
It’s Tuesday News Day. Today’s show opens with rising tensions between Israel and Iran and a worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Trump’s awkward G7 exit. Sen. Mike Lee comes under fire for a callous tweet following a Democratic lawmaker’s...
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Emma Vigeland
You are listening to a free version.
Sam Seder
Of the Majority Report.
Emma Vigeland
Support this show@jointhemajorityreport.com and get an extra hour of content daily.
Sam Seder
It is Tuesday, June 17, 2025. My name is Sam Seder. This is the five time award winning Majority Report. We are broadcasting live steps from the industrially ravaged Gowanus Canal in the heartland of America, downtown Brooklyn, usa. On the program today, California Attorney General Rob Bonta on the various lawsuits California has whose outcomes could determine just how easy it is for Donald Trump to to become more of an authoritarian. Also on the program today, speaking of authoritarian, Israel continues to trade missile strikes with Iran as it continues to slaughter Palestinians in Gaza. Trump leaves the G7 meeting in Canada early because he felt awkward and signs may be that the US Is about to enter the Israel Iran war.
Emma Vigeland
Could be a little awkward to tell our allies were roping everybody into World War three.
Sam Seder
I just don't like everybody laughing at me. Trump not interested in the political assassinations in Minnesota as Mike Lee refusing to apologize for his failed troll ICE reverses on their reversal. Will go after farm workers and service workers after all. Meanwhile, the Senate releases language on its reconciliation and it's worse than the houses. But it happens to be polling worse than that genius act now set to pass with 18 Democratic votes allowing Trump's scam and potentially shattering our financial regulation system. Bernie Sanders endorses Zoran Mondomani in New York mayoral race. Russia kills 15, injures over 100 after a missile drone strike in Kiev. The jury finds Mike Pillow guy guilty of defamation. Gonna cost him $2 million.
Emma Vigeland
Doesn't he owe a lot pillows?
Sam Seder
Is that.
Emma Vigeland
Yeah. Does he owe so much more than that?
Sam Seder
Cue the coupon code right underneath here. Judge rules some NIH grants cuts blatantly racially discriminating. And VA doctors are now allowed to deny care based on whether they like their patients politics or not. All this and more on today's Majority Report. Welcome, ladies and gentlemen. It is Newsday Tuesday, but a special Newsday Tuesday.
Emma Vigeland
Hello. Hello everybody.
Sam Seder
Look at me.
Emma Vigeland
I'm married. That's the truth. That's what happened over the weekend. And you know, I, I was waiting until after it happened to reveal. I told Matt actually that you know how superstitious I am. Right? My, the, the, the planner who was helping us told me that if you bury a sausage in the ground that you won't get rain on your. I went to the bodega, I said can I have a egg sausage sandwich but hold everything except the sausage. The guy was like, okay. And I was like, can I also have a spoon? Because I'm gonna need to find a way to bury this in the park. There's some drone footage out there of me, like, last week burying the sausage in the park. And it's pretty embarrassing, I'd imagine, if everyone. Anyone would be able to get a hold of it. And it rained anyway, so I just didn't do it the right way.
Sam Seder
I was just going to say not a sausage Patty.
Emma Vigeland
I know. I got to be. I think that was my.
Sam Seder
It has to be a sausage encased in sausage casing.
Emma Vigeland
I.
Sam Seder
For that to work.
Emma Vigeland
It didn't work. But, you know, I'm choosing to believe the other superstition that rain on the wedding day. So good luck for the marriage.
Sam Seder
Well, we. We alluded to this yesterday, but the wedding was spectacular. Everybody had a lot of fun.
Emma Vigeland
It was so great to have you guys.
Sam Seder
Really fun wedding.
Emma Vigeland
You got to meet my crazy friends.
Sam Seder
Got to meet your crazy friends.
Emma Vigeland
You got to hear some speeches. I mean, my. My sister and my. My best friend and then my husband's brother really knocked it out of the park, I think. Park, I think. But, like, it was.
Sam Seder
Well, I thought everybody gave a great speech.
Emma Vigeland
Every single person.
Sam Seder
Right? There you go.
Matt Binder
Also, shout out the Abandoned.
Emma Vigeland
Oh, the band. Yes. Okay. Gotta say, because There were some Mr. Fans in the band. Shout out to the Bud Molten band. They were. I mean, everyone said that they were awesome, right? They were pretty great.
Matt Binder
They had three great singers. Like, a whole bunch of great musicians is fantastic.
Emma Vigeland
I had my friend who was there, they played her wedding before, so I had seen how they tear it up, and I made sure to hire them, and they gave us a, you know, nice deal because they were fans of the show. So shout out to the Bud Molten band. Thanks so much, you guys.
Sam Seder
Yeah, that was a lot of fun. All right, and now let's get back to the crap show that I missed the world. Yes, The. The. The best part was Friday night we hung out with your friends, and we were all talking like, we can't tell Emma what's going on with Israel and Iran or the wedding will probably get canceled.
Emma Vigeland
And also, my husband to be was there, I guess, apparently, too, because we stayed separately. So he was at the hotel.
Rob Bonta
And.
Emma Vigeland
And, yeah, I was trying to avoid my phone. But by Friday night, I'd had a few drinks, and I couldn't help but scroll. And, you know, that's.
Sam Seder
Of course, Emma gets a couple of drinks in her, and then it's off to the races with looking up being.
Emma Vigeland
On my phone, on Twitter.
Sam Seder
All right, well, maybe you saw this, Emma. Now we want to put this back up because I'm still shocked that this thing. This is not a screen grab, right?
Matt Binder
This is, this tweet is still the tweet right now.
Sam Seder
This is still up. This tweet is still up. It is from based Mike Lee, who also happens to be a senator when he's not being based on Twitter. And it's a picture of a killer of a Democratic lawmaker and his and her husband in Minnesota. This guy tried to shot two other folks who are also involved in Democratic politics. And Mike Lee, based upon a quick sort of like Internet rumor, was the case that this guy had been appointed to a some type of commission in the state. Newsflash. Most governors don't just appoint Republicans or Democrats. They will sometimes appoint just all sorts of different people to commissions like they're supposed to. And Mike Lee tweeted out, this is what happens when Marxists don't get their way talking about the murder of, of two people and the picture at the.
