← The Dan Bongino Show
The Dan Bongino Show
Sunday Special with Michael Franzese, Jeff Van Drew, Ned Ryun, Andrew Gruel 12/22/24
01:00:13
Great Interviews from the radio show from the past couple of weeks
Loading summary
Transcript86 lines
- [00:03]
Dan Bongino
Get ready to hear the truth about America on a show that's not immune to the facts.
- [00:08]
With your host, Dan Bongino. Welcome to Sunday Podcast. This is our chance to play for you some of the best moments from the radio show and some great interviews during the week that you may have missed. If you ever want to check out our show, go to bongino.com go to station finder and see what radio station we're on near you. You'll love it, I promise you. We put a lot of work into the radio show. Check it out. But before that, let me tell you about our first sponsor. Increased tariffs on our trade partners, tax cuts and regulation changes. A lot of change coming. Learn why gold is a viable diversification tactic now more than ever. Birch Gold, the only gold company I trust, is releasing its Ultimate Guide for Gold in the Trump Era with a forward by Donald Trump Jr. To get your free copy along with Birch Gold's free information kit on Gold, text my name Dan to the number 989-898. Here's the facts. The national debt continues to increase. Our interest payments on the national debt continue to increase. Gold is still one of your best hedges against the weakened dollar. And Birch Gold is still the company I trust to help you convert an existing IRA or 401k into a tax sheltered IRA in gold. So text Dan to 989-898 for your free copy of the Ultimate Guide for Gold in the Trump Era. It's no obligation only information with an A plus rating from the Better Business Bureau and thousands of happy customers. You can trust Birch Gold too. Text Dan to the number 989-898 today. Message and Data Rate Supply hey, welcome to our Sunday podcast special. I got a special show for you today. If you've never heard this guy, he is a reformed former member of a mob family. But he has learned a lot of life lessons from it. He spent a lot of time in jail, he paid his debt to society, but he's a fascinating guy. I wanted to have him on to talk about this assassination of the healthcare CEO in New York. I think you're going to like this interview. Check this interview out with Michael Francaise. So I've had this guest on both my radio show and my show that used to be on Fox and he's always been great. He is a reformed member of the mob in New York City and I saw him this weekend on a documentary I was watching. I'm obsessed with mob stories called Fear City and he was so great and he's been a Good friend to the show. I wanted to have him back. Michael Francaise. Michael, welcome back to the show. So good to have you.
- [02:18]
Michael Francaise
Thanks for having me, Dan. Good to be back.
- [02:21]
Dan Bongino
You know, I saw you this weekend on Fear City. Obviously, you know, the documentary, you're in it. You're in for a long time, by the way. And just before we get to this assassination on the CEO and the suspect in custody, you know, you were really great there. And I think people forget how powerful those families were. Those mob families in New York prior to that Commission case where Rudy Giuliani took them down. I mean, everything from the buildings industry to concrete to drug running, I mean, they were really involved in just about everything.
- [02:55]
Michael Francaise
Yeah, there's no question, Dan. You know, I always say the golden years of the Mafia Cosa Nostra, especially in New York City, were really from the late 40s right through to the mid-80s, when, you know, Giuliani and company really used the racketeering laws effectively. But up until that time, we had so much control, both politically and obviously with the unions. You know, and I've told people, Dan, if you control the unions, you basically control a good part of the country. Because even with politicians, what are two things that they want? They want votes and they want money. And through the unions, you can provide both. And that gave us a lot of leverage, and, you know, we had a lot of strength, you know.
- [03:34]
Dan Bongino
Michael, I talked to Michael Francis. Michael, forgive me for a second. What crime family? Which mob family were you a member of? I'm sorry, was it the Colombos?
- [03:44]
Michael Francaise
Yeah, that's okay. I was with the Colombos. Yes.
- [03:46]
Dan Bongino
Columbus. You know, I didn't realize, but you actually spent a good amount of time in federal prison over this. I mean, this isn't something you're just talking about as if, like, you know, you are. You were deep in this. And I saw it in the Fierce City thing, and you mentioned this moment where you had this in the documentary, where you had this moment where you said, you know what? This isn't the life. I've had enough of this, and I'm going to go in a different direction. And was it the Commission case? Was that it? When they took down the heads of all these crime families, where you said, this ain't for me. I'm going the straight and narrow.
- [04:21]
Michael Francaise
No, actually, it happened before that, Dan, because, you know, during my, I hate to say career, but I guess that's the word, you know, my time in that life, I had 18 arrests, I had three undercover investigations on me. I had seven indictments two federal racketeering cases, one brought on by Giuliani that unfortunately I was acquitted in. Well, he said he was going to give me 100 years if he convicted me. And then I had a state RICO in Florida. So I said to myself, how many times am I going to beat these people and walk away free? And I knew they were really tightening the noose and I would never get away with it. I mean, I was too high profile at that point and weren't going to leave me alone. And then, you know, with the RICO law, I said, man, you know, you know, Dan, it was always people ask, you know, what kept you guys in line? And if you remember the movie the Bronx Tale with Trash Palmitari and he was the mob guy, they said to him, is it better to be loved or feared? And he said, well, in my line of work it's better to be feared. And Chaz is a good friend. I spoke to him and I said, chaz, did you really believe that? And he said, yeah, Michael, I believe that. I said, well Chaz, you're wrong. He said, what do you mean? I said, well, yeah, fear did keep us in line because we knew if we violated the rules, we could pay for it, serious consequences. I said, but what happened with the RICO act, the RICO statute is the fear of the mob was transferred to the fear of the government. Because when you tell guys, hey, you're going to go away for the rest of your life unless you, you cooperate with us and you know that that's guys don't want to spend the rest of their life in prison. And they tell you, look, we'll put you in the program. Your identity, the guy you testify against is going to go away forever. So don't worry about it. Well, that's what caused the collapse of my life. There's no question about it. It wasn't John Gotti, it wasn't high profile guys, it was the RICO law used earlier.
- [06:12]
Dan Bongino
Speaker.
- [06:12]
Michael Francaise
But you know, it required me doing eight years in prison. So I mean, I didn't get away scot free and I had a huge restitution and things like in the end it worked out.
- [06:22]
Dan Bongino
I was thinking about this United Healthcare, the CEO being shot dead in the streets of Manhattan. Now, you haven't been a member of the mob. Obviously you're around people who've done really bad stuff, including targeted killings. That's how the mob enforces. But you know, everybody's saying, oh, this guy's a professional type assassin, some kind of Jason Bourne. There was a lot of it going on online. The first thing I thought, being on the law enforcement side, I've been studying this stuff and you haven't been on the mob side back in the day. I didn't see that at all. Michael, real assassins who kill people for a living and do this stuff, as you sadly know from being around, they don't want to get caught. They don't write messages on the bullets, they just kill you. I thought of that scene in Goodfellas, remember, where Ray Liotta, Bo Dietle comes out and he starts cursing, hands on the steering wheel, starts dropping F bombs. And Ray Liotta says, I knew it was a cop, because only cops talk like that. He goes, bad guys just shoot you. That's the first thing I thought when I saw this guy get whacked in the streets of Manhattan. This isn't no professional. They don't leave messages like that.
