#RolandMartinUnfiltered - NC Voter Roll Lawsuit, Diddy Trial Update, Musk Rips ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ & Mike Sumler’s Death

Episode Date: May 29, 2025

5.28.2025 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: NC Voter Roll Lawsuit, Diddy Trial Update, Musk Rips ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ & Mike Sumler’s Death The Justice Department sues North Carolina, accusing state election officials of failing to maintain accurate voter registration lists, which could potentially impact hundreds of thousands of registrations. We'll break down what's at stake and how this lawsuit could affect upcoming elections. Inside the Diddy trial... Emotional testimony today, detailing allegations of violent acts. We'll discuss the latest developments, including the denial of the mistrial.  Plus, the "Big Beautiful Bill" may not be so pretty after all. Elon Musk is blasting the GOP's massive tax and spending plan, calling it a terrible deal for America. What does this mean for your wallet and the future of the national debt? And some sad news, Michael "Chicago Mike" Sumler, a member of the legendary music group Kool & the Gang, died in a car crash.  #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 Black Star Network app at http://www.blackstarnetwork.com! We're on iOS, AppleTV, Android, AndroidTV, Roku, FireTV, XBox and SamsungTV. The #BlackStarNetwork is a news reporting platform 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. 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 Chastain. And I'm Stacey Vanek-Smith. So listen to everybody's business

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Listen to absolute season one Taser Incorporated on the iHeart radio app Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts 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 rapper way, 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 US Department of Health and Human Services and the Ad Council. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glott. And this is season two of the World on Drugs by Ken. Last year a lot of the problems of the drug war this year, a lot of the biggest names in music and sports. This is kind of star-studded a little bit, man. We met them at their homes. We met them at their recording studios.

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Black Star Network. Well, guess what? The Trump Department of Justice. They are suing North Carolina accusing the state of failing to maintain accurate voter registration list, which could potentially impact hundreds of thousands of registrations. All they're doing is picking up on the

failed live being that was pushed by the Republican Supreme Court nominee who lost to the Democrat. Inside the Sean Diddy Combs trial, emotional testimony today detailing more allegations of violent acts. Legal analyst Candace Kelley will break it all down for us, including the denial of a mistrial. Plus Trump's big beautiful deal may not be so pretty. Elon Musk is criticizing it.

Republicans are getting nailed in town halls all across the country. Woo, they a little bit upset. They big mad y'all big mad and some sad news. Michael Chicago Mike Summler, a member of legendary music group Kulnigang has died in a car crash. That and more right here. Rolling Mark Unfiltered on the

Black Stud Network. It's time to bring the funk. Let's go. He's right on time and it's rollin' Best believe he's knowin' Puttin' it down from sports to news to politics With entertainment just for kicks He's rollin' It's Uncle Roll-Royale It's Rollin' Martin Rollin' with Rollin' now Yeah, rolling with rolling now. Yeah, he's funky, he's fresh, he's real, the best, you know he's rolling.

Martell, now. Martell. Well, Donald Trump's Department of Justice, they don't give a damn about actually the regular ordinary people when it comes to voting lawsuits. They are shutting down those that impact black and brown people, but now they're taking up a lie that was being pushed by a Republican Supreme Court nominee. He lost after six months, he lost to Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs. Now they are filing a lawsuit against the state of North Carolina. The state board of elections alleging that officials

failed to maintain accurate voter registration records for potentially hundreds of thousands of voters, a lot of them veterans. The suit alleges the board violated the Federal Help America Vote Act by registering voters without collecting required identifying information, such as the driver's license number or the last four digits of a social security number on forms used statewide since 2004. Now state officials have been quietly updating the forms last year, but did not reach out to people already registered, which could be anywhere from 60,000 to more than 200,000 voters. As I said, this is what was advanced by the Republican who lost to Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs.

So he lost by 734 votes. So only in his race, he wanted to invalidate some 65,000 voters. A lot of them, y'all, are veterans who vote overseas. He lost. He had to concede the race. But here you see Trump trying to advance the lie. Rebecca Carruthers, Executive Vice President, Fair Election Center out of D.C.,

Derrick Jackson, Georgia State Representative out of Atlanta, Candace Kelley, legal analyst, and host of Not All Hood out of South Orange, New Jersey. Glad to have all three of y'all here. So this is beyond pathetic, Rebecca. And again, this is them pushing the lie that this Republican in North Carolina failed on. He kept losing.

