My Other SCIF Is A Signal Chat (feat. Adam Klasfeld)

Summary

Podcast Summary: "My Other SCIF Is A Signal Chat (feat. Adam Klasfeld)" – The Daily Beans

Release Date: April 22, 2025

Hosts: Alison Gill and Dana Goldberg
Guest: Adam Klasfeld

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Introduction

In this episode of The Daily Beans, hosts Alison Gill and Dana Goldberg delve into a series of pressing political and social issues, ranging from high-profile legal cases to significant policy changes. The conversation is punctuated by their characteristic blend of progressive insights and sharp wit, ensuring listeners are both informed and engaged.

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High-Profile Legal and Political Developments

1. Pete Hegseth’s Signal Chat Controversy

The episode opens with a discussion about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who allegedly participated in a private Signal chat where he shared sensitive information about upcoming strikes in Yemen. The chat, named "Defense Team Huddle," was created on his personal phone, leading to a breach of protocol.

• Dana Goldberg [06:56]: "That's a great question. And that would be karmic and beautiful. I hope it's protected. I hope no one ever finds out."
• Alison Gill [07:04]: "Hegseth is trying to get out in front of some forthcoming reports that we don't have yet that are apparently total."

This leak has prompted the White House to seek a replacement for Hegseth, with Republican representatives like Congressman Bacon and Senator Roger Wicker advocating for his resignation.

2. RFK Jr.’s Controversial Remarks on Autism

The hosts address the backlash faced by Health and Human Services Secretary RFK Jr. following his remarks about autistic individuals.

• Dana Goldberg [10:36]: "These comments were so out of line and I'm glad there's pushback from all over the place."
• Alison Gill [11:12]: "Autism is a preventable disease—an assertion that lacks scientific backing."

The Autism Society and Autism Science Foundation have condemned his statements, emphasizing the lack of evidence supporting his claims.

3. Kristi Noem’s Purse Theft Incident

Kristi Noem, Secretary of Homeland Security, was reportedly robbed of a purse containing $3,000 in cash while dining at a Washington, D.C. restaurant.

• Alison Gill [17:03]: "If you can't protect your purse, how can you protect the homeland?"
• Dana Goldberg [18:35]: "Why was she carrying $3,000 in cash?"

The incident has raised questions about the effectiveness of Secret Service protection, though Noem has yet to provide detailed explanations.

4. Nadine Menendez’s Conviction

Nadine Menendez, wife of former Senator Bob Menendez, was convicted on all 15 counts related to a long-term bribery scheme.

• Dana Goldberg [12:48]: "A criminal is a criminal."
• Alison Gill [14:15]: "Put them away. We can be like, yeah, put Eric Adams away."

Both Nadine and Bob Menendez face significant prison sentences, highlighting corruption within political circles.

5. Mississippi Supreme Court on Transgender Rights

A landmark ruling by the Mississippi Supreme Court has barred a transgender teenager from legally changing his name until he turns 21, despite having parental consent.

• Dana Goldberg [14:29]: "This is what pisses me off."
• Alison Gill [16:09]: "You can enlist and go die for your country at 18, but you're not mature enough to change your name."

The ruling has spurred debates on parental rights and transgender youth autonomy, with dissenting opinions labeling the decision as unconstitutional.

6. Congressional Democrats’ Mission to El Salvador

Democratic lawmakers have traveled to El Salvador to secure the release of Abrego Garcia and others detained by COSETE.

• Dana Goldberg [21:00]: "We have a lot of great news from Politico..."
• Alison Gill [21:19]: "Chair Comer is spending $19 million on a parade for the fascist birthday boy."

This mission underscores the ongoing tensions between the Biden administration and House Republicans regarding immigration policies and detainee rights.

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Featured Interview: Adam Klasfeld on All Rise News

In a special segment, Alison Gill interviews Adam Klasfeld about his new venture, All Rise News. Klasfeld, formerly an MSNBC legal analyst and fellow at Just Security, is launching an independent news network focused on actionable journalism.

Key Highlights:

• Mission of All Rise News: "We tell not only breaking journalism, but we give people the ability to figure out what their options are to act on it." – Adam Klasfeld [26:52]

• Innovative Approach: All Rise News aims to connect court cases and public actions, empowering listeners to engage actively with political and legal processes.

• Example Initiative: "Rising this Week" segment lists ongoing court cases and related grassroots actions, such as protests against board members like James Murdoch in coordination with Earth Day events.

• Empowerment Through Information: Klasfeld emphasizes the importance of informed civic participation, stating, "Journalism is a way to ignite your curiosity."

• Community Engagement: The platform seeks to bridge the gap between institutional reporting and grassroots activism, encouraging listeners to take meaningful action based on the news.

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Good News Segment

Alison and Dana wrap up the episode with their beloved "Good News" segment, where listeners share positive stories and personal achievements. Highlights include:

• Listener Alyssa's Protest Experience: Alyssa shaved her head at a rally to symbolize the loss of identity faced by detainees, sharing her emotional and impactful experience.

• Claudia’s Community Support: Claudia highlights local bookstores like "Comma, a Bookshop" and "Paperback Exchange," emphasizing community resilience following a catastrophic water main break.

• John’s Personal Triumph: John celebrates his wife's achievement in passing her veterinary boards, sharing adorable photos of their dogs and engaging with listener-submitted pet stories.

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Conclusion

In this episode, The Daily Beans effectively balances serious political discourse with moments of levity and community building. Hosts Alison Gill and Dana Goldberg provide insightful commentary on current events while fostering a sense of empowerment and solidarity among their listeners. The interview with Adam Klasfeld introduces a promising new media initiative aimed at transforming how journalism intersects with civic action.

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Notable Quotes:

• Dana Goldberg [06:56]: "That's a great question. And that would be karmic and beautiful."
• Adam Klasfeld [26:52]: "We tell not only breaking journalism, but we give people the ability to figure out what their options are to act on it."
• Dana Goldberg [14:29]: "This is what pisses me off."
• Alison Gill [11:12]: "Autism is a preventable disease—an assertion that lacks scientific backing."

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For more detailed discussions and updates, visit mswmedia.com and subscribe to The Daily Beans on your preferred podcast platform.

Transcript

[Alison Gill]

MSW Media. Hello, and welcome to the Daily beans for Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Today, Pete Hegseth participated in another signal chat from his private phone and sent war plans to his wife and brother. The Mississippi Supreme Court has ruled that a transgender teenager cannot change their name until they turn 21. Someone allegedly stole Kristi Noem's purse, which contained $3,000 cash. A jury found Nadine Menendez guilty on all counts. A Republican senator is contradicting Trump and apparently getting away with it. Government Covid sites now redirect to a flashy lab leak Web page. Harvard University has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration in federal court. Some House Democrats have landed in El Salvador to try and secure the release of Abrego Garcia and others held at secote. And RFK Jr rightfully faces backlash over autism remarks. I'm Alison Gill.

