#RolandMartinUnfiltered - 2024 Election Certified, Remembering Jan. 6., VA Special Election, VP Harris Snubbed

Episode Date: January 7, 2025

1.6.2025 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: 2024 Election Certified, Remembering Jan. 6., VA Special Election, VP Harris Snubbed Unlike four years ago, today's election results certification went smoothly.  We'll tell you about a wilderness survival trainer who spent years undercover, climbing the ranks of right-wing militias without any law enforcement backup.  I talked to the reporter, who was trusted to tell his story.  The orange one's motion to stay Friday's sentencing in his hush-money case gets denied.   A federal judge holds Rudy Giuliani in contempt.  The husband of Nebraska's newly sworn senator snubs Vice Presidenr Harris when she tries to shake his hand.  We have the video.  Virginia's Democratic Leader, Don Scott, will be here to talk about Tuesday's special election.  #BlackStarNetwork partner: Fanbasehttps://www.startengine.com/offering/fanbase This Reg A+ offering is made available through StartEngine Primary, LLC, member FINRA/SIPC.  This investment is speculative, illiquid, and involves a high degree of risk, including the possible loss of your entire investment. You should read the Offering Circular (https://bit.ly/3VDPKjD) and Risks (https://bit.ly/3ZQzHl0) related to this offering before investing. Download the #BlackStarNetwork app on iOS, AppleTV, Android, Android TV, Roku, FireTV, SamsungTV and XBox  http://www.blackstarnetwork.com The #BlackStarNetwork is a news reporting platforms covered under Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. to, yeah, banana pudding. If it's happening in business, our new podcast is on it. I'm Max Chastin. And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith. So listen to Everybody's Business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops. They get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun?

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It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers, but we also have to learn to take care of ourselves.

A wrap-away, you got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else, but never forget yourself. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth. Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. Folks, today is Monday, January 6th, 2025. Coming up on Roller Mark Unpublished, streaming live on the Black Star Network. Today's Insurrection Day. Four years ago, white domestic terrorists supporting Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol, caused massive mayhem. Today, Vice President Kamala Harris certified the

results of the 2024 election. Did you see any of her supporters storming the Capitol, beating up cops? No, you didn't. That's the difference between the two. So we're going to talk about things. Also, folks, a wilderness survival trainer spent years undercover in climbing the ranks of right wing militias without any law enforcement backup. I talked to the reporter with ProPublica who was trusted to tell his story. You're not going to believe this. Also, the orange one's motion to stay Friday sentencing in his hush money case, well, gets denied. A federal judge holds Rudy Giuliani in contempt and the husband of Nebraska's newly sworn in U.S. Senator completely snubs Vice President Kamala Harris when she tries to shake his hand. We'll show you the U.S. Senator completely snubs Vice President Kamala Harris when she tries to shake

his hand. We'll show you the despicable video. Also, being Speaker of the House in Virginia, Don Scott will be here to talk about Tuesday's special election that will determine who controls Virginia House and Senate. Folks, it's time to bring the funk. I'm Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network, let's go He's got Whatever the piss he's on it Whatever it is he's got The super fat, the fine

And when it breaks he's right on time And it's rolling Best believe he's knowing Putting it down from sports to news to politics With entertainment just for kicks he's rolling it's rolling he's funky fresh he's real the best you know He's rolling, Martel

Martel Four years ago, folks, this is what it looked like in the nation's capital, Washington, D.C., as the House and the Senate tried to certify a 2020 election led by Donald Trump, his supporters. What did they do? They actually stormed the U.S. Capitol, causing massive mayhem. More than a thousand people have been prosecuted as a result. This is what it looked like four years ago. And America still allowed Donald Trump back in the Oval Office. It goes to show you exactly what kind of people they are.

All day across social media, MAGA folks have been making excuses. And they've been telling the fact that the election results were certified today for Donald Trump. But that's a huge difference between how Republicans acted four years ago. And here's a fundamental problem that we have. This is our biggest problem. The folks who tried to overthrow the election, they are still in power. They now control the House. They now control the Senate. They now control the White House. So what you're dealing with are insurrectionists, white domestic terrorists. And in fact, Donald Trump has actually pledged to provide clemency, grant pardons to these individuals. Don't be surprised if he does it

from the U.S. Capitol on January 20th, because that's the kind of person that he is. And so just as a reminder to you all, we know where we were four years ago. I was in Atlanta. It was the day after Raphael Warnock won the runoff to become the United States Senator. And I stood there in Atlanta watching television, watching the scene unfold. Now, remember somebody asking me, how did you feel? And I said, chicken's coming home to roost. She said to me, you know what? You really shouldn't say that.

Guys, turn the audio up because people need to remember what this was like. This was what it looked like at the US Capitol four years ago. Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go!

Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go!

Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Now, MAGA, they've been trying to suggest, now keep it full screen. MAGA's been trying to suggest that,

oh, it was just a walk in the park. People were actually taking tours. No, you see them climbing through windows. They were gouging the eyes out of police officers. They were attacking them with flagpoles. These people were creating mayhem. They had their Trump flags, their Confederate flags. And yet Republicans who condemned this, who said that, oh, these actions, we should never see this again. And what happened? These folks are back in power.

That's what you actually see right now. I want to bring in my panel right now to talk about this, because it's important for us to not overlook it. You got a lot of people across the country. They are talking about the certification today. I'm not solely focused on certification of the election because we cannot forget what actually took place four years ago and who was behind it. Dr. Julian Malveaux, economist, president emerita at Bennett College. She's the author of Surviving and Thriving, 365 Facts in Black Economic History. Also, Dr. Amakango Dabinga, senior professor of lecture school, International Service, American University. He's the author of Lies About Black People, How to Combat Racist Stereotypes

and Why It Matters. Teresa Lundy, podcast host of the Business Corner out of Philadelphia. Glad to have all three of you here. I want to start with you, Julian. When we talk about this day, when we talk about what happened, you got the folks on the right who are like, oh, you know what? That thing shouldn't have happened. The folk, they were trying to overthrow the result of the election.

They were pissed off. They were pissed off at black people and how they voted in Atlanta, Philadelphia, in Detroit, in Milwaukee. And they did not want to see Joe Biden certified to be president. And this is a stain on America. We cannot forget it. We can't forget that the people who voted not to certify the election, including the

current House Speaker Mike Johnson, now all of a sudden they go, oh, things were fine. Things were fair only because they won. Exactly. You know, I don't know who this congressman is. I wrote his name down, but I lost it. But he was talking about these were grandmothers. It's hilarious. Grandmothers who were taking a tour. And yet maybe one or two

people got out of line. There was a mob out there. I saw Brother Dunn, the brother who he talks about his experience, that three or four of them who talked about their experience, and they're livid that the orange man says he wants to pardon the people who tried to gouge their eyes out, who attacked them with sticks and all kinds of things. But, you know, this is revisionist history and why it's so important to have truth, is why it's so important for them to deny truth. And contextually, they want to erase that incident and make it, oh, these little old ladies were just walking through Capitol and something happened. We all know that's not what happened, and we have to keep telling the story so that nobody, nobody, nobody ever thinks this was just

a garden club coming to see the Capitol building. We all know that's not what it was, but they would like to erase that. So, you know, when I look at those pictures, Roland, and people have been running them on, you know, the media all day, and I'm glad they are because if they don't, history will be rewritten. History belongs to she who holds the pen. And the fact is that they don't want us to hold pens. They don't even want us to have them. They want to just make it as if this was Biden's Justice Department going awry and indicting, what, 1,600 people? 1,600 people?

That is not called a walk in the park. That is called mob violence. And I'm glad you used the term white extremists, white terrorist extremists, who basically, and underline the white, who basically do not want fairness, do not want democracy. But Kamala Harris, as always, she came through. She's a picture of what democracy is about. She was graceful. She didn't have any side comments. She ran the process. And that's what you're supposed to do. Run the process. And it was a smooth, constitutionally dictated process that four years ago, the Trumpies and their friends refused to allow to happen. Oma Congo, it's important for us to call these people for who they are. They are white

domestic terrorists. They are the people who did not want this to move forward. Donald Trump became the first occupant of the Oval Office to ever try to overthrow an election. We cannot forget that. I don't care what happened November 2024. They will go out, they will remember for this, and we must call them out for who they are every single time. Look, the way you led this out with insurrection day and calling a thing a thing, if we don't do that, then we are going to deserve what we get. The fact of the matter is not only do we have to make sure we don't let this day be forgotten, we have to continue to bring it up because just this past weekend, Trump is at Mar-a-Lago showing a John Eastman film and he's a sore winner.

He has to do everything possible to change the narrative about what happened that day and all of his denials of the election. They are not going to stop, right? When you look at Bush v. Gore, the Bush had a rough thing. No, they have to make sure they change the history books, they change the news networks, they change everything to make it look like it was, as he said, a day of love. This was the first time a Confederate flag flew in the Capitol. This was the first time that the United States did not have a peaceful transfer of power. We have people, Brian Sicknick, a Capitol Police officer, who was a Trump supporter, who died because of injuries

and then officers who killed themselves later. Look at what happened with Lieutenant Byrd who shot Ashley Babbitt and how his entire life has been destroyed. These people in every way, shape and form are trying to make sure that what happened is not told and they got their own networks to do it,

the Foxes, the OANs. And that's why we have to be here with the Foxes, the OANNs. And that's why we have to be here with the Black Star Network, because this was an attack and assault on our entire democracy. And if people paid attention to what you wrote about in your book, White Fear, then people could have seen these signs coming. But we have to make sure that what we're doing is always correcting the record, because this is a terrible day in American history. And at the end of the day, we have classless individuals who would have done this again had they lost. And we have to make sure that we're telling the proper story.

