← The Daily Beans
The Daily Beans
Slush Fund Standoff
00:52:28
Wednesday, July 29, 2026 Today, Senator Cornyn says he won’t vote to advance Todd Blanche’s nomination without a written rescission of the Slush Fund and tax immunity; Governor Beshear has written another letter to Mitch McConnell demanding he prove he’s fit to serve or resign; the Knight Institute and American Oversight have filed reply briefs with the 11th Circuit in the case of Volume II of Jack Smith’s final report; Rep. Max Miller has been credibly accused of assaulting his ex-wife and holding a gun to her head; the Trump administration is trying to get a hold of our personal emergency room medical records while simultaneously ending Medicare drug plan subsidies; new polling shows people don’t like Trump’s tax bill; Senate Democrats are pressing Todd Blanche on the New York Times subpoenas; newly uncovered grand jury testimony in the Davey Hearn case has led to his legal team demanding the grand jury materials; plus Allison delivers your Good News.
Loading summary
Transcript37 lines
- [00:01]
Allison Gill
Diamond Dames, mount up.
- [00:06]
Charlotte Clymer
I'm Charlotte Clymer.
- [00:08]
Allison Gill
And I'm Alison Gill. Hey, Charlotte, what if you and I joined forces to create a weekly podcast
- [00:13]
Alison Gill
amid all the chaos of the news
- [00:14]
Allison Gill
to chat about the most recent episode of season four of Ted Lasso?
- [00:18]
Charlotte Clymer
Well, Allison, we'd be taking delight amid the spite to sit and write and bring some light on Wednesday nights. I mean, look, everything right now is ridiculous. I know we're all stressed out with the state of the country, and we all deserve some joy. Ted Lasso was there for us in the middle of the pandemic, and he's back to offer us a respite from Trump 2.0 right before the midterms.
- [00:41]
Allison Gill
That's right. We believe in Rom communism. I mean, if Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan can go through some heartfelt struggles and still end up happy, then so can we. So subscribe to Diamond Dames for free right now to get notifications, and then you can join us every week and after each episode of ted Lasso Season 4, wherever you get your podcasts.
- [00:58]
Charlotte Clymer
And remember, be a goldfish. Diamond Dames. Dismount.
- [01:07]
Alison Gill
Barbecue sauce. MSW Media. Daily beans. Daily beans. Hello and welcome to the Daily beans for Wednesday, July 29, 2026. Today, Senator Cornyn says he won't vote to advance Todd Blanche's nomination without a written rescission of the slush fund and Trump tax immunity. Governor Andy Beshear has written another letter to Mitch McConnell demanding he prove he's fit to serve or resign. The Knight Institute and American Oversight have filed reply briefs with the 11th Circuit. In the releasing volume two of Jack Smith's final report. Representative Max Miller has been credibly accused of assaulting his ex wife and holding a gun to her head. The Trump administration is trying to get a hold of our personal emergency room medical records while simultaneously ending Medicare drug plan subsidies. New polling shows people do not like the one big beautiful tax bill by Donald Trump. Senate Democrats are pressing Todd Blanche on the New York Times subpoenas and newly uncovered grand jury testimony in the Davey Hearn case. That's the Reflecting Pool case led to his legal team demanding the rest of the grand jury transcripts. I'm your host, Alison Gill. Hey, everybody. Happy Wednesday. It's hump day. It's taint day. It's the taint of the week. We'll see how the rest of the week ends up going. But we have a ton of news to get to today. So much, in fact, that I've got to spread it out over two segments and we probably should just jump in. But I did get some late breaking news that I wanted to tell you about. The Texas Tribune is saying that a Texas Public Opinion Research poll says that James Talarico is leading Ken Paxton 45 to 40. That makes Talarico's largest lead in any public poll taken during the general election period. That's the largest lead. Now, Beto lost to Ted Cruz by three points, but he never pulled ahead of him. So far, I don't think Talarico's pulled behind Paxton. So we're going to keep an eye on this. Maybe we can flip Texas blue. I love it. All right. So much news today. Let's just jump in with the hot notes. Hot notes. All right, first up from Politico, a crucial committee vote on Todd Blanch's nomination for attorney general could be postponed. Senator John Cornyn said Tuesday, amid a struggle over changing a settlement agreement Blanch brokered between President Trump and the irs. But again, stop calling it a settlement agreement. Media it's not a settlement agreement. And the judge told you not to say that. It was a settlement agreement. It's just theft. Now, Cornyn, the Texas guy, right, who was crushed by Ken Paxton after Trump endorsed Ken Paxton, which we were just talking about, who's down in the polls against Talarico. Cornyn said the delay in the planned Senate Judiciary Committee vote this Thursday is being discussed, but, quote, hopefully won't be necessary as he pushes for ironclad modifications to the IRS settlement that created the $1.8 billion Anti Weaponization Fund and immunized Trump from tax audits. And here's a quote, if there's not enough votes to confirm him, then Senator Grassley might decide to postpone it. But I don't think that's the number one goal right now. That's what Cornyn said, referring to Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley. Cornyn said he had discussed the idea of postponement with other senators, but not directly with Grassley. And a spokesperson for Grassley did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Now, Cornyn and Tillis, who's also been undecided on Blanche's nomination, have significant leverage due to blanket Democratic opposition. It would only take one Republican to effectively kill Blanche's nomination, and that's because Lindsey Graham's seat on the committee is vacant. Tillis, who has also aired objections to the IRS settlement, indicated Tuesday he's pretty much following Cornyn's cue in seeking a written modification. We've set that as the basis for moving forward. That's what he said in an interview, though, he, like Cornyn, was non committal on whether Blanche could unilaterally rewrite the agreement with or whether Trump himself would have to sign off. Now, Cornyn and his staff have been talking to the Justice Department about modifying the settlement, and the senator insists he wants changes in writing. Quote, they know what they need to do, Cornyn said Tuesday about the doj. They just don't want to do it. Now, Cornyn also said, anybody who's saying that I've come to an agreement is fake news. So there's, as of the recording of this podcast, there's no agreement between Blanche and Cornyn on this. And this is fascinating because I was upset that Judge Subramanian had given the Department of Justice more time to respond to his order to hand over internal communications at the DOJ about the lies the government told to secure a non disclosure order from a magistrate judge about the New York Times subpoenas. The New York Times reporters subpoenas. Remember, the DOJ didn't tell the judge that these were for reporters. They also failed to follow the law that you have to go through other steps first before you issue subpoenas. So they basically lied to get a search warrant.
