
California Gov. Gavin Newsom was confronted by a mother in Los Angeles County who said her daughter's school burned down as several fires have devastated the region this week. In a video aired by SkyNews, the woman approached Gov. Newsom in the...
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Tax Network USA Representative
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President Joe Biden
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Russell Dobular
Allow 15 days qualifying unlock device, credit.
Keaton Weiss
Service port in 90 plus days with device into eligible carrier and timely redemption.
Russell Dobular
Required card has no cash access and expires in six.
Jimmy Dore
Come see us on tour in Dallas, Texas, Baltimore, Atlantic City, Co Host, New York and Providence, Rhode Island. Go to jimmy door.com for a link for tickets and only there.
Russell Dobular
This is the Jimmy Dore Show. Russell and Keaton speaking. Who's this gentleman?
President Joe Biden
Is President Joe Biden.
Russell Dobular
Hello, Mr. President.
President Joe Biden
Thanks for calling, but not president for much longer. It's just a few weeks until spring break for old Joey Robinette over here. That means me.
Keaton Weiss
So how are you feeling during your last few weeks in office?
President Joe Biden
I'm glad you asked. Other guy on the show or are you the first guy who knows? I can't see anything. Anyway, the point is I've been feeling reflective, contemplative and pardon tastic. What about you, Rusty? You do anything naughty need to be part of?
Russell Dobular
No, no, no thanks, sir. I'm good. Nothing anybody knows about.
President Joe Biden
They call me the Pardonator. Not really. I wish they did though. The point is. The point is this. The other day I sat down for a long interview with USA Today because I didn't want anyone to read what I had to say.
Russell Dobular
Huh.
President Joe Biden
But. But I like you guys. So I'll fill you in on some of the things I told this nice lady who sat in the chair. I told her that obviously there's no way to know for sure, but I feel that I would have defeated Donald Trump had I been a candidate.
Russell Dobular
Really, really wow.
Keaton Weiss
That is a pretty bold assertion.
Russell Dobular
Wow.
President Joe Biden
I know. I still got a brass pair, boys. And that. And that really is the best part of this lame duck period for me. Just publicly running over Kamala Harris with a dump truck on a daily basis. I love it. It'll never not be hilarious to me. And there's nothing she can do about it. She's literally the least powerful person in the Democratic Party.
Russell Dobular
Wow. Wow.
President Joe Biden
Yeah. You'll never see her again. Mark my words. Check this out. We go. We go. Hey, Kamala. I think I know why you lost. Not enough twerking at your rallies. You had some, but not enough. Because that's how you connect with the working class voters. Have people twerk at them on television. Gosh, you get so mad.
Keaton Weiss
I almost feel bad for her, don't it?
President Joe Biden
Anyway, here's the point. The point is this. Not only in this interview with the lady in the chair, did I say probably would have won, but I also said I didn't know if I could have lasted another four years in office.
Russell Dobular
You didn't.
President Joe Biden
I did.
Russell Dobular
Wow.
President Joe Biden
Now, I don't know if you guys remember, but at the time when I was running, I was absolutely adamant that I was up for the task. Not a hint of doubt or hesitation. And you may also remember that everyone around me was adamant that I was up for the task.
Keaton Weiss
Yes, we remember. As the rest of America does.
President Joe Biden
Exactly. Good legacy. Good thinking, Keith. But now it's different. You see, the whole thing has changed. I don't want to overwhelm you guys with a bunch of political jargon, but now that I'm not running for president anymore, I don't have to lie.
Russell Dobular
Yeah, I think we get it.
President Joe Biden
Yeah, you're smart. You're a smart cookie. I like that. So, anyway, here's the point. I can finally give the American people the straight dope. And it feels so good.
Keaton Weiss
Really? Okay, so why have you allowed your ally Israel then to commit a genocide for over a year?
President Joe Biden
Apec. It's just that simple. They have too much money and too much power. Look, I mean, this. It churns my stomach. But I can't even say that they're that powerful. American lobbying group brought itself. It bought itself a genocide. No other way to put it.
Russell Dobular
Wow, that is honest. How come the Democratic Party failed to codify Roe v. Wade when it had the chance?
President Joe Biden
It's simply too much political capital to spend on women's rights. It would guarantee Republican win the next cycle. Simple cost benefit analysis. Next question.
Keaton Weiss
Oh, okay. All right. I have one. Does The US Government have aliens or. Or alien aircraft?
President Joe Biden
Oh, come on, man. Of course not. Like, what do people think? Aliens have the technology to travel light years, but not to prevent crashes like that somehow has eluded them. Pilot. Our cars almost have that now. And why are there little green men in there driving it like cigarette boats anyway? Wouldn't these be drones or some kind? Get your head out of your ass.
Keaton Weiss
Well, another one of Keaton's childhood dreams ruined. Shucks and consarn it.
President Joe Biden
Why the hell are you talking like that?
Russell Dobular
All of us, Mr. President, we do appreciate your candor. It must take a lot of guts to be honest after all these years.
President Joe Biden
Rusty. I'll tell you what. It's daunting. It's like stepping into a whole new world. But now I've entered honesty land and I think I'm gonna like it here. Well, so long, boys. Probably won't talk to you before spring break, but it doesn't mean I won't be calling you occasionally during the shortest post presidential life in modern history. Look out, lbj. I'm coming for you.
Russell Dobular
Establishment media sucks August light.
Keaton Weiss
And so good luck. We can't afford why he's fomenting this.
Russell Dobular
Watch and see as his jack golf.
Keaton Weiss
The medium speeds and jumps the medium and hits them head on. It's the Jimmy Door Show. Welcome to the Jimmy Dore show, everybody. Keaton Weiss and Russell Dobular in for Jimmy through Monday. We've been talking quite a bit, of course, about the devastating fires in Los Angeles and the lack of government preparedness in the run up to the fires. And of course, the response to the fires. An angry resident caught up with Gavin Newsom. Holy smokes. Says Johnny Maga LA woman runs up to confront Gavin Newsom about his failures, asks him why her daughter's school burned down and why the hydrants didn't have any water. He deflects every question and tells her his many calls to Biden aren't going through. Yes, that's correct. This is quite the piece of video here.