And now they're trying to take up his cause. You know what, Roland, what makes this even more ridiculous is that the voting rights section of the DOJ has been largely gutted. So, it's hardly anyone lumped over there. And so, of all cases to bring, this is the first case that this administration is bringing. There's several issues with this. Yes, it could potentially impact hundreds of thousands of duly registered voters in North Carolina, but it's gonna impact Republicans, just like it's gonna impact Democrats. The issue here is, as the DOJ

is outlining potential remedies, it gets a little bit tricky. Like, for instance, it's saying that North Carolina would have to contact every voter that doesn't have the last four of their Social Security number attached to their voter registration. And if they don't hear from that specific voter, then they'll just assign like a unique numeric code to that voter.

So it's still unclear exactly what the DOJ wants North Carolina to do. And then it's also unclear if HAVA, which is what this lawsuit is bringing, being brought under, Help America to Vote Act, it's unclear if this is actually a remedy that you can do under HAVA. So it doesn't make sense out of all things to go after with voting rights that this is what the Department of Justice decides is the most important in this country right now. is the most important in this country right now? Yeah, I mean, it's very clear, and Derek, what they're trying to do is they are trying to pick up the mantle of the failure of this Republican,

and they want to target, they want to shave off voters. Look, you're in Georgia. Y'all have had to deal with Raffensperger and Kip wiping folks off the rolls. I mean, they want to shrink the electorate because they say it makes it easier for them to win. Yeah, Roland, you're exactly right. I mean, especially when you think about Georgia,

North Carolina, Florida, these 11 Southern Confederate states, since the Supreme Court back in July of 2013 removed Section 5, that pre-clarance requirement, these 11 states went to work. Georgia kicked things off with Senate Bill 202, a 98-page document that makes it harder for Black and Brown people to vote, especially women, especially

military, especially seniors, especially college students. They went specifically at these groups, Roland, because they lost in 2020. And then this is the same party that continued to proliferate a lie of 2020. And so it just, as Rebecca stated, it is ridiculous on its face for them to say the system is broke when they lose, but it's OK when they win. You can't have it both ways. And so let's do the right thing. Let's pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, something that's going to make it fair for everyone, but you won't see them do that because that's not what they

want. As it was already stated, the Department of Justice is not about doing the right work to make sure all citizens vote, Roland. This is another way for them to flood the zone, to distract us, because there's no there there. And here in Georgia, our challenge right now, next month, they're talking about removing about a half a million Georgians off the voting poll. It makes no sense.

And so these are the kinds of things we got to fight against and make sure we stand up and speak out against as they continue to try to disenfranchise the voters. It's real clear, and they don't give a damn about regular ordinary people, candidates. They don't care about black people. They don't care about their votes being screwed over,

shutting down voting locations. This is about white conservatives. This is about them winning more races. This is what this is all about, pure and simple. Right, and of all the things that they should be focusing in on in 2025, this is what they're going after, just like Rebecca said. I think the other thing is the effect of this,

like Rebecca said too, it's going to be something that's quite the opposite of what they had intended, kind of like DEI. Yeah, it affected mostly white women. Now we're looking at this, it's going to be affect the Republican base also. And then we're talking about due process rights here, right? If you have somebody that is not given a fair opportunity and is duly informed about what is wrong, what is wrong with their voting record in the process that they didn't even know about, you have to give some time. You know, the Civil Rights Division is talking about

30 days to try to correct some of this in some way, shape, or form. But you can't go through a process, especially when it comes to voting rights, and we know how important that is, and just rip these types of rights away before you give a person the opportunity to correct it. They didn't even know that that was a problem. In other words, it wasn't even the fault of the voters. So there are a whole lot of issues that need to be addressed here. But certainly this is something that's not just going

to affect black Democrats. It's going to affect everybody. And I think that that is something that the Republicans are being very blind to. Oh, absolutely. And it's abundantly clear. So people just need to understand, just like we talked about with these cases of black folks, motorists being shot and killed by cops, we are not gonna get anything from these idiots in Trump's Department of Justice.

That crazy woman over the Civil Rights Division, that fool, that black MAGA fool, Leo Terrell, they don't give a damn about the voting rights of black people. So I'm just letting y'all know it ain't gonna happen. So just understand, prepare yourself, that ain't gonna happen. All right, gotta go to break, we come back.

More on the show, we're gonna talk the Ditty Trial. Also, I'm gonna show y'all how Donald Trump and the Republicans wanna play black people. And guess what? Some of it's effective. Donald Trump has pardoned, he's pardoned big time Chicago gang leader Larry Hoover. But he ain't getting out of prison. I'm gonna break it all down for you. You're watching Roland Martin on the filter right here

on the Black Star Network. This week on A Balanced Life, we are talking about the many women and female role models that play an integral role in our lives, from helping to boost our self-esteem to checking us when we get out of line. These women deserve their flowers, that play an integral role in our lives. From helping to boost our self-esteem to checking us when we get out of line. These women deserve their flowers

for helping us to become who we are today. The women in my lives who have just impacted me so much have challenged me. They're women who made me want to live right and love right. That's all next on A Balanced Life here on Black Star Network. Now streaming on the Black Star Network. In France, me and Tony, and accidentally went to the loo, right, but I had never been and I saw a side door and we got off the little bus and I said, let's go to the loo. I mean, I'm just like,

let's go to the loo I'm just like, let's go to the room. We're here. This black girl is at the door with this white guy, black African girl. And she says, oh my God, Vanessa B. Calloway. And I'm like this, you know me? And come to find out we were at the wrong door. But she said, I was at your, just go in here.

