Kash Cooks The Books

Summary

The Daily Beans – Episode Summary

Podcast: The Daily Beans
Hosts: Allison Gill (AG), Dana Goldberg (DG)
Date: May 14, 2026
Episode Title: "Kash Cooks The Books"

Overview

This episode covers major political news with the signature wit and progressive lens of hosts Allison Gill and Dana Goldberg. The main thread centers on Kash Patel's dubious stint at the FBI, including suspect statistical claims about crime-fighting, but the show also addresses the renaming of the war in Iran, political intrigue in Nebraska's Senate race, threats against Brad Raffensperger, the ongoing fight for judicial independence, and more.

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Main Discussion Points

1. Kash Patel and FBI "Success" (04:00 – 08:00)

• Headline: Kash Patel, current FBI head, is under fire for allegedly inflating arrest statistics to bolster his image.
• Tactics:
  • Counting ICE arrests as FBI’s own.
  • Manipulating "Most Wanted" lists to make rapid captures appear more frequent.
  • Waving placards with self-congratulatory stats during Senate hearings (05:00).
• Insider Testimony:
  • Multiple law enforcement sources confirm that new FBI policies artificially boost numbers.
  • Quote (07:20, unnamed official): “They’re absolutely padding the stats and claiming arrests they would not have claimed previously.”
• Context: Ongoing concern over Patel’s drinking and absenteeism as reported by staff.
• Hosts’ Take:
  • AG: “Success at your job doesn’t mean that it’s cool to be drunk all the time. And, like, that’s that. It’s not an excuse.” (05:38)

2. Death Threat Against Brad Raffensperger (08:00 – 09:40)

• Georgia Secretary of State and Republican gubernatorial candidate Brad Raffensperger received a credible death threat, a day before a suspicious package led to a campaign event evacuation.
• Quote: “Mr. Raffensperger has been the subject of hundreds of threats since the 2020 presidential election when he bucked Donald Trump’s efforts to reverse his defeat.” (08:10, AG)
• Hosts’ Observation: The threats originate from extremist MAGA circles, not Democrats.

3. Nebraska Senate Race Tactics (09:50 – 12:30)

• Backstory: Nebraska Democrats strategically endorse an Independent (Dan Osborne) to beat Republican incumbent Pete Ricketts.
• Primary Maneuver:
  • Cindy Burbank, a Democrat, wins primary, pledges to drop out and back Osborne.
  • The party worked to avoid the "spoiler" effect, fending off a potential Republican plant.
• Quote: “This is three dimensional chess…playing a little dirty, right? But within the rules. This isn’t illegal. But fuck you.” (12:31, DG)

4. Iran War Renaming Shenanigans (13:00 – 15:50)

• The Pentagon may rename the war in Iran to "Operation Sledgehammer" if the ceasefire collapses, a transparent ploy to reset the 60-day War Powers Act clock.
• Quote: “You can’t just rename a war every 60 days to get around the fucking War Powers Resolution.” (14:31, AG)
• Congressional vote to curtail Trump’s war powers fails narrowly (49–50), with John Fetterman as the sole Democrat voting with Republicans.

5. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson Defends Judicial Independence (15:50 – 17:27)

• At an SMU event, Justice Jackson urges defense of an independent judiciary, stating such attacks are attacks on democracy itself.
• Quote: “‘Equal justice under law’ is a key tenet to freedom of our society. And in order to have that, you have to have an independent judiciary…” (16:00, quoting Jackson)
• Conservative justices (Alito, Gorsuch, Thomas) publicly rebuke Jackson’s criticism.

6. Rand Paul’s Son’s Anti-Semitic Tirade (17:27 – 21:38)

• William Paul, Rand Paul’s son, drunkenly hurled anti-Semitic insults and conspiracy theories at Rep. Mike Lawler in a public bar.
• Inaccurately conflates Jewish identity and policy with political actions in the Middle East, called out as anti-Semitic by Lawler.
• Leaves bar after tripping over stool, attempting a weak apology.
• Quote: “To interrupt an interview with a journalist and go on an anti-Semitic tirade and then trip over your own dick on the way out…Rand Paul, get a hold of your son.” (20:36, AG)

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• On FBI stat-padding:
  “Comparing 2025 to 2024 is not apples to apples…Kash is definitely engineering things to pad his stats.” — unnamed current/former FBI officials (07:20)

• On anti-Semitism and political scapegoating:
  “When you attach all Jews to Israel, because that’s what you’re saying––that is, that’s when there’s war crimes happening, then you are going to blame all Jews for those war crimes.” – AG (21:18)

