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- [00:21]
A
It is no Kings Date 2.0. Look who we have here. Hi, Joy Reid. Hi, Jim Acosta. How you guys feeling?
- [00:28]
B
Hey, Don Lemon. We're feeling good. Look, feeling resisty.
- [00:34]
C
Feeling really good. I'm on the street with the people. You're on F street in downtown D.C. heading to the mall for big. No Kings coverage all day long tonight.
- [00:43]
B
Love it.
- [00:44]
D
Love it.
- [00:44]
C
You're out there. Tell us what it's like out there. Yeah. And first of all, guys, Joy, Don, it's great to be back with you. I mean, I thought we absolutely crushed it the last no Kings Day. And we had, I'm sure you guys told some, so many people who were just thrilled with how this was all playing out and all the voices and people that we saw. But I mean, The Snow Kings 2, I think is shaping up to be obviously the sequel being better than the original. I'm on F street in downtown D.C. pardon my hand there, as I'm looking at the crowd and we've got about a crowd of about a thousand people behind me right now. This is just marching down to the mall where there are even more people down in the mall. And you know, this is a lively bunch. We've just been hearing some of the chance Donald Trump is on the Epstein files. You know, it's a lively bunch. You know, I heard Mr. Stealthy language or I mean, this, this is a, to me, this is a pressure valve being released for. You guys are doing this on your stage with your guests. People you're talking to. People are pissed off. They are frustrated, they are angry and they want to, they want to voice that frustration and say, we don't have a cane in this country. No Kings. And that's the message we're hearing down here on the Mall so far. Very peaceful with his handcuffed, hey, I can't control the crowd. But you know, this, this is a very determined, resolved group of people here in Washington D.C. right now. You know, the, the National Guard has been on the streets here. ICE has been on the streets here. This is a community and I grew up in this area. When I walk around downtown D.C. people are, they're sick of this. I mean, they're sick of this shit. And they want to get out here and make that message plain and clear. But I talked to Ezra Levin with Indivisible not too long ago, and they want to make sure they channel that anger, handle that frustration into peaceful, non violent resistance and action. And I think that's what we're going to see today. The speaker of the House called us a Hate America rally. I have not seen anybody express any hatred so far. What I'm seeing is people who love this country. But folks got to remember, you know, I. I woke up this morning worried somebody's going to try to instigate something. They're itching for a spark. And so as long as this day stays peaceful, as long as people get that voice out, make their voices heard, but do it in the right way, this day, I think it's going to be an even bigger success than last time around.
- [03:16]
B
Amen. Amen. You know, and I have to say, I have to add, Don, that, you know, the right, the conservatives, the Republicans, they are incredibly triggered by this day. They were really clearly concerned about this. Donald Trump is worried about it. He was saying, well, no one's gonna show up. He was trying to sort of channel maybe his own hope that people wouldn't show up. But the reality is what you have is a Republican Party that have shown themselves to be monarchists. The reason that the theme here is no kings, is that the Republican Party, all the way up to John Roberts and his fellow conservatives on the Supreme Court, have done everything possible to undo what we're supposed to be celebrating next year, the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. I think a lot of people forget what's in that declaration. The point is, is that the people who founded the country said that what they wanted was to get away from a monarchy in England that had the ability to search your home, to quarter in your home without your permission, to physically take you and arrest you without due process, to essentially tax you, without giving you representation. What we have now are people who are taxpaying Americans, even veterans who are being grabbed on the street, thrown to the ground, and detained by masked men who they can't even tell are feds, based on literally the color of their skin or their accent. You have a country that is being unraveled by the Republican Party so that they can serve Donald Trump and a small set of multi, multi billionaires, and it's returning the country to the status that it had really in 1775, where you had these plantation owners who had vast, enormous, untaxed wealth that they were able to use just for themselves and reduce everyone else to either serfdom or slavery. What this iteration of the Republican Party clearly wants is a return to that status quo ante. And what you're seeing is people broadly across the board, in some cases including people who voted for Donald Trump thinking they were going to get lower Prices saying, whoa, wait a minute. We did not intend to return ourselves to serfdom. And that is the fight that we're seeing. It's a fight that is multiracial, it's multi religion, it's multi background, it's multi regional, it's all over the country. But I have to note that the three of us that are on the screen literally represent the people that the Trump regime is at war with. Black folks, brown folks, LGBT folks, women. They're at war with all of us.
- [05:42]
A
And Joy, I love Joy. You just go right there. And that's why I love you. I hate to be. To start off on a controversial moment, but I don't believe it's that controversial. We've been talking a lot about people's rights, their First Amendment right, freedom of this freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom to assemble. Right. And to protest. And then we have to remember our Fourth Amendment rights, which involves legal or illegal search and seizures, and then our Fifth Amendment rights, which is due process, and the Second Amendment as well, which is interesting because you have all these conservatives out here just really gunning for, no pun intended, for, you know, for people to be able to just be taken off the streets without any due process, whether you're a citizen or not. Show me your papers. And to folks who are out there, to many Americans, this is. This is. This is not a sign of tyranny. This is tyranny. And a tyrannical government is mentioned in the Second Amendment. So it's interesting to me that, that folks have been, you know, a little bit, you know, like, oh, wait, what is Don Lemon talking about? I'm just talking about what's. What's happening in the world right now. The Second Amendment is linked to the idea of preventing a government tyranny by ensuring an armed citizenry can resist oppression. Proponents argue that an armed populace acts as a check on potential government overreach and a deterrent against tyranny, a concern deeply rooted in the Founders fear of a powerful, centralized federal government. The. This perspective suggests the right to bear arms is a fundamental safeguard for a free state. Now, what am I saying here? I'm saying that we are up against the constitutional crisis, where people are interpreting the Constitution in ways they want. Like, you know, they interpret the Bible and scripture, scriptures in ways. Ways they want. Our Constitution is very clear about the rights of the people. Those amendments are for the rights of the people. And I believe in this time that we're in right now, we. Which is, I believe, a constitutional crisis. We need to make people very clear about all of their rights. If someone comes to your door, what you can do, someone stops you, what you can do, what you can do out on the streets today, all of that is a constitutional right. If you're not breaking the law, there is no due process. If there are no warrants, then your rights are being violated. And I think Americans need to know that, need to know the power that they have.
- [07:56]
B
Amen. Amen. And where are the Second Amendment people now? Like, remember all the don't tread on me Tea Party people? Where y' all at? Y' are saying that we didn't want tyranny. Y' all were afraid Obama was going to put y' all in FEMA camps. Where y' all at? Why aren't you at no kids rallies? I thought you guys were the freedom people, the freedom from tyranny people. But I promise you, if somebody were to brandish a weapon at one of these armed mask thugs who don't identify themselves and try to kidnap them, if in a red state, somebody decides that they want to try to bear arms to protect themselves, y' all going to put them in prisons. So the reality is the thing that the, the Second Amendment people have the constantly feared and warned about under Democratic presidents is here under Trump, all the things that you all have claimed. But what's happening is the armed populace is actually being weaponized against unarmed immigrants and US citizens, including military veterans. So now what y' all really meant about the militia is you wanted an armed populace that could subdue the brown and black people that you don't want in the country. That is the not just conservatism or right wingery, that's Nazism. It's ethnic cleansing. And now don't say that. I'm the one saying it's Nazism. Y' all own youth, your so called youth, your 18 to 40 year old youth from your youth Republican organization are literally saying they love Hitler.
- [09:15]
C
Don't forget the Vice President of the.
- [09:17]
A
United States who called Trump Hitler.
- [09:19]
B
He called him Hitler. He said he might be, but he meant it as a compliment.
- [09:22]
C
Yeah. And guys, I mean on that don't tread on me thing, I think the don't tread on me people are treading on us, I think is what's happening right now in this country. And as they say, you know, fascism is when one third of the population torments another third of the population. Now the other third watches. And what's important about no Kings Day is that this is about getting people off of what Charlemagne, the God Called the couch. It is time to get people off the couch. It is time for people who say, this doesn't matter anymore. My vote doesn't count. My participation doesn't count. You have to get up off the goddamn couch. Especially if it's J.D. vance's couch. Don't sit on that thing. That is, you know, make sure grandma put the plastic covering on that. You do not want to sit on that, but get off the damn couch and get out on the streets and make your voices heard. And my thinking on all of this is, guys, and I was saying this to my producer before this day started, is that this is about peaceful, non violent demonstration and redress of grievances. The American people still have a right in this country to exercise their freedom of speech. And that is sacrosanct. That is sacred. That is etched into our Constitution. It cannot be taken away. And you know what? If the, if the ICE people and all of these thugs that want to come after us in masks because they're, they're too, they're too fearful of the people that, because they have to wear a mask, if they're going to beat on us and form on us and abuse us, you know, we're going to make sure our phones are rolling, we're going to make sure our cameras are rolling, that everybody is watching this. This is, that this is memorialized and recorded from your history. And I will tell you, in the long run, it looks better on us than on them. When the people rise up and do this. In a way, that's my take on this.
- [11:09]
B
Add to that real quick. I'm sorry, Don, because what, what Jim just said, I think is so resonant. You guys have to remember, people always ask, what would I have been doing in history if I were back then? This is what they did in Selma. Recall that. What they were doing in Selma is they were testing the First Amendment right of black and allied white citizens to march from Selma to Montgomery. Why? To demand voting rights. But they were also testing, and they had a court case going at the same time about their right to peacefully assemble because the governor of Alabama said, you can't march. You're not allowed to physically march. They were testing that legally to go all the way up to the Supreme Court if necessary. And there were amicus briefs being filed even as they marched. The first beating was an attempt by the governor of Alabama to say, you're not allowed to use your First Amendment rights to march.
- [12:00]
C
March.
- [12:00]
B
So what you all are doing, if you are at a no Kings rally today, is doing what they did in Selma, testing the rights of the First Amendment to be applied to the people who want to resist tyranny and authority. And at the end of the march, after John Lewis got his head bashed in, what they wound up getting was the very Voting Rights act that John Roberts and the Supreme Court majority are trying to nullify. Sorry, Don.
- [12:21]
C
Go ahead.
- [12:21]
A
No, no, come on, Joy. This is all of our show. Yeah, we got hours.
- [12:29]
C
That was inspiring, Joy. I have to say. That was inspiring.
- [12:32]
B
Thank you.
- [12:33]
A
Absolutely. And let me just add to that Joy, that first of all, you're watching the power of independent media. I mean, look at us.
- [12:40]
C
Yes.
- [12:41]
A
And the.
- [12:43]
C
The.
- [12:44]
A
When we did the no Kings the first time, you guys know, I'm sure you heard the response, like, damn, you guys were great.
- [12:49]
C
You were better than.
- [12:50]
A
Than cable or broadcast. It's like, yeah, because we're covering the real. The real people, and we can actually be ourselves. Right. The other thing is, is that if you can't be at a no Kings march or protest, and we understand if you can't put a sign in your yard.
- [13:05]
B
Yes.
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A
Do something to show solidarity. Put something in your window.
- [13:08]
C
Yes.
- [13:09]
A
Put it on social media, whatever you can do. But by all means, try to get out there and remember that you have rights. And speaking of Joy, you mentioned black and brown people. Right. Testing the limits and what they could do with black and brown people. Should we get some black and brown hosts?
- [13:24]
C
Yeah.
- [13:24]
A
Oh, wait a minute. We got all different shades on here on this program, and this is way more diverse than I've ever seen. I'm so sick of turning on, you know, traditional teeth. And I'm like, how many white people can they fit on one screen? No, you know what I'm talking about?
- [13:41]
C
God, you know, you turn on TV.
- [13:42]
B
In the morning and you just like, it's like a blizzard. It's like a blizzard. Where the black and brown people at? They're never there. It's like, what's happening? You wake up in the morning, you just want to hear the news, and you're just like, oh, the weather outside is frightful.
- [13:59]
C
And the other thing, too, is, I mean, ice.
- [14:01]
A
Hey, guys, can you hold on?
- [14:02]
C
I'm gonna grab my earpiece. You guys continue.
- [14:04]
A
Okay, get your earpiece.
- [14:05]
B
Go for it, Don.
- [14:06]
C
Get your ear. Get your earpiece.
- [14:07]
B
Go ahead, Jim.
- [14:08]
C
No, and I was just gonna say, you know, when it comes to ice, it is so important that we have diverse voices talking about this very important issue. I mean, I, you know, my father is a Cuban refugee, came to this country from a communist country. I'll be damned if, if, you know, my people came to this country so it could be turned into another dictatorship.
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B
Come on.
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C
You know what I'm saying? And I mean, that's. And, you know, we. We don't need Fidel Castro here or the mango Mussolini.
- [14:34]
B
You know, we don't need to say this, Jim. Your. Your, Your. Your father came here as a refugee from Cuba for real. Not like Marco Rubio, whose parents were apparently liked the dictatorship that was there before. And then he lied in order to make himself more authentic to Cuban American voters in Miami. His whole story is a lie. Your story is real. Marco Rubio has been trading on this idea. But if Marco Rubio was in Cuba in the 1950s, he will be for Batista because he's for Trump. Trump is Batista. And I, please wish that.
- [15:05]
C
He's a Batista Republican.
- [15:07]
B
He's a Batista Republican. And these guys in Cuba need to understand. Y' all are worshiping the new Batista.
- [15:12]
C
Go ahead. No, and I'm going to say right now, and I've been thinking about writing about this, but I'm gonna just say it right now. Shame on Marco Rubio. Shame on Ted Cruz. You guys are the children of Cuban immigrants. You should not be tolerating this ICE bullshit that we're seeing in Chicago right now, where they're ripping moms out of vans who are picking up their kids from school, who are chasing migrants through Walgreens and all kinds of crazy shit. Shooting, Shooting pastors in the head with pepper balls. All kinds of crazy shit. Where are the Latinos who are in government right now on the Republican side? Why are you not selling Donald Trump? What the fuck is happening? Why are Latino people being treated like this? It is absolutely disgusting.
- [15:54]
B
Every single Cuban American member of Congress. Anna, Paulina, Luna, all y', all, shame on.
- [16:01]
C
Where are you? That's.
- [16:02]
B
Where are you? Shame on you. You know exactly that. When, when, when, when, when Batista was in power, he was doing the exact same thing to your grandparents. He could pick them up, drag them in the street, and so can the current Castro regime, whether it's a left or right.
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C
The.
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B
The Cuban regimes can pick you up off the street, throw you in prison. Nothing you can do about it. They can detain you for years. Nothing you could do about it. They don't give you due process. They give you no rights. Y' all are literally rebuilding Batista's Cuba in America. And you know that's what you're doing. You know that's what you're doing Insane.
- [16:36]
C
And Ice and Ice is acting like the Secret Police right now. They are the secret Police least. And. And why is Marco Rubio silent on this? Why is Ted Cruz silent on this? Shame on them for that.
- [16:47]
B
Shame on them. Look, can you turn around and show us, Jim, what you're seeing behind you? Because we're starting to see some spice.
- [16:54]
A
Can I guys, I want to bring in. Jennifer Welch is here.
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B
Oh, yes.
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C
From the I've had it podcast as.
- [17:01]
A
Well as.
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C
We hear you, Jen.
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B
Can we just say Jennifer Welch represents the Spicy whites. And I'm you telling. Telling you, my team, Spicy whites. I need my spicy whites to be down. And Jennifer is. We're officially dubbing her.
- [17:19]
D
I don't know if I can hear.
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B
You guys have AirPods, but I'm in New York. It's packed, it's peaceful.
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D
There's thousands of people here.
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B
Let me scan the camera. Go it.
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A
We can hear you, Jen.
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C
Go ahead.
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A
Keep on.
- [17:36]
C
Yeah, I'm seeing the same thing in D.C. guys, as Jennifer is saying in New York, it is very peaceful. There are people gathered at this corner of 10th and F. We're actually right by Ford's Theater, and people are just showing their love for this country, but they're making their voices heard. They're saying we're not going to have a king in this country. We're not having fascists in this country and so on. And it's. I mean, I've been really proud of the way this has been developing thus far. We're waiting to see where this crowd is going to go next. I think they're going to continue down F Street down to the National Mall. We kind of stopped here for a moment and the cops are redirecting us, but I think we're going to start moving, it looks like. Is that right, Sam? We're starting to move again. All right. We're heading back towards the National Mall. That's where all of this is going to. It's all going to come together right in front. It was basically where they had the Epstein statue. When we saw that the other day, the Trump Epstein statue, which, I mean, I love America. I would just say I love people who have that creativity that they put into their patriotism. And that was an example. I'm pretty sure we're going to be standing right. That Epstein Trump statue was. Which I kind of wish I had a miniature version of that, you know, when, you know, as a Cuban, I can say this. My dad had the fountain with a little statue on top in our front yard. When I was growing up, I kind of want a miniature version of that Epstein Trump statue in my front yard, if that's okay. Water can shoot out, please.
- [18:56]
B
I have a Trump baby. I have one of the Trump babies. I have one that we rescued from a protest in New York and I treasure him. It's the only Trump I actually like is my Trump baby. It's like a little blown up baby with his big belly and his teeny weeny. You know, he has a little.
- [19:10]
A
Yeah, I have the Trump Russian, Russian dolls. Hey, Rick Wilson, where are you? What you got for us?
- [19:18]
C
Not the biggest town in America, but There are over 5,000 people out today peacefully protesting on the streets. It was so crowded coming in, we had to circle all the way around to even get close to the, the Capitol area. And I gotta tell you, the spirit here is it's a bigger rally than the first one was, which surprises me a little bit, but it is loud. I'm walking over towards the center of it again right now and just very high energy, very patriotic. And the theme of no Kings has so much resonance for the folks out here today. I think it really speaks to a movement in this country that is a lot bigger and a lot more dangerous for the MAGA movement than they, than they believe in terms of its political power to sweep the board next fall.
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A
Hey, hey, Rick, can I ask you, why do you, you touched on a little bit. It looks like it sounds like you've been marching. Right?
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C
Good for you.
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A
Why do you think it's bigger this time? What, what, what happens? I mean, the obvious. Talk to us about it.
- [20:31]
C
Look, the, the, the first no Kings rally was very apparent that we were in the beginning of the fascism. Now we're in the middle of the fascism and people are pissed. They're not angry, they are pissed. They are not going to stand for it. And it's reaching a point where, where, where no one believes this is going to solve itself by waiting for Trump to do the right thing or waiting for the Republicans to do the right thing. It's going to take a lot of folks out in the street and a lot of folks voting.
- [21:06]
A
And, and by the way, I also.
- [21:09]
C
Want to note that the inflatable animal outfits are making quite a bit. Hey, how are you? Good to see you. Sorry, I love the inflatable animals. Yeah, yeah, Hang on. I'm gonna swap cameras here and give you a little. Just walk through this pathway here. I don't know if it's as loud on your end as it is on mine, but it is. It's booming here. Inflatable animal. That's what I want to know. Yeah.
- [21:37]
A
So stand by. I want to bring in. I want to bring it. Let me bring in Jennifer Welch, because Jennifer is in. Jennifer, you're in where? You're in Times Square. You're in New York. Now.
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C
Can you tell us the difference?
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A
Because last time you were in Oklahoma, and now you're in New York. Talk to us about the difference in what you're seeing.
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C
Okay.
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A
She can't hear us.
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C
Yeah.
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B
But the looks. You can see how big Jen's.
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C
We love Jen's energy. Yes.
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B
Definitely bigger than the crowd in a cracker barrel.
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C
That's right, Rick, Where.
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A
And Rick, you said you're in. You're in Sarasota or Tallahassee.
- [22:26]
B
All right.
- [22:26]
A
Is that a red town? Is Tallahassee red?
- [22:30]
C
It is a blue dot in the middle of a giant red ocean. Yeah, yeah.
- [22:36]
B
Andrew Gillum used to be the mayor of Tallahassee.
- [22:38]
C
That's out. Yeah. Yeah. I will say I've lived here for almost 30 years, and I've never seen crowds like this in this town ever, for. For any kind of event like this because it just. You normally get a couple dozen people here, and that's considered a big event. This has gotten much bigger, and people are just, you know, people aren't gonna. Aren't gonna give their country up without a fight. That's the obvious, you know, sort of obvious thing here. And Don, I mean, this is. This is a. One of the things that I. The whole week, they tried to brand, this is. Oh, hate America. Hey. Yes. Hi. How are you? Hi. Nice to see you. Sorry, guys, but. But, you know, they tried to brand us today as an anti American day. Oh, my God.
- [23:32]
A
Hang on, guys.
- [23:33]
C
Hello. I'm gonna hug you now. I love you even more. I'm taking a fly and the plane's coming back from avionics. Sorry. One of my pilot friends dressed in a hilarious animal costume. But, yeah, guys, it is this idea. They branded. Tried to brand this whole week as anti American. That's not even close to the truth. This place is rolling with American flags. Happy people, patriotic people. You know, they failed their branding just as they're trying to convince us that, you know, Portland is a hell hole when it's one block of people wearing animal costumes. Hey, guys. Right? Yeah, it's true. I mean, they've been. Caroline Levitt was on the other day saying, oh, it's antifa. It's Hamas. It's all this and all that. They're afraid of this. They are, they are panic stricken, you couldn't be more correct. They are terrified of this. This is what, this is what they truly, they want people to stay home, be scared and give up. And the message that people are giving here is they're not going to be scared, they're not going to stay home, and they're sure as hell not going to give up. Yeah. And Rick, I wouldn't be surprised if they took Trump down to Mar A Lago to get away from this. We have his feelings hurt, wouldn't you say? I mean, that's. Oh, listen, he's down there this weekend doing $1 million fundraiser, a million dollar plate fundraiser for whatever, whatever corruption of the day is. But it is, look this, across the country, we're seeing rallies like this. And this is a small town, guys. To put 5,000 people out into town with only 300,000 people is a real thing. That's why you're seeing it so big in New York, in D.C. and elsewhere.
- [25:15]
A
We are, we're seeing aerial shots of Tampa Bay, Florida, as you were speaking, Rick, I wondered, and you guys, you guys can weigh on this. I'm wondering what Donald Trump is going to do or might try to do to distract from this, because he likes to deflect. He hates this.
- [25:31]
C
I kept wondering, I was like, is.
- [25:33]
A
He gonna start a war with someone? Like, who is he gonna fire missiles on?
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C
Or like, what, what, what boats?
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B
Is he gonna.
- [25:43]
C
Kill this fisherman?
- [25:44]
B
Is he gonna murder? I mean, the thing is, I have a question for you, Rick Wilson. You know, you talk to a lot more Republicans than I do. I talk to a small number. You talk to a lot. A bigger number. Are Republicans behind the scenes admitting that their party has gone to fascism, has gone to authoritarianism? And do they mind or are they just raking in the money and accepting it?
- [26:04]
C
Look, I would say it's not a majority, but it's bigger than it was before 2024. There is now a growing sense among some of the more libertarian Republican types, and there's still a, that's still a decent cohort, that the troops in the streets and the abuse of civil rights is going to go too far. And even if they're just afraid that it's going to turn back on them someday, they're starting to feel afraid of it and they're starting to feel nervous about it. That doesn't mean they're going to pick a fight with Trump in public. Joy. Right. But it does mean they're a Little less willing to step up and. And, you know, be in the line of fire every second. The other thing that's really, really terrifying them is the economic questions are weighing on them because that's not spinnable. They can't make that. They can't make that chicken shit into chicken salad with. No matter how much mayonnaise they throw into it, they are stuck with a bad economy. That is Trump's fault.
- [27:04]
B
Yeah. And can I ask you this, too, Rick, because the Governor Pritzker of Illinois gave, I thought, a really good interview the other day where he said what people are starting to real is that eventually when this turns, not everyone is going to have qualified immunity. And when the trials begin, some of these masked men who are wearing masks because they know eventually they could be tried for the things they're doing, people are concerned that eventually they're going to be trials. And I wonder for you if the military resignation, such as the recent resignation of the admiral, if that is putting a chill into people because they're realizing that military folks are like, I don't want to be here when the trials begin. Real quick.
- [27:43]
C
You know what, Joy? I think the question that a lot of these ICE folks, the words qualified immunity, they're making a gamble. Oh, Trump will pardon us. There are civil. There are civil aspects to this down the line that doesn't matter if it pardons them for a federal crime. These people are. The lawlessness that they are engaged in is going to come back to bite them. If we make it as a country, that lawlessness is going to be. God. I know it sounds like a reach to people, but it is going to be something that is the equivalent of the kind of reconciliation you have to have after a Nuremberg. You have to have trials. You have to put people on trial and hold them accountable and responsible for the violence and the criminality and the violation of American civil rights. At scale, it's just not acceptable. If we're a constitutional republic, as my Republican friends love to remind us, if we're a constitutional republic, it's based on the rule of law. There's no option other than to take these people and hold them to account. They're now exercising this violence not only on immigrants, but on American citizens without a warrant, without a badge, without wearing a mask. That's not America. And by the way, for my conservative friends, that's sure as hell not conservative.
- [28:57]
B
Yes.
- [28:57]
A
Yeah, can I talk to you about. I'm sorry, Jim. Can I go or you want to go?
- [29:03]
C
Yeah. No, I was just going to say walking by the FBI right now. Cash hotels, FBI where you know, they are now going after people like James Comey, where they are now going after people like Letitia James. They're going after John Bowden and they don't go after Signal gate. They don't go after Tom Holman in the bag of cash. Right. I mean, for all their complaints about political prosecution, that's exactly what the fuck they're doing.
- [29:29]
B
Yes, right.
- [29:31]
C
I mean, look, Tom Homan is as obvious a criminal as I've ever seen in government. I've been around for 40 years, I've seen a number of them. And if you're going to prosecute John Bolton for keeping a diary and you don't prosecute p headset for leaking our national security secrets and intelligence operations on signal, then you understand. Very. And if you're going to pardon an over criminal like George Santos, you understand that the criminals are going to get preferential treatment. That's not a government anymore. That's a mobile. Yeah, that's a mafia family.
- [30:05]
B
That's right.
- [30:06]
C
That's right.
- [30:08]
A
No, no, no, come on, Jim. Hey, listen, so you were talking about people's rights and qualified immunity and all that. Qualified immunity doesn't keep. It doesn't keep you immune or gives you impunity from violating people's fourth and fifth amendment rights.
- [30:24]
C
Right.
- [30:24]
A
The thing that I'm concerned about one is obviously the First Amendment. We were up against that. We're up against the fourth and fifth amendments and then also the Second Amendment. I stirred up a lot of Republican and fo ire this week by saying, hey, look, I think this is kind of the moment that the second Amendment was written for and these people need to be cognizant of that. This is indeed a constitutional crisis. And if anybody is upset that I'm.
- [30:48]
C
Telling people they should take advantage of.
- [30:49]
A
Their constitutional rights and explore them. In this particular time, I'm only doing.
- [30:53]
C
What you have been telling people to.
- [30:55]
A
Do for decades and decades, which is also constitutional. What do you say to that?
- [31:00]
C
I'm old enough to remember when they were talking about second Amendment solutions. Yeah, that's right. And I'm a gun guy, I'm a firearms guy. And you know, the, the idea that Republicans think that they have an exclusive monopoly on the ability to resist tyranny is wrong. And it's a spectrum and it all depends. And it's not just a Chinese menu. Pick one right or the other. You got to pursue all of your rights. If you're gonna, if you're gonna fight back against Tyranny, in my opinion. Amen.
- [31:32]
A
Amen.
- [31:33]
B
Amen.
- [31:34]
A
So, Rick, how long do you think this is? Is the crowd building or growing where you are or.
- [31:39]
C
This started at 10, and it ends at noon. So it is.
- [31:42]
A
It is still a big crowd.