But, Teresa, this is why I did not want to lead with today's certification, because it's real easy to try to normalize and say, well, you know, you know, you know, here's what happened today. No, no, no, no, no. We cannot forget what these people did. And there are people like Senator Ron Johnson, who was trying to deliver fake electors to then Vice President Mike Pence. It was people like Utah Senator Mike Lee. It was

Josh Howley of Missouri. It was Chuck Grassley of Iowa. It was Ted Cruz of Texas. These despicable individuals, they were being helped. The Marjorie Taylor Greene, the Jim Jordans, the list goes on, the Scott Perry of Pennsylvania. It goes on and on and on. And the problem is these people are still there. The people who tried to overthrow the election result are now the ones who are in charge. That cannot be overlooked. That can't be overlooked, nor are the lives that were lost during the election. And I think, you know, when you started it off, it was definitely a clear history of let's never forget, because we all know that they are now trying those who were, I guess, prosecuted for the take. The insurrection that took place is now, you know, trying to get off. So now that that's a whole nother thing. And I think,

you know, that's just very interesting as we, you know, I think Democrats, you know, and thank God for Vice President Kamala Harris with such grace and dignity and leadership. You know, I think, you know, as I was looking at some of the comments on X and Facebook groups, you know, even Magna folks, like not all of them, but a few were definitely, you know, a little bit alarmed and dismayed about what was done to her. Because again, if there was a male, a white male in that position that would not have happened, they would have shook hands and probably played golf afterwards.

But again, Actually, actually hold tight. We're going to discuss that later. But I want to say I want to talk. I want to talk about, again, this being the fourth anniversary of the insurrection. And we just simply can't just just dismiss this reality. Here's a perfect example. This was a tweet that conservative commentator Eric Erickson posted this four years ago today. Watch this. This is what he said. Shoot the protesters. Weigh the rules. Impeach. Weigh the rules. Convict. Weigh the rules. Deny the ability to run for election again.

And you know what happened? Eric Erickson supported Donald Trump and the same Republicans in November. Mitch McConnell stood on the floor and decried what took place. He and Kevin McCarthy put it at the feet of Donald Trump. But none of that matter, Teresa. And it goes to show you the kind of people they are. They have no

morals, no values, no principles, no ethics at all. No, you're absolutely right. And again, history will always repeat itself. I think Republicans are the main cause and effect when they always try to say, you know, let's not think about the history. Let's not think about slavery. Let's let's not think about the 1619 project.

Let's talk about the future. But, you know, about for the first four years was Donald Trump's position in office and how yet people forgot. So many forgot when he was in office, how detriment it was to everyday working families, even though they tried to say that they were a party of working families. So it was very interesting. I think Democrats, you know, definitely has seen a new strategy, right? But I think if we still keep it with integrity, if we still walk in leadership, if we still keep having conversations and spending funding where it should be, not just during election season or during the last 80 days or 100 days. But if we do it year round, I think when we start having the remember when conversations about the GOP and what Donald Trump and the MAGNA team has done to American people and American families, I think the conversations will be different in every city in every electoral district. See, I don't know. I mean, Julian, I think the problem is that Democrats want to play a game, a political reality that no longer exists. And again,

and Republicans tried the same game. I mean, it was Mitch McConnell. They could have actually convicted Donald Trump four years ago. Had they convicted Donald Trump, he would not have been able to run again, and all of these court cases could have moved forward. But they assumed that the

insurrection was so bad that oh, his career is over. The American people won't tolerate this again. Well, they actually did. Here's Mitch McConnell again, four years ago. I want everybody just to listen. These are his words on the floor of the United States Senate. President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day. President Trump is still liable for everything he did while he was in office as an ordinary citizen. Unless the statute of limitations is run, still liable for everything he did while he was in office.

Didn't get away with anything yet. We have a criminal justice system in this country. We have civil litigation. And former presidents are not immune from being accountable by either one. That was Mitch McConnell, but again, what did they do, Julian?

They were like, oh, it's over. And what he kept saying, it's over, it's over. No, it goes to show you if the American people are exactly who they are, and they, they accepted this thug. And I, and let me be real clear, for the next four

years, he is going to be referred to on this show as the convicted criminal in chief, or the insurrectionist in chief because he has earned those titles. He absolutely has. I mean, when you look at these men who are guarding our Capitol, who were, these were not people making multi-millions. These are folks who are making civil service money. They've lost their jobs. Some of them have lost limbs or there's a

suicide. There are a couple of other deaths that seem to be stress-related. And he just sort of walks away. There's the walk of the park. People want to talk about the insurrectionists and the walk of the park. Trump has had a walk of the park. But here's the deal. This is about predatory capitalism and the consolidation of oligarchies. In other words, you see all these Fortune 500s, Elon Musk, the Just Bezos, the cartoon that the Post refused to run is a great cartoon of all these oligarchs with their money bags going to pay homage to the orange man. Or someone called him the mango mafioso. Someone shared that one with me. I thought that was pretty good, actually, because I got in trouble for calling him the Orange Man

somewhere. Whatever. But in any case, the fact is that they're looking at ways that he's going to consolidate power. They're looking at ways that he's going to increase profits for predatory capitalists. This terror thing is going to cripple the middle class. Now, they say they're going to do it gradually and then they say they're not. They don't know what they're doing, but they're doing it. And the fact is that we have very few tools to stop that. We have some, but we don't have a lot. And the reason that we don't have a lot is because Democrats are too nice, in my opinion. Maybe it's not too nice. Maybe it's naive. I mean,

I used to, back in the day when I first got involved in politics back in the 70s, I remember watching them getting on the floor and say, oh, my esteemed colleague. And I'm thinking, what I would want to say is you dirty rotten dog or you know, or you felon or something like that. But there's all my esteemed colleagues over there. And it puts this veneer of niceness on it. But there is nothing nice. There's literally nothing nice about what happened on January 6, 2021. Nothing nice about it at all. They tried to upend democracy. And I don't understand. No, I do understand. I don't understand why people voted for the felon anyway. But Jim Carville was on CNN Sunday morning and he said, oh, it was really about the economy. No, it was about race. Let's be real clear. It was about race. The economy is better. I mean, it's not perfect, but it never will be. The economy is better. It was about race. And so here we are with these violent criminals that he's about to pardon. He said he's going to pardon some of them. And I hope that there's a backlash from his people, but you played Miss

McConnell. Thank you for doing that. Anybody who was on that floor was traumatized, but some people got over their trauma real quick when they decided where their bread was buttered. You know, I'm a Congo. When we look at that day, we look at the heroic actions of a Eugene Goodman. And when you listen to these cowardly and yes, I'm calling them cowards because that's who they are. You look at these cowardly Republicans who all of a sudden, oh, they've forgotten all of that. But their asses were saved. They were saved by these cops. They were saved by these officers who put it online. Again, I remember there was a reporter who was shooting the video when Eugene Goodman stopped these people from turning down that hallway. They were that close, that close to breaching the United States Senate.

And here's a crazy thing. In 2023, here's a crazy thing. I mean, everybody listen to me to understand what I'm saying. In 2023, Congress passed a bill honoring the Capitol police officers, honoring them and ordering a plaque to be placed in the Capitol. Republicans on Mocongo have yet to allow it to be installed. And in fact, today, today, today, Speaker Mike Johnson was asked about that and he simply

turned and walked away. These Republicans are shameful, they are cowards. They are despicable. They don't support law enforcement. They only care about cops. When it involves black people, they are protecting these fascists, these white domestic terrorists. And I don't think anybody ran faster than Josh Hawley that day. I mean, the world saw this. And really, when it comes down to it, going to your last point about their lack of respect for the Capitol Police officers, they don't respect law enforcement at all. They talk about where to defund the police people. How many times have they talked

about defunding the FBI, the CIA, the ATF, all these organizations. They don't care, like you said, until it suits them. And when it comes down to it, the fact that they cannot honor these Capitol Police officers and the trauma that they endured and the trauma they continue to endure, and now they're going to possibly, you can be rest assured, Roland, that some of these guys who Trump are going to pardon are going to come back to the Capitol. They not gonna be banned yeah that place and one guy wait a minute one of these one of these thugs literally petitioned the judge to allow him to attend the inauguration because he was invited there by several Republican members of Congress they invited one of these folks to attend the inauguration

and the judge was like, uh-uh, that ain't happening. That's what's up. And I can guarantee those who may be out or may have avoided jail time, the whole convict choir, some of that gonna play as well at this inauguration. Like this is a criminal enterprise and they're gonna continue to do criminal things. And the fact of the matter is it really bothers me

that whatever laws in place, the speech and debate clause or whatever, that doesn't allow like house members or senators to be like prosecuted because some of these guys were in on this. There was a guy who gave the tour the day before, like they were aiding and abetting these individuals and they are not going to suffer any consequences.

But we have to make sure that we have a long-term memory. We can't be forgetting these things. You're talking about this now. You're going to be talking about this next week. You're not going to let this be forgotten. But most people are going to be on to Jimmy Carter's funeral tomorrow. They're going to be on to the inauguration the next day. They're going to we got to keep these things in mind. And, you know, who's also not going to forget? Trump is not going to forget. And he's going to do his best to make sure people don't forget because he is obsessed with getting a proper narrative that's going to suit his ego. But if we continue to tell this story, we can help change the tide in 2026 when the midterms come up. And that's why I'm so happy with what you're doing tonight, Roland, because you're hitting it in a way that no other network that I've watched today has been doing. Igor Bobik with Huffington Post actually was in the gallery that day, and

there was an almost three-minute video that he posted, and this was from, the video was posted January 15, 2021. So it was nine days later. And it makes real clear the danger that Eugene Goodman was facing and the danger that was coming the way. people all these assholes who keep talking about all it was a calm day that that absolute white supremacist Tucker Carlson all the people on the Fox News who keep covering for these people no no let's remember exactly exactly what it looked like in this video right here. Folks, watch this. A lot of times the big economic forces we hear about on the news show up in our lives in small ways.