• On strategic Democratic maneuvers:
  “Oh my God, this is brilliant…This is three dimensional chess.” — DG (12:25–12:31)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [04:00–08:00] Kash Patel’s FBI number-padding scandal and drinking allegations (clips from hearing/discussion)
• [08:00–09:40] Brad Raffensperger’s latest credible death threat
• [09:50–12:30] Nebraska Democratic party’s coordinated strategy in Senate race
• [13:00–15:50] Iran war renaming, Senate vote on war powers, and Fetterman’s role
• [15:50–17:27] Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson's call to defend judicial independence
• [17:27–21:38] Rand Paul’s son’s drunken antisemitic outburst
• [25:56 onward] Good News segment (listener submissions and lighter stories)

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Tone and Atmosphere

• Signature snark: Witty, candid, sometimes irreverent takes (“You can’t just rename a war every 60 days to get around the fucking War Powers Resolution.”)
• Community engagement: Frequent mentions of fundraising events, listener “Leguminati,” and promotion of grassroots activism.
• Political urgency: Clear concern for threats to democracy, judicial independence, and rights of marginalized people.

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Listener Engagement & Good News ([25:56–40:10])

• Recap and accolades of the “California Blue Wave” fundraising event:
  • Raised ~$60,000 with notable performances (Rufus Wainwright, Lisa Loeb, Jean Smart, Andy Richter).
• Good news and community stories:
  • Updates on local activism, uplifting anecdotes, listener pets, personal triumphs, and activism shout-outs.
  • Prominent support for trans rights, LGBTQ history, and calls for continued vigilance against GOP-led attacks.
• Listener-submitted stories ranged from awkward Invisalign mishaps at college orientations, to heartwarming tales of music camps and overcoming adversity.

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Conclusion

This episode offers the latest in progressive political news—balancing hard-hitting exposés on government and right-wing shenanigans with moments of humor, fellowship, and grassroots inspiration. The community focus remains strong, with constant encouragement to participate, resist, and support each other in turbulent times.

For more, visit: dailybeanspod.com/contact and join the Leguminati in submitting your own good news or stories for the show.

Transcript

[A]

I'm Brian Caram, and I've spent decades covering politics. Now I'm taking you behind the scenes, one interview at a time.

[B]

Join us as each week Brian confronts the issues that matter, posing the questions you wish you could ask. No filter, no agenda, just the truth.

[A]

We're not here for sound bites. We're here for substance. Join me, Brian Caram, every week as we cut through the noise and get straight to it. This is Just Ask the Question where curiosity will lead us to the facts.

[B]

Subscribe now on your favorite podcast platform and remember, when you want answers, all you have to do is just ask the question. Msw media. News.

[A]

We're swearing. Daily beans. Daily beans. Daily beans. Daily beans.

[B]

Hello and welcome to the Daily beans for Thursday, May 14, 2026. Today, Kash Patel is lying about his success stats at the FBI. Big surprise. The Pentagon is considering changing the name of the war in Iran if the ceasefire fails. Which is a weird headline given there was an active naval blockade this whole time, meaning there can't have been a ceasefire. But whatever. A bill to end the war in the Senate failed because Fetterman voted against it. Cindy Burbank won the Democratic nomination for Senate in Nebraska, and we'll tell you why that's interesting. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson is asking the public to support judicial independence because it's under attack right now. Brad Raffensperger has been hit with multiple death threats, and Rand Paul's son William hurled drunken anti Semitic insults at Rep. Mike Lawler the other night. I'm Allison Gill.

[A]

And I'm Dana Goldberg.

[B]

Hey. I made it back after all of my weird traveling things. Thank you for covering for me.

[A]

I did not even tell people what happened. Now I can, if you're all right with it. Allison's train broke down while she was on it in Irvine and then didn't know when it was going to start, if she was going to have to rent a car. Then she gets to Los Angeles and I get a text that says, hey, I checked into the wrong hotel. Can you cover me on beans talk, too? And I was like, yeah, you bet.

[B]

There's two hotels with the same name within, like, two miles of each other. And I couldn't go to the other one. And it was just that. Took another half hour to work out. Finally got to the room, had to run right to the theater and start planning what we were going to say as we introduced all of these amazing people that we got to meet. Oh, my God, the event was so good.

[A]

For those of you that were there. I know you can attest to this. Alison and I had the pleasure of hosting it together, which is a dream. And it was Rufus Wainwright and Lisa Loeb and John Fugl saying, an incredible artist named Iman Jordan. Who else was there last night? Jean Smart, Andy Richter. I mean, the lineup was just lit. I had a blast with you. It was just. It felt like a really seamless show, and it was really successful for what they were trying to do for California Blue Wave.

[B]

It was great. And a lot of that has to do with the Leguminati who turned up and turned out. And we're going to go over all of that and show you some great little clips and things from the night over on Beans Talk today. And just thank you all so much to everybody who showed up. We were able to raise about $60,000.

[A]

So nice.