- [31:43]
C
It's all over the Capitol Plaza, and it runs down Monroe street, which is the main drag through the middle of Tallahassee. So I would say it's still growing at this point. And there's a lot of. There's a lot of. I mean, and it really spans the distance because it's everything from college kids to seniors. Yeah. And that's what we're seeing here in D.C. guys. Yeah. I mean, look at this beautiful crowd behind me right now. We got thousands of people who are marching down Pennsylvania Avenue. I'm gonna just do, like, the 180 here just to show you. Behind me is the U.S. capitol. It doesn't get more patriotic than that. Marching from basically the direction of the White House down to the Capitol. And we can see in the distance is another crowd of thousands of people gathered on the National Mall, ready for this crowd to join them and say, this. This is a big one. You know, I've done a lot of these. I remember the ones around George Floyd in D.C. at that time, back in 2020. It's huge. And it's so far, very peaceful, very nonviolent, but very determined. And as Rick was saying, the elderly, children, college students, every race, creed, religion, whatever you can think of, they're all marching in the streets right now. And I. You know, getting back to what Rick was saying, and, you know, Mike Gatsby saying, hate America and all that, I'm looking at a sign. This is Mikey. He goes along. But anyway, it's just. It's infuriating because this is how you show your love for country. This is what it's all about. Right?
- [33:21]
B
And by the way, this. And Jim, you. You can see it in person in, you know, in real time. This is the area that was the subject of the January 6th insurrection. And the right is trying to rewrite the January 6th insurrection as a peaceful march. What you are showing us in the exact same spaces is what a peaceful march looks like. If they had simply marched from the White House to the Capitol or the other way around, protesting against the election, even if we think they're crazy for thinking the election was stolen, nobody could have said anything about that. Nobody could have objected to them peacefully marching. The way that is happening now. If they threw on some frog costumes, we'd have probably thought oh, that's fun, you know, but the reality is what they chose to do because of their arrogance and their belief that the country belongs to them and that the people who look like those of us on this screen right now, who are black or brown or LGBTQ or who are a woke white conservative like Rick Wilson, they're like, these people don't matter in America. And therefore we're not going to march peacefully. We're going to storm the Capitol, take shits in the literal buildings that were built by the hands of enslaved people on the. And threaten to kill Mike Pence, threaten to lynch Mike Pence, bring a noose.
- [34:35]
C
And the other thing is, people have to understand that was the hate America Valley, the peaceful transfer of power. That's what you do when you hate the peaceful power. And that would have happened, as I like to remind people, if Donald Trump had just been a man and accepted he lost in 2020, he had just been a man. And that's the problem. That is therein lies the problem with none of that would have. So what you're seeing today is love of country. I will tell you the one thing I get worried about when we saw that Truth Social post last weekend and he was saying, oh, Biden's FBI plan of these people, blah, blah, blah, that's his sick mind at work. And it makes me worried that what he's thinking is that we need to have our own plans in like the no Kings protest. And that's one of the things. So that's why I say to people, be very careful, don't be provoked, don't be that spark that they're looking for to start trouble. It's all about this peaceful nonviolent message.
- [35:31]
B
And by the way, also be careful. We interviewed a representative of the ACLU last night on the Joy Reid show and she was making a really good point. Watch out for Agents Provocateur tours during the Black Lives Matter marches. Right of 2020, you would have these men show up in all black trying to pretend they are antifa. Understand there's no such thing as antifa. They call anyone who is anti fascist. Antifa is short for anti fascist. They dress up as, as in black. And they were breaking windows and starting fires so that they could blame Antifa, this fictional made up group that has now been designated as an enemy of the United States, such that any charity that donates to anybody but Republicans, any organization that tries to help Democrats like Act Blue get elected, anyone like the Ford foundation who donates to charitable projects and artistic projects that Donald Trump doesn't like they're designated any of that as quote, unquote, antifa, meaning anti fascist. And when you say anti fascist is the enemy, what you're also saying is that you are a fascist. Because if you're saying anti fascist is the enemy, then you are acknowledging that you're fat. They are actually quietly winking, not acknowledging that they are fascists, that they are pro Nazi.
- [36:44]
C
Go ahead.
- [36:45]
A
When I was out there, I've been in Chicago, I did a little experiment and I asked people, so what branch or what arm of Antifa are you with? And they were like, what are you talking about? I said, you're not a member. Is there a chapter? And they're saying, no, I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm not a member of antifa.
- [37:04]
C
Let me just tell you, Let me.
- [37:05]
A
Just tell you guys this. Can you guys mute?
- [37:11]
B
Rick is getting love out there. We love it.
- [37:14]
C
We love it.
- [37:14]
B
We love it.
- [37:15]
A
Hang on, Rick.
- [37:16]
C
Let me say this.
- [37:17]
A
I want you guys to make. I want to make sure that you guys are watching. You're watching. Don Lemon, Jim Acosta, the great Joy Reed, the great Jim Acosta joining us along with Rick Wilson. This is our no kings 2.0 part deep that we are covering, touting, flaunting the just how powerful independent media and independent journalism is. Now, I want to go, I have some of my, some of my colleagues who are out there in Times Square, and I want to see, I want them to interview some people and see what they have. So if you guys can go and interview the folks, Mike, Chris and, and John, go ahead.
- [38:00]
C
Sorry, just hearing a Chapel Rowan here, but Chapel Roan, what do you think will happen to ICE in the future? I mean, the future, it's tough because in a year, while he's still in office, maybe nothing. In three, four years when, fingers crossed, he's out of office, I think we're going to see some, some, some Nuremberg trials, some, some actual consequences for these people that are deciding that they can be, you know, federal officers essentially, in, in plain clothing. We just went live now. What are you seeing here today, like, with this crowd? I mean, Mike, do you want to show how many people are here right now? I mean, it, it's insane. You know, I'm a New York resident the past five years, and I've never seen a crowd at a protest like today. So I feel like. Why are you here, though? Well, I feel like I bring the, the median age down by a lot coming here. There are a lot. Yeah, I'M getting roasted. No, but it's true. I mean, there are a lot of, you know, older folks here, and that's so amazing to see. Like, I truly feel like I'm one of the few young people here looking around.
- [39:10]
B
I mean, am I wrong?
- [39:12]
C
I mean. I mean, I love it. I love it. Yeah, I love it. I love it. One thing I'll also note, and something that Jolly would like to know, is it's mostly white people, too. And that's one thing that. Yeah, I mean, I think that's tough. I think white people in general have the most resources to come out and do something like this. It's expensive coming, getting to time square, no matter, you know, how you put it from a time and currency standpoint. So, you know, I think it's important to see diversity out here, but I also think it's important that white people are fighting back and they're using their two days off on the weekend, one of those days, to come out here and, you know, voice their support for this protest. So, yeah, this is insane. We're not even moving yet. The amount of people we can't even move. It's. It's pretty gridlock for the most part. So we're going to continue to talk to people and. Hi, Mom. Excuse me. Can I ask you guys a question? Why are you guys here today?
- [40:11]
B
To support democracy.
- [40:13]
C
It's under threat, basically. I don't want to be accused in the future of being silent. Nice. Now, do you think that something like this will create a change? I think over time it's not going to be immediate, but over time, yeah.
- [40:30]
B
I think it'll get attention. I'm worried it's going to eventually become violent.
- [40:34]
C
Yeah. Now, one question I want to ask is, what are your thoughts right now on ICE in America? Not very positive. Not crazy about the mask. That is, not crazy about how they're treating average people, our neighbors, and it's just.
- [40:54]
B
Yeah, we're treating people horribly. And what we need to do is hire more judges, not get more ice. Exactly, exactly.
- [41:00]
C
What do you think will happen to ice in the future? What will happen to ice in the future'? Yeah. What do you think? Let's just hope they're not Trump's brown shirts. Yeah.
- [41:09]
B
I mean, I think, yeah, it'll develop into war if Trump stays into power.
- [41:13]
C
Yeah.
- [41:13]
B
He'll give him more power.
- [41:14]
C
Yeah. Thank you so much. Now, one last thing. Do you think protests like this in general will continue to happen?
- [41:22]
B
Yes, absolutely.
- [41:24]
C
And will you be there? Yes, yes. Thank you so much. I think we're all. Thank you. All right. It should be. That's great.
- [41:33]
A
That is my social media team out there, and they're doing a great job. What questions do you want me to ask? And so, you know, I love getting out there and talk and speaking to people, and that's where you get to learn what's happening. And that's why, Joy, we have Rick and we've got Jim Acosta out there and others to be joining us later. Jennifer Welch, by the way, said it was so loud where she is, she wants to march for a little bit and then she's. She's going to come back. But make sure you guys, like, make sure you subscribe, make sure you hit the thumbs up and make sure you follow us. All of us, Joy Reed, Jim Acosta, and also Rick Wilson on all of our platforms, because this is how we stay viable out here on these streaming streets. And as you can see, we are not in competition with each other. We're all working towards the same goal, and that is informing America and fighting for our First Amendment rights. Not only is American for freedom of speech, but freedom of the press, which we are members of. And, you know, we got kicked out of some of the clubs because we were so boisterous and vocal and truthful about the tyranny that was taking over America. And the networks, they just couldn't handle it. But here we are with our own networks. Rick Wilson, can you talk about that, please?
- [42:40]
C
Look, independent media is one of the greatest threats to autocracy ever. Too many of these major media companies now are being sold to or bought by allies of one party and one president. And they built this machine where they own all the local stations, they own all the national stations, they own all the talk radio networks. Folks, what you're watching today, it may not be as slick as CNN or MSN or fox, but we're people in the streets talking to your fellow Americans, expressing ourselves not only as people, part of a new media, but as patriots who are willing to go out here and say, nobody owns the American flag, nobody owns the concentration, nobody owns this country. We're all part of this great experiment where the inheritors of this great and amazing gift, and part of that gift is free speech and free press.
- [43:29]
B
Yes. Amen.
- [43:30]
C
And by the way, I will say, I was just gonna say, and by the way, we didn't pay any bribes to be on and do this and do this coverage. We didn't pay any 15 million dollar bribes to the Trump presidential library. That makes us independent.
- [43:45]
B
Exactly. And we Believe in diversity, equity and inclusion. How about that? Look at the diversity. Can I just go back to something that your social media guy got the piece and I do want to go back to him. I see he's talking to someone else that he said it's a mostly white crowd, and most of the crowds we're seeing in most these places are white. And I would add, it's not just that white folks have more resources. I actually think they have more responsibility. And people are stepping into their responsibility. The majority of white Americans, this is what they voted for. And so they're taking responsibility. And I am very happy, like I said, to see my spicy white folks out there saying, we are. That we. Even if we voted for it or if we didn't vote for it or we stayed home. They know that their demographic is most responsible for this mess. And I love that they're out there taking full responsibility and putting their chest in it. God bless them.
- [44:33]
A
Should we go back to them and listen?
- [44:34]
B
Yes, please. I'm like, I come from an immigrant family. My family came here for a better life. They believed in the American dream. I think ICE is just completely out of control. Every time I look at the media, I'm just like, I'm scared, honestly, that they're just ripping people out of the streets. People that are trying to do the legal way go to court, they're getting, as soon as they walk out, they're getting arrested. Parents are trying to take their kids to school, they're getting arrested. People that are out there working, they're getting arrested. I don't think that's right.
- [45:07]
C
What do you think will happen to ICE in the future?
- [45:11]
B
Hopefully. Hopefully. It's just literally, they don't give them that money much control. Like, right now, I know that Chicago and California are doing the best that they can to show them. Like, we're going up against you. We're not going to let you just come into wherever you want to come in and take people that are not doing anything wrong. If they're working people, you cannot say that said illegal immigrants are all criminal and violent. Like, a lot of people, especially, like, I come from the experience. A lot of people, they travel here for a better opportunity. They're running from something like, either their country, there's a lot of violence, or their family needs an opportunity. Everybody deserves to have a dream. And I feel like I'm not really like, for it.
- [45:56]
C
Once again, what would you say to Donald Trump? You have one thing that you could.
- [45:59]
B
Say, Let me think about this. We all see through your lies, you're racist. There's no other words to say, but you're racist. And you are the worst president I've ever seen. You know, I've never in my life voted, but now I'm definitely going to vote and make sure that you don't come ever again into office is.
- [46:26]
C
Thank you so much. Enjoy.
- [46:29]
B
Amen.
- [46:29]
C
Excuse me. Can I ask you guys a question? Why are you here? Why not? Why not? What brought you out here?
- [46:43]
B
The situation.
- [46:44]
C
Situation. How about you? To protest what is going on in the country right now and to speak out against what the administration is doing. Do you guys think that protests like this will help in the future? I hope so.
- [47:04]
B
I think it's. In any case, I think it's important for us to get out and voice our discontent.
- [47:12]
C
What would you say to Donald Trump if you could say one thing right now?
- [47:17]
B
It's really hard.
- [47:17]
C
Just one thing.
- [47:19]
B
Bring back democracy.
- [47:21]
C
Stop. Thank you all so much.
- [47:26]
A
Yeah, that's. Thank you. Thank you, Chris. That's a really good point.
- [47:30]
C
Stop.
- [47:31]
B
Yes.
- [47:32]
C
Right.
- [47:34]
A
The very simple and. And the truth. I love hearing from real folks out there. What do you guys think of what people are saying?
- [47:40]
B
Brilliant. I love hearing from them, too, Don. It's one of my favorite things that you do. I love that you get out and you speak to people in the street. Because the thing about cable news, and we've all talked about cable news a lot, it is a lot of talking headism. It is a lot of getting people who are experts in some cases or in some cases, like sports experts, to talk about whether museums should have slavery in them.
- [48:01]
C
Right.
- [48:01]
B
Like a lot of sort of false debate that isn't real debate. But what you're seeing in new media, in this kind of media, independent media, is we actually care what regular people think, what people in the real world think who are out in these streets. And that is why we're here doing this today.
- [48:19]
C
Yeah, I will echo that and say that. I mean, to me, this is. This is the next era. This is the next step in media, and we're just watching it in real time. People have gotten so frustrated with what the corporate media has. They've just fallen short of this moment. They just haven't met the moment. And, you know, whether it's Jeff Bezos clearing out people at the Washington Post, whether it's these networks bending the knee to Donald Trump. I mean, you know, like what happened to some of our colleagues who are now on substack and YouTube and these other places where independent media is thriving, you Know the people at home can figure this shit out. They said, you know, we get it, we get, we get that you have to get these media merger deals through. We get that. You know, you're afraid of the FCC coming after you, Jimmy Kimmel and so on. And so people at home are saying, I can't. I just did an event the other night with Fanon down at uva and I had a man come up to me and say, where do I go for media? Where do I go for information? Now I told him, I said independent media, it is now coming on the scene. It is having a moment right now. We just don't recognize it perhaps because it's right in front of our face. It's just happening right in front of our eyes in real time.
- [49:27]
A
Let me just say this. I'm so glad to have some company of some like minded people here because as you guys know, there is no playbook. There is no road map. You just have to get out here and work your ass off and you have your North Star has to be the truth and information and the First Amendment, right? Yes, Factual, truthful information, but also authenticity. No one wants to watch a robot. No one wants to watch perfection. People want to watch real people flawed. And guess what? As my friends always say, you know why Wendy was, Wendy Williams is so popular? You know why every other person is so popular? Because people love a messy bitch, right? And so I just, and most people are just messing.
- [50:07]
B
Everybody.
- [50:12]
C
Is a messy. It is. The thing I think that a lot of the corporate media has gotten so wrong is they want to be seen as like in this moment, they're like, well, both sides have a point. No, fascism does not have a point. No, institutionalized racism does not have a point. Yes. The idea that you're going to round up people without a warrant or a mask or, or while wearing a mask does not have a. There's no side on that. You can't, you know, you're not obligated to tell both sides of a lie.
- [50:42]
B
And by the way, Rick Wilson saying I love Hitler is just bad. People need to go in. It's, it's pretty simple.
- [50:51]
C
It's a pretty straightforward test. And let me tell you all those New York Republican kids, if you guys think that is the only group chat where they're talking about how great Hitler was, I have a bridge to sell you. This is a broad problem. Now these people have decided that it's okay to Stan Hitler. They've decided it's okay to call black people monkeys and watermelon people, they decided that's just fine. But the only thing, the only sin they committed was getting caught. Yes, that's right. And Rick, and you remember. Yeah, I was gonna say, Rick, you remember, you've been in Republican politics long enough. The Bushes, I mean, you know, the Reagan's, they kept the nuts on the, on the outside of the tent. They tried the best and now they run the show. And J.D. vance the other day when he was saying people should grow up, he should grow a pair, he should grow, because that's what the Vice President should do. Tell those people, when I was a Young Republican in 1991 working for the Bush administration, they took all bunch of us and said, you're taking unpaid leave that you're going to or to Louisiana so that we can beat David Duke, the Republican nominee. That was George Herbert Walker Bush, who would not have a David Duke in his party. Now I'm surprised David Duke doesn't have a permanent suite at Mar a Lago.
- [52:07]
B
Yes, and he might, we don't know.
- [52:09]
C
He might lunch with Dick Fuentes or dinner with Nick Fuentes at goddamn Mar a Lago. Come on, come on, that's it. Come on, that's it. And Jady Vance out there going, oh, these kids. They're not kids. They're in their goddamn 30s.
- [52:23]
A
They're almost as old as J.D.
- [52:26]
C
They'Re elected officials and senior staffers. There is no excuse, none. Bright line. And by the way, for being the master race, I would like to say that they have certainly mastered the buffet table, but not the race. No, I'm sorry, I went.
- [52:42]
B
Right, you said it. Rick Wilson. This is why we love Trick.
- [52:45]
C
We love tricky 62 year old fat white dude. And I'm going to talk about that because they are no seconds. No seconds.
- [52:53]
B
No seconds. No seconds.
- [52:56]
C
And I know that's cool and all that stuff, but those people are the executors of an institutionalized loving cruelty in this country. So they don't get a fucking pass.
- [53:06]
A
Hey, by the way, are you there, Nikki? Nikki, are you there? What is the email? People want to send us video from around the country so we can put on. What is it? Is, is it the donlemon showmail.com?
- [53:18]
C
It'S the don Lemon. Yes.
- [53:21]
A
So if you have some video, you have some photos from protests or rallies from around the country, or if you're wearing merch from any one of the folks you see here on the screen, send us the photographs. Sorry I cut you off. Who's Joy? Go ahead, Joy.
- [53:34]
B
I'm sorry, no, I was just gonna say that what's important about that group of people that are in that national Republican organization, two things. A, as Rick said, they're not kids. This is an. This is the oldest Republican organization in America. It was formed in 1853 with the founding of the Republican Party. It was originally founded in Wisconsin. It was originally founded as an abolitionist young movement. And this gentleman named Olmstead was. Was backed by a wealthy, more seasoned Republican or seasoned politician to create this organization, much like Turning Point USA was founded by a wealthy older man who connected with Charlie Kirk. And so what you have to understand is the purpose of this organization. It's a 15,000-person national organization with chapters all over the country. And their goal is to groom the next leaders of the Republican Party. Some of the people in it, they're from 18 to 40 to be in this national Young Republican Federation. And you are 18 to 40, meaning one year younger or two years younger than JD Vance. These are people who are grown up. Some of them are elected officials already. Some of them are staffers to elected officials. These are not kids. He kept saying kids and boys. He's calling the. And the infantilization of white men is a part of American history. This is the kind of thing that was said about the white men who used to lynch people. They would say they're just kids being kids. They're just youth. They would try. Full of them, full of right. And so they're trying to literally infantilize these men, as they always have in history. That's why they don't want you all to know history. The other big organization grooming young white men for leadership is called Turning Point usa. These are the two largest grooming organizations, and they share in common a antipathy to black people, a belief that the civil rights movement was wrong and should be reversed, an antipathy to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. And antipathy to the equality of women, and antipathy to LGBTQ people, to gay marriage. You name it, they are. They are Rush Limbaugh in younger form. And so understand this isn't accidental. The fact that they love Hitler is because they love the same things Hitler wanted. Ethnic cleansing, purifying the nation racially, getting rid of as many brown people as possible to ensure a white majority into perpetuity. If you don't believe me, don't take it from me. Go to Eric Schmidt's speech that he gave conservative organization recently. This is the junior senator from the state of Missouri. He said what I'm saying, but he said it on stage. Into a microphone belongs to to white Christian men. He said it, not me. Go watch the tape.
- [56:13]
A
So, Rick, I want to thank you. We got to make room here for some other folks. Rick, thank you. We appreciate you joining us from Tampa. Great, great, great job. Hey, and I'm so glad that you're getting the love out there, Rick, great job. Thank you for supporting independent media and Jim Joy and I themselves. But we're so grateful for you for coming. We'll see you again.
- [56:32]
C
Thanks, Rick. Thank you.
- [56:33]
A
Thanks guys.
- [56:34]
C
Good to see you. I was going to echo what Joey was saying just for a moment and just say very quickly on the J.D. vance thing, he is also trying to inherit the Maga mantle for 2028 and that is exactly what he's trying to do right now. The race is on inside inside the cabinet room amongst the advance Marco Rubio. I heard RFK Jr wants to run in 2028 and they're all going to try to it sucked up to that white nationalist base because I think that's where, that's where the energy is in the party right now. And that's what's really scary about this moment too.
- [57:08]
B
And by the way, can I just say to your point, Jim, you're right. The race is on. And by the way, Charlie Kirk was a part of the people that were being groomed to potentially be successors to Trump. The biggest question on the right and Rick, if he was still on would back me up on this is what happens when the elderly Mr. Trump finally meets his maker and goes down to where his his his his his debt and his in going to live in eternity. So once he descends below the earth they need to figure out like what's going to be the leadership and they know that no one has the real charisma of the star power of a former TV star to do it. So the race is on to succeed him. Here's the problem for J.D. vance. Your wife Usha is a brown woman. She is a brown Indian American. And if you go and go deep as I sometimes sadly do so that you don't have to into what MAGA people say to each other on X Twitter and other right wings platforms, you will find that they hate J.D. vance because he's married outside his race. They hate JJ. They see JD Vance effectively as a race traitor. Far right MAGA based people don't want, don't want JD Vance because they think he betrayed white people by marrying this brown woman. So I'm not sure he and he also doesn't have the charisma to take it over. And the weird with couches. It's all weird, right? Then you go to other people who want to inherit this, like Marco Rubio. He may want to pretend he's a white man, but they know he's not. Mark Ruby. He is Marco Rubio and know that's who he is. And Rafael Cruz has the exact same problem. He married a white woman. He's trying to whiten himself up. But they know that man is a Cuban, just like Jim Acosta. They know Jim Acosta Cuban, too. They don't like him either.
- [58:43]
A
No, no, no, no, no, no. Not just like Jim Acosta. Do not put them in the same category.
- [58:49]
B
Not authentic. The inauthentic kind of fake Cubans that we sometimes see in Miami who try to say that they're white, but everybody knows who you really are, your ethnic background, Ted Cruz. So that's why Ted Cruz can't inherit it, Marco Rubio can't inherit it, and JD Vance can inherit it. The people they're also going to have to compete for are Donald Trump Jr. Who, whenever he's sober, is probably going to try to get the leadership of it, too, because that's his father, and they believe in a monarchy, and a monarchy normally goes to the son and the other one, too, so he probably can't even try it. They're not going to give it to the daughter, even though Trump is sexually attracted to the daughter, but she's a woman. So you have to think about. And then you've got other people, like Charlie Kirk's widow. You're gonna have a fierce battle royale inside of the Republican Party to inherit this kingdom.
- [59:34]
A
There's already a fierce battle royale for who's gonna. Who's gonna inherit Turning Point usa Joy and Jim. You guys know that. Yes, But I have to say that Jim Acosta is not an. I will vote for Donald Trump. He's not part of those people.
- [59:47]
C
No Donald Trump for me. No, because they're seeing. They're seeing what's taking place with this ICE stuff, but go ahead. You're right. Okay. Y.
- [59:58]
A
Thank you, Jim. Let's bring in Michael. Michael, where are you?
- [60:02]
C
At a rally. Senior senator from. Yeah, I'm here in Washington, D.C. we're at 3rd and Pennsylvania Avenue at the no Kings rally, just a stone's throw from the United States Capitol. I'm joined by tens of thousands of Americans. Democracy, we're out smashing fascism. Starting the fight that I began on the steps of the Capitol on January 6, 2021. We're fighting against this administration's fascist authoritarian takeover against the United States. And I want to show you something Don. I want to show you how many people are here. You know Donald Trump said this was going to be a low attended event. But turn around and look at this crowd. Look at this crowd, Don. The state submarine, the helicopter hamburger.
- [60:54]
A
Oh my God.
- [60:55]
C
It is, it is packed though. Michael, can you hear me? Connecticut. Yeah, I can hear you. Good. So Michael, this is what you did.
- [61:04]
A
As a police officer. You're an mpd.
- [61:06]
C
We were the first metropolitan have you.
- [61:10]
A
Seen crowds like this crowd and by.
- [61:14]
C
The way Chris Murphy office about the crowds and your experience we wrote down in the last time I saw a crowd like this Don was at Barack Obama's first inauguration. I remember it well. I was working. I was at 12th and Pennsylvania Avenue by the Marriott Hotel freezing my ass off for hours and I had never seen out like that in my entire career. We are in the middle of an authoritarian takeover. It is not cold today. It's beautiful weather. The sun is shining. Clearly somebody wants I just want to be clear with you about that. Today no one's riding to our res Mike, if you had a chance to.
- [62:02]
A
Speak to any people in the crowd.
- [62:04]
C
To our rescue spoken to dozens of people people so far there's no all walks of life riding to our res as diverse a group as you could imagine in the United States of America. People who's this is their first rally that they've ever attended.
- [62:25]
A
One of my.
- [62:26]
C
Working people professional you don't want young people my kids are we turned it into a family family affair. You know there's a long tradition in the phenomena going back to my grandfather who fought in World War II so anti fascist behavior runs strong in our family. Enacting a detailed step I want to know fair elections and independent press. I'm part of the protest but the truth is the chapter that began in 1776 people still rule in this country.
- [63:03]
A
That's the chapter of antifa that that.
- [63:06]
C
I'm a part of and today do we listen to Murphy or should we continue across America in numbers that may protest in our nation's history Americans are.
- [63:17]
B
Saying loudly and proudly that we are a free people. 2021 I will to know how it feels for you to be in this kind of a crowd that is pro democracy, pro lib and just what kind.
- [63:32]
C
Of vibe feeling on this with you about what's going on and you know it. Well first I I want to say that shut down it's painful but it's emotional hurt people you know, as somebody who felt betrayed by his country in the aftermath of January 6th, it's nice to see these kind of numbers turning out, which really dwarfs the size of the crowd that Donald Trump brought to storm the Capitol on January 6th. And so for. For the first time, I think since that day, I feel like America's got my back, just like I had America. Republicans have been on an unplanned vacation from D.C. for five weeks.
- [64:10]
B
So much so give her some love.
- [64:13]
C
Oh, she's out beating the streets herself. She's in Alexandria, Virginia with a group of her friends and another New Kings event. As you guys know, there's about 2500 of them taking place all across that he can act more corruptly when the government. You can hear me too. Yeah, yeah. I was just gonna say, Mike. Mike. I mean, you know all too well when you hear people like Mike Johnson, the Speaker of the House, calling what's happening down here today a hate America rally, you know all too well what a hate America rally is. That's what we saw on January 6th. But, Mike, what is your message to the speaker of the House when he calls no Kings Day? There is a shutdown or not. Mike Johnson, you're a traitor to this country. You're an insurrectionist. And I, I can assure you that as long as I'm breathing, I will seek accountability for your treacherous actions against this country. We don't hate America. It's the exact opposite. We love this country.
- [65:11]
A
I love this country.