Gavin Newsom
Not a second.
Keaton Weiss
Governor. Governor.
Gavin Newsom
I live here.
Keaton Weiss
Governor.
Gavin Newsom
That was my daughter's school. Governor, please tell me what you're gonna do. I'm not gonna hurt him. I promise.
Tax Network USA Representative
Literally.
Keaton Weiss
Thanks for wearing a mask, but could you stand back a few more feet? I would appreciate that. You know, you're. You're. You're respecting the masking, but not the social distancing.
Gavin Newsom
Governor, please tell me what you're going to do. I'm not going to hurt him. I promise.
Tax Network USA Representative
I'm literally talking to the president right now.
Keaton Weiss
I'm literally making a reservation at the French Laundry. I mean, sorry, I mean. Calling the president right now. Calling the president right now. I'm on it.
Russell Dobular
I'm ordering pizzas for the entire neighborhood. How do you like yours?
Keaton Weiss
Yeah, how do you like yours? Vegan cheese, I assume. Is that the part of town we're in? Vegan cheese and what do they got? Cauliflower crust?
Gavin Newsom
Governor, please tell me what you're gonna do. I'm not gonna hurt him, I promise.
Tax Network USA Representative
I'm literally talking to the President right now to specifically answer the question of what we can do for you and your daughter.
Gavin Newsom
Can I hear it? Can I hear your call? Because I don't believe it.
Tax Network USA Representative
I'm sorry, there's literally. I've tried five times. That's why I'm walking.
Keaton Weiss
He's an old man. He doesn't know how to answer the.
Tax Network USA Representative
Phone because it's not going through. Why I have to get cell service.
Keaton Weiss
Playing the watermelon.
Gavin Newsom
I want to be here when you.
Russell Dobular
Call the president lately. Can you imagine what it's like trying to get him to have a coherent conversation about a natural disaster? That's the position right now.
Tax Network USA Representative
It's self service.
Gavin Newsom
So let's get it. Let's get it. I want to be here when you call the President.
Tax Network USA Representative
I appreciate. I'm doing that right now. And it's to immediately get reimbursem, individual assistance, and to help you. I'm devastated for you. I'm so sorry. Especially for your daughter. I have four kids losing everyone who.
Gavin Newsom
Went to school there. They lost their homes. They lost two homes because they were living in one and building another. Governor, please tell me, tell me, what are you going to do with the President right now?
Tax Network USA Representative
We're getting the resources to help rebuild.
Gavin Newsom
Why was there no water in the hydrants?
Tax Network USA Representative
Governor, that's all. Literally.
Gavin Newsom
Is it going to be different next time?
Tax Network USA Representative
It has to be. Has to be. Of course.
Gavin Newsom
What are you going to do? I would fill the hydrants. I would fill them up personally. You know that.
Tax Network USA Representative
I literally have.
Gavin Newsom
I would fill up the hydrants myself.
Tax Network USA Representative
I would.
Gavin Newsom
I understand, but would you do that?
Tax Network USA Representative
I would do whatever I can.
Gavin Newsom
But you're not. I see the. Do you know there's water dripping over there? Governor, there's water coming out there. You can use it.
Tax Network USA Representative
I appreciate it. I'm going to make the call to address everything I can right now, including making sure people.
Gavin Newsom
Make sure you do. Can I have an opportunity to at least tell people you're doing what you're saying you're doing. Could somebody have a contact. Can I have your contact information?
Keaton Weiss
Love that. Yeah. I'm calling the president. Can I talk to him? Well, they. Doc, they're not going through. They're not going through. They.
Russell Dobular
They gave her his personal number. Yeah, he's got my contact right there.
Keaton Weiss
Yeah, yeah, right. Yeah, exactly. I'm sure they put her in touch. Look, you know, I don't mean to say, I don't say this jokingly, I don't say this as a quip or anything like that, but I don't know when next time is going to be. I mean, this is an apocalyptic fire. I mean, I don't know what the rebuild is going to be after this. I mean, it looks. I mean, there are no words. It looks like there's no more. I mean, the entire neighborhoods, just every building on every.
Russell Dobular
How do you rebuild from that? Yeah, like, like this, like, this is worse than Katrina. You know, as you pointed out, Katrina. And because of a history of racism in the way that housing has traditionally been distributed in a lot of cities. The Lower Ninth Ward, a very black area, got hit the hardest in Katrina because it was in the lowest lying protected area. This is a case with a fire. You know, fire doesn't respect any economic or class boundaries. There's no geographic element that's going to hold it back like that. So it's just ripping through everything. It's not. The damage and devastation is not localized in quite that way. So, yeah, like, how does. Are they going to spend hundreds of billions of dollars rebuilding all this? And frankly, you already had outflow migration from California. Now, I would imagine that is going to greatly accelerate because you're going to have a lot of people leave the state and who's going to come in? Who's going to come in when this is what could happen. So I think you're right. Part of the reason they would not even rebuild is you're not going to have the pressure to rebuild. You're not going to have the population coming in really to rebuild for, I would imagine.
Keaton Weiss
Yeah, I mean, I assume they will obviously rebuild these areas, but I don't.
Russell Dobular
See them being to some extent. Not, not, not to the same extent. Yeah, like, sure, they'll do something, but remember, you know, developers have to want to come in and build because from what I'm seeing, there's a lot of residential homes that were destroyed. Well, who are they rebuilding those homes for and what it's going to do to housing values, particularly when, I mean, there's a whole other element of it we were covering yesterday. Who's going to insure these homes? Who's going to insure it? Is the federal government going to become the insurer for all of Los Angeles because you're going to have a hard time getting State Farm to ensure anything there?
Keaton Weiss
Yeah. Oh, absolutely, absolutely. Individually, that's a nice recap. I'm literally talking to the president. Can I listen? It's not going through. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. Does he have t mobile? Absolutely. Gavin Newsom's White House ambitions have gone up in flames. Yeah. We were talking about this on our show yesterday. Now, Russ has been very bearish on Newsom's presidential prospects anyway, even before these fires. But I do think this is really devastating for him. I think whatever ambitions he has moving forward are going to be checked by this because this is not the kind of thing that's going to be out of people's minds in four years. Like I said, I don't think these neighborhoods are ever going to be what they were before these fires. I don't think they will build up back to what they were. Which means that the legacy of this is permanent. Permanent forever. I think that's my opinion. I know politically they're going to follow him at least four years.