- [06:38]
Allison Gill
Right?
- [06:38]
Alison Gill
That's kind of what this is like. This is kind of the best, easiest way to understand what happened there. And Subramanian, the judge was like, could have just dismissed the case, just, you know, quashed the subpoenas or because the DOJ withdrew the subpoenas, could have just been like, okay, that's it. The subpoenas are moot, so I don't have to consider the motion to quash them. And just kind of, you know, walked away. That was me doing casino hands, by the way, like, why? Washing my hands of this. But he instead, the judge said, no, I want some documents. I want internal communications about whether or not you decided to not tell that magistrate judge that these were reporters or that you got it incorrect that the investigation wasn't public. That was another lie they told the magistrate judge. They said, we have to keep it a secret that we're getting their phone records. We can't tell them I need a non disclosure order because it's not a public investigation. But three days earlier, the New York Times reported that they had been subpoenaed and the Department of Justice confirmed the investigation in that report. So lies upon lies, which the DOJ were said and it said were inadvertent and sub. Subramanian wanted those documents, those internal communications just this past Monday. But he's now moved it that DOJ asked for more time, I think presumably because they don't want anything terrible to come out about Todd Blanch or Jay Clayton until after they're confirmed. So he's. But he's moved that to August 6th. But now if the vote gets delayed, that could change things and he could get confirmed before we find out what's behind some of those redaction bars in the Epstein files that Judge Emmett Sullivan has demanded and ordered Todd Blanche hand over so he can review them in Chambers on July 30th. So if this vote is kicked back, we might get answers. I mean, if Blanche refuses to rescind the slush fund and the tax immunity in writing, and if Cornyn holds the line and keeps his word that he won't vote for him until he does, that this vote could get delayed. But whether it's delayed long enough for us to get the July 30th determination on the Epstein redactions, because that'll take a couple of days, I imagine. Or the internal communications over the time subpoenas, that's yet to be determined if it's delayed long enough. But the question then becomes, are Blanche and Trump willing to give up their slush fund and Trump's tax immunity in order to jam through Blanche's confirmation before the Epstein and Times subpoena stuff comes out? I don't think so. Because as I've discussed and as Lawfare has pointed out, Blanche doesn't need to be confirmed to keep doing the job because the Attorney General Succession act doesn't have a time limit for acting attorneys general. Besides, Blanche has arguably done at least a dozen other things that are more egregious than these two things. But let's say Judge Sullivan determines Todd Blanche lacked candor and made inappropriate redactions to the Epstein files to protect, you know, important people. Or let's say Judge Subramanian gets some internal communication showing that Blanche told DOJ lawyers to lie to the magistrate judge to get a non disclosure order. Or let's say a Blanche refuses either court order, just defies court orders. Any of those new fresh, terrible things could cause one or more Republican on the Senate Judiciary to defect. And if just one defects, as I said, his nomination is dead. No vote. A no vote goes in the history books, which is why I keep telling everyone to call their senators, especially if you have a senator on the Judiciary Committee, tell them to vote no. Blanche will get to stay on the job regardless. But I want the history books to say we said no officially. Also, do not put it past Republicans to cave, Tillis or Cornyn, even those who've lost their primaries. Okay, they're still Republicans, but, you know, they could just postpone the vote until they fill Lindsay's seat on the committee because then they would need two defections and then get Tillis to decide that the meeting with the Epstein survivors was somehow good enough. There's still a lot of posturing and still a lot of gamesmanship that can happen in this. But in a related story from the Times, Senate Democrats demanded answers from Todd Blanche about the subpoenas he authorized to the New York Times journalists, including whether Trump had pressured the Justice Department to issue them. In a letter to Blanch that came as Republicans are pressing to confirm that prosecutors violated internal standards when they issued subpoenas seeking grand jury testimony and phone records from several Times journalists who had reported on the security vulnerabilities of the Qatari bribe. Force One. That's not in the Times article. I just added that. But the government's conduct, quote, involved a series of bad faith efforts to conceal notice of these subpoenas and intimidate journalists and their families following the publication of a story that allegedly enraged President Trump. That's what the Democrats wrote. Now, the letter raised new questions about the leadership of Mr. Blanche, the acting attorney general, ahead of a planned vote on the Judiciary Committee, supposed to be on Thursday, on whether to advance his nomination to the full Senate. With Democrats in unified opposition, Republicans cannot afford any defections. So far, two Republican senators, Cornyn and Tillis, have said they're undecided, though they haven't cited the subpoenas when asked about their concerns. Right. Their concerns are about the Epstein meeting with Todd Blanche and survivors and the slush fund and the tax immunity. They don't have any. Well, they might have problems with the subpoenas, but they haven't brought them up. Now, the Justice Department withdrew the subpoenas last week after a federal judge raised similar questions about whether prosecutors had followed the law and the department's internal regulations on investigations involving news reporters, the Democrats asked for a briefing from Justice Department officials on whether prosecutors followed their own rules. They also raised a number of questions about the department's investigation, including whether Trump or any White House aides directly ordered the Justice Department to subpoena the reporters because Kash Patel and Susie Wiles, they called Kash Patel back from taking the FBI jet to visit his girlfriend in Chicago to put him in a war room with Susie Wiles to investigate these leaks. So Trump, was he involved? Was Patel, Was Wiles? I imagine so. And that's why Judge Subramanian is looking for the internal communications in these matters. The letter, by the way, was sent by Senator Adam Schiff to the Justice Department. And Democrats sent the letter as the Senate proceeds with a vote to lay the groundwork for the confirmation of Jay Clayton, the US Attorney in Manhattan, who is Trump's choice to be the next Director of National Intelligence, but who couldn't say. Joe Biden won the 2020 election. And at his confirmation hearing, Clayton said the subpoenas had been issued according to the department's regulations, but offered few details. Clayton's part of this because he's Southern District of New York, and it was the Southern District of New York that issued these subpoenas to the New York Times. So this could torpedo Clayton as well. But Tillis, I don't know if it's the Judiciary of the Intelligence Committee that actually votes on Clayton, but nobody. I don't think there's any Republicans that
