Podcast Summary: The Five – “Evil People”

Fox News Podcasts | September 8, 2025

Overview

In this episode of The Five, Dana Perino, Paul Morrow, Jessica Tarlov, Jesse Watters, and Greg Gutfeld discuss the nation-shaking crime story of a Ukrainian refugee murdered on public transport in Charlotte, North Carolina. The panel debates the political, cultural, and policy implications, exploring crime, media coverage, Democratic Party woes, and new revelations about Biden’s mass pardons. The episode also touches on viral moments and lighter social commentary, but its main focus is the intersection of violent crime, big-city dysfunction, and media response.

Key Segments and Discussion Points

1. The Charlotte Tragedy, “Evil People,” and Crime Policy

[00:18 – 11:10]

• Story Overview:

  • The panel reacts to the fatal and unprovoked stabbing of Irina Zarutska, a Ukrainian refugee, by a man with 14 prior arrests.
  • Trump’s “evil people” comment sets the tone for a discussion about repeat offenders and progressive criminal justice policies.
  • Panel criticizes media, especially CNN’s Brian Stelter, for focusing on narratives of racism rather than the crime itself.

• Greg Gutfeld:

  • Argues the use of “mental illness” as an excuse for predatory behavior:

    “I’m tired also of the term mental illness being used as a cover for criminality... That is not insane. That’s self-preservation. This is not insanity. It’s an evil mind.” [03:22]

  • Critiques selective media outrage and hierarchy of issues:

    "...they will still get people like Brian Stelter that says, be careful of the racism... But he’s not mentally ill. He needs to be executed." [04:20]

  • Points out the disparity in media coverage (George Floyd vs. Zarutska, Daniel Penny cases).

• Jesse Waters:

  • Calls for tougher crime policy:

    “Look, we can’t arrest our way into everybody having perfect mental health, but we can arrest our way into the rest of us being a hell of a lot safer... She completely misses the point.” [06:21]

  • Critiques New York officials on ineffective strategies, and notes the downstream effects of unsafe transportation:

    “Every woman I know, especially young women, are afraid of the subways. We have half the population afraid to go on the subway. That costs us billions.” [07:20]

  • Shares practical safety tips and wider impacts on city life.

• Jessica Tarlov:

  • Acknowledges horror, supports involuntary commitment for such repeat offenders:

    “...when the justice system has failed this many times... this is going to cause us to open up the conversation about involuntary commitments.” [10:20]

2. Media, Race, and Criminal Justice: Uncomfortable Truths and Double Standards

[11:10 – 13:30]

• Jesse Waters:

  • Bluntly claims media and liberal establishment are silent when perpetrator is black, critiquing liberals for ignoring intra-community violence:

    “These whites that are liberal that run the media organizations hold blacks to a lower standard than whites. And they’re afraid of getting called racist...” [11:10]

  • Warns about the “homeless industrial complex” and agencies that profit from failed rehabilitation.

• Call for Reform:

  • Panel supports federal-level mandatory minimums, more institutionalization, and critiques permissive philosophy.

3. Democratic Party Woes and Intra-Party Strife

[14:20 – 22:00]

• Context:

  • Steve Kornacki’s data suggests Democrats are more unpopular than Republicans as midterms approach.
  • Bernie Sanders and AOC try to rally the “Democratic left” amid warnings about splintering.

• Dana Perino:

  • Bluntly describes the Democrats’ leadership vacuum:

    “You know things are bleak when even the Washington Post news side said the Democrats are leaderless.” [15:49]

  • Draws lessons from '90s crime policy and how Democratic elders previously handled urban disorder.

• Greg Gutfeld:

  • Suggests Democrats are out of touch, sticking to “woke” priorities despite voter fatigue:

    “If you continue to mention the same WOKE pathologies, racial injustice, equity and that stuff, you’re done, you’re toast. And you deserve to die...” [18:36]

• Jessica Tarlov:

  • Pushes back, references J.D. Vance’s pessimism and ongoing Republican policy struggles:

    “You won in 2024. Act like it. You have a new election coming. You have to defend yourself each time. We lost in 2024. That’s why I say we've been admitting it. Biden was too old. He shouldn’t have been the candidate. People chose Donald Trump over Kamala Harris.” [20:33]

• Jesse Watters:

  • Warns that Trump’s focus on crime and fentanyl will be a winning issue:

    “Crime, crime, crime. I get that. Donald Trump’s doing something else, and the left better wake up to it... He’s starting to control the Western hemisphere, our part of the Western hemisphere.” [22:14]

4. Biden Pardon “Auto-Pen” Scandal

[24:41 – 31:04]

• Allegations:

  • Panel discusses revelations of Biden staff mass-approving pardons via auto-pen, raising questions about accountability and possible corruption.