Russell Dobular
Yeah. I think running for president as governor of California is like running for greatest chef in the country as the head chef for Jack in the Box. Like, there is no way that this man was ever going to win the presidency now. There's no point to even trying. I'd be surprised if he tries. You never know with these egotistical narcissists, but why bother? He'll just embarrass himself.
Keaton Weiss
I do think he'll try. I think absent this, I mean, whatever you felt his prospects were in a general election, I think absent this, he would have been the favorite for the nomination because I think he's the most politically talented of anyone that the Democrats would throw up. Now. I don't even know if he's the favorite for the nomination because I don't think. I don't know if the party leadership and their propaganda arms in the media or even the rank and file Democrats at this point who matter least to the party. Of course, I don't know if they think he can win now given this, like, with this disaster on his hands in, in, in such recent memory. And I know it's four years from now, but like I said, I don't. I think this is going to stick with people forever. You know, I don't see how you even win the nomination at this point, because I don't think you are seen as a viable general election candidate.
Russell Dobular
Sure.
Keaton Weiss
I just don't see it.
Russell Dobular
Yep.
Keaton Weiss
Which I mean, you just talk about the prospects of this party just going down the drain all at once between Biden and Kamala. Now. Now Obama's got no cachet left because of his remarks about how the brothers are going. I mean, just all of these people just tanked. I mean the bottom just fell out of the entire party, which is a silver lining of sorts. They, they absolutely did. They absolutely asked for it. All right, so the woman who approached Gavin Newsom mentioned the water shortage and how the fire hydrants had run well, here's an article that just came out today, just this morning, dated January 10th, 8:39am Pacific Time Pacific Palisades reservoir was offline and empty when firestorm exploded this published in the Los Angeles Times this morning. A large reservoir in Pacific Palisades that is part of the Los Angeles water supply system was out of use when a ferocious wildfire destroyed thousands of homes and other structures nearby. Officials told the Times that the Santa Ynez Reservoir had been closed for repairs to its cover, leaving a 117 million gallon water storage complex empty in the heart of the Palisades. The revelation comes among growing questions about why firefighters ran out of water while battling the blaze. Numerous fire hydrants in higher elevation streets of the Palisades went dry, leaving firefighters struggling with low water pressure as they combated the flames. Department of Water and Power officials have said that demand for water during an unprecedented fire made it impossible to maintain any pressure to hydrants at high elevations. Had the reservoir been operable, it would have extended water pressure in the Palisades on Tuesday night, said former DWP General Manager Martin Adams, an expert on the city's water system. But only for a time. You still would have ended up with serious drops in pressure, said Adams in an interview Thursday. Would Santa Ines Reservoir have helped? Yes, to some extent. Would it have saved the day? I don't think so. A DWP official acknowledged that the reservoir's absence likely contributed to some diminished pressure and dry hydrants in upper regions of the Palisades. However, a spokesperson for the utility said in a statement that DWP was still evaluating the effect of the reservoir being placed offline and that staffers were conducting root cause analysis. Quote Our primary focus is to provide water supply throughout the city, the DWP spokesperson said, adding the system was never designed for a wildfire scenario that we are experiencing. It's unclear when the reservoir first went offline. Adams said it had been out of service for a while due to a tear in the COVID and that DWP's vast storage and supply infrastructure still provided water to residents without disruptions until this week. Water pressure in the Upper Palisades is sustained with three storage tanks which hold 1 million gallons each. The tanks, part of a network of more than 100 across the city, are located at successively higher elevations in the coastal hilly neighborhood, with water pumped up to the tanks then flowing down by gravity to maintain pressure. By 3am Wednesday, all three tanks had gone dry. DWP Chief Executive Officer Janice Quinones said the tanks could not be refilled fast enough and that demand at lower elevations hampered the ability to pump water to tanks at higher elevations. In one case, DWT crews attempting to reroute water to refill a tank had to be evacuated, officials said. Quinone said four times the usual demand for water on the trunk line over a 15 hour period led to drops in water pressure. Had the Santa Ynez Reservoir been in use in that period, Adams estimated that demand might have been three times as high. So you're talking about about 25% increase or decrease in excess demand. We should say water in the reservoir would have fed the firefighting equipment and helped the pump stations push water to the storage tanks. But the reservoir, quote, wouldn't have lasted forever and would not have been a fix all, Adams said. Eventually you would have gotten to the same place, he added. Adams caution that he was basing his assertion on a ROUG estimate and that he had not calculated the specific impact. Furious residents have pointed to the lack of water pressure as one factor contributing to the destruction of 5,300 homes and buildings in LA, Santa Monica and Malibu. Civic leaders like LA City Council member Tracy park and developer Rick Caruso have pointed to the issue as a sign of poor infrastructure upkeep. Okay, so that came out like we said in the Los Angeles Times this morning. And I think there's no question that had you had this reservoir functioning, you would have had less of a strain on the system, which could have mean, which obviously you would think would have meant you would have mitigated the damage to an extent. This is what, this is in keeping with what I researched for the first, you know, couple days of this really in preparation for Wednesday's show and for our show on our channel yesterday, which is that yeah, there, there was obviously a failure of planning. There is obviously a failure to upkeep the proper sort of infrastructure like you, you need to have your reservoirs full and functioning during fire season, especially given this drought. Would that have, as the article said, saved the day? No, I don't think this is a situation like Katrina where you could really argue that a portion of the city was sabotaged and neglected, which really accounted for all of the ruin that happened there. This is not quite that, to be fair, but we are seeing here that. Look, if you are going to inhabit this part of the country with the second largest city in the country of Los Angeles, is to remain a place that, you know in an, in an area that is vulnerable at this point to wildfires, as we've seen in the past few years, then yeah, you have a responsibility to be up on this shit more. You know, when people talk about climate change as a culprit, climate change, whether that is or is not a culprit, is not really relevant to the governor of the state or to the mayor of the city because they, they are not in a position, and I might argue no one is in a position at this point to change whatever course that's on, but certainly not the mayor of Los Angeles, not even the governor of California. What you are in charge of is a very large city in a very rich state and you can do a better job of protecting people from fires. Given. Let's, let's say that there is obviously, I mean, let's, let's just take it at face value, okay? Climate change is to blame. If you, if you believe that, I would even grant you that for purposes of this argument. I wouldn't necessarily grant you that big picture because as Russell said, it's sort of a cyclical thing in this part of the country. But let's say I grant you that, okay? If you believe that and you are a good Democrat science believing Los Angeles mayor and a good Democrat science believing Governor, then shouldn't you be better prepared? Why is the fire department budget cut $18 million if you're so, if you're so hip to the dangers that climate change poses to your city and, or your state, like you have to at this point go into defense mode and protect the people from this as best you can?