- [14:17]
Brian Caram
are
- [14:19]
Alison Gill
angry about Clayton, but we'll see if it gets to the full Senate there. There are a few, I think. But the same day, Mr. Blanche told the Judiciary Committee that the federal prosecutors hoped to ask the reporters who had given them classified information concerning Trump's plane. He likened reporters to material witnesses to, like a car crash that is so wrong on the law. And the Democrats took particular issue with that statement, writing in their letter that Blanche has conflated, quote, constitutionally protected news gathering and source protection with eyewitness observation. The government began a leak investigation this month after the Times reported that federal officials had significant concerns about the security of Trump's plane. The Democrats accused the Justice Department of violating its own guidelines for reasonable and timely notice for media subpoenas by waiting more than a week to notify the Times that it had issued the subpoenas for phone records. The letter argued that the subpoena, which sought phone records dating back to January 1, months before the Times published its articles, violated guidance that subpoenas be issued for only essential information. And it argued the Justice Department had improperly targeted journalists, relatives when it issued subpoenas for phone records of the mother of one of the reporters and the spouses of two others. And the Times made similar arguments in a motion filed seeking to quash the subpoenas. Democrats care about these, but they're Republicans. So far, not so much. Next up from alternate A jurist appointed by Trump to protect him. Florida Judge Eileen Cannon has been described as a partisan hack and blasted by House Democrats. Now she's facing a new challenge calls to release volume two of Jack Smith's final report. Quote, a public advocacy group is urging a federal court of appeals to use any means available and necessary to unseal volume two of Jack Smith's final report on his criminal investigations into Trump. That's Law and Crime's Colin Kalmbacher. Late last year, U.S. district Judge Eileen Cannon, who was appointed by Trump during his first term, issued two orders related to the long running dispute. In her first order, Cannon denied efforts to intervene by the Knight First Amendment Institute and transparency focused nonprofit American Oversight. And in her second order, Cannon acknowledged any former or current party may move for leave to intervene. Okay. Oral arguments are scheduled, by the way, in the 11th Circuit for the week of November 2nd. They were going to be in September, but they've moved to November 2nd. So we won't have a decision before the midterm elections. But that's when they're going to hear or argument in the 11th Circuit. And I think they're going to vote to hand over the report. But we'll see also what the Supreme Court says. We'll see. The Supreme Court has been kind of gunning to even talk about the fact that Jack Smith wasn't, you know, appointed appropriately. Judge Clarence Thomas actually put in one of his dissents on the immunity thing. Like we should look at. We, you should check that out to see if he was even legally appointed. And that's when Cannon dismissed the whole case, saying that Jack Smith wasn't appointed properly. It was appealed, but it never got anywhere because the election happened and all the cases were dropped. So we never got to learn how the Supreme Court feels about Jack Smith's appointment. And if the Supreme Court, if it gets to the Supreme Court, the Volume two, there's no argument for it to not be released because all special counsel reports are released. The only argument is that he's not a proper special counsel, which would mean none of the other special counsels were proper special counsels. But those reports are already released. So the question is moot. And then what does that do to future appointments for special counsel? You have to create an office for them to occupy first because that's what the argument was. He just appointed him instead of creating an office and appointing him to the office. So it's bizarre. We'll see what happens. We're going to follow it, especially over on the Justified. All right. Next up from NBC, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear is giving Senator Mitch McConnell an ultimatum demanding that he prove he's still capable of serving in the Senate or resign. This is Ryan Reilly reporting. As governor of the state you serve, I'm calling on you directly to verbally address the people of Kentucky and provide proof of your capacity to serve or resign. Failing that, the Democratic governor said he'll call on Senate Majority Leader John thune to investigate McConnell's condition and begin the warranted of replacing him in the Senate. Bashir wrote in a separate letter to Thune outlining the same demand. It has now been 43 days since news of your hospitalization. During that time, you have had zero votes, engaged in no official activities, and aside from two photos and corresponding statements, have made no effort to communicate with your Kentucky constituents or the nation. Even the attending physician's written statement does not discuss your actual condition, including whether you can speak reason or carry out your duties as senator. McConnell's office declined to comment on Bashir's letter. Asked to comment on Bashir's calls to investigate McConnell's condition, Thune said Tuesday that it's not his issue to resolve. Quote, I've seen the letter, but in any event, I think that's an issue really, that's between McConnell and the people of Kentucky. That's what Thune told NBC News, quote, I mean, if the governor wants to, I'm not sure what his prerogatives are in that case, but that's where the issue should be resolved. Bashir, a potential 2028 presidential candidate, issued his letter as McConnell has faced calls from the left and the right to be more forthcoming. He isn't the first senator to face health related absences from the Senate, and the chamber doesn't have transparency rules for members in that position. Quote we have seen rampant speculation across social media and elsewhere. It could be fully avoided and it's all within Senator McConnell's power. That's what Bashir told reporters on Tuesday. But because he won't do that, the fact is we don't know, quote, I hope everything is okay, that he's competent to serve, but asking someone to prove that, to prove that to their constituents isn't a big or heavy lift, he said. It's not being invasive. You're one of two US Senators that are supposed to represent Kentucky and Washington. Just talk to the people. In most states, governors appoint a new senator when one of the seats in their state is vacant, as outlined by the 17th Amendment. But not in Kentucky, where state law, which goes against the state constitution, in my humble opinion, state law specifies a special election must be held. Instead, McConnell's already announced his intention to retire at the end of his term, which expires at the end of this year. Rep. Andy Barr won the Republican primary to succeed him earlier this year. He's currently favored to win the Senate seat that'll be vacated by McConnell in the midterms and elsewhere in Congress. Rolling Stone reports Republican lawmakers are maintaining a practiced silence in the face of new misconduct