Matt Binder
Guy on their doorstep about to assassinate them.
Sam Seder
And aside, I mean, even if it turned out that this guy was not a virulent right winger, religious fanatic, ultra.
Emma Vigeland
Conservative, like an anti abortion extremist. Right. He did some weird sermons in Africa about that were vaguely anti trans.
Sam Seder
Oh yeah, and. And had a manifesto of a list of Democratic politicians in the state and was clearly like just circling around, hitting as many people as he could. Mike Lee for some reason has not taken the video down. And he was questioned yesterday. I mean, not the video, the Post. The Post. And he was questioned yesterday by reporters because it is because Senator Tina Smith from Minnesota apparently approached him and certainly there was a, an email that, or I should say an email or letter sent from Tina Smith's deputy chief of staff to Mike Lee top staffers. But here is. Well, let's look at the. What the screenshots are. Let's look at number 11. Sorry about that. Here it is. I knew Melissa Hortman. Many people in this office did. She was a longtime friend of Senator Smith's who had seen her hours before she was murdered. So you'll forgive my candor as I speak through enormous grief. It's important for your office to know how much additional pain you've caused on an unspeakably horrific weekend. I'm not sure what compelled you or your boss to say those things, which in addition to being unconscionable, also may very well be untrue. Well, it Turns out like almost 100% untrue.
Emma Vigeland
Yeah, he had a manifesto and there were like a dozen lawmakers on it. All Democrats.
Sam Seder
But that's not the point. Why would you use the awesome power of United States Senate office to compound people's grief? Is this how your team measures successful using the office a US Senator to post not just one, but a series of jokes at about assassination? Is that a successful day of work on Team Lee? Did you come into the office Monday and feel proud of the work you did over the weekend? Let's recap Saturday so you fully understand what Minnesota was going through. Melissa Hortman and her husband were murdered. Senator Hoffman and his wife were shot numerous times and remain hospitalized. By the grace of God, it appears they're going to survive. Senators are discovered to be on a hit list of an armed man on the run. Senator Lee's colleague and the decision of the office, Senator Mike Lee, was not to publicly condemn the violence or to express sorry or to express grief. It was to intimate that Melissa and Mark somehow deserved this by making jokes. Did you have any consideration for the survivors in her family, for the Hoffman's in the hospital, for their families? You exploited the murder of a lifetime public servant and a husband to post some sick burns about Democrats. Did you see this as an excellent opportunity to get likes in a retweet? Have you absolutely no conscience, no decency? He goes on to say, I pray to God that none of you ever go through anything like this.
Emma Vigeland
Yeah, I mean Hortman, she helped pass, I think universal child care in Minnesota. She also helped pass legalization of cannabis. She was doing work to make the state better.
Sam Seder
So Mike Lee was approached by reporters yesterday after this letter was released and not only again, Lee has not taken down the Post. There's no one here who has not tweeted out something that they probably regretted. But to leave this up. And here is Tina Smith talking to Mike Lee. And just even the body language, this guy's such a douchebag, it's unbelievable. The, the need to I guess portray himself as macho in some fashion just bleeds through that picture. And just the fact that he won't take down the Post.
Matt Binder
But immaturity is somehow macho.
Emma Vigeland
And is it macho to not answer like this is not macho. But when someone comes up to you with a camera reporter and they ask you to your face about what you did, look at how this supposed macho man runs away. Could you tell us about your conversation with Feather Smith? Do you regret your tweet.
Sam Seder
Do you.
Emma Vigeland
Stand by the post that you made on X? Have you had a productive conversation about that post? Is that what the senator wanted to speak to you about? What did you think of the meeting you just came from?
Sam Seder
There it is.
Emma Vigeland
How macho. Running. Running away from questions.
Matt Binder
That little twerp holding up his iPad in front of you as you. Yeah.
Emma Vigeland
Protect him.
Sam Seder
I mean, it really is just fascinating the. And then, you know, to. To portray himself as some type of like, you know, libertarian. This is all just part of the authoritarian crap that's going on. We got more to talk about this in a moment. We're going to be talking to Attorney General Rob Bonta, Attorney General of the state of California. First, a couple words from our sponsors. You know this podcast, we have a lot of equipment in here that on any given day will not work. It's a Frankenstein production on these parts. And for a long time I was like, I do not need to add one more complicating factor. That is a merch store. But boy, was I mistaken. Why? Because we found Shopify.
Emma Vigeland
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Sam Seder
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Emma Vigeland
Which we also love. Yeah.
Sam Seder
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Rob Bonta
My pleasure. Thanks for having me.
Sam Seder
So today in a federal appeals court, the case, the suit that the state of California has brought against President Trump's and his supposed authority to deploy the National Guard and Marines to LA is going to be heard. Give us the sort of the backstory on this because over the past week we've had essentially two different rulings. That's the way that these things go. But just give us a timeline that brings us up today in this case.
Rob Bonta
Sure. Two weekends ago on a Saturday, we started seeing some aggressive ICE raids in Los Angeles. We saw some protests, nearly all peaceful. And we also saw some violence, some agitators getting involved in unlawful conduct. And what was done is what is always done. Law enforcement started cracking down on the crimes and the sheriff and the LA Police Department got involved. And then we saw an executive order from the president calling in the national guard to LA and invoking a statute. It's called 10 USC 12406 and it requires the presence of a rebellion or an invasion or the inability of the federal government to execute the laws, none of which were present. Also requires the cooperation of the Governor. By the time the National Guard got to la, they came to quiet streets and we brought a lawsuit the following Monday, a temporary restraining order the following Tuesday. We had a hearing the following Thursday, and we secured a restraining order from Judge Breyer in the United States District Court. The federal government, it said that the federal government had acted unlawfully, violated that statute I just referenced. Also violated the Constitution, the 10th amendment of the US Constitution, which gives states rights. And the federal government immediately moved for what's called an administrative stay. It's a procedural move that doesn't address the case on the merits. And the Ninth Circuit quickly granted that stay while they set a quick briefing schedule to have the merits considered before them. The case is now brief before the Ninth Circuit panel. Three judge panel, we have a hearing today at noon and nothing has changed since we secured the order in front of Judge Breyer, except for the potential of potentially additional unlawful conduct by the military that have been deployed in la. And we remain confident in our case. Strong fact, strong law. We should have an order later today. But of course, you know, there's no guarantees. And with this three judge panel, while we do feel confident, obviously there's, there's no certainty here.