[B]

That's truly incredible. We're still raising more. Our goal is a hundred thousand if you want to help. I mean, the concert's over, but you can still donate. And that'[e-mail] concert. So that's Blue WA. California.org concert is where you can donate. All right, everybody, we have a ton of news we have to get to. Let's hit the hot notes. Hot notes. All right, first up, Kash Patel is a hot mess, everybody. Just a hot mess. Mississippi now reports Kash Patel sidestepped months of unflattering insider accounts of his leadership in a hearing on Tuesday. Dana, I think you played some clips from that hearing.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

So instead, like when he was cornered about his drinking and stuff, Mississippi now says he boasted of the bureau almost doubling its number of arrests under his tenure and of capturing the world's, quote, 10 most wanted villains at a record clip. He sounded a familiar refrain as he sought to protect his job, dismissing senators, concerns over media reports about his behavior, and waving a large placard around that he said carried statistical proof that his leadership of the world's premier law enforcement agency has been like, nothing less than stellar. But Dana Patel's FBI has imposed new policies that artificially inflate these numbers and overstate the bureau's progress in stemming crime. And that's according to a half a dozen law enforcement sources with knowledge.

[A]

That feels legit. That feels legit.

[B]

So we had two dozen people reporting on his drinking intoxication and unable to be woken up after. After drinking out the night before. And now we have, what is it? Half a dozen law enforcement people with knowledge getting polygraphed. These inflated numbers. Yeah, for sure. For example, here's how. Here's how he's been lying about this. And by the way, success at your job doesn't mean that it's cool to be drunk all the time. And, like, that's that. It's not an excuse anyway.

[A]

No.

[B]

For example, the FBI began counting thousands and thousands of arrests of immigrants by ICE that occurred when FBI agents happened to be accompanying the federal immigration officers who made the arrests as part of surges targeting the Minneapolis area, Memphis, and other cities. Such cases are not ones the Bureau had previously recorded as a Bureau arrest. ICE counts those because they were behind

[A]

the cop being like, that's right, man. You're under arrest. When he said, that's right.

[B]

I was there. I was 10ft away, and, you know, I saw the Whipple Federal Building on television, and I'm in the FBI, so everything that they did counts. So it's just ridiculous. And so when you hear ICE saying, We arrested 60,000 people and you hear the Bureau, you hear Kash Patel saying, we arrested 33,000 people, that's double dipping.

[A]

Yep. Yes, it is.

[B]

You can only count those once somewhere. So, Ms. Now did a review of changes in the FBI's most wanted list during Patel's tenure after he used that as a bragging point and found that the FBI manipulated that iconic Bureau program to falsely suggest rapid progress in that time. The Bureau quickly added the names of some fugitive just hours or days before they captured them. So he's got the 10 most wanted list. You've got a guy you just arrested or you're about to pick up. So you pull somebody that you can't catch off of the wanted list, put that guy on there, and then arrest him, and then say, we got somebody on the FBI's most wanted list.

[A]

That's absolutely insane.

[B]

Quote, they're absolutely patting the stats and claiming arrests they would not have claimed previously. That's what one current FBI official said, quote, so comparing 2025 to 2024 is not apples to apples. A former FBI official said agents inside the Bureau complain frequently about Patel's bogus arrest numbers. Quote, Cash is definitely engineering things to pad his stats, the former official said. And again, that's not going to get you out of trouble.

[A]

No.

[B]

For not being able to be woken up in the morning because you were out at the poodle club.

[A]

Not going to sober you the night before. All right, everyone. This is from the Times. Brad Raffensperger. As we know, the Republican Secretary of State in Georgia and a candidate for governor received a manifesto deemed to be a credible Threat on his life on Monday, this is the day before a suspicious object disrupted a campaign event in Macon, Georgia. This is what campaign officials have said. The four page handwritten document included a photograph of Mr. Raffensperger with the word Boom written across his forehead. Campaign officials said it was multi page. It was obviously targeting the Secretary of State. This is from Ryan Mahoney, a campaign spokesman. That's what he told the New York Times. Mr. Raffensperger has been the subject of hundreds of threats since the 2020 presidential election when he bucked Donald Trump's efforts to reverse his defeat. So, yeah, those threats on his life, they can be attributed to the President of the United States. Now, the letter was mailed to the sheriff's office in Clay County, Mississipp, Mississippi, which notified the FBI officials with Mr. Raffensperger's state office and his campaign said other agencies notified included the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Georgia State Patrol and the Department of Investigation, the Georgia State Patrol and the Department of Homeland Security, all of those. Now, officials also beefed up security for Mr. Raffatzberger and his family. He's a lifelong Republican and he announced his candidacy for governor last year, entering a very crowded primary. FBI agents were drunk. I'm sorry? FBI agents were aware of the incident. Not drunk, but said it was being handled by the local sheriff's office, according to an FBI spokesperson. But Kash Patel will take credit for that, I'm sure. Now, the morning rally resumed after the bomb scare, but it was moved outside the airport.

[B]

Man, he just, he keeps getting it from, from these MAGA people who are super mad that he wouldn't, you know, do a coup with Trump.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, just to be clear, I don't believe those death threats are coming from Democrats.