allegations against one of their own. Max Miller, Republican from Ohio, has been not for the first time in the crosshairs of domestic abuse allegations brought by a former partner. In June, police footage related to a child custody dispute between Max Miller and his ex wife, Emily Moreno, the daughter of Republican Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno, was obtained by cnn. The footage, which documents a February interview between Moreno and Bay Village, Ohio police, includes allegations that Miller abused her. Moreno claimed that Miller had once held a gun to her head during an argument and a lot of physical abuse as well. Republican leadership, however, has so far deflected and ignored the allegations against Miller. Last week, Mike Johnson was asked by a reporter about the allegations against Miller and Corey Mills, who faces allegations of campaign finance fraud and being involved in a physical altercation with a woman in February of 2025. Police were called, but Mills was not arrested. Johnson was asked about those and he dismissed the question, saying the key word here is allegation. I'm surprised he didn't say I haven't heard about it. So at least he's heard about it. Earlier this month, during a Fox News segment discussing the allegations against Platner, political strategist former Kamala Harris adviser Mike Nellis got into it with a fellow guest, podcaster Rich Zaioli, about why the party held a separate standard for its own members. Quote, the topic today is Graham Platner, said Zioli. Even though Miller is a candidate up for reelection this November, we're talking about Graham Platner. If you want to do another segment on the congressman you're bringing up or the other candidate and then Nellis cut him off, you let me know when we're going to book a segment on Max Miller because I haven't heard a lot about it from Republicans. Now in this police interview I was talking about, a tearful Moreno described an incident in which she'd been changing their then infant daughter's diaper. One night Miller allegedly became angry when she turned on the lights to better see and he yelled at her before pointing a gun at her head. And in March of this year, Ohio Department of Children and Youth became suspicious as to how Miller's then 2 year old daughter had broken her collarbone. Per Mother Jones. Both Miller and Moreno said they didn't know how their daughter had been injured, but Miller theorized it could have come from a seatbelt. Investigators weren't so sure. On a zoom call between DCFS workers and a physician, one participant advised the injury would have required a high degree of impact to occur. Ultimately, the county's investigation didn't turn up enough evidence to say the child had been neglected or abused. But one document reported by Mother Jones quoted Moreno as saying her daughter once told her that Daddy's house is scary. Moreno requested a restraining order against Miller earlier this year after petitioning to have her custody agreement with the sitting member of Congress re evaluated by the court. Miller filed a defamation case against his ex wife in May, alleging she is mentally ill and suffers from bipolar disorder. Now, Miller's chaotic personal life also extends beyond his relationship with his ex wife. In early July, Miller's ex girlfriend, former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham, accused him of breaking a confidentiality agreement they had made while settling an earlier defamation case. Grisham and Miller's history is messy. They dated from 2019 to 2020 and first came into legal conflict when Miller sued Grisham for defamation after she published a book that alleged an ex boyfriend who worked at the White House, which is the description that fit Max Miller was physically abusive. Now, the GOP had always been good with letting allegations like this slide. Politicians getting away with monstrous interpersonal behavior is nothing new. But as the GOP seeks to slam Democrats nationwide with the allegations against former Senate candidate Platner, it's particularly striking that they seem disinterested in incredible abuse allegations within their own base. Oh, we have more news everybody, but we need to take a quick break. Need to rest my voice for about 30 seconds, but we'll see you on the other side of this break. Stick around. We'll be right back after these messages. We'll be right back. The fastest growing businesses are not doing every task themselves. They're getting smarter about what they delegate and who they trust to handle it. Upwork helps you find expert freelance support quickly so missing skills don't have to become a bottleneck. Whether the business needs help with one project or ongoing support, you can bring in the right expertise, protect your team's time, and keep pushing forward instead of letting the work pile up. One of the biggest advantages of upwork is flexibility. You can bring in expert freelance help for one project, ongoing support or a sudden surge in workload without adding permanent headcount before the business is ready to do so. And with talent available across more than 125 categories. Upwork gives you fast access to specialists in marketing, software development, data, operations and more. The hiring process is also built to help you make strong decisions quickly. You can review freelance profiles, look at past work and get support scoping the role so that the job is clear before anyone starts. So if you use Business plus, you can access the top 1% of talent on Upwork, AI powered shortlisting can match you with the right freelancer in under six hours, which cuts out the endless searching. Upwork also brings contracts and payments into one place so the administrative side doesn't become another project all on its own. Thousands of growing businesses already trust the platform for high quality freelance talent, from short assignments to long term support and signing up is free and posting a job is easy. Upwork is the fastest way to get the best outside help working on the right problem without slowing everything down. So visit Upwork.com right now and post your job for free. That's Upwork.com to connect with top talent ready to help your business grow. That's upw
- [27:21]
Martin Sheen
upwork.com hello, Martin Sheen here and I have a question for you. What do you do on Sunday to relax and unwind? Sleep in, read the paper? Eat stuff? You shouldn't binge watch the shows on your My Stuff list. Okay, all good and fine, but I think this routine could be a bit better. Let me offer something to make your me time really special. My podcast. And I think once you hear it, you'll realize it is the perfect addition to your Sunday or or whenever you're looking for a chance to unwind. Tune in as I share the stories of my life along with some poetry and an occasional personal reflection in a way that will have you saying that was time well spent and I didn't even have to get out of my pajamas. Starting Sunday, August 2, season four of the Martin Sheen Podcast begins with yours truly, Martin Sheen, of course. Yeah, 10 brand new episodes coming your way. I know our lives can be very busy and demanding these days. Whose are not. So join me on a storytelling journey that you can enjoy from the comfort of your favorite easy chair and a chance to relax and be in the moment. Check out the Martin sheen podcast season four starts August 2nd and make it part of your self care routine. And as always, thank you for listening.
