025 was the year of Democratic victories and over performance, and Democrats are on the track for big midterm elections. I agree. In November, that party dominated the first major election day since Trump returned to the White House, notably winning governor's races in Virginia, New Jersey Democrats held onto a Kentucky state Senate seat this month in a special election, and while Republican Matt Van Epps won a Tennessee special election and US House seat, the relatively slim margin of victory gave Democrats hope for next year's midterms. The party must net three House seats in 2026 to reclaim the majority and impede Trump's agenda. Lofton, a tree trimmer turned data manager, congratulated Hardman and told the Associated Press he's praying for her as she embarks on the important chapter. Iowa GOP Chairman Jeff Kaufman applauded Lofton and his supporters for putting up a fight in what he described as a very tough district. Democrats outnumber Republicans by about 3,300 votes, or 37% to 30%. Of course they're applauding her. They need her fucking vote. This is a quote. Although we fell short this the Republican Party of Iowa remains laser focused on expanding our majorities in the Iowa legislature and keeping Iowa ruby red. That's from Kaufman I don't know. I think I was in trouble with a couple of other races. By the way, the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee pledged Tuesday to help defend the party's gains in Iowa and prevent the return of a GOP super majority.

[Allison Gill]

Ah, good news. Thank you.

[Dana Goldberg]

Good news to start off the new year.

[Allison Gill]

Absolutely. All right, everybody, next up, you're going to hear my interview with Adam Klassfeld about the latest in the Kilmar Abreco case. You don't want to miss that because it's pretty explosive. What was unsealed on the docket yesterday. And then after that, we'll have the good news. Stick around. We'll be right back after these messages.

[Adam Klassfeld]

We'll be right back.

[Martin Sheen]

It's Sunday morning and that wonderfully relaxed feeling of a long, lazy day lingers in the air. If you want to make the moment last, may I suggest the perfect solution, The Martin Sheen Podcast. Join me, your host, Martin Sheen, for beautifully crafted 20 minute programs filled with never before heard stories of my life, along with personal reflections and poetry that inspires. The Martin Sheen Podcast is the perfect Sunday refresh. A chance to take a deep breath, relax, and know that the stress of Monday may be just around the corner, but not here, not now. So make this your weekly moment of calm as we explore faith, hope, love, and what it means to be human. And know this, this journey is ever unfolding as I invite you to see what's next with me, Martin Sheen. And thank you.

[Alison Gill]

Hi, everybody. I'm Alison Gill.

[Allison Gill]

Welcome to the Breakdown.

[Alison Gill]

And welcome to Adam Klassfeld from All Rise News. So a couple of big things happened yesterday, and I watched your substack Live with Harry Lippman. I did a thread on Blue sky about the newly unsealed December 3rd order written by Judge Crenshaw in the Kilmar Abrego Garcia case. This is his criminal case. Remember, there are two cases going on with Mr. Abrego, three if you count the immigration courts and his appeal to the Board of Immigration. So I wanted to talk to you today about this unsealed order because in it, we were anticipating that there would be evidence or documents requested by Mr. Abrego's lawyers that show that Todd Blanche's office was, you know, I mean, they claimed that they weren't involved at all. And it was just Robert McGuire, the US attorney in Tennessee, who made the decision and to prosecute criminally Mr. Abrego. But what we found out is that Blanche's office, the DAG, the PDAG, Mr. Singh, who works in the office were all actually very deeply involved in the decision to charge Mr. Abrego in order.

[Allison Gill]

To effectuate his return to the United.

[Alison Gill]

States, but probably more in favor of shutting down the ongoing discovery in the Judge Polissini's case for not facilitating the return of Mr. Abrego as ordered by the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals and the lower court. So this is pretty bombshell stuff because they actually detail the emails and some of the messages that were sent from Todd Blanche's office to Mr. McGuire in Tennessee about the criminal charges against Mr. Abrego.

[Allison Gill]

So.

[Alison Gill]

Talk to us, Adam, a little bit about what stood out to you in this order and also why it was under seal for almost four weeks.

[Adam Klassfeld]

Well, to start with the second question, you had the Trump administration fighting tooth and nail to keep these messages under wraps. They asserted work product privilege, attorney client privilege, and other privileges, each of them Judge Crenshaw rejected in turn. So it was the fact that they wanted to hide these communications is what led to this delay that preceded the unsealing that.

[Alison Gill]

Okay, so while you are deciding whether something is privileged, you file it under seal first. And then once it's determined that it's not privileged and that the Department of Justice is full of it and they're just trying to hide their malfeasance from the world, then you order the unsealing, which the judge did and said that it would be unsealed on the 30th of December. And it was. And holy cow, talk about what's in there.

[Adam Klassfeld]