[B]

No, no, not at all. All right, here's a really interesting story from the Times, and this is about the Nebraska primaries that happened on Tuesday. Nebraska Democrats Tuesday night maneuvered toward a favorable matchup in a high profile Senate race and were locked in a close primary contest for a battleground House seat that could be important to the party's hopes of regaining control of Congress this fall. Let's talk about the Senate seat. Democratic voters have been urging the party to pull out all the stops in opposing President Trump. And the Republican Party, which has pursued aggressive, orthodox strategies like mid decade redistricting to hold onto power. So they've responded now with their own gerrymanders. And in Nebraska, rather than back a doomed Democratic bid for Senate, party leaders played smart endorsing Dan Osborne. And so The Democratic Party in Nebraska has endorsed Dan Osborne, the independent candidate who stands a better chance of defeating Senator Pete Ricketts, the Republican incumbent in November. Dan Osborne, the independent, also ran for Senate as an Independent in 2024. We put up a competitive showing, but fell just a little bit short. And when William Forbes, a Democrat accused of being a Republican plant who could split the general election vote and hinder Mr. Osborne when he entered the primary, the state Democratic Party quickly threw its support behind an alternative option, a Democrat. Even though the Democrats have backed the independent, they threw in a Democratic Party person named Cindy Burbank, who promised to win and then drop out of the general election and consolidate support for Mr. Hussle. And that's what happened last night. She won the primary Tuesday night easily. And in a text message afterwards, she said, maybe joking, maybe not, that she hoped Mr. Ricketts would simply drop out that night. That would be sweetness, she wrote.

[A]

Oh, my God, that's funny.

[B]

She also said she's kind of disappointed because of the speed of her victory over Mr. Forbes. She said the race was called six minutes after polls close. It wasn't even a contest. You took all the fun out of it. But she recommitted to her pledge to exit the race. Her opponent in the Democratic primary was a Republican.

[A]

Unbelievable.

[B]

Running as a Democrat. So they threw her name in there. She killed him. That now so good. And now she's going to drop out and back the independent who has a much better chance of winning and is endorsed by the Democratic Party. She said, I don't want to split the ballot. I have no expectations of being able to win in November. So she's going to drop.

[A]

Oh, my God, this is brilliant.

[B]

Finally playing a little like taking the gloves off, playing.

[A]

This is three dimensional chess.

[B]

Is that what they fucking playing a little dirty, right? But within the rules, this isn't this. None of this is illegal. But fuck you,

[A]

comma, but fuck you. I like that.

[B]

I love it.

[A]

All right, next up from NBC, the US Military is considering officially renaming the war in Iran Operation Sledgehammer. If the current ceasefire collapses and President Donald Trump decides to restart major combat operations, can Peter Gabriel Sue? This is from two US Officials I know. Where are we at on this date, by the way? When is the 90 days that they have to get congressional approval?

[B]

Oh, the 60 days. It's a. Oh, okay, it's gone. But they're saying that the war, the first part is over, so they want to rename it.

[A]

Give me a break. You can't rename it you have to dead name it. It's the war. You're not allowed to call it something different just because you want to. You need to honor what the original name. Fuck these guys, all right? The discussion about possibly replacing Operation Epic Fury with Operation Sledgehammer underscore how seriously the administration is considering resuming the war starting on February 20that was started February 28 and could allow Trump to argue that it restarts that 60 day clock. Like Allison said, that requires congressional approval. The Trump administration declared an end to Operation Epic Fury. Of course they did. Mission accomplished. After the US And Iran agreed to a ceasefire in early April to pursue diplomatic negotiations. Now, at the time, the administration informed Congress that hostilities with Iran had terminated, but the Pentagon had continued to describe the conflict with Iran as Operation Epic Fury, including when providing public updates. One Pentagon official said the epic fury continues and that the ceasefire simply has paused major combat operations. Any new military combat operations against Iran would be conducted under a new name and operation. This is a White House official familiar with the discussions. And from the administration's point of view, this would effectively restart the clock with Congress.

[B]

You can't just rename a war every 60 days to get around the fucking War Powers Resolution.

[A]

I know, I know. Operation Sledgehammer is not the only name under consideration, by the way. According to officials. Yeah. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters last week that Operation Epic Fury is over. The Senate rejected another attempt by Democrats to limit President Trump's ability to use military force against Iran on Wednesday. But one new Republican senator voted in favor of advancing the measure. Who is this? A motion to discharge the resolution from committee failed by a vote of 49 to 50. GOP senators Rand Paul of Kentucky, Susan Collins of Maine, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska voted with most Democrats in favor of moving forward, while Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was the sole Democrat to oppose. Now, in this situation, you should not be surprised. Murkowski's not running again. Right. Like, isn't she?

[B]

No, I think.

[A]

Is she?

[B]

I don't.