[Dana Goldberg]

And I'm Dana Goldberg.

[Alison Gill]

Hey, Dana. How are you doing today?

[Dana Goldberg]

You know what? I'm hanging in there. We are all doing the best we can. I'm doing all right, though. How are you?

[Alison Gill]

I'm okay. Pope Francis passed away. Indeed, one of our most progressive popes. We'll see who ends up taking his place. But that has not stopped the Internet memes about JD Vance. It has ignited it because he passed.

[Dana Goldberg]

Away a day after. A day after meeting with J.D. vance. And I've seen two of the funniest memes. Listen to everyone. I understand that this is serious. Obviously, the Pope's death is not something to make light of. However, comma, J.D.

[Alison Gill]

Vance, J.D.

[Dana Goldberg]

Vance. To me, my two favorite ones, one of them is if anyone's ever seen Clue, and it's like J.D. vance and the Vatican with the incense censor is one of the ones. And then the one that got me more. I don't know if anyone's ever played Fuck, Marry, Kill, but someone made a meme of a couch, J.D. vance's wife and the Pope, and it says, fuck, marry, kill. And I almost fell out of my chair.

[Alison Gill]

Oh, the couch. The couch. Just like to acknowledge it's never been proven that he's ever a couch. But yeah, he's a couch.

[Dana Goldberg]

I mean, yes, never. It's never been proven and will not be proven that he killed the Pope. That is all speculation as well. But these are jokes. Yeah, they're jokes, people. They're jokes. But, yeah, I'm obviously worried about who the next pope was going to be and see if they're as progressive as this one is. And I know there were some mixed messages that came from this pope over the years about, you know, the LGBTQ community and. But he. Yeah, he was one of the most progressives they've seen. So I'm just hoping someone else gets. Is it elected to be Pope?

[Alison Gill]

No, there's something.

[Dana Goldberg]

I didn't think that was the right word.

[Alison Gill]

Vatican. And then there's a bunch of bishops who.

[Dana Goldberg]

Someone is definitely going to tell us.

[Alison Gill]

The correct verbiage who decide. Smoke and. Yeah, yeah, I'm not. I was raised Catholic and I really don't know. That's amazing process for choosing a pope.

[Dana Goldberg]

But.

[Alison Gill]

But he did, like in the last, more recent times, put some really progressive cardinals and bishops in there. So maybe they do the vote. I'm not sure. I'll look it up, but it's a lot of ceremony and pomp and circumstance.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yes, indeed.

[Alison Gill]

Get to a new pope. Also, I'm going to be talking later in the show with Adam Klassfeld, our really good friend and reporter who used to be a fellow at Just Security and. And was an MSNBC legal analyst and probably still is, but he's launching his own news network now with a friend of his and it's called All Rise News on. So we'll be talking about that. Also, Harvard, we knew, we talked yesterday about Harvard, how it's probably a bad idea to. To go after an organization where 40% of the judges in the district graduated from there. Harvard is suing.

[Dana Goldberg]

Good.

[Alison Gill]

The Trump administration. And get this, Harvard is being represented by Robert her, the special counsel that investigated Joe Biden and said that he would be an old, you know, sympathetic figure. So we can't bring charges, even though that had nothing to do with it. And Bill Burke, who was like, going way back to the Mueller, she wrote days, the attorney for like Reince Priebus and Don McGahn, like, he's represented a ton of people associated with the Trump administration. So interesting picks to defend Harvard or not defend, but go after Trump in this lawsuit.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yeah.

[Alison Gill]

From Harvard. So just wanted to get that out there. There was also some late breaking news and we're going to cover this in more detail tomorrow about the fact that student loans in default are going to be referred to debt collection, according to the Education Department. And this is just, you know, Biden wanted to forgive student debt. The GOP sued and successfully. And so, you know, now here we are. So this is just terrible. This is going to, I mean, the economy is already tanking and now to add this to it. Yeah, they just want to take everybody's money away and take it all from for themselves. So we'll talk more in detail about that tomorrow. So for today, though, we have a lot of news, so let's hit the hot notes. Hot notes. All right, first up from the Times, Defense Secretary Whiskey Pete Kegseth shared detailed information about forthcoming strikes in Yemen on March 15 in a private Signal Group chat that included his wife, his brother and personal lawyer, according to four people with knowledge of the chat. Unlike the chat in which the Atlantic was mistakenly included, the newly revealed one was created by Mr. Hegseth. It included his wife and about a dozen other people from his personal and professional inner circle in January before his confirmation as Defense Secretary and was named Defense Team Huddle. According to the people familiar, he used his private phone, like I said, rather than his government one. And according to npr, Dana, the White House has begun the process of looking for a new leader at the Pentagon to replace Pete Hegseth. And that's according to a US Official who was not authorized to speak publicly. And I can't help but wonder if the four, you know, sources who, who leaked the, you know, the information about this signal gate 2.0 chat are the four people that were just removed from the Pentagon for leaking information.

[Dana Goldberg]

That's a great question. And that would be karmic and beautiful. I, I hope it, I hope it is and I hope they're protected. I hope no one ever finds out.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah, I bet they have all the tea on him. And like there are now repo, like Hegseth's trying to get out in front of some forthcoming reports that we don't have yet that are apparently total. So there's probably in the next, maybe even by the time you listen to this podcast, there's going to be more out there about Hex. So keep an eye out for it.

[Dana Goldberg]

Definitely. And I think Republicans in the House are actually starting to speak up. And we've got a Republican Congressman Bacon, which I love his name repped on Bacon from Nebraska. Sounds like he's saying this is completely unacceptable and it wouldn't happen on his watch. And it sounds like he's calling for resignation. So I wouldn't be surprised if Hexaf gets replaced.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah. And Roger Wicker, too, right?

[Dana Goldberg]

Yep.

[Alison Gill]