And the headline for me, Allison, and you saw it, it's that bombshell email from Mr. Singh that you alluded to calling the charging of Kilmarber Garcia a top priority. The full sentence. It's a top priority. And it's from a message dated April 30, which is exactly 20 days after the Supreme Court had ordered that Trump's DOJ facilitate the return of Abrego from Cecot, the torture prison in El Salvador. That's when it became, in Mr. Singh's words, a top priority to revive a three year old, long dead criminal investigation. And I'll take a step back there to unpack that because we learned a little bit more about the timeline, not only of these messages, but the entire criminal investigation, how this unfolded. As folks who have been following Mr. Abrego's criminal case know, that largely circles around this 2022 traffic stop where he was pulled over, let go without even a speeding ticket after being questioned by Tennessee authorities. And it eventually sparked a Department of Homeland Security investigation case. Goes cold and it is closed. We find out as a result of this unsealed ruling this year. It was closed this year by Trump's Homeland Security Investigations after they spirit him out of the country to El Salvador. The case is closed weeks later, then, after losing repeatedly in the district court, in the appellate court, and finally in the Supreme Court, and they realize that they are going to have to obey the order of the highest court in the nation, the prosecutors from the middle district of Tennessee receive the case file from Homeland Security Investigations, the one that was closed, and they open up an investigation. And throughout this entire process, we have heard Acting U.S. attorney Robert McGuire saying that it was their decision, it was their decision. Main justice didn't have a role in it. And that's why, your honor, you should reject the vindictive prosecution motion of Kilmar Ringo Garcia. And he said it under oath. And we find out under these communications that there are a flurry of messages between high ranking aides of Todd Blanche's office, primarily Mr. Singh and, and his office, Mr. McGuire. He called it in the same kind of correspondence on April 30 that he wanted high commands, eyes on the case at all times. So we see throughout it, you know, there's a reference to getting clearance for the case. And the judge says, presumably clearance is coming from the deputy attorney general's office. And this is why, you know, we talk about Allison, this car, the defense brief on this, and where a lot of these messages were redacted. And the defense's position was the only ground that they needed to make up in this vindictive prosecution motion was tying the decision to charge or breako to Todd Blanche. Because Todd Blanche had gone on Fox and said that, that essentially the investigation started because a judge questioned their decision. Right.

[Alison Gill]

And that's why initially the defense wanted to subpoena and did subpoena Todd Blanche and others from his office. Because the judge said back then, at this time, because I don't have any instance of Todd Blanche being involved, I can't make a call on vindictive and selective prosecution. And so we're going to do discovery and we're going to have an evidentiary hearing. But then Abrego's lawyers came back and said, what if we did have instance that they were involved? And kind of responded to that. The judge canceled the trial and set a January 28th hearing. Because once Abrego makes a prima facie showing of vindictiveness, like an initial, yeah, they're fake. Feels like there's vindictiveness vindictive vibes here, then the burden shifts to the government to prove that they are not being vindictive and selective in this prosecution. So all of these messages are uncovered and now they've set a hearing and the judge is like, you probably should bring in Mr. Singh and Mr. Todd Blanche, but you're going to bring in these other people on January 28th, but you're going to have to prove to me that it wasn't. So it would behoove you if it wasn't for Todd Blanche to get on the stand and swear an oath and say that he wasn't involved in this. But they don't want to do that. But that's what they have to do on January 28th. And short of proving, rebutting the vindictive claim, the prima facie showing of vindictive selective prosecution, the remedy is to dismiss the charges. So when everyone's like, yeah, but what will the consequences be about? You know, what are the good. Everyone always asks me whenever I say, oh, the DOJ did this horrible thing. And everyone's like, yeah, but what's ever going to happen? What's ever going to be the consequences? The consequences here are that the charges get dismissed against Mr. Abrego. There may be further sanctions motions. There's already a sanctions motions out there. A motion out there for Bovino going on Fox News and giving extrajudicial statements calling him a gang banger and a member of Ms. 13 when there still is no evidence proving that. But there might be follow on sanctions discovery, contempt. There could be any number of that kind of a motion going on. It hasn't been filed yet, at least not that I saw. But I want to focus on something that you said that we learned from this filing, that the 2022 traffic stop case was closed, Correct?

[Adam Klassfeld]

Yeah. And that. And that was investigated. That, you know, it prompted, you know, he was letting off without a speeding ticket. This was a traffic stop. And there was a case opened the following month and nothing came of it. And who closed it? It was Donald Trump's Department of Homeland Security. After they speared him away out of the country in the dead of night to El Salvador. They closed up the investigation that had not gone anywhere for. For nearly three years.

[Alison Gill]

So is there any other writing in any of the briefings? I can't remember about this case having been closed? I mean, that's pretty.

[Dana Goldberg]

Important.

[Alison Gill]

You know, when you talk, it's. It's kind of like how the Department of Justice went. You know, Donald Trump tried four times to indict Letitia James, Eric Seibert quit and wouldn't do it. Then Lindsey Halligan, who was just a private citizen, got an indictment, so that didn't count. And then they won a few third time and a fourth time, two grand juries couldn't get a grand jury to indict. That seems like this, like they why were they looking at it after he was spirited away and then closed it? Who closed it? Why did they close it? Right. Like, I think those are all really important questions, and I haven't seen anything else written about that in any of the pleadings.

[Adam Klassfeld]