[A]

I don't remember. You have to look that up. We know Susan Collins is. And she's in trouble. So it's not surprising to me that all of a sudden she's like, I'm voting with the Dems. Okay, Right.

[B]

Well, they have just. They know exactly how many people can say no.

[A]

Right.

[B]

But, yeah, as of right now, May 2026, Murkowski is not up for reelection. Her current term runs out in 2029.

[A]

Right, okay, got it, got it. But. And of course, we know there's one Democrat that voted with the Republicans. Who is it? Alison Gill, of course.

[B]

It's John Fetterman. We gotta get five seats. We have to flip five Senate seats to get around him and avoid a power sharing agreement in case he flips, which is totally. You can't. Yeah, I'm with you. I'm sorry, Republicans. You want to call something by a different name? Sorry, that's dei. All right, that's woke. Anyway, next up from Politico, Justice Ketanji Brown. Jackson urged Americans on Tuesday to defend the judicial system against salvos that jeopardize its independence, warning that such threats have the potential to do serious damage to American democracy. Quote, equal justice under law is a key tenet to freedom of our society. And in order to have that, you have to have an independent judiciary, one that is not beholden to the political branches or beholden to people. That's what she said during an appearance before hundreds of students at Southern Methodist University. She went on to say, I just wish that people really focused on that and therefore stood up in some ways for the judiciary. When people judges are being attacked and undermined, that is really an attack on our society. Just last week, after Jackson objected to the high court agreeing to speed up the impact of a recent Voting Rights act ruling so that it would be more likely to go into effect this year, a trio of conservative justices took umbrage at her claim that they were allowing, quote, principles to give way to power. Sam Alito, joined by Gorsuch and Thomas, called one of her claims baseless and insulting and accused her of leveling a groundless and utterly irresponsible charge. Of course they would say that about her.

[A]

Of course they did. So tired of them. All right, check this one out. Now, this is from Notice William Paul. He's the son of Senator Rand Paul. He drunkenly hurled anti Semitic insults at Republican Rep. Mike Lawlor at a Capitol Hill bar and restaurant on Tuesday evening. This was in full view of a reporter. The younger Paul, who introduced himself as the Republican senator. I'm the Republican senator, son. Confronted Lawler about Rep. Thomas Massie's GOP primary election in Kentucky next week. William Paul was seated a couple of seats down from Lawlor at a restaurant bar and interrupted a conversation between Notice and Lawler to say that if Massie loses, it's going to be because of, quote, your people. Lawlor asked Paul, my people? And this young Paul responded, yeah, you Jews. Do you think I'm Jewish? Lawler said, I'm not. He said, oh, wow, I'M sorry for calling you a Jew. That's what Paul said. Mr. Drunky Drunkenton. Yeah, I don't know where. He then continued on a tirade about how Jews were anti American, how Lawlor and his Jewish supporters served Israel more than America. Lawler repeatedly pushed back and engaged with Paul, defending his support of Israel and told Paul he was being anti Semitic. And he was. And a lot of that is being fueled because Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal. And I quote, paul Singer serves Israeli interests, not American interests. This is what again, this is the younger Paul, his son, referring to the GOP mega donor who is helping bankroll an anti Massey super pac. Singer happens to be Jewish. Restore Freedom pac, which is a pro Massey super pac, has run an ad titled LGBTQ Mafia that had a picture of Singer with a rainbow star of David behind him. Massie, a close ally of Senator Paul and Kentucky's delegation is in a tight race against a Trump backed primary challenger. William Paul went on to tell Lawler and it quote, needs to watch more Tucker Carlson. He also said that Massie and his father, Senator Paul, were the only lawmakers who care about the United States. Paul then shoved his finger in Lawler's face, saying, don't put words in my mouth, Mike Lawler. I never said that. Okay. He then began to complain about Lawler's push to raise the salt cap s a l t in last year's reconciliation bill. When Lawler said, and I quote, please leave us alone, Paul turned around and flipped him off. He said, did you just give me the finger? And little Paul goes, I'm sorry, Yeah, I did. I'm just really drunk. I'm gonna leave. He then paid his tab and started walking out. On his way out, he knocked his barstool down and tripped over it. I mean, to interrupt an interview with a journalist and go on an anti Semitic tirade and then trip over your own dick on the way out. Ryan. Paul, get a hold of your son.

[B]

Why are men. What is happening?

[A]

Oh, my God.

[B]

Oh, these Republicans are wild.

[A]

I'm a little confused on that though. I have to do some research into Massie and stuff because I have so much respect for him with the Epstein stuff, but I didn't. Is he super anti lgbtq You?

[B]

I mean, he is a Republican.

[A]

I mean, is a Republican. Yeah. So I guess he's gonna. I mean, he's got a line.

[B]

That ad with the rainbow star of David. What?

[A]

I know.

[B]

LGBTQ plus Mafia. All right, thank you for that weird story. And you're right, man. This, a lot of this anti Semitism is coming from what baby Netanyahu is doing.