I mean, that's the next story.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yeah. All right, this one's from Politico. Senator Roger Wicker, as you just said, the high profile Armed Services Committee chair. He has proven a reliable ally to President Trump by shepherding the through his most controversial Defense Department choices and unabashedly praising many of his decisions. But even as he provides support, Wicker is quietly emerging as the Pentagon's unlikely foil. This is what we're talking about, Republicans. This seems to be a line for them. The Mississippi Republican in recent months has swatted down a potential withdrawal of US Troops from Europe. Others now warn against it. Criticized the Defense secretary, Pete Kegseth for undercutting Ukraine in peace talks. And that, by the way, is a rare public shaming of the top Trump official. And this guy also sought an investigation into officials use of signal to discuss military operations in Yemen. And I believe that was before the second one. The Pentagon's inspector general has since launched a probe into that. Wicker's actions, unusual from a top lawmaker in any administration, are specifically rare under Trump, who now wields unfettered influence over the gop. But the longtime lawmaker has made himself integral to Trump's agenda, such as seeing through Kegseth's contentious confirmation and carefully placed blame on, quote, mid level officials for Pentagon policies with which he disagrees. So this is interesting. I mean, he's gone to bat for Trump a lot. And if he's the one that is actually calling for Kex that to be replaced, Trump's probably going to listen and there seems to be some sort of deal they have here.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah, I don't think he's publicly asked for his resignation yet. I know a ton of Democrats have. Yeah, me too. Seriously. Should have never been. Should have never been confirmed. He's one of the ones where every single Democrat in the Senate voted against confirmation. I personally think every single Democrat should have voted against every single nomination that was brought up. But they definitely all were clear on their, you know, their vote against Hegseth. And now Joni Ernst is going to have to answer some questions along with, you know, a couple of other Republicans who were on the fence but then migrated over to vote for him. All right, from ABC, Secretary of Health and Human Services RFK Jr. Is under fire for controversial remarks about children with autism. Kennedy claimed that autistic children are unable to pay taxes, hold a job, write a poem, go on a date, or use the toilet without assistance. That is what he said about people with autism. Kennedy also sparked controversy by calling autism a preventable disease, attributing its rise to environmental factors like dead whales on beaches. I'm not sure what.

[Dana Goldberg]

It's a good question. Roadkill, baby bears in trucks, bears in.

[Alison Gill]

The park under bicycles. The Autism Society called these remarks harmful, misleading and unrealistic, stressing that the way he spoke about autistic individuals was stigmatizing and that the Idea that vaccines cause autism, a specific thing that RFK Jr did not mention during the press conference, referring to medicines instead has been thoroughly debunked. The Autism Science foundation noted that his assertions lacked scientific evidence and that he quote, made a series of clear misstatements during his press event, including that adults with profound autism don't exist.

[Dana Goldberg]

Just bizarre and bizarre and awful is right. I, I and every, you know, I hate this. The apologists that come. Oh, he meant severely, severely autistic people. No, he didn't. And if he did, he should have said that because there are, I, I just, I, my blood boiled when I heard that. First of all, I've been watching Love on the Spectrum, which is also one of the reasons why I got so upset. Not to mention one of my past relationships has a son that is on the spectrum and highly functioning. It just, he these comments were so out of line and I'm glad there's pushback from all over the place. This next one's from npr. The White House has taken down some government websites providing COVID 19 information and replaced them with a new boldly styled page dedicated to the controversial theory that the pandemic was caused by the virus leaking from a Chinese government laboratory. Oh boy. The original federal website, this is Covid.gov and Covid tests.gov have provided the public with basic information about COVID such as vaccines, treatment, testing. But those sites, they now redirect people to a new page titled Lab Leak. The True Origins of COVID 19. We are living in the upside fucking down. Yeah, it's just Please continue to protect yourself if you need to wear a mask, if you feel like you might be sick. And to protect those around you, get your boosters and vaccines if you believe in them. COVID 19 still around. And for some people, if you are immunodeficient or immunocompromised, it is not just a cold. So please continue to protect yourself and.

[Alison Gill]

Those around you and others. Exactly. God, what a. I know. It's just idiocracy. We're living in idiocracy. Next up from cbs, the other gold bar has dropped. Dana. A New York City jury has convicted Nadine Menendez. The wife convicted former New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez for her role in a years long bribery scheme with her husband. She was convicted on all 15 counts. Faces sentencing June 12. She's 58 and her husband and she now have both been convicted of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in exchange for political favors to benefit the government of Egypt and to enrich themselves. Menendez's husband resigned his U.S. senate seat weeks after being found guilty. It should have been the day after he was indicted, honestly. He was found guilty of accepting lavish bribes, including gold bars and cash. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison and must surrender to authorities on June 6th. And he has vowed to appe. Steal his conviction and, you know, to. To. To have a bunch of gold bars under floorboards in your house that have serial numbers that were originally reported stolen from the person who bribed you. Yeah. Oh, fuck.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh, my God. Talking about a ticking heart. I just wouldn't. I'm just. Listen. Even some Democrats aren't the smartest ones. And you know what? A criminal is a criminal.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah. Fuck. I mean, that's. That's, you know, one of the main differences. Right? We can be like, yeah, put them away. Put Eric Adams away.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yep.

[Alison Gill]

Send him. Put him on trial. Send him away. Blagojevich by. We don't like corruption and bribery and fraud and theft. It's not hard if you try.

[Dana Goldberg]

It is not. You can go ahead and file this next story under hypocrisy. This one's from the Advocate, and it says it's all about, quote, parental rights, isn't it? Until it comes to a parent's right to support their transgender child. The Mississippi Supreme Court has ruled that a teenager, a teenage trans boy, cannot legally change his name to something more masculine, citing lack of maturity. Get the fuck out of here. The court voted 8 to 1 Thursday to uphold the ruling issued by Hinds County Chancery Judge Tamitris Hodges. Tamitris. Let's go with Tamitris Tamitris Hodges in November of 2023, when the boy was 16 years old. The boy referenced in the case only by the initials SMB is now either 18 or about to turn 18, based on the filing date of July 2023. However, the age of majority. The age of majority in Mississippi is 21, meaning he will not be able to obtain a legal Name change until 2028. Minors in Mississippi are legally permitted to change their name with the permission of both their parents, as outlined by the aclu, which the boy had. He had permission. The State Supreme Court still ruled that changing his name, quote, as part of a gender transition, was not in the plaintiff's best interest due to lack of maturity while consistently misgendering the teen in the filing. Now, I just want to say this. He's 18, saying he can't do it till 21. With a lack of maturity, you can enlist and go die for your country at 18. And you seem to be mature enough to do that, but you're not mature enough to change your name to something more masculine. This is what pisses me off.

[Alison Gill]

You can vote for the dickheads who appointed these judges.

[Dana Goldberg]

Absolutely. That too. The majority cited. And I worry that people say that he's not mature because they want to roll back the voting age. But the majority cited. The majority cited the so called regulate experimental adolescent procedures, which is REAP act, which is 2023, banned medical gender affirming care. Unfortunately, Justice Leslie King, the sole vote against in the ruling, wrote in the dissenting opinion that, quote, no medical procedures are at issue in this case. King also pointed out that nothing in the original case cited the REAP act and that the court did not hear testimony from any of the family members. Instead, the trial, and I quote, the trial court conducted a bench conference off the record, apparently took no evidence and concluded the hearing thereafter. That's a bunch of bullshit.

[Alison Gill]

Unconstitutional as.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yep.

[Alison Gill]

Oh, God. Yeah, I'm, I'm with you too. I think they want to raise the voting age to 21.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yep.

[Alison Gill]

I don't know. Maybe they're, maybe they'll second take a second look at that. Considering how many 18 to 21 year old young men voted for Trump this time around.

[Dana Goldberg]

That is possible.