- [07:18]
Michael Francaise
No, exactly, Dan. I right away said, this was so sloppy. First of all, the last thing you want to do is hang around the scene, be around there before, obviously not after. But I mean, the guy was in Starbucks. He was buying things. I guess he doesn't realize. You know, in today's day and age, you got cameras everywhere. You got people looking at you. This was extremely sloppy from day one. Then, of course, you know the words on the casings. I mean, when I saw that, I said, it's just a matter of time before this guy gets caught. He wasn't a professional. You know, people thought he was a hitman, but he certainly was not.
- [07:53]
Dan Bongino
Yeah, we're talking to Michael Francaise, a former member of the Colombo crime family, now speaks out on all of these issues. And he's been a guest in the show. Really fascinating guy. You know, it's funny, Michael, I had you on my Fox show a while ago and, you know, you get these little minute by minute, I don't know, Q kind of ratings, Q scores or whatever. You were through the roof. People couldn't get enough of that interview. They kept replaying it. I was thinking about you in relationship to another story, too, and that's the Daniel Penney case today, the subway case. The verdict comes back not guilty. You know, nobody knew you and I are roughly in the same cohort. But you remember the 1980 subway in New York? It was a disaster, Michael. If you got on the train, it was a 50, 50 shot that you were going on there and something bad was going to happen. You're going to have be stolen, robbed, raped, or even worse. Right? It was going to be really terrible. 80s New York subways. So, Jim, my producer had said to me, are you surprised by this not guilty verdict? I'd love to get your take on this. I said, no, I'm not. Because guys like you and me who grew up in New York, everybody, sadly, in that era, who's probably A jurist now 40, 50 and older, remembers what it was like to be terrorized on the subway. It was a really awful place. Pre Giuliani, New York in the 80s. I'm sure you remember it well. Absolutely.
- [09:07]
Michael Francaise
Danny. Remember, you're in a subway, you're stuck, you're in a box. You know, if somebody's going wild there, what are you going to do to get away with it? You know, I think it all goes down to this Alvin Bragg and all these political things that he does. He's not interested in keeping people safe. It's all politics with him. We saw what he did with Trump, and to even bring this case is unbelievable. When you had people saying that they were in fear of their life. You had a guy with, you know, multiple arrests, not acting right, and all he did was try to restrain him. You know, unfortunately, the result was. We know what it was. But, you know, I think the toxicology reports showed that he had drugs in his system. There was so much going on. But, yeah, I mean, look, I would do it. Dan. You would do it? Would anybody that, you know, has any kind of sense of manhood or whatever about him would have done the same thing? And what do you expect? I mean, these are dangerous places. When you have somebody going wild and there's no escape, what do you do? You know, thank God he stepped up.
- [10:01]
Dan Bongino
We're talking to Michael Francaise, a former member of the Colombo crime family. Again, now Reform speaks out about this stuff. And just a fascinating guest. Michael, I never asked you this before. I know we talked about, you know, what was the most accurate mob movie. You've had that conversation before on my show. But when you're watching these mob movies, you know, Goodfellas based on real people, Donnie Brasco and others, I've never asked you this. Do you know some of the people in those movies? Did you ever have any interaction with, you know, Lefty or Henry Hill or Jimmy from Goodfellas or any of those people? Do you ever know those people in real life?
- [10:35]
Michael Francaise
Well, Dan, I don't know if you, if you remember, but, you know, they mentioned me in Goodfellas. I was actually a character in there, and I knew which one, Henry Hill really well. I knew Jimmy Burke really well. I knew Paulie very well. I mean, these were. You know, these were my friends. As a matter of fact, when I went to the theater and I saw the movie and they mentioned my name, I immediately got on the phone afterwards with Nick Polegi, and I said, hey, Nick, why did you put me in that film? That was a different family, a different crew. He said, yeah, but you have name value, Michael. And, you know, all those guys. Henry was talking about you. So I put you in. I said, next time.
- [11:10]
Dan Bongino
Was Goodfellas an accurate portrayal, though, of the. The guys you knew, Jim? Jimmy Burke and Henry Hill and others?
- [11:16]
Michael Francaise
Yeah, you know what? I. It was. It really was. I mean, it was. It was very well done, and. And the story was pretty accurate, you know, with the whole Lufthansa robbery and all of that. But I will tell you this. Henry Hill never looked so good as he did in that movie. That's for sure. That was not really Henry in real life.
- [11:34]
Dan Bongino
You know, I. I actually know what Henry Hill looks like in real life. I was. When I was an agent in Long Island, a case came up. When he was. When he was there was a. It was a long story, but the postal inspectors brought it to me, so I was very familiar. And you. You are accurate. Wait, one more question. I want to get back on the. On the movie. Was Tommy, the Joe Pesci character, as crazy as Joe Pesci played him in the movie? Was he really that nuts?
- [11:58]
Michael Francaise
Yes, he was. He was one of the wild guys.
- [12:01]
Jeff Van Drew
Wow.
- [12:01]
Michael Francaise
Absolutely. You know, whatever Pesci does, he does terrifically, but he really nailed the character. No doubt, man.
- [12:09]
Dan Bongino
Jim, we got to put Michael on, like, the half back regularly list. Michael, last question for you. So with the Daniel Penney case and the UnitedHealthcare CEO case, we've seen the pervasiveness, obviously, of cell phone cameras, ring doorbells, commercial cameras, NYPD cameras. If you're the mob today, you were in the mob decades ago. If you're in the mob today and you're trying to shake down concrete businesses and other things like that, isn't it almost impossible to operate as this racketeering organization? Understanding how powerful surveillance tools are now? Is that why the mob really never recovered from the Commission case in the Giuliani era?
- [12:54]
Michael Francaise
Yeah, no doubt about it. You know, between the technology and the RICO statute, that put you away forever, you know, unless you cooperate. And making murder, remember, murder was never a federal offense until the RICO statute came in, and they used that as one of the predicate acts. That's when you can go down for Murder that was devastating for guys in that life. So, you know, you know, the increase in informants because of the statute, all this new technology, I mean, it's very, very difficult to operate now. You know, it's one of the reasons I made an exit. I saw it coming, you know, the commission case. Look, they never took down all the bosses like that. Took them all down, you know, got them 100 years. That's it. So you had to have your eyes wide open and see that this is over. And if, and if the, you know, law enforcement and the prosecutorial agencies in New York would just do their job properly, you see a dramatic decrease in crime, I believe. But we'll see what happens.