[A]

I know when you disparage an entire population, regardless of what's going on, when you talk about a certain population a certain way, and that is attached when you attach all Jews to Israel, all Jews to Israel, because that's what you're saying that that is, that's when there's war crimes happening, then you are going to blame all Jews for those war crimes.

[B]

But I gotta say, separate and apart for, you know, just for our whole lives, somebody who's like, yeah, you people, the Jews, I mean, that's just plain old fucking anti Semitism. Yeah. You know, Jesus. Sorry. I'll leave. I'm drunk. Trip fall. Oh, my God. All right, everybody, we've got some good news that we have to get to, but we have to take a quick break. Stick around. We'll be right back after these messages.

[A]

We'll be right back.

[B]

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[A]

I'm Brian Caram, and I've spent decades covering politics. Now I'm taking you behind the scenes, one interview at a time.

[B]

Join us as each week Brian confronts the issues that matter, posing the questions you wish you could ask. No filter, no agenda, just the truth.

[A]

We're not here for sound bites. We're here for substance. Join me, Brian Caram, every week as we cut through the noise and get straight to it. This is just Ask the question for curiosity. Will Lead us to the facts.

[B]

Subscribe now on your favorite podcast platform and remember, when you want answers, all you have to do is just ask the question. Hey everybody, welcome back. It's time for the good news. Who likes good news?

[A]

Everyone.

[B]

Then good news.

[A]

Everyone.

[B]

In your near good news. And if you have any bit of good news, big or small, if you were at the event last night, send in your photos, tell us your stories. The good news could be anything. It can be a fun story that you like to share with friends when you're sitting around chatting. It can be your favorite joke. It can be misheard song lyrics, something you were today years old when you learned I love those. I was today years old when I learned this. Whatever it is, send it to us. So you can also give a shout out to yourself or a loved one or a nonprofit you want us to know about, or a government program that's helped you or a loved one. If you're one of those couple hundred thousand people that just got their student loans forgiven. We want to hear from you from that old Biden program by the way. Want to hear about that? And all you got to do to get your stuff read on the air is attach a photo. It can be your pod pet. It can be an adoptable pet in your area, a random animal on the Internet, photos from our event at the El Rey Theater Tuesday night, photos from no kings rallies, your favorite signs. It can be stuff you're making or creating, what you're growing in your garden. Do you have chickens? We to know about it? Are you crocheting? Let's see what you made. You got goats? Always send pictures. Goats, goats, goats, goats. Goats. Goats, goats, goats. Send it to us dailybean spot.com click on Contact. First up, here's your good trouble Good trouble. Today an anonymous band director and Kelly pronouns, they and them reached out about the same story. Watertown school board votes to remove LGBTQ history piece from a student concert and we'll have a link to the story from WMTV 15 I saw this.

[A]

I'm so sick of this shit.

[B]

I'm a high school band director. There's a piece of music for band called A Mother of a Revolution by Omar Thomas. It celebrates the 50th anniversary of Stonewall, the Stonewall riots and Marsha Johnson. Another school in Wisconsin planned to play the piece. The director followed board policy on controversial topics, informed parents and let them opt out. Still, the board intervened and eventually did not allow them to play the music. At the board meeting there were 130 citizen comments. All but three were to let them play at the start of the board discussion. A board member used the disruptions by the audience as a reason not to let them play. Another board member said they couldn't play the piece because it would turn people away from Christianity. Oh my God. That's the most anti Christian thing I've ever heard. This is very messed up. It's a very messed up situation. Another reason why it's important to vote in every election no matter how small. My band is playing the same piece in less than 24 hours. Hopefully no one interrupts the concert. And from Kelly they them we're so grateful for the outpouring of support for our WUSD students and teachers. We're receiving so many messages and comments asking what folks can do to help. At the moment, we're working on multiple fronts to continue resisting the small minded bigotry of our school board. If you're anxious to help, here are three great ways share awareness of the story, follow our page for updates and share it with friends. If you're a lawyer or know someone who'd be willing to provide some pro bono advice, please contact us socialjusticewatertown.net and we have all of their socials links to them in the show notes. If you're a lawyer you can help. Please reach out. This is and then Kelly sent some pics. We will not be erased. Beautiful sign. I'm imagining for a no king's protest

[A]

and then a sweet pup in second position.

[B]

In second position he is. And the ear. His ear is in third I think with this.

[A]

Oh my God. So sweet.

[B]

Cute you guys. Thank you for sending that in and helping us help you shed some light on this absolute bullshit.