[Alison Gill]

Well, who, who knows? It was like when they were like, don't mail in. Voting is full of fraud. It's all fraud. And then they were like, wait, please mail in. Vote for me. Yeah, Dumbasses. Just dumb asses. Next up from cnn, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem fell victim to a thief while eating dinner at a downtown Washington, D.C. restaurant Sunday night. That's what the secretary says. I just want to let you know. That's what Gnome says.

[Dana Goldberg]

I have a lot of questions about this.

[Alison Gill]

Me too. First of all, if you can't protect your purse, how can you protect the homeland? Just. Anyway, Noem, who was asked about the theft at the White House Easter Egg Roll sponsored by Tesla, acknowledged the incident and said the matter has not yet been resolved. The Secret Service, which provides security for Kristi Noem, reviewed security cameras. That was my first question at the Capitol Burger restaurant. So they looked at the footage and saw an unknown white male wearing a medical mask stealing her bag and leaving the restaurant, according to a law enforcement source. I'm sorry, did you report it to the police? Did you get a police report?

[Dana Goldberg]

Allison, my hands up. I have some questions in the front row.

[Alison Gill]

Yes.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yeah. How was security Secret Service paying not enough attention during that Time to one even notice that someone was trying to steal her purse, first of all. Second question. Why was she carrying $3,000 in cash?

[Alison Gill]

Right. Was it in singles? I mean, maybe, you know, she seems.

[Dana Goldberg]

Like someone that might want to go put a dollar in someone's pants.

[Alison Gill]

I can only. Or maybe hurt. Maybe she was the one with. It was getting them in the pants. I. I can only conclude that she was. She had just sold some babies to an underground pizza restaurant. I mean, that's a basement in a basement in a pizza restaurant. Or, you know, Maybe she had 10,000 cash, but she just made a $7,000 fentanyl purchase and hadn't picked up the drugs yet. I'm not sure. But, yeah, 3,000 cash.

[Dana Goldberg]

So many speculations. Anyone? I mean, if you want to write in and tell us what you think the $3,000 in Kristi Noem's purse was for, please feel free to do that. We'll give you a link as we.

[C]

Talk about the good news.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah, and you know what? I'd love to know all of the Republicans that were, like, going after Fani Willis for keeping cash in her house.

[Dana Goldberg]

Mm.

[Alison Gill]

I wonder if what they have to say about. It's a fair question, her carrying $3,000 cash. Did she not want anyone to see the credit card receipts because she's having an affair? I don't. Because is she bone in Lewandowski? Like what.

[Dana Goldberg]

Sorry, Excuse me.

[Alison Gill]

Going on. We need to get to the bottom of the $3,000 cash, I think. Secret Service, huh?

[Dana Goldberg]

That's why I just. My question is how it even happened if she's protected by Secret Service?

[Alison Gill]

Well, I'm sure that they've deleted their text messages about it. And who knows, maybe the. Maybe the unknown white male in a mask. Maybe it's the pipe bomber that we never caught. Who knows?

[Dana Goldberg]

Who knows, indeed.

[Alison Gill]

Could be a member of the Secret Service. It's Kufari out there. He's got the Mission Impossible song in his head. He's got shoe polish under his eyes.

[Dana Goldberg]

We have conspiracy theories, folks. We have.

[Alison Gill]

Sounds Just. Sounds like a setup to me. I can't believe it. I don't believe her. I just don't. I'm sorry. I don't. So, anyway, that. That what? We'll. We'll. We will stay on top of this story for you.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yeah, we. We definitely will stay on top of this story. We do have some great news from Politico, though. Four more Democratic lawmakers. They have landed in El Salvador as the party ramps up its efforts to secure the Release of a Maryland man the Trump administration now admits it erred in deporting, or some might say they had kidnapped him.

[Alison Gill]

Kidnapping? Yeah.

[Dana Goldberg]

I'm just saying. Democratic reps. We've got Robert Garcia of California, Maxwell Frost of Florida, Yasmin Ansari, Arizona. Maxine Dexter, Oregon. They're all demanding the White House abide by a court order to return Kilmaro Brago Garcia to the United States. They are planning to meet with Officials at the U.S. embassy in El Salvador to advocate for Brio Garcia's release and to get information on other detainees transferred to El Salvador from the U.S. good. And the numbers I've heard recently are between 75 and 90 people that were transferred have no criminal record. And that was from Bloomberg. Oh.

[Alison Gill]

Percent 70 to 90%. Yeah. Correct. Yeah.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yep. House Republicans last week denied Democrats request to send an official delegation to the country, arguing it would, quote, waste taxpayer dollars off. You're about to spend $19 million on a parade for the fascist birthday boy. What's that?

[Alison Gill]

That was Comer, by the way. Yeah, and we can ask how many millions of dollars he wasted investigating The Alexander Smirnoff $5 million bribe lie.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yep. Last sentence in this story before we give you good trouble. The Democratic lawmakers said they are not using taxpayer dollars to fund their trip. That's even better if they're like, you know what?

[Alison Gill]

What?

[Dana Goldberg]

We're gonna go ahead and pocket the bill for this. We got you.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah, yeah. We're going down on our own dime. We hate you for free. All right, everybody, it's time for some good trouble.

[C]

What are you guys doing?

[Alison Gill]

All right. Hey, you guys, I happen to have Lee Zeldin's email address at the epa. I was hoping. I was hoping y'all might send him a message.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh, let's please do that.

[Alison Gill]

Or, you know, be movie scripts or. Or maybe porn bot spam. His email address. As you know, you could maybe, hey, maybe send him a letter saying that water is water and we can't redefine what water is so that you don't have to protect certain waters.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yeah.

[Alison Gill]

Anyway, his email address is ADM, as in Alpha Delta Mike.17 zeldinpa.gov that's ADM17.zeldinpa.gov have a field day. Maybe. Maybe set up a burner email address at Proton Mail or something so that you can't be traced, please, to protect yourself. But, yeah, hey, feel free. Go to town. We shut down the DHS ICE tip line. Maybe we can. Maybe we can force a new email address for Lee Zelden at the ep.

[Dana Goldberg]

That'd be amazing.

[Alison Gill]

All right, everybody, we have good news to get to, but first we're going to talk to Adam Classfeld in his new venture, All Rise News. I can't wait. Stick around. We'll be right back after these messages.

[C]

We'll be right.