Three or four days a week, I would buy two cups of banana pudding, but the price has gone up, so now I only buy one. The demand curve in action, and that's just one of the things we'll be covering on Everybody's Business from Bloomberg Businessweek. I'm Max Chavkin. And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith. Every Friday, we will be diving into the biggest stories in business, taking a look at what's going on, why it matters, and how it shows up in our everyday lives.

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Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers, but we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap able to, you know, we're the providers, but we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-away, you got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else, but never forget yourself. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth. Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. I'm going to go. Where'd they go? Where'd they go? These people have no way. These people have no way. These people have no way. These people have no way. Way. Way. Oh, my God. E aí Thank you. These. These. Teresa. Yeah.

These are the people, Donald Trump and sister patriots. Y'all, I just watched the Luther Vandross documentary and my mind is blown. Here are 10 songs you might have vocals on. But you have to listen closely. Hello? Teresa, go ahead. Okay, great. Sorry. Yeah, I mean, these folks are patriots.

I'm not sure what the American people are, but they are certainly not patriots. I think rediscovering with that definition of patriotism and upholding American values is something, you know, that we really just need to define again and again. But what we saw there was another critical action where we have taxpaying citizens going against, you know, law enforcement, the same law enforcement that was sworn to protect and serve and the same ones that the magna upholds to the fullest extent of the law, but yet is comfortable with putting, you know, an officer like Eugene in a position without, and there's no consequence. So there has to be some sort of consequence as it relates to, you know, understand what is going on here. I want people to understand that that the people who were in support of this, the people who were backing this, these people are still in power.

They're going to be in charge of committees. They are going to be going after they're going to be going after the January 6th committee members. Don't be shocked at all if they try to go after Congressman Benny Thompson, former Congresswoman Liz Cheney. That's what they are going to do. And so, you know, just just understand exactly what what is actually going to happen. Let me go to a very quick break. When I come back, we'll talk about what happened today on Capitol Hill. Vice President Kamala Harris, the resolve she showed and also how Democrats gave her a thunderous round of applause when she talked about the vote that she got for president of the United States. Folks, you're watching Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network. As we remember, four years ago, the insurrection led by Donald Trump, Republicans and MAGA, a day we will never forget. Back in a moment. now streaming on the black star network i was challenged by my uncle early on before i even had a career like i was maybe eight years old and my uncle said what do you want to do and i told

him i wanted to be a rapper he said okay well i don't know anything about the music business so what you should do is learn everything there is to know about the music business and I'll make sure that you have the resources to push you through. And so I went and bought books, All You Need to Know About the Music Business, Hitman. I just went and bought a bunch of books and just started reading as a 10-year-old. Just reading and reading. And so I learned, you know, all things licensing, mechanical rights. I learned about publishing.

I learned about how composition is broke up into two pieces, the writer's portion and the producer's portion. But by the time I actually learned I came back, I was ready to like, okay, I got it. He was going to prison. So I had all this information. All this knowledge. All this knowledge.

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The minimum to invest is $399. That gets you 60 shares of stock in Fanbase right now, today. And then use Fanbase to connect with friends, grow your audience, and be you without limits. Hey, this is Motown recording artist Kim. You are watching Roland Martin Unfiltered. Boy, he always unfiltered, though. I ain't never known him to be filtered. Is there another way to experience Roland Martin than to be unfiltered?

Of course he's unfiltered. Would you expect anything less? Watch what happens next. All right, folks, before Vice President Kamala Harris went to the U.S. Capitol, she released a video laying out that she was going to be doing her constitutional duty. This is what she's released to the American people. The transfer of power is one of the most fundamental principles of American democracy. As much as any other principle, it is what distinguishes our system of government from monarchy or tyranny. Today at the United States Capitol, I will perform my constitutional duty as vice president of the United States to cert I will perform my constitutional duty as Vice President of the United States to certify the results of the 2024 election.

This duty is a sacred obligation, one I will uphold, guided by love of country, loyalty to our Constitution, and my unwavering faith in the American people. As we have seen, our democracy can be fragile, and it is up to then each one of us to stand up for our most cherished principles, and to make sure that in America, our government always remains of the people, by the people and for the people. May God bless you and may God bless the United States of America. And of course, there was a powerful moment today in the U.S. Capitol when she was reading the vote totals and Democrats did this. Kamala D. Harris of the state of California has received 226 votes.

Kamala D. Harris of the state of California has received 226 votes. The whole number of electors appointed to vote for Vice President of the United States is 538. Within that whole number, a majority is 270. Electors appointed to vote for vice president of the United States is five hundred and thirty eight. Within that whole number, a majority is two hundred and seventy. So the votes for vice president on Capitol Hill as the results were certified. One of the things that I said after the election is that we must be focusing on upcoming elections and coming fast and furious. And I talked about Wisconsin as a state Supreme Court race that comes up. Yet because of some elections in November, you've got two special elections in Virginia that could determine whether or not Democrats will still control the Virginia House and the Virginia Senate. Joining us right now is the Speaker of the House in Virginia, Don Scott, to talk about that. He joins us right now. Speaker Scott,

glad to have you back on Roller Bart Unfiltered. So explain to people what's going on with these special elections that are taking place on Thursday. Well, thank you, Roland. So good to be with you again, homeboy. I just wanted to just say that these elections are very important in Virginia. This will begin the next election cycle after the presidential. We did not get the outcome that we wanted, but it's important that we all get back on our horse and go back to work again. So I'm excited about these elections tomorrow. Here in Virginia, we have a Senate race and a House race. We had a member of the Senate who was elected to Congress, Suhas Subramaniam, and vacated his seat in the Senate here in Virginia. So one of my members in the House

is running for that seat. And so we have another member. His name is Khanan Sreenivasan, and another gentleman from the community, J.J. Singh, who will be the first turban-wearing Sikh to ever seek office here in the United States of America. So he is going to, he stood for office and they're on the ballot tomorrow. J.J. has an experience working with Senator Chris Coons. He's worked for a lot of different organizations. He's a real estate developer, does a great job. And we're excited about the election that we have ahead because it's so important for us to keep the majority in the Senate. We have a 21-19 majority now, 2019, because the seat is vacated. And we

have a 51-49 majority in the House, and it's 50-49 now because that seat is vacated. So tomorrow, if those seats flip to Republicans, we would be at a 20 tie in the Senate and a 50-50 tie in the House. We feel confident, though, that we will win those those Senate seats tomorrow, the Senate seat in the House seat tomorrow and maintain our very slim majorities here in the Commonwealth of Virginia. And of course, the general election is in November. And the thing that I have been explaining to people is that what we have been seeing is how Republicans have wielded power on the state level. Democrats are in control on the state level. It also goes to show how they were able to enact a lot of different things. And so the focus can all just be on what happens in Washington. I keep saying state houses matter, state Senate matters, governor mentions matter. State Senate matters.

Governor's mentions matter. Also, who controls the state Supreme Court also matters. Absolutely. We have here a very slim majority. And I think people need to realize in the Commonwealth of Virginia, we have an $88 billion budget. And right now, I'm the Speaker of the House, the President of the Senate, Senator Pro Tem. She's also Chair of Finance and Appropriations as a Black female from our community. We have unprecedented power, unprecedented access to get things done here in the Commonwealth of Virginia to make sure that we do good by all Virginians. So I think that it's important that we know that this November, they want to beat us. We have a Republican governor, and they want to take back the governor's mansion that'll be on the ballot this year. And they want to take back the house. All 100 seats will be up in November.

So we'll be reaching out to all communities, especially the African-American community, especially African-American men and women to make sure that we know that they know that we're engaged and we're working for them. But we want to make sure that we reach out to all Virginians to make sure that we create an economy that works for everybody. We believe that every child deserves a first class public school education. And we want to make sure that we create an economy that works for everybody. We believe that every child deserves a first class public school education. And we want to make sure that this this economy, the education, keep our teachers, that we'll be able to do that if we continue to keep the majority here in the Commonwealth of Virginia. And we talk about, again, you know, what Washington, D.C. does is one thing. But so many of the battles that we're seeing,

reproductive rights, DEI, things along those lines, a lot of these battles are happening on the state level. And so who controls the individual houses absolutely matters. And in the case of Virginia, you know, we saw it, you know, with the stadium bill and some other things, the governor wanted to do one thing, but he was stopped and thwarted by, you know, we saw it, you know, with the stadium bill and some other things. The governor wanted to do one thing, but he was stopped and thwarted by by, you know, Democrats controlling the House and the Senate. Yeah. And the governor ran on trying to roll back reproductive freedom rights here in the Commonwealth of Virginia. We stopped it. And we this year we have a constitutional amendment to enshrine bodily autonomy for women, bodily freedom in our Constitution. And we expect to pass that bill this spring and send it to the voters in November. We're going to pass a bill to restore felons' rights where the governor can't keep former felons who've paid their debt to

society, they're out of tax paying, contributing members of our communities, taking care of their families, that they can no longer not participate in the vote. So we're going to put a constitutional amendment in place that will be voted on by the voters in November here to restore automatic restoration of felon voting rights. And then finally, we're going to make sure that we respect every adult's right to marry whoever they love. And we're going to make sure that we put that on the ballot and make sure that we take away in our constitution right now, there is a ban on on same sex marriage. We're going to take that out and let it go back to what it is, which is a civil proceeding that happens in the Commonwealth of Virginia every single day. And right now, we hope that we'll get those things done. Those things are important. But there also is also important that we make sure that we look out for the pocketbooks of everyday hardworking Virginians.