Sam Seder
The statute that the administration cited, they need to, when they, when they federalize the National Guard, they need to, they need to state what authority they're doing it under, does that statute. And your argument is that the statute is valid, but the facts are. This is an argument on the facts. The facts do not rise to the level that the statute calls for. In terms of federalization, how does that statute refer to the Marines? Like, is there a different. Is the US Military the authority needed to essentially have the US Military do this type of function different than that of the National Guard?
Rob Bonta
It is, and you're exactly right. The, the California National Guard is a joint operation. It's generally under the command of the Commander in Chief, Governor Gavin Newsom, the Governor of California. Unless there's a statutory, specific statutory authority for the President to become the Commander in chief. And it needs to be triggered by the facts being present that the statute contemplates. And here it contemplates a rebellion or an invasion or the inability to execute the laws. Again, none of which are present. But yes, you're right, the statute is a real statute. 10 USC 12406. But the facts that would give the authority that the President wants are not present at all on the ground and not even close. The statute invoked to bring in the National Guard is with respect to the National Guard, the Marines are separate. They are required to comply with the Posse Comitatus act, which basically says that the military should not be used for civil and civilian law enforcement. And so it's unclear under what authority the Marines were mobilized. The Insurrection act has not been invoked, but and the Posse Comitatis act is in full effect. So the Marines, we believe, and the National Guard, that their mission is to protect federal property, personnel and functions. And that's very concerning because protecting functions like immigration enforcement means going out into neighborhoods, communities out into the field could include arrest and detention, search and seizure, all of which would violate the Posse Comitatis Act.
Emma Vigeland
So is your challenge to the administration two pronged? Is it addressing the 10 USC 12406 authority and basically saying that it didn't meet the threshold to federalize the Guard because you would need rebellion against the US Government? And then the second part is, well, why were these extra Marines deployed? Because you would need the Insurrection act to override the Posse Comitatus act in that instance.
Rob Bonta
Yeah, you got it. And the judge at the trial level, Judge Breyer, ruled only on the 1st. He looked at the 10 USC 12406 arguments and said that the National Guard was unlawfully deployed and should be returned to the command of Governor Newsom, and that the Constitution was violated in the process because states rights were infringed on. He thought that the facts had not yet evolved to a level of, we call it ripeness or reviewability because it wasn't clear what the Marines were doing or not doing yet. But he kind of reserved the right to revisit that in the future when he didn't rule on it.
Sam Seder
At that moment, to your knowledge, has the Marine question become more ripe or have they basically stayed on federal property? Because the really issue here is theoretically the Marines could be sent to guard the federal courthouse. I mean, it seems completely a waste and unnecessary and provocative, but that's within their legal purview. The moment they go out into the community ostensibly to protect ICE officials is where the question is. There's also a question as to like, has there been an ICE official harmed? I mean, to your knowledge, in California or across the state over the past six months? I mean, I should say across the country. I mean, is there, is there, do we have facts that rise to the level that, you know, every federal, I mean, theoretically every federal, every EPA inspector could be surrounded by the military as they go out. Right. I mean, there, there's no indication that this is required.
Rob Bonta
Right. I agree. A number of good points there. I'll first say that if the, you know, the Marines is one of the most elite fighting forces in the world and for them to stand on buildings doesn't seem to be the best use of their skills, their training. You know, they're for military, international, you know, protection of United States security and safety, not for protecting federal buildings. There's a lot of other folks that can do that. Civilian law enforcement can do that. That's federal. You know, you have marshals and you have FBI and ATF and dea. There's a lot of folks that are not military and the ICE agents can provide perimeters and safety for ICE agents. Any of those civilian federal police forces can as well. The FBI could do it, dea, atf, marshals, if they wanted it. There's absolutely no requirement that it be military, especially with the Posse Comitatus Act. I think the federal government will argue that there were some challenges to some of the ICE immigration enforcement in that original weekend. They were getting some resistance from members of the public. I don't know if anyone was actually hurt or harmed in any way, but there's a lot of ways to address this, either hypothetical, even if it's real issue, without the deployment of military personnel on American soil.
Sam Seder
Let's turn. So we're going to find out at the very least within the, I guess within a couple of days, maybe theoretically today, what the, what the ruling is on that first question about the National Guard in the event that the appeals court upholds the Breyer's ruling and there is no ripeness for the Marines. And it also feels like it's probably in the Trump administration's benefit to avoid ripeness at this time. I would imagine that they probably want to be in a different circuit if they want to test the ability for them to deploy Marines, because this California is not exactly the most hospitable to right wing rulings, it seems to me. What are the implications for across the country in the event that Breyer's restraining order and theoretical, at least negative definition of what constitutes facts that would allow for the federalization of the National Guard going forward?