- [65:12]
C
Country. I dedicated 25, 20 years of my life to protecting communities in this country. As a policeman, I swore an oath. And I'm out here today, four and a half years removed vote for a still upholding millions of people to the Constitution. And what we hate, Mike Johnson, is we hate the racist, white supremacist, white crystal nationalist vision for this. This country. And all of these people are out here standing in unity against that vision. Yes. And oh, by the way. And oh, by the way, in fact, by the way, released files, because we know, Mike Johnson, that is why you have the government shut down right now. That's why they won't. They are waiting days and days and weeks and weeks to swear in on Elita Grialva. They don't want to release the Epstein files. And so that's the other thing that they're doing right now. And that's what happens when you have Kings, when you have dictators. Those kinds of crimes get covered up. That's the irony is. The irony is not lost on me that the Republican Party President Trump was the party that introduced conspiracy, that it was liberal left wing Democrats that had something in which they were abusing little children. And now in the midst of one of the biggest, biggest scandals involving child exploitation, this government, the Trump administration, is protecting pedophiles. And the last thing I want to.
- [66:43]
B
Say, take me back to when you were Metro pd. If somebody was caught on tape when you were working in the police department and they took $50,000 in a Cava bag from undercover officers after promising to deliver contracts if they joined an admin an impending administration, would you consider that to be a potential crime? Is that something you would have investigated back in the day this long?
- [67:15]
C
Well, I work narcotics, but that being said, I've worked closely with the public corruption squads at the FBI on camera cases in the past and that certainly would have been a no brainer. Tom Homan would have been arrested, he would have been prosecuted. And most likely based on the fact that everything he did was caught on videotape, I'm pretty sure he would have been found guilty and would be incarcerated. That being said, this administration has eliminated those public corruption task force which were charged with making sure that my grandkids are our law enforcement officers, are upholding their oath and abiding by the law. It's just another example of how under this administration, if you support and if you support maga, you are above the law and you will not be held accountable. You will be absolved of your criminal conduct. Just as we saw the thousands of violent rioters but who was pardoned by Donald Trump on January 20th. Proud of being here with you.
- [68:18]
A
So I want to say this, guys, we're listening to Senator Bernie Sanders is.
- [68:22]
C
Going to be bullish about our ability. I want to get back 400 years ago.
- [68:27]
A
The social media guys who are out the Don Lemon show, social media guys who are out there talking to people and they have some interesting characters and people have some very interesting stories to tell.
- [68:39]
C
Nice. Yeah. And I was just going to echo that, you know what, what Mike was saying about Tom Homan and just say at least he was eating at Cabo. But anyway, I don't know if anybody. Why are you here and what's going on?
- [68:59]
B
We are nine months pregnant, fighting for our kids future.
- [69:03]
C
Wow. So no excuses to not show up today.
- [69:06]
B
Hell no. I'm not sitting around and watching this on tv. You have to show that you're not.
- [69:12]
C
Okay with what's happening. Why are protests like these effective? I think that popular movements, they take all sorts of forms and people showing their Discontent and standing up for what they believe in. Sharing our voices and showing that we're not afraid is very important. It makes you feel like you're not alone. You're not alone. The majority of the country doesn't approve.
- [69:37]
A
Of what's going on in their name.
- [69:39]
C
And so it's great to be here. There's what, how many Thousands? I mean, 100,000 people? Yeah, it is packed here right now. We haven't even moved too much. And it started about an hour and 30 minutes ago. Now, what would you say to Donald Trump if he was watching right here, right now?
- [69:55]
B
Get out out of office immediately.
- [69:57]
C
You're not helping anyone. In fact, you're hurting a lot of the entire population.
- [70:03]
D
Immigrants are welcome here.
- [70:04]
B
We are all immigrants. What are you talking about? You're not Native American.
- [70:10]
A
I would say that you're only fooling.
- [70:13]
C
A small percentage of the population with your lies, with the corruption. Eventually.
- [70:22]
B
He'S fear mongering. He's making everybody scared.
- [70:25]
C
We're a country of hope and freedom.
- [70:28]
B
And immigration, and we're so much better than what he is and what he stands for.
- [70:37]
C
What would you, what are you seeing right now in ICE in America? What are your thoughts on that? It's a, it's a secret police. They're established. It's what, a hundred thirty billion dollars? They're wearing masks. What kind of civilized society has a, a police force that is supposed to be protecting our interests? Wearing masks, afraid to identify themselves? It's, it's absolutely intolerable.
- [71:01]
B
Policing your own people is not what America is about.
- [71:03]
C
I mean, policing is one thing, but they're kidnapping people off the streets. It's indiscriminate. There's no due process, there's no warrants. They're, they're literally just, just harassing people on their way to work. It's, it's absurd and it's, it cannot.
- [71:17]
A
Be allowed to stand.
- [71:18]
C
And what I would say to Donald Trump and to all the people, all the cronies, all these people that are in it for the, for the money they're making and the fame that they're generating, eventually you will be held accountable. This, this, this can't stand. You're not gonna win. Thank you all so much. Thank you. Let me talk to you, sir. I see you have the camera here. Why are you here today? We're here to protest Donald Trump and his fascist regime. And do you think protests like this are effective? Absolutely.
- [71:46]
B
There's tens of thousands of people here. It's really easy to sit behind your screen at home and think there's no hope for the world. But then you come here and you see all these people marching and protesting. It's gonna make a difference.
- [71:57]
C
What would you say to Donald Trump if he's watching right now?
- [72:00]
B
Your days are numbered.
- [72:03]
C
Your. Your time is coming. And what does that mean? Means you're going to be out soon.
- [72:08]
B
And even if you make it to.
- [72:09]
C
Your full term, history is not going.
- [72:11]
B
To be light to you.
- [72:13]
C
You're on the wrong side of history. Thank you so much. I appreciate that. Ma', am. I love your hat. Can I ask you a question?
- [72:19]
A
Sure.
- [72:19]
C
Why are you here today?
- [72:21]
B
I'm here because I'm here to support democracy. I love America. I love America. And I think we're. We want to make sure that our rights are preserved as Americans. I grew up in the 80s where everything was about hope and you felt like you could have the American dream.
- [72:37]
C
And I'm looking at you guys and.
- [72:39]
B
Like, I want every single person still in America to have that feeling. And I feel like our rights are being taken away. So free speech, you name it.
- [72:47]
C
So. But I'm confused because Mike Johnson and Donald Trump were saying that this was an anti America rally, and you're saying you love America. America. Wow.
- [72:55]
B
This is a love America rally. I mean, do you see hate here?
- [72:58]
C
This is. We look around, I see.
- [73:05]
A
A little bit of an issue with the signal there. Oh, they're back.
- [73:09]
C
What would you say to Donald Trump if he's watching right now.
- [73:14]
B
Having a bad day? Protect all of America.
- [73:18]
C
Right?
- [73:19]
B
Like, we're, you know, there's, there's a bunch of us out here that love America, too, and we could still come together and, you know, listen to us. We want to be, you know, we want to be right, and that's real.
- [73:36]
C
So what, what are you seeing right now with ICE in America? What are your thoughts? I think it's.
- [73:42]
B
I think it's terrible.
- [73:43]
C
Right?
- [73:43]
B
Like, I just think, I think, you know, most Americans, if you ask most of people walking right now, they're from parents who were immigrants here, right? We've all, like, why does this generation get to be the one to close the doors on future immigration? We shouldn't be.
- [74:02]
C
Right?
- [74:02]
B
Like, we need to, we need to keep those doors open and also bring in amazing, amazing brains from around the world. Like our, you know, again, I grew up in the 80s, where we would export democracy by inviting the world to come and learn here and then go back to their home countries or stay here and grow the economy. Two thirds of entrepreneurs are people who are either first or second generation, you know, immigrants here in the United States. You know, you wouldn't have Apple people without immigration. So, like, let's, let's remember that.
- [74:40]
C
Yeah. Thank you so much. I appreciate it. As you can see, there are tens of thousands of people out here. We have. Oh, it's insane. I mean, I'm a New Yorker and I have never seen a crowd like this for a protest. It's very peaceful. People are happy. There's a lot of dancing, there's a lot of marching. We have only moved about one street in over an hour. Pretty incredible to me. And that tells me that this is a very large crowd in front. I think I'm, I'm in the middle right now. So I'm going to go.
- [75:15]
A
Thank you, Chris.
- [75:16]
C
With Don, Joy, and Jim and talk to people as you guys continue your coverage.
- [75:21]
B
Well, thank you, Chris.
- [75:22]
A
Go ahead, Joy.
- [75:23]
B
I was just going to say, can we listen to Medi Hassan? We see our friend Mehdi, our good friend. He's on stage right now. Can we hear him?
- [75:29]
A
Yeah, let's listen.
- [75:31]
C
Oh, wow. Not the big D, Democrats, not the Democratic Party. Those of us who are from all parties and none but those of us who care about saving America so that we can get to our 250th birthday and still be free when we reach 250 years, come over to our side, the side of no crowns, no throbs, no kings, the side of freedom, of liberty, of the Constitution, the First Amendment, the Fourth Amendment, the 14th Amendment, the 22nd Amendment, which says two terms means two terms. And if you're not worried about Donald Trump trying to stay on for a third term, you should be. He's literally selling merch. So I worry about free and fair election elections in 2028. But then I say, why should I worry? I see all of you here today. What is there to worry about? We here today are not spectators. We are citizens. We are not bystanders. We are proud and patriotic Americans. And we Americans, we the people, will not allow our country to be taken over by demagogues and dictators. We will not stand for it. So let me ask you this. I need to hear you. Are you willing? Are you willing? Answer this. Are you willing to sit back and let Trump shred our freedoms?
- [77:01]
A
No.
- [77:02]
C
No. I can't hear you, D.C. they need to hear you in the White House. Are you willing to let Trump shred our freedoms?
- [77:08]
B
No.
- [77:10]
C
Are you willing to sit back and bend the knee to fascists and white supremacists? Are you willing to be the Americans on whose watch democracy died? No. Good. Because people power is our last line of defense. Remember this. Donald Trump has never, ever, not in three elections, won a majority of the vote. Never. And I'll say this to you. I'll say this to you. Here's the math that they are scared of. There are more of us than there are of them. We are the majority. Say it with me. We are the majority. They're not loud enough to. Ladies, come on. Louder. We are the majority. Yes, we are. And we have no intention of losing our country, our democracy, our freedoms to that, that twice impeached convicted criminal and his gang of grifters. No way.
- [78:08]
A
That's one way of putting it.
- [78:09]
C
Organize them. We will outvote them. We will outlast them. Because when I see you all out here today, when I see you all out here today in your thousands, in millions across the country, I have hope, I have faith that America can defeat this fascist threat, that this authoritarian mania, this MAGA cult, and save our freedoms. And I also have faith and hope that one day, one day soon, the Palestinians will be free. Thank you very much for your time.
- [78:42]
A
That was Mehdi Hassan. Mehdi owns the media companies the TEO and is doing a great job and is also one of the cast offs if we. I'm okay calling myself that. People who were summarily excused from corporate media, but that's okay. We out here and we thriving. Not bad English and Mehdi is one and doing it as well. And that is why, that's why it's important for you to support independent journalism and independent media. If you're follow us on all of our platforms. Everybody here, include Michael Fanone, everybody, Medi Hassan, all independent journalists. Make sure you follow us and subscribe. If you're not subscribed to our YouTube, we have a lot of engagement today. Make sure you subscribe. Hit that subscribe button because that's how we stay viable out here and become members of our channels. Okay. Support independent journalists and independent media. But so I am not willing to do those things at Medi. I'm right on with many and not willing. Michael Fanone has been not willing for a while. Jim Acosta has not been willing for a while. And so is the great joy not been willing for a while?
- [79:43]
B
Hell no. Hell no. We will not go. And the thing is the, the question, I think in this moment, friends, is will the American democratic experiment, which is just 249 years old, go quietly into that good night. We are a year before the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, which did not anticipate any of the people on your screen being a part of American democracy. They might have said Fanon, but once they heard him talk, they would have been like, nope. So the reality is we are fighting for not the America that the founders attempted to build, but which they built by accident. This idea of a pluralistic, multiracial democracy in which there is no state religion, there is no king, no one can come into your home without a warrant, they cannot put you on trial without a trial, they cannot incarcerate you without due process. That is literally go back. And I think it's a good exercise for everyone who's watching this on all of our channels, and I hope you guys are subscribed, as Don said, to all of our channels. Wherever you're watching this right now, whether you're on social media, Whether you're on YouTube, whether you're on substack, wherever you are, take a moment and go back and read the Declaration of Independence. Because the things that they were screaming out against, the things that the King of England was doing to his subjects in the United States, are literally what Donald Trump and Project 2025 are doing right now to US citizens, to immigrants, to people with DACA, to people who are hard working, construction workers, agriculture workers who are literally keeping this country fed. They're doing all the things that were invade against in the Declaration of Independence. They're violating it. They're playing in our face and the fact that they feel comfortable literally violating all of the things that the King of England doing what the king replicating the King of England's way of governing his colonies and turning us all into the colonized in our face. A year before the birthday of the United States, a declaration of Independence, and then saying they're going to build a monument to Donald Trump bigger than the Lincoln Memorial. They're, they're literally laughing at y' all while robbing you. And tonight, while we are at no Kings rallies and covering the no Kings rallies, that man is going to be at Mar A Lago having a million dollar a plate fundraiser and laughing at you. They're laughing at all of you, even if you voted for them.
- [82:09]
C
And Joy, I will tell you, at the very end of his first term, I talked to a friend of Trump who did not want to be named. He said at the time, because I said, doesn't Donald Trump want to be a dictator? And he said to me, jim, what Donald Trump wants to be is a Monarch. He was a friend of Donald Trump who told me this. Donald Trump wants to be a monarch. And look at what they're doing right now. They are so deathly afraid of what's going to take place in next year's midterm elections that they are trying to, they are trying to redraw our congressional maps in places like Texas, Ohio, Indiana, Missouri. They are relying on their MAGA Supreme Court to pull away minority representation in Congress. Minority majority congressional districts where you can have black and Latino representation in the United States Congress. They are trying to pull all of that away and rig this game for Donald Trump. Donald Trump talks about trying to rig the election, people trying to rig the election. That's what he's trying to do next time around. That is what he's trying to do in 2026. He is afraid of democracy. And so when I hear this stuff about hate America, what I say to that and listen to what you have to say, Joy, I think what they hate is what America is becoming. What America is becoming is this beautiful, multiracial, multicultural, tolerant country where we, where we respect each other's differences. And they want to take that away. And that is why Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, all these tech pros are willing to spend billions upon billions of dollars to pull this away from them. And that is what no change is about. They will not be the tech kings of this country. Donald Trump will not build a market. He can, he can create all the Olive Garden patios behind the White House and at Mar a Lago and everything else that he until the cows come home. But we're not going to become that country. And that's what they don't understand. And that is why we have to go back to the message we were talking about earlier. People have to not only take to the streets on no Kings Day, they have to take to the streets on election Day. They have to make sure that these voices are heard at the ballot box come this time around next year.
- [84:20]
A
I want to just tell everyone we saw some shots of Chicago. So as we start going through the time zones, right, people who are an hour behind New York, they're going to start coming online and doing their marches. And then two hours, we'll get to that Central Time and then we'll get to Mountain Time and they'll come online and start doing their marches. And also there are, there are some happening earlier, but the big ones are scheduled usually around noon in those cities. And then as we get out West Pacific time code zone, we'll get San Francisco and la and you'll start to see some of those. But so that is Davenport, Iowa, you're looking at. We had Chicago up for a minute. So you see people all over the country who are, you know, out there exercising their first amendment right to, right to be able to peaceably assemble. And look at that crowd in New York City right now. Is that not amazing? And that our social guys are out there. They said they have gotten one block in over an hour. Here's the thing. I think there's so many people that, that it's not, you know, this thing that was supposed to be a march through the streets and so big it has just become a rally of people standing around in New York City that and the streets are just filling up, you know, north, south, east and west and people are just there celebrating and happy to be together with like minded people. I'm so glad I have not heard about any, you know, unrest or anything like that. You know, nobody out there seems anti American to me or like you're fascist or, or any of those things.
- [85:51]
C
Jim, I'm going to tell you something right now. This is a beautiful site that I'm seeing down here right now and I'm going to just show you. I mean you were showing Times Square a few moments ago. I'm at what is basically the Times Square of democracy. I'm right basically in front of the US Capitol, right on Pennsylvania Avenue, just down the street from the White House. And look at this massive crowd. It is all around me. It is just going back block after block after block. Thousands of people down here in Washington D.C. and they're drawn to the, to the very thing that Mehdi was just talking about. That Joy you and I were just talking about, the Don was talking about. This is, I think this is really heading into the 250th anniversary of America. This is America declaring its independence all over again. And I really, you know, Democrat, Republican, you all need to come home. You all need to come home to American democracy, to what America is all about. America has not always been perfect, obviously. We know that. It has been, you know, from time to time it has been unreal. It has been, it has been not the place that we want it to be. But I, I really feel inspired by what I'm, I'm getting a little emotional. I'm kind of feeling it right now because I'm inspired by this outpouring of support and love of country that is taking place right now. And you're absolutely right, Don. I mean what I'M seeing down here is people who just. There are people coming up to me, putting their arms around me, saying, thank you, Jen. Thank you, guys for what you do. This is people coming together. This is what we. And this is what we need right now. That's the spirit of what we need. Amen.
- [87:32]
B
And our side is the side that not only loves the country, loves the country of what it can be. You know, when you have. Have children, right, you sort of. You think about what they can become, and you love them as they are, but you also try to help them grow, you know, And America is a very young country. It is, in the history of the Earth, a child. And it is a young country that is still going through its growing pains. And one of its biggest challenges is that it was born as a slave empire that now has to refashion itself into a democracy. It was born as an oligarchy. But we. We see, and many of us whose families immigrated here, and Jim and my family were immigrant families, there's something that our families were drawn to that is a kernel of what America could be. It's not. They weren't drawn to America as it was. And my family came in the 60s. It was what it could be. They saw the potential people outside this country. I have a lot of friends from outside of the United States who are in the African continent or in Europe. They see the potential. They see it, but they see us waste our potential. They see us throw our potential away, and it makes them sad for us Right now.
- [88:38]
C
The.
- [88:38]
B
The predominant emotion among international people when they look at America is pity. They pity us. They feel like we have somehow lost something that was so possible and we got so close to during Obama. They were like, oh, my God, you guys are almost there. You guys are creating this amazing thing, and we all envy it. And now they look at us with pity because they're like, how did you let this. This fool, this. This incompetent, maybe senile fool walk back into your White house with Project 2025 tucked under his arm. They don't understand why we're going back to a king 250 years after we got rid of a king. They don't get it.
- [89:14]
C
Well, Joy, to some extent, we are trying to lay down the ghosts of the 20th century, and, and. And they need to finally be put to rest the ghosts that are precious. The ghost of injustice, the ghost of racism, the ghost of putting people down. And when I see what's taking place in Chicago and Don was just there, when I see what ICE was Doing it is in such stark contrast to the story that I heard from my dad when he came to this country. Came to this country in 1962, three weeks before the Cuban Missile crisis, and first got to Miami. Then they came up with Washington, D.C. area, Northern Virginia. He talks about how a Presbyterian church in Vienna, Virginia, gave them coats and sweaters to my family because they never experienced a D.C. winter before. He talks about the teacher at the Vienna Elementary School who took him out of class to teach him how to read and write. President Kennedy at that time did not call immigrants who are coming to this country rapists and killers. You didn't have immigration beating the shit out of people and pulling them out of school pickup lines and violating their civil rights. And when I hear about my dad's story of immigration, when I hear about his. His experience of being welcomed to this country wasn't always perfect. We heard stuff from time to time. Don't, don't get me wrong. We heard stuff from time to time. Very true. But you contrast that with what we're seeing now, what we're seeing now with what Trump has instilled in young people in this country, what he has instilled in the ice, thugs who wear masks to violate people's civil rights all around this country. That is not who America is. And I think part of the reason you're seeing so much energy on the streets right now, what they're. That, that, that kind of like white nationalist fascism that he is trying to ram down people's throat, that is fueling this movement that you're seeing right now in this country, because they say, hell no, that is not who we are.
- [91:06]
B
Amen. And your family came here, Jim, after this country needed to pay back its sole debt from Operation Wetback during Eisenhower, who was actually one of the better Republican presidents, but they tried this during the Eisenhower administration, Operation Wetback, where they were trying to take their literal field workers, run them out of the country and send them into Mexico with the most brutal regimes before this one. And they. People died as a result of the violence, brutality and fascism that Eisenhower used his military background to unleash on, on people in this country. And when Kennedy came along, they had a sole debt and they paid it back, not only by allowing your family to come, my mother's family to come, but my father's family to come. They aggressively went to African nations like my father's a Congo, and said, send your, your smartest young men here and we'll educate them. They did. He came under the same program as Barack Obama's dad. So Kennedy was paying back the debt that Eisenhower left on the charge of America. And now we are going to have a debt debt to the, to the Latino immigrants. These, these hard working people. Y' all all know if you've ever been anywhere in the presence of these Latino immigrants, you know, they're the hardest working damn people that I've ever seen in my entire life. They are always keeping us fed, they're building our buildings, they're working in our restaurants, they're going, lining up at Home Depot at 5:00 in the morning, just wanting to work and take care of their kids and their families. People are like, oh, you need to be home with your friend. They're doing it and we are going to have a, a huge moral debt to them and to the US citizens who are getting caught up in these raids. Black, white and indifferent brown.
- [92:42]
A
You were talking about Operation Wet Back rounding people up, but rounding people up from a country that they were here first. The border did not cross Mexico. Right?
- [92:51]
C
Right.
- [92:51]
A
I mean, Mexico did not cross the border. The border crossed Mexico. And people need to remind, we need to be reminded that this is, let's just be honest, this is stolen land.
- [92:59]
B
Yes.
- [92:59]
A
And so if anybody is a real American or a desert, you know, is destroyed, deserving of having all of American, the, or whatever the American dream is supposed to mean, that would be Native American people and quite frankly, Mexicans, people who were, you know, who were here before white folks, before colonizers came. But I got to tell you, Jim, as you were talking about that.
- [93:19]
C
Yeah, I did.
- [93:19]
A
I got a little emotional because that, you know, and, and the thing is too, is that every before, I don't know, the last maybe two or three president Republican presidents or maybe two Republicans, especially Ronald Reagan, you know, the gold standard. We're very pro immigration.
- [93:40]
C
Right.
- [93:40]
A
And wanting to figure out how to incorporate people into this country. There's no way you're going to stop it. It's just because of proximity. It's just right there. It's like here to here, you know, you know what I'm saying?
- [93:50]
C
I do know what you're saying. And I will tell you that, you guys, we're old enough to remember when they refurbished the Statue of Liberty in New York City. Ronald Reagan was the president when they unveiled the new Statue of Liberty. Refill the Statue of Liberty. And he taught, he gave a speech out there when they did this and he talked about how the Statue of Liberty was a foreign birth, that it was built by immigrants. He talked About Emma Lazarus and Napoleon. Give us your tired, your poor, your huddled basses yearning to breathe free. That is what America is all about. And look at what the Trump administration is trying to do now. There was just a story in the New York Times just the other day that said that they are trying to, through their immigration policy, design a refugee and asylum process in this country that prioritizes white immigrants. Right there in the New York Times. White South Africans, white immigrants from Europe, people who oppose immigration, those kinds of people that they want to prioritize to come into this country. That's a, that's a bunch of bullshit. That is not who we are as a country. And Ronald Reagan could figure this out. Ronald Reagan, he believed in, you know, diversifying his cabinet, people that served him in his administration. Same with George W. Bush, had Alberto Gonzalez as his Attorney general. Do people totally agree with the bookies and the Reagan's and all these kinds? Of course not. I'm not talking about what I'm saying. But there was a time in this country where both parties kind of have the same idea of who we are as a country, that America is an idea. That is what America is supposed to be, an idea. Has it always been perfect? No, we've always been in pursuit of that more perfect union. And Republican and Democratic presidents have understood that for generations. It's this president right now. He wants to be a king. He wants to change that, wants to change what the American idea is, what it is all about. And that's what we have to push back against with every fiber of our being.
- [95:42]
B
Amen. Amen.
- [95:43]
A
You stand by Joy, if you will let me, let me jump in. Can I talk about, because Jim, you mentioned Chicago. Can I just talk about Chicago? Because I just left there.
- [95:50]
C
Yeah.
- [95:53]
A
You know, I heard so much misinformation from people even there. But just in, in the media and the propaganda that's coming from the administration and the propaganda, quite frankly, that's coming from corporate media, the administration and people there are people who agree with what this administration is doing. They think that they are just rounding the people up who are criminals, who are Latinos, who shouldn't be here. They call it illegally. I said, well, we don't have. People aren't illegal or illegal aliens. I said people aren't illegal and they're not aliens, they're not ets. Okay, but they are that, that all of that is a lie. They are rounding people up who are US Citizens. I spoke to numerous people who were citizens who spent time in that detention center in Broadview eight to 10 hours and then just told to go for, you know, and then some of them getting citations after they were wrongfully rounded up and accused of not being, you know, legal in this country. There was one black man that I interviewed, his name is Luther. I mean just a meek and mild and nicest man. He said they just came to his door and said he's in his pajamas, it's in the morning. And just rounded him up, said, you got to come out, you have to come with us. He said, said I have in my backpack because he was doing some business with the stadia to take care of some things. He had his birth certificates, his state ID and his Social Security card. They didn't want to see any of that. He said they rounded up people in his neighborhood that he had grown up with and he knew they were African Americans. They were not non U. S. Citizens. They were born here. They put them in the back of a rental truck that you can go rent to move your furniture with no seats, nothing to protect them them and drove them as they are rummaging around in the back trying to either stay seated or not slide around or stand up. Took him to this facility, did not want to look at any of their papers. They sat there in a cell with 40, 50, 60, 70 people in the cell with one toilet amongst them, no seat, they had to sit on the rim. They had to do their business in front of all these people. And then randomly they would just come in and get people and say, okay, you can go. And they're like, well, where the hell am I? I don't even know where I am. This is, it's insane.
- [98:04]
B
It is. And I saw your interview with that gentleman. I reposted it, Don, because it was, it was a good reminder, I think to African Americans who said we need to sit this out. This is the I will vote for Donald Trump Latinos problem. You need to understand that they always come for black folks when they do these kinds of things. And they are taking. I saw another video of a young black man. We're trying to get to interview him on the joy region next week that was thrown to the ground. His sister in law is screaming he's a US Citizen. They don't care if you're a US Citizen. They just care if you're black or brown. If you are black or brown. They feel that you are targetable. Some of the people doing it by the way are themselves black and brown with shame on them. Y' all are out. Don't, don't try to come to the barbecue or come to the community after we know that you, your family knows that you're in ice. Okay? And the reality is, to your point, Don, are violating the rights and the way that that gentleman talked about being in the back of that U Haul van and U Haul, if y' all are a part of this, don't get boycotted. U Haul, I hope that you don't know that your vehicles are being used because it's a lot of U Haul vehicles showing up, up. And this man, what, what happened to this elderly man is literally how Freddie Gray died. That he was left unshackled in the back of a big police truck and he was rattling around and his neck got fractured, and that's how he died. Someone is going to die in the back of one of these U Hauls and then U Haul gonna get sued. And the police department, if they don't help, is going to get sued and Kristi Gnome is going to get sued and Tom Holman is going to get screwed. And Peter, what is it? Named Stephen Miller. All y', all, if you think you are above the consequences of what you're doing, the governor of Illinois has said this worm will turn. And when the turn happens, every ice person who is brutalizing people, every person who's throwing people in the back of trucks without any restraints and throwing people. We are a human rights violator in the world. There is still international law, there can still be international trials, and there can still be.
- [99:52]
A
Enjoy.
- [99:52]
B
Justice will come for you.