- [13:50]
Dan Bongino
Michael, I had to tell you, man. I've been on the air radio show four years. We don't do too many interviews on the podcast. Jim, is this not one of the. This may be my favorite interview. You are really a genuinely fascinating guy. He's in this. You are incredible. You're in this. Check it out, folks. It's called Fear City. It's a documentary about the New York City mob. Michael has a really prominent role in it. Michael, we'd love to have you back. Thanks for coming on last minute today. I knew you'd be great commenting on this stuff and you did not disappoint. So thanks a lot, Dan.
- [14:19]
Michael Francaise
No problem. But I gotta give you one last tip. You want to know the greatest mob movie, the most accurate portrayat of any mob movie ever? It's the HBO HBO 1996 Gotti movie with Armando and Anthony.
- [14:35]
Dan Bongino
My favorite. Michael, my absolute Armin Asante crushed it. That movie is incredible, folks. If you haven't seen it, the Armand Assante HBO movie, Gotti. Michael is so right. It is just. Michael knows the accuracy part, but the entertainment value, a chef's kiss, 10 out of 10. Michael, thanks so much, man. We're definitely going to have you back. We appreciate it. Thanks a lot.
- [15:00]
Michael Francaise
Anytime, my friend. Thanks, Dan.
- [15:02]
Dan Bongino
You got it. I told you we had the best guest. Was that. Am I crazy, folks? I'm serious. Maybe it's because I love crime stories and he may be my favorite guest I've ever interviewed. Maybe Donald Trump, then Michael. I mean, that's how much I love that. Be right back. I got to digest. Coming up, another great interview. But let's hear from our next sponsor first. I've been using the bone charge infrared sauna blanket for a long time. And Paula loves a red light face mask. I love life hacks. They sent it to me. Can't recommend them highly enough. I first turned to the sauna blanket a couple years ago to help me with muscle recovery. You know, I have bad arthritis. Helped me with some pain relief too. It worked for me. It was incredible. It's been a game changer. It's easy to use. You just wrap yourself up in the blanket and let the infrared heat work its magic. I've noticed a real difference in how relaxed I am. I've even seen a difference in my blood work since. It's been amazing. I feel rejuvenated. The red light face mask is equally as impressive. Paula's been using it to help improve her skin's texture and reduce inflammation. The results are fantastic. Just check her out on my Instagram. Her skin's smoother, looks more vibrant. The overall tone is evened out. It's like having a mini spot treatment right at home. If you're thinking of trying them out, you're in luck. Head to bonecharge.com bongino and use code BONGINO at checkout to save 25% off. Both of these products have made such a positive impact on helping my wellness routine and I'm sure you'll love them too. Use code Bongino at B O N C H A r g e bonecharge.com bongino to save 25% off. These statements of products have not been evaluated by the fda. They're not intended to diagnose tree, cure or prevent any disease or condition. Thanks, Beau in charge. Up next, we talk with Congressman Jeff Van Drew. He is in that area where the New York, excuse me, the New Jersey drone issue is going on. He had an interesting take on this. This is where the mothership comment comes from. Check this out. I want to welcome to the show a congressman from New Jersey, one of the areas impacted by this UAP UFO ongoing scandal right now. He's been very public about it and his constituents are concerned. Congressman Jeff Van Drew, thanks for joining us. We appreciate it.
- [17:02]
Ned Ryan
Good to be with you.
- [17:03]
Dan Bongino
And Congressman, this is obviously a huge scandal and the reason I say that is you're obviously a member of Congress. If the government does not know what's going on, despite the obvious concerns of your constituents, then that's a huge scandal. The alternate scenario that they do know what's going on and they're lying to both you and your constituents, it's still a scandal. So where do we stand with this? Are you getting any answers? I mean, you're a sitting congressman. Are they, are they giving you the run around too?
- [17:36]
Ned Ryan
So here's the deal. Yes, they're giving everybody the run around. So you're correct. It is scary at any level because if they know what's going on and they are hiding it, that's wrong. If they don't know what's going on and they are at that level of incompetence, which is very possible, that is terrible. And that is frightening as well. Here's what I know. I know that there are no commercial enterprises within the continental United States that have this capability that we know of. There are no hobbyists that have this capability that we know of. We can't imagine that the US Government would be flying all these drones, some of them that are the size of minibuses in the air that we know of. We can't imagine the US Government would do that and scare its people. What I do know is that I've been contacted because I am the vice chair of the Transportation Committee and I sit on the committee that the Aviation Subcommittee that deals with all this, that deals with drones and that I have been contacted by well placed high level sources with high security clearances that do not want to tell who they are, understandably so. They're concerned, but they're also concerned, concern that this isn't coming out, that in the port of Iran that one of their mother ships had left weeks ago. We do know that and we know for sure that Iran does have these capabilities through China because they're dealing with them. These high level sources that I have believe that there's a very real significant possibility that there is an Iranian military mothership out there and that it is releasing these high level sophisticated drones. You know, these are drones that no hobbyist is doing this. These drones have special lights on them for nighttime. They are sophisticated in how they operate, how they move, and of course in their size. This needs to be detailed. We need to know more. But the very fact that there's a very real possibility that this is what it is should be of concern. I had two choices. One was to hold this information where the other was to expose it. And I believe that it needed to be exposed, which is what I did. And you know what I say to the government? Prove me wrong. I hope they do. I hope that it's from mishap, where it's the government itself. But I can't imagine them doing that. There's no hobbyist that can do that and no commercial enterprise that would do it. So what the hell is it?
- [20:07]
Dan Bongino
Well, we're talking to Congressman Jeff Van Drew from New Jersey about This UFO growing scandal. Now there's a lot of people concerned. Congressman, I'm an Occam's Razor guy, like you, like. Just give me the simplest answer. It's not that there isn't a history of the government lying to us about foreign infiltration of our airspace. I mean, it was only a year ago. I was in surgery, in a hospital. I get out, I turn on the TV and there's video of a freaking Chinese spy balloon flying over the country and the Biden administration playing stupid. I mean, it's not that this hasn't happened. So anybody attacking you? Oh my gosh. The idea of Iranian drones coming from offshore onto New Jersey is simply crazy. How crazy is it? We've had like 14th century balloon technology violate our airspace for a week at a time. This has happened before.
- [20:54]
Ned Ryan
And the bottom line is with the balloon, they waited until they got all the information they needed and wanted and it was transmitted and then we finally shoot the balloon down. Here's the deal. These drones need to be pulled down and they should be able to evaluate what's got to be done there. If they can be shot down. I don't think there are flammable liquids on them. I think this is probably battery operated. But they need to evaluate that. But they need to be down. They are getting information. New Jersey is in a vital area. It's along the corridor between Washington and New York City. And we need to. They shouldn't be obtaining this information. And for God's sake, I say it over and over again, but I really want people to think about if it is not what my high level source says it is, then what is it? Is our government really doing to that list to us with no regard of how much it frightens people, or is it somebody in the private sector that has this ability? I don't think so, but they're being allowed to do it. And this all speaks to Don and Dan. This is the most important part of this. We've got to get on the stick. We are 10 years behind China with drone, UA technology. We've got to be number one. We are not number one. They are way ahead of us. It's got to stop. We have to be able to deal with this, understand it and be number one with it. We're not. And we need to move forward. We need to FAA to be able to deal with this, get organized, stop worrying about, you know, people's pronouns. Stop worrying about, stop worrying about all the nonsense and, you know, let's focus on what we are supposed to Be the strongest, fastest, most focused military on the face of the earth. And I don't believe that sometimes we are.