Rob Bonta
Judge Breyer's decision is a really thoughtful decision. It's the blueprint for what other judges might look at, either binding, if it's in a binding jurisdiction, or persuasively, he really looks at the elements of 10 USC 124 06, he, you know, defines what a rebellion is. He says that, which I thought was very, very appropriate. He says that a rebellion, invasion or inability to execute the law actually needs to exist, not just the federal government saying it exists when the facts don't back it. He also said that challenges and obstacles in the federal government executing the laws doesn't mean that they are unable to execute the laws. It just means that there are challenges and obstacles and they're overcomeable and they can be addressed. Also, I thought a thoughtful insight in his opinion. But this is the 10 USC 12406 has only been invoked once in the history of the United States of America. It was when there was a strike at the US Postal Service. The constitutional and federal statutory requirement that the mails moved through the US Postal Service was not able to be executed. And so the National Guard came in to move U.S. mail. And that's the only other time it's never been used in a situation like this. So Judge Breyer's opinion, engaging on this statute, saying what it means, saying how it should be used or not used, how it should be applied or not applied, I think will be very helpful for other jurisdictions as they face probably what California and LA are facing. The executive order that led to the National Guard being deployed in LA has no geographic restriction. It applies nationwide, has no, well, it does have a time restriction, but it's a very broad one. It's for 60 days. And you would think that if National Guard was being brought in to address some flare up of violence or unlawfulness in la, it would be geographic specific and time specific, but it's not. It purports to give very broad authority nationwide for Trump to deploy the National Guard, and we may see it in other cities. And his talk lately has been very specifically about blue cities and blue states. Chicago, Illinois, New York. He's very weaponizing and partisan in his targeting of blue jurisdictions, unfortunately, which I.
Sam Seder
Think emphasizes the relevance of this case and particularly to the extent that we can predict what other courts would do in the wake of this, of this court's decision in those jurisdictions, at least I, I can imagine that perhaps there are parts of southern Texas where they might get a different ruling based upon what we've seen in the past. But certainly when we're talking about Illinois, we're talking about New York, we're talking about more blue states, as you say, the courts tend to be a little more skeptical of these claims. I just want to also ask you about, about a Month or so ago, you filed two lawsuits that were aimed at the Trump administration's tying random federal grants to the state of California, to the California's actions in regards to immigration authorities. On its face, I cannot see how they can do this, particularly like in light of the ACA ruling with the expansion of Medicaid, because if the federal government can't even say, we as are going to change the Medicaid program to expand it, you could either participate in it or not. And the court, the Supreme Court at that time said that is undue influence by the federal government. I don't understand how that could even be a question in this instance.
Rob Bonta
There shouldn't be a question in this instance. It was a clearly unlawful course of use of the spending authority of the federal government to try to condition Department of Transportation grants and funding and Homeland Security grants and funding that keep planes in the air and keep cars on the road safely and tackle terrorism and emergency preparedness to our decision in California to use law enforcement to tackle violations of the criminal law and not have those limited resources be diverted to do what whole branches or whole departments and agencies, the federal government do, which is civilization immigration enforcement. So we sued on that. We think we have a very strong case. The law is clear about how leveraging and coercive use of the spending authority is unlawful. There's also an argument that we've made around violating our 10th amendment rights. You cannot commandeer or conscript or enlist draft into service state resources that are for the health, safety and welfare of the state to do what the federal government wants it to do, to do their job for them when it comes to federal immigration enforcement. So we do think we have really strong precedent, a strong case here. But this is what the federal administration does. They try to leverage, they try to coerce, they try to wage the culture wars. They try to make you do something completely unrelated to the funding at the threat of not getting that funding. So unfortunately, while always shocking, it's not surprising. And again, we'll take them to court and, you know, we have 26 lawsuits against this brazenly, blatantly consistent and frequent, you know, repeat offender administration.
Sam Seder
What is the status of those of the suits that challenge the authority to leverage random grants over trying to compel California to do the administration's bidding?
Rob Bonta
Yeah, we filed the lawsuit. So we're in the early stages. Still no, no ruling or order in joining or restraining at this point.
Sam Seder
And they. The grants still go through, Is that right? Or, I mean, are those federal, those monies, have they been Appropriated and they sit in the account because I know that New York City had an issue where some of the money was clawed back.
Rob Bonta
Yeah, you know, the. Yes, the money should continue to flow because Congress has the power of the purse. Congress has the power to spend and appropriate. The President doesn't, although he desperately wants that authority. He's tried to people use the euphemism impound. He's trying to impound the funding that Congress has appropriated, but he can't. His duty is to take care that the laws be executed, to execute the laws, to do and execute the will of Congress, not to second guess them or add additional conditions or stop funding that they have already appropriated. So the Department of Transportation and Homeland Security funding should continue to flow. These conditions were not part of, you know, conditions that Congress included, you know, nor could they, I would argue, but they certainly weren't included originally. And the President can't add, can't add them. So there have been quite a few cases. You know, the second case that we brought was challenging an Office of Management and Budget memo that sought to withhold $3 trillion of funding that Congress had already appropriated all throughout the country for, you know, housing and health care and food and college and childcare and public safety and disaster preparedness and relief. And we got a quick order in that case saying you cannot withhold that funding. It needs to continue to flow. And the issue is the same here. But this is what I mean when I say he's a repeat offender. He gets struck down by a court on the $3 trillion of funding from Office of Management budget in their memo and then he does the exact same thing for another source of funding and loses there, does the exact same thing for another source of funding, loses there. He continues to violate the law in the same way repeatedly.
Sam Seder
Well, Russell Vogt had four years to plan these series of cascading lawsuit or I should say actions. So I would imagine that you're prepared for even more. Lastly, let me ask you this. We've all seen the footage of various protests going around in California, some of which there has been violence and some of which there has been property destruction in certain instances. Are you aware this, this footage, we played this footage yesterday of Jacob Saborough, who is a reporter for NBC, on reporting live, literally saying during the no Kings protest, reporting live, saying everything is peaceful here. And then we watch the sheriff's department's horses begin to essentially attack the protesters and then begin firing. I mean, to the point where this reporter is caught in between. What are there, what are the what is your office doing in terms of, like, monitoring the actions of the police or the sheriffs in this instance in situations like that?
Rob Bonta
Yeah, you know, there's quite a few laws that were passed in the wake of the protests involving the murder of George Floyd in 2020, and they include different crowd control and use of nonlethal, like rubber bullets and other types of approaches that, that all must be followed. And so our North Star is we help ensure that the law is followed and that it's being complied with, including all the, all the rules and laws that apply to crowd management, you know, managing peaceful protests, addressing any violence that erupts from or flares up from an agitator during a peaceful protest. So we're definitely receiving input and incoming when it comes to what's happening on the ground in L. A. You know, the videos are helpful recordings and are helpful. And our role will be to help ensure that the. The law is, is being followed and complied with. And if not, that there is.