And that's what we plan to do this this. We've done a great job managing Virginia's economy. We have a $3 billion budget surplus because Democrats were in charge of Virginia. And because of that, we'll be able to make sure that we take care of our schools, take care of our teachers, take care of our firefighters and police officers, and take care of our infrastructure and transportation. And if we do that, I think we'll deserve another opportunity to win this November. But we'll be reaching out to every community to let them know how important these elections are and what we plan on continuing to deliver for citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Budget surplus also because you had President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris,

and the resources that Congress was providing. We look at infrastructure, we look at so many different things. And a lot of that ain't going to be happening with these yahoos now in charge in D.C. Well, they've said they're going to roll back the chipset. We're talking about giving us a technological advantage in the world. They said they're going to roll back that chipset. They want to roll back the Inflation Reduction Act. They want to roll back the Infrastructure Act that helps us improve our bridges and roads and tunnels and our rail transportation systems. So we already know that they want to go backwards, but we're willing to see what they actually do because they ran on some stuff and we'll see if they actually try to deliver on that. If history has any precedent in the Commonwealth of Virginia,

Virginia always votes the opposite of the party in power. So I feel I'd much rather have my hand in their hand in this next election cycle. All right. Speaker of the House of Virginia, Don Scott, we appreciate it. Thanks a lot. Thank you, my brother. Appreciate you. I have a great night. All right, then, folks, we were talking about, of course, this insurrection and what took place. And, you know, we mentioned these U. U S Capitol police officers, uh, and, and, and how they, uh, retreated. Um, and, uh, and they've been all across the media today, telling their story, talking to, uh, different people. Uh,

Aquilino Ganel, uh, is one of those retired cops. Uh, we chatted with him at the democratic national convention, and I want to just play for you some of that interview, uh, is one of those retired cops. We chatted with him at the Democratic National Convention, and I want to just play for you some of that interview to hear from one of the cops who was facing down these white domestic terrorists on this day four years ago. He also was one of the police officers who was there on January 6th. Sergeant... Aquilino Ganel?

All right, Tim, I want to get it right. Let me ask you this here. You spoke earlier this week, and it has to be hard for you to see somebody who's running on the other side who literally watched as y'all got attacked and did not care to lift a finger, and that was the commander-in-chief. Correct. It is incredibly emotional and disappointing at the same time. Look, this is somebody who claimed to be a supporter of police. And today, there's a report that says

that he planned to have a gala for the January 6th rioters. Not for the officers, but for the people who are doing the attacking. And every single time he goes publicly saying that he supported the police, except for Capitol Police. When he addressed Capitol Police, he says the black officer who

shot that person, that young lady that was breaking inside the chamber, he calls him a thug, not a police officer. So he uses police officers as a pawn. And what people need to realize is that we were simply doing our jobs. And I tried to express that last night because if all those things that we did on January 6th was done against any other group, that Republican side, the Republican president would be praising us. But because that was done by their sympathizers, their people, their supporters, these people are heroes, these people are hostages. These people are patriots. And if there are those things, then who are we?

The police officers today. Who are we? Look, I never asked for this. Donald Trump invoked those people to come to the Capitol. Capitol Police did it. We did it. We were simply defending ourselves, doing our jobs. And if it wasn't because Donald Trump called them to the Capitol, none of those things

would have happened. And if it wasn't because Donald Trump called them to the Capitol, none of those things would have happened. And if it wasn't because Donald Trump called them to the Capitol, none of those things would have happened. And if it wasn't because Donald Trump called them to the Capitol, none of those things would have happened. And if it wasn't because Donald Trump called them to the Capitol, none of those things would

have happened. And if it wasn't because Donald Trump called them to the Capitol, none of those things would have happened. And if it wasn't because Donald Trump called them to the Capitol, none of those things would have happened. And if it wasn't because Donald Trump called them to the Capitol, none of those things would have happened. and if it wasn't because Donald Trump called them to the Capitol, none of those things would have happened. It's very disappointing that the majority of the people don't, from the Republican side, continue to support somebody who sent a mob to kill their elected officials and we were in their way.

And we protected Nancy Pelosi just the same way as we protected AOC or Lindsey Graham or Josh Hawley. It didn't matter to us. We were simply doing our jobs. And because of that, they call us traitors instead of heroes or acknowledge the bravery that we did on that end. Sergeant, we appreciate thanks for your service and appreciate your words thanks a lot thank you uh folks the folks at a lincoln

project uh put out this ad today that spoke about what took place four years ago we know what we saw we know what we heard it wasn't spontaneous they came prepared for battle body armor chemical weapons zip ties their mission to overturn an american election we will never concede outnumbered brave law enforcement officers fought hand to hand to save our democracy many were wounded one died the next day Post-traumatic stress syndrome drove four January 6th heroes to suicide. Donald Trump calls this violent terrorism a day of love. That was a day of love.

He's promised to pardon these violent criminals. That's wrong. Evil. Those people have suffered long and hard. And I think it's very unfair. Don't let one man rewrite history. We know what we saw. We know what we heard.

There are no alternative facts. Only the truth. Wow, quite the powerful ad there. And I also want us to remember what the nation's newspapers look like on January 7th. Do you all remember this? This is what it looked like right here. Trump mob storms, capital insurrection, pro-Trump mob invades, capital under siege. Democracy attack, assault on democracy on American capital chaos under siege. Sad day for America. Insurrection mob storms. U.S. Capitol. That was MAGA. That was Republicans. That's what they wanted to happen.

Now, when we come back, folks, I got to interview with a reporter, a pro publica, who talked to a wilderness survivor who infiltrated a militia group, rose up high in the ranks. And folks, these people are so sick and demented. And guess what? Their ranks are growing as a result of the Republicans embracing them and calling them patriots. A lot of times the big economic forces we hear about on the news show up in our lives in small ways. Three or four days a week, I would buy two cups of banana pudding. But the price has gone up, so now I only buy one. The demand curve in action. And that's just one of the things we'll be covering on Everybody's Business from Bloomberg Businessweek. I'm Max Chavkin. And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith. Every Friday, we will be diving into the biggest stories in business, taking a look at

what's going on, why it matters, and how it shows up in our everyday lives. But guests like Businessweek editor Brad Stone, sports reporter Randall Williams, and consumer spending expert Amanda Mull will take you inside the boardrooms, the backrooms, even the signal chats that make our economy tick. Hey, I want to learn about VeChain. I want to buy some blockchain or whatever it is that they're doing. So listen to Everybody's Business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time,

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Ad-free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Lott. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne.

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and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. never had before. I mean, he's not only my parent, like he's like my best friend. At the end of the day, it's all been worth it. I wouldn't change a thing about our lives.

Learn about adopting a teen from foster care. Visit AdoptUSKids.org to learn more. Brought to you by AdoptUSKids, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the Ad Council. We'll have that conversation next right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network. Don't forget, support the work that we do here, folks. We don't have millionaires and billionaires cutting us any checks. We are independent, Black-owned, doing the work out here as best that we can. Your support is absolutely critical. If you want to support us via Cash App, remember Cash App closed down our accounts because they changed their rules. And so if you want to support us via Cash App, the way to do so is going to utilizing the by using the Stripe QR code right here.

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doing that work, holding these people accountable because we're not going to let them forget what they did to the country, but more importantly, what they tried to do to black America. Lots of them will talk about the interview with the Republican reporter. Also Rudy Giuliani gets his come up up in court. The DOJ consent decree with the city of Minneapolis. Lots more to discuss right here on Roland Martin unfiltered on the black star network. Back in a moment. Now streaming on the Blackstar Network.

I was challenged by my uncle early on, before I even had a career. Like, I was maybe eight years old, and my uncle said, what do you want to do? And I told him I wanted to be a rapper. And he said, okay, well, I don't know anything about the music business, so what you should do is learn everything there

is to know about the music business, and you should do is learn everything there is to know about the music business and i'll make sure that you have the resources to push you through and so i went and bought books all you need to know about the music business hit me and i just went and bought a bunch of books just start reading as a 10 year old just reading reading and so i learned you know all things licensing mechanical rights i, I learned about publishing, learned about how composition is broke up into two pieces, the writer's portion and the producer's portion. But by the time I actually learned I can't bend,

I was ready to like, okay, I got it. He was going to prison. So I had all this information. All this knowledge. All this knowledge. You like, well, what am'm going to do it now. What's up, y'all? Look, Fanbase is more than a platform.

It's a movement to empower creators, offering a unique opportunity for everyday people to invest in Black-owned tech, infrastructure, and help shape the future of social media. Investing in technology is essential for creating long-term wealth and influence in the digital age. The Black community must not only consume community, rule the jobs at. Coming soon to the Black Star Network. When you're on that stage and you're seeing two and three, four generations in the audience, that's got to speak to you about the power of what y'all have become. Oh, most definitely. I think we were doing our show before our break.

And remember, I was watching this kid. I could not take my eyes off him because he was about nine or so. He was sitting in the front row with his parents. Over on the right-hand side. Yes, yes, yes, yes. I was amazed that this kid knew everything. And I was like tripping to see how many songs this kid actually knew. And he knew them all.

And he knew them all. We had to go over there and bring him on stage and take a picture with him, you know, at the end of the show and stuff. Because it was just that amazing. It was like, this is crazy. You know, the music travels everywhere. You know, like what Phillip was saying, seeing his young kid. Then you see, hear our songs on commercials, cold commercials. Then you have the younger ones that sing out here on music and animation.