[Alison Gill]

Hey everybody, it's ag. And after a long day, and let's be honest, they're all long days, cooking can feel like just one more task on a never ending to do list. Between work errands, trying to stay informed. The last thing I want is to scroll endlessly for recipe ideas or make a grocery run. And I certainly don't want to order any food to be delivered from Amazon or anything. That's why I started using Home Chef. It's wonderful. It's helped me break out of my cooking rut without the usual effort that comes with trying something new. Users of leading meal kits have rated Home Chef number one in quality, convenience, value, taste and recipe ease. And for a limited time, Home Chef is offering you 50% off and free shipping on your first box, plus free dessert for life. When you go to homechef.com dailybeans Home Chef sends chef designed recipes, fresh pre portioned ingredients right to your door. Everything's organized, easy to follow, which means dinner feels more like a break than a chore. I can try new dishes without feeling overwhelmed. And with 35 weekly meals and 18 extras to choose from, I never feel stuck eating the same thing twice. Home Chef also makes a real difference when it comes to budgeting. On average, customers save about 86 bucks a month on groceries. And for me, that means fewer impulse buys, less food waste, plus healthier meals made with fresh ingredients. Now, I recently had a chance to try their Korean style barbecue chicken with garlic, chili, broccoli and rice. And it's so delicious. The Asian garlic, ginger and chili seasoning really took the dish to the next level. Plus it was so easy to make, which is what I appreciate. Another delicious meal from Home Chef. Their meals always hit the spot. So for a limited time, Home Chef is offering you 50% off and free shipping on your first box. Plus free dessert for life. Just go to homechef.com dailybeans that's homechef.com dailybeans for 50% off your first box and free dessert for life. Must be an active subscriber to receive free dessert. Hey everybody. Welcome back. I am really excited today. Oh my gosh. I'm so excited because I love independent media ventures. Please welcome my very good friend, you. You've seen him as a, as an MSNBC legal analyst especially. I think he was always on with like Lawrence O'Donnell during the Trump trial. He also was a fellow at Just Security, but now launching their own media venture. It's going to be so incredible. It's called All Rise News. Please welcome my good friend Adam Klassfeld. Adam, what is up?

[C]

Nothing much. It's been a busy day as you can imagine. Allison.

[Alison Gill]

Yes, the launch is Monday. We air this on Tuesday. So this happened yesterday as you're listening to this, this particular episode. But I'm so very excited. This is a substack based joint, right. Talk about it. Who's in on this? What's going on? Like, what was the catalyst, what was the driving impetus to get this thing off the ground? And I also am very interested in how you came up with the name because I think it has like six different meanings that I love.

[C]

Absolutely. Well, you picked up on the quadruple septuple entendres there. Well, All Rise News is a result of long conversations between my friend Tim Mack and me. Tim Mack, you might be aware, is a war correspondent based in Ukraine. We've known each other for years. We met each other in of all places, Guantanamo Bay when we were covering the hearings of the 911 accused. And there's a picture of us at Camp X ray together about 10 years ago. I had more facial hair. But the idea of All Rise News is that we tell not only breaking journalism, but we give people the ability to figure out what their options are to act on it, that we're not just covering the courts, although I'm going to use my experiences covering the courts for nearly two decades, state courts, federal courts and military courts to navigate that. But it's all about the action that our readers take. And I'll give you an example. We just launched something broke some news, a thing called Rising this Week. And Rising this Week is a listing, then we're going to start every week with it, of what's happening in the courts, in the streets and the town halls and on the phones. And one of the here's an interesting thing and that really talks to our approach. One of the things about the people calling their representatives, there's not a central repository on the Capital Switchboard where you can find out the information of who's calling who and in what numbers. Well, this week for the launch there's a popular app called five Calls that shared their internal data with us and analyze. So we're going to we broke some news that of the huge numbers that people are calling about Kilmar Abrego Garcia. And so we connect this court case to the public action. At one point of their recording their data of the people calling their representatives so alarmed about Mr. Garcia's case, there were 3,500 calls every hour. And that's just on the app. That's not people calling in their personal capacity on their phones. That's people on the app who are alarmed enough all over the country, not just in blue states, about Mr. Garcia's plight and calling their representatives. We just broke some news a few minutes ago about the fact that the Tesla Takedown movement is going to pay a visit to one of the board members tomorrow, James Murdoch, at his New York City home. That's going to. That's in coordination with Earth Day. And so that is. And you know when it's the day that this podcast is going to be out. And part of the thinking behind that, there's bringing together more pressure through peaceful protest to the right to the proverbial doorstep of a board member. And so we have stories about that, details of the thinking that went into that action, the context behind it, the clampdown on environmental organizations and civil society, and the risks that when protesters decide now is the time, it's not the time to kind of step back and play it safe. But knowing everything coming down in the pipeline, that interviewing folks, why they decided.

[Alison Gill]

To act, that's incredible. The fact that you were able to get a Source at the 5Cars app to find out what kind of things people are calling in about that seems to me like it's going to be some extremely valuable data that can be used by not just independent news organizations, but fundraisers and people on the ground, grassroots organizers and things like that. And I am very glad to hear that there are overwhelming calls about Abrego Garcia's case. And I'm sure, you know, people calling about Abrego Garcia are largely calling about due process in general because it's not, you know, it's. We all know this isn't just about one man, but this is the test case. Right? Right.

[C]

Of course.

[Alison Gill]

That's going to determine what they can do with us going into the future. But that is somebody to send that message to. Gavin Newsom, who believes that, you know, talking about due process and advocating for due processes and is somehow a distraction or that Abrego Garcia is somehow a distraction. I've been having conversations, a lot of conversations with people about that, and to see that there's hard data out there, yes, These are engaged people who are the folks who tend to call their congresspeople or download the five Calls app. But that's still, I think, really an interesting perspective, and it's also a really interesting data point. So that's something else I wanted to talk to you about and why everybody should go right now to Substack and subscribe to All Rise. Because the connections, the sources that you personally, just you. And I'm not even talking about anybody else who's involved in this venture, which is. I can't wait to also recommend from my substack, is your. Your sources. I, for a very long time, four years now, there are less than 10 people in my call list who I immediately reach out to about thoughts from certain sources that a lot of people don't have. And you're, you know, you're. You're on that list. And so this is. I, you know, I can't. I don't know how to explain to people, to folks who don't really look behind the curtain of the news business or the, the media business, but having those sources without being a compromise are like, it's, It's a really, really impressive feat. And I just wanted to thank you. Sort of talk about a little bit about how you manage sources because it's, it's different than, than some other, I don't know, like, access journalists.