- [99:54]
A
I want to bring in someone who's been waiting for a while out there, and that's Aaron Parnas who's joining us. Aaron, you're in Washington, D.C. nice to see Aaron. I follow you on social, as you know, doing a great job reporting the news on social media. Social media forward. So, Aaron, thank you for joining us. What have you been seeing? And then I'm going to ask you about. You did an interview with Adam Schiff, but talk to us about what you're seeing out there.
- [100:13]
C
Yeah, I mean, there are tens of thousands of people here in Washington, D.C. right now. I actually do have some brand new breaking news. Organizers just told me that this is officially the largest protest of the Trump era and it's actually only growing. They're going to release official numbers later this evening.
- [100:28]
B
Wow, that's big news.
- [100:30]
C
Wow. Yeah. Is it the biggest. Is it the biggest crowd in the history of inaugurations, though? That's what we needed. Might say, you know, don't get. Don't get Spicery on us. I will say I was scared during the first, I was here during the first inauguration and this crowd's bigger. So there you go.
- [100:50]
B
He's spicy. Aaron Fard is doing in the Spicy Whites, joining the Spicy Whites. They're here.
- [100:57]
A
So, Aaron, what have you been seeing out there? Talk to us about what's going on.
- [101:01]
C
Well, I think the biggest thing is it's peaceful. It's very peaceful. So peaceful. Every. There is not a single shred of violence in the crowd. I mean, you have people coming together, building community and really exercising their First Amendment rights. So this isn't an antifa rally, a hate America rally. That's not what this is. This is a peaceful protest and it's just really beautiful to witness right now. Right now. I think Bill Nye just finished speaking. They're going to have Bernie Sanders coming up soon. So great day.
- [101:28]
A
Do you, do you smoke with. You spoke with Adam Schiff and you know, Aaron, all of the folks who are standby. That's my, that's my camera. I need to turn my camera off because I have. Now I've lost my battery. Talk to us about Adam Ship because, you know, Adam Ship is on the list of people to be indicted. We've seen, you know, several people indicted, Letitia James, Michael Mike Bolton and James Comey. And it is believed that Adam Shift could and probably will be next. Did you speak to him about any of that?
- [102:00]
C
I did. I mean, I asked him if he was essentially a free, if he was afraid, if he was, what his message was to folks right now in no Kings Day. And he said that he wasn't that today is he was out here making clear that essentially there are no kings in America, that Donald Trump is not the king. And he's really, I think, making a statement by coming out here. He didn't have to. Right. So I think senatorship being here and meeting with folks, he's getting a great reception in the crowd as he walks by. And I think, and I kind of told him this, listen, if he ever is indicted, he's going to have millions of people at the courthouse ready to help him fight back. And that's what the crowd is really projecting today. Amen. Hey, Aaron, I was going to ask you a question. I know I put you in the position of speaking on behalf of Gen Z from time to time, but it is kind of an important component in all of those, an important demographic to talk about in all of this. What do you think about their role in no Kings, their role in this movement that is building up in this country. I mean, I remember you telling me one time that your basic recollection of the presidency and you know, your lifetime is sort of like Donald Trump. I wonder how much of that is changing now and what that, that feels like inside Gen Z. Well, I think Gen Z is more fired up than really ever before. And in this crowd, I mean, there's so many young people here, so many young people, people who want to make their voice, voices heard. And for the first time, some people are protesting for the first time. And so I think it's really 2025 for me is really the rise of Gen Z. Right. We're using our voices. No one's going to be able to shut us up this year and we're marching in the streets. So I think it's a really, it's really a beautiful thing to see.
- [103:36]
A
Aaron, I want you to stand by and I want you to listen to this and then get you to respond. And then Joy and I and Jim will respond as well. Here it is. Roll it.
- [103:43]
C
Hey, folks, I'm here at the no Kings Day rally with Senator Adam Schiff. Now, Senator, a lot has been, there have been a lot of conversations about Donald Trump going after his political opponents, acting like a king. You could be next. What's your reaction to that? What's your reaction to Donald Trump and these protests today? I think all these things are connected. It's why you're seeing millions gather all around the country. And that is they're going after an enemies list, but they're also going after our health care, they're going after our universities, they're going after the media and free speech, speech. They're trying to be kings. And we're just here to say hell no to that. It's wonderful to see everyone out there. And one of the signs I just was looking at really caught my eye and it said silence is compliance. And I would say even more than science is complicity.
- [104:29]
A
We need to speak out right now.
- [104:31]
C
We need to condemn this authoritarian lurch from this administration and be here and.
- [104:37]
A
Be all over place the the country defending our democracy.
- [104:39]
C
Thank you, Senator.
- [104:42]
B
Beautifully said, beautifully said. Can I ask Aaron Parnas a question really quickly? What is the sort of primary motivation for the people that you're talking to that are at that rally? What are they saying is their main motivation?
- [104:55]
C
Truthfully, it's actually like this is the first time that many of them feel comfortable coming out and making their voices heard. I think a lot of this, like a lot of the people I speak to, they're afraid. They've been very scared over the past nine months, and for the first time, they really feel like they have a community where they can come out safely and make their voices heard. So this is really an outlet for a lot of them to kind of show what they've been feeling internally for the past nine months. I've met with many folks here who say, I'm here alone. I came down on the metro by myself. I'm here from New York, I'm here from Texas, but I met people, and now I'm here with other people, and I'm building community. And I think that's what really today is all about.
- [105:33]
B
Amen.
- [105:36]
C
Love it. Awesome. I. We need to hear this from young people here. And that's what I think. I mean, I. I think that that is. That is a big component in all this. Big, important part of all this. You saw what happened in 2024 with the Turning Point USA folks. The podcast grows and so on, and people can write that off and say, oh, you know, gosh, did those guys vote? I think this last time around, they did vote. And what we have seen in the polling is that Gen Z has just said, we're not down for this. I think we've seen the poll numbers really plummet for Donald Trump among Gen Z. And so that, to me, is a huge data point going into 2026, it seems to me.
- [106:15]
B
Yeah, 100% agree. Yeah. And it's why they're trying to rig the 2026 elections. And I think what you all need to understand, first of all, you don't see the military response to this gathering that you are seeing on the south side of Chicago and in Georgetown and in all the tourist places that they're hanging out, you know, drinking coffee, when they're not, like, pretending to, like, be the occupation force in these military in these cities. But do understand that when that election happens next November, you will see a full, I believe, military presence, because that's what they're gearing up for. And I would guess that that's why so many people are resigning from senior positions in the military, because I think they see where this is going. They want the next election, the big 2026 election, to happen under armed occupation in blue cities and under a Supreme Court mandate that there is no Voting Rights Act. And that is where we're headed. This is full autocracy. We need to recognize it. So I just want to commend everybody who had the courage to go out and be present today.
- [107:19]
C
Yeah, I agree. Thank you, guys. For having me on. My phone's about to die, but I'll try to come on again soon. We know that feeling.
- [107:25]
A
I was gonna say, Aaron, thank you very much.
- [107:27]
C
I appreciate it.
- [107:27]
A
It's just gonna let Aaron go, guys. And I thought. I thought you weren't listening. I'm like, I had the mute on. So let me jump in and be traffic cop because we have a lot of folks that we need to get to here. I want to introduce some of the guests that we have. We've got Jolly, who's out there on the streets in Washington, D.C. antifa's here. God brings is joining us. He's on tour around the country. And then the great Glenn Kershner is gonna. Is joining us as well. We're gonna get our tera set mayor in there as well as Reese Colbert. So we have lots of folks who are here and oh, my gosh.
- [108:01]
C
A full contingent.
- [108:02]
B
Tifa.
- [108:03]
C
Let's talk out there.
- [108:06]
A
What are you seeing? Ant Tifa.
- [108:08]
B
And we just. Why didn't you book a frog document on what's going on?
- [108:12]
C
Get your frogs out in the crowd. There's a few frogs out here. When I find them. When I find them, I'll show them to you. There's a few frogs out here. I will do that.
- [108:22]
B
Okay, good.
- [108:24]
C
Accepted. Oh, my gosh, guys. Oh, well, listen, I've been out. I've been out here asking this radical left, lunatic, violent mob what. What are their radical ideas? And I've been hearing things like democracy, housing, health care, freedom. Just lots of radical left ideas. Yeah, radicalism I hear. And watch this. Sir, why are you here? I'm here to protest this presidency, this administration, and calling on us to stand up for immigrants and make this a country that's welcome for all. Thank you for being here. Why are you here? Just to be a body and to show that people who feel this way aren't alone. Appreciate you. Thank you. I'm jolly good. Ginger, you're on the Don Lemon show with Joy Reed and Jim Acosta. Hey, nice to meet you guys.
- [109:09]
A
And the Joy Reed Show.
- [109:11]
C
I said joy reading. Jim Acosta say something.
- [109:15]
B
The branding. Right? But we love him. Go, Jolly, go.
- [109:17]
C
Say something. Say something to Donald Trump. You say something to Donald Trump. My God, please leave us alone.
- [109:25]
B
All of us.
- [109:26]
C
Say something. Donald Trump. It is. Is about the people, not you. Oh, I love it. Are you antifa? There you go. I am. We're antifa out here.
- [109:39]
A
Go ahead, Jolly. Keep interviewing.
- [109:41]
B
Oh, he getting photos now. He's getting love. Give Jolly some love.
- [109:48]
C
Tara. Set me. Ter, tell her what you seen out there. If Tara can hear us or Glenn, somebody jump into the. Ter's there.
- [109:55]
B
Go for it. We got you. I just didn't know if you could hear me because I have my earbuds. All right, awesome. Well, I'm right here on Pennsylvania Avenue and I'm by the Johns Hopkins University building right here in the middle. There are so many people out here. Look, the good liars doctors are out here too. They're hysterical. But the sentiment has been really, really good. I mean they know they're good guys. People have really been creative in their signs. There's so much fun. People are singing the national.
- [110:27]
C
I appreciate it.
- [110:28]
B
It's unbelievable.
- [110:29]
C
Like thank you.
- [110:30]
B
This is. I was in Philly last time and it's pretty something. It's pretty amazing to be in dc. We love it, we love it, we love it.
- [110:36]
C
Yeah.
- [110:37]
B
What I love Don, about this picture is the dictator sign.
- [110:42]
C
Amen. Well Tara, where were you last time people like this?
- [110:47]
B
Philly. I was in Philly last time. Got it.
- [110:49]
A
How does this compare?
- [110:50]
B
I was in Philadelphia last time. It's bigger. It feels bigger. Everywhere you can see all the way Pennsylvania Avenue from the Capitol to almost the White House, it feels bigger. And then there's the side streets as well. People are still down. It's huge. Non stop. People are still, I mean look, I mean people are still coming down. Amazing. No, I was just gonna say what I love about it is that what we've seen so far, Don and Jim, is that this anti fascist movement is conservatives like Tara and Rick Wilson. It's liberals, you know, it's. It's Latinos, it's blacks, it's immigrants, it's the sons and daughters of immigrants. It's the sons and daughters of American enslaved folks and their descendants like Don Lemonade. It's Reese Colbert, it's all of us. It's Jewish folks, Christian folks, non aligned. Not. This is the side that is the pro America side because this is the multicultural revolution. The other side are just a bunch of angry incel white Christian nationalists and they know that they can't compel a majority to go with them. So they're trying to do it by force. Let's bring in our guest.
- [112:06]
C
Yeah, justice people too. Like Glenn Hersher.
- [112:10]
B
Yes. Amen.
- [112:11]
C
We want to hear Glenn Potion and.
- [112:12]
A
Then we're going to hear from Godfrey because I know Godfrey's getting an earful from people out there that he is doing his thing. But Glenn, talk to us about that because you made the move from mainstream media. Now you're an independent media, you can say, but whatever you want. You hear a lot from the folks. Why are people so fired up? And as Tara Setmare just said, this one is larger. It's much bigger. Same thing. Aaron Parnasus came on and said this has been the largest rally anti Trump rally during both of his administrations.
- [112:39]
C
Yeah, Don, I think Donald Trump is inspiring us all by ratcheting up the abuse, the lawlessness, the unconstitutionality. And I have to admit, when I heard little MAGA Mike Johnson say that today we will be participating in a Hate America rally, I was all the more inspired. You know, they're trying to claim what we're doing out there. Exercising our First Amendment rights to free speech, to assemble, to petition the government for a redress of our grievances. And let me tell you, we got some effing grievances right now. Legitimate grievances. But when they call that a rebellion, you know, I can't wait. I'm speaking at our local rally here in Northern Virginia shortly. I have the luxury of being just two blocks away in my, my studio, so I can just walk down the street. But I'm going to point to the words of the second, excuse me, the seventh Circuit Federal Court of Appeals. A unanimous three judge ruling. One judge appointed by George W. Bush, one judge appointed by Barack Obama, one judge appointed by Donald Trump. And here's what they said right smack in the middle of a 14 page opinion. Political opposition is not rebellion. And let me rephrase that. Repurpose it. Protest is patriotism. And the more they try to paint us as hating America rather than exercising our constitutional right to be protected from our government in exercising our First Amendment and our right to assemble, our right to assembly rights, the more inspired people get, I think it doesn't tamp us down, it fires us up. So, yes, the rule of law, we have the rule of law on our side. So let's roll. Amen.
- [114:24]
A
I want to bring in Godfrey. Thank you to that. Godfrey, what are you seeing? Because you're out on the road and I'm in Miami. Yeah. Every time I speak to you, Godfrey, either when I call you, we talk personally, or when you come on the show, you're in a different city. What are you hearing out there? And is it maybe it's not surprising to you that these crowd numbers today. Yeah. First of all, glad to be part of this whole team. All of these got.
- [114:50]
C
Nice to see you all.
- [114:51]
A
Joy Reid, especially.
- [114:54]
C
Welcome to freedom, Joy. Welcome to freedom.
- [114:58]
A
And Jolly Ginger, my man. Oh, God, this is great.
- [115:02]
C
I'm, I'm.
- [115:03]
A
Listen, I'm doing shows in Miami, so, you know, these Cubans are like Trump supporters. I will vote. Vote down on Trump.
- [115:12]
B
It's a bop, y'.
- [115:13]
C
All. Yeah, yeah.
- [115:14]
A
And so I have to risk some people walking out of the club, but I'm on it. You guys inspire me. So tonight's gonna be really bad.
- [115:22]
C
Yeah. Because I'm gonna be shitting on the.
- [115:26]
A
Crowd and I'm gonna say, how are you gonna make a whole salsa song? And he still deported you. You know what I mean?
- [115:34]
C
So I'm in the middle of it.
- [115:36]
A
Miami is heavy, right wing Cuban, whatever. But, you know, in a comedy setting.
- [115:42]
C
It is what it is.
- [115:43]
A
So I trap them all. We lock the doors and make them listen to me.
- [115:47]
C
Right. Are you not entertained?
- [115:51]
B
But wait, Godfrey, are you not seeing a ship? Because I have been talking a lot to my friends in the 305. You know, I still got people down there for 14 years. And there is a sense that there is a layer of the Cuban American and Venezuelan American and Haitian American, because let's be clear, all three were promoted, were pro Republican until they all got got. Are you starting to see a shift in.
- [116:11]
C
Yes, I am. More. Yes.
- [116:13]
B
Yeah.
- [116:13]
A
Nobody really.
- [116:14]
C
Because everybody clapped.
- [116:15]
A
Because I. Because of course, I. I like to imitate Big, you know, the idiot. And so I said, the.
- [116:23]
C
The funny thing about it is that.
- [116:24]
A
Song that was made, the lead singer, her husband was deported, you know, And.
- [116:29]
C
I said, I laughed for 20.
- [116:30]
A
20 minutes. I thought it was hilarious. Because if you watch the whole video, they're on the boat singing.
- [116:37]
C
It's a music video. And then when this.
- [116:40]
A
When her. When her husband got deported, she's like.
- [116:42]
C
This is.
- [116:50]
B
When they do the breakdown, when they're like, oh, I'm like, this a bop, y'.
- [116:56]
C
All.
- [116:57]
B
Why you been.
- [116:57]
C
It's a really good song.
- [116:59]
A
It's a really good song. But.
- [117:01]
C
And then I.
- [117:02]
A
At the end, I always do Trump. I go, hasta la vista, la vista. Hey, stand by. I want you guys to stand by. I want to get to Jolly. Jolly has someone to interview. Jolly, what do you.
- [117:11]
C
Who do you have? Hey, I found a raccoon. Listen, I'm on my mission to find a frog. My commander, Joy Ann Reed, my antifa commander, has given me orders and I will find a frog. But listen, are you. Are you in coalition with the frog?
- [117:25]
A
We are all Portland.
- [117:27]
C
You're all from Portland?
- [117:28]
A
No, we are all.
- [117:29]
C
Oh, we are all Portland. I love it. So you stand in solidarity with the frog? Hell yeah, brother. What about fascism? How do you feel about that? Well, we're all anti. Anti tifa. You're antifa. Well, anti fascist anyway. Hell yeah, brother.
- [117:44]
A
All the people who fought in World War II, man.
- [117:46]
C
Thanks for being here. Is it hot in there? Sacrifice I'm prepared to make. It's a sacrifice he's prepared to make. And listen. Oh, we lost them. There's some crabs over here.
- [117:55]
B
Can we get a wiggle from our friend?
- [117:57]
C
Because you know, hey, can you give us a wiggle? Wiggles.
- [118:07]
A
Reese Colbert is here. I know that you're on the radio every day talking to people and you get a lot of call ins and whatever. Tell us what you're hearing. Are you hearing a shift? Joy mentioned the shift in the 305, right? Are you hearing a shift in the country? Because you also, you guys, you get conservatives calling in and you guys challenge them.
- [118:26]
B
Now, these conservatives ain't budget. But let me say for the record, in case the Trump DOJ is watching this, I am not antifa. Okay?
- [118:42]
C
I might be auntie. Fine. Okay.
- [118:49]
B
That's what we meant by auntie. Okay? But yes, I don't take chances like y'.
- [118:58]
C
All. Okay, okay, okay.
- [119:01]
D
I love to play on words, but as for me.
- [119:07]
B
But anyway, okay, so yeah, about the people, you know, I will say this. You know, MAGA is just Maga, you know, but Republicans forget that there were 8 million Biden voters that stayed home. They also forget that 75 million whole ass people voted for Kamala Harris. This whole idea that half the country or the rebellion, no, half the country said we don't want no parts of this. And so they have vastly overplayed their hand and they're really operating like people who have no intention of ever actually facing the electorate again. So I really feel like their attempts to try to paint this as some anti American violent thing, which by the way, before the last King's Day protest. No King's Day protest, it was a Republican who assassinated Democratic lawmakers the night before. And there were threats of violence against these protests. So the fact that they tried to paint this as some un American mob rule I think is going to blow up in their face. Because we see that these are people who just want what we are vested in the Constitution to be allowed to do.
- [120:16]
C
I will say, as somebody who's covered Donald Trump, you know, when he talks about antifa, when they talk about antifa, let's get real for a moment. Let's do a reality check. When Charlottesville happened, they try to blame Antifa. When January 6th happened. They tried to blame Antifa. And now when no kings is showing up and, and ending up being a tremendous success, they're trying to say it has something to do with Antifa. So that's. This is part of the reason why I called Donald Trump up. The CNC president. You pull the string and you. This is a duck. Whack, whack, whack. This is a terrorist. This is antifa. This is what, this is what he does. He's so diminished mentally that all he can do is behave like the CNC president. So I just, I throw that out there as an illustration to make a point.
- [120:59]
A
You're right. Remember the, the doll with the. Do you remember the doll with the.
- [121:02]
C
Saying, hi, there's a big guy.
- [121:09]
A
Guy came up to me crying and said, send me Donald Trump.
- [121:12]
C
Hi.
- [121:13]
A
There are black women wearing MAGA hats. Beautiful black women.
- [121:18]
C
I see the Fetterman. I see the Fetterman.
- [121:24]
B
It's the low testosterone.
- [121:26]
C
Remember, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Did say.
- [121:28]
B
That'S what it was. Please go for it.
- [121:30]
A
Don Joy, you were mentioning, and I want you. I think you're better pose this question to Glenn because of Glenn's legal background. You were talking about what the governor of Chicago was saying about people being prosecuted and people's rights.
- [121:42]
B
Absolutely, yeah. Let me throw this to Glenn because this is something that I found very interesting. So the governor of Illinois, Governor Pritzker, he made in an interview, Glenn, a really important point, that the people who are masking up and violently assaulting people, in some cases in plain clothes, they're not showing warrants, they're going in people's homes without a warrant from a judge, and they're throwing people on the ground and then throwing them into trucks, unshackled. They could fall, they could break their necks, they could hurt themselves, they could die like Freddie Gray. All this is happening and he says, just you wait. There will come a time when the administration will change and when you'll have a Justice Department willing to prosecute. And they are assuming that sovereign immunity is complete and total for them. He was saying it's not and that eventually there could be either civil or even criminal violations that will eventually be adjudicated. Do you agree with that?
- [122:41]
C
Absolutely. Sovereign immunity only goes so far. Breaking it down to its essence. If you are engaged in, within the scope of your official duties. Now, listen, police officers, you know, who are, well meaning, who are protect and serve kind of people, sometimes they make make a mistake, right? They may step a toe over the Fourth Amendment prohibition against an unreasonable search and seizure, but they're still acting within the scope of their duties. These things get litigated in court, so they will still enjoy sovereign immunity against either being civilly sued or being prosecuted. But when you see unfolding in our city's streets, what these masked thugs are doing, it is so far beyond, in many instances, the scope of their official duties that they will open themselves up to both potentially civil liability and criminal prosecution. So what we need to do is once this administration is out of power, Joy, we're going to have to go on a cleanup mission. You know, the rule of law will come back into the light of day, and we're going to have to hold these folk accountable. They feel bulletproof now. They're feeling themselves because they got Donald Trump behind him. First of all, we know he's going to introduce all of them to an undercarriage of a bus eventually. But, you know, we're going to. We're going to have to make sure that they are held to account by applying the rule of law. And that day is coming. These imbeciles will not kill the rule of law.
- [124:08]
B
And can I just ask a quick follow up, Glenn, because these crimes are taking place, or these violations, I should say, of the fourth and Fifth Amendment are taking place in states where there are Democratic attorneys general. So, and they are being filmed both by bystanders and in many cases by Christy Gnome, Department of Homeland Security herself. She is sending cameramen, they're shooting videos of it, and then they're repurposing those videos for propaganda videos. Number one, are those videos foiable? Number two, if there was a state prosecutor who decided to try to prosecute, because that would put it out of the range of Donald Trump pardoning. Folks, folks, the theory here is that they're committing these crimes, assuming Trump will pardon them at the end of the day, but that does not apply to states. Right. If a state prosecutor decided you violated the rights of someone in the state of Illinois, the state of Maryland, the state of California, etc, are they out of the reach of law by state prosecution?
- [125:09]
C
Yeah, We've been urging state court prosecutors nationwide for a very long time to step up, up, because if you have, you know, these ICE agents who are acting beyond the scope of their official duties and they are assaulting citizens of, for example, Illinois or Oregon, or if they are trampling over the constitutional rights of people, the state law enforcement authorities, including the prosecutors, can absolutely open investigations and can prosecute them. So I wish we would see a little bit more proactive law enforcement from the state authorities when they see their state laws being violated. The same holds true for the law firms that were extorted by Donald Trump. You know, that violated state laws in every state where those law firms did business. And we've been urging state court prosecutors to step up, and some of them are stepping up. And you ask about whether it's FOIA a bull. And the reality is, when the federal government has in its possession any evidence that may be part of an ongoing investigation that can make a successful Freedom of Information act suit very challenging. But again, once the leadership at the Department of Justice turns over and the rule of law comes back in into the light of day, yeah, I think there's going to be hell to pay. And there should be. Amen.
- [126:32]
B
Do we want to go back out and see what's happening in the street? It looks like Jolly's got another creature.
- [126:38]
C
So, listen, I continue my movement mission to find a frog from my antifa commander, Joy Ann Reed. And I've got an eagle. So, first of all, do you stand in solidarity with the frog?
- [126:49]
B
Completely.
- [126:51]
C
What are you out here to? What is your purpose out here?
- [126:54]
B
Well, the bald eagle being the emblem of the United States and the fact that our Constitution is being. And our democracy is in an incredibly precarious place. I felt it necessary to come out here and let my voice be heard.
- [127:15]
C
That we are in distress and that.
- [127:18]
B
This administration and every Republican that backs it is not upholding the Constitution and their oath to the Constitution and something.
- [127:28]
C
Can you give us the wiggle? The inflatable wiggle?
- [127:33]
A
Joy, you started a mess.
- [127:36]
B
I need it.
- [127:38]
C
Do you know where I can. Do you know where the frog is? Are you guys hiding the location of the frog?
- [127:42]
B
I have seen the frog closer to the stage.
- [127:45]
C
All right, we're off to find the frog.
- [127:47]
B
All right, Find the frog. Find the frog.
- [127:50]
A
Let me ask you, Godfrey, we need humor in this moment.
- [127:54]
C
Do you.
- [127:54]
A
Do you talk? Do you just do the Trump impersonation, or do you actually talk politics? Politics in your stand, in your repeat.
- [128:01]
C
Oh, I do talk.
- [128:02]
A
I do talk politics, but I do.
- [128:05]
C
It in a way where, you know.
- [128:07]
A
You got to get them to like you first.
- [128:10]
C
And then.
- [128:10]
A
And then you tell them, boy, you.
- [128:12]
C
Guys effed up, man.
- [128:13]
A
You guys voted for your own demise. And I'd be like, but if you speak good Spanish, they like that.
- [128:19]
C
Oh, they go, yeah, Presidente stupid.
- [128:27]
A
I can't believe it.
- [128:28]
C
All the Cristo, too.
- [128:30]
A
You know, if the Spanish is tight, they're like, I like this guy. I like this guy.
- [128:35]
C
But It's. But, but Joy.
- [128:37]
A
Re.
- [128:37]
C
You were right. They are, they are. They're realizing.
- [128:40]
A
Because they screwed up, they're realizing there is change. I mean, it took, you know, them getting the Horner for them to actually go, oh, we thought we were good. No, you're not good.
- [128:51]
C
You know what I mean? So, yeah, it's. And, and, and, and when I do.
- [128:55]
A
The imitation, it's a neutralizing thing because.
- [128:58]
C
When I'm in the South, I'm around Trump supporters. I, when I, when I, when I imitate what Donald had actually said, they're like, actually like, oh, man, you sound just like him.
- [129:09]
A
Yeah, yeah.
- [129:10]
C
Did you get it?
- [129:11]
A
He's an idiot.
- [129:11]
C
You know what I'm saying?
- [129:14]
A
I can only imagine that all the inroads that Donald Trump made during the election with Latino voters and some voters that supported him, that this is just reverse that and, and even, you know, worse than it was before.
- [129:30]
C
Oh, his numbers are tanking among Latinos. His numbers are tanking among gen zers. I think even in Miami, things are starting to change a little bit. That's a, that's a hard nut to crack there. The Cuban American Republican, you know, dominance that has been in place there for a very long time. There's no question about it. But, you know, when the rubber meets the road, when people are getting deported, when, you know, a lot of mixed status families. I come from a mixed status family. A lot of mixed status families. They feel the boot of Donald Trump's thugs. That, that certainly does change your politics a little bit. Now, somebody who understands this, too, Olivia Troy. I understand she is standing by. If we can get Olivia in here, I mean, I would love to talk to her. She's down in El Paso, I believe she is a lot. She's a Latina herself. Yeah. And she could tell us how the Latino community. Latino community is not a monolithic community. You've got Cubans in Miami. You've got Mexican Americans in Texas. As Don was saying earlier, you know, some people didn't cross the border. The border crossed them. Olivia, you're in El Paso. What are you seeing and hearing?
- [130:38]
B
Can you hear me?
- [130:40]
C
We can hear you. Go. How are we doing?
- [130:44]
B
All right, so we're doing here at the park, and it is safe.
