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History is messy. It's weird, wild and anything but boring. Rainy Day Rabbit Holes is a history podcast about unhinged stories that make you stop and ask, wait, is this real life? From crazy disasters and tasty scandals to enlightening and surprising heartwarming tales, we explore the moments where people behave badly and sometimes beautifully. We've got naughty politicians, cultural chaos and a deep love for the Pacific Northwest, including Bigfoot. It's thoughtful, irreverent, occasionally serious, and always entertaining. Let's fall down the rabbit hole.

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MSW Media. Msw media. Hello and welcome to the Daily beans for Tuesday, March 17, 2026. Today, multiple NATO allies are refusing Donald Trump's demands to secure the Strait of Hormuz. Temu Himmler Gregory Bevino is set to retire this month. The Supreme Court has agreed to her arguments in the Haitian Temporary Protected status case. Florida sheriffs rebel against Trump and Desantis's mass deport agendas. A Georgia federal judge says mediation over the FBI raid on Fulton county election offices has been unsuccessful and requires further briefing. And a federal judge has struck down RFK Jr's vaccination policies. I'm your host, Allison Gill. Hey everybody, Happy Tuesday. Happy St. Patty's Day to all who celebrate. Dana's out today. She's out there working, doing the galas, raising money for LGBTQ community and reproductive rights and all that stuff. So she'll be back tomorrow, I promise. Also, I just want to remind everybody that if you want to become a patron of the daily beans, the $3 tier is not going to be available after March 30th. So if you want to get in on the $3 a month plan to get these episodes ad free and early and be invited to our VIP live meet and greets and have pre sale tickets and come to our galas and all that, you can still sign up for $3 a month at patreon.com Muller she wrote as of March 31st, it's going to be a $5 a month minimum. But you also with that tier you get beans talk unjustified Daily Beans. You get all of that early and ad free, plus all of the other benefits as well. So just wanted to remind you there, in case you've been wondering, thinking about supporting us, all our stuff is free, but it's kind of like an NPR situation. So we would love to have you join our community again. Patreon.com Muller she wrote lots of court news today, including a federal judge in Georgia, Judge Boulay, saying that the mediation over the FBI raid on Fulton county election offices is going nowhere. Big surprise. But this judge has now ordered additional briefing. So we're going to keep an eye on that. Now, Scott McFarlane is reporting that the Pentagon has one month remaining to provide a federal court its records justifying Pete Kegseth's censure of Senator Mark Kelly. On February 12, a D.C. judge granted Senator Kelly's motion motion for a preliminary injunction on his First Amendment claim against Pete. Now in another case, Adam Classfeld is reporting that Sarah Palin, remember her Maverick. Yeah. She has withdrawn her appeal in her failed defamation lawsuit against the New York Times. Federal juries have rejected her claims twice. So. Oh, well, bye. I guess she's dropping her case. And Aaron Reichland Melnick is reporting that the Supreme Court just granted certiorari before judgment in the Trump administration's request to terminate temporary protected status for Haitians and Syrians. And the court has deferred the request for an emergency stay and has set oral argument for the last week of April. Now, this immediate impact, he says, is that Haitian tps and Syrian TPS will remain in effect. They didn't grant the stay, so they're going to remain in effect through, at minimum, June, given the timing of the Supreme Court's decision. So they still enjoy temporary protected status. All right. We've got a ton of news to get to today. Let's hit the hot notes. Hot notes. All right, first up from the Times, two weeks into a war against Iran that he chose to launch, Trump is facing a stark choice. Stay in the battle to achieve the dauntingly ambitious goals he has set or try to extract himself from an expanding and intensifying conflict that is generating damaging military, diplomatic and economic shockwaves. Now, he has quickly discovered that both options are deeply problematic, littered with consequences that he and his team downplayed when he plunged the United States, alongside Israel, into the biggest war in the Middle east in nearly a quarter century. He can continue to fight a weakened enemy that has nevertheless proved adept at extracting a fast rising economic price for the United States and its allies, tying the global energy markets in knots and striking a dozen countries across the region. Battling on would put more American lives at risk, accelerate the financial costs and risk further fraying alliances. There's angst within Trump's political base over the sharp departure from his pledge to avoid entangling the nation in more wars. Or he can begin to pull back, even though most of his objectives, including assuring that Iran never again possesses the capability to produce a nuclear weapon, haven't been met. The biggest military accomplishments of the joint US Israel action so far, officials say, have been wiping out much of Iran's missile arsenal and air defenses and, you know, crippling its Navy. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country's brutal leader for nearly 40 years, is dead, but an emboldened theocracy is still in power, apparently commanded by the ayatollah's injured son, who has already sworn to continue deploying Iran's asymmetrical capabilities, from cyber attacks to planting sea mines and conducting missile strikes on targets in the region. The powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps paramilitary force and the militias that killed thousands of protesting Iranians on the streets in January also remain in place. Now, as the war enters its third week, the consequences are widening. Thirteen Americans have been killed in action. More than 2,100 people have been killed since the start of the war, most in Iran. More than 1348 civilians there have been killed as of Wednesday, according to Iran's representative to the United Nations. Despite Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's assertion that Iran's success in threatening shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz was nothing to worry about, that vital waterway remains all but shut down, choking off a big chunk of global trade, especially in oil. By Saturday, Trump appealed on social media. Please China, France, Japan, South Korea, Britain. He please send naval forces to help me secure the strait. That was his first public acknowledgment that keeping the vital waterway open could require help and more resources than the United States has in the region now. The second week of the war brought a recognition by the Trump administration that Iran's willingness and ability to disrupt the global economy by choking off the Strait of Hormuz was greater than officials had anticipated. And as we've been saying, we anticipated this. You and me and Dana, we all saw this coming, as was Tehran's capacity to widen the war across the region. That's according to interviews with officials and in the United States and Israel, many who spoke on the condition of anonymity. At a meeting in the Oval Office last week, a frustrated Donald Trump pressed General Dan Kaine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, about why the United States couldn't immediately reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Maybe you shouldn't have fired Brown, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, or the deputy who warned you about this. The answer was straightforward. Even one Iranian soldier or militia member zipping across the narrow neck of that strait on a speedboat could fire a mobile missile right into a slow moving supertanker or plant a limpet mine on its hull. With oil already hovering about $100 a barrel, the insurance premiums for transiting the gulf are surging. The image of more burning tankers would make the Iranians look more powerful than they really are. Already. Having seen Iran attack shipping around the strait, tanker owners are refusing to take the risk, even though Trump declared on Fox last Sunday they should show some guts now. Mr. Trump's call on social media Saturday for five nations to send ships to the area so that the horror moves Strait will no longer be a threat by a nation that has been totally decapitated. That was notable because it was the first time he had sounded eager to build a broad coalition to counter Iran. But he was asking for backup from allies who were largely not consulted about the decision to plunge into the war in the first place. Just a week ago, he told Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain not to bother sending two aircraft carriers to the region because we don't need them any longer. We don't need people that join wars after we've already won. It was only one area in which widening differing agendas and assessments became evident between the US And Israel. Both Trump and Admiral Cooper of Central Command warned the Israelis against striking the big oil tanks outside of Tehran. So Trump told Israel not to do something because they don't strike the big oil tanks because such an attack would trigger the Iranians to strike more energy targets around the region in retaliation. Now, Mr. Netanyahu ignored that advice and Israel hit the depots a week ago. A week ago Saturday, actually triggering huge blazes and setting off an initial surge in oil prices. Inside the White House, officials became convinced that the Israeli leader wanted dramatic scenes of Tehran covered in the black smoke of destruction. So he can't even get Israel, who dog walked him into this war along with MBS to listen to him. Next up from npr. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer rebuffed Trump's demands, telling reporters Monday he's working with allies on a plane plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but it won't be a NATO mission, quote, while taking the necessary action to defend ourselves and our allies, we will not be drawn into the wider war, he said. Most Britons oppose the war. The British government says it has given the US Access to its military bases only for what it calls limited defensive action. Germany also sees no role for NATO in policing the strait. Quote, as long as this war continues, there will be no involvement, not even an option to keep the Strait of Hormuz open by military means. That's Stephen Cornelius, a spokesperson for the German Chancellor Friedrich and that's what they said in Berlin on Monday, quote, I would also