Russell Dobular
Yeah, I was talking when we covered it over the last couple days about the tremendous water projects that they did to even make California as we know it possible to allow all of this farming in that region, to allow these large populations in that region required enormous engineering projects to bring enough water to do that. Now, in many ways that was misguided. Because again, 20th century was Goldilocks period in that region where the climate was unusually wet and conducive to human population. And now in many ways it's reverting to the mean. But beyond that, we're not the country that did that anymore. We're just not the country that built the Hoover Dam. We just don't have it together. We don't have. You know, I gave a speech at Jose's event about Abbasia, about a sense of common purpose. It's a phrase in Arabic for a society having kind of sense of common identity and common objective. We just don't have that anymore. The society has just been hollowed out and eaten alive, I would argue, by a wholesale hijacking of the public good, by oligarchy and a funneling of tax money to an increasingly rarefied tiny slice of the population, leaving very little left and leaving a damaged and broken society, leaving a people who no longer have Abbasiah, who no longer have common purpose, unity of purpose, vision. Yeah, I went to, I went to the museum of, I think it's called Science and Industry in Chicago. Jimmy would know. And you look at the early space program portion and it's all government. Then you get to the later part, SpaceX. Everything has been privatized. And private industry very often does not have enough of a profit motive to do what government is supposed to do. Like to really make LA habitable. And I have questions about whether you could make it habitable really long term for large populations. But the only way you could possibly do that would be with enormous planning and enormous engineering projects on a scale that we have not undertaken in decades. I don't think we're capable of doing things like that as a society anymore.
Keaton Weiss
Well, not given the capture of the government by private interests. Right. Like you, you could have a New deal for California if you could harness the political will, but you can't. You can't. And as it is, obviously, I mean, California is very, very difficult to live in for anyone who's not wealthy because taxes are high, obviously. Gasoline is very, very expensive. Like you're kind of getting the worst of both worlds in California. Right? Because you do get squeezed by both the government and the private sector there.
Russell Dobular
Right.
Keaton Weiss
And this is the result. Right. You would think for a, for a state as heavily taxed and as heavily burdened by both the government and the sort of private market as we know is the case there, because everything is a fortune there. You think you get a little bit better deal than this, right? A little bit better deal Than this. Like, I'm not saying. I'm not saying there was. There was a magic bullet or a cure all here. Like, you had record wins and you had a drought. That means you're going to have fires. But they could have done better than this. Like, it's just absurd to say that they could have done better than this. And now you have Gavin Newsom telling Biden how we have to stop people from spreading misinformation about how we're not doing a good enough job. It's like, listen, man, this is not Katrina in the sense that it was entirely preventable. But for. For what people in that state pay to the government, for the way they live, for the deal they're promised. Yeah. This was not a return on investment that they were looking for. The fucking mayor tweets out about record wind warnings and then leaves the city. Not leaves the city for Vegas. On the other side of the world. Yeah, no, that. That. Like I said, this is why I said this is going to destroy them. Newsom and Bat. I don't think Bass had any larger ambitions because she was already in Congress. She left to be a mayor. Who knows? But, yeah, Newsom, it's just absolutely devastating.
Russell Dobular
Yes, I agree that they could have done better than this. And yes, California, they pay huge taxes. I would also argue that when you get a system this corrupt, this is the leadership that you get. What. What you think, you bring in a bunch of these tech bros, they're going to put the public interest first. That all. All of a sudden. All of a sudden, everything's going to be very well managed, though.
Keaton Weiss
It's very much garbage in, garbage out. Hey, where did Kamala Harris come from? There's an answer. Where does Nancy Pelosi come from? Dianne Feinstein come from? All the worst people come from, Cal. Look at.
Russell Dobular
Well, look, Ronald Reagan.
Keaton Weiss
Yeah, Ronald Reagan. Yeah. Look at what that political system produces. And it's not unique to California. I'm not trying to beat up on California. You know what I would argue is an equally shitty state in terms of the political figures that rise out of it. Mine. New York. Right. Where you have concentration. Right, Exactly. Where you have large concentrations of capital in the hands of essentially like just, you know, rich sexual deviants. Right. Who are liberal in the sense that that's really what they are. I mean, that. That's what New York liberals are, and that's what California. Like, they're Republican sexual deviants with. With a lot of money. That's basically what they are.
Russell Dobular
That's. Yeah, yeah. That's the adding hall line. That the rest of the country thinks we're Jewish communist homosexuals. God, I think we're that. And I live here.
Keaton Weiss
Yeah, that's essentially what they are. You're. What you're basically dealing with is concentrated capital in the hands of a sort of amoral, oligarchic upper class of society that essentially picks the leaders.
Russell Dobular
Right.
Keaton Weiss
And you know, in the case of California, I mean, it's. It's a big ladder. In New York, it's a big ladder, too. And who ascends to the top? The worst.
Russell Dobular
The worst.
Keaton Weiss
The worst. Chuck Schumer, Andrew Cuomo. I mean, these are the worst of the worst. These are the, the scummiest of the scummiest. And so it's not, it's not a California thing. It's a money thing. It's a neoliberalism thing. That's really what it is. And that's why you won't. I mean, according to Russell, and I can't argue with you at this moment, it is. It is really difficult to imagine the kind of public works project it would take to insulate a place like Los Angeles from future disasters. And that is an investment that you could make as a government if you could harness the will amongst the population. It's difficult to see where to even start.