But I was in Paris, France. And that shocked me. She knew my name. She knew me. She knew my movie. You know, so it's like, you just got, as they say, built and they will come. Put it out there.

People will find it. They will come. This week at the Black Table, we discuss a place, an idea, a dream, and a reality that everybody on the planet should know about. A place called Mound Bayou. What about Black people creating their own country, not from the outside in, but from the inside out? That's next on The Black Table, right here on the Black Star Network.

This week on the other side of change. We're talking centers, we're talking the Met Gala, we are talking about Black and Asian solidarity just in time for AAPI Heritage Month. And we're talking with our brilliant friend, Meladika Cannon. Nothing about these alliances is necessarily natural except for the fact that we all are people who are trying to stay safe.

Tune in only on the other side of change on the Black Star Network. Hey, what's up, y'all? I'm Davon Franklin. It is always a pleasure to be in the house. on the Black Star Network. All right, folks. There's an idiot sitting in the Oval Office. It ain't even close. Absolute idiot. So today, y'all, I saw this. I saw this and I just thought it was

just too hilarious. So a reporter decides to ask the grifter-in-chief, who is really stupid when it comes to tariffs, what the conservative Wall Street Journal said. And let me help you a lot. The Wall Street Journal is a conservative Republican newspaper. They've always been about Republican policies. It is owned by Rupert Murdoch, who owns the New York Post and Fox News. So here's what the reporter said today that just really set off Donald Trump when he was like, oh my God, this question is just so horrible. How dare you ask?

Y'all got the video ready? And it really to me was, is just, is a perfect example of how stupid this man is. Listen to this. Mr. President, Wall Street analysts have coined a new term called the taco trade. They're saying Trump always chickens out on your tariff threats, and that's why markets are higher this week.

What's your response to that? I kick out? Chicken out. Oh, and then I chicken out. I've never heard that. You mean because I reduced China from 145 percent that I set down to 100 and then down to another number? I said, you have to open up your whole country. And because I gave the European Union a 50% tax tariff, and they called up and they said, please, let's meet right now.

Please, let's meet right now. And I said, okay, I'll give you till June 9th. I actually asked them, I said, what's the date? Because they weren't willing to meet. And after I did what I did, they said, well, I'll give you Till June 9. I actually asked them I said what's the date because they weren't willing to meet and after I did what I did they said we'll meet anytime you want and We have an end date of July 9th You call that chickening out because we have 14 trillion dollars now invested

Committed to investing when Biden didn't have practically anything. Biden, this country was dying. You know, we have the hottest country anywhere in the world. I went to Saudi Arabia, the king told me. He said, you got the hottest comp- we have the hottest country in the world right now. Six months ago, this country was stone cold dead. We had a dead country. We had a country people didn't think it was going to survive, and you ask a nasty question like that.

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

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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 call 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 one, two and three on May 21st

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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 band. Benny the Butcher.

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if I set a number at a ridiculous high number and I go down a little bit, you know, a little bit, they want me to hold that number, 145 percent tariff. Even I said, man, that really got up. You know how it got? Because of fentanyl and many other things. And you added it up. I said, where are we now? We're at 145 percent. I said, whoa, that's high.

That's high. They were doing no business whatsoever. And they were having a lot of problems. We were very nice to China. I don't know if they're going to be nice to us, but we were very nice to China. And in many ways, I think we really helped China tremendously because, you know, they were having great difficulty because we were basically going cold turkey with China. We were doing no business because of the tariff, because it was so high.

But I knew that. But don't ever say what you said. That's a nasty question. Go ahead. To me, that's the nastiest question. A nasty man talking about what is a nasty question. You know, it really is hilarious to me when you listen to that idiot. And that's really what he is, a complete idiot. Oh my God, this question is so nasty. I dare you ask me that question.

I don't like how you ask me that question because you're now calling me out because I look like an idiot. Because the question is just so, it's the nastiest question I've gotten in the past five minutes. because what he really prefers is, he really prefers for people to constantly kiss his ass and so he stands before the cameras and says oh my god our economy was dead, our economy was so dead, the economy was going all over the place.