- [28:40]
Alison Gill
All right everybody, welcome back. This is a very fascinating and terrifying story from cnn. A tiny federal agency A tiny federal agency tasked with protecting the public from injuries caused by lawnmowers and coffee makers is demanding that some of the nation's biggest health systems turn over detailed, personally identifiable medical records of all the patients who sought help at their emergency rooms. The Consumer Product Safety Commission is responsible for tracking and issuing recalls of dangerous products sold in the US it began discreetly pressuring hospital executives this year to share personally identifiable health data data with a private contractor. But hospital lawyers and other industry experts have questioned the agency's authority to collect its ability to safeguard such a swath of sensitive information, and whether it's followed the legal process to overhaul its surveillance system. After KFF Health News asked the CPSC again Consumer Product Safety Commission about the new system, the agency announced the program on July 21st. Left unmentioned, however, is the alarm it's raised among hospital executives as well as the nature and extent of the data demands that they've sent to these hospitals. In a stark departure from its product focused mission, the agency's goal to obtain millions of Americans medical records from emergency room visits for most injuries, from a broken bone to a childhood vaccine reaction, or even a suicide attempt, according to documents and emails obtained by KFF Health News, as well as interviews with five people involved or familiar with the discussions. Now CPSC officials. One of them insisted in the emails that the institutions provide ER patients identifiable information, names, address, diagnoses and other personal details to the contractor. And the contractor is Khanza Health. That's the private contractor for analysis. In correspondence with hospital executives, Khanza representatives described participation as mandatory as a condition of viewing the correspondence. KFF Health News agreed not to publish some of the emails it obtained. The CPSC wants at least 100 hospitals to start sending detailed medical records by the end of this year, according to an internal memo. The whole thing is troubling, said Sharona Hoffman, a professor of health law at Case Western Reserve University, who noted that giving a private entity access to a sweeping collection of data is going to introduce risks to patient privacy. Quote, if this company really is collecting identifiable information, that is worrisome for patients, yeah. The new project was launched amid upheaval at the traditionally independent agency, which is without a governing board since Donald Trump fired all of the CPSC's three Democratic board members. Nearly one in five career staffers has left the CPSC the first 16 months of the new administration, according to KFF Health News. The initiative also comes as the Trump administration has sought unprecedented access to millions of Americans medical records, with the Office of Personnel Management requesting federal workers sensitive health information and Health and human services secretary RFK Jr using a private organization to collect more medical records for his studies on vaccines and autism. They still probably have access to my medical records, even though I haven't been a federal employee. I don't know how long they keep those, but I also have a full medical record on file at the Department of Veterans Affairs. So they've got all my stuff. These are, these are private hospitals. Though federal law requires the agency to provide notice and public comment period before requesting information from 10 or more entities, a step it has not taken despite plans for 100 hospitals to join the surveillance system. You have to, by law, probably the Administrative Procedure act, provide notice in a public comment period if you're requesting information for more than 10 entities. I'm suing over the slush fund because they didn't under the APA provide notice in public comment period on the slush fund stuff. So this is, this is very fascinating to me that, and because they have all my health records, but also my doctorate degree is in public health, and this is terrifying. Now, federal public health authorities cannot legally mandate that private health data be reported. But CPSC officials have suggested publicly and privately that if hospitals decline to share data with their new surveillance system, they could be subject to penalties from data sharing regulation known as information blocking. Yet some hospital executives say they're reluctant to share the patient's sensitive data because they're concerned about a different violation, federal privacy law. Yeah, how about that? The CPSC's manual also identifies types of ER visits that should not be reported to the CPSC, which has jurisdiction over only certain consumer products. Excluded injuries are those caused by food, illegal drugs, medical devices, alcohol, or plants, as well as injuries that did not involve consumer products, such as a cut from a rock or broken bones from a fall onto the ground, and suicide attempts by adults. But in a contract offered to one hospital and reviewed by KFF Health News, Khanza set no such limits on the information that it would gather from ER records and said it would hold on to patient health information for at least 30 days before you do what with it. In an email sent to hospital technology officials, McCrae wrote that Khanzo would provide CPSC with records when a patient is treated in the ER for any of more than 10,000 conditions. The expansive list of diagnostic codes Khansa provided in the email includes injuries that don't involve consumer products, child injuries resulting from poisoning by vaccines or contact with stingrays, neither of which are regulated by the CPSC, are included on the list. So I'm going to keep an eye on this report, but thanks to CNN for all the information. Next up from the Wall Street Journal the Trump administration plans to end the subsidy program that has helped hold down premiums for medic drug plans, a move that could leave many seniors facing higher rates for their prescription coverages next year. This move will eliminate a program that's giving insurance Companies an estimated 3.6 billion in subsidies this year to blunt increases in premiums. Funny how we give 3.6 billion to the insurance companies, but not us. They did it to blunt increases in premiums for the Medicare prescription plans, known as Part D. The program will end after 2026. High drug costs are a perennial issue, especially for seniors on fixed incomes, and healthcare affordability is expected to be a focus in the midterm elections. Roughly 25 million people have Part D plans, 25 million, and they aren't going to learn about their 2027 rates until this fall, a Trump administration official said. The extra subsidies encouraged insurers to raise rates, knowing the government would pick up the extra cost. He said the subsidies weren't needed and other policies to help hold down Part D costs also remain in place. The average premium for a Part D plan was around $36 a month this year. That's according to KFF. That's the same agency that was working with CNN on the story about the personally