- [22:43]
Dan Bongino
Yeah, yeah. I think a lot of people agree with you. Talking to Congressman Jeff Van Drew from New Jersey. Congressman, first, I agree with you 100% about, you know, tell me I'm wrong. I have no problem. I'd rather. I prefer I am wrong. I believe it's a foreign adversary as well, based on the Occam's razor conclusion. If it isn't, and it's a couple of guys, you know, having a couple of beers and messing around with some drones, great, I'm more than happy to put that out on the air. I have no desire to be right while sacrificing our national security. However, Holman Jenkins is a really good reporter at the Wall Street Journal. He's been reporting on this for a long time. He has an op ed out in October and he addresses this question. This is October, so this is before this whole thing happened, obviously. And he says, listen, a lot of these ufo, UAP phenomenon, the military knows what they are. They're likely foreign actors doing what you and I think they're doing, surveilling sensitive locations. And because the military is so afraid of looking inadequate and incompetent that they're using this UFO kind of extraterrestrial, you know, E.T. wink and nod as a distraction to keep you from looking into them, going, hey, man, you guys have an answer for this or what? What do you make of that? And military leaders address this with you at all?
- [24:01]
Ned Ryan
They haven't at this point, other than my connections that I have here because of my imp. Involvement with the drone industry. Remember, I have a very large FAA facility, technical center in my district. So I've been involved with folks for a while on this. And again, my sources who are reputable, these aren't gadfly. These aren't some people that fly drones in their backyard and have some opinion, highly placed, very competent, very reliable, with high security clearance telling me this stuff. So. And stuff we should have a handle on. We should know. Obviously, we do. I believe the military is on alert from what I hear from my sources as well, but has not shared that with Congress and has not shared it with the public. And I do believe probably our current President of the United States has no idea whatsoever on what's going on. I mean, I think the balloon could have smacked him in the head that was flying around last year and he wouldn't have known, you know, so. And that, Dan, for all your listeners, is of the most concern. And the reason I pointed out is because we've got to turn a new leaf. We've got to stop worrying about all this nonsense that we're worrying about in America. And all I know is this is my formula. I want America to be number one. I want us to be the strongest, fastest, most secure nation. That is what we are meant to do, and we've got to do that. And when we don't do it, we let our people down. So that's what I'm going to focus on. And, you know, I know there'll be some people, part of the establishment that might be aggravated with me for speaking out about it, but I do what is right. And I couldn't sleep at night if I didn't tell the truth of what I've heard.
- [25:43]
Dan Bongino
Yeah. Congressman, actually talking about you on the news right now, you made some news with the story today. So I'm glad to have you. Last question. I know you're busy. I'll let you go. Talking to Congressman Jeff Drew from the New Jersey area where this UAP UFO story is made a national news. Congressman, I've gotten a ton of questions from listeners about. Well, Dan, why do you think New Jersey. Why is the New Jersey not the only place, but it seems to be the epicenter of this activity I've thrown out about. I'm speculating, I've been honest about that. If I knew, I'd tell you conclusively. But New Jersey is a media center. No question about it. It'd be a lot more difficult to fly one over New York city, which, with LaGuardia JFK restricted airspace. Most of the people who do media in New York live in northern New Jersey. A lot of the finance people, a lot of influential people live there as well. You've got critical infrastructure there, military bases. You've got Bedminster. If you were gonna try to cause a stir and say, hey, look, this is what we can do to you, I'd wanna do it in northern New Jersey. It's probably the best place to do it and get it on the news.
- [26:41]
Ned Ryan
Absolutely. And they went all the way down to South Jersey and even parts of southern New Jersey. So remember the 177 Fighter Wing, also in my district in Atlanta county, protects the Washington to New York City corridor. We're in that corridor. It is extremely important to make sure that we are secure in that corridor. So that's one reason. Second reason, Bedminster, the home of the president elect in the state of New Jersey, again in that corridor in New Jersey, except extremely important. Besides all the other reasons that you mentioned and the fact, the temerity to come to the American public and state senators and state Assemblymen and even U.S. members of Congress and say, no, we don't know what it is, what's happening, what's going on, but we know you shouldn't worry. That's like going to a doctor and saying, I've got a horrendous pain in my, my chest.
- [27:39]
Dan Bongino
I don't know what it is.
- [27:40]
Ned Ryan
And the doctor saying, yeah, I don't know what it is either, but don't worry. Don't worry about.
- [27:45]
Dan Bongino
Yeah, I got this huge lump in my neck. It's been. It looks like quato from Total Recall. It hurts a little bit. Do you know what it is, Doc? I have no idea, but don't sweat it. Take a St. Joseph's baby asp. But everything will be okay. I'm not. I'm. I'm not. As congressman, I'm glad you don't have the faith in some of these people either that my listeners don't. Listen, as you said before, just prove us wrong, come to the table, give you a classified brief. Yeah. At least you could go to your constituents and say, hey, listen, there's things I can't share. However, I've been assured this is what it is. It's at least not a threat when we're free to talk about more. Well, but they won't even tell you that, which has me really worried.
- [28:25]
Ned Ryan
Congressman, they can't. Yeah, I don't think they really know. And either way, if they don't know, it's gross stupidity. And you know, that's even worse. Not to do their job.
- [28:36]
Jeff Van Drew
Right.
- [28:36]
Ned Ryan
And if they do know, that level of deception is not fair. So that's the worst.
- [28:41]
Dan Bongino
That's the worst answer. If what you just said is correct, that's the worst. If that they don't know scares me even worse. Congressman, thanks a lot for coming on. If you get any updates, you're welcome back anytime. Really appreciate it.
- [28:53]
Ned Ryan
Always appreciate you, Dan. Take care.