So one of the things that's very helpful about this unsealed ruling, and I have a copy of it on All Rise News right now. There's a link to it at the bottom if you want to look at the latest story on it. It really clarifies the timeline because there's a chart in there and it says it starts with him being spirited out of the country to El Salvador, but it also includes the dates of the 2022 traffic stop, the opening of the Homeland Security Investigations probe. I don't believe that there's any evidence, at least not in this timeline, that I saw that this ever went to a grand jury that it ever got that far. And to take a step back, for folks who haven't been following the criminal case very closely, this. He is accused of smuggling immigrants. Now, the Trump administration has been muddying the waters, saying that he is charged with trafficking. No, he isn't. That's Ghislaine Maxwell. He is charged with transportation. There is not alleged to be, and not in these charges, any exploitation of the people he is supposedly transporting. And the evidence of that, and this is why it relates to that traffic stop, that there were a number of different people in the car. Perhaps local authorities took it up to the federal government for further scrutiny, but they did not find probable cause for anything. There was no arrest. There was no detention. There was no speeding ticket. There were. The government has alleged that the car where Mr. Abrega was stopped was traced to a key government witness who was involved in smuggling immigrants. And so that may have been the reason for the investigation, but what we know is nearly three years of scrutiny on this case from different administrations yielded nothing. And Maybe after whisking Mr. Abrego away in the dead of night and arch, the federal government decided, okay, well, moot point now. We're closing the case. But the whole point of this vindictive prosecution motion is that the, the argument is that Mr. Abrego is being punished because he, his attorneys stood up for his rights when he was languishing in a dangerous El Salvador prison, anyone. And he won. And he won. And that in retaliation for winning, the government is dusting off this old case and trying to gin up a prosecution to send a message. Don't fight back if the government goes after you. And that's why that's at the heart of the vindictive prosecution motion and the argument of the defenses, even if the allegations were legitimate and he's pleaded not guilty, they deny the allegations. You cannot, for a reason of punishing someone for exercising their constitutional rights. You cannot bring a case for that improper motivation. This is a very, very hard motion to win. And he was, he's only gotten to that point. And you pointed out very, very well, Allison, the idea that the fact that this evidentiary hearing is happening, that means the burden shifts to the government. They have the, they bear the presumption of vindictiveness. And it got to that point because Todd Blanche went on Fox and he went on national television with Laura Ingram and said that the origin of this case was that a federal judge questioned their decision to spirit him out of the country. If not for that public statement, we wouldn't be here. We wouldn't have these unsealed filings of showing the communications between Blanche's office and the purported decision makers who claimed before this under oath, they acted alone, that. And now they, they shift their response. They say, oh, well, this is just oversight by the office of the deputy Attorney General. And that's what January's hearing is going to be about. But this is none of this would have happened, arguably, if Todd Blanche didn't go on Fox to boast about the origins of this case. That was the deciding factor earlier this year when he said that this very rare maneuver, you know, it's very rare to even see a motion for vindictive prosecution, and it's extremely rare to win it in any form. To even get an evidentiary hearing is a major victory for Mr. Abrego. And the fact that these communications have been ordered released to the defense, another significant victory.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah. And that was pursuant to, as you said, Todd Blanche going on TV and saying, yeah, we didn't like the way the judge did, we didn't like what the judge did, so we were prosecuting him now. Hahaha. You know, they're like, that sounds a little vindictive. And so Brago's like, well, we're going to need all the communications to show that, well, I got it. In my office didn't have anything to do with it. It was only Robert McGuire. Oh, really? Okay, well, now you're going to have to prove it. Now, the only other one thing I wanted to touch on was one of the messages from Mr. Singh. No, from Mr. McGuire, saying anecdotally, he says, I've heard through the grapevine that this is something that the deputy attorney general, Todd Blanche, wants and the pdag and I haven't directly spoken to him, but anecdotally I've heard that this is something that they want.

[Adam Klassfeld]

Right.

[Alison Gill]

That seems to me like Todd Blanche could say, yeah, there's no direct communication between me and da da, da, da, da, da. It's just this other guy or whatever. But the problem is, like you said, with this January 28th hearing, they have to rebut the presumption of vindictiveness. It's like football when you're reviewing a play. There has to be evidence to overturn the call on the field. And without Todd Blanche's testimony, I don't think you're going to get there. Plus all these other emails with Mr. Singh, who's in Todd Blanche's office, because they didn't say it was, you know, Mr. McGuire and maybe a couple other low level people in the DAG office, they said it was only Mr. McGuire, and now there's evidence that at least Mr. Singh was involved. So, you know, to overturn the call on the field could be really difficult for them, especially if they don't. If Todd Blanche doesn't come in and lie about it.

[Adam Klassfeld]

I, you know, and that, that was a very. The email that you pointed out, it's an eye opening one. And I think it even said that they wanted it done sooner than later, that, that anecdotally he had heard that Todd Blanche had wanted it sooner than later. And three days before the indictment, I mean, look at the filing, folks who are watching. It's a public document. These were once sealed. And it lays out message by message, timeline by timeline. You have Mr. Singh getting a draft copy of the indictment three days before Abreco is indicted. Even before any of these messages went public, one of the arguments from the defense was, look, the timing is suspicious. You mean all of a sudden this traffic stop from 2022, you're looking at it after you lose in the Supreme Court. Now it's a time to open up an independent investigation at arm's length from the middle district of Tennessee doesn't pass the laugh test. But the evidence that is piling up and the Fact that they are going to need to put people on the witness stand and provide evidence of a legitimate purpose to salvage this case is a huge deal. And that's why the release of this unsealed filing yesterday is one of the very significant events in Abrego saga so far.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah. And I can see why, you know, some of the team was like, we can't tell you what's under there, but don't worry, it's good. And, you know, it'll. It'll be unsealed at some point. Don't worry. I am not. What an incredible legal team this young man has. And I'm so, I'm so impressed by his standing up to this administration. It's not the easiest thing in the world to do. One other thing I wanted to talk to you about. We've only got a couple more minutes. Here is the switching cases as to the alleged pipe bomber case. I've been following this very closely since the December 4th affidavit for arrest for the alleged pipe bomber Brian Cole came out. And the first thing that I noticed, and I and Marcy Wheeler pointed this out as well, Empty Wheel. I don't know if anybody reads emptywheel.net, but it's an incredible blog, really in the weeds. Very, very good stuff. But, you know, she, she said, where are his whereabouts from December 15 to January 6? We've got this one meal that they say he ate in the D.C. area on December 14th. And then nothing. And then nothing. And every other January 6th riot or affidavit that came from the Biden administration includes their whereabouts, their communications, what the. How they responded to Trump's December 19th come to DC will be wild tweet. Where was the pike bomber Brian Cole on January 6th? January 6th isn't even mentioned anywhere in this. So this seemed very odd. And then, of course, Pam Bondi comes out in her press conference and says, this guy's politics are complicated. He seems like a both sides, hates both parties. Lone wolf, anarchist, you know, whatever. Kind of like how they tried to do with the murder of Charlie Kirk, the assassin of the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, that it's, you know, that it's that thing he's not maga. But of course, NBC was like, no, we, we spoke to sources. He's definitely a Trump supporter and he's definitely maga. So it seemed to me like they were trying to cover that up. Now, normally when you arrest someone, charge them on information, then you go to a federal grand jury and get an indictment, and then you go and you have a preliminary hearing and a detention hearing, and you just. You'd go about your normal business. But Jeanine Pirro is incapable of doing that for some reason, up to and including the hearing that the government tried to get more time on, which happened on December 30, the same day that they unsealed the Abrego order. They didn't have an indictment from a federal grand jury. They hadn't returned an indictment, and they were asking for more time. I don't know why. I don't know if a grand jury has told them no. I don't know if they got a no bill. I don't know if they even bothered to try. But what we learned at that hearing, which I think is very interesting, is that to the surprise of everyone there, including the judge, the night before, they had actually secured an indictment from a local grand jury in DC's Superior Court. And we've seen this administration do this before with a man named Kevonte Stewart, who was charged with firearms.