Really that's interesting. This is the Joint Economic Committee for Democrats. This is, I mean, these actual facts. This is 2021, the U.S. economy improved during Biden's first year in office, first 12 months, most in 50 years. Job growth, economic growth, retail sales. Oh, the economy grew at the fastest rate in nearly 40 years. GDP up 5.7%. Look at these numbers. Look at that right there. Let's see here, 5.7% on the far right. That's the most since 1984.

That's kind of interesting. And this is from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. This is what is crazy. This is also what's amazing. Derek, I'm going to start with you because he's a liar. He's a liar. MAGA, they're pretty stupid. They believe the lies.

Anything that that fool says that they fall for. And this is exactly what happens. And the fact of the matter is, the economy improved greatly. The United States economy grew faster than any other industrialized nation post COVID. So it's a lie. Donald Trump is a liar.

He's lying when he says, oh my God, the country was dead. We were almost dead. We were dead. It's a lie. He's lying when he says, oh my God, the country was dead. We were all dead. We were dead. It's a lie. He's straight lying. And this is where, if you're a reporter, you should say, well, I'm sorry, you're incorrect because the economy grew at the fastest rate

in any other industrialized country. See, they won't do that. So what they do is, and the same thing happens when you see the people go on, I said the other day when Speaker Mike Johnson goes on with Jake Tapper and he asked him about their crypto dinner. Well, I don't know. I was really busy last week, you know, uh, you know, with, with, with the house bill,

I didn't hear about any of this. Really? You didn't hear about any of this. And then it will allow them to go on and lie. No, you got to shut the lies down. You know, Roland, uh, again, this is the liar in chief, right? I mean, someone has a tally thus far. I think they documented, like, 31,000 lies since this dude been in office the first time. 31,000. But here's the bottom line to the essence of your point.

Facts and data be damned. They don't care about facts and data. They know six months ago, the headlines of our economy, strong, right? Financially solvent. The stock market was a runaway freight train, a bull if you will. But now the headlines are saying potential recession. The CBO's office is saying that

this tax cut bill will negatively impact Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security. It will reduce the solvency of Social Security. The CBO also says that this is going to increase our national debt, another $4.5 trillion. And so when you... So we can look at the two bookends, what the headlines were six months ago and what they are now. Is this amazing that he says some Saudi prince told him that we're hot,

as if he should know what our state of economy, what the health of our economy? Well, first of all, let's be real clear. The Saudi King, let's be real clear here, OK? The Saudi King, the Saudi King can is, I don't believe nothing Trump says. So when Trump says, well, the Saudi King told me, I don't believe that fool.

I don't believe that fool at all. Because he going to lie about that, again, liars will lie. All this man does is lie. That's what he does. Over and over and over again, Candace. And so when he said, again, everything he said, that was a lie. So I don't believe the Saudi King.

You got the hardest, got the hardest. The Saudi King will say whatever to make that dumb ass feel good. And listen, even if you had video of it rolling, we'd have to double check and make sure it wasn't a lie. You know, we have to double check everything. We don't know these days, Trump acts in a way that anything anybody says,

secretly or behind closed doors on private phone calls, they all are loving Trump. They're all in Trump's favor. I think that one of the things that's so interesting, as you said, with the Wall Street Journal being conservative operation, which it has always been, right, Rupert Murdoch's of the world,

here was a paper calling him taco, right? Trump always changes chickens out. So you've got this thing going on where the press is supposed to be his friend. Could not have won any election as with anybody, but especially not Trump, was not gonna win an election without the media being his friends.

So number one, he is losing that groundswell of support. And even if he's not, that's what it looks like. Second, you call them taco. And what do you think about when you think about tacos? Mexicans. I mean, this was just way out of the league. And I think the eighth grader in him, which is what we often see and how he negotiates,

was just, did not like the name calling. Besides anything else, besides him flipping on the tariffs, besides him not getting, you know, the media support, Trump liked to be the leader of the bullies in the eighth grade. And in this taco calling, he lost out. This bully, the bull, they bullied him. And to answer your question, they bullied him and now have given him his name that's certainly going to stick.

He doesn't want to be associated with anybody that should be, uh, deported certainly gonna stick. He doesn't wanna be associated with anybody that should be deported from the country. He doesn't want anything to do with tacos, anything to do with Mexican, anything to do with anything. So they really got him. And I think that that's where a lot of his angst and his anger was coming from in this press conference. And again, he's a liar.

We can't get around the reality here, Rebecca. This is a massive liar. I believe nothing that comes out of his mouth. If Donald Trump says, oh my God, it's really raining outside, I'm literally going to go to the window and double check. I don't believe anything that fools. If Donald Trump is sitting,

I believe nothing this man says because he will lie about lies. If Trump said it was raining outside, I'm going outside after my silk press without an umbrella. Like, it's like, come on. Not only is he playing chicken, he's almost like, what, Biff from Back to the Future, where he's kind of a bully but really has no teeth.