- [28:55]
Dan Bongino
Another one of our best interviews coming up next, but let's get to our next sponsor first. Hey, there's nothing better than lounging with the family in the comfiest pajamas on Christmas morning. And Cozy Earth's women's stretch knit long sleeve bamboo pajama set. And men's pajamas are designed for those cherished moments of relaxation. If relaxing in bed is more your thing, you're going to love Cozy Earth's bamboo sheet set. I have them on my bed. Elevating everyday luxury into something everyone will use and absolutely adore. Cozy Earth sheets are so breathable you'll sleep several degrees cooler and they're durable weave fabric won't pill guaranteed for 10 years. Cozy Earth prides itself on the responsible production of all products. Plus cozy earth bedding and bath products have a 10 year warranty wrapped in ones you love in luxury with Cozy Earth. Want your Cozy Earth pajamas by Christmas? Order by December 13th for free shipping. You missed it. You can still get expedited shipping until December 20th to ensure it arrives in time. Don't wait, head to cozyearth.com/bongino now use my exclusive code BONGINO for up to 40% off. Give the gift of luxury and comfort this holiday season. That's cozyearth.com bongino if you get a post purchase survey just say you heard about Cozy Earth from the Dan Bongino show podcast. This guy's a real patriot. Ned Ryan. He came on to talk about the government constantly lying to us and the Trump transition. Check this out, Jim. If you ever do a sequel to your Dan Bongino show survival guide book if you don't put the story in about how they should have listened and we could have saved them 100 million and really me and you, we can't be friends anymore. They should have listened, right? Nobody know if you're really smart. You know what it if you're like, if you're like the a PhD of P ones we warned them against drafting a guy two interceptions. I thought I told you. I watched every week. Jim tried. We tried desperately to save you 100 milli and he didn't listen. And now you know we need Roger scar on to talk about that they around and now they're finding out did we not call it? Jim, can you find that segment some point so we can play that again? You've got it like one day, right? You'll see what I mean.
- [31:06]
Michael Francaise
All right.
- [31:06]
Dan Bongino
I got a great guest for you here. Welcoming back to the show a good friend and a guy who calls balls and strikes, Ned Ryan. Ned, thanks for joining us. We appreciate it.
- [31:15]
Absolutely. Dan, good to be with you again.
- [31:19]
Jim and I have a bunch of these like deep dark if you know, you know secrets and I, I just warned him not to draft this guy and they did. And you Ned? I could have saved them 100 million and they didn't listen. They didn't. They should have trusted me.
- [31:31]
He needs to make better choices in life. That's it.
- [31:33]
Right?
- [31:34]
Make Better choices.
- [31:35]
Exactly. Thank you, my brother. So, Ned, the drone story, I'm going to get into it after you get off the air. I'm not going to get into what they are, what they aren't. Right now. I have a theory on it based on some evidence, but it's a theory. I'm not, you know, I'm being clear. It's speculation at this point. However, that's not what I want to talk to you about. What I want to talk to you about is a piece in the Wall Street Journal was interesting, even though he took a shot at the podcast. Nobody trusts the government anymore. Nobody trusts the government about anything. This is. This. I see this story one of two ways at this point. Either the government knows what it is and this story is so devastating they're lying and nobody believes them, or the government doesn't know what it is, which is an even bigger scandal that the government doesn't know what it is. Either way, the government sucks.
- [32:22]
Yeah. No. 100%. I think we've gotten to such a level of distrust, especially in the last couple of years after the COVID debacle, that I think the first reaction should be, no, we don't trust you. But then can you prove it? And again, I think we should be highly skeptical of any statements coming out of the government and say, no, I don't believe you. Then can you prove it? But you're right. I think we're left with two conclusions. Like you just said. Either they do know and are lying to us, which I think is perfectly acceptable explanation, or could be. Dan and I think there's some merit to it. Maybe they are so incompetent that they really don't know what's going on because they've been focused on all kinds of weird DEI crap and have incompetent people running our government, that we are left with complete and wild incompetence. So I think either one of those two are plausible. I will say I lean towards. They probably do know what's going on. They're lying through their teeth to us and don't want to tell us the truth of what's actually taking place with these drones.
- [33:27]
We're talking to Ned Ryan. Ned. Yes. This is why I like having you. We think we are so simpatico. You said two things that are correct. I do believe they know what it is because. Yes, but I also believe they're incompetent. Holman Jenkins at the Wall Street Journal have been citing a lot because he's been talking about this story forever. And his operating thesis has been that this is foreign surveillance. That just like the spy balloon. And that they know just someone said to me, oh, but it, but they've got lights on on the drones. That's the point. They don't even care that China knew that we knew it was their spy balloon. And they just have no respect for this Biden team at all. So I believe two things you said are accurate. They do know what it is. It's probably foreign. Not 100%, but probably foreign. And they just don't know what to do because if they tell people it's foreign and everybody's going to go, wait, you guys don't have a plan for this? These guys are idiots. They, they're just, they don't have a plan because they work for the government.
- [34:28]
Well, so there's two things at issue here. One, it does show you how things can go very badly very quickly with the wrong leadership. Think about how bad the last four years have gone with wildly incompetent leadership. But also at the same time, I think our governments. I mean, this is a longer conversation. It's one of the reasons I wrote my new book, American Leviathan. But it is filled with not so called experts, but a credentialed idiocracy. And when it really does come time to actually serve the American people, they do not have the skill sets, nor, by the way, are the American people a priority. And then you get into these situations and you're like, what are we even doing here? I mean, we are literally spending ungodly sums of money on this form of government that we have today. And I don't think it even wants to prioritize the American people. But even if it did, it's incapable of doing so because of who it's filled with, what its focus is. But I'm telling you right now, Dan, you and I both know, having been around D.C. for a long time and having witnessed some stuff up close, this form of government is so wildly incompetent. It doesn't serve the American people. We need to have a conversation about what it looks like moving forward. And that's why, I mean, thrilled, that Trump is actually talking about Department of Government Efficiency and Elon and Vivek, you know, taking a hard look at what's going on in D.C. but I have to tell you, I don't want them to trim it or make it more efficient. I want them to shatter it into a million pieces and go, let's have a conversation about what form of government we have moving Forward that actually serves the American people, that protects our interests both on the foreign and domestic front.
- [36:11]
Ned Ryan, he has a book out. It's amazing. I got an early copy of it. It's called American.
- [36:16]
Yes.
- [36:17]
I blurbed it because it was fantastic. Ned's one. Ned and Shawn Davis kind of see the word. They see balls and strikes. Really care if you're a Republican or Democrat, which. Those are the only type of guests I have in the show. If you're a Republican party ass kisser, then don't come on my show ever. So American Leviathans. A book. Pick it up. Ned. I wanted to kind of double down on something you just brought up, which is the inefficiency component of the government. We're spending $7 trillion on government. And again, the drone story. Forgetting about what it is or isn't, but just the government's approach to it. You're telling me, you know, Facebook's what trillion or close to trillion dollar company you mentioned? I'm not telling you I like this. I'm just telling you it happens. You're in a room and you mentioned that, you know, you want to learn how to throw a curveball. It's amazing. You get a Facebook ad. Here's this special baseball that'll teach you how to grip the curveball. And you're like, oh, my gosh, they're spying us. How do I know this yet? You've got these things in the sky that look like dump trucks with lights on them that, you know, thousands of people could see. And the seven trillion dollar government's like, I don't know, man. What? What is it? I don't know. I'm not really sure. And it brings up the question you brought up. I. I don't need it. I love the Department of Government Efficiency, but you're right. I don't want little scalpel stuff. I want machetes going on. I want whole departments wiped out. We got to start over.