[Allison Gill]

But the.

[Alison Gill]

They couldn't get a grand jury. Jeanine Pirro couldn't get a grand jury to indict him, probably because they illegally searched his car to find that firearm. So they went to Superior Court, and Judge Faruqi, a magistrate judge, was like, this is all wrong and bonkers. You can't just go to a local grand jury because it's a lot easier to get an indictment from a local grand jury in D.C. than a federal grand jury. The reason being is because they hear way more cases, so they're less discerning. It's more of a rubber stamp. Whereas in the federal system, they hear fewer cases and they consider them more thoughtfully because they have the time to do so, not because they're better people or anything, but they have the time to do so. So they went and they got an indictment from the Superior Court, knowing that the Covante Stewart thing was tied up in the D.C. circuit Court of Appeal on whether or not they can accept the Superior Court indictment. And so the judge in this case refused to accept the indictment of the Pike Bomber, saying, we have to figure out what's going. We're going to have to postpone this preliminary hearing that gives the Department of Justice what they want, which was more time, right, Maybe to go and get a federal. A federal grand jury to return a true bill. But I don't know. We don't really know the purpose of why Jeanine Pirro went to a Superior Court as opposed to a federal grand jury. We don't know if she failed in a federal grand jury, we don't know if she bothered to try in a federal grand jury and went straight to the Superior Court. And we don't know if she's doing this to buy herself more time because she knows it's a legally thorny issue. And the judge would say, whoa, whoa, whoa, we can't, you know, we need to wait on this. So it's just bizarre there. My concern is that if this is the pipe bomber and they're doing their best to hide the fact that he's MAGA from us, it could be hampering their case.

[Allison Gill]

And if he is the pipe bomber.

[Alison Gill]

And he walks because of their desperate attempt to try to cover up his motives, he, he, he walks on a technicality. And I think that that's a horrible miscarriage of justice. If, in fact, this gentleman is the pipe bomber.

[Adam Klassfeld]

We'll see more on this case today, because one of the things that the judge did when that very unusual thing happened, that they went straight to D.C. superior Court rather than staying in federal court to get the grand jury indictment, he, the judge requested further briefing on it and requested further briefing on it by close of business today. So more information can be emerging. But I think that it's. It goes to one of the tragedies about the loss of credibility by this Department of Justice. There are some very serious cases and put the Brian Cole case in the bucket of cases that are extremely serious. This is, you know, he is accused of being the pipe bomber who placed the devices in front of the RNC and the DNC before the January 6th insurrection. This is a case where you do not want to have someone to be falsely accused of this, to put it mildly. You want there to be justice over a long unsolved act of, of a pipe bombing. It doesn't get more serious than this. And so that, you know, I'm not making any assumptions about the case one way or another. I'm saying the fact that when this Department of Justice does something so unusual that when the case that you referred to a little earlier, Alison, Mr. Stewart's case, that was a case where they had tried to get an indictment before a federal grand jury, failed, went to Superior court, got one, and Judge Boasberg of all judges said, well, you know, the DC Local rules allow this, but I'm going to pause my order while it's appealed because this is such a novel issue.

[Alison Gill]

He also, yeah, he also says, I hate this. I hate it. It's bad and wrong, but it is the rule Congress Needs to fix that rule.

[Allison Gill]

But yeah.

[Alison Gill]

He paused it. And that's where it languishes now at the D.C. circuit Court of Appeals.

[Adam Klassfeld]

As a matter of fact, I knew that we were going to talk about it today, so I reviewed that old decision. I'm not that old. It's about a month old. But he points out one of the arguments made by the defendant in that case. Now, again, this isn't the accused pipe bomber case. This is the case that where this was tested by Jeanine Pierrot, the idea of marching into D.C. superior Court for federal charges. And the defense in that case made this argument, which Judge Boasberg summarized as interpreted by this court, the D.C. code provision would permit the government to bring out any criminal matter before a local grand jury for indictment, including a capital case, treason, rico, sedition and other crimes thought to be reserved for the federal courts. Government agreeing, no limit on the kinds of cases brought to local grand juries. What is more, the government could choose to circumvent the federal grand jury altogether and decide it will never take a case to a federal grand jury. Both of these scenarios are indeed troubling, even if neither has occurred yet. But the remedy would lie with Congress, not the court, to correct such systemic, if hypothetical avoidance of the federal grand jury. Now, he was talking about a nightmare scenario that someone would bring a very serious matter like a capital case, treason, rico, sedition, pipe bomber. A pipe bomber. A pipe bomber. And that is the sort of thing that he was grappling with, as you said, Allison, he did not like that decision. He did not like having to issue that decision. He looked at the DC Code and said, who knew? You know, the federal prosecutors, though, they have never, they, you know, this is so unusual. They are not availing themselves of this option all the time. They can end, run federal grand juries altogether and march into D.C. superior Court because of the way D.C. jurisdiction works. He didn't like it, but he found that he was obliged to follow the law. And so the federal prosecutors learned their lesson. They said, yeah, well, we can take any case. And one of the.