I'm Russell L. Honore, Lieutenant General, United States Army, retired. And you're watching Roller Martin on Filth. We'll be discussing the thousands of MAGA idiots, the urging of Donald Trump, who rushed the U.S. Capitol four years ago in hopes of stopping the certification of the 2020 election. Mixed in with them were a number of militia members. These individuals, of course, had guns on the outskirts. They were sitting here with twist ties. They were ready to do battle. According to a recent Republican report, right wing militias also participated in the terror attack. In a piece called The Militia and the Mold, reporter Josh Kaplan details how a freelance vigilante spent years undercover climbing the ranks of the militia without the help of the police or the FBI. He didn't tell

his family or his friends. He did talk to Josh, who I spoke to earlier, about his story. Josh, I found this story to be absolutely fascinating, especially on today, January 6th. How in the world did you two connect? Honestly, he sent me an anonymous email. It was kind of a little vague, mysterious, but intriguing. He sent it to a bunch of reporters, but to learn about this secret undercover operation that this man had been conducting for over two years. And what I thought was what I thought was really interesting here was that what I thought was really interesting. He didn't want to reach out to the FBI. And this guy, he just went alone. I mean, that's dangerous as hell. Yes. No, it was it was dangerous. It was it was incredibly stressful. He was under an enormous amount of pressure. He I think, you know, was fighting off

paranoia. But he, you know, in part, I think because of his own tumultuous, you know, he has a history with law enforcement that, you know, has made him very distrustful of the police. But he also believes that the police have been ineffective at combating the far right, Erica. And so rather than trying to work as an informant, he concocted this kind of freelance undercover operation. The thing I think that this reveals the most, and, you know, those of us who've been reporting on this, covering this, and you have folks like Clay Travis, who they're trying to downplay the reality of white domestic terrorism in this country. But the reality is Christopher Wray, the FBI director, was on point when he said that white domestic terrorism was the number one threat in this country. And for the right wing to try to deny this is just nonsensical.

Yeah, I mean, it's it's important that this sort of messaging like it like it's not just, oh, people trying to spin things. It really matters in terms of these groups' strength and these groups' ability to pose a threat that leads to things like January 6th. I mean, you know, one thing I found in this reporting, and I talked to a lot of militia members too, is that right after January 6th, even leaders in these groups thought they might go extinct, that they would not be able to survive the backlash. And it's easy to forget now that there was a time when in mainstream conservative politics, the January 6th Capitol rioters were pariahs. But by the summer of 2021, prominent politicians like Trump started changing their tune and talking about the rioters as patriots, as political prisoners, and that had a measurable, concrete impact on these paramilitary organizations. It really started to put the wind back in their sails so that before long,

they were getting so many new recruits that they were struggling to keep up. Yeah, and this is the thing that I think people need to need to understand what's going on. Donald Trump goes down to Waco and they have this celebration, if you will. He's there, of course, where the Branch Davidian standoff took place. You've got MAGA who yells Republicans, they yell all Democrats defund the police. Yet Republicans want to defund the FBI. They have always wanted to defund the ATF because of the issue of firearms. And so people need to understand that that and the story lays it out.

There is a direct correlation with the rise of these militias, these white militias, these white domestic terrorism and Republican politics? Yeah, I mean, there's they're constantly in conversation with each other and the you know, and now you're seeing these signals. I mean, the most consequential signal that could happen in the near future is Trump has promised to pardon January 6th rioters. That was a cornerstone of his campaign. And, you know, the ramifications of that could be massive. There is really, there is no precedent for that kind of message of protection and support.

And it has the potential, at least, to trigger a renaissance for militant extremists. I mean, you know, Trump has repeatedly suggested that these pardons might be so sweeping that it includes, you know, pardoning people who assaulted police officers, which, you know, was some very brutal assaults happened that day. And how that would be interpreted in these movements, at least by a sizable number of people, is that even violent crimes will go unpunished if you do them for the quote unquote right cause. And that's a very, very dangerous proposition that has a lot of experts and people in the national security community very worried. Yeah, I mean, look, I'll be honest. I would I would not be shocked if Donald Trump pulls a stunt and pardons them on January 20th.

He said he said he's going to do it on day one. He might do it at the Capitol during a speech. This is how, and I said this on my show, that if he pulls that stunt, Biden and Harris, Jeffrey should stand up and walk off the podium. It will be a really remarkable

moment in history. I mean, I, yeah. I, you know, I don't think anyone knows what to expect if that happens. The thing that I think that people should be very scared about is that, um, there were members of Congress who were communicating with these militia folks on January 6th. And when you call them patriots, you basically are giving them the stamp of approval. And what what what they're saying is that we're going to protect you at all costs.

And what this this mole has revealed after two years to you should scare the hell out of a lot of people because these militias, they have friends in very high places. Yeah, I mean, and, you know, and they, I think, you know, exactly how far up the connections go, still not clear. I mean, these militias, I think, have an incentive to brag, to make themselves seem more connected than they are. So, you know, there certainly is an ideological kinship and a support coming from the very highest echelons of power, the Republican Party that has a real impact. I don't know about actual concrete relationships, to what extent that happens. But they do have a lot of, I mean, there's a remarkable number of active duty police officers, some high ranking, who are members of these groups or friendly with these groups. And that is something that these militias put a high priority on. They, you know, one of the things I was able to learn by going through these files

and doing these interviews was how incredibly strategic, almost bureaucratic these militias approach building these relationships with law enforcement, because they view this as fundamental to their success, because one of the, I think, defining characteristics of these groups is they do dangerous armed vigilante operations, you know, in the all over the country, things like responding to Black Lives Matter protests with armed patrols and sometimes beating up protesters. And if you're in that sort of volatile situation, they see it as extremely useful to have law enforcement see you as a friend. And, you know, on that particular note there,

when you, you know, what is crazy is that they've held up Ashley Babbitt, who was shot and killed on January 6th as some sort of martyr. They act as if we didn't see with our own eyes the vicious beating of police. And we just saw very recently where a cop with the Washington Police Department was convicted of passing information on to them and your point it has been a serious problem for years we know of these folks who are in police departments they are in law enforcement major cities rule America right now it is a significant threat to this country. And it's as if one party has no problem with it because they're their supporters.

Yeah, I mean, it's, I think there's, you know, I mean, it was fascinating to kind of see the inside baseball of this. I mean, cause it's, you know, how they try to sell this to police, how they try to, they try this. I mean, because it's, you know, how they try to sell this to police, how they try to, I mean, I think one of the ways where this is effective that, I mean, part of it is, you know,

genuine kinship and they're able to get people committed to their cause who are working law enforcement. And it's also that they keep some of the darkest things that they're doing, especially recently, have been working hard to keep that secret. And so these people who are working with militia in their community might be aware that they do firearms training or even aware that they do vigilante operations, like trying to crack down on voters

casting absentee ballots, which is, I think, very alarming. But there's also, I mean, behind the scenes, there's this, what I saw was this constant drumbeat, where leaders in these groups are having heated debates of whether they should escalate things even further and commit acts of mass political violence. And again, with leaders who are making excuses for them, and as you said, calling them patriots, it is stunning. The gentleman who provided you with this information, does he still fear for his life? Yes. No, he he believes that he is in great danger and he believes that extremists are going public with this because he has this very deep-seated desire to damage the movement. And he thinks that telling his story could be his most effective weapon. That getting in the details of exactly how, I mean, his method here,

it was betrayals, it was lies, it was deception. He was incredibly effective at getting very high-ranking militia leaders to trust him and to open up to him and to let them into their inner circles. And he thinks now that by going public, you know, he has the ability to kind of be a boogeyman in the movement. That's what he's hoping for, that he will that what he told me is that every time that a militia member goes into a meeting, he wants them to be thinking in the back of their heads, this guy will betray me. And and this, of course, this and this is the downside of not working with the FBI because he can't go into witness protection.

And so he's going to be on his own for the rest of his life. Yeah, I mean, he's working with some whistleblower attorneys now, I know, and is hoping to, you know, he has these kind of grand ambitions of starting a collective of vigilantes who work together and continuing to run these operations. I mean, it's a decision that we talked about at length, and I know he didn't take lightly, but it is, you know, I mean, from the beginning, there was an enormous amount of sacrifice he made to personally, you know, in terms of his safety, in terms of his mental health and well-being that he made to get inside. A lot of times the big economic forces we hear about on the news show up in our lives in small ways. Three or four days a week, I would buy two cups of banana pudding, but the price has gone up. So now I only buy one. The demand curve in action. And that's just one of the things we'll be covering on Everybody's Business from Bloomberg Businessweek. I'm Max Chavkin. And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith. Every Friday, we will be diving into the biggest stories in business,

taking a look at what's going on, why it matters, and how it shows up in our everyday lives. But guests like Businessweek editor Brad Stone, sports reporter Randall Williams, and consumer spending expert Amanda Mull will take you inside the boardrooms, the backrooms, even the signal chats that make our economy tick. Hey, I want to learn about VeChain. I want to buy some blockchain or whatever it is that they're doing. So listen to Everybody's Business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun?

Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that Taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multibillion-dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission.

This is Absolute Season 1. Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts.

I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glott. And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player,

Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug thing is. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette.

MMA fighter Liz Karamush. What we're doing now isn't working and we need to change things. Stories matter and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Sometimes as dads, I think we're too hard on ourselves. We get down on ourselves on not being able to, you know, we're the providers, but we also have to learn to take care of ourselves. A wrap-away, you've got to pray for yourself as well as for everybody else, but never forget yourself. Self-love made me a better dad because I realized my worth.

Never stop being a dad. That's dedication. Find out more at fatherhood.gov. Brought to you by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. These groups can get this information. I've never seen anything like this. Folks, go to ProPublica.org and check out this piece, The Militia and the Mole by Josh Kaplan. Josh, we certainly appreciate you joining us. Thanks a lot. Thanks so much for having me on. I appreciate it. What's up, y'all? Look, Fanbase is more than a platform.

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I was challenged by my uncle early on, before I even had a career. Like, I was maybe eight years old, and my uncle said, what do you want to do? And I told him I wanted to be a rapper. And he said, okay, well, I don't know anything about the music business, so what you should do is learn everything there is to know about the music business, and I'll make sure that you have

the resources to push you through and so I went and bought books all you need to know about the music business hit me and I just went and bought a bunch of books to start reading as a 10 year old and so I learned you know all things licensing mechanical rights I learned about publishing learned about how composition is broke up into two pieces, the writer's portion and the producer's portion. But by the time I actually learned I came back, I was ready to like, okay, I got it. He would go into prison.