[C]

Well, you know, one of the things that we said in our launch post is that we have sources with the people instead of currying favor with the White House, that this is a thing that. One of the things that I love about being a journalist and I've, you know, spoken to, you know, head of state or a prisoner, you have the opportunity to speak to anybody. And, you know, that's the kind of plain way of, you know, saying what a source is. It's a conversation of people with knowledge. And I remember really hashing out when you're thinking of the concept, okay, I'm about to launch a news organization that focuses on law and civic engagement and protests. Now, how do I do that? And one of the questions was, how do we figure out what is firing people up enough to call their representatives? So you go to the people who have that information. In this case, it's the makers of this app, five Calls. And that's, you know, it's. Journalism is a way to ignite your curiosity. And I think that there is this kind of sense and where I think that Tim and I feel like we've touched on something kind of radically new here, a new approach to journalism is that it had always been a bit of a taboo to kind of treat civic action, the kind of news gathering rigor we would apply to anything else that the people who organize things, who choose ideas for protests that might have impact, for example, what goes into their thinking, what goes into their research. And that's kind of information that would make people feel empowered to bring this into their daily lives. I think a lot of folks read the news with a sense of helplessness, whether it's of the gutting of the federal government by someone who was installed outside the congressional process and happens to be Donald Trump's biggest donor, Elon Musk. The reason the Kilmar Abrego Garcia case is so alarming is that it utterly bypasses the judicial system and says we don't need to engage with it. And the people are saying, no, no, you must. The courts are saying, no, no, you must. But it's not enough for journalism to just turn the vandalism of our democratic institutions into a spectacle and find out what happens on the next installment of this case. We've got to take it to the next level and say, this is useful information that, in fact, our audiences are clamoring for. They want information about. They're reading these stories because they think it's relevant in their lives. And the feeling that they have, whether it's apprehension, whether it's a anxiety about what's next, how can that be channeled into a place that's productive? And we're going to have in every dispatch action items that, you know, we're not part of any particular movement or anything like that. We're just a news gathering. What folks are doing with the information, how they bring it into their lives. If you are alarmed about Mr. Abrego Garcia's case, what can you do with that? If the Alien Enemies act case is disturbing to you, if Doge is disturbing to you, if you are one of the government workers being purged, what are your rights to stop that from happening?

[Alison Gill]

Yeah, and I 100% agree with you. We have a segment on the Daily Beans called Good Trouble where, you know, we'll assign you to, to email hropm.gov with, you know, B movie scripts or whatever it is that day to see what kind of sand you can throw in the gears of, of fascism. But I love that. I love that. I think that the way that you go about gathering data necessary to tell the stories that people are hungry for, I think it also sparks creativity in people in general. Like, I have a friend who, when I was reporting and, you know, you, like a bunch of us were talking about what was going on with the flights that were about to take off from Harlingen and down to Seacote and where things were going and the state secret privilege invocation, when it was actually the Trump administration that was showing videos of the tail numbers on the fleet and things like that, inspired a friend of mine to start tracking the fleet. He calls it I'm plane spotting today. And he watches these go from in the week leading up to this showdown in Bozberg's courtroom, the one where he didn't give the temporary restraining order. He saw planes going from Harlingen in the Southern District up to Bluebonnet and Abilene in the Northern District. And he's like, what are they doing? And then all of a sudden they're about to stage something from Bluebonnet, presumably because there's not a TRO in place in the Northern District and there is in the Southern District. And you know, we could talk about all the details, but all day. But the point being is when you, you know, when you talk about, like you just saying that you were able to talk to the five calls folks and get those data to talk about how what, you know, what people are calling in about that I think ignites a fire in people to be like, what other things can I be looking at to find out what's going on in the body politic? And so that is again, one of the thing when I talk about how I, you know, have always admired your, your sourcing and your ability to talk to certain people and get certain information. That is exactly what I'm talking about. Because now with that plane spotting that when my friend was doing, there's a group of people who put together a whole server bot, I don't know, I don't understand tech that scraped all the information of those tail numbers from all public flight tracking things and has put a map together. And, and then I'm like, well, can you put on that map where there's a temporary restraining order in place and where there's not, and can you, you know, include these data? And it's just that, the, that, that kind of inspiring people to, to go out and, and act in that way, I think is just fascinating and I really commend you for it and I look forward to it in the all rise news process. So talk about the, talk about the name.

[C]

So the name is a name that I've heard, you know, thousands and thousands of times in my career when a court officer calls out, for example, the jury that convicted Donald Trump of 34 felonies. Right before that happened, a court officer shouted, all rise. And Donald Trump and the rest of the courtroom stood up for the jury that was about to convict him. Because in our system, we don't stand for the powerful. In our court system, we don't stand for the wealthy. We stand for the finders of fact. In legal parlance, that can be the judge or the jury. We stand for the rule of law. And so that is, you know, I have, I sometimes live post on social media these court proceedings. I always wind up live posting all rise when the Carter officer says it. And I'll tell you an anecdote, Alison. There was one time I was covering a case involving a multi billion dollar money laundering scheme in Erdogan's Turkey and it was something that captivated the people of Turkey because it was heavily censored in Turkey because it embarrassed the Erdogan government and embarrassed the Erdogan machine regime. And they don't have jury trials in Turkey. So when I just did that normal live tweeting, this is just raw. This is coming from the courts. I had a reader reach out to me, said, we get so excited when you do that that we stand here. But the, the triple, the quadruple and the septuple entendres of it are, it's we, we want journalism to empower, we want journalism to elevate and inform. And there's no reason for the taboo in a lot of journalism more broadly to just stick to the information, just stick to this happened on X day. What you can do about it is a very proper avenue for journalistic investigation. And in the words of a certain federal judge, all means all, yes, and.

[Alison Gill]

All boats rise and all. You know, if there's an equity idea to it as well, I think it's just fascinating and that we the people deserve access to the best and most current and most accurate information that is not only informative but useful for action. It's all subsumed in it. And I think that this is fantastic and I can't wait for everybody to get on board. So it's up now. It's up on Substack. It's called All Rise. If you've ever once even heard the name Adam Klassfeld and even if you haven't, you should definitely check this out. I remember when I ran into you, you and Lawrence O'Donnell and a friend of his who was a former judge in the hallway at the Trump trial was about a Year ago. Happy one year anniversary to that.

[C]

It is. It was. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, by the way, I wanted to mention, Allison, you had mentioned Good Trouble. And as a regular listener of this podcast, I know you have been, you have been involved in, you know, the effort of letting your listeners know that they're, that these stories are there for a reason. And as we're applauding each other's titles, I will say that right back to you. The Good Trouble. That was, that was a way to put it. And yeah, I remember meeting in the hallway for, for that as well. You know that these, it goes to another thing we're doing with Rising this week. There's a weekly listings of things. And one of the things that I found very interesting about historic cases is that people don't realize anyone can be there. You know, we didn't, you know, we didn't get there with our. I, you know, I happen to have credentials and it afforded a certain type of access. But you wake up early. It, you, you, you wake up early enough and these are your courts.

[Dana Goldberg]

I was there funded courts.

[Alison Gill]

I was there. Somebody I told dick jokes for a decade. And I'm at that trial and I'm so I'm there. I'm, I get a line sitter. I didn't even really need one, but I got in line, got my little card. I went and got coffee. I think I picked up coffee for our friend Kyle Cheney while who was waiting in line for me. But, and there's, there's a line for us, there's a line for the public. And, you know, I mean, I just went and made my press credential, you know, and like, because I own MSW Media, and so it's like, I'm like, can I do that? Yeah, I guess I can. And you know, so then there I was. And you know, I'll be honest, the welcoming of people, whether you were with the press or whether you were with the public, there was just sort of this sometimes spoken, sometimes unspoken, you know, looks that you'd give each other like, yeah, you're here, we're here, we're witnessing this. This is important. This is historic. You know, and it was just, I thought that that was fascinating. So whether it was there or whether it was in Judge Chutkan's courtroom, I wasn't there as a member of the press that day. I was just there as a member of the public. But that anyone can participate and more people should. And I think, and I actually, I believe that what you guys are embarking on is gonna, is gonna help do that.