• Paul Morrow:

  • Legal concern:

    “The auto pen was our president. Or to put it a different way, whoever operated the auto pen was our president. It’s not allowed.” [24:59]

  • Suspects kickbacks and political favoritism in the clemency process.

• Jesse Waters:

  • “Feels to me like at the ground level somebody said...I’ll donate $10,000 to your campaign. Can you put a word in the big guy’s ear and get my guy out of it. Now, I don’t know that I want to be clear, but I don’t have another explanation for how some of these oddball pardons came in.” [25:25]

• Greg Gutfeld:

  • Brings up allegations about the Biden family’s finances and the possibility of “pardon cash” funding the presidential library:

    “Did Biden get a kickback for all these pardons? I mean, his family’s broke... I wouldn’t be surprised if some of this pardon cash ended up funding the library. It’s something to investigate.” [26:55]

• Jessica Tarlov:

  • Defends Democratic voters’ policy preferences, notes every president does personal pardons:

    “For, you know, the last minute pardons for people that you know are personal. Every president does that. President Trump obviously did that, you know, down at the wire...” [30:07]

  • Admits “the problem with a lot of them was...they didnʼt go through the right DOJ channels.” [30:40]

5. Viral “Ball Snatching Karen” and Cultural Civility

[31:43 – 36:26]

• Viral Moment:

  • A woman wrestles a home run ball from a child at a baseball game, sparking discussion.
  • Watters and Gutfeld use it as a metaphor for societal entitlement and the DEI debate.

• Greg Gutfeld:
  – “She didn’t earn that baseball... That’s what DEI is, and we are done with it.” [32:48]

• Dana Perino:

  • “For anybody out there, guess what? Cameras are everywhere now. Literally everywhere...I think also it says something about dads and the importance of dads... a teachable moment. We have got to get back to more manners and more civility...” [35:34]

6. Social Etiquette: Chatting With Neighbors

[37:00 – 39:12]

• Light Segment:
  • Panel jokes about how often to greet or chat with neighbors, city versus country etiquette, and cultural differences.
  • Gutfeld and Watters compare Southern politeness to Japan, joke about their own neighborly habits.
  • Concludes on the importance of pets as neighborhood ice-breakers.

7. Final Segment: Astrology and Miscellany

[39:46 – 41:17]

• Dana Perino:

  • Dispels myths about astrological signs in a fun segment.
  • Gutfeld jokes: “I hope I blew your mind with that. You’re a cancer society.” [41:01]

• Show closes with light banter and programming notes.

Notable Quotes and Key Timestamps

• Paul Morrow on evil and societal safety:

  “There are evil people. We have to be able to handle that. If we don’t handle that, we don’t have a country.” [00:18]

• Greg Gutfeld on mental illness as cover:

  “This is not insanity. It’s an evil mind. And it’s an evil mind that is somehow excused in a culture that weaponizes victim status.” [03:47]

• Jesse Waters on city safety:

  “We can arrest our way into the rest of us being a hell of a lot safer on public transport...” [06:21]

• Jessica Tarlov on justice reform:

  “This is going to cause us to open up the conversation about involuntary commitments.” [10:20]

• Jesse Waters on media double standards:

  “These whites that are liberal that run the media organizations hold blacks to a lower standard than whites... they’re afraid of getting called racist...” [11:10]

• Dana Perino on Democratic Party:

  “It’s a calamity...even the Washington Post news side said the Democrats are leaderless. And that is just the truth.” [15:49]

• Paul Morrow on auto-pen scandal:

  “The auto pen was our president. Or to put it a different way, whoever operated the auto pen was our president. It’s not allowed.” [24:59]

Tone and Style

Throughout the episode, the panel maintains a lively, combative, and sometimes irreverent tone. There are moments of solemnity, especially regarding the Charlotte murder, but also frequent humor and pointed political satire. The hosts blend serious debate with quips, banter, and cultural commentary.

Conclusion

This episode of The Five is defined by its passionate debate over urban crime, the media’s approach to race, and the current struggles of the Democratic Party, all in the wake of a tragic crime story. The panel critiques progressive approaches to crime and mental illness, decries media double standards, and delves into both serious policy and lighter viral news stories, all through their signature, energetic style.