- [37:31]
Yeah, no, I mean, this is. This has been built, so we've got to be realistic. Dan. This is the one thing that I'm a little concerned about. And again, I don't know as much about what they're planning, but this has been 100 years in the making. We're not going to get out of it in 18 months, you know? So I want to have a conversation about not dealing with the effects, but the cause. I mean, this is a poisonous tree. I would argue that what we have in D.C. today, the administrative state, has nothing to do with how we are found it has nothing to do with representing the American people. Like we need to annihilate it. We don't need to trim it, we need to crush it. And so you're right. And the other thing you mentioned to Facebook, this to me is one of my biggest, one of the biggest problems I have today with a lot of people that are on the so called right where they don't want to go after private corporations. But the left has figured out something that I think they've been using these corporations to their benefit in which they don't want to make a full on assault against our bill of Rights, against our natural inherent rights. So they backdoor this annihilation of the freedom of speech, the free flow of information by using these private corporations like Facebook and again before Elon bought X Twitter, all these things to censor us, to crush freedom of speech, to annihilate our natural rights. I mean, we have a whole host of fundamental problems, you know, the very root of which do we want a government of buying for the people or are we going to go ahead and continue to put up with this massive sprawling bureaucracy that's first of all crushing the life out of us, not only our rights, but just soaking us for cash and then figure out what does this look like moving forward? I think we're in a singular moment, Dan, where I think if you have a person with the right political courage, that's Donald Trump with the right team around him, I think we could have a very interesting next four years about having that conversation about what should our government look like, what should it be doing, what should it not be doing, what should it be prioritizing. So I think we're in for a very interesting next four years.
- [39:27]
Yeah. So Jerry Baker at the Wall Street Journal, obviously not a Trump guy at all, but he has a piece that just popped 20 minutes ago in the editorial column and it's a pretty good piece. And the gist of the piece is we have not had a political bank account. I'm not talking about money, I'm talking about power. A political bank account as full as we have now since 2004. George Bush, Bush, when he won reelection pretty handily. We haven't had that 2016. They were, you know, stupid allegations of collusion. You had the Mueller thing. A lot of Trump's political capital was taken away by ridiculous conspiracy theories. Ned, we know they haven't given up the left or commies, you and I both know that. But there's simply no question that the resistance air quotes has been muted it just has. I think they're so shocked by him winning the popular vote that we have, and you were just kind of hinting at it, probably about 18 months where we can do some really special things. And you're seeing it now during the transition. Trump has a lot of political capital right now.
- [40:32]
But more importantly, Dan, I think you've got somebody for the first time in a long time who. One of my biggest pet peeves with Republicans is when the people give them political power, they don't know what to do with the political power. They don't want to use the political power to actually enforce their will and say, we're going to have massive structural change. We're not going to trim, you know, we're not going to shave the elephant. We're going to actually kill the elephant. Donald Trump has political power, and I think this time around, he knows exactly what to do with it. He's a change agent. And the thing that I'm hoping and I'm seeing positive trends on these nominees, that he'll get his change agents in the various departments and agencies, because I think the Republican senators are kind of realizing, yeah, we better. We better play along here and give him his nominees, or else, you know, some of these red state senators who are up in 26 might find themselves with very legitimate primary challenges, which I would totally applaud.
- [41:26]
Can I stop you there? Because I want. I don't want to miss that point, I think, and I'd love to get your take on it. I think Pete Hegseth was the turning point. I think they got their scalp in Matt Gaetz. I think they feel like, okay, we, you know, we had that measuring contest, if you know what I mean. But I think the Hegset thing, I think they were trying to do it again. I don't think that was an act. Like, they were like, oh, no, we just want our guy because we want to fight every foreign war possible. And I think they were genuinely stunned by guys like you, me, Sean Davis, cat turd, everyone. You laugh at them all. The guy, he's probably the second most powerful guy on Twitter. They couldn't believe it. And I think now they're like, oh, my gosh, like this MAGA movements real. Like, they're not kidding around.
- [42:08]
This was a line in the sand. I mean, to me, it was. It was about Pete. You know, I know him. He would have brought that. He's going to bring the change necessary. Department of Defense. But it was about more than Pete. This was, you are not going to do this again, because I was afraid it'd be a domino effect. Right. Take out Gates, take out Hegseth, and then let's take out the next one.
- [42:26]
The next one, right?
- [42:28]
Then you've got this, this total quagmire. That's why I was first of all, cuz I know Pete. But the second one was, you're not gonna do this. You're gonna get the memo. He won. Quite frankly. You have a majority in the Senate because Trump won. We have a majority in the House because of Trump. Why don't you actually fall in line? The American people want change. He has appointed, he has nominated these people. You know, hopefully you'll get the memo. I think they have. I mean, I've been talking with some people that are very much involved, involved in the process, you know, very close to the nominee. Some of the nominees, they really have sensed the tide turning in the last few days to the point where I feel really good about Pete. I feel really good about Cash. You know, I think, I think there's probably going to be some fighting still that's going to take place, you know, down the road with other nominees. But I really do think we have seen a really positive trend in the last few days because you're right, a lot of us, you, me, others decided, nope, you're not going to do this. We know what you want. We know what you're trying to do. You don't get status quo. We're not going to do this anymore. Donald Trump won. Donald Trump should get his nominees.
- [43:35]
You're so right with the domino thing. That's what terrified me. They always get one scalp. I don't agree with what they did, but they always get one. But I totally agree with you. Pete had to be the red line. He's more than qualified. He's a man of integrity. These were anonymous things that had already been handled. There's nobody in D.C. that doesn't have some story about. So please spare me the nonsense of the morality lectures. Nate, I want to get a plug in for your book. Unfortunately, I'm out of time. Ned Ryan. The book is American Leviathan. I wrote a blurb for it. I don't do a lot of blurbs. This book is fantastic. You want to learn about what the government is doing to you and how this metastasizing cancer on your life has taken over American Leviathan and wherever you get your books. Ned, thanks for coming on. We really appreciate it. Always such great insights. Thanks a lot.
- [44:21]
All right, thanks, Dan. I appreciate it.