[C]

That's our hope. Because we, you know, people talk a lot about institutions and our institutions serving us, our institutions failing us. And so what do people think that institutions are? They are us. You, that the, that these courtrooms, anyone can go there, anyone can watch it. Everyone can. And you know what? A lot of people volunteer for court watching organizations to make sure that people aren't being deprived of their due process rights. So I, it's part of my, my goal to have people feel a part of institutions, connected to institutions and have that kind of sense of empowerment and not just, you know, spectators. Exactly.

[Alison Gill]

We're involved. And, and that's, that's important to know. I mean, what did we say in 2018? Mueller isn't going to save us. Everyone, we still have to vote. And then again, hey, the Garland is not going to save us. We have to vote. Okay, now we're at. The courts aren't going to save us. We have to vote, but we have to still participate in those things, follow them, understand them, as opposed to them just being these outside things that we have no influence over. It's like, you know, you go, you cast your vote for Biden, he does this, he appoints these judges. You know, the reason that we are looking at some of the decisions that we're looking at in the courts right now are because of who we voted for. I know we don't vote for judges, but it's, it's our participation that causes these things to happen downstream and to then just leave it to them and not participate. I think we're missing out and that's what I'm glad you're bringing to the table.

[C]

Thank you. And you know, Tim and I think we are at a period of an emergency and you know, we're looking at a time when it matters so much more now to inculcate that sense. And you know, for all of the criticism and a lot of deserved criticism about institutions here, I'll go back to call back to that case involving the Turkish government. When you look at countries where that are illiberal democracies where that do not have the protections of the First Amendment, even on paper, the institutions are still very important to the people. If they are going to push back against authoritarianism when there are trials against journalists there, the way to find out what's going on is to attend those proceedings as slanted as they may be, and protect your press. So I think we're going to have to learn from the example in an attack on the rule of law and on democracy. How do you respond?

[Alison Gill]

I wish we had South Korea's constitution and Constitutional court at this point. Anyway, thank you so much. I appreciate you coming on today. I get jealous. I get like, I get like other country envy when they're able to put their dictators in jail. Like, it's not fair. Je suis je luz marine Le pen. Right. Anyway, everybody go now. Follow. All rise. It's going to be incredible. I look forward to having you on in the future to talk about breaking news. And I really appreciate all the work you've done. Well earned, well deserved. Because I don't know, I don't know too many people who work harder than you at this.

[C]

Thank you, Alison. And just one more, if I can just promotionally, an easy way to access us online. Www.allrisenews.com Be sure to put the news in on the Substack app in order to be able to find us. And thank you so much for helping us get the word out.

[Alison Gill]

No problem. All risenws.com everybody. Adam, we'll see you soon. Everybody. Stick around. We'll be right back with the good news.

[C]

Thank you very much, Allison.

[Alison Gill]

Everybody, welcome back. It's time for the good news, good news. All right, everybody, it's time to send your good news to us. Any good news that you have, if you've been thinking about it, you've been on the fence, now's the time. Send your good news in, whether it's good news, confessions, corrections, if you have pronunciation corrections, especially for us, because we do that a lot. We make mistakes for pronouncing things. Indeed, you could send that to us if you have a shout out, whether it's to a loved one or yourself or your small business or a small business in your area that could use a boost. We would love to hear about that. Also, shout outs to government programs, whether it's student debt relief, the PACT Act, Great VA Health Care, Affordable Care act, which is being heard by the Supreme Court right now, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, SNAP, WIC, Section 8, anything, anything @ all, send it to us. And all you got to do to get your submission read on the air is pay your pod Pet Tech POD Pet tariff. I should say pay your tariffs. It's because, you know, we're importing photos of your pets and that's, you know, just send us a photo of your pet. And if you don't have a pet, send an adoptable pet in your area if you want or just grab a random photo of an animal off the Internet. Especially baby animals. Otters frog them red pandas. Dana likes the black and white pandas. Send send those to us bird watching photos. Whether be be it a actual bird or you and your family and friends flipping the bird to trump properties and musk properties. And of course baby photos. We love baby photos. Send it all to us daily beanspod.com click on contact first up from anonymous Pronouns they and them hello Luminati. Many thanks for your sweary news coverage. I can and do swear profusely at the news, but it helps immensely to hear others I respect have similar react. Yeah, right. Fuck. A possible correction or alternative theory. I think the use of the term disappearing in reference to people recently rendered to El Salvador might hearken back to the disappeared of Argentina's dirty war. History may not repeat itself, but it sure as hell rhymes. For the other bit of bread in this sandwich, thanks for mentioning the small court victory over passports. I know that's only one story in the fire hose of news and it directly affects a small number of people, but it's a big deal for those people. For podpet tax, I include images of my gents, the obvious collective noun for male tuxedo cats. Pippin is chilling out on the toilet tank. And Mary. Oh, Pippin. And Mary is watching from his favorite perch. Look. Oh my God.

[Dana Goldberg]

My God indeed. That's.

[Alison Gill]

These tuxedos. These gents are adorable cuties. Thank you.

[Dana Goldberg]

All right, this is from Stephanie. No pronouns given. Hi Ag and Dana. As I was listening to April 21 episode, I was reminded of the lyrics to the song Drama by AGR recently he said that she said that we said some that you wouldn't believe. Recently he said that she said that we said that he said some about me. Do you know the tune to that?

[Alison Gill]

No.

[Dana Goldberg]

Me either. We'll have to look it up. Now, specifically this segment about the rapidly changing leader of the IRS is what made me think of this song. But we can agree that this administration is being run like a middle school rumor mill.

[Alison Gill]

Oh yeah.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yep. Thought you might enjoy the connection to the song. We've got to keep laughing, right? So we don't cry. Enjoy the show.

[Alison Gill]

Yep. Yeah. Yeah. Middle school rumor mill is exactly it. I often compare it to the to the cafeteria tables. Right?

[Dana Goldberg]

Yeah.

[Alison Gill]

Where we all sit in clicks and. And you remember when we talked about when we covered Johnny McIntyre hiding bottles of Smirnoff ice in the office of Presidential Personnel?

[C]

Yeah.

[Alison Gill]

And if you found one, you had to chug it. Like that was happening in our those good times. Thank you, Stephanie. For that. That's awesome. Next up, Alyssa pronouns she and her dear Allison and Dana. My good news is that I went to my first protest on the 19th. I. You know, Dana, I've been hearing so many people that these protests April 5th and April 19th are their first.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yep.