[Alison Gill]

That's what they've done here. Maybe that's what they've done.

[Adam Klassfeld]

And tune in, because we're going to learn more about this decision today because now another judge has requested further briefing because they have chosen an option that has gone to an area of law so unsettled that Judge Boasberg paused his own decision so that an appellate court can figure it out. Why do that with a case of this magnitude? Why do that with the accused January 6th pipe bomber. So I think we're going to be following that a lot and learn where this leads, because it's an important case. You know, everyone wants a crime of this magnitude to be played. Buy the book. And to be. And for justice to be done on a crime of this magnitude and for it to take this sort of tangent is not something that I was expecting talking about at the end of 2025.

[Alison Gill]

No, me neither. All right, my friend, thank you so much. Before I let you go, a lot of people had asked me, well, maybe she's going to the local grand jury so that they avoid the fact that Trump may have already pardoned this guy because of his blanket pardon of January 6th people. But I just want to remind everybody that the president can pardon local DC crimes. In fact, he's the only guy that can pardon local DC crimes, because DC is not a state, it doesn't have a governor. So in the absence of a governor, it is only the President of the United States that can issue pardons for the D.C. local grand juries. So his pardon could still apply here. Although I'm sure that this DOJ and this doj, Ed Martin, who is the pardon attorney among three other jobs, would say it doesn't apply to him and try to argue that with the court, regardless of what Brian Cole's lawyers argue. But I don't even know if we're gonna get there. There's so many mistakes that are happening with this. The confession seemed like it could have been coerced. For hours he said he didn't do it. And then finally they were like, don't you wanna get outta here? Don't you really wanna go home? Don't you want this interview to end? And he guess he put his head on the desk down and then said yes. And he's level one spectrum autistic and he's got ocd, so he might not be able to make a confession like that, but we're going to cover it all. You're going to see it on All Rise News. I'm looking forward to what this additional judge gets out of these briefings. And we will continue to watch the Abrego case. For now, he's just at home. He's unarrestable. And that hearing isn't until January 28th, so make sure you follow All Rise News. If you have the means in the new year to support Adam Klassfold's reporting, he's often on the ground, often traveling back and forth. Maryland, Tennessee, D.C. new York. You'll definitely want to support him in his endeavor. So thank you very much everybody for watching. Do you have any final thoughts before we get out of here?

[Adam Klassfeld]

Adam, My final thought is Happy New Year and thank you for all you do. I've enjoyed all of our conversations on all of these important topics and look forward to doing it more in the new Year.

[Alison Gill]

All right, great everybody. Thank you so much and Happy New Year. Be safe out there. Set your intentions and we wish you the best. We'll see you soon. I'm Alison Gill.

[Martin Sheen]

Adam Klassow, It's Sunday morning and that wonderfully relaxed feeling of a long, lazy day lingers in the air. If you want to make the moment last, may I suggest the perfect solution, the Martin Sheen Podcast. Join me, your host, Martin Sheen, for beautifully crafted 20 minute programs filled with never before heard stories of my life, along with personal reflections and poetry that inspires. The Martin Sheen Podcast is the perfect Sunday refresh. A chance to take a deep breath, relax and know that the stress of Monday may be just around the corner, but not here, not now. So make this your weekly moment of calm as we explore faith, hope, love, and what it means to be human. And know this, this journey is ever unfolding as I invite you to see what's next with me, Martin Sheen. And thank you.

[Alison Gill]

Everybody.

[Allison Gill]

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

[Adam Klassfeld]

Then good news, everyone.

[Allison Gill]

Good news. And if you have any little bit of good news, it could be big, it could be small, it could be yesterday, it could be two months ago, 10 years ago. We would love to hear from you. We all need to share in our hope, right? We all need to microdose a little bit of happiness. So send any good news story to us. It can be a great story that you like to tell when you're sitting around with your friends. It could be your favorite joke, it could be your favorite comedian, it could be your favorite movie, your favorite song, your favorite band, anything at all. You can give a shout out to a loved one or yourself or a small business or a nonprofit or a government program that's helped you or a loved one. Anything that you think would make us smile, send it to us daily beanspod.com and click on contact. And all you got to do to get your submission right on the air is attach a photo that you think will make us smile. It can be your pet. It can be an adoptable pet in your area. We can see if we can help find them a home. You can send a bird watching photo which is a bird or you flipping the bird to a Trump building. Everyone's got one in their phone somewhere. Especially if you've been to Chicago or Las Vegas or New York. If you don't have that, you could send family photos or pictures of what you're making and creating. We have so many great makers and creators and entrepreneurs. Maybe a shout out to your small business. We would love to hear from you. Any photo, anything at all. It's grab a random cute puppy on the Internet and send it to us. That works just fine. Absolutely find. That works just fine.

[Dana Goldberg]

You heard her.

[Allison Gill]

I'm not going to edit it.

[Dana Goldberg]

It's new year. Don't expect us to speak English properly.

[Allison Gill]

There's going to be one mistake in every show going forward this year and you can see if you can pick it out. You could possibly win a partially used Glade air freshener.

[Dana Goldberg]

Wow, you were really up at the game.