- [44:23]
You got it. I try to only have guests on who see the rod on both sides, folks, or else you're going to get what you get at the New York Times, a biased view of the world where the Democrats could do no wrong and the Republicans are the evil Nazis all the time. Here's the bottom line. Whereas the Democrats are the cause of your problems, Republicans sometimes aren't the solution either. And that requires you to, you know, all of us to have an open mind about all this. Another interesting interview next. But let's hear from our next sponsor first, folks. I've had my Helix mattress for several years now. I just got a new one moved in the new house. It is the best mattress to sleep on. I have a midnight luxe. I love it. Listen, you're on the mattress 8, 10 hours a night sometimes. That's a long time to be on a terrible mattress and poor sleep. Your days are going to be long and they're going to be really horrible. You need your sleep. That's when your body heals. Helix is the award winning mattress brand recommended by many, me included, for improving sleep. I'm sleeping better than my old mattress. It's really improved my everyday life. Less aches and pains. You know, I got a bad shoulder. Sleeping on my Helix has been a game changer for me. I'm a side sleeper and they'll personalize the mattress for you. For every type of sleeper. Helix mattress helps you choose firmness or height that fits you. You want to know which Helix mattress is right for you? Take the innovative sleep quiz to find out your match. And right now get 20% off plus two free pillows for all mattress orders when you order@helixsleep.com dan h e l I x helixsleep.com dan that's helixsleep.com dan for 20% off and two free pillows for all mattress orders. Thank you, Helix. This company's been with me for a long time in the show on the Bongino Army. Thank you very much. We appreciate that. Finally, this was a real surprise interview. I wasn't sure how this was going to go over. We talked with chef Andrew Gruel, who is just a great make America great Again guy. But the prime rib segment, I don't think I've ever gotten more emails about. I'm not even kidding about an interview segment than this one. Listen to an interview, you'll see what I mean. Check this out. So President Trump's nominees, the left wing media has told you, of course, that they're controversial. That's obviously their line for everything. Donald Trump does. But if you watch the beginning of the show or the beginning of the podcast, how controversial can they all be? If the Trump transition is near universal GOP approval? And the approval of the transition has been going pretty well with the general population as well. Folks, there's nothing wrong with having people with different viewpoints in your cabinet. Now, I am a fan of the team of rivals approach as long as there's some loyalty involved. Not a team of like, Mitt Romney, Adam Kinzinger type rivals. But the selections for the cabinet have been a really diverse group. And I'm not talking about diverse in the woke way. I mean, ideologically, some of them I agree with, some of them I don't. But I'm willing to hear them out. One of them has been RFK Jr who has had a really, really bold voice over the years when it comes to things like our food supply and elsewhere. So our next guest, you've probably seen him on social media, if you follow me, has a really big following. He was very active during COVID defending the restaurants out there that were being closed down. His name is Andrew Gruel. Chef Andrew Gruel, welcome to the show. Good to have you.
- [47:36]
Jeff Van Drew
It's great to be back. Thank you so much.
- [47:38]
Dan Bongino
Always good to have you, especially around one of these eating holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. I know. I'm kind of wondering, wait, before we get to the serious stuff. So, I mean, turkey's obviously the go to on Thanksgiving, but I mean, you're a chef and a pretty famous one at that. Like, what's the go to on Christmas? Is it the ham thing or do you go with, like, a rib roast or something? I don't know. Like, I'm just a steak guy. I just want a ribeye with some fat and marbling in it. But what's the go to Christmas dish for the audience that in the Chef Andrew Gruel household were like, this is happening.
- [48:12]
Jeff Van Drew
The go to dish is definitely prime rib. Maybe like braised lamb or lamb shoulder. I see some of that. But primarily prime rib. And based on the questions I've been getting, it's like 95% slanted to prime rib. So that's the go to prime rib.
- [48:26]
Dan Bongino
Now, wait, how do you cook it? Because producer Jim, I don't know if, you know, this is like a big lover of smoked meats and everything like that. He goes to these barbecue festivals and everything and tears it up. How do you cook the prime rib? So it's juicy and tender and it, like, melts in your mouth. So, you know, you can have like, no teeth, just gums, and it still works.
- [48:47]
Jeff Van Drew
Yeah, I say spoon tender. I want to be eating my prime rib with a spoon. Maybe a spoon, fork, but most likely a spoon. You know, everybody, they mistake, they make a lot of mistakes with their prime rib because they think that if they just sear it really, really high and hard, it's going to seal the juices in. That is a misnomer, right? So what you actually want to do is first you want to salt your prime rib 24 hours ahead of time. So you salt it, right? You let it sit in the refrigerator. It's called a dry brine. That salt goes in and out of the meat multiple times. It breaks down those protein strands, and it actually seasons all the way to the center of the meat. And then what you want to do is you want to just rub it down with some butter and throw it in a low temp oven 250 degrees and bring it up. It's going to take about three or four hours, right? And then you bring it up to about 110 degrees. And then you put your seasonings on there at that point, right? You pull it out. You can put like garlic on there, spice seasoning, bacon, whatever you want. And you blast your oven to 500 degrees and you. That's when you sear that outside. It's kind of known as a reverse sear in the industry. And then at about 120, 125 degrees for, for a good rare to mid rare, you pull it and you let it sit. When you cut into it, what you'll notice because you started at that low temp is you're going to have that perfectly even color from edge to edge with a nice crispy exterior, as opposed to those gradients where it goes like gray, lighter red, hard red, lighter red, gray. You just got one even color. Because of the pre salt, you've broken the meat down. And that low roast, most people don't know this, but actually between the temperature of like 80 and 115 degrees, there's enzymes that live in the meat, that break the meat down. If you bring it up to temp too quickly, you kill those enzymes so it doesn't do its natural tenderization. So that low heat is what you want. And then you just gotta let it rest for about 10 or 15 minutes. And there you go, Bob's your uncle. You'll be eating it with a spoon.
- [50:39]
Dan Bongino
Folks, you see only on this show, you've got Christmas coming up next week. And now you know about the cr, the trump Transition, you know about Trump, answering the phone, personal politics. And you also know how to put the best prime rib on the kitchen table next week for your Christmas holiday, your Christmas meal. So where else are you gonna get that? Talking to chef Andrew Gruel. Chef. Another thing I wanted to address with you is Bobby Kennedy has brought to light a lot of issues that guys like you who spend their lives around food. Obviously you're a chef, but you know me as well. I mean, I'm a radio host, but I am obsessed with life hacks and being healthy. I went through a pretty nasty health situation, luckily got through it. But I realized the power of food. You know, everybody's looking for a pill. You know, what is it? Is it the collagen, the vitamin C? Is it. It's all good stuff, I get it. But they're called supplement chef for a reason. They're meant to supplement a healthy diet. Bobby Kennedy, with his focus on health and fitness and food and the food supply chain, has brought this into the public light, this Make America Healthy Again movement. But our food has become so processed and there's such garbage and it comes from a bag. You look on the back, there's like 10,000 ingredients, all these food dyes and all this stuff that I wish I could get across to America that you can make healthy stuff taste amazing. You can go and put some olive oil and some a nice vinegar on a spinach salad and throw in some asparagus tips and some avocado and some really nice grilled chicken. And you've got this amazing God given food right in front of you. And it has none of this poison in it at all. Like, this is what this Make America Healthy Again movement is really got to be about. So many of our problems would be cured if people would just eat like that.
- [52:23]
Jeff Van Drew
I mean, our economic problems would be cured if people ate like that. 20% of our federal budget goes towards health care that are all a result of a lot of these chronic diseases, right? I mean, everything from diabetes to obesity to autoimmune disease, hypertension, you name it. The list can go on and on. And I'll tell you one thing that I think is really funny is if you actually take a graph and you, you graph out the size of the USDA, the size of the FDA over the past 30 years, and then the number of chronic diseases and how sick we've gotten, the bigger the government gets in those agencies in particular, the sicker we've gotten. So, I mean, even if you want to pull out to 30,000ft and say, well, what do we need to fix? I think the most immediate thing is, you realize, is that the government's not helping us. They're making it worse.