Russell Dobular
You would have to drain out. This is where I say, yeah, you've got poor leadership, but it doesn't matter how much you're paying in taxes. Yeah, they pay enormous amounts of taxes in California when the system is so corrupt that half of that money is going to disappear into graft, vice, kickback, sweetheart deals. That's what I mean when I say we're not that society anymore. Like, yeah, you could pay all the taxes you want. When the system is that defined by corruption and oligarchy. It's not. I mean, this, this is. And it's not a Democrat thing. This is the state that produced really, the father of modern neoliberalism, Ronald Reagan. Like, you're not, you're not suddenly what, the privatized, the sidewalks guys are going to fix this?
Jimmy Dore
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Tax Network USA Representative
Attention taxpayers. The IRS is intensifying collections in 2025. If you owe $10,000 or more or have unfiled tax returns, it's time to take action. Tax Network USA's experienced lawyers have saved clients over a billion dollars. They're ready to negotiate with the IRS on your behalf. Don't risk wage garnishment, property seizure or losing your home. Call 1-800-958-1000 today. Get the help you need at 100-1-800-958-1000 or visit tnusa.com Keaton Weiss and Russell.
Keaton Weiss
Dabular here in for Jimmy this week. Welcome to the Jimmy Dore show, everybody. So one piece of closure that the country was able to find this week. It's been a very, very tumultuous week. A very tumultuous start to 2025 between the terror attacks and the fires. But we were finally able to get some closure in the Donald Trump criminal case. Yes, that's right. Donald Trump sentenced with no penalty. No penalty in New York criminal trial as judge wishes him Godspeed in second term. That's funny. That's a. Could you imagine being the judge and be like, all right, so you're free to go. Godspeed in your second term in the White House. Sorry we put you all through this. President elect Donald Trump was sentenced to an unconditional discharge Friday after being found guilty on charges of falsifying business records stemming from Manhattan district attorn Alvin Bragg's years long investigation. The president elect attended his sentencing virtually after fighting to block the process all the way up to the United States Supreme Court this week. Trump sat beside his defense attorney Todd Blanch. Judge Juan Marshon did not sentence the president elect to prison and instead sentenced him to an unconditional discharge, meaning there is no punishment imposed, no jail time, fines or probation. You know, he could have at least given them like community service. Maybe he could have gone and fought the fires out in California. You guys know they do that, right? They have like prison laborers to pay him like a few cents an hour.
Russell Dobular
Yeah, you can make up to 72 cents an hour for that.
Keaton Weiss
Yeah, you can make up to say, yeah, if you're actually like in harm's way, they give you hazard pay. That's 72 cents an hour. You can earn up to that. You don't get that Unless you actually.
Russell Dobular
Like, risk life and otherwise, it's 12 cents.
Keaton Weiss
Right? Right. The sentence also preserves Trump's ability to appeal the conviction. After careful analysis, this court determines only lawful sentence that permits entry of judgment of conviction is an unconditional discharge. Meran said Friday. At this time, I impose that sentence to cover all 34 counts. Mer added, sir, I wish you Godspeed as you assume your second term in office. He then called Joe Biden and asked for any kind of preemptive pardon he might offer him. So ghost is clear for Donald Trump. Before Judge Merchan announced the sentence, Trump called the case a tremendous setback for the American court system. This is a great embarrassment to the state of New York, Trump said, adding that the people saw the trial firsthand and voted decisively to elect him as president. Yeah, so Donald Trump was able to address the court virtually. He was not there in person. And here are the last couple of minutes of his remarks.
Donald Trump
They like it. They excoriated if you wouldn't let. I've never seen anything like it. They excoriated if you wouldn't let it be put into evidence. So he was able to testify as a witness. And I think it's a disgrace to the system. I was under a gag order. I'm the first president in history that was under a gag order where I couldn't talk about aspects of the case that are very important. I guess I'm still under. So probably I won't do it now. I assume I'm still under again, order. But the fact is that I'm totally innocent. I did nothing wrong. They talked about business records, and the business records were extremely accurately counted. I had nothing to do with them, any of it. That was done by an accountant or a bookkeeper who I think gave very credible testimony and was corroborated by everybody that was asked. And. And with all that's happening in our country today, with a city that's burning to the ground, one of our largest, most important cities, burning to the ground with wars that are uncontrollably going on, with all of the problems of inflation and attacks on countries and all of the horrible things that are going on. I got indicted over calling a legal expense a legal expense. It was called a legal expense. I just want to say I think it's an embarrassment to New York, and New York has a lot of problems, but this is a great embarrassment. I believe that this and other cases that was brought were brought. As you know, the DOJ is. DOJ is very much involved in this case. It's because that's the political opponent they're talking about. The DOJ is very involved. You have a gentleman sitting right there from the DOJ, who was from the DOJ's office. He was also involved with the New York State Attorney General's case. And he went from there to here. He went around and did what he had to do. He got them to move on me. But in the meantime, I won the election in a massive landslide. And the people of this country understand what's going on. This has been a weaponization of government. They call it lawfare. Never happened to any extent like this, but never happened in our country before. And I'd just like to exclaim that I was treated very, very unfairly. And I thank you very much.
Keaton Weiss
Yes, it was a rig. This is an embarrassment. It's a witch hunt. You're all fake. And thank you very much.
Russell Dobular
Yeah.