identifiable information and health records demands. Now, the administration Officials said around 25% of Medicare Part D plan enrollees would see premiums for their plans stay flat or go down. 30% would have an increase of less than ten dollars to their monthly bill. Ten dollars is a lot, from 36 to 46 bucks for the remaining 45%, he said. The increases will largely be in the eleven to twenty dollar range. Seniors should be able to find lower premiums if they switch plans, he said. Medicare drug coverage premiums are rising because the plans have been hit by growing expenses for GLP1 medications and other specialty drugs. Changes implemented under 2022's Inflation Reduction act also have pushed up premiums. The law reduced many Medicare enrollees out of pocket expenses, but it required insurers to shoulder more of the costs. I think that sounds like a good plan. Those pressures are expected to continue in 2027, said Juliet Kubansky. She's a vice president at KFF. The Medicare payment Advisory Commission federal watchdog agency estimates the subsidy program, which was supposed to stabilize Part D, reduced the average Part D plan premium by about 40% in 2025. This year, it cut average rates by an estimated 27%. Part D plans offer the standalone drug coverage alongside Medicare's traditional medical benefits. Higher premiums for Part D plans could push more Medicare enrollees into Medicare Advantage, the private insurer version of Medicare, which generally wrapped in drug benefits and often charge no premiums at all. The subsidy programs had pumped an estimated 9.8 billion into the market, 6.2 billion by 2025 and 3.6 billion in 2026, according to the GAO. Despite the extra funding, the number of drug plans offered has dropped by about half in the last two years because insurers have pulled back because health care shouldn't be for profit. All right, next up from Politico, Congressional Republicans have a political problem with their signature legislative achievement of the second Trump term. People don't know about it. A new Politico poll finds that nearly half Americans say they can't explain what's in the one big beautiful Bill act. And those who can are much more likely to say it helps others, including the wealthy, but not them. One in three said the mega bills hurt the bottom line. They're per their own bottom line, greater than 8% who said it's been a boost to their personal finances. 33% says it's hurt me. 8% says it's been a boost to me. 14% says it offers some modest support. It's a frustrating situation for top Republicans who rushed to finish off the tax cut package by the middle of last year, in part to give them more time to plug the new law to voters and have tried to rebrand it as the working families tax cuts. But Americans see the mega bill and tax cuts in general as helping the wealthy far more than the working class, according to the poll conducted in July by the independent UK Based firm Public First. That's a particular challenge in a midterm year when cost of living is up and it's one of voters top concerns and frustrations are growing with rising prices and the Iran war, a notable warning sign for Republicans. Only around a quarter of people who voted for Trump, 25% of people who voted for Donald Trump believe the working class got substantial breaks from that tax law, signaling how low public opinion is of the bill among his own base. Yikes. Some more good news from NBC. A key grand jury witness in a case against a former Olympian canoeist accused of tampering with the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool testified that the area was already damaged and would have required repairs regardless. That's what lawyers said in a court filing on Monday. Davey Hearn was indicted this month and accused of damaging the liner of the long, shallow pool near the Washington Monument. Hearn, who has pled not guilty previously told NBC News that the condition of the reflecting pool was the same after I stepped away from the water as it was before I got there. President Donald Trump blamed vandals for the issues with the pool after he announced the plan to coat the bottom with American flag blue ahead of America's 250th birthday. The project faced several setbacks and the cost grew considerably beyond his original estimates. The coating began coming up and algae flooded the water once the pool was refilled. U.S. attorney's office for D.C. did not immediately request a comment. Now, at least three other people face misdemeanor charges in connection with the reflecting pool.
- [41:19]
Martin Sheen
I can't.
- [41:19]
Alison Gill
This is so ridiculous. Now, this witness who testified to the grand jury, who is not identified, was the only person who testified about damages and said that the property had already been damaged before the four authorities say Hearn stuck his hand in the water. That's according to the legal team, Hearn's legal team, but he was charged with destruction of property and accused of doing more than a thousand dollars worth of damage to the pool. Hearn's team questioned whether there's enough evidence to show he caused more than $1,000 damage to the pool, which is the threshold necessarily to charge him with the more serious crime. This witness's testimony, according to Hearn's lawyers, quote, established that the pool had substantial pre existing damage requiring repair before any alleged conduct by Mr. Hearn. The witness said the cost to repair the pool would have been roughly $6,000 to $15,000 based on pre existing damage in that area, quote. Simply put, the government's witness could not identify any additional cost caused by Mr. Hearn's alleged conduct. Indeed, the witness did not even say or suggest that the alleged conduct had compromised the liner at all. The witness testimony also raised questions about whether the grand jury was properly instructed about the core elements of the alleged crime, which, quote, bears directly on whether the felony indictment was lawfully returned, Quote, the government's only witness on that element testified that the property was already deteriorated, that the identified repairs would have been needed without Mr. Hearn's alleged conduct, and that he could not quantify any loss caused by that conduct. Consequently, the grand jury's indictment of Mr. Hearn is hard to explain. Mr. Hearn needs to learn whether the grand jury was properly instructed that the charge required him to have caused over $1,000 in damage when the testimony failed to establish that he caused any damage at all, and so does this court. U.S. attorney's Office for Washington Janine Pirro handles both federal and local crimes and is headed by former judge and Fox News host me. NBC News pressed Pirro this month about how she would prove Hearn caused more than $1,000 in damage given that the pool was already damaged with an expert, she said come to the trial. Well, I'd like to see the grand jury materials, too. Davey Hearn's lawyers. Mr. Ambassador Normizen. So looking forward to that. Maybe we'll get to see him. All right, everybody, we have good news. We have to get to. That was a lot of news. I know. Thanks for hanging in. It was just a ton of it that broke today and last night. But now we have good news. So we'll do that right after this break. Stick around. We'll be right back.