[Allison Gill]

I'm just kidding. That's not a thing. But there will be mistakes. Anyway, send it all to us dailybeanspot.com click on contact. First up is your good trouble. This comes from that Amber posted on Blue sky found the CBS feedback form, left a message about Barry Weiss. Quote, have a question about CBS programming or want to leave us feedback? Just fill out this form and we'll forward your message to the appropriate department. So we have a link in the show notes for you. CBS.com show feedback success. So if you want to let CBS and Barry Weiss know how you feel maybe about the Inside Seacoat 60 Minute segment she tanked or anything else going on at that network, that is the link and it'll be in the show notes for you.

[Dana Goldberg]

Sounds good. And Allison doesn't know I have this information. A little more good trouble for you. This one's going to be a fun one. We talked to you about that story about Christy Lee who canceled her show at the Kennedy center. And it will always be the Kennedy Center. They're going to be doing a live show on Facebook. That's January 14th. So mark your calendars for January 14th. We're gonna have a link in the show notes to the Facebook live feed. I want you all to flood this thing and give her love, okay? She kept her integrity. She canceled the show at the Kennedy Center. We'll continue to talk about this concert up until January 14th, but I just want you to mark your calendars now and we'll make sure you get that link so you can tune in and listen to an incredible, incredible artist.

[Allison Gill]

We should see if we could reach out to her, have her Come on, talk about why she did what she did.

[Dana Goldberg]

Absolutely. I'm in touch with, seems to be her, her manager on social media. So let me see if I can get that done. We'll see.

[Allison Gill]

We'll see if we can do that. But regardless, we should all be there virtually on January 14th to support her decision. All right, next up, Martha from Maine's 2nd Mike Michaud, the Democratic congressman who represented Maine's 2nd district from 2003 to 2015, is openly gay. How quickly we forget. I have a note here and I spoke to a lot of people about this before, that he was actually closeted when he ran. He was not openly gay, which is why we added the term openly gay. First openly gay representative for a district in Maine. And a producer's note here, Mike Michaud was not openly gay when elected in 2013. Confirmed he's gay in an op ed noting he was pushed to do so by whisper campaigns started as a response to his gubernatorial bid. From his op ed quote, they want people to question whether I'm gay. Allow me to say, save them the trouble with a simple, honest answer. Yes, I am, but why should it matter? That may seem like a big announcement to some people, but for me, it's just part of who I am. As much as being a third generation millworker or lifelong Mainer, one thing I do know is that it has nothing to do with my ability to lead the state of Maine.

[Dana Goldberg]

Great statement.

[Allison Gill]

So thank you, Martha. And I did consider that and I did know that about Mike, and that's why we made sure to use the term openly gay.

[Dana Goldberg]

All right, this is from Anna Marie Pronoun. She and her good morning beans queens. I'm writing with a pronunciation correction in a compliment sandwich. So here's the first bread. I don't know how I would cope without the daily beans. Unjustified. And clean up. You help me stay engaged and a little less fatigued by all the bullshit from this administration. Knowing how many good people are out there fighting the good fight is so empowering. Now, the middle of the sandwich, I'm going to try this out. The Xolo breed, as I'm reading, a little bit of head. And I don't know how we pronounced it before, but the Xolo breed of dog is pronounced Xolo, which is short for Xolo eats quintly. Xolo eats quintly.

[Allison Gill]

Okay.

[Dana Goldberg]

That's how you pronounce that. It's the oldest breed of the dog from Mexico. It's usually hairless and was or is revered by the Aztecs Fun fact Show Low dogs are the model for the dog in the movie Coco. Oh I love this information. For the second bread A New Year's wish. May the coming year be filled with wins for democracy. I'm looking forward to Dems kicking some ass in the midterms. Thanks for all you do to help make that happen. For Podpet tariff, I'm including a pic of Xolo I found on the Internet. I am fascinated with these beautiful naked babies. Love you.

[Allison Gill]

Look at the naked baby show lows Cutie. Thank you Annamarie. Now I know it's Xolo short for Xolo Eats Quaintly.

[Dana Goldberg]

Okay, very cool.

[Allison Gill]

Next up from Jane Pronoun. She and her My introduction to good trouble merged with swearing came early in my childhood thanks to my mother Beverly. Back in the 70s and 80s before caller ID and digital media, my mom learned of and dedicated herself to making the Most of the 7 second delay on the radio. For those unfamiliar in the olden times with live radio, it took seven seconds for the sensors to cut off a collar for any reason. My mom honed her craft at spewing the most swear words one could possibly fit into seven seconds and would call Rush Limbaugh and his precursors in conservative fucking ass wipery. Our household knew to keep quiet as my mom sat on hold waiting for her seven seconds of foul mouthed glory. I love you Mom. I'm grateful for the beans for helping me navigate this year by weaving a touch of the Beverly throughout your reporting on this stained year. Attached as a photo of my mom in the spring at 83. Happy New Year. Nice. Look at this. Okay. Her shirt. Oh kale. Yeah.

[Alison Gill]

Jade. I love Beverly.

[Allison Gill]

I love that she would fill seven seconds up with swear words.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh my God.

[Allison Gill]

Oh that's so fantastic. Well behaved women rarely make history, right?

[Dana Goldberg]

Yep. So good. All right. This is from N. No pronouns given. Hola and Happy New Year. Can it get worse? Hope not. Love the beans all the time. Thanks for the sanity. Here's my book Coronaville now an historical comic book and document about the Trump Pan Clandemic. Attached is the COVID and first page, but happy to send the full PDF it's on lulu.com love m amazing. This is awesome.

[Allison Gill]

Look at this Coronaville. Great illustrations too. Yeah, really well done. All right, Lulu.com, coronaville everybody. Check it out. Next up from Kevin Hi ladies.