[A]

Yeah, absolutely. All right. This is from Effie Pronouns she and her Good morning Leguminati. I recently had to take a bit of a break from following along day to day. Or at least I gathered as much from not actually getting around to listening to the beans for a week until I realized I might just be exhausted with the flood of shit for a bit. I want to thank you deeply for your clear stance in defense of trans people in a time where giving a fuck no longer can be taken for granted. I woke up from some PTSD nightmare this morning and saw a substack notification that deeply, deeply scared me. While no neuron's neuro is being kept alive on pure amphetamines, his DOJ is trying to make providers of gender affirming health care hand over identifying information of all the trans kids they treat I don't have to tell you that making a list of all members of an already dehumanized minority group ends in genocide. But more concretely, first they've come for the providers to investigate insurance fraud. Next, they will come for the parents to investigate child abuse. Trans people have been trying to raise the alarm for a long time now, until the warnings just became one of the many ongoing background noises while our world continues to be set on fire. But people have died, and more people will die the harder it becomes to exist and the longer it's made impossible. I realize there's only so much good that can come from preaching to the choir, but I would like to ask every cisgender legume listening to at least subscribe to the aforementioned substack. It's called Transitix. We'll have a link to that in the show Notes Transitix. And it does an excellent job tracking anti trans policies across the US I'm in no way affiliated with them, but none of us can afford to turn our gaze away for even a second anymore. Trans people need CIS people to actually care about our persecution and actively look into what is happening under your noses. The damage being done to our community will last a generation. If the Nazis were to give up and fuck off Tomorrow we have a link in the show notes. As podpet tax, I humbly offer the two loves of my life living with my little brother. Amy in the red tie is a Boren Fox mix, so there's some sort of blank in there. And Lizzie with the green bow tie is a blank. Oh, my God. Thanks in advance for all your wonderful work and keeping up with the kkk. I know it takes more to do than I could ever hope to give. I'll be back. Love, Effie.

[B]

Okay. Chihuahua and some sort of poodle.

[A]

Yep, I see Yorkie.

[B]

Okay, let's see what we got here. Oh, Terrier and maltipoo.

[A]

Okay, There you go.

[B]

Oh, they're adorable.

[A]

Cutie pies. Cutie pies, man.

[B]

Thank you so much for that. Very well. Well said, Effie. Geez. Yeah, Transitix. And follow Aaron Reed at Aaron in the Morning as well. Subscribe to both of those substacks. All right, next up for Marty. He, him, Dearest Ag and dg, the queens of all beans. All beans. That seems like a lot of responsibility. My husband and I are the couple who sent our wedding photo to you three years ago. We got married 50 years after starting a friendship in college. Since then, he was diagnosed with cancer in his right lung, and he's currently being treated by the wizardly cancer fighting docs and nurse heroes at MD Anderson in Houston on our flight home to abq. Hi Dana. Last week I was reading John Fugelsang's fantastic book. I set the book down during the drink service and our flight attendant picked the book up saying it caught her eye. I highly recommended it. She nodded, smiled and continued drink service. An hour later she dropped by my seat again to let me know she'd ordered the book from her local library. She smiled and thanked me with a conspiratorial wink. We busy. Resistance fighters are everywhere, even on flights from Texas. My pod pet tariff is a photo of the two adorable stuffed teddy bears my husband bought us at the MD Anderson gift shop on our recent visit. They will stay by during his cancer journey. Thank you for everything you've done to save democracy, humanity, goodness, kindness, justice and the real American way. Marty. Thank you. These teddy bears are adorable and you know, sending you all the love there. I know that it can get really. It can get really heavy sometimes. So yeah, I'm glad you've got these little babies. Some really big love there.

[A]

Thank you. Thank you. All right, next up we have Leah Pronoun. She and they hello Beans Queens. I found you on Blue sky during the big switch from the doomed place and have been listening religiously ever since. Thank you for all you do. I wanted to share what I did last weekend. I'm still buzzing. I was invited by some friends who were hosting a three day folk music camp on their farm. I went, not sure what I would get out of it because I don't really play a musical instrument, but I brought along a secondhand melodeon that had been given to me. I'm really glad I went. The people there were so positive and encouraging. The friends who invited were excited to see the melodeon and encouraged me to join in. When I explained that I couldn't play, I could only barely play a scale. They said that even droning along in the background would greatly improve the sound in the room. Then when it came time to learn the first tune, I knew I was way out of my depth. But one of the guys there just said I have a tune for you and took me aside for a private lesson. He was so patient and said he really enjoyed teaching me. Then when I was taking a break, someone came out from one of the other groups. He had just arrived and tried to join in but felt overwhelmed. So I paid it forward teaching him the tune I just learned. I met some wonderful people and immersed myself in music and When I couldn't keep up with the melodeon, I just sang the tunes and we'll figure out to play them later. I feel so motivated now. Learning to play feels so possible. I'm telling you all, get out there. Just find your people and do the thing. Tax is a pick of my melodeon and one of my baby robins in their nest above the bar at the farm.

[B]

Oh, wow. Hi, baby robins. Look at their little mouths. Oh, my goodness.

[A]

So cute.