- [130:49]
C
Can you hear me? Okay, you're all good.
- [130:53]
A
Let Olivia talk, and we're all going to be quiet. It's just a delay.
- [130:55]
C
Go ahead, Olivia.
- [130:57]
B
Yeah. Yes, thanks. No, I'm here.
- [131:02]
C
It is.
- [131:04]
B
You know what it's looking for?
- [131:07]
C
Oh, damn.
- [131:08]
B
I think her connection isn't Great. Yeah. We may need to get. Maybe if Olivia gets into a little bit better, we definitely want to hear from her because she's in Texas, and we definitely want to hear that perspective. But I wanted to get Reese back in as well while we're waiting to. Oh, wait a minute. We might have a.
- [131:20]
C
Creep.
- [131:21]
B
Sorry. Oh, wait, hold on. Stop the presses. Breaking frog. Everyone in the chat.
- [131:25]
C
Y' all need breaking news.
- [131:27]
A
Animation.
- [131:28]
C
All right, listen. I had to. I had to leave the studio because that's the only way they would tell me the secret location of the frog. I found him, the frog. And so explain to us your sign here. Your sign says, hot enough for you. What does that mean? Basically, the old adage of, like, how do you boy a frog? You know, and, you know, one at one degree at a time. So you look around, and if this had happened, you know, if all this stuff with ice and all of the nonsense that happened happened back in 2016, people would be going bananas. But what do you think about right now? While people are getting snatched off the street, while our constitution's being burned, all this is happening? One of the revolutionary icons right now is of inflatable frog. What do you think? I love the silliness of it. And it's. And the thing that. That really resonated with me is, you know, a. It would take a city full of stoners like Portland to do something that is so silly but also so impactful. But the frog is, you know, it's the most innocuous symbol you could imagine, but it's also a real bellwether species. Frogs don't do well with pollution, you know, environmentally and politically. So it's the perfect symbol. And so can you do the. The wiggle that all the frogs do? Yeah. Have to do the frog.
- [132:39]
B
Do it.
- [132:44]
C
You can't hear them. But everybody loves it. Everybody loves it. Thank you.
- [132:49]
A
Let me ask you. Let me ask you something, Godfrey. Godfrey, what is my mission saying watching this?
- [132:55]
C
There's so many people out there. They love me. I can tell they love me. It's a big party for Donald. It's a big party. Obama couldn't do this and love me so much. Look, Biden couldn't do it. They're jealous.
- [133:12]
A
Everybody is.
- [133:13]
C
This is the attention I've always wanted. I've always the best. But.
- [133:16]
B
But, Godfrey, I need to hear Donald Trump's take on the frog. I need to hear it.
- [133:20]
C
Oh, that's a great frog. I love that frog. That's a really great frog.
- [133:24]
A
But he doesn't dance as Good as I do.
- [133:26]
C
He should do this. He should add this to froggy. I love a frog. Who doesn't love a bro?
- [133:34]
A
Thank you, God. Enjoy yourself. Go do your thing.
- [133:39]
C
Get him. God. Forget you guys. Oh, my God. All of you guys, take it easy. He doesn't get rid of this guy. Let's get rid of this guy. Amen. Hey, Glenn.
- [133:51]
A
We're not seeing any so far. No unrest. No one. You know, I haven't heard anybody that's going to need a lawyer yet. We don't know what's happening, you know, on all the streets and at all the protests, but this is kind of the exact opposite, I believe, of what the Trump folks wanted, and this is what most people around the country wanted to see people standing up in some peaceful protests.
- [134:14]
C
Yeah. And when we say we fight like hell for American democracy, we always mean peacefully. And we don't say peacefully as a punchline. We don't say it tongue in cheek. We don't say it with a wink and a nod. We will remain peaceful. You know, if anybody's going to engage in violence, it's going to be Donald Trump's, you know, mass thugs. And if that comes, when it comes, I hope it doesn't. That will only, you know, galvanize us and make us stronger and more determined. If they pull out, what, nightsticks, pepper spray, rubber bullets? No, we will remain peaceful and we will win the day. I'm convinced of that document.
- [134:55]
A
You are?
- [134:55]
C
Why? Is it because there's more of us than them? Because people have always had the power and it's always been up to us. I mean, we are often looking for some magical leader, right? Some politician, some judge, some prosecutor, some special counsel. Well, guess what? Nobody is coming to save us. We are the ones who are going to save us. It's always been up to us. It will always be up to us. And we've always risen to the challenge, and we're not going to let these imbeciles end American democracy. We're not. Yeah, that's right. Very good. You know, we're seeing.
- [135:32]
A
There's a. I can't. Who's speaking right now? It's not Lil Wayne, is it? Someone that I can't see. My screen is very small. I don't know who's speaking now.
- [135:43]
B
But if he starts performing how to Love. You need to cut to that.
- [135:46]
C
But I will say something, saying. Well, I was just going to say what Glenn was saying a few moments ago.
- [135:52]
A
Absolutely right.
- [135:53]
C
It's so perfect. It's so perfect because you know, they, the reason why, one of the reasons why they said, oh, this is a Hate America rally or antifa or Moss. They're trying to stop Americans, they're trying to discourage Americans from coming out here and speaking their minds and making their voices heard. That's part of the reason why they try to demonize these protests and demonize the people that show up at these protests. They don't want you to be a part of that. They don't want you to join up with that. And so when, when Glenn talks about the love of justice in this country, equal justice under the law, I mean, look at what Donald Trump is doing right now. Trying to put Jim Comey in jail, trying to put Letitia James in jail. They're going after John Bolton even though they just had the signal gate scandal not that long ago. I mean, nobody's getting, nobody's getting hauled off to court for all of that. And so Glenn, I mean, a big part of why people are showing up today is this notion of equal justice, of this notion that our checks and balances should work in this country, that we're not a banana republic that believe that where you have a king or a dictator who just goes after his political enemy. If that's the, if that's the country we're going to become, then we're going to go down the tubes. Amen. And Donald Trump is trying to kill the rule of law. But guess What? Just not 48 hours ago, 12 people in a wooden box in federal court in Washington D.C. stood up and told Donald Trump's DOJ, no, not guilty. The woman you tried to indict three times for a felony assault on police officers because she got involved in a little bit of a dust up or a pushing match. Grand juror sitting as the conscience of the community three times told Jeanine Pirro and by extension Pam Bondi and Donald Trump, hell no, we're not going to endorse your prosecutorial abuse and overreach. And less than two days ago, Jim, a trial jury sitting as the conscience of the community. That's right. When, when they overreached and they brought misdemeanor charges against that same woman, woman, Sidney Laurie Reed, they didn't even have time for a cup of coffee when they started deliberating. They returned not guilty verdicts like that in D.C. minutes. That is the conscience of the community speaking. That is we the people apply the rule of law even if DOJ won't. Amen. They're saying no to Judge Box line.
- [138:11]
A
I want to talk That's Nene Taylor, as a matter of fact. You see, I'm like, that's not.
- [138:15]
B
Should we listen to her? What is she.
- [138:17]
A
No, we have, we've got folks that we need to get bring on because it's back in a Washington D.C. based activist and co founder of the abolitionist organization Harriet's Wildest Dreams. Speaking now, but I would. My question goes to Reese. Reese, I've been hearing from a lot of people, let's be honest, a puck color saying this is not our fight. I'm not getting out there. But you do have diversity in the crowd. But, you know, not as many as some might think. I don't know. I could be wrong. What is your assessment of this?
- [138:42]
B
I still, I still think that there are some, some feelings of being wounded from the election, from the 92%. And they like, this ain't our fight. This ain't our fight, but it's always our fight. You know, that's not to say that we have to be the mules of democracy like we've always been treated it. You know, there is a certain level of, of caution and care that we're allowed to take in our political resistance that other people need to step to the front and we are seeing more of that. So I'm, I'm appreciative of that. But I, I think that any notion that this isn't coming for us or this isn't happening to us, I think Chicago should have put a complete stop to that idea. Like you talked about before I came on, Don, the, the elder black gentleman who was just being rounded up. And you know, there's, there isn't documentation around these things. We know we, we've seen through documentation 170 US citizens have been detained, but we know that number is probably 10 times higher than that. And so I think that you have more black people who are not part of the 92%, not part of the 88% that thought that, oh, there's no difference between Democrat and Republican. They, you know, maybe thought that immigration is such a problem that needs to be solved, that are realizing that a lot of what this administration is doing was a pretext to come after us as well. It was never really just strictly about immigration. It was about eliminating due process. It was about what I said our citizenship was on the ballot. And so I'm encouraged that more people are waking up to that. And then I'm just encouraged to see these big crowds because I was traveling last week for my tour and I didn't feel like there was Any disruption from the government being shut down, it feels too much like business as usual. And so I'm wondering, does anybody give a damn that the government is shut down? Does anybody give a damn that the president and, and Pete Heg says dumbass is sitting up there. Military strikes on, you know. Yeah. Fishermen.
- [140:36]
C
Yeah.
- [140:36]
D
You know, does anybody care about this?
- [140:38]
C
How about, how about that?
- [140:39]
A
Hey, Jim, can you stand by for.
- [140:41]
C
Premiums are going to go up.
- [140:44]
B
When they'll feel it, they'll notice. In case I get kicked off. I just want to say one thing. Here's the thing. My litmus test for 2028 and the presidential primary is what are you going to do to prosecute these criminals in office right now? And as much as there is prosecutorial misconduct from that dingbat Lindsay Holligan and Pam Bondi and all these people notice that they are prosecuting elected officials for conduct while in office. John Bolton's indictment is based on conduct when he was serving in the Trump administration. Jim Comey was a member of Trump's administration when he conducted this stuff. So nobody should feel safe for all of the actions that they're doing now. And there's the statute of limitations is not just a measly couple three years from now. And so thank you, Donald Trump, Trump, for showing the precedent that it is completely within the bounds to prosecute people for X as members of the executive branch. So don't try to switch up when y' all asses are called into court. And I do not want to hear one Democrat say a doggone thing about, well, we don't do what they do. We don't do tip for tat. Absolutely not. When y' all get back in power, I want to see charges for Pam Bondi for Cash Patel for any. And Christy Gnome who just who's getting two new jets of our pack taxpayer dollars. Everybody needs to be investigated point blank, period. That's my number one issue for the presidential nominee and that's my number one issue for a congressional candidate and for Senate candidates.
- [142:25]
A
Reese Colbert, thank you very much. Thank you. Glenn Kershner. I appreciate it. We'll see both of you. Follow them on all of their platform platforms. Appreciate you joining. Also, Jolly, I need Jolly to stand by as well. I want to bring in now DL Hughley, the great DL Hughley, who is joining us.
- [142:39]
C
Oh, my goodness. On the road. Wow.
- [142:42]
A
DL what do you think of these protests? Well, you know, from what I see from, from your, from your newscast, seems to be par for the course. I think that America, Reese was saying.
- [142:54]
C
Something I find very interesting.
- [142:56]
A
I, I, when we were talking about the government being shut down, I think it's how disconnected most people are from the government. They don't really know how it works or see it in their everyday lives.
- [143:06]
C
I think the people who are in government certainly have seen it.
- [143:09]
A
I certainly traveling a lot, I know you've seen it, but I think there is a palpable tension in the country. I think that even the people who.
- [143:21]
C
Are supportive of, of, of Donald Trump.
- [143:23]
A
Understand that things are not going quite.
- [143:25]
C
The way they thought.
- [143:25]
A
And I think that his, his overreach.
- [143:30]
C
I think his tactics, I think that everything he's doing is, is, is having.
- [143:34]
A
A, you know, a compounding effect. And people are finally starting to see.
- [143:39]
C
That this is in the presidency, that they, that they, this, they're not getting what they promise.
- [143:43]
A
And I think these protests, you know.
- [143:47]
C
Like you said, the jury, vertical critics, I think people standing up to him, the admiral that just recently resigned because they were speculating that what he was.
- [143:56]
A
Doing in Venezuela for war crime. So I think a lot of people.
- [144:01]
C
Are finally starting to wake up to the fact that this isn't what they thought it was.
- [144:06]
B
Amen. And DL can I ask you, you know, how much is how you do it, my friend? I mean, how much of your mentality right now is let's try to combine? Because there is all this purple revolution. I do love purple, as you know, but there is a lot of talk about whether we need a purple revolution, whether we need to, like, be reaching out to people who voted for Trump and combining with them versus telling them fuck off, you screwed up, you screwed the country. We don't want you at the, at the, we don't want you on our team. Where are you on this?
- [144:41]
A
That I think that if somebody voted for this three times, I would not.
- [144:43]
C
Be inclined to entrust it, to trust them.
- [144:46]
A
If somebody, yeah, if somebody didn't see all of this, then I either question their judgment or their morality. And I don't know that that's, that, that vaccinates.
- [144:53]
C
I think that that's kind of who.
- [144:55]
A
That'S baked into the cake.
- [144:56]
C
If you, if you didn't see this.
- [144:58]
A
In 16, in 12 years, then I.
- [145:00]
C
Don'T know anything that could change your mind. And it would all be just for convenience sake.
- [145:04]
A
It would all be just smoking mirrors. So I, I would be inclined not to trust them.
- [145:08]
C
Amen.
- [145:09]
B
Same position.
- [145:10]
C
Now.
- [145:13]
A
The one thing about America is that I think that none of this.
- [145:16]
C
Would matter if the job market were going great, if the economy were going great and eggs were low.
- [145:21]
A
They wouldn't care about people being rounded up.
- [145:23]
C
They wouldn't care about civil liberties being disrupted.
- [145:25]
A
I think that the paying compliance is.
- [145:27]
C
The only thing this country really understands.
- [145:29]
B
Amen. So true. Sad, but true.
- [145:31]
C
Yeah, but I, but I think people are still starting to figure this out, you know, when Obamacare premiums are about to go up, you know, in some cases double, for people who rely on Obamacare for their health care. And at the same time, they're handing out tax breaks to the rich in the major corporations. And they're starting to understand that what is, what we are seeing right before our eyes right now is the beginnings of an oligarchy. And that is not just words on a sign. Those are policies that are being put into place right now. And it's one of the reasons why the Democrats are holding out during this shutdown. And I will say they've been shitting the bed on a lot of fronts. Tactically, this has been a very good idea for them because it is something when you have Marjorie Taylor Greene out there saying, my kids Obamacare is going to go up, when Marjorie Taylor Greene starts making sense, that's when I start clicking my heels and saying, there's no place like home.
- [146:25]
A
Right on. Hey, D.L. i know D.L. d.L. Doesn't like panels, but I don't think he'll mind sharing the stage with this next person. That's Congressman Eric Swalwell. Congressman, thank you for joining. You're on with Don Leonard, Joy reed, Jim Acosta, D.L.
- [146:39]
C
Hughley.
- [146:40]
A
What's going on?
- [146:42]
C
Hey, I'm in Sacramento right now. California State Capitol. It's the capital right behind me. We have Prop 50 in just 20 days. Not to save California, it's to save the country. It's going to match what they're doing in Texas. And so I'm motivated to make sure everyone here gets their ballot in so that we can win the midterms.
- [147:05]
B
Amen.
- [147:07]
C
And look at, look at the congressman. How worried are you about that? About 10, 10,000 people here at the State Capitol. It's going to be close, Jim. It's. Yeah. Right now it's polling around 51, 52%, but we got to get the ballots in and we can match what Texas is doing. And by the way, on November 4th, we win California, we win Virginia, we win New Jersey, we win the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. That's a sweep. That's momentum, baby. That's how you go into the midterms with your confidence boosted, the other side demoralized, and you win and sweep the midterms.
- [147:40]
B
But can I ask you, Congressman Swalwell, because you are one of the small number of Democrats, Democrats who is willing to fight fire with fire on the other side, as is your governor. How do you get your colleagues who. I'm shocked it's only polling at 51%, you still have Democrats out there saying, you know, you don't like gerrymandering and still trying to play this old game of politics when we are in fascism. How do you get your colleagues, including your leadership in the House and your friends over in the Senate, to understand how to fight this fight?
- [148:10]
C
Yeah, we fight too many of these fights with one hand tied behind our back, Joy. And it's usually the upper hand. And I don't want to wake up the morning after the midterms and be in the minority and say, well, hey, at least we protected California's independent redistricting commission. That's not going to cut it. That's not going to protect the most vulnerable who are on their heels right now. And so people want to see a fight in us. They also look at when we had the White House, the Senate and the House, and no mom in America thought her kid was protected in their classroom from a school shooting because we couldn't get background checks passed in the Senate because we stood on virtue and wouldn't break the filibuster. So we have to flex next time we're given power or we'll never be given power again.
- [148:55]
A
I think, I think you're, you know.
- [148:57]
C
I think that one thing the Trump.
- [148:58]
A
Administration has taught us is what is how fluid the American psyche is.
- [149:04]
C
I think that there are things that we are able to do now from.
- [149:07]
A
A governance perspective that I never thought. I think, to me, if you can.
- [149:10]
C
Assault the First Amendment and the 14th.
- [149:13]
A
Amendment, I think there's an argument to have to abolishing. I think the only way this country.
- [149:16]
C
Is going to move forward is if.
- [149:18]
A
We decide that we're not going to.
- [149:19]
C
Let these small fighters control this country.
- [149:21]
A
Like, to me, why is there a sectoral college?
- [149:23]
C
Why is people with the least to offer America have the biggest say in our future? I don't think that we. I think. I just, I think we can't. That's right. This is an arcane system where we.
- [149:35]
A
Have this Electoral College with the people who don't, who don't provide the most population, the most income, have the biggest sway in our future with the Flintstones and the Jetsons, and we're letting the.
- [149:44]
C
Flintstones run the country. It's ridiculous.
- [149:46]
B
Look, this is so true because if you look at the way that the country is set up, every state has a big blue metro. That is the entire economic engine of that state. Texas has them. California obviously has them.
- [149:58]
A
Donor states, donor cities.
- [149:59]
B
Yeah. You look at New Orleans. That is Louisiana. Take New Orleans out of Louisiana. What is their economy? You know, take Nashville out of Tennessee, the blackest city in Tennessee. Take that out of Tennessee. What is their economy? They are stealing. They are occupying blue cities in red states as well. And the governor of Tennessee says that's going to be permanent because they want to seize control from these cities where black and brown folk are concentrated, because that's also where the money is. That's where the culture is. And that's why America is successful is because of blue America. And blue America been carrying red America for so long, they're like a big welfare. They're the welfare queen. And red America wants us to keep paying for what they want, which is ethnic cleansing and white supremacy. And they want us to pay for it with our bodies and with our money. And we can say no to both.
- [150:44]
A
And we're saying no today. Congressman, you want to weigh in on that?
- [150:48]
C
Yeah. Well, and also they think about the money that's going to militarize our cities. And then you're. You're telling Americans as we go into open enrollment that we don't have enough money for you to have subsidies for your health care. Right. Or we're sending $40 billion to Argentina because they like mega. But we're telling Americans that we don't have enough money so that you can provide health care for your family. And so. So we. We have to get out of this Epstein shutdown. That's also a priority. If you want to talk about that. DL, this is a bless. You know, people don't understand.
- [151:23]
A
This is a blessing. Absent all.
- [151:25]
C
Everything that.
- [151:25]
A
That you that was prophesied is happening. It is.
- [151:28]
C
And absent these things actually happen in America would have never believed it.
- [151:31]
A
They didn't call it fear monger.
- [151:33]
C
America needed to see this because America's never really had to prove itself. It got to say things. It got to. To write these lofty words and do. But now this is the test of who we are. This is the first time this country's.
- [151:46]
A
Ever been challenged and had to prove that a democracy worth fighting for and.
- [151:49]
C
That we are a plural versus unum.
- [151:50]
A
We have to prove it now. And I think that it's like this great champion who never really had to fight anybody. And now we do it is the people who have decided there are people in this country.
- [152:03]
C
Like we're a country right now.
- [152:05]
A
Like I alluded to earlier.
- [152:09]
C
You can.
- [152:10]
A
Go to any major city in the country.
- [152:12]
C
You can see a car that are drove 50 years back. So this is a country. And the only way you, you do.
- [152:18]
A
That is to drag people kicking, screaming to the future.
- [152:24]
C
Because the, the best way forward for black and brown people and people need.
- [152:27]
A
To understand this is forward. There's nothing back for us.
- [152:30]
C
If black people at a time it should it go back eight years.
- [152:33]
A
That's it.
- [152:33]
B
That's all we go.
- [152:34]
C
We ain't going back no further than that. And I think that's like the Jasmine.
- [152:43]
B
Amen.
- [152:47]
C
We go back to the second second Obama, right?
- [152:51]
A
The first, the second one.
- [152:52]
C
Yeah. The second true Congressman. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Go ahead.
- [152:59]
A
So, Congressman, here's what I want to know what moving forward and Joy talked about. You know, the big blue donor cities and donor states with the folks in the middle don't realize that we're paying for their infrastructure, that we are. You know, basically they're draining us of our resources, our money in order to take care of their things. But here's what I want to ask you. As I have been going around the country talking to people, witnessing some of this stuff in Chicago, I am wondering this about Democrats. Why aren't Democrats in canvassers, lawmakers if you want, but you know, people who, the same canvases that go out during the election, why aren't they in carpool lines where they're pulling moms out of the car saying, is this what you voted for? Donald Trump lied to you. Vote Democrat. Why aren't you guys? When someone says, would you like to be on our show? On whatever, it's cnn, msnbc, ABC or whatever, say, yes, I would like to be on the show. Why aren't you doing the interview in front of a hospital that is either diminished or shut down and saying the government isn't open because this hospital isn't open because the Republicans have shut it down? Like, why aren't you, why aren't Democrats out there at schools, at, at places in Chicago, in Portland or whatever, staying come vote for us? Because I believe the election starts now. I agree with DL. This is an opportunity. And I believe Donald Trump has diminished all the gains that he made among Latino and African American American communities just from these acts of these ICE folks and troops out on the streets violating people due process rights.
- [154:25]
C
We have to become better storytellers, Don. We have a story to tell. We have to be more demonstrative, as you said, of, you know, families who are, you know, being detained when they go to the grocery store to buy baby formula. Yes, that's happened. Neighbors who are running through car washes or farm fields or Home Depot parking lots. Yes, that's demonstrative. That's not what people signed up for. Democrats are lousy storytellers. We often think we're trying to win a Harvard Law School moot court competition, and it's just winning a gut check at the bus stop or the bar room. And so I'm seeing more and more colleagues get better at it. Let me also just say, Don, not everybody has to be a messenger. Like, I don't think I need everyone in our caucus being the messenger. I agree. But we, we have kind of an avengers like crew. And you mentioned Jasmine Crockett and Robert Garcia and Jared Moskowitz and many others who are stepping up. And these times, to me, they reveal not only who should lead, but also who should leave. Like, who's not up with us. And so I'm still fired up. And the other thing, Don, we have to make it clear that if you are acting corruptly, you should get used to the House Judiciary Committee. You should know what it looks like, because your ass is going to be in the witness chair, and we're going to have a lot of questions for you. People need to know that we aren't going to just look the other way when we're in the majority. I think a lot of them are betting on Democrats not having the balls to actually hold them accountable. And we need to make it clear that you will be held accountable because people need to know what the majority looks like. And maybe that might deter somebody who's on the fence as to whether they want to act corruptly or not. And, Congressman, the other thing that needs to be talked about is the fact that they won't swear in somebody who is duly elected by their constituents. Adelita Grialba in Arizona won a special election more than three weeks ago. If this was done to a Republican representative elect, they would be. They would go fucking crazy.
- [156:24]
B
That's right.
- [156:25]
C
This was going on, being dragged out for three weeks. Congressman, what is being done to stop that? That was an injustice. And she is the key, crucial vote to force the release of the Epstein folks. They're. They're doing it to protect a pedophile, first and foremost. They're keeping the government shut down so they don't have to do it. So people aren't getting paid health insurance Premiums are going to go up. But it's also, I promise you, Jim, it's a dry run because they're going to get their asses kicked in the midterms. And it's a dry run to see how long people will tolerate not. Yes. Allowing somebody to be sworn in.
- [156:56]
B
That's right. And by the way, Representative Congress, I think what people need to understand is Adelito Grijalva's district has between 750,000 and a million people in it. So you're really saying that 750,000 people minimum in the state of Arizona have no congresswoman right now. They have no congressional representation. They are facing taxation without representation a year before we celebrate the Declaration of Independence, which went literally against taxation without representation. What they are now testing, as the congressman, is, I think very clearly saying, is whether or not not they can literally disenfranchise 750, 000 to a million people in a key United States state or any state, whether key or not. You're saying that these people have no representation, they have no congressperson right now. And they think they can get away with that because they want to protect pedophiles on behalf of Donald Trump, who for whatever reason wants pedophiles to go free and to not be named and not be held accountable.
- [157:56]
C
Well, turn up the volume on them. Go ahead. Yeah.
- [157:58]
A
DL it's interesting when we talk about crime, the funniest thing, like, like even.
- [158:05]
C
The way we talk about crime, like letting Carolyn Levitt call us Democrats, you.
- [158:08]
A
Know, we're consorted with criminals.
- [158:11]
C
The largest number of pedophiles in America live in Texas.
- [158:15]
A
Most pedophiles are middle aged. 70% of middle aged white men, 75% of pedophiles are middle aged white men. There are more pedophiles in Texas than.
- [158:24]
C
Any other state in the country. There's enough of them to fill out Airhead Stadium. But the point is that they have.
- [158:29]
A
A view of those things. A lot of these dudes are not.
- [158:31]
C
Averse to sexual assault. They're not averse.
- [158:34]
A
Like if you look at how many people who, like I call, I call.
- [158:37]
C
Trump Ike because he only beats girls.
- [158:39]
A
Like every time he ever won.
- [158:41]
C
But there is a way that they.
- [158:42]
A
Look at women and children and there's.
- [158:44]
C
A way that they look at their constituents that is so, you know, they look at them like, like they're little.
- [158:50]
A
More than, than served. And I think when you said something earlier and I just, I'm getting ready.
- [158:54]
C
To get out of the car, but it is not that you guys are not great storytellers.
- [158:58]
A
America had to be had to learn this lesson. America, for a very long time dislikes, dislikes the Democratic message, but they, they.
- [159:07]
C
Avail themselves to it.
- [159:09]
A
America look at the most progressive states.
- [159:10]
C
In the only way forward.
- [159:11]
A
Like, if you look at the most.
- [159:13]
C
Progressive states in the country, black people.
- [159:15]
A
And brown people do better than anyone.
- [159:16]
C
Look at the most conservative. Look at Mississippi versus Minnesota.
- [159:19]
A
But it isn't that you can't. It isn't that you're not good storytellers. It's America wasn't tuned into your message.
- [159:24]
C
And now they are now honing the.
- [159:26]
A
Message that they get. Like, they don't care.
- [159:28]
C
It was never about eggs. It literally was about these people hated.
- [159:31]
A
That black women were ascended.
- [159:33]
C
They hated that Latins were doing things. They hated it. And now they see the folly of that hate. Hate ain't gonna put food on your tables. Hating on give you a job. Hate is not gonna get you to the doctor. America had to reconcile this with the.
- [159:43]
A
Fact that they would rather have hate than progress.
- [159:45]
C
And now that doesn't work.
- [159:47]
A
So stop. It ain't.
- [159:49]
C
It's America had to be turned into your frequency. America. America. America is a comeback story. And we're writing that story right now, King's Day, and we're going to write it all the way to midterms. It's a comeback story.
- [160:03]
A
Thank you, Congressman. Thank you, D.L. i appreciate both of you joining.
- [160:08]
C
Thank y'. All. Be safe.
- [160:09]
B
Thank you.
- [160:10]
A
Thank you, man.
- [160:11]
B
He said Donald Trump is I because he only beats women.
- [160:14]
C
That's so real.