- [53:07]
Dan Bongino
So that's first and foremost talking to Chef Andrew Gruel. Yep. Chef, One other thing I wanted to ask you about this too is with this, I had this change in my diet after I had this whole episode with cancer. And I realized that these processed sugars and processed foods were probably, we're at a minimum, not helping. We'll just say that. I don't want to be hyperbolic about it, but we're definitely not helping my health. And what. And when I changed my diet to fruits, vegetables, the things you heard, you've heard since your kindergarten teacher told it's not complicated, you know, grilled chicken, salmon, you know, leaner meats. When I changed my diet, it was just, it's three to six month period where you still crave, you know, an Oreo or fine, I still like a five guys burgers. They still taste good, but you crave it. You know, I'm saying, like the first few months of transitioning to that Make America Healthy Again type of eating program, you really do miss kind of the sweet stuff. But then you reach this kind of transitional, almost breaking point where you lose the craving for it at all and your life is totally changed. Like, I, I don't. My kid loves sweets still, so she'll go out and eat an Oreo, whatever, once in a while, some cookie. And I'm not sitting there going, gosh, I wish I had one of those. Like you, your taste buds change, your whole body changes, you get lean, the bloating stops. All this other stuff there is that. Have you noticed that when you know, you know, obviously you're being around food all the time, that it does kind of take a while to break. That sugar is an addictive compound. It's almost like a drug.
- [54:36]
Jeff Van Drew
It is. And it's not just the sugar. I mean, the sugar is obviously a driver, but it's also a lot of the other chemicals that you mentioned that are in our food, including things like seed oils and all these high, these inflammatory products. But what's interesting is that it's the Food and Drug Administration for a reason. I mean, you just described coming off of a drug. Right, described coming off of an addiction. Whether it's alcohol or any type of other hard illicit drug, the same thing happens to our bodies. But then when your bodies start to get nourished, it almost changes the mind as well. Your mind recognizes because the Majority of our neurotransmitters, funny enough, are actually in our intestines, not in our brain. That's why many times, especially the pharmaceutical agency, when people have stomach issues, they treat them with antidepressants or anti anxiety pills. Now, I'm not advocating that, but I just think that's an interesting kind of story that shows how your stomach affects everything and what you eat affects everything. There are so many anecdotes out there nowadays, and most of them are also scientific, that prove how fixing your diet will fix your body. But the problem is that takes time. It takes effort, it takes energy, but most importantly, it takes a relationship with your food and being in the kitchen. And, you know, when I look at this whole RFK confirmation, one of the things that he's done is bringing this attention to food. I mean, food has symbolized unity throughout history, right? Bringing people together, across cultures, generations. Good food is more than just sustenance. It's a tool for bringing stronger relationships. Drawing inspiration from traditions like the family dinner table, right? And conversations around food. We get to know our food a little bit better, cook a little bit more, then you're going to be able to have that stronger relationship and break those addictions. Now, the second piece of that is that you can't have the drug dealer around 24 7. And in, unfortunately, in this case, the drug dealer has actually become the government and big food manufacturers. And, you know, if they're incentivizing us to continue eating this food through so many different mechanisms within the government, from subsidies to just general marketing, then we're not going to be able to break that. So, you know, Kennedy talks about the awareness of food, which is important, as I just mentioned. But then number two, reexamining the structure and the relationship that these major food companies have within our government and our food system. I mean, four major companies control more than 60% of the US market for pork, coffee, coffees, beer, bread. The top four companies control more than 80% of the US market for beef, baby food, pasta, soda. Right? So they've gotten a grip on us and we need to break that.
- [56:59]
Dan Bongino
Talking to chef Andrew Gruel. Chef, last question for you. You were really, really active on social media defending individual liberty during the COVID shutdowns because restaurants got destroyed. Some of them never came back. Just the effect was just so profound all across the country. I'm of the belief that a lot of the shift that happened in this Donald Trump victory in the election, not all of it, but a lot of it was due to the Far left and the swampy right, you know, to be candid about it, their response to Covid, there were people, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Muslim, Jewish, Catholic, it didn't matter. They were all impacted by an overreaction to this tragic virus, but one that the effects of it were obviously exaggerated. You spoke out about that and you were knee deep in that whole thing. You agree with that assessment that this had a lot to do with it. When you see a lot of these liberal areas that shifted dramatically towards Trump and away from the Democrats 1,000%, I.
- [57:57]
Jeff Van Drew
Mean, there's a silver lining in every curse, and that's one of them, is that it did bring together multiple factions, a diverse group of people. And I saw it, you know, hands on in a restaurant industry which is notorious for being incredibly progressive and liberal. And I saw chefs and restaurateurs and even, you know, the individual level workers that have completely changed their tune and are now on this Maha Trump train who were, you know, they were out there protesting capitalism six years ago. Right. So it is pretty amazing what I've seen. And the reason I think that the restaurant industry was at the tip of the spear was because it's something people understand. I've always talked about this kind of government driven curse of knowledge. They use all of these confusing legal terms and all of this jargon in the semantics to confuse the American people. And then what they do is they lie to you in propaganda and headlines of these bills, things like the inflation reduction act, right? You read the legalese and you're like, I have no idea what this says. And then they say, no, it's an inflation reduction act. And the average everyday person says, okay, sounds good to me. Well, you can't do that with food because we all know food. Going back to my original point, food is the great unifier. So you're not going to pull the wool over our eyes. And now finally, we're holding people's feet to the fire and drawing awareness to this. And I think that it's a great thing once again coming off of something that wasn't so great. But you got to, you got to, you know, make lemonade with the lemons, as they say.
- [59:11]
Dan Bongino
And we covered a lot of turf in that interview. Rfk, Make America, Make America healthy again. Prime rib, how to cook it, COVID lockdowns, politicians, a Trump effect. That, that may be the most substantive 14 minutes ever. Chef Andrew Gruel, thanks a lot for coming on. Really appreciate. Welcome back anytime. Thank you, Dan.
- [59:29]
Jeff Van Drew
I really appreciate it. Thank you.
- [59:31]
Dan Bongino
You got it, man. That was a lot of material. For 14, 15 minutes. We told Jim that I'd out of like, man, what are we really talking about? Because I like lighter stuff, but not too much light stuff. Like, that's not kind of my. We just covered a lot of material there. Good job, chef girl. I appreciate that, Jim. I know Jim will. Now the whole break, I'm gonna hear about the prime rib segment. This guy, all he wants to talk about is smoked meats and meats and cooking meats. This guy's like obsessed with it. Jim could quit tomorrow and be a full time meat guy. Cooking meat, smoking meats, grilling meats, that's all he'd do. Thanks for listening to the podcast. Not just today, but this year. Looking forward to many more in 2025. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. You just heard Dan Bongino.