like to remind you that the US And Israel did not consult us before the war and that Washington explicitly stated at the start of the war that European assistance was neither necessary nor desired. That's what he added. Now, China called for an end to the hostilities, but is said it's not going to help secure the Strait. Didn't commit to securing the Strait of Hormuz. South Korea's government said adequate time for deliberation is needed to consider Trump's request for them to send ships. Now, Japan is bound by laws that strictly limit overseas military deployments. Tokyo has suggested that operations in the Strait of Hormuz might not pass legal muster. Australia says it's not been asked to join a naval coalition to secure the Strait of Hormuz, but ruled out sending ships to do so. European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kalis said Monday she had spoken to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres about how to unblock the strait. Quote, it is in our interest to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, and that's why we're discussing what we can do in this regard from the European side, she said, but didn't commit to sending ships for Trump. All right, next up from the Times, in a severe blow to the Trump administration's health agenda, I would put that in quotes. A federal judge in Massachusetts on Monday blocked the government from implementing a series of decisions on vaccines made over the last year by RFK Jr. The ruling also reversed, at least for the time being, all decisions made by the panelists that Mr. Kennedy appointed to the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, which makes recommendations on which vaccines Americans should take. The court decision will prevent the committee from meeting later this week, as it was scheduled to do. That's the committee he put together after he fired the whole other committee. The judge's ruling brought an abrupt halt to the major changes that Kennedy, who has long been skeptical of vaccines, set in motion, upending national vaccine policy and making sweeping revisions to the recommendations for what shots are given and when. Those included cutting down the number of diseases covered by routine immunization and restricting access to Covid vaccines, two pillars of Kennedy's vaccine agenda. In his decision, Judge Brian Murphy of the U.S. district Court for the District of Massachusetts noted that the vaccine committee has historically made decisions through careful review of scientific evidence, a method scientific in nature and codified into law through procedural requirements. But, he added, unfortunately, the government has disregarded those methods and thereby undermined the integrity of its actions. Judge Murphy made the ruling in a lawsuit brought by six medical organizations that contended Mr. Kennedy and his appointees had made arbitrary and capricious changes to the childhood vaccine schedule, bypassing the careful evidence based practice that in the past has underpinned the recommendations. The lawsuit also argued that the panelists Mr. Kennedy appointed did not have qualifications to recommend vaccinations and that their decisions endangered the health of Americans. In his decision, Judge Murphy wrote that only six of the 15 panelists appear to have any meaningful experience in vaccines, the very focus of acip. Lawyers for the federal government, though, argued that changes to the vaccination schedule represented reasonable disagreements about health policy, reasonable disagreements about science. They noted that the states, not the vaccine committee or the federal government, are the ultimate authority in decisions about which vaccines are required. In a hearing this month, Isaac Belfer, a lawyer for the Trump administration, argued that Kennedy and the committee had unreviewable or absolute authority to make vaccine policies, even if that included recommending that people become infected with measles instead of getting vaccinated. Judge Murphy was clear in his dismissal of that argument, saying, suffice it to say that the court disagrees. The decision was the clearest outcome yet in an escalating battle between the medical establishment and the Health department, which under Mr. Kennedy has embraced anti vaccine conspiracies, including debunked theories that childhood shots cause autism, asthma or other diseases. Quote this is a significant victory for public health, evidence based medicine, the rule of law and the American people. That's Richard Hughes, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, speaking to reporters after the court made its ruling. The government can appeal the decision, Mr. Hughes noted, but for now, we get to celebrate a rare bit of good news. Next up from NBC, Gregory Bevino, the U.S. border Patrol head who became the face of Trump's immigration crackdown, is going to retire at the end of this month, according to two Customs and Border Protection officials. Bavino was removed from his role as CBP commander at large in January. I think commander at medium is probably a better description. And he returned to his role as the Border Patrol sector chief in El Centro, California. The move came after the deaths of two US Citizens, Renee Good and Alex Preddy, and aggressive immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis, Chicago and Los Angeles. His exit coincides with the date Trump announced he would be Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's last day on the job. In Bovino's position as commander, he reported directly to Noem and her senior advisor Corey Lewandowski Bovino and other CBP agents were removed from Minneapolis, where he had been overseeing Operation Metro Surge. He was featured in a Hollywood style movie poster and video mashups as the White House sought to promote his crackdown in Chicago. His tactics, including throwing gas canisters into crowds of protesters, led to a lawsuit in Chicago and clashes with other administration officials. He was chastised by a federal judge, Judge Ellis, after using chemical agents in residential neighborhoods, violating a judge's order to curb their use. The judge called Bovino back into court after finding he repeatedly lied about threats posed by immigrants and protesters. In one incident, he claimed he threw a gas canister after he was hit by a rock. But he had to walk back that claim after video evidence showed that he was lying. Good and Pretty. Both 37, were murdered by federal officers as Bovino waged the Minneapolis immigration crackdown. Now, prior to taking on his national role, Bovino was sued and accused of using similar tactics in California's Kern county against agricultural workers, leading to the arrest of several people, including at least one U.S. citizen. The administration was transitioning at the time. In the lawsuit, people subjected to the tactics said they were pulled from cars targeted for their appearance and their skin color, among other allegations. The lawsuit also alleged that in that operation, border officials use trickery to get people to leave the country. So he's on his way out. And by the way, when we flip Congress and he's no longer a DHS employee, he is subject to subpoenas to come in and testify and DHS can't back him up. Now, whether or not we can make a successful criminal referral about him to Pam Bondi is a whole other matter. But the investigation is important and the public should hear his testimony under oath. And a related story from the Florida Phoenix and this is really pretty amazing if I'm being honest. Florida's Republican sheriffs want President Trump to end mass deportations of undocumented immigrants who haven't committed crimes. That is a striking shift from law enforcement in the nation's most aggressive anti undocumented immigration state. Quote, while Congress sits on their hands and does nothing about this, we're on the ground floor with this day in and day out, looking in the eyes of these folks that yes, came here inappropriately, but some came here inappropriately only to do better for themselves and their families. That's what Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said Monday during a state Immigration Enforcement Council meeting. He plans to draft a letter to Trump. The US House Speaker Mike Johnson and the Senate Majority Leader John Thune urging better guidelines over which undocumented immigrants should be targeted for deportation. Judd's comments are remarkable. A leading conservative, he's also the chair of the eight Sheriff Council tapped by Republican leaders last year to shape hardline immigration policy. He's also a favorite of Governor Ron DeSantis, although this is a drastic break with DeSantis, who for years has insisted that any migrant illegally in the country needs to go. Judd's comments come days after the White House privately told Republicans to stop talking about mass deportations. Let me say that again. The White House privately told Republicans to stop talking about mass deportations. Now Judd added that a Florida Cabinet member had talked about this kind of immigrant with Trump. It was a not anti that conversation. That's a weird sentence, but apparently there was a Florida Cabinet member that talked about the good immigrants with Donald Trump. At least six of the eight sheriffs on the council echoed Judd during Monday's Microsoft Teams meeting. Six of the eight sheriffs, one said that the state has cast too wide of a net. Another urged Judd to write to Congress. A third offered harsh criticisms of ICE tactics. Quote, I wholeheartedly agree that Congress, they need to get off their butts and they need to fix it. And that's Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummel. We're not out just raiding businesses and homes, but unfortunately when ICE gets involved, you have collaterals. Another quote, I don't mean to give non criminal immigrants a free pass. Judd said, listing potential similar ways to punish undocumented immigrants, including making them put their kids in school. But we already know those people are doing that and primarily going to Catholic church on Sunday. Those are the folks that we need in this country that we embrace. He continued. We are a country of immigrants. Sounds like the businesses who are losing billions of dollars through mass deportation of non criminal immigrants are starting to get mad. Anyway, thought that was a pretty stark rebuke of DeSantis and Trump's mass deportation policy and that they're privately telling Republicans not to talk about it. It's a thing that they ran on. It's like their number one thing. They had mass deportation now signs at the Republican National Convention, remember? All right, anyway, we have a bunch of good news we have to get to, but we have to take a quick break, so stick around. We'll be right back after these messages.