[Alison Gill]

Love all your work.

[Allison Gill]

You two have such great chemistry and just make my day better when you start bouncing laughs off of each other. I'm writing in response to what would the male equivalent be for Dana's oh my ovaries. Being a guy and in the proper company when things regarding down there are discussed, I always say my lovaries.

[Dana Goldberg]

That is really cute.

[Allison Gill]

Like ovaries but starting with the l sound. Since my boys are nothing more than low hanging ovaries anyway. So my answer as a dude would be oh my lovaries. And you know what Kevin, I agree with you. I often wonder.

[Alison Gill]

I used to have a whole bit.

[Allison Gill]

In my comedy set about balls and how weird they are and why do you keep them on the out. Why do you keep your ovaries on the outside of your body? That seems so very unsure. Safe.

[Dana Goldberg]

That's very funny.

[Allison Gill]

All right, so Kevin goes on. For my pod tariff, I'm including two pictures I took on our last trip to Baltimore. Along the roadways they have boxes of rock salt for drivers and pedestrians to throw on icy intersections to improve traction. But some creative forward thinking patriots decided to embellish these boxes with a reminder to our current blind eyed members of Congress. Enjoy. Oh, I love this. Okay, so it's the Morton Salt girl with a Republican elephant.

[Dana Goldberg]

Love that.

[Allison Gill]

And his trunk. Kind of being a little bit grabby with the Morton Salt girl. And it says assault a s S a L T on the salt crazy people. So good.

[Dana Goldberg]

All right, this is from anonymous Canadian fan and patron pronouns he and him. Here is a Toronto Star article. It seems the new Department of War has issued with being caught mailing certain illicit goods to soldiers based in Bahrain. For some reason, the Dow felt it necessary to complain in writing to the supplier of said goods instead of the purchaser, who probably had to repackage the goods before forwarding them to their intended destination. The most amusing part of this is that the kegseth shit show went to the expense of preparing and sending a letter on its official D O W letterhead. Love your podcast and beans talk. Okay, we've got the link, but it says I'm just a girl in Canada trying to get everyone their vibrators. Why a Toronto sex toy store got a letter from the US Department of War.

[Allison Gill]

Oh.

[Alison Gill]

Oh my God.

[Dana Goldberg]

This is.

[Allison Gill]

Are you a little afraid of being replaced there, you big manly alpha?

[Alison Gill]

Catch.

[Allison Gill]

Craig, Seth, are you a little bit worried?

[Dana Goldberg]

God, that is so funny.

[Allison Gill]

I'm just a girl in Canada trying to get everyone their vibrators. Why a Toronto sex toy store got a letter from the Department of War. Oh my God. Thank you Canada. Thank you from our anonymous Canadian. So good emotional support, Canadian. Next up from cat pronoun she and her hi Beans babes. You asked for family stories and family brags, and I couldn't pass up a chance for both. My dad was is a lifelong Republican, which in California is certainly an interesting choice. However, he's absolutely a poster child for a Never Trumper. Best way I can illustrate how my lovely corporate father approaches MAGA spending habits is by sharing one of my favorite family stories. He used to work from home during my summer breaks, and I would often hear snippets of his side of team phone calls. I knew this particular one wasn't going great because my father doesn't yell. He gets calm and quiet when angry and currently was using a volume reserved for librarians. Then I hear him sigh and say, no, no, no. You do not get to use the word oops and million dollars in the same sentence. Needless to say, Dodge and Elon Musk was his own personal hell.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh boy.

[Allison Gill]

And now for my brag. My dad retired from corporate life several years back, got bored, and decided to semi unretire as the world's weirdest hobby. The man loves to work, and we fully expected him to pass at a desk someday and buried with his beloved Bluetooth headset. In one of his most recent projects, he worked on California's Middle Mile Broadband initiative, which aims to install 8,000 miles of fiber optics across the state to provide Internet access to those who might not have resources otherwise. As part of the project, Middle Mile partnered with several of California's tribal nations, and those nations will be receiving free access on their lands. The goal is to address Internet deserts in both metro and rural communities. While there are tons of great videos on YouTube covering the middle Mile project, I'm including a link specifically highlighting how they partnered with the Yurok tribe. I could not be prouder of my dad and his stance as a Republican with the heart and common sense. For Podpet Terrif, I've attached a picture of my daughter making the pact with our dog Cannoli in exchange for blueberries. Can you guess my little monster's breed? Hint. His parents were never supposed to meet and he is very much a whoopsie.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh my goodness, look at this dog.

[Allison Gill]

Okay, so a terrier slash Corgi. Corgi.

[Dana Goldberg]

That's what I would think.

[Allison Gill]

All right, let's see here we have Corgi and a very ambitious mini Goldendoodle.

[Alison Gill]

Oh.

[Allison Gill]

His mother was the corgi and his dad was the very ambitious mini Goldendood next door.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh my God. I really love the way some of our listeners write. It makes me Very happy.

[Allison Gill]

What a beautiful photo. And we will have the Middle Mile Broadband Initiative link in the show notes.

[Dana Goldberg]

All right, this is from Tracy. Pronouns she and her. I'm a senior citizen and so are our two dogs, Toby and Rosie. Our other dog, Red, is young, only 4 years old. Recently my husband went through open heart surgery and was off of work for a couple of months. He's back to work now, but although I'm retired, I found a part time job to help out with the unexpected medical bills. A few weeks ago, Rosie had to see the veterinarian for what I feared were bladder stones. We had another dog that had them and the symptoms were similar. I explained to the receptionist that if that's what I was, she needed surgery. We would probably have to set up payments. As it turns out, it was just a uti. And when I went to pick Rosie up, someone who had been in the waiting room and had overheard my conversation with the receptionist paid all of Rosie's bill. Oh goodness, Man, you guys.