Sam Seder
There's appropriate accountability on both sides, I would imagine. Yes.
Rob Bonta
Oh, yes. Yeah. Everyone needs to follow the law.
Sam Seder
Great. All right. Well, I guess lastly, I have one more broader question. Do you have, as a state, with some anticipation that the Trump administration is going to be doing these kind of things, where they're going to be or the potential for this to happen? How much, how much, in terms of, like, resources have you all dedicated? I imagine your office has been very busy since mid November working out how you're going to respond to various scenarios. Have most of those scenarios, like, have you been surprised by anything that the federal government has attempted to do at this point, and how much do you have up your sleeve?
Rob Bonta
I guess we're not surprised. We're ready for everything. We've been preparing for months before, before November, before the election, for the possibility of a Trump victory. Obviously, you know, he wasn't my preference in the presidential election, but couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't win. And we owed it to the. Our constituents to be prepared. And we looked at everything that Trump said on the campaign trail, is inner circle channeled and projected and telegraphed that they would do. And then we looked at the document they handed to us in writing that said what they would do, Project 2025. And we prepared for all the scenarios and did legal analysis, and, you know, we're ready to file briefs if necessary. In some cases, all we need to do was dot the I's, cross the T's, press, print and file. And so we owe that to our constituents to be Ready and to not be surprised and not be caught flat footed and not be caught off guard. And so what we've seen so far has been very high volume, high speed, faster and more volume than Trump 1.0. In Trump 1.0, my office brought 120 plus lawsuits against the Trump administration in the four years. We'll hit that in two years. At this pace, it's double the pace. We've sued him 26 times in 21 weeks, more than once a week, because that's how often he's violated the law. So I got a lot of gas in the tank, tons of energy. I've got a great team with the largest state department of justice in the nation. They're definitely working overtime, pulling all nighters. You know, the timeline I just described around how we brought our complaint and temporary restraining order application in this case involving deployment of the National Guard. Things happened quickly and we had to respond quickly. And you know, and there are folks who are on fumes and working hard and I couldn't be more proud of them. But they rose to the occasion. They met the moment. They did what the people of our state and our nation needed and moved to uphold the rule of law and the Constitution. And we will do that every time. You know, we don't want to see the president once a week or at all because that would mean that he's complying with the law and following the Constitution. But each and every time he does, we will be unapologetic, immovable and resolute in our commitment to taking him to court every time he breaks the law, violates the Constitution and hurts Californians. And we're ready for whatever comes next. We haven't been surprised. We do, we do remain shocked because it's shocking and you can never normalize what's so abnormal or accept what's so unacceptable. But we saw much of this coming and we've been ready and we will continue to be prepared.
Sam Seder
California Attorney General Rob Onto, thank you so much for your time today. Really appreciate it. Good luck with those cases. I think they're going to be important to obviously not just folks in California, but to many of us around the country.
Rob Bonta
Thanks so much for having me. Honored to be with you.
Sam Seder
Thanks. All right, folks, we're going to take a quick break, but we're just seeing a report now that city comptroller and mayoral candidate and cross endorser with Zoran Mamdani, Brad Lander, has been arrested by federal agents, some of whom, of course, wearing masks.
Emma Vigeland
Bradlander, born in St. Louis so here he is. Look at that.
Sam Seder
Here's video.
Emma Vigeland
Wow.
Sam Seder
Here's video right here.
Emma Vigeland
Even this still, though, is. I mean, that we have it up so people can see if they're watching. But he's, like, essentially being put into.
Sam Seder
Let's play this video.
Emma Vigeland
But grabbed around his neck. Here it is.
Sam Seder
We have volume.
Emma Vigeland
So we. He was at immigration court. Here we go.
Matt Binder
Backwards Yankee cat.
Emma Vigeland
Guess you can assume the masked guys are ice.
Sam Seder
Lander's asking for his warrant at that.
Matt Binder
All these guys.
Emma Vigeland
Oh, my God.
Sam Seder
Yeah, that's where that picture's from at that moment.
Rob Bonta
Please, step back. Step back, guys. Step back.
Sam Seder
Step back.
Emma Vigeland
So he was there to observe immigration hearings. Unbelievable.
Matt Binder
Can the whole bipartisan support for these creeps. And today, please, Chuck Schumer, Hakeem Jeffries.
Emma Vigeland
I'm safe. Abolish ice.
Sam Seder
I'm going to need to see more information, and then I'm going to get mad.
Emma Vigeland
Are they seriously? They're taking him right? Like, right there? Hands behind his. Where are you taking the controller, and with what authority? Why are you arresting the city controller? And where are you taking him?
Unknown
No one's gonna go with him.
All right, hang on, please.
Matt Binder
Number one, who are these guys?
Emma Vigeland
They don't have a warrant, and they barely need to even wear masks like this. Yeah. As Nassau county bans masks, not a.
Matt Binder
Week after Democrats were assassinated by a guy purporting to be law enforcement in Minnesota.
Emma Vigeland
Oh, my God. Great point. Because we said this last week, these ICE agents in these unmarked cars, no warrants, not identifying themselves. We show that they were showing up at elementary schools.
Sam Seder
Yep.
Emma Vigeland
This could be any predator. Any. It could be the assassin in Minnesota. It could be a child predator posing as ice, taking children to abuse them at school.
Sam Seder
And the other thing is that Lander's clearly asking to see the judicial warrant.
Emma Vigeland
The quote here, I will let you go if you show me a judicial warrant. I would like to see the warrant, and then I will let go. Seconds later, one of the officers said, take him in. The agents then forcibly removed Lander, pushed him up against a wall, and cuffed him. You don't have the authority to arrest U.S. citizens. Lander said, I'm not obstructing. I'm standing right here in the hallway. You don't have the authority to arrest US Citizens asking for judicial warrant. He's exactly right.