- [160:16]
B
But I mean, I, I think this is so real, and I think it needed to be said. Oh, Bernie Sanders is talking. Do we want to hear Bernie Sanders?
- [160:22]
A
We do, but we have, we got a bunch of guests that we need to bring on a little bit of Bernie, Olivia Troy. We're going to bring in Jennifer Welch. We're going to bring in Casa Rashid, who's in Chicago. We're going to take you there. Michael Fanon is still with us. Jolly is still with us as well. But first, let's listen to Bernie Sanders for a bit, and then we'll bring.
- [160:38]
C
Our guests are coming out today not because they hate America. We're here because we love America. We're here because we're going to do everything we can to honor the sacrifices of millions of men and women who over the last 250 years, fought and sometimes died to defend our democracy and our freedoms. In 1776, with extraordinary courage, the founders of our country announced to the world that they would no longer be ruled by the king of England, a king who had absolute power over their lives. They demanded freedom. And to bring that about, they fought a bloody war against the British Empire and the most powerful military in the world. Tens of thousands of Americans died in that eight year war. But our forefathers fought on and they won. And in 1789, after winning that war, they did something extraordinary. They established the first democratic form of government in modern history. They, they said loudly and boldly to the entire world, no more kings.
- [162:56]
A
And that right there is the theme of today's marches all around the country. I want to bring in California Representative Robert Garcia, listening to Senator Bernie Sanders there as well. We'll continue to monitor that speech. But, Representative, we just spoke with Representatives Eric Swalwell and this is, I believe, a moment to say, I believe in opportunity for the people who are opposing the tyranny of this government that we have right now. People are out marching, they're protesting, they're exercising their First Amendment right to assemble. And so far, so good. What's your assessment as you are, what are you observing as you see this now?
- [163:33]
C
Incredible. Obviously, Bernie's amazing, doing a great job there. No, we're excited. Look, I'm out here in California and so we're about an hour away from our no Kings event that's going to start here in Long Beach. I'm actually hitting up a couple of the events. And so right after I get off with you, I'm going to go meet up. There are thousands and thousands of people already lined up at our park or Central park here in the city of Long Beach. It's really exciting to see just people motivated and united, really, to say enough of Donald Trump, enough of his wanting to rule over us without any regard, decency, humanity for our democracy. And I think what you're seeing today in cities across, not just the country, but in some cases the world is a rejection of Donald Trump. And I think we should be very clear about that. This is about telling Donald Trump that we are here and we're going to stand in between him and the harm that he's trying to cause. So many people across this country, whether they're immigrants who are here that are just trying to work, whether it's women whose rights are being moved backwards, whether it's union workers. And certainly if you're out in this community right now, you're a government worker during this, during the shutdown, Donald Trump is trying to, of course, hurt government workers and raise the cost of health care for the American Republican. So very motivating to see what's happening right now.
- [164:57]
B
And Congressman, let me ask you a question. Are your colleagues on the Democratic side as, as fired up as yourself? And we heard Representative Swalwell because we see those of you who are very much out front on the Epstein files release on fighting no healthcare, no vote. But what we haven't seen is your leadership kind of start to follow suit there, there sometimes seem to be standing up. But do you feel that there is a certain strategy against this autocracy emerging inside of the party?
- [165:27]
C
I do. And I think, look, I think there's a lot of people, all of us, I mean we felt, we felt horrific after the last election and I think there was a lot of, of soul searching and organizing. But I think what you're seeing, especially recently is also newer voices, younger folks, people that are want to take their country back from this authoritarian and this wannabe king and a party that is willing to bend the knee every single chance they get. I think you are seeing new energy on the left, new energy in the party. And I think that there are examples out there. I think, you know what Bernie and for example, Alexandria AOC have done across the country with the rallies or what you're seeing happening with Zoron in New York is they understand, we understand that our coalition, we need to have a big tent. We need to bring people in this coalition even when we have different perspectives and push forward. And what people want to see is right now they're less interested in your ideology. I've got progressives, but people, what people want is a fighter. People want fighters in this moment and that are clear eyed about the danger of Donald Trump to our future as a country and the world. And I think that is what the, the base, that's what voters, people on the street are demanding of us. And so what I've told folks and I've said this to folks in the House, I'm like, if you're not ready to be in this moment actually fighting, then create space and room for those that want to do so. Because this is, this is not a moment to show, you know, bipartisanship and let's hold hand with Republicans. We have to fight like hell every single time and push.
- [167:01]
A
Yeah. Jen, do you have a question for the representative?
- [167:04]
C
Yeah. Hi, Congressman Garcia, Jennifer Weld at it. Good to see you.
- [167:09]
B
When do you think Moses Mike is going to swear in the congresswoman? Because I've had it with the delays on that, with delaying democracy and delaying her voice 100%.
- [167:25]
C
It's really disgusting what he's doing. He is now complicit in this White House cover up on the Epstein files. And I'm convinced, I'm completely convinced that a huge part of me, Magic Mike or Moses Mike or whatever Mike, we want to call him MAGA Mike, Mike Johnson right now is completely complicit in covering up the Epstein files and he's willing to keep the government shut down. To not see someone that represents over 800,000 people back home in Arizona and to not seat her is completely criminal. Criminal. Her constituents deserve a representative and the American public deserve access to the Epstein files. To see all the powerful men in this country and around the world that have harmed, raped and hurt women. And so, and in some cases, we're talking about children. And so he should see Adelina immediately. The government shutdown has nothing to do with it. And, and those of us in the party and Congress, we should demanding, be demanding every single day that should get sat. It has to be a priority. But we have to continue to push the Epstein files issue. This shutdown is of course about health care, but it's also about a Republican Party that right now would rather cover up pedophilia monsters, people that have hurt children and women, than support government workers than support people across this country. So we're going to get to the truth.
- [168:49]
A
Miles Taylor, where are you? And do you have a question for the congressman? Yeah, he's head of the Oversight Committee, by the way.
- [168:56]
C
I'm over here on, on Pennsylvania Ave. Congressman. And of course, when your colleague Bernie Sanders took the stage, the cell phone signal just absolutely obliterated. So everyone and their mother turned on their live stream as soon as Bernie took the stage. And Congressman, I'm sure if you were on the stage right now, same thing would have happened. You would have crashed the networks, my friend. Yeah. You know, Congressman, I do want to ask you, I think people who are watching right now are really interested to know, though, as you and I have talked about in the past, what changes when the Democrats retake the House and you go from the ranking member to knock on wood, chairman of the Oversight Committee, what changes? And how do these investigations, these huge investigations into the Trump administration get supercharged? Look, it, we, first of all, we're preparing right now. And so I'll say, number one, is like, I'm not, I'm not waiting. We're not waiting on oversight to get into the majority to do the work. We're forcing subpoenas. We're fine. Like hell we're in the mud. We're doing whatever it takes. We're using every tactic in front of us to launch investigations, to get information, to hold people accountable. We can't wait for the majority. So we got it. We got to do the work now. And we're encouraging folks in the Democratic caucus like, we got to act like we're in the majority, like right now. And I think that that's what Trump does and Republicans have done so well and why we've been caught flat footed. And so I think, think our us as a, as a party, as a leadership, we have to act like we're in the majority right now. And as far as when we get additional powers, when we hopefully flip, flip the house on oversight, that gives me as chair as then chairman and our committee the ability to subpoena any person in this country. We can subpoena documents, whether it's from the banks that are funded. We know this, the sexual trafficking ring that Jeffrey Epstein had, whether it's bringing officials in front of our committee on Epstein, or whether it's Christine Owen and the kidnappings and the, the inhumanity that she is causing across this country, taking on people that are just here working and in some cases US Citizens and actually arresting them. I mean, it's, it is crazy. And so our ability to subpoena, to investigate, to hold people accountable is important. And my message also to the Trump administration and to those that are out there essentially carrying out their ass, is that the Oversight Committee is going to be there to hold you accountable. And so if you are out there working with ICE for ICE and you are harming people, you're throwing people on the street, you're arresting people illegally, we're not going to forget that. We're not going to forget that. And we're going to ensure that everyone is held accountable. At the top of that list is going to be Stephen Miller.
- [171:37]
B
Amen.
- [171:37]
C
And Congressman, I mean, one thing I want to say is, is that, I mean, Donald Trump has been effective, I think in the last couple of weeks of knocking the Epstein files out of the headlines. He's just going batshit crazy on a whole host of issues. But I mean, one of the things that you've been able to uncover, Congressman, is that, I mean, he's already in the Epstein files, that birthday book that had that letter with the crew drawing and so on. But we still don't know the, the full extent of it. I mean, that's the, that's the uncovered, undercovered part of the story, isn't that right? That's Right. I mean, remember that that birthday note said, he said it didn't exist. I mean, Donald Trump literally said multiple times that that note doesn't exist. And then we got the note and then he says, oh, that's not my signature. We know that's bs. We also know with certainty.
- [172:26]
A
Never met.
- [172:26]
C
A note, not my handwriter. Yeah, yeah, we, exactly. And we know with certainty that he is in the batch of documents and photos and videos that the DOJ has. And so look, we've also, we've talked to numerous whistleblowers, we talked to people in the government. I've personally had conversations with survivors and those that have been horrifically harmed and abused. And so we know that the truth is going to come out and all of the co conspirators and those that were involved in all harming these children and women, they're going to be held accountable. And so Mike Johnson can try all he wants to delay Nazi Adelita, not get us the files. But I want to remind folks that there are hundreds and hundreds of good civil servants in some cases, these are FBI agents, other folks in other agencies that have worked on this case and on the EPC files. And, and they, they know what is in there and it is, it is going to come out. And so this cover up, this is now, I might have been, this is a massive, massive White House. Yeah. And they are not just protecting the President. We're talking about very, very rich and powerful men that right now are in this country doing everything that they can, pulling every lever they have, using every ounce of intimidation that they can to ensure that this never comes. I also want to ask you about other investigations here. I'm going to show you what I think might be the sign of the day. This is the life of a show trial. And full disclosure here. This sign was made by my wife, who is out here at the protest. The life of a show trial. But I bring that up, Congressman, because in addition to Epstein, we have got some extraordinary miscarriages of justice happening just in the open. I mean, these aren't Watergate in, you know, parking garages in Washington. The President of the United States is prosecuting his opponents. But as we've all seen in the past few weeks, it's about to get supercharged. It's not just about elites inside the Beltway who've crossed him. It's not just people like me who he's threatened to throw in jail. He's now gonna start designating Americans on the terrorist watch list. And as Joy and others have said in the lead up to this event. I mean they were equating us, everyone. Miles.
- [174:54]
A
Yeah, Congressman, I think you know where he's going. Go ahead and answer him.
- [174:58]
C
Yeah, I mean, I think, I think you're, I think you're absolutely right. I mean I think we're in very dangerous times. And I remember we know when Trump first came into office a lot of folks who are, oh, it's going to be fine, we'll get through it. And I think a lot of us were like, we're talking about someone that doesn't want to stop being the president. You think he wants another election? You think he wants 20, 28? Let's be really clear eyed about what Donald Trump wants. He wants to stay in power. Everything that is happening right now is about extending his power. And all those groups on the right, the so called conservative organizations, they're now coming complicit. They are complicit in, in building his power, not having, leaving him unchecked. The members of Congress on, in his party. I mean the coward, the, the cowardice, the hypocrisy is, is pretty stunning. But I think the American people are beginning to see what's happening there. Many of them are feeling betrayed, especially on this. Epstein. I talk to Republicans all the time that are like, I can't believe he's not doing this and if you broke his promise and, and we're feeling betrayed. Grocery costs are, are still going up and so we have a lot to talk about. But it's going to take all, everything you guys are all doing. The people that are marching to push and to continue to push us in Congress. We, we have to be in this fight all in. And I'm proud to stand with you guys. I gotta get out.
- [176:21]
A
Yeah, you're getting the boot. Your team is saying he's gotta go.
- [176:24]
B
He'S getting the hook. But wait real quick, I want to ask my Miles Taylor a question. Thank you very much, Congressman. We appreciate you.
- [176:30]
C
Congressman.
- [176:31]
B
Keep up the fight. But you know, you said something that I want to dig a little deeper on because I notice a pattern. And you as a person who worked in the national security side of the first Trump administration, do you notice a pattern? Donald Trump used to say lock her up. And he met Hillary Clinton. But Hillary Clinton has no special knowledge of Donald Trump's crimes. I mean, she and her husband Bill were at his wedding, but that's about the extent. They used to be friendly when he was a Democrat that, but I see a pattern in the people that Donald Trump has said he wants prosecuted and the ones that Pamela Joe and her gang have actually prosecuted. Tish James, who has inside knowledge of his financial crimes against the state of New York and his children's crimes in terms of manipulating charities. Adam Schiff, somebody who sat and was a senior part of the January 6th investigations. John Bolton, who would have special knowledge of anything Donald Trump did vis a vis national security that might relate us to crimes in the international sort of crime syndicates that involve Russia. James Comey, who would have insider knowledge and who had knowledge in the investigation of Russiagate. Do you see where I'm going, Miles? He's specifically going after the kinds of people to prosecute. And look, I'm not even a fan of John Bolton, but I see him as part of a, a pattern that is about people who would have special knowledge or had investigative access to the crimes that Donald Trump himself committed, particularly regarding national security, and who resonate with the things he was charged with, stealing documents, insurrection, etc. Do you see that pattern?
- [178:07]
C
Joy, I'm glad you brought it up. In fact, this week I did a quick tally in the back of my mind because I was amazed. I had hadn't seen this anywhere. There are 14 people who have either been indicted, threatened with prosecution, or investigated by the president who also wrote books critical of Donald Trump. Now, one of two things is true. Either Donald Trump has just become a really prolific reader and he just, you know, he just doesn't like the quality of the books that are coming out against him from people like me and Bolton and Comey and others.
- [178:41]
B
And Michael Cohen.
- [178:42]
C
Not true, because I know. And Michael Cohen, I know he doesn't read. Or it's two, that he knows these people are being critical of him and he wants to shut him down. I mean, that's quite remarkable. Fourteen people who've written books critical of Donald Trump threatened with investigation. I don't think that's a coincidence. I haven't heard a single person who's written a flattering book about Donald Trump, like his FBI director, Cash Patel, who's come under investigation. Has anyone looked at Kash Patel, who wrote, you know, a lot about national security and intelligence in his book? Did he keep a diary? Are they going to look into his diary like they did to John Bolton? I mean, I think John Bolton, that's right. Love him or hate him, he's going to have an exquisite case for selective prosecution because there are so many other people who they've declined to look into, not least of which is Pete Hegseth. Pete Hegseth who shared classified information on the same encrypted messaging app that they accused John Bolton of sharing classified information, and he's sitting in the job of Secretary of Defense, and they have decided not to do anything with that. So, I mean, the examples go on and on of selective prosecution. But, yes, Joy, I mean, I think you cannot escape. Of course, this is not coincidental. And the only one who would think it's coincidental is someone who's missing their prefrontal cortex.
- [179:57]
A
I need to get a QASA machine. And Qasem is in. Look, I believe it's the center of the. The United States of America. America right now. And that is in Chicago. Thank you for your patience. And. And we really appreciate it. What are you saying, guys?
- [180:10]
C
Thank you, Miles.
- [180:11]
A
Thank you, Miles. We'll see you soon. Thanks, buddy, very much. We had Olivia. Olivia's gone as. I think Olivia left. Awesome. Take it away. I saw you there last week, and not even a week ago, you and I were standing in Chicago and witnessing what was happening. Tell us about the protests there today.
- [180:27]
C
It is fantastic. Fantastic. I'm right here in downtown Chicago right now. I'm gonna have my comment pan out and show you literally thousands of folks here. It's peaceful. It's beautiful. I will say I've had more than one person come up to me and give a shout out to Joanne Reed that they're upset that she's no longer on cable, but they're so excited about the work she's doing.
- [180:51]
B
Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you.
- [180:57]
C
The other thing I'll point out is I've heard more than one black person say that it's great to see so many white people out here. Now Trump is in trouble because the white people are also after him. So I think we're seeing people push past and recognize the unity we need to fight this fascism. It's exciting, it's inspiring, and I think we're just getting started. Amen.
- [181:21]
A
Jim, you have a question for Qasim?
- [181:24]
C
I was going to ask about Chicago, and I mean, to me, you know, the governor has, I think, said it exactly right, that what Trump is trying to do is basically invade a state that he has not been invited to with the National Guard. I mean, what does it feel like, the people in Chicago, to have the Texas National Guard being deployed into their state involuntarily? I mean, to me, if the roles were reversed and you had the Illinois National Guard going into Texas, I think we know what would happen. People would go batshit crazy. They would be pissed off. How are folks feeling about that? Because to me, that's. It's just outrageous. Absolutely. I think you nailed it, Jim. People here are pissed off. They're furious. And I think that a lot of these folks don't realize that Chicago's have a history of opposing fascism. We drove out Trump decades and decades. And right now what we're seeing, I'm seeing strength from Mayor Brandon Johnson standing up against these fascists. JB Pritzker is contemplating arresting these ICE fascists. The chief judge, Cook Noni, just issued an edict saying that any ICE person who targets somebody in a courthouse is going to be arrested. So we are leveraging all of our powers. Locally important federal appeals court unanimously told that the National Guard cannot be deployed there. So we are pulling our levers. The people of Chicago are showing up. But make no mistake, we're pissed about what's happening. We're not going to take this city. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I heard.
- [182:59]
A
So Kim, you've been watching over the last week. Would is there any difference the way folks are being treated? I would have to say just from my assessment of what I'm seeing on the news, no. I see seeing moms being pulled out and at the car pickup line, I saw two moms this week being picked up and then let go. Picked up for no reason and then just let go. We're seeing ICE agents ramming into cars. What is it like there in the city now?
- [183:28]
C
Well, a couple of things. One, if you recall, back on October 4th, DHS put out a press release saying that 10 calls ambushed one DHS agent who they had to fire in self defense. The video footage sits and it shows that this was a complete lie. There were no 10 cars. There was no firing in self defense. It was a proactive firing and there's been no accountability there. So people are ticked off about that. The second thing we're seeing, Don, you and I met in Broadview at the ICE facility. Since that time, they've put up even more barricades and shut down the street even more and deploying more law enforcement. My friends who were there yesterday saw, you know, police deployed batons and hit them. People got hit in the face. So they are increasing their aggression. And what did I say to you, Don, in our interview? That every act of violence that we're seeing is coming from ICE against ordinary folks peacefully protesting. I will say in Chicago right now, I've been talking to the Chicago police and they've been fantastic. So credit to them. I think it's a testament to Maynard Brandon Downstad who's built a good alliance with them to stand in solidarity with Chicagoans, with Illinoisans protesting this ICE fascism. But my sincere worry and fear is that ICE is getting more and more emboldened. They're instigating more and more violence. And I really want to see J.B. pritzker, Governor Pritzker, put the hammer down and hold them accountable for their assault on ordinary citizens.
- [184:53]
A
I want you to stand by because I want, I want to get, I want to get out. I want to get our folks who are out there, our social media guys who have been interviewing people on the streets of New York, let's listen in because of capitalism.
- [185:08]
C
And we're here to make that noise. So it's all under one umbrella. These things are not separate issues. It's all. Yes, it's all one big issue that is planet wide. And the shift is happening and they can't stop it. Definitely. You know, we were in Chicago last week at the ICE protests and you know, we didn't really see a lot of that, but we see a lot of that out here in New York. Can you explain this to me a little bit? Well, this skeleton actually was sitting in our art build space. And we thought, well, there's got to be something we can do with that. We first used it to, to embody big oil at an event in front of Publicis where we, we were poking them about greenwashing fossil fuel industry. And then when we went to bring our Carnival of Collapse to the Federal Plaza event in August, we decided to dress him up as I ICE Agent Skelly. I love it. The skeletons lived a few lives. It sounds like. Yes, yes. The whole Carnival of Collapse event that we have created is changeable and it's flexible so that we can use it to protest a wide range of the intersectional issues that we're dealing with. Amazing. I have one last question for you. Everyone is out here protesting a few different things, but it all seems to center around Duncan Donald Trump. If Donald Trump was right in front of you right now, what would you say to him? Donald Trump, your days are numbered. Oh, baby. Thank you, sir. Thank you so much. Keep fighting. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Rebellion. Yeah. Thank you, sir. Thank you. Can I talk to you really quick? Sure, sure, sure. What brings you out here today, man? I scream, you scream. We'll all scream from Ice Stream Glacier Collapse. This is whole Carnival of Collapse all around us, isn't there? Okay. And this guy is digging coal pits and the oil. Chill, baby, chill. Please don't drill solar Energy is the most effective and cheapest energy, and we're missing the boat. China's selling it to the world. You know, the negotiator extraordinaire is missing the whole boat. Okay? And so extinction rebellion. You may have heard about. You may have heard about the. The pollinators, huh? You know, well, that's just a half of it, as we're losing a third of our species as we speak. Okay.
- [187:36]
A
All right, if that doesn't bug you, it should. All right, so that's our. The Don Lemon show social media team out there, and we'll get back to them. They're interviewing people. I. I love to hear from people.
- [187:47]
C
Whether.
- [187:47]
A
Look, he's talking about the pollinators or whatever. I still want to hear it.
- [187:50]
C
It.
- [187:51]
A
Kasim, you spoke a minute ago just about seeing people.
- [187:54]
B
Wow.
- [187:54]
C
Look at.
- [187:55]
A
Look at Chicago. Oh, my gosh. Look at this protest. This is incredible. If you want to go and interview some people, we would love to hear.
- [188:02]
B
Please.
- [188:02]
A
I don't know if you can. Yeah, you'd have to take your headphones off to do it, but we would love it if you could do it, because I want to hear from some of the folks in Chicago. But what are you. What other stories. I know you're hearing Love for joy, and we all have it. We all stuffed it. Well, look, I have to say that I am not upset that she's not there. I don't like the her exit, but I'm happy that she's here and that she's thriving.
- [188:23]
B
Amen.
- [188:24]
A
But what else are you hearing from people there? The sentiment? Are people just fed up in Chicago?
- [188:28]
C
Yeah, well, I'm wearing my favorite shirt. That billionaires are the only minority destroying this country. And what we're seeing is signs for. In support of immigration rights, in support of LGBTQ rights, in support of abortion, access, for climate justice, for health care, for economic. Economic justice, for democracy, due process. Ah, gracias. Gracias. Hey, how you doing? Thank you. Thank you. We're seeing just absurd unity. It's a beautiful thing. And it's also a reminder of how this man, this fascist in the White House is attacking every single marginalized community in this country. And that's why it's so much more and important that we work together. And I think we're seeing that. I'm going to go in a minute and interview a few you folks, because it's a huge, huge volume of folks here. We had to find a nice, quiet spot where I wouldn't get yelled. We are seeing amazing Unity. I'm gonna go find some folks to interview and loop after you guys in a few minutes.
- [189:22]
A
Thank you, Compton.
- [189:23]
C
Yeah. Hey, guys. And guys, I just want, because I haven't checked in in a while, I don't let you know that the protest, the march down here in Washington, downtown D.C. right by the Capitol where Bernie Sanders and everybody were speaking a little while ago, that is starting to break down. So if you're seeing folks kind of, you know, going behind me here in droves, it's because this is starting to wrap up. But we're, we're seeing a lot of friendly faces down here, a lot of democracy loving, America loving. And listen, we've been down here since, what, 11 o' clock this morning. We started marching down 14th street to the point where we got down here pretty much a stone's throw from the U.S. capitol. And so far, no incidents that I've seen nothing but love. No, no, no confrontations, nothing with the cops, cops, nobody fighting. Everything that Donald Trump, everything that Caroline Levitt, everything that maga, Mike Johnson, all the lies that they were spewing about what today was going to be about, it didn't come to pass. And this is why we have to keep telling people from time to time, don't give in to the lies. Don't give into the fear that they're trying to spread in this country. The lies did not hold up today. When you hold up their lies to reality, to the truth down here on the ground. Look, I've had all these wonderful people come up to me and say, thank you. Thanks for what you're doing. Thanks for the coverage. They're thankful for what you're doing. Don, enjoy the fact that independent media can bring this kind of coverage wall to wall. Gavel. A gavel. I think, again, kudos to you guys. Kudos to the whole team. Just an extraordinary job. I'm just so glad to be a part of it.
- [190:57]
B
And by the way, I want to big up Don Lemon's wonderful team who took the helm in trying to make sure that we all got on air. They're gathering all the these resources, getting all these live streams to happen. We are a team. And this is the thing that I love so much about new media. Back in the day, I knew Don and I have been friends for a really long time, but we never could obviously work together. He had a book he would come on. That was the only time we could ever work together. I always was such a big admirer of Jim Acosta, but I only, like, met him at a Social event. But we never got to work. Look what's happening now, Y' all people you used to watch on different rival networks now can work together. We can come together, we can be ourselves. And we get to do this whenever we want, however we want. And I'm not sure, Don and Jim, if mainstream media is covering this the way they covered the Charlie Kirk memorial, but they should be. This should be wall to wall coverage because this is. Millions of. Most Americans did not know who Charlie Kirk was. You know, I'm sorry that he was killed, but most people didn't even know who that was. But they covered him and his death as if he was an international figure, an international political figure. This is America. This is the most diverse, largest protest since the war protest or really since the no Kings protest in June. But when there are protests like this, and you all can attest to this, mainstream media would often not cover them. C Span would cover them to wall. But we would often demand, we would beg to be able to cover. I remember the first Women's March, we were told we had to cover Donald Trump because he was at the National Cathedral doing like a church service. And we were like, no. But there are thousands, tens of thousands of women marching for their freedom. Yes, media made the decision it was more important to cover Trump in church. Falling asleep. We now get to control our own fate and give you all the important information about what your fellow citizens are doing. Go for it, Jim.
- [192:42]
C
And no, and I was just going to say the reason why you're not seeing the coverage now and Joy and Don, you guys know this all too well, is that the corporate media, the legacy media, they've been cowed into silence. They've been put back on their heels. They're in a state of panic. All of these news organizations are being meddled with by their corporate overlords. And those corporate pressures are bringing to bear, I think, a suppression of the coverage that we need to be seeing in America right now. Americans need to be seeing that a peaceful, non violent demonstration just took place once again across this country that is saying to no to fascism, no to authoritarianism, no to white nationalism, no to ice running wild in our streets and grabbing people out of their homes and grabbing people out of their minivans. That this all happened again today for the second time, for the second time in less than six months without the shit hitting the fan. That Donald Trump, Stephen Miller and Mike Johnson, they were all begging for it to happen. They wanted it to happen. Caroline Levitt was saying it was going to be Hamas and Antifa. And they're liars. They're liars.
- [193:51]
A
And it was going to be violence and it was leftists and people who hated Americans and whatever. It's happening all over every. Olivia Troy is. I mean, it's happening in El Paso.
- [194:05]
C
That's the old El Pasorella joins us.
- [194:08]
A
As well as well. And Michael Fanon is still here. It is still going on where you are.
- [194:15]
B
Oh, man, it is getting more and more cash. And I'll tell you this, what is really incredible in the feeling here, John, is that like, this is one of the largest military bases in the country.
- [194:33]
C
There are friends here, the borders and Elastico.
- [194:39]
D
I am.
- [194:42]
B
Escalar and it's. I'm. It's Superman's over everything. We're making it work. She's. She's here joining me. Here she is. I'm gonna give her the blanks. We're cutting out. Yeah, we don't have a good signal for you, Olivia. We don't have a good signal, unfortunately. Lee, try to see if you can get closer to Wi Fi.
- [195:05]
A
Let's see now.
- [195:06]
C
Let's see.
- [195:07]
D
Okay, we'll try that.
- [195:08]
C
We'll try that. You sound good.
- [195:09]
A
You sound good.
- [195:10]
C
Now ask Veronica a question. Yes, we're trying to hear.
- [195:24]
A
No, Olivia, you can't.
- [195:25]
C
There.