[Alison Gill]

And my husband helped me to make my public protest statement by shaving off my long hair at the start of the rally. While he cut my hair off, I held a sign with a quote from Judge Wilkinson that the administration is claiming that it can stash away people in a foreign prison without due process. Wow. I heard later that it got into the local news, so I hope many more people saw the message. I want to challenge my community's imagination to understand that if it can happen to them, that it can happen to anyone. It was actually a painful experience because our clippers were not designed for this purpose. And that gave me insight to the likely experience of the prisoners who were stripped of hair, clothes, and identity. Here's the other good news. For other people in red states like me, a political protest doesn't just entertain your friends and bore your enemies. It actually reveals new friends to you. We have more in common than not. And most Americans agree that due process of law applies to all, not just citizens. I also spoke to a person who lost vital documents in a fire and could be treated as stateless if it weren't for these rights. Thank you for helping us keep track of the plot and the chaos. My pod pet slash bird watching tariff is my flock of ducks who beautify my backyard and keep the egg box full. Oh, my gosh, Alyssa, that's a powerful statement that you made in that protest by shaving your head.

[Dana Goldberg]

Absolutely.

[Alison Gill]

Oh, my goodness. And look at these beautiful birds.

[Dana Goldberg]

They are very pretty.

[Alison Gill]

That goth duck in the front, that's me.

[Dana Goldberg]

That's you. I could see it.

[C]

I could see it.

[Dana Goldberg]

This one's from Claudia. Pronouns, she and her hi, AG and DG. I wanted to share that. Saturday, April 26th is Indie Bookstore Day and Local Yarn Shop Day.

[Alison Gill]

Oh yeah.

[Dana Goldberg]

I'm in the Twin Cities and have so many great places to shout out. But the two getting my focus are comma, a book, a bookshop shop. It's called comma, with a comma, a bookshop who hosted a sign making party on April 4th. My 14 year old son and I went to make our first signs before our first protest. It was a great community. The other is Paperback Exchange. They suffered a catastrophic water main break in February. They lost 70% of their stock. The other local stores are Rallying around them to support. And it's just a great community. Go find your local bookstore. Goodness knows we need it. And they need your business more than anyone else. I was going to submit a photo of me flipping the bird Tesla in my gym parking lot, but then I saw it sticker quote, this Tesla does not endorse fascists. So instead, I thank the driver. My photo then, is some feathers from a cardinal under a microscope. This is so cool. To me as the reader, they're fascinating. Thank you for all you do.

[Alison Gill]

They really are. Look at that.

[Dana Goldberg]

There is so many things in nature when you put under a microscope that are absolutely stunning. Stunning.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah. The patterns are cool, right? The mathematics that exist in nature.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yep.

[Alison Gill]

So good. And as we know, music is mathematics as well.

[Dana Goldberg]

Yeah.

[Alison Gill]

And art. Right. Goler, Escher, Bach. Anyway, thank you so much for this. That's a great post. So, Indie Bookstore Day, April 26th. Mark your calendars, go to your local bookstore, stock up on stuff, order stuff if they don't have it, and then feed them to your little libraries around your. Around your neighborhood. All right, next up, John pronouns, he and him. Oh, look at these dogs. I wanted to share some good news about my amazing wife, Sophia. I've written to you before to brag about her becoming a professor of small animal soft tissue surgery. I remember this. I'm very excited to also brag. She passed her boards, the final step in her long journey to being a dacvs. It was one of the hardest things she's ever done, and we couldn't be more proud. For my pod pet tax, I give you a snippet of our dogs, Barnaby and Cornelius. Great news. Showing off some fashion accessories. No sense guessing the breed, but you can suggest a name for the next golden puppy male, starting with the letter D for context. Barnaby came first. Cornelius's namesake is the tenor from hello Dolly. Top puppy name contenders, Darcy Dempsey Dali and Dandelion Dandy. Oh, gosh.

[Dana Goldberg]

D. I also like Drexel.

[Alison Gill]

Drexel's good. So let's see. Barnaby came first. Cornelius's namesake is the tenor from hello Dolly. So we like show tunes here.

[Dana Goldberg]

That's true.

[Alison Gill]

So Darcy does make sense, you know?

[Dana Goldberg]

Yeah.

[Alison Gill]

And I love Dali.

[Dana Goldberg]

I was gonna say you could do. Yeah, I like the way that's spelled, too. Dolly.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah. The artist. It's so great. Look at these babies.

[Dana Goldberg]

So sweet. Our next submissions from Ari. Pronouns. They. Them. Let me tell you about Senator Chris Van Hollen. This man was my congressman before he was a senator. I could write and call to his office to give my opinion on current or possible legislation. I would get a response every single time. Even when I left voicemails, they matched my phone number in their records and would email me a response. I received a Christmas card from him every single year. In 2022 I had an issue with my tax return. When called the Taxpayer Advocate Service, I was told that they weren't even taking cases from the current filing season for another two months. I got in touch with his Senate office and had an advocate on my case within the week. He remains the only politician I have ever donated money to and for the $5 I gave him in college, I was invited to the afterparty when he was sworn into the Senate. I still have a copy of the Montgomery County Sentinel from when he won the Senate primary because I knew that man was going places for POD Pet Tax. Please enjoy these photo of Juniper, my perfect princess that has never done anything wrong.

[Alison Gill]

Of course not.

[Dana Goldberg]

Nope. She's also, without exaggeration, the dumbest animal I have ever met in my life. She's not smart enough to up I have I I added that that's not what the that's not what Ari said. I have also included a photo of my bumper sticker which I as an a autist have never felt more justified in having. And this very dumb beautiful kitty is gorgeous and I love this RFK Jr wishes I was dead. Don't love that bumper sticker but man is that powerful.

[Alison Gill]

It really is. Look at this cat. Yeah, you can see in the eyes the one brain cell back there.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh man, that is hysterical though. Never done anything wrong. Also the dumbest animal I have ever met in my life.

[Alison Gill]

Yeah. Now my catch is pretty dumb. Very beautiful but the dumbest animal I ever had in my life was our Wheaton terrier. When I was a kid he used to try to chase squirrels up trees and then he would get about 6ft off the ground and realize he couldn't climb trees and then fall.

[Dana Goldberg]

Oh God.

[Alison Gill]

At one time we got into our neighbor Mr. Smith was redoing his driveway and the dog got into the wet, quick, dry concrete.

[Dana Goldberg]

No.

[Alison Gill]

And came trudging home. A 25 pound dog weighing 150 pounds covered in concrete. We had to have like three big men lift him into the old Chevy Nova and drive them to the vet to be sheared. Yeah, just not a smart boy. Thank you for that. And thank you to all of you for your good news stories. Please if you have a fun animal story or and just anything, any really any story at all, please send it to us. We really need your good news. Dailybeanspod.com and click on contact. Do you have any final thoughts today, my friend?

[Dana Goldberg]

Not today, but thank you for asking.

[Alison Gill]

All right, we'll be back in your ears tomorrow everybody. 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 and I've been DG 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 Giant 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.