Matt Binder
Why does every ICE officer think they do?
Emma Vigeland
Well, they are under pressure from sniveling, screaming, hysterical Stephen Miller, who has been upset that they haven't met their quotas of 3,000 deportations a day. They were I think hit their record some like around 2000 and change two days in a row last week. But so they're going after workers at Home Depot, they're going after workers in on farms, they're going after people who.
Matt Binder
Are showing up to hearings, which is the opposite, I would say of a dangerous criminal. Somebody who is going to sit in front of a judge to try to get their ability to stay here extended.
Sam Seder
What we know to be a fact at this point. Not only were we told about it about two weeks ago by Ronald Reagan, an immigration attorney, who subsequently a couple of days later reported by NBC that immigration judges have been instructed to dismiss cases as soon as people who are in the process of having hearings happen dismiss the cases and before the subjects of these cases have the opportunity to appeal, which is the normal procedure, they walk out of the courtroom and they are grabbed by ICE at that point. So what you're basically doing is, I mean ICE is doing this. The primary reason is because they can't hit their quotas. They're not even remotely close to being able to hit their quotas if they're just going after supposed criminals, but they can't hit their quotas. So they're going to essentially what amounts to a honeypot. And it has the added benefit from a political standpoint to drive people away from the courthouses and then they'll be able to say, see these immigrants don't show up for their court dates.
Emma Vigeland
Yeah, they're ramping up and the rate of growth as again people should follow. Austin Coker substack has been covering in terms of detentions for other immigrant violator which basically means crossing the border, but sometimes doesn't even mean that if you're going to your hearing, staying a visa. Yeah. 9.1 times convicted criminal rates in terms of ICE growth for detentions. 1.5 times for convicted criminals. 2.7 times for pending criminal charges, 9.1 times for other immigrant violator. It's also just especially cruel when they're going to these hearings because there's an expectation that a judge in this country is supposed to be the fair arbiter of a case that's supposed to hear the prosecution and supposed to hear the defense. But immigration judges do not work like that in this country. They have been rubber stamping ICE and immigration enforcement throughout. We covered this maybe a few months ago, but in Texas there was an immigration judge who was caught posting white nationalist anti immigrant posts on a blog. So like just to give people a sense of how it's even like prosecution already is more favored by judges in this country and that's a flaw in our system. But with immigration, it's not even close.
Sam Seder
The latest reports as of 18 minutes ago, Lander still in federal custody.
Emma Vigeland
That's insane.
Rob Bonta
Yep.
Emma Vigeland
I'm going to vote after because I'm going on my honeymoon next week so I won't be here for the election day. That rank Lander number two. I think that's. Now we know I'm rankings over on one. Lander to.
Matt Binder
Meg Barnett. Brad's wife is tweeting from at Brad Lander update. Six minutes ago, while escorting a defendant out of the Immigration Court at 26 Federal Plaza, Brad was taken by masked agents and detained by ISIS is still developing. Our team is monitoring the situation closely.
Sam Seder
So and also remember Emma.
Emma Vigeland
Yes.
Sam Seder
You've got to fill out all five.
Emma Vigeland
Yes.
Sam Seder
And don't rank.
Emma Vigeland
Cuomo.
Sam Seder
Cuomo.
Emma Vigeland
I'll just say my rankings now what I'm going to do in case people are listening. So after I'm going to do this today. I'm going to rank Zoron first, obviously Brad Lander second. I'm going to rank Michael Blake third because there's been some reporting that Adrian Adams is secretly taking some door dash money.
Sam Seder
Whoopsie.
Emma Vigeland
But I am going to rank her fourth. And then Zellner Myrie number five. So.
Matt Binder
But who could I rank if I didn't want to rank Adams? Isn't there another one?
Emma Vigeland
That's a good question.
Sam Seder
I mean, can you do a write in?
Emma Vigeland
I don't know if I would risk that.
Sam Seder
No, that's.
Emma Vigeland
Yeah.
Sam Seder
All right. And before we go to the fun half, breaking news. Can you check on this Matt and see if you can confirm this? It appears based Mike Lee has folded to our pressure.
Emma Vigeland
Oh, it's the majority report that did it.
Sam Seder
Just moments ago we criticized more Mike Lee for still having this tweet up. And literally seconds after we criticized him for doing it, he deleted the tweet.
Matt Binder
Pressure works, folks.
Emma Vigeland
Yes, it does.
Sam Seder
It works. Our. Our pressure here worked on Mike Lee. Want to welcome the staffers in Mike Lee's office and Mike Lee's campaign apparatus, his family. I know most of Mike Lee's family watches the show. Some often not live well and always on Rumble and on Rumble. Also I want to say we have now in the majority report reached 100,000 followers on Twitch offer a huge Poggers appreciate the hype train and poggers as well as I want to say poggers.
Emma Vigeland
Poggers.
Sam Seder
Poggers Also, I want to say to our Rumble audience, which has been growing at an incredible rate of point, it's the best plateau you've ever seen.
Emma Vigeland
No one's ever plateaued like this before.
Sam Seder
One person per month for as long as we've been on.
Matt Binder
We are almost to double digits. We're at a strong eight right now.
Sam Seder
We, we had to pay extra to maintain exclusivity on our Rumble channel. A lot of people get the basic Rumble publication program. Sure, we got the exclusive one. It's more expensive, but it allows us to prevent more than nine people from watching the show at any given time on Rumble. And we pay a lot for that.
Emma Vigeland
But seems like a great use of our resources.
Sam Seder
Yep.
Matt Binder
Sam, I'm sorry. We moved on from the Mike Lee thing a little bit too fast. Do you know what based means?
Sam Seder
Yeah, I do.
Matt Binder
Okay, define it.
Sam Seder
It means like when you're like, cool.
Matt Binder
It means, well, you're close. It means specifically unbothered by your social situation and any sort of censure you might get. So I think.
Sam Seder
Oh, is that right?