- [44:06]
Brian Caram
I'm Brian Caram and I've spent decades covering politics. Now I'm taking you behind the scenes one interview at a time. 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. 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. Subscribe now on your favorite podcast platform and remember, when you want answers, all you have to do is just ask the question.
- [44:52]
Alison Gill
Everybody, welcome back. It's time for the good news. Who likes good news?
- [44:56]
Martin Sheen
Everyone?
- [44:57]
Alison Gill
Then good news, everyone. Good news, good news. Everybody please flood the zone with your good news. It can be big good news. It can be little good news. It can be yesterday good news. It can be 40 years ago good news. You can also send in your good trouble suggestions. We have so many great good trouble suggestions or good trouble updates about some good trouble you got in. Tell us a story about some good trouble you got in. It's going to be awesome. You can also give a shout out to a loved one, a spouse, a non profit, a small business that you think needs a boost in your area or something cool that you've seen online that you just want to say this is awesome. These people are awesome. Something that'll bring a smile to our faces. You can do a shout out for yourself. We love self shout outs. Tell us why you're awesome. Everyone who listens to this show is awesome. So we need to know why you can send that to us as well. And all you got to do to get your stuff right on the air is attach a photo. It can be your pet. It can be an adoptable pet in your area. It can be a random animal on the Internet. It can be a bird watching photo which can be an actual bird. I like secretary birds and red shouldered hawks and anything, you know, like little bush tits or warblers are always cute. Little orbs burbs. I love those too. Or it can be you flipping the bird to a Trump building. You can send in photos of your family, baby pictures, what you're making or creating. What are you growing in your garden. Send us a nice sunset, your favorite meme, anything at all. Send it to us dailybeanspot.com click on contact. First up is your good trouble. Good Trouble today comes from es pronoun. She and her civil servants demand impeachment of Russell Vaught.
- [46:44]
Martin Sheen
Right.
- [46:45]
Alison Gill
Hi ag. Thanks for keeping us all informed while DG is taking some much deserved time off. Oh, she's working. She's working girl. You mentioned Russell Vaught's power grab on yesterday's show. I'm a fed directly impacted by the BS illegal cancellation of grants at DOE Department of Energy. I belong to a group of current and former feds trying to get this devil spawn impeached and removed. We're working to get members of Congress to support this and invite your listeners listeners to sign our letter to Congress demanding they take back the power of the purse and remove this man for all the laws he's breaking. They can sign the letter and get more information at. Impeachvot.com 2300 Signatures and counting. I bet we can double that. Yes. Maybe even triple it if every single person listening to this show I you would be. That would be cool because you would increase it by like 20 times. Impeachvot.com for my potpat tariff. I'm including our handsome pup, Ulysses Blank because I'm going to guess the breed here once described as a long stemmed rose by a stranger. And our kitten, Bowie. Pretty sure at least some Siamese who I unexpectedly brought home from the salon after a haircut. Thanks for all you do. Okay. The kitten is adorable. Especially with the little white. Looks like a little raggy doll. It's so cute. I would have also brought it home after this had the haircut. The dog. Oh my goodness. It looks like a lab and a. I don't know, a boxer maybe. Let's see what we got. We have German, short haired pointer and lab. Okay, I got half. I got half. Thank you. Thank you very much for your good trouble. All right, next up, Karen. Not that kind. She they. Hello Beans queens. I was excited to Hear your reporting on Monday's show about amendments four and five in the upcoming Missouri primary on August 4th. Thank you, Karen. I was sent that by a listener on a social media platform who said somebody needs to talk about these. And I said, you're right, I will. Defeating these measures is essential for keeping what little power Missouri citizens have against an out of control Republican legislature. Speaking of which, these ass hats are also up to some particularly heinous on the November ballot. Which brings me to my message for my fellow Leguminati in Missouri. In 2024, Missouri citizens voted yes on Amendment 3, the right to Reproductive freedom initiative, which enshrined abortion in the state constitution. Unwilling to accept the will of the voters, of course, the Republican legislature is putting the issue back on the ballot this November.
- [49:23]
Brian Caram
What?