As what we're watching is like the tariff hokey-pokey. He's saying, okay, I'm gonna put 25% on YouCanada. Oh, but I'm gonna roll it back to 10% because now you're saying you're gonna do reciprocal tariffs. Oh, China, I'm gonna to roll it back to 10% because now you're saying you're going to do reciprocal tariffs. Oh, China, I'm going to go up to 75%. And China's like, OK, I'll raise you 125%. So for someone who's talked about all the winning that he does, and he's a winner, and all he does is win, so far I haven't seen any of it. Instead, what we've seen is that the American economy is taking a hit. We're seeing that there's fluctuations on the stock market

that shouldn't really be there. And to your point at the top of this segment, is there are real concerns that we're gonna have a recession, but it's not gonna be a recession from the classical sense of just the economy going through its different cycles, but it's gonna be a Trump-induced recession. And I'm just sitting here watching these idiot MAGA people

and there's no other phrase. I have to call, you know, again, I remember I was on CNN, I was on answer Cooper, John Avlon, Derek, and they were like, you know, or he was like, Roland, it's not really smart to call the American people stupid. No, I'm like, when you're stupid, you're stupid. Okay, and you know who's stupid?

North Carolina people who voted for Trump. Know who's stupid? Missouri people who voted for Trump. You know who's stupid? Arkansas people who voted for Donald Trump. Cause you know what he's done? He said, North Carolina, you ain't getting hurricane relief.

Missouri, oh, you had some destructive tornadoes. You ain't getting hurricane relief. Missouri, oh you had some destructive tornadoes. You ain't getting relief. Arkansas, Sarah Hudgby Sanders, who was his chief liar in the White House the first time, begging him, he like, nah, y'all ain't getting relief. These dumbasses voted for him and he goes, oh, I'm sorry, when the hurricane tornado hits y'all, go to hell, kick rocks, I'm sorry, when the hurricane tornado hits y'all, go to hell, kick rocks.

I'm giving you nothing. And these idiots still like, yeah, he my guy. That's my guy. Listen, you got to add Georgia to that mix too, Roland. Add Georgia, because he declined to give us our $5.5 billion for FEMA for a hurricane that happened last fall. He also negatively impacting our plan in terms of our infrastructure, our electric vehicles charging station, all the federal grant dollars that former President Biden had already tailored to come to Georgia.

He already told Brian Kemp, the governor, hey, I ain't sending you your money. So you got to add Georgia to that mix, Roland. These individuals keep kissing the orange butt the orange butt and getting zero things in return. And this is a transactional president that refuses to do the things that he should be doing. And the last point I would say is this too, Roland, you mentioned about the coins, the mean coins, the $5 million per person or million dollars per person. That's extortion. that's extortion.

That's extortion. But the Republicans don't want to call it that, right? So the Speaker of the House, I was busy that day. I'm not sure what was going on, really? This guy, he's an extortionist. They don't want to call it that. But what do criminals do? What would a 34-felon count criminal would do?

Criminals conduct crime. Mob bosses, they conduct crime. And that's what he's doing. He is robbing the American people right before our eyes. This is the greatest ice I ever seen that even, even Hollywood couldn't even dream up such a movie as this. And Rebecca, this is actually how Fox News responds. Let's see.

I think we have a leak. Like that is just like, like don't even, I mean, they laugh about this whole deal. That's what I'm telling you. I am very clear, Rebecca. Whoever runs for president for the Democrats in 2028, this is how they should respond. Are you going to release your COGS transcripts?

Hell no. Are you gonna release your medical records? Hell no. Are you gonna release your medical records? Hell no. Are you gonna put your investments in the blind trust? Hell no. In fact, fuck it, I'm launching my own coin. No, I mean, I'm serious. I just, again, literally,

I keep telling, I keep trying not to cuss. So y'all, if y'all wanna hear me cuss, go ahead and turn it down. I keep trying not to cuss. And I really- When did you try? No, no, no, no, no, no, no. I've like pulled back on something, but I'm telling y'all, this is what I,

matter of fact, I'm gonna have to, this is what I need in 2028. I need in 2028, there's a great scene in Harlem Nights. My man Red Fox, y'all might remember the scene in Harlem Nights, it was open scene, they were doing craps and they were complaining about my man's eyesight. And they made him go put on some glasses.

And then he came back and man, they was sitting here, razzin' my man, talkin' about my man, dissin' my man, I mean just giving him hell, giving him hell. And finally Red Fox just got tired of them sittin' here messin' with him. Fox just got tired of them sitting here messing with him. He just got tired. And the character was Benny.