Matt Binder
Mike Lee needs to go a little bit further and remove basically based from his username.
Sam Seder
Oh, yeah, un based.
Matt Binder
I'm sorry you caved, bro. And you should have never done it.
Emma Vigeland
Not based.
Matt Binder
But you're not based. You're psychopath still, but you're not based anymore. I'm sorry.
Emma Vigeland
Oh, he's total, total Jesse Lee Ferguson.
Sam Seder
Total beta.
Emma Vigeland
That's not his name. Jesse Lee Ferguson is the guy from Modern Family.
Sam Seder
He's completely skibidy.
Matt Binder
Skibidy toilet right now.
Sam Seder
Total skibidi toilet.
Emma Vigeland
I still don't get it. I still don't get that one.
Sam Seder
And we should also mention, since we're here, we have 15,000 people in our Discord. That's nuts. Majoritydiscord.com Great resource, great place to go and just talk about just about anything. I don't know if there's anything that we don't discuss in that discord.
Emma Vigeland
I mean, there's a lot of news to discuss if you want a little online community to talk our discord.
Rob Bonta
Yep.
Emma Vigeland
Place to be.
Sam Seder
All right, folks, we're going to head into the fun half. We will give you updates on the ongoing stories that we have been covering and like Iran. Iran.
Matt Binder
Charlie Kukres guidance on people who are upset about Iran we'll get to. Looks a little bit like a white flag saying don't look at the Internet, everybody.
Emma Vigeland
It's interesting. This split in right wing media is interesting. I mean, you have Marjorie Taylor Greene criticizing Fox News and Tucker Carlson kind of joining hands with her.
Sam Seder
And I will say this, the only reason why we're seeing a split, it seems to me, is because of the size of the right wing media. Because if you go back to Iraq, Tucker Carlson was on CNN at that time. He famously said on a radio show, I don't care about these monkeys, referring to the Iraqis. He was, he would cheer on Iraq, but less than enthusiastically enough so that he would go back. At one point when Jeanine Garofalo hosted with him, they went in the back to have a cigarette and he's like, I don't care about any, about this at all. I'm not into it. But of course, you know, he at that time had to play like he was. So these splits, and particularly, you know, in the Pat Buchananites and that's who, you know, we're seeing. Tucker Carlson is cut from that same cloth. They don't like the neocons in part because they saw them as very Jewy, broken clock, et cetera, et cetera.
Emma Vigeland
Although oddly, same exact dynamic with Marjorie Taylor Greene. Right. Like if we're going back. She is, she is. She was doing all those like KKK adjacent anti Catholic things when the Pope died and now she's basically fully, fully doing them. The Buchanan stuff, the anti Semitism.
Sam Seder
Quite sure these anti, supposed anti war war warriors could find a war that they like. I have no doubt about that. But in the meantime, we're seeing this split I think only because of the size of the media, of the, of the right wing media now as opposed to in the past where we just wouldn't, we wouldn't see it even though it was there on the fringe because it wasn't lucrative enough or they didn't have the financial security to do so.
Emma Vigeland
Yeah.
Sam Seder
So I would remind people to keep that in mind. Now, with that said, is it helpful?
Emma Vigeland
I think it is.
Sam Seder
The media can't hurt.
Matt Binder
Who knows? I like that Massey and you know, Ilhan and Greg and aoc, like that's. And you know, I'll take Marjorie Taylor Greene on, on the bill too, if she wants to sponsor it. It's good to have, I mean, within limits because you don't want them to discredit it, which is basically what Trump did. He used anti war stuff as a vehicle. Iraq was a big fat mistake and now look where he is. So you can't trust them ultimately, but.
Sam Seder
Right.
Emma Vigeland
Well, and it's also just like Marjorie Taylor Greene if she actually wants to run for Senate against John Ossoff.
Sam Seder
Oh, I think she has already stepped. She's already stepped out of the race.
Emma Vigeland
Oh, she has.
Sam Seder
Well, I think Trump convinced her to get out about, I want to say, three weeks ago. But look, here's the bottom line. I'm happy to have any Republican vote for a bill that inhibits the ability of the President, United States to go to war. Any president, frankly, or any war. It should be Congress's decision. It's not to say I don't have an opinion as to what their decision should be, but I'm happy to have anybody vote for that. And beyond that, I still think that she's piece of garbage and she doesn't need my support so. Because I would never vote for her under any circumstance. So.
Emma Vigeland
Oh no, she's a true legitimate like anti Jewish bigot and bigot in so many other ways. But we can use her and discard her if it prevents us from.
Sam Seder
Yeah, we're not even using her. Good vote. Vote that way. That's great, folks. Also reminder, it's your support that makes this show possible. You can become a member@jointhemajorityreport.com when you do, you not only get the free show free of commercials, you also get the fun half where you can IM us. Yes. Franken Buffalo for instance, imming us. Clearly not having watched the show before Brad Lander was detained by ICE while escorting a defendant out of immigration court. We have been covering that and California Resistance. Sam, some leftist podcasters are saying you don't have to fill out five on NYC ballot. What gives? Crazy. They are mistaken. They do. They are mistaken. You don't have to, but you must if you want to inhibit Andrew Cuomo's ability to become mayor and make sure.
Emma Vigeland
He'S not any of the people that you rank.
Sam Seder
Exactly.
Emma Vigeland
Yes.
Sam Seder
Because that's the way ranked choice voting goes. You want to be participating and and cut into Cuomo's potential lead by voting for other people in that round because otherwise you're not participating. Also, don't forget Justcoffee co op, fair trade, coffee, hot chocolate. Use the coupon code, majority get 10% off. Matt, left reckoning.
Matt Binder
Yeah, left reckoning. Tonight talking to Adam Gaffney about Medicaid research he's done showing the effect that taking millions of people off health insurance will have. And surprise, it's not great. Also, Hannah Habtu talking about Eritrea, Somalia, talking about the violence against Tigray tonight in Tigray tonight, 7 o' clock Eastern Time. Left reckoning. Check that out.