Keaton Weiss
Off to the White House I go. Yep. During Friday's sentencing hearing, Maran said took the unusual step of informing Trump of his sentence prior to the proceedings. So Trump knew what the deal was going in before he made his remarks there. And the remarks were about six minutes long. We, we played the last two. The imposition of sentence is one of the most difficult decisions that any criminal court judge is called to make. Mer said, noting the court must consider the facts of the case along with any aggravating or mitigating circumstances. Mershon reflected on the case, saying that, quote, never before has this court been presented with such a unique set of circumstances. The judge said it was an extraordinary case with media interest and heightened security, but said that once the courtroom doors were closed, the trial itself was not any more unique or extraordinary than any other case. Well, it was certainly unique and extraordinary in the sense that it had no impact whatsoever on the events of the year. When you think about, you know, Trump's comeback story, it really is, I mean, it really is the most remarkable political comeback story probably in American history. I mean, I can't think of anything, you know, more severe than this. When you look at, you know, starting really, I mean, starting with Russiagate, if you go back far enough. But you know, from the post presidency through now, you know, January 6th, we just had the four year anniversary of that. You know, that looked like an op to me as it was happening. You know, I suspected some FBI involvement. It just seemed like, hey, they couldn't have his time in office end so benignly. As for him to just go away. Right. In an uneventful way, they had to figure out a way to discredit Trump and his movement so that they would never come back. So that they would never even try to come back. And not only did they try to come back, but they did, they succeeded. And so this lawfare campaign against Trump is significant only in the sense of just how soundly and how easily it was just kind of brushed aside and rejected by the American public. Like, this was not even really a debate. It's really funny how the Democrats didn't even really run on this. Like, they didn't even bother trying. You heard a little bit of he's a convicted felon and 34 counts.
Russell Dobular
34 counts.
Keaton Weiss
You heard a little bit of it, but not much. Not as much as you would think, given the fact that he was convicted. Right. Like, if a candidate's convicted of a crime, you would think that would. That you'd see. You'd see the TV airwaves plastered with that. No, because they knew it was a dog that wouldn't hunt. And part of why it's a dog that won't hunt is. Is. Is because of the just broad based rejection of the Democratic Party and everything that they have stood for these past four years and back and back. And so it's just a remarkable story. It really is. And to see it end like this, no penalty, no nothing, no fine. Zero, Zero. Like I said, he doesn't even have to pick up garbage off the west side Highway.
Russell Dobular
Yeah, he doesn't. He doesn't have to go work in a McDonald's.
Keaton Weiss
Right.
Russell Dobular
You know, nothing. And he has experience at McDonald's. You would think they would at least make him spend a day working the counter at a McDonald's.
Keaton Weiss
That's right. That's right. For those who don't know that reference, in Alabama, they're actually putting, like, not just like, prisoners, but, like, people convicted of violent crimes who are an escape risk. They make them work at McDonald's. That's how much they care about safety.
Russell Dobular
No supervision whatsoever. Yeah, no, it brings me back. It's funny watching this conclude because some of our earliest on the street coverage was the infamous cowbell left clip where I went over there when he was first arraigned, and it was thousands of people showed up for this. You had the cowbell left with their signs, guilty until proven Trumpy and all, all this nonsense.
Keaton Weiss
Innocent, proven Trump.
Russell Dobular
Yeah, yeah. Then you had the MAGA people on the other side and the MAGA people, frankly, I had. You can find this on our channel. I went and interviewed them and I asked them questions like, hey, so do you Think Dick Cheney should be locked up? Yes. I would go back to the, to the cowbell left. So you think George Bush should be in jail? Why are you asking that? Why are you asking?
Keaton Weiss
No one cares what you think.
Russell Dobular
It was just insane. So this has been a very rough week for libs. You know, they got, they got a little excited for a second when Zuckerberg lifted the Facebook fact checking. They got all, they got their lib on and started putting up absurd memes about Zuckerberg. And oh, they got all excited and then that picture came out of Obama and Trump and you could just, you could just see them deflate. You just see all the air go out, you know, for. They thought they had their mojo back.
Keaton Weiss
Oh, yeah, we're gonna make fun of.
Russell Dobular
Mark Zuckerberg because he's letting people curate their own information. How dare he. And then that picture came out and it's silence. They have no idea how to respond to it. They have no idea how to respond to that picture. What a bunch of suckers. What a bunch of suckers they feel like, but they can't, they can't admit that. How badly they've got played. Saint Obama yucking it up with, with Hitler. Supposed Hitler, right? Would you yuck it up with Hitler? They say, hey, he's coming. He's going to end democracy. He's going to. Would you yuck it up with that guy? So they, and now this, now this. What started with them bringing their cow bells and with their sides ends not with a conviction, but with a whimper and an inauguration. It's incredible.
Keaton Weiss
It is, it is. And it really, I mean, this is the button on it because, you know, this was a lot of their campaign strategy against Trump hinged upon these convictions. Don't forget, at this time last year, I think it was a little earlier. In fact, I think the, I think the trial schedule for all the different Trump criminal cases was put out around December of 2023 because it was going to, it was like, the primary dates were like staggered between Trump court cases where he had to go and appear in court here, and then there was this primary and then he had another court case would start, and then there was another primary and then there was another trial that was under. And he tried to delay as many of them as he could for as far as they could. But you saw the court dates and the court appearances that Trump had to make were littered throughout the campaign in the early part of last year. So I, and I said at the time, I said, I think that was election interference. You know, I do, sure. And so to see it just all just fizzle out like this. It is, it is comic stuff. It really is. I mean, it, it really is just a really bizarre time to, to live in. But, but that is, you know, that, that is a function of just how far these people have fallen. You know, and by these people, I mean, I mean the media, I mean, the Democratic Party, I mean, the, really, the justice system itself. You've seen a total collapse in trust in all of these institutions that you would have never seen this before if you had, if you had a president, if you had a candidate indicted 20 years ago, they'd be out of the race. And this is how far you've, you've fallen.
Russell Dobular
Well, that's what my video was about. I did a video comparing Trump to Slap Shot because really, you know, the, the arc of Slap Shot is, you know, Paul Newman. It's a classic comic with Paul Newman, and he's a coach of this losing hockey team. He starts to win by putting these goons on the ice who just break all the rules and are just hyper violent and attacking the other players. And eventually the other team say, hey, well, why don't we get our own very violent guys? And then it just becomes a race to the bottom. For decades, the Democrats have been fielding sex criminals, creeps, weirdos, and covering for them. Bill Clinton, you know, the liberal reaction was when the Monica Lewinsky scandal was going on. Gloria Steinem wrote an article in defense, and a prominent feminist writer said she'd gladly put on her presidential knee pads for his services to upholding abortion rights. Okay, well, you, you kept lowering the bar and lowering the bar. You get the Clintons, who are clearly running a pay, pay to play scheme with the Clinton foundation, where autocratic regimes get weapons if they donate money to the Clinton Foundation. While Hillary Clinton was Secretary of State. Obama just doesn't prosecute any bankers, but he goes after mortgage holders who lied on their applications after 2008. So you just have this bar lowering, bar lowering, bar lowering where you're claiming to be the virtuous law and order people. But whenever your people are accused of anything. Joe Biden, in this election, man, Tara Reid had much more credible accusations against Joe Biden than a lot of people who were driven from the public square. That was right at the height of me too. You had tapes of her mother calling in to Larry King. It's about as good as it's going to get. These cases usually don't have hard evidence, but in terms of circumstantial evidence that was all there. Then you're shocked that nobody cared about his Access Hollywood tape, that nobody cared about the.