Y'all remember Benny. And again, they were just sitting here and just dogging my man. And he was like, you know what, I'm really getting tired of y'all sitting here dogging me by my glasses. And I'll never forget, he gave the best response to his haters, and this should be the response

of any DM running in 2028, when people start asking them to do some stuff they never asked Donald Trump. Go to my iPad, Anthony. Hey! Hey! How you doing? Enjoy the game, Anthony. Hey! Hey! Ah! Enjoy the game, gentlemen. Fuck y'all. That should be it right there.

Man, fuck y'all. I'm serious. I mean, because again, there's no, there's no, there's no advantage playing by the rules. If you are a Democrat, you are literally playing by a set of rules, standards, that Republicans, I mean, we are literally seeing the raping and the pillaging of America before our very eyes.

And they like, Jay, I don't see nothing. I don't know what y'all talking about. We good. So I'm telling you, Jerry, man, I don't see nothing. I don't know what y'all talking about. We good. So I'm telling you, them should be, all right, that's how y'all wanna play. Go on Fox News and just, they should be. 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 Chafkin. 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 call 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 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 Glott. And this is Season 2 of the War on Drugs podcast. 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 bans. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. Got B-Real from Cypress Hill.

NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette, MMA fighter Liz Caramouche. 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 Podcast. I always had to be so good no one could ignore me. Carve my path with data and drive.

But some people only see who I am on paper. The paper ceiling. The limitations from degree screens to stereotypes that are holding back over 70 million stars. Workers skilled through alternative routes rather than a bachelor's degree. It's time for skills to speak for themselves. Find resources for breaking through barriers

at tearthepaperceiling.org, brought to you by Opportunity at Work and the Ad Council. Jam it ass, y'all ain't saying nothing? You ain't saying nothing. Oh, oh, oh, I'm sorry. Because he's doing out in the open, we all good. by Opportunity at Work and the same gamemanship, we're gonna be stuck in the same past. First of all, this dude has already said that he's gonna run for a third term. So at that point, that is an opening pitch to the other side of,

hey, do you believe in democracy or not? Do you believe that American people get to decide who's gonna be the next president or not? And are believe that American people get to decide who's going to be the next president or not? And are you actually going to talk about the issues that American voters say that they want to talk about? And so whoever becomes a nominee on the Democratic side has to spend a lot of time talking about how they're going to restore faith in government, why government can be a good and transformative thing, and then roll out a plan on how to do so. And that person needs to start today, not just like no offense to Bernie Sanders and ALC, not some self-serving tour, but actually a tour across this country where you're actually talking

to the people, hearing everyday issues, and you're bringing people into the process of how together we can solve it. And so far, we haven't heard that from the Democrats. Instead, we're seeing like these messaging things that are showing up in response to what Trump and the Republicans in Congress are doing. Quite frankly, that's not effective. And so right now, the Democrats aren't actually showing that they have the ability to win in 2028. And considering what Trump is doing, that's a shame.

That's why, that's why Candace, I'm telling you, as far as I'm concerned, if I do any show and they bring up that bullshit ass book by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson, I'ma do the classic, the classic black move that Chris Tucker perfected in Friday. Mm-mm, going on with that.

That's what I'm gonna do. I ain't answering that bullshit. I ain't answering it. No, hell no. I mean, again, though, again, this whole, Jake Tapper literally said the other day, what would the coverup of Biden's decline was bigger than watergate? Get the fuck out of here with that bullshit.

You are losing the cussing game, my Lord. No, I'm just, again, what I'm trying to say is, what they want is they want Democrats, and this is Democrats' big problem, they want to say, no, this is how we need to respond. This is the right way. Do the right thing. We've got to be bigger than that. And I'm sitting there going like, they don't give a damn.

And I keep saying this, Democrats could be 500 yards away from the line. They go, hey, don't get near the line. Republicans go, what line? You know, I'm glad you mentioned Jay Tapper and I'll get off of him for one sec, but I get to get on him because what he did was not just self-serving, but it was just bad journalism. If you had all this information

that you thought was worthwhile and that people should know about, why not share it? Why were you sitting in it the whole time so you could make a buck off of it? And then you're advertising it on your station, which people do, don't get me wrong. But his disposition and his attitude is just so arrogant and self-serving.

I-I can't take it. On another note, I'm worried about the 90 million, uh, people who did not vote. What are we going to do about them? Sure, we're in a position now where we can follow precedent and do what Donald Trump did. So I'm worried about the 90 million people who did not vote. What are we going to do about them? Sure, we're in a position now where we can follow precedent and do what Donald Trump did, but it's only going to cause, like Rebecca said, more chaos. We have got to get off of this idea that, hey, you're going to do this?