Sam Seder
All right folks, see you in the Fun half, you are in for it. All right, folks. 6, 4, 6, 2 5, 7, 3, 9, 2 0. See you in the fun.
Unknown
Are you ready?
Sam Seder
Who sent us this?
Unknown
Alpha males are back, back, back, back, back Boy is back and the alpha.
Sam Seder
Males are back, back Just as delicious.
Unknown
As you could imagine the alpha males are back, back, back, back, back Boy is back and the alpha males are back, back, back, back, back Just want.
To degrade the white man.
Alpha males are back, back I take.
All of it to my.
Alpha males are back, back, back, back.
Snowflake says what?
The alpha males are back.
You are a madman.
And the alpha males are back, back.
Sam Seder
Oh, no. Sam Cedar. What a. Wow.
Rob Bonta
What a nightmare.
Sam Seder
Yeah, or a couple of them. Just put them in rotation.
Unknown
DJ, dinner.
Matt Binder
Well, the problem with those is they're like 45 seconds long, so I don't know if they're enough of a break.
Rob Bonta
That's nonsense.
Unknown
You see white people doing drugs that look worse than normal white people. And all white people look disgusting.
And the alpha males psych them, them.
Sam Seder
Oh.
Rob Bonta
Snowflake says, what, what, what, what, what.
Sam Seder
What, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what?
Unknown
A hell of a lot of bank, A hell of a lot of bank.
A hell of a lot of bank.
Okay, I'm making stupid money. Hell of a hell, hell of a lot of bank. A hell of all lives matter.
Matt Binder
Have you tried doing an impression on a college campus?
Unknown
I think that there's no reason why reasonable people across the divide can't all agree with this. Psych.
And the alpha males are back, back, back, back, back, back and the Africans are black, black, black, black, black, African. And the alpha males are black, black, black, black, black, black and the Africans are back, back, back, back when you.
See Donald Trump out there, doesn't a little part of you think that America deserves to be taken over by jihadists? Keeping it 100. Can't knock the hustle. Come on. Them things I do for the bigger game plan. By the way, it's my birthday, My birthday. Happy birthday to me. Giovanni boy, I have a thought experiment for you.
And the alpha males are back, back. Africans are black, black. Alpha males are black black Africans are back, back.
Come on, come on, come on. Someone needs to pay the price for blast to be around here.
Sam Seder
I am in total. Question, question, question, question, question, question, question, question.
Summary of "The Majority Report with Sam Seder" - Episode 2519
Title: Mike Lee Melts Down, Iran Tensions Rise, NYC Comptroller Arrested by ICE, CA Sues Feds w/ Rob Bonta
Release Date: June 17, 2025
The episode opens with Sam Seder addressing the recent backlash against Senator Mike Lee of Utah. Lee had tweeted about the tragic assassination of Democratic lawmakers in Minnesota, seemingly making light of the situation. This move sparked outrage among listeners and prompted immediate critique from the hosts.
Notable Quote:
The discussion highlights Lee's failure to appropriately condemn the violence, instead choosing to make provocative remarks that many found insensitive and unbecoming of a public official.
Rob Bonta, California's Attorney General, joins the show to discuss the state's legal battles against the Trump administration. California has initiated a lawsuit challenging President Trump's authority to deploy the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles. The core argument centers around the misuse of 10 USC §12406, which permits federal intervention only in cases of rebellion, invasion, or inability to execute laws—conditions that Bonta asserts were not present during the deployment.
Notable Quotes:
Bonta elaborates on the legal nuances, emphasizing that the Posse Comitatus Act restricts the use of the military for civilian law enforcement, making the deployment of Marines without proper authority unlawful.
b. Broader Legal Actions Against Federal Coercion
Beyond the National Guard issue, Bonta outlines California's broader strategy in suing the federal government for leveraging grants to coerce state policies, particularly concerning immigration enforcement. He references past Supreme Court rulings, such as those related to the Affordable Care Act, to underscore the illegality of conditional federal funding.
Notable Quotes:
Bonta expresses confidence in California's legal standing and preparedness, citing a robust legal team and a history of successful litigation against federal overreach.
A significant portion of the episode covers the sudden arrest of Brad Lander, the NYC Comptroller and mayoral candidate, by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The arrest occurred as Lander was escorting a defendant out of an immigration court in New York City. The agents, some concealed behind masks, detained him without clear authority or a warrant.
Notable Quotes:
The hosts critique ICE's aggressive tactics, suggesting that the agency is overstepping its bounds in its pursuit of deportations to meet stringent quotas. They highlight the psychological and societal impacts of such actions, including fostering fear within communities and undermining trust in public institutions.
The conversation shifts to the fragmentation within right-wing media outlets, particularly focusing on figures like Marjorie Taylor Greene and Tucker Carlson. Seder suggests that the expansive and diverse nature of modern right-wing media platforms has led to internal conflicts and differing agendas.
Notable Quotes:
Seder emphasizes the challenges this split poses for unified messaging and coordinated political strategies among conservative factions.
The hosts briefly touch upon the complexities of ranked-choice voting in New York City, encouraging listeners to participate actively in the electoral process to influence outcomes and prevent undesirable candidates from gaining power.
Notable Quotes:
The episode concludes with lighter banter among the hosts, celebrating milestones such as reaching 100,000 followers on Twitch and engaging with the audience through social media platforms like Discord. They also address the immediate aftermath of the Brad Lander arrest, expressing solidarity and ongoing monitoring of the situation.
Notable Quotes:
While some interactions veer into humor and informality, the overarching themes remain focused on political accountability, legal battles against federal overreach, and the defense of civil liberties.
Conclusion
Episode 2519 of "The Majority Report with Sam Seder" delves into pressing political issues, including Senator Mike Lee's questionable social media conduct, California's robust legal challenges against the Trump administration's federal interventions, and ICE's controversial arrest of a prominent NYC official. Through insightful interviews and critical analysis, the hosts underscore the importance of upholding constitutional rights and maintaining vigilant oversight of governmental powers.