[B]

They're hungies. They need food. All right, next up from she Her California Rising was a great night. Thank you. And there's a picture of that looks like the final song with Lawrence Juber playing the guitar. He's the guitarist. Paul McCartney's friend from Wings. Rufus Wainwright and Lisa Loeb sang Across the Universe. It was the cool. One of the cool, coolest things I've ever seen in my whole life.

[A]

Yeah, it was pretty amazing.

[B]

Just the whole night was so great. Thank you for that. Anonymous. Next up, Jeffrey G. Ladies. It was such a good show tonight. Slash last night. You too. Johnny F. Fugal saying. Andy Richter, Lisa Loeb. Amazing. It felt like I was back in college.

[A]

Same.

[B]

Gotta say though, Lawrence Juber on the ax was incredible.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

Days of Sam Bora, Eddie Van Halen, slash. You name it. Anyway, thanks for hosting the show. It was pretty awesome. For funsies, here's a photo of Queen Jean Smart. I saw fangirling. Yes, you did.

[A]

She was so sweet. Gina's so lovely. She was so lovely with us last night. Truly. Yeah. All right, here we have from Dani S pronouncing her dearest queens of the beans. I hope this lands like a little ray of sunshine in the middle of whatever fresh chaos this week has served up. Consider it also a gentle cautionary tale. DG Monday found me strolling in the sun drenched streets of downtown Boulder, feeling like the coolest version of myself. I was sipping a golden milk from the Boulder, uh, Dashanbe.

[B]

Sure.

[A]

Dashanbe teahouse. Almond milk, coconut milk, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, clove honey. That sounds delicious. By the way. Danny, that's my jam. Sweet curry in a cup. Slightly odd and completely delicious. I'm always up for something different. And this delivered. We were in Boulder for my youngest son, freshly accepted to University of Colorado, Boulder for graduate school. This is a kid number five out of five to graduate school. For a girl who had three children before her 21st birthday, that felt like a mic drop in slow motion. Yeah, these weren't just any strangers we were meeting. These were his people, the faculty, the staff who will advise him, mentor him, and shape the next chapter of his life. First impressions that genuinely mattered. We toured the campus like we owned it. Laughing, chatting, shaking hands. I caught a few side eyes along the way and chalked it up to entirely to my effortless cool mom energy. They just don't know what to do with all this, I thought. Thought. Then came lunch. In a move that only fellow mid-50s orthodontic patients will truly appreciate, I executed the classic cafeteria retainer in the napkin maneuver, discreetly popping out my Invisalign with the practice nonchalance of someone who has absolutely done this in public before and is very cool about it. I look down. Not slightly yellow, not a subtle hint of tint. Neon, screaming, luminous yellow. I had spent three hours shaking hands and making first impressions on my son's future advisors and colleagues, smiling my most radiant, most confident, most aggressively neon yellow smile the whole time. Fucking turmeric. And it's true. This shit will die. Anything. And now for my pod pet tariff. Allow me to present the illustrious Phyllis Dilleresque Gail. She's a. That has to be a silky chicken and a total diva who knows exactly how fabulous she is. Thanks for everything you do do.

[B]

No, that's not a silky.

[A]

It's not. Oh, you're right. Because of the feet.

[B]

Nope, nope. That is a polish, and they are amazing.

[A]

Oh, my God, it's super cute. It's a Polish cross. So maybe it's a silky chicken in a Polish.

[B]

There we go. There we go. Polish cross. Phyllis Diller for sure.

[A]

Oh, my God, that's so awesome. And trust me, I am being hyper vigilant about my Invisalign. I will not even drink anything but water with them in because I know the dangers of turmeric for sure.

[B]

Yeah, that. That's a great story. Yes. Anyway, amazing story. Thank you so much. The yellow Invisalign. Oh, my God. Turmeric will do it every time. You're right. You're right, Dana. You are so right.

[A]

You need it.

[B]

Everybody, thank you so much for sending all of your stuff in. Please keep sending in photos and stuff from the event. We would love to hear from you if you were there. We know that there. We know know that that audience was. There was a lot of Daily Beans listening.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

Audience. So it's truly, truly an incredible night. Send those in. Any other good news you have, send it to us dailybeanspod.com, click on Contact. Do you have any final thoughts, my friend?

[A]

I do not.

[B]

All right. Everybody. We'll be back tomorrow. Until then, 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 themselves. 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 msw media.com MSW Media. Hi, I'm Frances Collier. And I'm Angela V. Shelton. And we're Frangela. You know what you need in your life? The Final Word podcast. Yes, you do. That's right. It is the final word on all things political and pop cultural, where we make real news, real funny, where we inspire you so you can resist. Subscribe and get a new episode of the Final Word podcast each week. It's the news we think you need to hear.

[A]

That's right. We think you need to hear it.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

It's what we say.

[A]

So.

[B]

That's right. And because all we do is give. Every Thursday, you can listen to our hysterical podcast, Idiot of the Week. We round up the stupid. Because you know what? Somebody has to. Okay. All we do is give.