Well, I'm going to do this too, because when it comes time for another election to happen, things are going to look way different, especially if he runs again. Everybody's going to be throwing their hat in, and it's just not going to serve us, meaning that what Trump is doing is not going to serve us in the same way. So we have a lot of work to do, but there's certainly a lot of doors that are open for us to do the work. Those folks who didn't even get up off their seats, those are folks that we need to be going after to say, hey, you see what happens

when you don't get off your behinds? Let's go out here and let's make a difference. Go vote. I just want, again, if I am engaged in something, Derek, Rebecca, and Candice, if I'm in the middle of something, and if I'm sitting here abiding by a set of rules, and y'all not, I'm like, oh, that's what we doing?

Okay, bet. Bet. That's how we rolling? All right, let's go. That's how I'm gonna respond, Derek. And I'm telling you right now, I think in this moment, I just believe that just like, you know, people were criticizing Glenn Ivey the other day because Glenn Ivey went to El Salvador

and he was there trying to talk to Abrego Garcia. And again, the right loves to see him play these games. All right, like you said, the NRCC, they posted a tweet, Democrat Glenn Ivey proudly declared, I'm the congressman that represents and alleged MS-13 gang member, domestic abuser, illegal immigrant, Democrats will choose foreign criminals over American families every single time. And you know what, if I'm Glenn Ivey, first of all, if I'm Glenn Ivey, and let me go ahead and play this

clip because this is him in El Salvador. So let me play this and I got something to say to them punk ass Republicans on the other side. Play it. I'm the congressman that represents Kilmar. I came all the way down from the United States after we contacted their ambassador, after we made formal requests to our ambassador to the El Salvadoran government and we came here to visit him today and now they tell us we got to go all the way back to San Salvador to get a permit. That's ridiculous. We ought to have a chance to come in and visit. They knew we were coming. They knew why we were coming and they know we have the right to do this. So they need to just cut the crap. Now again, Republicans are gone. So if I'm Ivey,

this how I'm going to say it. I'm here in El Salvador trying to see one of my constituents who the Supreme Court said nine to nothing, bring them back. That's how you do this, Derrick. Cause see, here's what happens. I saw this one story they said that a Democratic leader, Hacune Jeffries, was telling Democratic members,

you stop going to El Salvador. No, no, no, no. You make due process the story. It's due process. And you say, you say everybody deserves due process, whether you are this person, whether you are brother and sister who is being charged in the crime.

See, they wanna play this little game, well no, he's illegal so he don't get it. This gonna be, well no, no, no, no, he's illegal, so he don't get it. This is going to be, well, no, no, no, no. He got a record, so he don't get, hold on. So who now gets due process? This is how you got to fight back, Derrick. Yeah, no, listen, Roland, I don't disagree with the approach,

but let's be honest here. There are two sets of rules. I mean, you know, we've mentioned it on your show many, many times over. We played the, what if this was Barack Obama game? And we all know if this was Barack Obama, he would have been tortured on day one. If Barack would have came out with 142 executive orders

that was contrary to the constitution, come on, Roland. And so the game for us, I mean, put aside the Democrat Republican for a second. There's the other dimension to this too. It's the, if you and I did something in society, the expectations are different for us as a black man. And in their expectations for Candace and Rebecca are different as a black woman.

And so we just don't get the opportunity in the options unlike the orange dude in the office. I mean, think about this for a second. His net worth, and this is according to Forbes, which is a Republican journalist, magazine, what have you, they said his net worth in 110 days has more than doubled, Roland. If that would have been Michelle Obama and Barack Obama,

Jake Tapper and everybody else, MSNBC, everybody would have been like, oh, that's wrong, that's unpresidential, and this is not any other. And so I'm not disagreeing that when you fight a bully, you punch him in the mouth. You punch a bully in the mouth. But when the dust settles, there are two sets of rules in how we navigate those rules, even to do process is different.

People go, I know we're gonna talk about it later on your show about Diddy. Everybody's saying, well, hey, if you just released the Christie personalities that were in jail because they embezzle $35 million. And he just let them out because somebody gave him a million dollars. Come on, Roland. Again, I'm just like, I don't have time to play games with these people. This is where you got to go hard, Rebecca.

You can't play by a set of rules that no longer exists. And as I say, if you're gonna swing, swing. Yeah, I mean, no one on this panel could even be the orange man. You know why? Derek, Candice, and I refuse to be mediocre. What we're seeing is someone's mediocre who's constantly filled up, and we see a party around him that are complicit. Like, what Derek was saying, if this is Barack Obama,

if this was Michelle Obama, if this was Barack Obama, not only is it what the Democrats actually would have done, they probably would have tried to remove him. They probably would have tried to seek out the 25th Amendment to remove him and declare him incompetent, unfit for the office. I don't even think Congress would have had to actually do an impeachment and a removal process.