- [195:26]
A
We can't hear Olivia. Yeah, okay, Olivia, we'll try again.
- [195:31]
B
Maybe we're gonna try again.
- [195:33]
C
This is like when I watch Slow Horses. I want to put the subtitles on, you know what I mean? Because I can't hear. I can't understand those Brits talking. I just can.
- [195:41]
A
By the way, guys, you need to know that the people on the west coast have finally awakened out of their beauty Hollywood sleep. My former colleague Nick Valencia is at a protest. Nick, you're in la. Where are you? What are you seeing?
- [195:56]
C
Oh, man. I. I guess I need to be still sleeping because I need a lot more beauty sleep around these beautiful people here in la. Everyone's got that golden color to their skin here. It's a party like atmosphere. We're seeing kind of like the similar elements. I. I'm talking to you and I just out of the corner of my eye, I see these inflatables that we saw in Portland. It's really a jubilant atmosphere and environment. Can you guys hear me? Okay, Are you guys.
- [196:19]
B
We can.
- [196:21]
C
All right, awesome. I want to start talking to some people and ask them why they decided to show up here. Because we've seen everyone from local unions out here organizing their folks. That's who you're seeing in the yellow vest behind me to just everyday citizens, you know, people in Dodgers gear. They're celebrating that big win yesterday, but that's not keeping them from showing up here on the streets, because this is where it all started, you know, not just for myself, but really for one of the, you know, last points of the national movement. We saw what happened here on the streets of LA the first week of June. Those ice raids that have just taken storm all across a lot of democratic cities in the United States, places like Chicago, which is where you're really familiar with Don, and out here in la. But let's talk to some people here. Hey, man, how are you? We're live streaming right now with Don Lemon. Hey, what brought you guys out here today? Yeah, yeah, and it's a party like atmosphere. I mean, there's no, you know, no one's aggressive out here. Everyone's really happy. I haven't seen anything but smiles out here. Yeah, we're live streaming right now.
- [197:22]
A
We can't hear them.
- [197:23]
C
No, you can't hear them. Got it. Okay, cool. You can hear me, but you can't hear them. No problem. Well, that's just one of the union organizers behind me. You see this rig that's going to be going through the streets. Things don't get started here, Don, Joy and Jim, until about, yeah, this 15, 30 minutes from now, but there was already hundreds of people out here in the streets. You know, you see these flags here were a big, you know, they were a big kind of emblem that we saw throughout the course of these protests. Half Mexican, half American flags showing the unity here on the streets. A lot of people take exception with that. But that, you know, growing up in Los Angeles, we saw that on the streets all the time. People really prideful from where they're from. That doesn't mean that they're hateful of being American. It just means that they, they love their culture and they love where they're from. And it's all part of being out here. You know, you see people with Mexico tank tops on, people with American liberty, red, white and blue stuff. It's a really big party like atmosphere, guys.
- [198:20]
A
How many people are they expecting?
- [198:22]
C
Estimating tens of thousands. You know, it's so hard to put an estimate on things. We've seen, you know, estimates of more than 100,000 people in the streets. I mean, there's, there's pockets of demonstrations planned all across the county, from Long beach, you know, to the west coast, throughout the beach, all the way out here in Downtown la, You know, it's been. It's been active all morning long. But we're not expecting this to really get kicked off for another 30 minutes. But, you know, thousands and thousands of people will be out here. Done.
- [198:53]
A
Nick, Valencia, stand by. I want to bring in Monique Pressley. Monique is joining us. Monique, as you are witnessing what's happening, I'm not sure if you've been out to a march or rally or if you're paying attention to what's happening on the mainstream media, as they call it, the lamestream media. We don't know, but we got it covered here, and we want to hear from you.
- [199:12]
B
Yeah.
- [199:13]
D
So I'm on the West Coast.
- [199:14]
C
Hi, Don.
- [199:15]
D
Hi, Jim.
- [199:15]
C
Hi, Joy.
- [199:16]
B
Hey, everybody.
- [199:19]
D
I, of course, have not been watching mainstream media because why would I when I could be listening to you all all morning?
- [199:24]
C
Yes, yes.
- [199:27]
D
And things are going to be getting started in a little while. I'm here because my daughter is in a big audition.
- [199:33]
C
She'd kill me if I said for.
- [199:34]
D
What, so I won't say. But after that, we're gonna go get our protest on, then we're gonna go.
- [199:40]
B
Get a show on.
- [199:41]
D
We're gonna do everything that the West Brook has to offer all at once. But I really just want to first say and. And agree with each of you who's.
- [199:52]
C
Been talking about the difference between mainstream.
- [199:54]
D
Media and what you all are doing, and the fact that you have given this event and given, frankly, our citizenry, the coverage that we deserve, because people are going out and making their voices heard, and when you flip to the other channels, it's nowhere to be found. And no, Joy, I wouldn't have wished for you to lose your show, Don. I didn't want you to be off mainstream, Jim. I didn't want you to not be covering the White House. But look at God, right?
- [200:20]
B
Look at God.
- [200:21]
C
There we go.
- [200:22]
B
Yes.
- [200:24]
C
Praise be.
- [200:24]
B
Yes.
- [200:26]
D
And it's not just amen of the power of independent media, but also, as Joy was just saying, the power of collaboration.
- [200:33]
B
Yes.
- [200:34]
D
The power of when people have respect for each other and can find correct realm, can come together. You all do cover things the same way or from the same vantage point. And that's the beauty, because then you're all together and we get to see that. But frankly, I don't know if I'll be the first person today to say it, but let me go ahead. What? The march really just kind of makes me sad, though. I'm depressed by it. I'm kind of infuriated by it, actually. And I can't shake it. I hear the people being all optimistic, but, you know, I took my daughter out there 2017. We had on our.
- [201:12]
C
Can.
- [201:12]
D
Can you say the word? The P word?
- [201:14]
A
You can say we.
- [201:15]
B
Not all. Yeah, we. You can say it.
- [201:17]
D
We had on our pussy hats.
- [201:18]
C
I have. I had my.
- [201:20]
D
My 10 year old daughter, you know, with her cute little pink beret, and we marched down, you know, and no, there's no marches like this when that man is not in office. And I've seen the march marches before and. And we're seeing the marches again. And I need these marches to convert to votes. And if all the people who are out there are the ones who voted, then I need them to get their folks.
- [201:47]
C
Okay, yes, yes.
- [201:49]
D
Focusing on my folks. Yes, their folks. But yes, I marched with in 2017 have let me down every single, every two year vote since then. And so I'm not really trying to march nowhere with them anymore. That's my truth of the day. I saw Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett posted a picture today of her and Vice President Harris. That's my truth of today. Y' all had options 10 months ago, and you didn't need to be out there marching because. But the black woman. So that's my truth of the day, my other truth. People are out there saying no to fascism who didn't want to say no to white supremacy, have never said no to racism. I know we want to believe this is not what this country is, but my experience is this is what we're trying not to be. Not that it is that we are not it. That's not necessarily my truth or the truth. So I am encouraged that people are doing it. I'm cautiously optimistic about people learning the lesson, like, don't touch that. Don't touch that. And the stove is hot and maybe some people are getting burned and like, oh, it's hot for me too. It's not just other folks. So I pray that that converts in short order to what we need in 2026 in order to put a check on this madman's power. And all those GOP sycophants who don't care about breaking breaking laws in order to hold on to power.
- [203:20]
C
Yeah.
- [203:21]
A
Hey, Jack, I know that you're there. Jack Cottrell, I want you to stand by. Just give me a second. I want to go to costume real quick because got somebody who wants to interview and then we'll hear from Jack after this.
- [203:29]
C
Go ahead.
- [203:34]
B
Wait, do we hear him?
- [203:35]
C
Yes.
- [203:36]
A
You're good? Awesome.
- [203:37]
C
Go ahead. Hey, guys, I'M here with Gloria, right here in Chicago, small business owner in Chicago. And Gloria is. Thanks for giving us two minutes of time. Just tell us a little bit about why it was so important for you to be here today and why you're being so relentless and raising your voice against this fascism that we're seeing in this country. I'm here today to support the people.
- [203:56]
D
Who are walking in solidarity.
- [203:57]
C
I think the numbers are moving back.
- [204:00]
D
To show that we dislike the Trump administration and what they're doing. They are fascist and we are anti fascist. So I am here in solidarity of the people, for the people, we, the people here of the United States.
- [204:15]
C
You made a comment earlier to me, Gloria, that you don't like saying antifa. You're very deliberate to say that we are anti fascist. Talk a bit more about that.
- [204:24]
A
Put that mic real close to her mouth.
- [204:26]
D
So therefore, the Trump administration is trying to demonize the word antifa, trying to make it sound as if though it's a terrorist proof, but it is not is anti fascism. It's been around for thousands and thousands of years. If any, if anybody. One of the oldest ones who's an anti fascist would be Jesus. Another one would be Socrates and many others before us.
- [204:48]
C
Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, we all.
- [204:51]
D
Stood up for humanity. It's when we lose our humanity, that is when you are a terrorist.
- [204:57]
B
Amen.
- [204:57]
A
Thank you very much. We appreciate you. You Casa Rashid there with a Chicago resident who's out there. Thank you so much. Stand by. We want to get to Jack Coccurella. Jack, you have been covering this. You cover this on your show. This is a culmination of many things, of many, you know, outrages and upsets by the American people. And so what say you as you are witnessing this?
- [205:18]
C
Well, Don, thank you so much for having me. Don, Joy, Jim, so many of my favorite people. Everyone's tuning in. We have hundreds of thousands of thousands of people watching across platforms. This is what the real media looks like, by the way. This is new media, is the media now. And I was just out at the protest in D.C. i think it's like 200,000 people out in the streets. Bernie was getting the crowd fired up. It was incredible. The team at Indivisible, the team at move on. It's just, just so incredible to see. And, and you know, my takeaway from the first no Kings protest as a young person was I just heard a lot of like, there were no young people out there. This is your future. Why aren't you involved in it? I know this is a little bit like, small sample size, but there were a lot of young people out there that I saw today in D.C. so that was really uplifting to me. But I also saw everyone in frog costumes and dinosaur costumes. And I think really leaning in to the moment of weakness that this is for Trump losing court case after court case, the lowest poll numbers he's seen in either of his presidencies, just getting shut down in every scheme and every plot. This is a moment to point out that if you pre capitulate, you give him power that he doesn't have. I have no idea why Wall street or universities, abc, any other media outlet, thought that Donald Trump was some big tough guy that they had to bend the knee to. Every time that we stand up to him, it shows how insignificant and insecure the people in this administration are. Every time we go out on the street, we show that they don't have power over us, and that's what they need. They need us not to do that. They need us to be afraid. They need us to capitulate. That's where they get their power. And everyone in a frog costume or every T. Rex out there, anyone who is protesting, is just showing how pitiful these people are and how just insecure and sad Stephen Miller is. And that Carolyn Levitt thought that she was going to go on Fox and call us criminals and that was going to stop us. I cannot wait to see what, like, new filler she gets in her face to try to cope with the embarrassment that has been this weekend for her. But I have just been so happy. I was out in D.C. for, like, two hours. I had, of course, come back and hang out with y' all for a little bit, but I'm gonna go back out. But this has just been a fantastic day, and I'm glad it is pissing him off. And I hope Donald Trump's golf trip has been ruined today. But, like, I. The demo that I saw out there, seeing young people just gets me fired up. And, and it's incredible that so many people are tuning into y' all right now. Know, I'm just. I'm just stoked. I. I know that, you know, Monique, what you said was so perfect. Like, it's not enough to just. To just go out and. And be in community, which is so important, but. But to do something with it. You know, I always hear that, you know, joy is an act of protest, but not if that's all you do. Like, I love that you have your joy. I love that you are. That you are finding People who are in this fight with you, but, like, also, then do something with it. It. And so I. I completely feel that. That pain of those who. Who bring out a sign, who that might have said, like, you know, if Kamala was president, we wouldn't be here right now, but I want to be in it constantly. Right. If we kind of become numb to the. The fight that we're always in, if we think that maybe we're in power for a little bit or we get a couple of wins and. And just because you're feeling good, it doesn't mean that marginalized people aren't always having their rights assaulted. It aren't always having people come after them. Then we kind of fall asleep to this. And I don't want to be asleep at the wheel anymore. I don't want to be asleep at the wheel if a Democrat is president, if a fascist is president. And so I. I totally empathize and feel you on that. But. But today I do feel maybe there is something that has shifted, at least in the way that the public is perceiving this administration as weak, infallible, rather than something that is. That is unbeatable. Right. And that's what Trump wants us to think, that he is inevitable. And I hope today is one of the first days in shifting that view. That shows that he is weak, that he is beatable, and. And maybe that changes things a little bit.
- [209:09]
B
Amen.
- [209:10]
C
Amen.
- [209:11]
B
Amen.
- [209:11]
C
That's my rant. That's my rant.
- [209:12]
A
Monique, can I ask you something?
- [209:13]
C
Good job. Good job. Jack.
- [209:15]
B
Yes. Jack.
- [209:16]
C
No, Jack, I'm here.
- [209:18]
A
Monique, let me ask you, by the.
- [209:19]
C
Way, I'm in front of the Dear Leader thing behind me. I just wanted to point out that I'm part of the Dear Leader banner. Oh, there's. Here in Washington, D.C. yeah. Caroline Levitt is sort of like the little North Korean lady who sits at the desk with the mountains behind her and spreads the propaganda. That's what she does. But she and Stephen Miller and the liars at the White House, they're O for two. O for two second. No Kings Day. They tried to trash. And guess what? Y' all fucking lost again. That's all I gotta say.
- [209:50]
B
There you go.
- [209:52]
A
Let me ask you something real quick, because you mentioned. I wanted to ask you this before. You talked about, you know, that you're. It's making you sad. And some of the guests have been mentioning that they are not. There are. There's. There's diversity out there, but not a lot of people of color. What Changed your mind because you said you're going to get your protest on after this. What has changed? You believe that we're on the precipice, or we're already into something that's really bad and we need to pull our democracy back. Like, what's different than you? Because before, if I had asked you, I'm going to be honest, and I've asked some of my, you know, some of my black girlfriends, they would say. I would say, you go into the protest and they'd say, I'm having chicken for dinner. You know what I'm saying? So what? What has changed? Why do you think this moment is different?
- [210:38]
D
Yes. No, I don't know that it's different. I. I love a good protest, Don. You know that about me.
- [210:45]
C
You're a pugilist.
- [210:46]
A
You're pugilist.
- [210:48]
B
My daughter.
- [210:48]
C
Daughter.
- [210:49]
D
My daughter.
- [210:50]
C
Thank you. And I thank you so much. I appreciate it.
- [210:55]
D
Working to be in the way. And she's been raised up to know that power to state of the people. It has her still on fire.
- [211:03]
B
Thank you, Joy.
- [211:04]
D
Thank you, Angela. And so I'm gonna take her out there. I see we've lost Don, so I'll just randomly talk. We still have Joy in the anchor chair.
- [211:13]
B
We still got you, girl. We got you. Keep going, Keep going.
- [211:16]
D
But I. I want her to be a part of it. And I love a good protest, but I want to observe it and see it more so than be in it and among it at. At this hour. And I don't blame anybody who wants to go or doesn't want to go or, you know, I'm with everybody wherever they feel, as long as they are doing something. You know, that's the thing that I know you say all the time, Joy, and that Don says, and that's what I believe. Like, you're something. Doesn't have to be today. It's great if it is, but. And Don, if you. I don't know if you could hear me or not, but I was just saying.
- [211:54]
A
I got you.
- [211:55]
D
And I'm taking Grace because she wants to go, but I'm gonna be more of a protest observer. Like, if I. If I find a little orange vest, I'll be a legal observer.
- [212:04]
C
I'm not.
- [212:05]
D
I'm not necessarily, necessarily, like, gonna be pissed up on it.
- [212:08]
C
I'm.
- [212:09]
D
I'm. I'm going to continue to work toward getting people to turn these into votes. So I hope these enthusiasms work.
- [212:17]
B
And Monique, I will say, and I said this earlier in the. In the live, and thank you all for tuning into this live stream. If you guys are tuning in, this is like the, the, the Avengers of fighting fascism. But I'm with my take on this Monique, and I don't know what you think about this is that I'm actually glad that these protests are almost all white people because white folks have the responsibility of their demographic having been the one who affirmatively chose this. And DL Hughley said earlier on this broadcast, I think it's absolutely true that America needed to see exactly what it's like when they got their heart's desire. And for six out of 10 white Americans, this was their heart's desire. They wanted unfiltered Trump. They wanted Project 2025. They wanted ethnic cleansing of America. They hated the idea of having to hear Spanish and Walgreens brains. They wanted to go into Walmart not hear any or see any brown people. They want to go in Home Depot and not see brown people. They wanted to see them suffer. They wanted to physically watch people who are undocumented who they call illegals. Which again is there where it's the N word for brown people. If you say the word illegals, you're saying the N word. I hear it as the N word and I get to think you're racist because that is a racist term. But they wanted to see those people, they needed it viscerally now that they're seeing that, that suffering comes with them getting their food prices go up with themselves losing their employees, with themselves getting harmed. Now you have a lot of white Americans going oh this isn't what I voted for. And the tariffs that Trump said he was going to do now hurting them, they go oh shoot, he's helping Argentina and not me. And so a lot of people are waking up to it. So to me, the farmers, the people who ask this rural America said I want Trump, they are the ones who are singing the English version of I will vote for Donald Trump. Okay?
- [213:51]
C
And then enjoy. They don't want to be bailed out. They don't want to be. They don't want these.
- [213:58]
B
Markets. They understand that once the markets are gone, once Argentina and these foreign companies, foreign countries stop buying American soybeans, they ain't coming back. So they're march giving you a one time cash bailout doesn't do. So now that they're getting this is why I need my, my spicy white people to be the movement. It's your turn to do the march on Washington. And by the way, what they said about the march on Washington before it happened, the reason D.C. was empty during the march on Washington. They said it was going to be violent. They said it was going to be fights. They said it was going to be murder. They said that about the march on Washington. They said it about the march over the Edmund Pettus Bridge. We can't let these blacks march. They're going to do violence. Now you're having the same thing being said about the no Kings march. They're going to be violence. It's going to be terrorism. Voila. It's not. But our spicy whites are responsible for overturning fascism. It's your turn. You always said y' all wanted to have your own 60s civil rights movement. Baby, you're on deck. You got the bat. Hit that thing out the park. White America, stand up.
- [214:59]
C
But it's a generation.
- [215:01]
A
He's got you, Joy.
- [215:03]
B
Jack is ready to leave this and hear Jolly good Ginger. Jolly good Ginger and the frog.
- [215:08]
C
We're gonna get out there, Jack.
- [215:09]
B
Get out there and do your thing.
- [215:11]
A
Hey, if I can for a minute. Minute. I want to get back to the.
- [215:14]
C
The.
- [215:16]
A
Social media guys who are out because they have been out there and they have been talking to people and we love, love, love to hear from them. And this is their. This is their final say. So let's see what they have to say there. Maybe they don't know that they.
- [215:38]
C
It's been a long day.
- [215:40]
A
Perhaps they don't know that they're on. Are you on your text? Okay?
- [215:46]
B
They're just. They're just muted.
- [215:48]
A
Yeah.
- [215:48]
C
Yeah. They gotta hit the mute button as I. As I've been doing from time to time because I have to say things. Yeah. Oh, well. So, yeah. Respectful. A lot of people would like to see some more young people, but that's okay. Yeah. A lot of white people using their privilege, which is really cool. Cool to see a lot of cool costumes and stuff. And we got to learn some of the stories behind a lot of people's protest. Wear apparel and signs and. Yeah, I think it was a great time. We just want to say thank you, Don, Joy, Jim and all the special guests. Respective collective of Lemon Media Network is going to be signing off and we are going to Don's for some margaritas.
- [216:29]
B
Food, drinking water.
- [216:33]
C
That's why Don is in the studio.
- [216:36]
A
We will have our margaritas, but we will be have our margaritas.
- [216:43]
C
I'm gonna tell you, that's where I'm going right now. I'm gonna have a goddamn mojito. Jim, I'm gonna meet you. Where are we going, Jim? We'll Talk offline. We'll talk offline. That's right. The ramen's flowing, but, baby. Hey, guys, I'd love to. I'd love to jump in here really quick. I know you all are wrapping up, but the party's just getting started over.
- [217:01]
A
Coming back to you, go ahead.
- [217:04]
C
I know y' all are repping up, but the party's just getting started over here on the West Coast. We're going to continue out the live coverage. And just to speak on Joy's point, the diversity in this crowd is something that Los Angeles can really, really be proud of. There's black people, brown people, Asian people. The spicy white people are out represented in full effect out here on the street. I talked to somebody earlier and I asked them what brought you out here? Why show up here? Is this all about Trump? You know, and one person said, yes, they really were. It got under their skin. That photo that Trump posted all those months ago wearing the king crown on his head. But they also said, if you think that this is just about Donald Trump, you're missing the point. This is about a ruling class being born right in front of us. This is about the haves and the have nots. This is about the gaps widening between the haves and the have nots and the middle class going away in this country. Everyone sees it. It's not just the immigration rates, it's the price of the economy, the groceries, it's the economy collapsing. We were promised so, so much by the president on day one, not to include the Epstein files. I mean, they were supposed to be released. But now we're seeing the things that he campaigned on. He can't celebrate those. They're not victories. People are struggling to survive out here. That's why there's so many people out in the streets today. And you're right, it's not an aggressive atmosphere. It's a party like atmosphere. People are coming together for community because we really need that now and more than ever. It's not just the Latino community. We're so proud to see our black and brown brothers and sisters come together, be shoulder to shoulder and really understanding that this is more than just about us. It's more than just about the individual. It's about the collective. And we're all standing up today. That's what today is about. It's not just about Donald Trump Truck. Let's just be clear about that, guys. Thank you guys so much for having me on.
- [218:48]
B
Amen. Thank you, Nick.
- [218:49]
A
We'll see you soon. You'll be back on let's try Olivia one more time. I want to make sure that her mic. Olivia, you there? How's your mic?
- [218:55]
C
Can you.
- [218:57]
B
Can you guys hear us now?
- [218:59]
D
Do we have a steady screen?
- [219:01]
A
Finally.
- [219:01]
B
Finally.
- [219:02]
C
I'm taking Olivia to the Icon store next week.
- [219:06]
D
I'm going to tell you, though, I think it's the heat.
- [219:08]
B
My phone keeps saying it's overheating.
- [219:10]
D
And I've got to tell you, there.
- [219:11]
B
Are a lot of people here.
- [219:12]
D
This goes on for miles.
- [219:13]
C
And so I think with everyone here.
- [219:15]
D
Who knows, you know, we're on border.
- [219:17]
C
Steven Miller's probably pissed that I'm here.
- [219:18]
B
With.
- [219:20]
D
So you can probably block out your signal, but I'm gonna hand over to her for a little bit.
- [219:31]
B
It'd be great. We love Olivia's.
- [219:32]
C
Feel the democracy coming out of her heart. We love it. You sound like.
- [219:37]
A
You sound like Charlie Brown's mom on.
- [219:39]
C
The phone right now.
- [219:47]
B
We love you, Olivia.
- [219:49]
C
Look.
- [219:49]
A
Thank you, Olivia.
- [219:50]
C
Thank you.
- [219:52]
A
So there we go.
- [219:53]
C
Jim.
- [219:53]
A
Jim.
- [219:54]
B
How dare you?
- [219:55]
C
How dare you. Jack. I love you guys. That's Chris. Jack.
- [220:01]
B
I thought we were cool. What are you doing? Why are you getting to. I'm drinking coffee.
- [220:06]
C
I'm just. Did you bring. Did you bring enough for the rest of the class? I need a little Don Lemon show.
- [220:10]
A
Mug, by the way.
- [220:13]
B
I know. We need. Well, look, I think the chat needs to get together and demand Jim Acosta merge. We're trying to get him on only fans. It's either merch or only fans. We're one of the other. Jim.
- [220:23]
C
It's only feet.
- [220:27]
A
I'm gonna be doing what you're doing soon. Out of one of these.
- [220:30]
C
Hell, yeah. What are we having that is.
- [220:32]
A
It'd probably be a little taquila and something.
- [220:36]
B
How dare you.
- [220:36]
C
Rude. The. The Jim Acosta thongs are now available in the merch store. I'm just gonna. Yes. Now while supplies last.
- [220:46]
A
I can show you a sample of mine. We have the Don Lemon ones as well. There's a big lemon on the front, and it's also. It makes you smell fresh lemon.
- [220:54]
B
Makes you lemony friend.
- [220:55]
C
Oh, wow. Boom. This is. What. Monique is uncomfortable anyway.
- [221:02]
B
Monique just literally. She's literally like.
- [221:04]
C
She.
- [221:04]
B
She. Her sound went out just a minute. She's like. I don't hear none of this shit, guys.
- [221:08]
C
I am not Christmas.
- [221:09]
B
Damn it.
- [221:10]
A
This has been what I. This is my breakfast. I woke up. This has been my lunch.
- [221:14]
C
Oh, no.
- [221:16]
B
Your blood sugar is gonna spike with that and tequila together. You realize that, right?
- [221:20]
C
Yeah.
- [221:21]
A
And lemon heads.
- [221:23]
C
And lemon heads.
- [221:24]
B
Yes.
- [221:25]
D
Girl. They. They don't let us graduate high school or go to college if we don't know how to handle our liquor.
- [221:31]
B
Oh, she told us.
- [221:33]
C
There you go.
- [221:34]
B
Handle liquor. Walk in heels and do a face when I tell you. Every Texas. And change a tire. Every Texas girl I know. Change a tire. Walk in heels, do their hair and do they make up. No doubts. And they would just do that tire envelope. In a face. In a full face. Okay. How about that, Don?
- [221:51]
D
I have to bounce. So I just wanted to say yes. Point a couple of minutes ago. I can't agree more, that I feel like the right people are leading this. This protest and this movement. And I said earlier this week, this thing that is true to me that I want to repeat here, shared suffering breeds community. And sometimes people don't understand why, whether it's black community, brown community, Asian community, why we are such a we, why there is such an enhanced sense of culture. But some of that we is because we have had to be the we that fights you. So if the you that we have, a thought breaks itself down and forms its own we. And it doesn't have to be a culture of whiteness. It has to be a culture of humanity and shared suffering. And that's what I see out there. And when enough of that part of us figures out, oh, wait, me too.
- [222:53]
C
Oh, wait. Us.
- [222:54]
D
Oh, wait, you didn't mean. It's not just gonna affect. They're snatching everybody off the streets.
- [223:00]
B
Yes. They're.
- [223:01]
D
They're giving everybody the same poor health care. They're doing it to everybody's school system. My child has special needs, too. When they figure that part out and lead it the way they are now, then I think we see the kind of change that is lasting, because then maybe they will not be able to be fooled anymore.
- [223:20]
B
Amen.
- [223:21]
C
Yeah.
- [223:21]
B
Hallelujah. Hallelujah.
- [223:24]
A
Bye, Monique, and best of luck to your dog. Tell her to break a leg.
- [223:29]
C
Thank you.
- [223:30]
D
Okay, bye. Bye.
- [223:31]
B
Bye.
- [223:31]
C
Thank you. Bye.
- [223:32]
A
Let us know where you are streaming and watching us from in the chat. We want to know what city you're in and what you do. Hey, team, do we have some pictures of. Because there were a couple pictures of people who couldn't make it. Yeah, but they did. They couldn't make it to protest, but they did what they could in their own hometowns and own home in their areas. Did you get any of the shots of the dog or anything?
- [223:53]
B
Oh, I love it.
- [223:54]
A
This woman, this person said, I cannot go to one of the things, but I hung this on my fence.
- [223:59]
B
Love that. That's awesome. That's awesome. Do your little bit. Anything you can. There we go. No kings. Yes.