- [49:23]
Alison Gill
Here's where it gets fun. They kept the Amendment 3 designation, but this time Amendment 3 would overturn the previous amendment banning abortion access and throwing in an attack on transgender care. Because asshats. Karen, this is fucked up. To make a long story short, too late Missourians who voted yes on Amendment 3 in 2024 to protect abortion access must now vote no on Amendment 3 to keep it. I am so tired to spread the word and fight this misinformation. Abortion Action Missouri is asking Missouri voters to pledge to vote no on 3 in November. I've included a link to that online pledge. So no to 3, 4 and 5. Maybe if you link them all together like that. We are united and will be coming out in force in November. For my POD pet tariff, I've included a photo a two brand new baby red pandas just born at the Kansas City Zoo. A special treat for Allison because you're killing it this week. Thanks Karen. Thanks for all you do to keep us sane and connected. Baby red pandas. They don't look like red pandas at all, but they're so cute. There I wrote a song. Thank you, Karen. Next up from Cindy. Hi ag. Just wanted to say hi. I'm hoping to give you a smile with a couple of photos I took at Christmas in July fundraising event for Patient Feather Ranch and Rescue, which you can find at Patient feather ranch and rescue.org It's a safe haven for large farm animals in our very tiny town of Raymond, California. In addition to the cows, horses and donkeys you might expect on other farms, they've got camels, buffalo, emus and llamas. I got kisses from several of these critters. Okay, I've seen this. I feel like I've seen this ostrich did you post it on. Did you post this, Cindy, on like our Facebook group? Because I've seen this ostrich photo or emu. Excuse me. Whatever. I love his hair. This is so cool. Thank you so much, Cindy. Next up from Cora Pronoun. She and her dear Allison, newer listener here. I was delighted to hear you mention Fraggle Rock last week when you said that listeners vacation updates reminded you of Uncle Traveling Matt. That lovely and thoughtful show helped me a ton with my anxiety as a teenager and it holds a special place in my heart. I was lucky enough to get to tell that to Dave Goelz about 10 years ago. The puppeteer who played Traveling Matt and Boober and still plays gonzo on the Muppets. Attached is a photo of me as a teenager with the moki puppet. Oh, I made to hand out candy on Halloween. Kids never quite knew what to think of her. You made that, Cora?
- [52:06]
Martin Sheen
Wow.
- [52:06]
Alison Gill
Thanks for all your super thorough podcasts. I've massively cut down on my frantic scouring for news and updates on social media. Look it. You made that? Yeah. And look, you have a frog hat too. That's fantastic. Thanks, Cora. And welcome. Welcome to the Luguminati. We are glad you're here. Next up, Murph. They them. Hey Ag. I just wanted to say hi while you're on your lonesome pick. Attached is Mildred, and yes, you may pet the belly, but she will decide when you're done and has a sharp enforcement policy. Her dad is currently going to rehab in a different state, so we are also missing someone and waiting for their return while being undyingly proud of the work they're doing and grateful to the universe for the opportunities. Thanks for being my morning workout buddy from afar. You're welcome, Murph. And just keep it up. Keep whatever you're in the middle of doing right now, just do 10 more of them. Unless you're running a mile. Look at the cute baby kitty. All right, next up from Elaine, pronouncing her. Thank you so much for mentioning gunsensevoter.org I have been an active volunteer with Moms Demand action for about 10 years and I can say that these candidates are vetted by answering a questionnaire and then local members are asked if they're aware of any problems with the candidate. Thank you, Elaine for letting me know. Yeah, that wasn't part of any news story. That was just me. I just wanted people to, you know, make sure they're picking the right candidates or look, see who's. Who's a good gunsensevoter.org candidate all right, I have attached a picture of Ninja looking very proud to be the first cat on the fresh tablecloth. He's ironically named Ninja because he's actually the least graceful and least stealthy cat. But he's very affectionate and a bit of a goofball. Guess the breed. He's a rescue. But he's clearly part. He's clearly part Maine coon, I would say. Yep, Maine coon. All right. Hey, I got one. Thanks very much. Next up, Jim in. In pronouns he and him, as in Jim in Indiana. No corrections or confessions. Just a couple of vacation photos from years past. In both of these, the sky was hazy from wildfire, so I converted the photos to black and white. The first one is taken of a small section of the Sawtooth Mountains in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. The second is in Yosemite National Park. If you want to see more outdoor vacation photos, look on blue sky for quote or excuse me. Hashtag support. Underscore public underscore land. I think I may be the only person using that hashtag. Thanks for your support and service, both when you were in the Navy and now that you're fighting fascism. Thank you, sir. We're gonna have a link to your blue sky, Jim. Everybody go follow Jim. Look at these beautiful photos. Thank you so much for that, everybody. Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. We only have a couple days left without Dana. We can do it. We can do it together. Flood the zone with the good news. Send it all to me dailybeanspod.com click on Contact. I will be back in your ears 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 and them's the beans.
- [55:12]
Allison Gill
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 msw media.com MSW Media. Diamond Dames, mount up.
- [55:49]
Charlotte Clymer
I'm Charlotte Clymer.
- [55:50]
Allison Gill
And and I'm Allison Gill. Hey Charlotte, what if you and I joined forces to create a weekly podcast
- [55:55]
Alison Gill
amid all the chaos of the news
- [55:57]
Allison Gill
to chat about the most recent episode of season 4?
- [55:59]
Alison Gill
Of Ted Lasso.
- [56:01]
Charlotte Clymer
Well, Alison, we'd be taking delight, amid the spite, to sit and write and bring some light on Wednesday nights. I mean, look, everything right now is ridiculous. I know we're all stressed out with the state of the country, and we all deserve some joy. Tell me Ted Lasso was there for us in the middle of the pandemic, and he's back to offer us a respite from Trump 2.0 right before the midterms.
- [56:23]
Allison Gill
That's right, we believe in Rom communism. I mean, if Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan can go through some heartfelt struggles and still end up happy, then so can we. So subscribe to Diamond Dames for free right now to get notifications. And then you can join us every week after each episode of ted Lasso Season 4, wherever you get your podcasts.
- [56:41]
Charlotte Clymer
And remember, be a goldfish, Diamond Names Dismount,
- [56:49]
Alison Gill
Barbecue Sauce.