Keaton Weiss
You got.
Russell Dobular
You got Hunter Biden clearly working for a job in Ukraine that he has no qualifications for, while his father has Ukraine as part of his portfolio while he's vice president. You got tapes of them talking to you, got texts of them talking about 10% for the big guy. Who's the big guy? Jesus. I don't think so. So then when you come along and you say, oh, how can people go for Donald Trump? He's so corrupt, he's sexist. Well, you spent decades lowering standards. You spent decades undermining your own credibility. When you call racist, you're running the guy who literally started his campaign bragging about how well he worked with segregationists to lock up black people with crime bills. He literally said, not in 1975, 2019, he bragged about how well he got along with segregationists. And what were they working on? School lunches? No, they were working on mass incarceration, which we still live with, the legacy of today. So by the time you get to Donald Trump, nobody cared. Nobody cared anymore. They brought that on themselves, right?
Keaton Weiss
Absolutely. 100%. Welcome to the Jimmy Dore Show. Keaton Weiss here with Russell Dabular filling in for Jimmy. Through Monday, we've been talking about Gavin Newsom and the state response to the California wildfires. Karen Bass, mayor of the city, was not around for the start of the fire. She warned the public from halfway around the world in advance and then came back to face the media. Kind of. Kind of. She ended up talking to them eventually, but not here. Uh, this looks like this is at the airport here, just in. On January 8th, LA Mayor Karen Bass freezes up while getting absolutely skewered by a reporter for her horrible policies. Let's take a look at this. She didn't have much to say to this guy. An apology for being absent while their homes were burning. Do you regret cutting the fire department budget by millions of dollars, Madam Mayor?
Russell Dobular
Yeah, this is the best.
Keaton Weiss
Have you nothing to say today? So she's standing by a door. I'm assuming she's waiting for them to open that door Today, Elon Musk says that you're utterly incompetent. Are you considering your position, Madame Mayor? Have you absolutely nothing to say to the citizens today who are dealing with this disaster?
Russell Dobular
To be fair, traditionally in Ghana, it's swearing in ceremonies. They all chew on Ebigame route.
Keaton Weiss
Do you think you should have been visiting Ghana while this was Unfolding back home. See, now he's pointing her to the other door. He's like, oh, they're not opening this one. Oh, great. Thought I was rid of this guy. Now I have to go this way. She was hoping to get out through that door, but then that guy didn't let her. Eyes like, no, you got to go that way. Madam Mayor, let me ask you just again, have you anything to say to the citizens today as you return. Still not open. Madam Mayor, Just a few words for the citizens today as you return to deal with the catastrophe. There you go now, she finally made it. All right. Well, she was on her way back into town, and when she did a news conference, it really didn't go much better than that. So here she is advising people where they can go to get more information and help. If you need help, emergency information, resources and shelter is available. All of this can be found at URL Los Angeles together is how we will get through this. Through the heroicism of our firefighters, the vigilant and heroicism.
Russell Dobular
How did. How did she. I mean, I know there are parts of the country where, you know, you could literally run a stuffed animal as a democrat and it'll win, but Jesus, what a non entity this woman is.
Keaton Weiss
I mean, we just see it over and over again, you know, I mean, I forget who said this, but, you know, it is so true. We think of like, political figures as having to be exceptional. Right. To ascend to a position of power and prestige. Mayor of such a major city or governor of a state or president of the United States. And you know, it's really not the case. Like, actually, politicians are a pretty mediocre crop of people because don't forget. Yeah. As politicians go, mayor of Los Angeles is a very prestigious position.
Russell Dobular
Sure.
Keaton Weiss
But people who have higher aspirations often don't go into politics for that reason. Right. Like. Like the. The kind of person who goes into politics is generally a more mediocre person than like a genius author. Right. Like, who are the best authors that ever live? Mark Twain. That's a genius. Would Mark Twain run for mayor? No.
Russell Dobular
Right. Because I wouldn't want to deal with what comes with it.
Keaton Weiss
Well, it's just a waste of brilliance. Right. It's a. It's a waste of transcendence.
Tax Network USA Representative
Yeah.
Russell Dobular
You don't want to go glad hand and kiss asses. And today, I mean, the corruption is at a level where what kind of decent person would want to do it?
Keaton Weiss
Exactly. It attracts mediocrity. Garbage in garbage. Now, if you need help, emergency information, resources and shelter is available. All of this can be found at URL. Los Angeles together is how we will get.
Russell Dobular
She says it with a lot of.
Gavin Newsom
Through the heroicism of our firefighters.
Keaton Weiss
The vigilant. Yeah. URL.
Russell Dobular
No. You know, for a long time, a lot of people told me I should. I should run for office. And I've always said, you know, man, I've just. I've done too much stuff that would come back to bite me even if I wanted to. I watched this. I'm like, yeah, I could definitely be the mayor of la. If she could win, I could win.
Keaton Weiss
All right, well, let's go up the ladder a little bit further. So we've. We've already done a couple segments on Gavin Newsom this evening, but let's see what Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have to say about this.
President Joe Biden
President, I know you're directly affected, so you fire away. No pun intended.
Keaton Weiss
Indeed.
Gavin Newsom
Thank you, Mr. President.
Keaton Weiss
You really. I mean, you know, when Trump said he hates her, you could see she hates him. You could see how she is at him. Look at her body language towards him.
President Joe Biden
Madam Vice President, I know you're directly affected, so you fire away. No pun intended.