- [224:06]
A
Yes. Oh, that was a dog.
- [224:08]
B
Good girl. Or good boy. So cute.
- [224:12]
A
Oh, I believe that's my friend Quinn's dog.
- [224:15]
C
Look at that. Oh.
- [224:16]
A
Oh, amazing.
- [224:17]
B
Costume characters. We love it.
- [224:19]
A
Yes, amazing. What else?
- [224:22]
B
Amazing.
- [224:23]
A
Oh, check it out.
- [224:25]
C
Okay.
- [224:25]
A
And do you guys. We want to put your. Guys, this is a Don Lemon show merch. And then we want to get you guys as well. Morons are governing America. Who's this lady? Andy? Do we know?
- [224:34]
C
This is Debbie Wilcox.
- [224:36]
A
Hi, Debbie.
- [224:38]
C
Debbie. Shout out to Debbie.
- [224:39]
B
That's a seasoned, spicy white lady.
- [224:43]
C
She's gonna be on I've had it now. Next week. That's the third.
- [224:47]
B
We love. We love. I've had it, by the way.
- [224:49]
A
Just pissed. I like that.
- [224:52]
C
I love Michael and Fairfax sent these.
- [224:55]
B
Love that. Oh, look at that. Awesome, awesome.
- [224:59]
A
What else do we have?
- [225:00]
B
Is that. What kind of creature is that? Is that like a fairy tale creature? Is that a unicorn?
- [225:03]
A
Looks like a unicorn. Yeah.
- [225:04]
B
Unicorn. We love it.
- [225:07]
A
What else do we have?
- [225:08]
C
Is it. This is a video from Michael. Oh, love it.
- [225:12]
A
Where's Michael?
- [225:16]
C
Look at that.
- [225:17]
B
Look at that. Look at the people.
- [225:21]
A
All over America. People sent me some pictures, some stuff from Long Island. I didn't send it to you guys. Jim Acosta's in a bar. So Jim is going to get his.
- [225:30]
B
You know what?
- [225:31]
C
Not. Of course. I'm in an Irish bar. I'm in the Irish times in Washington, D.C. doctor yourself. This is Friendly crowd here, guys, with the friendly crowd. Oh, nice.
- [225:44]
B
Fabulous.
- [225:45]
C
Everyone. I mentioned the Cuban side of my family. The other side of my family has got a lot of Irish going on in it. So I'm just going to tell you right now. The Irish celebrate after a big. A big folktale like we had today. And I'm just going to say, just to get on a serious note, just for one millisecond before, you know, we start wrapping this thing up and everything.
- [226:04]
A
Get closer to the window. Jim, your signal's cutting a little bit.
- [226:07]
C
Okay. I was gonna say, guys, Don, Juliet, love you guys. Love everything that you've been about and trying to, you know, bring independent media to the masses. I think by combining our forces, we are now a force to be reckoned with. You know what I'm saying?
- [226:22]
B
Amen.
- [226:22]
C
And we just need to keep doing this. I had this lightning bolt that came last night. We should be doing New Year's coverage. We should be doing. You know, we should. Let's just do this more often. Yeah. On a real serious note, like, I am so in, inspired and encouraged by what I saw today, because I went into this thinking, oh, boy, they're gonna. We're gonna sabotage this. They're gonna be elements in the crowd who're gonna try to start trouble and so on. And none of that happened. Jack was down there, too. He could say exactly what I'm saying. But this was an outpouring of love of country. And I understand when. When, you know, some of the guests are saying, you know, why didn't people vote this way in 2024? I get that people are deeply frustrated with what's happening in the country right now, and they say the voters had their chance, they voted for this, and now we're getting, you know, our just desserts. At the same time, Don, Julie, we're old enough to know that sometimes these struggles, they find us, sometimes these moments in our country's history, they come for us. And this is that moment. And I think a part of what I'm so proud of in terms of what we did today is that Don and Julie and his whole team, we are seizing this media, the legacy media. They want guys like us to just go. They want us to go off to the island of misfit toys and go away.
- [227:37]
B
Yeah.
- [227:37]
C
And what we did instead is we combined our resources and we did the kind of covers that you should see in a free country. And a Democratic Republican cares about free speech and freedom of assembly. And that's what we. I think you delivered that today, guys.
- [227:53]
A
Thank you very much. I received every word of that. I need you to stand by because I think you want to stay for a few minutes. Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett joins us now. Congress.
- [228:07]
C
Hey, y'. All.
- [228:08]
A
Hey, Congresswoman, Were you out and about on the protest? And. And what do you give us your observation and your thoughts on today?
- [228:16]
D
Yeah. So I am in Houston, Texas, right now because my candidate for the special election, Christian Menifee, has me busy doing some stuff, but I had to make sure that I showed up for the people. And they are thirsty. Right. Like, I know people think of Texas, and they always think that we're just some ugly, deep red place, but we're not. And so the resistance is real. The people are out there, they're energetic. And honestly, at a normal rally, I'm kind of, like, just trying to, like, get people pumped up. But as I've traveled the country, as I said to them, people are feeling hopeless. And I wanted to make sure that I, like, addressed the fact that there's all this hopelessness that people feel and how that is when they win. And so I really wanted to pour into them more than just kind of pump them up. And so it was great, though. It's always just warm fuzzies, especially when I'm in a major urban city in Texas.
- [229:16]
C
Amen.
- [229:17]
B
And do you feel that, Congresswoman, the forced gerrymandering of the state of Texas and this drive to destroy the Voting Rights act has that lit a fire under people who now understand that they may not be able to vote for the person of their choice because Donald Trump ordered the governor of Texas to change the lines?
- [229:41]
D
Yeah, I think in theory that sounds right, but I won't know until we actually get out there and vote. Right. I think that we recently saw polling that said that in the state of Texas overall, they are not approving of this gerrymandering scheme. Right. And so, honestly, if we were in a state that had half the integrity that California has, then we would have put this to the people and let the people decide. And I'm pretty sure that people would have decided that they didn't want to do that because. Because it's not a good feeling. And I think even those Republicans that are against this, they look at this like, well, what if this happens the other way? We would never want that. And granted, that shouldn't necessarily be your only reason or rationale, but there are people that are thinking like that, and with this administration, they are not worried about consequences. They are not worried about clapback. They are not worried about anyone responding in kind in the way that they do. And maybe, maybe it's because people know that, like, by the nature of being a Democrat, that you are someone who has a heart and that you are not necessarily just out to do evil like we, you know, as we're in this healthcare fight right now, I appreciate the fact that it has been made very clear that the vast majority of the people that will be most detrimentally impacted by this fight over the Affordable Care act or even as it relates to the big ugly bill, they are not people that are voting for us. Right. Like, they are not. Like, we are fighting harder for their constituents. And because when we swear in, while I am a Democrat, I carry my title, it is U.S. representative, I represent for those that voted for me as well as those that didn't vote for me. That is what we're missing out of the real leadership in D.C. we're not getting that from the president or the leader of the Senate, nor out of, obviously, the leader of the House Congresswoman.
- [231:40]
A
Where do you think that. Jim, do you have a question? Sorry, don't.
- [231:43]
C
Well, no, I was just back. Oh, I mean to play off of what the congresswoman was saying is that so much of this is about the issues. And the issue of health care is one that I think is going to hit people in the face with extra money when people's premiums, their Obamacare premiums start to double and start to triple because of this big beautiful blunder bullshit of a bill. You know, that is going to hit home for a lot of people. And I think it goes back to a lot of people voting against their own interests. How do we get across to those folks who have been voting against their own interests? Do they have to just sort of feel it and have it hit where it hurts, which is in their wallet?
- [232:21]
D
You know what's so interesting as I listened to you explain that, what I have found, right, when we look at the demographics that are voting for the Democrats, we don't tend to get those voters that are maybe have a little bit less formal education. We tend to get the people that will read and get down into the minutia and do the thousand page bills with us and all those things. But what we are missing isn't really where we stand on policy. It is our ability to communicate with people. And I'm going to be honest and tell you that a lot of people call Democrats elitists and things like that. For us, saying things like you voted against your interest because it makes people feel small, like. And so for them it's almost like a pride thing, right? Like, oh, I will show you, I'll show you.
- [233:12]
C
Right?
- [233:13]
D
But in the end, like you didn't. I mean, you may have heard us but like you hurt yourself while you were doing it, right? So I think that it is about some of the ways that we just kind of present and just being very plain language. I was telling a story yesterday to a group of young electeds about the fact that there's one specific group, I won't put them out there, that really is not necessarily a natural alignment that anybody would think of as being aligned with me. But every time they have a Hill day, they bring them to come and talk to me. Now I know that these people probably would never vote for me, but they love to talk to me because when I break it down, I'm just honest. I'm just giving them the facts and I'm telling them like as we were talking about one specific piece of legislation, I was connecting all the Dots. So I was like, you may not agree with Democrats on a lot of things, but you need to rock with us on this because.
- [234:11]
C
We lost the congresswoman. Oh, no.
- [234:15]
A
She went through a no go through Elon.
- [234:17]
B
You know, he's up there with his little machine machine theme.
- [234:20]
C
They're coming for the feeds.
- [234:21]
B
Coming for the feeds. Coming for the feeds. By the way, just looking at this AP story about these protests. These are nationwide. We're gonna see what the final headcount is. But these appear to be the largest protests, I mean, obviously since the. For the. No King's Day, June 14th. But I'm gonna be interested to see what the numbers look like. Don and Jim versus the anti war protests, which were record breaking. And also obviously the protests against Donald Trump. Trump by. During the Women's march. So we will see what the numbers are, but they're looking pretty big.
- [234:51]
C
And speaking of the numbers, Don, if you mind if I don't just jump in real quick, I think I just kind of want to echo a sentiment. Jim, you're talking about the incredible platforms, of course, that all three of y' all have built. And you know, when I was telling people to just absolutely, you needed to show up today, so much of it was about finding the community that we so desperately need right now. And obviously, so many folks have moved away from Don, that lamestream media that you were talking about. But y' all also gave them a place to be. And the community is not just with us. It is with everyone who is engaging and watching our stuff. And I'm going to come back to that thought because I'm gonna let the congresswoman go because we were trying to save a little time before you came in. I'll finish that later. I'll let you jump in.
- [235:30]
A
Go ahead.
- [235:30]
D
Congressman, I am so sorry. But long story short, I think that, number one, we have to meet people where they are. We have been saying that forever and we can't wait until election time. We have to be in consistent communication so that people actually build a rapport and actually trust us. As we went out and said Project 2025 was the plan of Donald Trump, people were like, he said it's not. And they believe that. And that was just that. Even though I could sit there and say he is mentioned over 300 times in this book. So I think that it is about also having a rapport, something that I don't really think the Democrats have really invested in and having a rapport with all people, not just those that are tuned in. Because at the end of the day, everybody has an opportunity to vote. So some people we have to force feed the information, too. And that's okay because they are our constituents as well. But if you wait until election time, I don't really care which demographic it is, people tend to not trust you. So we've had to deal with this within the black community, where everybody want to show up to everybody's church when it's election time. But where have you been? Come on, all these other days, all these other months, like, why are you not telling us what's going on? So we have to be very consistent. And I get it, because the old way of doing things has always been just put your head down and do the work. And, like, everybody will know that their lives are, you know, decent enough because you're doing your work. But that's just not where we are currently. So we've got to make the effort to communicate with those in rural America and talk about, like, hey, your hospital shut down. Let me explain why and what it is that we're doing to try to make sure that you still have access to health care. Just like your neighbors in the urban cities, when the farmers are filing these record bankruptcies, we need to be having conversations. I know, like, the general public is like, that's what the farmers voted for. But at the end of the day, we all got to eat. So listen, let's have a conversation about it. Let's talk about the fact that, like, we need to do something to help each other survive, which is why a lot of times when I give speeches, one of the themes that I hit, because I always pick a song, it's a gospel song that I need you to survive. And that's what I go into, whether it's farming, whether it's immigration or whatever, to make sure that we start really connecting each other. So long as they keep us siloed, then we will continue to lose with the division. So we've got to come together, but we got to show how it is that my life impacts your life so that people will actually understand the beauty. And, like, honestly, sometimes the burden of having to work with people that you wouldn't necessarily believe you should be working with so we can do it. We just got to work harder, and we've got to work consistently.
- [238:12]
A
Can I just say something on a personal level, Congresswoman? You don't have to respond. This is me saying it. I just want to say, can we get some of these bojackety tap dancing before I did dancing ignorant brothers out here, black men to Stop attacking black women publicly, especially when they don't know what the f they're talking about. We need to be supporting each other. And if you're going to come at somebody, come at them with some real information, come at them with some facts, and stop tap dancing and cooning around because you want to increase your profile and your. Your wallet. We are in this for democracy. We're in this for support. We're in this together. Stop going around criticizing black women because the is just ain't right. This is 2025. We have someone in office who is a tyrant who doesn't care about you, perhaps you don't care about you or. Or what's happening, but just stop it. That's all I'll say.
- [239:16]
B
Can I just add something? No, no, no, wait. You said what I was going. And I. Thank you, Donna. We needed to hear this from a black man first. But let me just say something. Everybody saw the movie Django Unchained. Remember the name of the person who cared more about the love of the slave master than he did about the love of his people or the care for his people. His name was Stephen. And Stephen was somebody who was willing to sell out his fellow African enslaved people because he wanted and needed and sought and craved the love, love of the white master. And so Stephen, historically, for me, when I think about it in terms of Django Unchained, is somebody who would never protect a black woman, who will savage a black woman for his own benefit because he was going to get a few more crumbs from the master's table. So what I would say to the Stevens who are in our world today, who are behaving as Stevens in the historical sense, understand that the master will never love, love you. That when they're done with you and finished with you and you have done for them what they felt that you have done, and now all they could do, they will treat you the way they have now treated diamond or silk, whichever one is still alive. You don't hear from her anymore. You don't hear from Herschel Walker anymore. You don't hear from the. What was he, the Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina? That. That was on the.
- [240:29]
C
The.
- [240:30]
B
The naked, you know, Right. The porn. You don't hear from him anymore because they. They serve the. Their purpose. And so when the master is finished with Stephen, the Stephen will go the exact same way as the enslaved he refused to protect. So what I'm going to say is we are Django up in this. We are fighting against the slave master. We don't roll with Stephen. And so, Stephen, if you decide that you think that you can pull a Megan Kelly and make your entire purpose savaging black women, because that gets you clicks from white folks. Again, your influence is not with black men. Don Lemon is influential with black men. D.L. hughley is influential with black men. Your audience is a different audience. This is what hello, Roland is influential with black men. Who you are entertaining and dancing and stepping and tap dancing for are the white conservatives who will discard you as soon as they're done with you. So, Stephen, we are just telling you right, right now, Django is on the side of the people and will continue to fight for black women and with black women and against the enslaver and against you. You on your own, buddy. Enjoy your time on that vacation with what's his name from the Supreme Court. You can go with Clarence. That's your people. Now go with them because we were Jasmine.
- [241:50]
D
Congresswoman, so, so I will say this because I have clearly not.
- [241:54]
A
Thank you, Joy.
- [241:55]
D
Anything. I will say that I appreciate the community because when you are in D.C. and you are doing the work and you are fighting, you never know who all is paying attention nor what it is that they understand about your fight. Whether they understand that, like, life would be different if I opted to be out of politics. I would have more money in my bank account and I would have less death threats. Like, whether they understand that, yes, you see me on camera, but you don't understand that. Like, I don't go to sleep until the wee hours of the morning because I am always trying to make sure that I am prepared for committee. Whether they understand that I get that the people that I serve, the people that elected me to Texas 30, have to always be first and foremost because that is who elected me. They are the only people, people that can decide that I don't go back to D.C. so we're always trying to come up with new programs and making sure that we are keeping them informed and engaged. As today is no kings, we still have our kids and fishing event that's also taking place today in my district. Even though I'm physically not there, we are always making sure that we are informing them and we are listening to them. As I just had my quarterly town hall the other day where it's not just me talking to my constituents, but it's also me listening to my constituents. Or the fact that as a freshman black woman Democrat in the House, the biggest thing that I accomplished my freshman year had nothing to do with Marjorie Taylor Greene. But instead Bringing an ARPA H location, one of only three that had been approved through legislation, to the only Republican state, but to my district, and doing that in a bipartisan way, where almost every single Republican in North Texas signed on to get that investment made into my district, which, for those that don't understand how big of a deal it was, this is like bringing the CDC to Atlanta. There are people that have taken the time to understand that I always keep at the forefront the people that elected me to D.C. what you see, if you're not in my district, may not necessarily be all of the substance that also comes with me, but there is plenty of substance. And if anybody ever wanted to ask, just like anything else, I always have receipts for the work that I have done. So I will just say that I appreciate the community and the culture because this is something that I never even had to address or deal with with because the community decided to speak up before I even knew what was happening. So I appreciate you. I absolutely, obviously love the both of you. Specifically, though, Don, as a black man, I will tell you that there are certain attacks that I fully anticipate as being a black woman in politics. But I will tell you that it does cut deeper when it is somebody who looks like me and just happens to be a black man. Especially knowing what Malcolm X always said about black women. Right, Exactly. So. So the thing is this. It does hurt because it's like, I expect more and better. And frankly, I am always down for a real conversation. I really am. I mean, but I haven't even experienced that type of stuff coming out of even black men on the other side of the aisle and kind of Congress. That's just the reality. Because they even have enough respect to say, we disagree on this policy or whatever, and we'll go back and forth. But, like, they have not tried to do what somebody else tried to do. So it's all good when you know that you're walking in the purpose that God has put on your life. There's nothing that honestly shakes me like I'm a. I'mma keep doing me, and, you know, the world will continue you.
- [245:47]
A
I hope you're not upset that we brought that up. But I just had to say that because it was really weighing on my heart and my soul. And I was just so offended by it, especially as a black man. I was just like, wait, what the is wrong with this man?
- [245:58]
C
Amen.
- [245:59]
A
And, you know, I don't.
- [245:59]
C
Like.
- [246:00]
A
I usually don't attack people personally or whatever, but that was just offensive and that I Usually don't bring those people up like the Stephen A. Smiths or like the Stevens out there, let's put it that.
- [246:11]
C
That way.
- [246:11]
A
Or the Megyn Kelly's of the world. But sometimes you have to show people that hold up a mirror and you have to tell people about themselves. And the only time I ever clapped back, I think was at Megyn Kelly was when she said some about Joy. The only time that I've ever clapped back at the Stevens of the world is when they said some about Jasmine Crockett. It's offensive and it should not happen. Check yourself.
- [246:35]
B
Yeah.
- [246:35]
A
Because Joy is right. They. They don't give a about you. Go ahead.
- [246:38]
B
At all.
- [246:39]
C
And if I could say one quick thing. And I had a town hall here in D.C. in June and I was like, I want to find the person in Congress who I think is the up and coming rising Democratic force in the party right now. And I had one name on my mind and it was Jasmine Crockett. And I invited Jasmine Crockett to come to my town hall and T. Canes and she electrified the. That audience. Amen. I will tell you, we want to talk about democracy. People not being represented by their. By their officials in Washington or being denied a Democratic representation. Keep in mind, I'm in D.C. right now. We have. We have taxation with intimidation right now in D.C. we do not have statehood. We do not have elected representatives with full voting rights in Washington D.C. and this is a city of such a 600,000 people and it is a largely populated by African American black people in the city. And I. I will just say that when Jasmine Crockett ended the town hall that I did back in June, he absolutely electrified the crowd. And I will say to you, Congresswoman, I think that you are the future of the Democratic Party and you are the future of America because you are saying what needs to be said. Right like that. And you deserve all of our respect.
- [247:57]
B
Amen. Amen.
- [247:58]
C
I didn't get to.
- [247:59]
A
I was overwhelmed when the last time I think I saw you in person, I think it was. No, no, no. You came to my event. You came to my event in New York. But I was so overwhelmed that I didn't properly thank you for presenting me this award announced to me when I got. And I just got it. It just came in a box two days ago.
- [248:16]
C
Oh, wow. Look at that. That's cool.
- [248:19]
B
Amazing.
- [248:19]
A
The House Hollywood Impact Award. And the person who introduced me and handed me this award is Jasmine Crockett. No more than a couple months ago on a stage in Los Angeles. I'd like to thank the Academy, but I'd like to thank Jasmine Crockett.
- [248:34]
C
Thank you, Jason Lee, Congresswoman.
- [248:42]
A
Have to jump. I think we have to jump. Jack.
- [248:44]
C
Thank you.
- [248:44]
B
We do.
- [248:44]
C
We're over. Thank you so much for having me. It's great hanging out with you. Yeah. I got to be in the inner circle a little bit.
- [248:51]
A
Thank you.
- [248:52]
B
All right, everything you heard here is classified. I'm gonna keep it locked down.
- [249:00]
C
A couple of these Jim and I are gonna have. There you go. We might do our own live stream, so apologizing later. It's gonna be okay, though.
- [249:07]
B
Don't worry. Don't worry.
- [249:08]
C
We forgive you. The.
- [249:10]
A
The queen and the two thorns. The rose and the two thorns. Oh, here's the thing. Rose and two thorns. Thank you. Where Joy, tell everybody where they can find. Well, first, Jim, you tell everybody where.
- [249:26]
B
They can go for Jim.
- [249:27]
C
Hey, guys. I mean, this is substack, YouTube, wherever you get your podcast, Jim Acosta show. Always appreciate being with you guys. And, you know, to me, it's. This is about to call to the cause and this bird. And the cause is we are going to save this country.
- [249:44]
A
We are.
- [249:45]
C
I'm not. Not just me and you and all of us here on the show, but we the people are going to save this country. And it is starting with these voting circumstances, it is starting with independent media rising up in this country, giving people the real voice that they deserve. Not this corporate media where they paid the bribes and they bend the knees and they do the bullshit and they only do they got to have the MAGA guy on. Excuse the MAGA and the government fact checked. That doesn't fly anymore, ladies and gentlemen. It doesn't fly anymore. Not because Joy and Don and Jim say that. It's because the American people say it doesn't fly anymore. So I just want to say I talk to you guys did it again. And I can't wait till the next time. And I love you guys. Thank you so much for making me a part of it.
- [250:32]
B
Love you right back. Jim Acosta. I am such big fans of these guys. It is the best thing in the world. This is the way I love my job, is that I actually get to hang out with the people that I respect most in the world, that I love and adore, that have all become my friends. We are a squad, and I think we're the best squad. Personally, I think if you want to get breaking news, you want to get it from this dynamic trio. Jim Acosta, Don Lemon, Joy Reid. You can Follow me@the joyreadshow.com you can also follow me@joann reed.com, which is my substack. We're all doing substack and YouTube. I've also got the shop up. So if you want to buy some merch, if you want the. This cute little thing right here. If you want to buy this, my little resistor Don has taught me well. If you want to get any of the merch, you can go over to shop.joynreid.com get you some merch. We got some resist merch. We got some no Kings merch. We got the mugs. We got it all, baby. So go ahead and, go ahead and shop. And we have a wonderful little discount for you guys. If you jump in your first, like, hit, you're going to get a little discount and you're going to get to enjoy our fabulous merch. So that's it.
- [251:29]
C
Did I still.
- [251:30]
B
But man, you did not. Look, let me tell y' all something. Get. Let me give his flowers right quick. Because Don has been teaching. Jim and I are newbies to this new media, right? We're the new. We are that. We are the freshmen and he is the senior. And he has been teaching us all of the ways of making all this work. Thank you to Don Lemon's team who's helped us and given us tips. If we ever need advice, we go to each other. And so what you guys need to understand, this is not competitive. What we've been doing in this new media space is we're bringing together people who worked at rival networks, people who were to able in print, people who are on social, everybody. Reese Colbert came from social media. We're bringing people from all around the universe of media, bringing us all together. And as you saw today, the diversity of. Of ideology, conservative, liberal, you name it, we come together because what we are is we are pro democracy. We are pro democracy. We don't come here on behalf of a party. We don't come here on behalf of any single organization. We come here on behalf of the people. And so if you guys want to get fresh, straight up media for the people, that cares about the people, loves the people, works for the people. We work for you. I've been watching this feed on all three. I keep jumping back and forth between Jim's channel, Don's channel, and the Joy Reid show channel because I don't even know how the ratings work. But I'm like, I need to make sure everybody get ratings. So I've been jumping on everybody's Channels. I've also been on my live. Thank you to those who went on the Instagram live, who watched it on Substack, who watched it everywhere on Tick Tock. So this is what we're doing. You guys support new media because this is the only way. And the last thing I'm saying before I go. Jim has talked a lot about his heritage and the Cuban American community having lived in Florida for a long time. One of the reasons so many Latinos voted the other way is if you watch the media that's controlled by conservatives that most Latino people take in, the corporate media on their side, it is pure propaganda. The same thing is happening in Asian American in language media. It's happening in Haitian media. I experienced this myself living in Florida. You guys need to understand that immigrants in this community of color, Latinos, Asian Americans are getting pure propaganda from their.
- [253:36]
C
Version of mainstream media is being brainwashed.
- [253:39]
B
That's right, they're being brainwashed. And so don't always assume that people who are voting not your way are just evil or just racist or just hate you. They're being brainwashed too. Break your family and friends out of corporate owned media and get them all onto social media and onto independent media where they can see the truth. That is what I'm going to say and I'm done. Thank you all for being here with me. I'm gonna go back to Don throwing it back.
- [254:03]
C
Don, love it, love it, love it.
- [254:05]
A
Everything that they said. So I'm just gonna be short because you guys have said everything that I wanted to say except I just wanted people to know when I texted, I said, hey, no kings. Should we get the band back together? Before I could finish the text. Next, a rousing all caps.
- [254:20]
C
Yeah. Came from both people saying, absolutely, let's do it.
- [254:24]
A
Let's set a meeting. So thank you guys for that. I appreciate it. And so look. And thank you for saying that. I am the, you know, somebody said I was an uncle. I forget what they said. Charles said I was the dean in all of this. So what I say, support independent media. That's all I'll say. Support independent media. Support this channel. Subscribe to this channel. Subscribe to all the independent the up. Subscribe to Fanon's channel. Subscribe to Jim Acosta's channel.
- [254:47]
B
Jolly good Ginger.
- [254:48]
A
Jolly Good Ginger's channel. All the folks who joined us today, make sure you like, subscribe, become a member. That's how we stay viable. And we're able to bring you this coverage if you want to know anything about the Don Lemon show. All you have to do is go to donlemon.com donlemon.com you can click on watch and you can see right there where it says watch. That's our main show on YouTube. You can join, become a member, and you can subscribe. Okay. Also, if you go back out to donlemon.com click on our merch. Our merch is there. I taught Joy. I said, joy, get you some merch. And so everything you need to know about the show, but really, more than anything, we just. We would like you. Subscriptions are free. Just hit the subscribe button. It does affect the algorithm and it helps us and the more subscribers better opportunities we have for sponsorships.
- [255:35]
C
Yes.
- [255:35]
A
And for viability here. Okay. So thank you all so much for watching today. I'll say that I say I love you guys so much. Thank you, thank you. Thank you to Joy.
- [255:45]
C
I can only do half the heart because my other hand's holding the phone. But anyway. And.
- [255:48]
A
Oh, well, I'm surprised the other one shouldn't be. It was holding up. I see it.
- [255:51]
C
What is that? A dark. Rude. Rude.
- [255:57]
A
Go out, guys, and protest. Be safe out there. Remember your rights. You have. You're American.
- [256:02]
C
Americans.
- [256:03]
A
We don't. We.
- [256:04]
C
It's.
- [256:04]
A
This is not an autocracy. There are no kings. Okay? So as I always say, whenever I'm broadcasting, you can be informed without being inundated until we see you back here on all of our respective channels. Here's what we want you to do. Joy said it. Jim said it. Turn the TV off.
- [257:19]
C
Sam.