So I had all this information. All this knowledge. All this knowledge. You like, well, what am I gonna do with it now. All right, folks, welcome back. So I'm going to start with Omicongo. Talk about, I mean, what you just heard there, quite scary. And the thing that jumped out at me that is the scariest is that Donald Trump, what he has done is he's emboldened them when Josh said that their numbers are rising as a result of how they frankly are being welcomed by Republicans and Donald Trump. And of course, Christopher Wray, the FBI director, said that the white domestic terrorism, American number one threat.

And Trump has now forced him to quit. Now he's going to put one of his loyalists in there. And the FBI, frankly, will not be going after these people. I mean, how could we be surprised that this individual did not trust going into talking with the government in any way, shape or form? And Biden has just been president. So, you know, under Trump, these things are not going to happen. The fact that this man took it upon himself because of what he was seeing to expose these groups shows a level of frustration with the American government that is just beyond measure. That is just really beyond measure. And like you said, it's only going to be getting worse. You talked about the guy who was the informant. We know that there are more of them. symbols that were being flashed at police events, at rallies, at insurrection events,

you know, because remember, there were also insurrectionist type events across the country. They just weren't at the Capitol. And so why would people not feel emboldened? Look at the officers who were there during the insurrection the last time. People who came down off duty from different parts of the country to come down there and try to act like they were police as well. This is only going to get worse under these next four years because Trump has emboldened them. He's welcomed all of them back. And you said it was talked about in the interview or in the article, and I was reading the idea that this stuff was going to die down, the thought that it was going to go away now that Trump

didn't get into office. But now he's back and he's strong. He's got a Supreme Court behind him. He's got Congress behind him. He's got the Senate behind him. And he's got the police unions behind him. People need to buckle up. And we need to continue to keep telling these stories. Because if we don't, we're just going to get run over. And we have to prepare ourselves legally as well to be able to stand up for these types of issues. Because if we don't, it just might be too late. And so I'm praying for this man's safety. But I'm also praying that people have more courage to step forward and bring on more stories about this, because it's happening every day in every aspect of our society. Teresa, these militias, they are largely white men.

These individuals are heavily armed. And if you have a Kash Patel running the FBI or one of these other crazy loyalists, we're going to have a federal government who, frankly, is going to give these people lots of cover. And Trump is perfectly fine with it. Yeah, you know, I mean, even just listening to the entire dialogue and reading the story that was just on with Jason, you know, it also just shows the length of what those who believe in the word democracy is willing to go through in order to make sure the truth is public and that is real. So kudos to him for that. But again, he's not alone. And I think because, and just kind of going back to that story a little bit, what I heard was,

and even kind of looking at the article, is that there were solutions that came from that story. There were more individuals that are coming in that's saying we want to do the same. We want to infiltrate. We want to do more. And I think it's going to get to a point where since we do have all these disturbances inside of the Oval Office and the federal and apparently it looks like the Supreme Court I think there is still hope where Democrats are and Democrats and those that are independent we're gonna start using some common sense when it comes to doing the right thing I'm

hoping but I don't see a lot of things A lot of things I think has been a game that has been shown to the American people. But I think as we move towards this new administration and the promises made there were or will or may not be kept, I think that'll be shown and we'll start to see a shift really soon. Julianne. I was happy to hear the young man's story. I look forward to reading his story. But what we know about this is that there's a thin line between law and order and racism and disorder. And so when you look at these white extremists, they can be your local sheriff. Often it is. It could be anybody. And I think the courage of this guy to go undercover and to share the story is useful. But what's more useful

is for us to do better screening. You know, a Black Panther could not be a police officer. So how do these people who are white extremist terrorists, how do they get to be police officers, sheriffs, and also join these organizations? I don't know how many, we've seen estimates, people who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, how many of them were actually law enforcement? We've seen some estimates, but we don't know. And we don't know often when we see these incidents that occur, how many of them are there. So the mole who basically infiltrated, he did a service. But at the same time, we don't know how many of these people are pretending to be law and order and are actually attacking our government, attacking our people, attacking us as Black people. And that's the thing that is the most

concerning to me is the number of Black folks who are vulnerable. And even as police officers, as so-called law enforcement officers, how many of them are vulnerable because they're clear about what their views are and they oppose this. I'm glad you had the interview with the brother down at the DMC to talk about how outraged many of them are. They were defending, they're defending members of Congress who haven't even given them enough respect to put the plaque up. And this mole is sharing us information, sharing information that we need to be able to act on. And unfortunately with Republicans,

and I'll use your word, Roland, slough thugs who have sway, we Democrats, we opponents, we resistors aren't necessarily able to act on this horrible information. Again, it's just something that we need to understand what's going on. And these militias have to be watched, must be investigated. And unfortunately, you're going to have an administration that is perfectly at home with these people, allowing them to do whatever they want. And so that's something that we all better be concerned with in a huge, huge way over the next four years. And so

God bless us all. Folks, in New York, a state judge has denied the convicted criminal in chief his motion to stay his Friday sentencing in a Hush Bunny case. Friday, Judge Juan Merchan denied Trump's motion to dismiss the case and ordered sentencing on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to proceed ahead of his inauguration on January 10th. Of course, Merchant indicated he does not plan to jail Trump and is likely to issue an unconditional discharge, meaning Trump will remain a convicted felon without further punishment. The judge asked Trump's attorneys to confirm whether he will appear in person or virtually

for the sentencing. Well, we'll see what happens on that one. All right, y'all. Let's talk about that idiot Rudy Giuliani. Talk about man getting in bed with the man who was stuck on stupid. He got in bed with Donald Trump and now, boy, the hammer's been falling on this idiot over and over and over, and frankly, I'm loving it.

A federal judge held Rudy Giuliani in contempt for failing to provide information to two former Georgia election workers he defamed after the 2020 election. The ruling comes less than two weeks before a trial where Giuliani is fighting to keep his $3.5 million Palm Beach condo, which he claims as his residence.

Judge Louis Lyman called Giuliani's noncompliance willful, accusing him of running the clock to delay the proceedings. Oh, please. I hope they snatch all of it. All of it, Teresa. Snatch that condo. Yeah, and give it to the victims.

Listen, I thought he lived in New York because that's where he voted, but I guess he lives in Florida now, but it is what it is after the election. You know, I think, I'm not sure what happened in-house during Magna's, you know, war room where Julian has been on the outskirts and his team. But it has been an interesting, you know, interesting as it relates to some of the law and the judicial matters in his case. You know, those who are in Trump's circle seem like they're beginning appointments. They're in higher positions. You know, those who are unqualified all of a sudden become qualified. But Giuliani, you know, was one of Trump's former senior advisers.

Has just been going down this whole rabbit hole of, you know, loss and the stench of losing. So not sure what's happening there. But, you know, hey, if they can seize it and it goes to a good cause, I do know I did see one of Giuliani's properties on one of our share sale lists in Pennsylvania, so if anyone's looking, bring it.

Again, Giuliani, for me, Giuliani, snatch it all. Snatch all of it. Look at, I said, I said we'll do a broadcast from it when they get control, the New York apartment, if they get that condo, hell, we'll do a show from there too. I think that's a great idea, Roland. I mean, I think that these women need to get everything.

He made their lives miserable. He doxed them. He made, he made their lives miserable. And why dided them. He made their lives miserable. And why did he did it? Because he's a racist pig and because he could. He basically, and he picked their name out of a hat. He didn't know whether they did anything or not. They didn't do anything, but he didn't know that. They're all kind of electors, but these were Black women. And so because they were Black women, he felt that we, like Malcolm said, most disrespected and neglected. And therefore, he decided to go after them. Well, now he's got his chickens have come all the way home to roost. And his chickens or his property is about to leave the hen house because I do believe that those sisters will prevail.

They probably won't get everything, but they should get most of it. And the judge has ruled. And of course, his snarky behind, I mean, he refuses to comply with the law. But again, you know, his bestie is the orange man who also refuses to comply with the law. So, you know, there are two things that you have to do to be in Trump's circle. One, you have to refuse to comply with the law. And two, you probably have to have sexually harassed or raped or something, some woman. You go way up in his esteem if you have those two things going on. Omokongo? You know, all of the things that have frustrated me throughout this whole process, the story of Ruby Freeman and Shea Moss is one of the ones that's like at the top of my list in terms of how they have treated ordinary people and how they've attacked ordinary people. They did everything possible to destroy the all of these Congress folks who are cowards, who are afraid to stand up to Trump and Giuliani, all of these senators, all of these corporate guys who are afraid. And these two women who don't have any of the type of means that these

guys have stood up and were protected by us and by the community. And so it's a story of incredible courage that Black people have demonstrated, but it just always sits in a negative fashion, what we morseled in so many of these other stories. And the fact that they continue to not quit. Yeah, their stories. A lot of times the big economic forces we hear about on the news show up in our lives in small ways. Three or four days a week, I would buy two cups of banana pudding,

but the price has gone up. So now I only buy one. The demand curve in action. And that's just one of the things we'll be covering on Everybody's Business from Bloomberg Businessweek. I'm Max Chavkin. And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith. Every Friday, we will be diving into the biggest stories in business, taking a look at what's going on, why it matters, and how it shows up in our everyday lives. But guests like Business Week editor Brad Stone, sports reporter Randall Williams, and consumer spending expert Amanda Mull will take you inside the boardrooms, the backrooms, even the signal chats that make our economy tick. Hey, I want to learn about VeChain. I want to buy some blockchain or whatever it is that they're doing. So listen to Everybody's Business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multibillion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season One.

Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season One. Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Ad-free at Lava for the War on Drugs podcast. We are back.

In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner. It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug thing is.

Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Karamush. What we're doing now isn't working and we need to change things. Stories matter and it brings a face to them.

It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content, subscribe to

Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. We asked parents who adopted teens to share their journey. We just kind of knew from the beginning that we were family. They showcased a sense of love that I never had before. I mean, he's not only my parent, like he's like my best friend. At the end of the day, it's all been worth it. I wouldn't change a thing about our lives. Learn about adopting a teen from foster care.