Keaton Weiss
Indeed. Him. That look she gives him after he says, fire away.
President Joe Biden
You fire away. No pun intended.
Keaton Weiss
Indeed. You fire away.
Russell Dobular
Now, look, when will the final dignity arrive? Indignity arrive?
Keaton Weiss
When you take it from here, you fire away. Now, look, I know I'm going to take a lot of heat for talking like this, so maybe you should start. I don't. Maybe you should take over, lest I burn my reputation to the ground. So you fire.
Russell Dobular
Kamala. When you start speaking, you really burn it up.
Keaton Weiss
Really burned it up. She's very capable. She can handle this. She can handle this. I'm not just blowing smoke here. She's who you want to take this conversation. Madam Vice President, fire away.
President Joe Biden
I know you're directly affected, so you fire away.
Keaton Weiss
Fire away.
President Joe Biden
No pun intended.
Keaton Weiss
Indeed.
Russell Dobular
Thank you, Mr. President. Kamala is like an inferno of competence.
Keaton Weiss
Yes, yes, yes. She's boiling over with competence. Yes. So that's leadership. That's leadership. What? What a shit show. What an absolute shit show.
Russell Dobular
Yeah. No, I mean, ultimately, when you have a government that's this corrupt, you're not going to produce leaders any better than this. I mean, ultimately, they are just, you know, the patches on the NASCAR coat, they're not really doing anything.
Keaton Weiss
Yep. Yes. And obviously we'll have more to say about this all on Monday. There's going to be just, you know, there's probably 10 stories that broke between when we went on and now on this story. Every time I check my phone, I see something else, some other crazy thing. Right before we went on air, I saw Gavin Newsom in a zoom call on the Oval Office telling Biden we really got to control the misinformation around, around this because it's doing a number. He knows, he knows, he. Listen, this guy, you, you look at a guy like Newsom Newsome when you take a look at him, this guy was born to run for high office. I mean, this guy's been thinking he's going to be the president for the last 20 years. He's had his sights set on that and he knows he's got to do it next time. That's his moment. And he knows this is going to ruin him. And so of course he's going to go into damage control mode. Of course he's going to be begging Joe Biden, please, please, please stop, stop, stop people from, from saying there should have been more water. Right? I mean, you could sense the.
Russell Dobular
Of all the times for them to fire the, the fact checkers at Facebook.
Keaton Weiss
Yeah, exactly right. And there's no fact checkers and there's no fact checkers at Facebook anymore. Wow, what an avalanche. What an avalanche. One thing after the other.
Jimmy Dore
Hey, become a premium member. Go to jimmy door comedy.com sign up. It's the most affordable premium program in the business. All the voices performed today are by the one and only, the inimitable Mike McRae. He can be found at mikemcrae.com.
Keaton Weiss
That'S.
Jimmy Dore
It for this week. You be the best you can be and I'll keep being me.
Keaton Weiss
Don't freak out.
Russell Dobular
Don't freak out.
Jimmy Dore
Don't freak out.
Russell Dobular
Don't.
Jimmy Dore
Do not freak out.
Russell Dobular
I'm not kidding.
Keaton Weiss
Do not do that.
Jimmy Dore
Do not freak out.
President Joe Biden
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Russell Dobular
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The Jimmy Dore Show: CRINGE! Woman CONFRONTS Newsom Over Fires & He Dodges Questions
Release Date: January 13, 2025
In this compelling episode of The Jimmy Dore Show, host Jimmy Dore is temporarily absent, allowing co-hosts Russell Dobular and Keaton Weiss to steer the conversation. The primary focus centers on the catastrophic wildfires in California, Governor Gavin Newsom's handling of the crisis, and the broader implications for political leadership and infrastructure management. Additionally, the episode delves into the controversial sentencing of former President Donald Trump, examining themes of "lawfare" and institutional integrity.
The episode kicks off with Russell and Keaton addressing the devastating wildfires that have ravaged Los Angeles, Santa Monica, and Malibu, resulting in the destruction of over 5,300 homes and buildings. They highlight a particularly poignant moment where an enraged resident confronts Governor Gavin Newsom during a press conference.
Notable Quote:
Russell and Keaton dissect the inadequate response from Governor Newsom, emphasizing the failure to maintain essential infrastructure, specifically the Santa Ynez Reservoir, which was offline during the fires. This oversight led to insufficient water pressure in fire hydrants, exacerbating the wildfire's impact.
Key Points:
Notable Quotes:
The hosts argue that the collapse in infrastructure is a direct result of poor political leadership and budget mismanagement. They criticize the $18 million cut to the fire department budget, suggesting that such austerity measures underprepared the state for wildfire emergencies.
Key Points:
Notable Quotes:
Transitioning from state crises, the discussion shifts to the sentencing of former President Donald Trump. The hosts characterize the trial and subsequent sentencing as a clear example of "lawfare"—the use of legal systems to target political opponents.
Key Points:
Notable Quotes:
Russell and Keaton critique the Democratic Party's longstanding issues with corruption, nepotism, and the promotion of unfit candidates, arguing that these problems have eroded public trust and rendered the party ineffective.
Key Points:
Notable Quotes:
The conversation also touches on the role of media in shaping public perception, particularly in how it downplays significant events like Trump's sentencing or the California wildfires. The hosts argue that media complicity contributes to the public's disengagement and disbelief in institutional failures.
Key Points:
Notable Quotes:
In wrapping up the episode, Russell and Keaton emphasize the need for genuine accountability within political structures. They advocate for dismantling corrupt practices and fostering a political environment where true leadership can emerge to address systemic issues effectively.
Key Points:
Notable Quotes:
Final Thoughts:
This episode of The Jimmy Dore Show offers a scathing critique of political leadership in California amidst unprecedented wildfires and highlights the perceived failings within the Democratic Party at large. By juxtaposing Governor Newsom's response to the fires with the controversial sentencing of Donald Trump, the hosts underscore a broader narrative of institutional decay and the urgent need for political reform. Through incisive analysis and pointed commentary, Russell Dobular and Keaton Weiss provide listeners with a critical perspective on contemporary American politics and governance.