[Alison Gill]

I know.

[Allison Gill]

Now I want to do that. I want to go hang out at the vet and do this.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh my God. They wanted to remain anonymous so I could not thank them or repay them. I was overcome with gratitude. I hear about people paying for someone's coffee that's in line behind them or a meal, but this was something else. As most pet owners know, even an office visit for something like that minor may be amount to a couple hundred dollars, as the 1 did. In fact, since I live in a very red state, there's only a small chance that this person might listen to your podcast.

[Allison Gill]

That's a very nice way of saying that. Thank you, Tracy. Oh my God.

[Dana Goldberg]

But if chance they are, I just can't thank them enough. And I hope I can pass this on to someone in the near future. In my opinion, good deeds should always be passed on, even if you aren't able to repay the one who has performed that good deed for you. Rosie's breed is pretty obvious, but you can guess Toby's and reds.

[Allison Gill]

All right, so Rosie is pretty obvious.

[Dana Goldberg]

I don't know all of these. Well, except one of them seems pretty obvious because we've got what looks like a French bulldog.

[Allison Gill]

No, the pit bull looks obvious.

[Dana Goldberg]

Totally.

[Allison Gill]

And then like a. A rottweiler lab sort of mix with the super. The dog that's looking at me like I'm Susan looks like a French bulldog. Like a Frenchie or a Frenchie French pug. All right, we have no answers. Boston terrier is the obvious one. We missed it.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh yeah.

[Allison Gill]

Toby Roddy, German Shepherd. Okay, I was close.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yes, you were.

[Allison Gill]

I said Roddy Lab. And red is Dogo Argentino and 3/4 Pit Bull.

[Adam Klassfeld]

So.

[Alison Gill]

Okay.

[Allison Gill]

Very beautiful baby.

[Dana Goldberg]

Beautiful, beautiful dog.

[Allison Gill]

Oh, that one made me cry. Oh, my gosh, Tracy, thank you so much for that. Next up, Christine Pronoun. She and her Happy New Year Leguminati. I love this podcast and the folks that write in. I'm writing today to shout out my kids, ages 10 male and 12 female. I'm a single mom with zero help from their dad. That's a problem for child support enforcement to handle and Christmas is a bit stressful. My siblings have been so generous by tending to much of the kiddos Christmas list. So additional shout out to my siblings. Christmas Day is the day kiddos open gifts for me. I've been listening to them over the year, and while I didn't get much off their list, they did get a bunch of stuff they had been wishfully mentioning that they wanted in months past, but got a maybe response when they asked. I didn't have to spend a lot, but she got the desk clock. He got the wooden sculptor's hand. Oh, my God. And other items they kind of forgot about. Their excitement. Seeing these items was so refreshing and it took the weight off. I'm so lucky to have kids that are eternally grateful and still love hanging out with their mom. Friday night movie night is a tradition going strong for more than five years. And the golden rule is the best thing I've ever taught them as it has really been the foundation for some really cool little humans. Thank you, beans queens, for being my sane news source. Please keep up the amazing work. Incredible, Christine. Oh, my gosh, you guys.

[Dana Goldberg]

I love sundogs. I think they're so cool.

[Allison Gill]

All right. Yeah. Sun dog photo on the left, left for my pod pick tax. It's a pick from a very cold morning in Minnesota. Look at that.

[Dana Goldberg]

Gorgeous. It's such a cool phenomenon. I think they're so cool. Yeah.

[Allison Gill]

I've only seen the green flash once, which is different from a sundog. To be clear, I'm not trying to say it's the same thing.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh, we were about to get some letters.

[Allison Gill]

It's our sun phenomenon here in San Diego is the green flash. But I've never seen a sundog. These are gorgeous. Thank you so much, Christine. What a great, great shout out.

[Dana Goldberg]

Nice. All right, this last one for the first day of 2026 is from Erin. Happy 17th anniversary, Brad. We married at midnight on New Year's Day. You all are the very best with a big heart. Aaron, no pronouns given. Thank you so much and happy anniversary.

[Allison Gill]

Yeah, happy anniversary, Aaron and Brad. Happy new Year, everyone. We'll be over on the beans talk in a minute. Give it a shot if you haven't yet. We're really proud of it and I think you will like it. I think you will enjoy it. Any final thoughts? I know we kind of gave them up front, didn't we?

[Dana Goldberg]

Yeah. Gave them up front. I'll just say it one more time. 2026 is going to be a fucking ride. Hold on to the people that you love. Keep this community close and just know we're going to help you get through it. Happy New Year, everyone.

[Allison Gill]

My final thought is, if you have a chance, go to DG Comedy social media and listen to her breakup letter of 2025.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh my God, I forgot to say that. Thank you so much. I did. Every year I write a breakup letter to the year, but this year I made a video. So if you are on Instagram and you don't follow me, follow me at DG Comedy and just share this thing. I'm kind of proud of it. Thank you, Alison, for saying something.

[Allison Gill]

It was so good.

[Alison Gill]

You mentioned everything.

[Allison Gill]

You hit every note.

[Alison Gill]

I was like, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Allison Gill]

Fuck you twice. 2025 and the horse you rode in on. It was so good.

[Alison Gill]

Everybody, check it out.

[Allison Gill]

DG Comedy. Follow her on all the social medias, especially Instagram. Everybody, we'll be back in your ears tomorrow.

[Alison Gill]

Thanks to Adam Classfeld.

[Allison Gill]

Until tomorrow, 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.

[Dana Goldberg]

I've been dg.

[Allison Gill]

And them's the beans. The Daily Beans is written and executive produced by Allison 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.