Visit AdoptUSKids.org to learn more. Brought to you by AdoptUSKids, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the Ad Council. People showing up at their houses, they can't pass out their business cards, all of these things. And the fact that they still keep going. I'm just, I don't know why Giuliani hasn't been put in jail yet. He needs to be, but this is America's former lawyer or whatever they called him before. And now he can't do anything because these two sisters are making sure that they get their due and more power to them. It's just love and support and respect for everything that they're doing. And he deserves more than what he's getting right now in terms of the penalties that he's facing.

Folks, talk about facing penalties. Let's talk about this shameful, despicable story out of Virginia, where a nurse is behind bars for hurting infants, black infants in a hospital. 26-year-old Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman is charged with malicious wounding and child abuse causing serious injury. The injuries to black infants in the NICU at Richmond's Henrico Doctors Hospital happened in November and December. Investigation led to the unit's closure to new patients on Christmas Eve. Surveillance footage linked Strotman to a November 10th incident.

Authorities are investigating her connection to similar cases from 2020 to 2024 and urge anyone with information to contact the police. Talk about shameful. The attacking of black babies, black infants, Julianne. Beyond shameful and despicable. You know, the amount of racism, again, Roland, this is lynching culture. You know, I talk about it, about nausea. A white person can do anything to a black person, expect to have no consequences.

Why would this woman, and woman is a kind word, why would this woman do something like that? Now, she is going to face some consequence, but parents have injured children and dead children. And this boggles the imagination, but it reminds me of why you have a nation of Islam, why you have so many Black separatists who do not trust white people, because basically, I'm not saying all white people are evil, but that bear that you just showed a picture of is evil. And unfortunately, you can't think about, they don't have an E soldered on their head to say this is the evil one and it isn't. Hospitals have to do better about basically screening people. And after one death, have they got up to three? No, no. After the first one, you start looking very carefully.

There's nothing wrong with these children except they were sick. This woman is a monster. And somebody, she's a monster. And it's the kind of thing that unfortunately with the Trumpies in charge of health and human services and other places, I'm not sure that we have all the tools we need to, um, combat this. Um, absolutely crazy. Uh, just crazy, just sick, uh, just demented. Um, and I, I, I, just sick, just demented. And I, you know, I just sit here and I just go, really? And, you know, here's my whole question,

Teresa, charge her with a hate crime. Absolutely. You know, I was actually, when I read the article, I was wondering why she wasn't charged with a hate crime, because she specifically were doing it to black babies. The definition of the hate crime stature is very clear and to the point. So for this incident to just be, you know, it's being investigated, we close down the unit. I hope the families are suing the hospital.

This hospital needs to go bankrupt because there's no apparently no background checks that's being had. There's I'm not sure where security is, but thank God for the parents to keep in their composure and their hands off of this woman. But I can I don't even want to imagine what would anyone do in this situation, including myself. I'm a Congo. People need to be very careful as it relates to black folks in this country, because so many of us are really at a tipping point of everything that's going on with all the ignorance, the shamefulness, the violence and all of that. And don't tipping point of everything that's going on with all the ignorance, the shamefulness, the violence and all of that. And going off of Teresa's point, and we've seen some of the videos that you've shown

here on Black Star Network of Black folks who just ain't having certain things be said to them or thrown at them, and now you want to throw babies into it? People are just going to start, I fear that people are going to start retaliating in ways that are not going to be helpful to them. But at the end of the day, this pent up frustration, what part of our community is not under attack?

Dr. Malvo said that this is lynching culture. She's been working on this book. This is absolutely lynching culture in a country that used to cut babies out of black women's bellies who were enslaved. Like how long do they think people are going to stay silent and just go through legal remedies? We always want to make sure that people are doing their best to respect the law and have these trials and go through that process. But Black people are human beings too. And I don't see this happening to any other group at this type of level in terms of how we're getting hit from all angles. And it's just a matter of time, in my opinion, before some people just decide that enough is enough.

Well, folks, if you want to see classless, despicable, shameful, just trifling as hell, this is what took place on Friday when Nebraska U.S. Senator Deb Fischer was being sworn in by Vice President Kamala Harris. Her husband, Bruce Fischer, is a professor at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. Look at what this bastard did. I want to come here first. In the middle. Is it in the middle? No, no.

Yeah, we're white. Don't worry. Okay. We're white. Okay. Do you solemnly swear to support and defend the Constitution of the United States? I do. Congratulations. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for your work. the Constitution of the United States. Thank you. Congratulations.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for your work. Thank you. Congratulations to you. Thank you. Thank you. Sure. Okay.

That way just a little bit. There you go. Thanks so much. Ready? One, two, and three. Hold it. Ready? One, two, and three.

Thank you very much. Thank you. First time. Okay. Thank you. Okay. One second. Now, Bruce Fisher had a cane in his right hand. And some of the people out here trying to defend him by saying, oh, with a cane in his right hand. And some of the people out here trying to defend him by saying, oh, where the king in his right hand? Well, he had a Bible in his left hand, and then his wife took the Bible. He could have easily shook the vice president's hand with his left hand. He wouldn't even look

at us. We're going to play the video again. I want y'all to see, y'all, he didn't even want to stand next to the vice president. He wouldn't even look her in her eye. He quickly looked up and looked right back down. He did not even want to look her in. He had total contempt for this black woman. Roll it again. Hi.

Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi.

Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi.

Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi.

Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi.

Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi.

Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi.

Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi.

Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Okay. Do you solemnly swear to support and defend the Constitution of the United States? I do. Thank you.

Congratulations. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for your work. Thank you. Congratulations to you. Thank you. Okay.

You're welcome. Ooh. Thanks. Sure. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for your work.

Thank you. Congratulations to you. Thank you. You're welcome. Ooh. Sure. Okay. That way just a little bit.

Okay. So much. Ready? One, two, and three. Hold it. Ready? One, two, and three. Thank you very much.

Thank you. Rest in peace. Okay. One second. Bruce Fisher's been getting ripped all across social media. And you saw right there, it was all for everybody to see, Teresa. I mean, the vice president immediately picked up on his nasty demeanor, his evil, demonic spirit. And she said twice, it's okay, I'm not going to bite. Yeah,

honestly, you have to laugh in order to not cringe. But honestly, it looked like him and the wife had a conversation before he had to come out and hold the Bible and the cane because he looked like he barely wanted to beat it himself. So it's like,

you know, he, maybe he's jealous of the white. I don't know what's going on behind the scenes, but that looked like a whole nother situation that came to the forefront. But again, it shows that, uh, vice president Kamala Harris, you know, is a woman of distinction, leadership and excellence. And it's unfortunate, you know, these are the things that we have to go through as black women, as women in leadership. It doesn't matter what rooms we put ourselves in, what titles we have is just going to happen. So it's either you have to know who you are in order to make sure that that really doesn't penetrate. But it is what it is. And you can just pray that the person that's holding the Bible is actually reading it. Well, I mean, I'm a Congo. I mean, this I mean, I don't know whatever the hell I have between them.

She had to basically tell him, stand here. He did not want to be near the vice president. I mean, it's just like, you know, as they say, school on Sunday. Right. No class. At the end of the day, these guys have just't have it in any way, shape, or form. And also being a professor, like, I can't imagine walking into my classroom with my students and having them see me do something like that. To be ashamed to stand next to somebody, to look like I'm disgusted by somebody, not extend a hand to the vice president. Why didn't he just choose to not get up on stage? You know what I'm saying? It's like he wanted to get up there and embarrass her in some way, shape or form.

And I'm sure with his followers and his people, he's the talk of the town. People are loving him. I'm glad that everybody else is recognizing the unprofessional nature, the disrespectful nature of this. And really at the end of the day, I cannot wait for January 21st, you know, where Vice President Harris can be done with all of them.

Folks on the Biden side who did it wrong. Folks on the Republican side who did it wrong. All of the dignity that she's had to show, just all of it, just to be out and just do her thing. Because these guys, like I said, they're sore winners. Like, how hard would it be for you to shake her hand? Right. They have to rub it in in every way, shape or form. But I commend her. I mean, this is like the political version of Ruby Freeman and Shay Ma. It's just like keep going, keep, you know, nonstop dealing with all the drama. And kudos to her. But this is classless. And he deserves every type of reprimand that he's getting online. Because even as somebody who's supposed to be a leader of students, because he's a professor, he dropped the ball entirely. So I hope that they don't forget that also. Julianne?

That man is a classless piece of ish. I mean, totally classless. And a poor role model, and his wife ought to be ashamed of him. She ought to whip his behind when they get home. Not because she's on different political sides. The couple of as over Congo said, it would not kill him to simply shake somebody's hand. But there's a song used to be a time when used to be a time at the ballgame. The winner took the time to shake the loser's hand. He couldn't do that. He couldn't show basic common decency. And, you know, I don't even know.

He should have stayed home. He simply should have stayed home because this is absurd. But as Teresa said, these kind of slights happen to black women all the time. You could see the shock on Kamala's face. There was shock on her face. It was like, what the, you know, is going on here? But she handled it. She handled every sling and arrow that has come to her. She's handled it with grace, with dignity, with a lot more than many of us could sum it up, you know, under the circumstances. So I can say, I'm with Kamala. I want her to live her life like it's golden.

If she wants to run again in 28, good for her. If she wants to run for governor of California, good for her. But the amount of foolishness that she's had to deal with in the course of her vice presidency, but certainly in the course of the election and its aftermath, that amount of foolishness is crazy. I hope that Doug takes her to a nice island and she gets a G.I. game back for one. Come to a nice island and let her chill out for a couple weeks and just, you know what, those people and their hatred. How can you be so hateful and not shake a hand? That's exactly what it is. It's pure

hatred on their part and his actions are shameful and frankly, I really hope that that Fisher people keep blowing people just keep blowing up blowing up her social media letting her know how shameful and trash her husband is and as somebody posted this tweet so let me let me let me find it, because, you know, I'm just saying, you know, these things are these things are important. And as I said, he is a professor at the University of Nebraska. So if any of y'all, you know, this was posted by James Felton Keith. And so any of y'all desire, if y'all want to let Bruce Fisher know how you feel, his office phone number is 402-472-4274.

That's 402-472-4274. That's 402-472-4274. His email is bfisher, B-F-I-S-C-H-E-R, at unomaha.edu. B-F-I-S-H-E-R at U-N-O-M-A-H-A dot E-D-U. So, you know what? Just let them know how you feel. Just saying. All right, folks, the Minneapolis City Council approved the federal consent decree with the U.S. Department of Justice to reform policing practices within the Minneapolis Police Department. The agreement comes after a two year investigation following the murder of George Floyd. The DOJ found a pattern

or practice of civil rights violations within the MPD. Advocates aim to finalize the reforms before president, before the inauguration of the convicted criminal in chief. Of course, he doesn't give a damn. They oppose many of these measures, calling them part of a war on police. So don't be surprised as this this is going to be the last action, if you will, that you will see take place against police departments. And so this is what happened. So great job by Christian Clark, who leads the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice for the action that they took right here. And so that's just what we often see. Folks, a judicial body rejected Democratic lawmakers' request to refer Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas

to the Department of Justice over claims he failed to disclose gifts and travel from a wealthy benefactor. Thomas says he was advised that such personal hospitality did not require disclosure. He's a lying asshole. The justice pledged to report it started with this 2022 filing, which he submitted in August of 2023. It takes you that damn long to submit some paperwork.

Judge Robert Conrad noted that the judiciary clarified financial disclosure rules since 2023, including when personal hospitality exemptions do not apply. Well, you know, he's good at he's good at getting flew out, if you will. I'm a Congo. And there's no doubt that Clarence Thomas is one of the most corrupt Supreme Court justices ever had. I mean, the gifts that he has taken from these rich, these billionaire benefactors are enormous, more than any other justice. Matter of fact, more than all the other justices combined. It's just disgraceful. I mean, we can talk about judges and rulings that we don't like and condemn rulings. But the character, the lack of character with this man and the way he just completely crapped over the entire justice system over the

course of his entire career and tried to play it off as the guy like, oh, I just love being at home and being in my RV and in a parking lot of a Walmart and, you know, and just played it off and just completely lied. And people wonder why there's such a negative view of the Supreme Court. And this was the guy who was supposed to replace, you know, Thurgood Marshall, like seriously. And we see and now Trump has the judiciary, you know, the Supreme Court under him as well. But this man is the poster child of corruption. He's the poster child of lack as it relates to the judges. And the fact that we can't have a system in place where Supreme Court judges have to follow the same rules that all other judges across the country are supporting. A lot of times the big economic forces we hear about on the news show up in our lives

in small ways. Three or four days a week, I would buy two cups of banana pudding, but the price has gone up. So now I only buy one. The demand curve in action. And that's just one of the things we'll be covering on Everybody's Business from Bloomberg Businessweek. I'm Max Chavkin.

And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith. Every Friday, we will be diving into the biggest stories in business, taking a look at what's boardrooms, the backrooms, even the signal chats that make our economy tick. Hey, I want to learn about VeChain. I want to buy some blockchain or whatever it is that they're doing. So listen to Everybody's Business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops, and they get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no.

Across the country, cops called this taser the revolution. But not everyone was convinced it was that simple. Cops believed everything that taser told them. From Lava for Good and the team that brought you Bone Valley comes a story about what happened when a multi-billion dollar company dedicated itself to one visionary mission. This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad.

It's really, really, really bad. Listen to new episodes of Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes 1, 2, and 3 on May 21st and episodes 4, 5, and 6 on June 4th. Ad-free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Lott.

And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. We are back. In a big way. In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We got Ricky Williams, NFL player, Heisman Trophy winner.

It's just a compassionate choice to allow players all reasonable means to care for themselves. Music stars Marcus King, John Osborne from Brothers Osborne. We have this misunderstanding of what this quote-unquote drug ban is. Benny the Butcher.

Brent Smith from Shinedown. We got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Karamush. What we're doing now isn't working, and we need to change things. Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real.

It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to hear episodes one week early and ad-free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. We asked parents who adopted teens to share their journey.

We just kind of knew from the beginning that we were family. They showcased a sense of love that I never had before. I mean, he's not only my parent, like, he's like my best friend. At the end of the day, it's all been worth it. I wouldn't change a thing about our lives. Learn about adopting a teen from foster care. Visit AdoptUSKids.org to learn more. Brought to you by AdoptUSKids, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,

and the Ad Council. Those two follow, and then they come up with a code of ethics that they're not even going to enforce. This man with his wife, the insurrectionist, right? You know, they are of disgrace on every single level. And I'm glad that he continues to be exposed because it's completely shameful, but it's also illegal and he hasn't suffered full consequences for it. Julianne. Well, he hasn't suffered consequences and he probably won't. He has been the darling of the right wing since he was nominated. They went looking for him.

I mean, you do not find black folks like that sitting in your backyard. They went looking for him and elevated him carefully through EEOC, through, they went looking for him. And he has never respected law. And then Matt Jenney, his wife, I mean, she she she he should really be put off the court because of her. I mean, because of her own complicity. But again, that will never happen. Clarence Thomas is a disgrace, not to the race, because we don't claim him. We just call him uncle. But he is basically a disgrace to justice. He's a disgrace to the court. I mean, until Trump, there has been enormous, even though, as Oval Congress said earlier, we may not agree with Supreme Court decisions. We've even looked at some things like the case where Blacks have no rights, Taney rather Cheney, where Blacks have no rights and whites are bound to respect.

And we've been able to say things like, well, this is they're coming from a slave holding background, et cetera. We can explain it. The only thing that we can explain with Clarence Thomas is lack of integrity and avarice. Those are two defining aspects of anti-Blackness. This is a brother who hates himself. He truly does. And you go back and look at some of his Supreme Court writings. They're blood curdling because of the self-hate. The things that he said about his own sister, when he said she got mad at her welfare check didn't come you know so this is a hating man he hates himself he hates black people but he loves money he's very avaricious and he has no integrity there you have look i think at the end of the day one of the issues that i have with biden is that well that they didn't look to expand the Supreme Court to try to make this

person irrelevant. Maybe it wouldn't have happened and so on and so forth. But the way that there has never really been anything of substance done to really challenge him and the Supreme Court in general, because, I mean, some of these guys, the Kavanaughs who just lie to get on, like just all of that, we really don't have an institution as it relates to the Supreme Court anymore, or at least one that's going to work in our favor. And so what are we supposed to do with this? We have to go harder in 2026 as it relates to these midterms. We have to go harder with the next presidency. And I think Julian said this at the beginning of the show. One of us said this. Democrats have to stop playing nice when you have people like him who have no care or love or

respect for the system and just milk it in every way, shape or form. What are we going to do about it? We're going to report about it. We're going to talk about it. But the people who have some type of leverage or power need to go harder on if they want to have any type of semblance of respect for this system. Because clearly right now, it's completely shot by those of us who actually care about a judicial system. Indeed, indeed, indeed. All right, folks, that is it for us. I appreciate y'all being with me on today, my first day back since the new year started. So happy new year to all of you. Thank you very much, Teresa, Makongo, and Julian. Folks, don't forget, support the work that we do. As I keep saying, look, we don't have millionaires and billionaires cutting us checks.

You've got these conservative folks out here. I mean, they're building new 10, 11 acre compounds, all this stuff along those lines. And we're just simply out here speak, covering the issues other people are not going to cover. Talk about the stuff that actually matters to our people, which is critically important. And look what we do here. Nobody else in black on media is doing. Byron Allen has gotten rid of nearly everybody at the Griot. April Ryan announced that she's leaving. You know what we do here. Essence doesn't do black enterprise, doesn't do Ebony, doesn't do blab. He doesn't do none of these folks are doing what we're doing. So your support is critical. We're looking to add two new shows in 2025. And so we hope

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Folks, that's it. I'll see y'all tomorrow right here on Roland Martin Unfiltered on the Black Star Network. Holla! Folks, Black Star Network is here. Hold no punches! I'm real revolutionary right now. Black power!

Support this man, Black Media. He makes sure that our stories are told. I thank you for being the voice of Black America, Roller. I love y'all. All momentum we have now, we have to keep this going. The video looks phenomenal. See, there's a difference between Black Star Network and Black-owned media and something like CNN. You can't be Black-owned media and be scape.

It's time to be smart. Bring your eyeballs home. You dig? A lot of times, big economic forces show up in our lives in small ways. Four days a week, I would buy two cups of banana pudding. But the price has gone up, so now I only buy one. Small but important ways. From tech billionaires to the bond market to, yeah, banana pudding. If it's happening in business, our new podcast is on it.

I'm Max Chastin. And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith. So listen to Everybody's Business on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I know a lot of cops. They get asked all the time, have you ever had to shoot your gun? Sometimes the answer is yes. But there's a company dedicated to a future where the answer will always be no. This is Absolute Season 1,

Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. Listen to Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Lott. And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Yes, sir. Last year, a lot of the problems of the drug war. This year, a lot of the biggest names in music and sports. This kind of starts that a little bit, man. We met them at their homes. We met them at their recording studios.

Stories matter, and it brings a face to them. It makes it real. It really does. It makes it real. Listen to new episodes of the War on Drugs podcast season two on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. We asked parents who adopted teens to share their journey. We just kind of knew from the beginning that we were family.

They showcased a sense of love that I never had before. I mean, he's not only my parent, like he's like my best friend. At the end of the day, it's all been worth it. I wouldn't change a thing about our lives. Learn about adopting a teen from foster care. Visit AdoptUSKids.org to learn more. Brought to you by AdoptUSKids, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,

and the Ad Council. This is an iHeart Podcast.