But here's the other tricky thing about Trump. And to Derek's point about Trump's alleged fortune has doubled since he started his second term, the thing about Trump is, Trump has never actually made anything. He was never really a businessman. He licensed his image and his likeness and put it on buildings, right? That's not really someone who actually generates

and inserts things into the economy. I wouldn't be surprised when this is all said and done if you two Trump generations are bankrupt. Because I'm not buying it. Like there's like, when you think about all of the foreign governments, all the foreign actors that have their hands in his pocket, they're allegedly moving money into his coffers,

it comes with a price. And mediocre Trump, I don't think it's going to be able to deliver what's going to be asked of him. Like, I know right now we're watching this person who has the bully pulpit of the presidency. He is the president. I still don't think this is going to end well for him. Like, when you play with mobsters

and you pretend to be a mobster, if you're not able to follow through, you're going to get that mobster. You're going to get that mobster death. you're not able to follow through, you're gonna get that mobster, you're gonna get that mobster death. They don't, Candace, they don't care as long as they rape and pillage the company. I don't know if y'all saw this story in the Wall Street Journal. And again, if you wanna understand the raping

and pillaging that goes on, let me pull this up and understand how absolutely positively corrupt these people are and they don't give a damn. And again, and they do so much corrupt shit, Candice, that they do so much. Like they do so much corrupt stuff. It's not even every day.

It's not even every 12 hours. It's not even every day. It's not even every 12 hours. It's not even every six hours. It's like literally on the hour, constant corrupt shit that they don't care. Here's a perfect example. The Wall Street Journal does this exclusive story. Again, the right-wing Wall Street Journal. Elon Musk tried to block Sam Altman's big AI deal

in the Middle East. Musk warned that Trump wouldn't bless open AI data center project unless his ex AI company was added. So basically Elon's like, yo, yo, yo. I control that pimp, I'm his pimp. So let me just get put, Elon Musk is saying, I am Donald Trump's pimp. And I'm a pimp slap his ass if he don't do what I wanna do.

So guess what, Sam Altman, y'all can't work this corner. Y'all got to cut me in. And guess what? Me being the pimp, I'm a sick Trump on y'all to make sure I get my cut. That's what he's trying to do to the African countries, forcing Starlink. The pimp Elon Musk is leading Trump around,

you gonna do my bidding and you gonna get me deals. And then Trump is saying to Elon, yes daddy, yes daddy. Well, this is how I look at it. Whenever you have an issue like this, whether it's business, whether it's a presidency, whether it's due process, over the past centuries, we've gone to the Supreme Court to find an answer.

Now that the Supreme Court seems as if it has no backbone or seems as if nobody is regarding what a 9-0 decision would mean, I really think it's incumbent upon the Supreme Court to say, we've got some unprecedented actions, we need an unprecedented response. Everything in our history has always been determined or been massaged in the rule of law.

Ultimately up to the United States, the Supreme Court of the land that trumps everything. It's gonna trump a state law, federal law. The Supreme Court is that apex that everybody listens to. I just wanna know what they're doing. Even if we're talking about Elon Musk, for somebody to fight back, you would do that in the courts.

You would do that in some type of antitrust law. But we know that even if anything does hit the courts, he's gonna win. He's been fighting Sam Altman for years. He's been fighting everybody in that space that he wants to dominate for years. And all he needs to do is, you know, give Trump a call or just put his hand up.

They probably have some signal that, you know, you got to do what I want to do. 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 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 Business Week. I'm Max Chafkin 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. With 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 call 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 iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge episodes one, two, and three on May 21st, and episodes four, five, and six on June 4th. And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast.

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. Got Be Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Caramouche. 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 podcast or wherever you get your podcast. And to hear episodes one week early and ad free with exclusive content, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcast. I always had to be so good no one could ignore me.

Carve my path with data and drive. But some people only see who I am on paper. The paper ceiling. The limitations from degree screens to stereotypes that are holding back over 70 million stars. Workers skilled through alternative routes, rather than a bachelor's degree. It's time for skills to speak for themselves. Find resources for breaking through barriers at tearthepaperceiling.org. Brought to you by Opportunity at Work and the Ad Council.

We've got to fix this court system because there's no way that talking about it or just simply legislating about it, and it has to go up to the Supreme Court, the law of the land. And that's where I think the biggest fault then. How are you gonna have a nine zero decision? Do you know how unique that is? We all do on this panel,

and it be absolutely disregarded. Why hasn't there been an uproar over that? Why haven't we heard legislators talk about that? Why haven't we heard even the Supreme Court say, why am I even getting up to work every day if the decisions that I'm making on this bench aren't gonna be listened to by anybody? That makes no sense.

Why would you go to work if you were making cars and all the cars that you made don't work? That makes no sense. There's a problem. Yeah, and it is broken. So I just think that, I mean, I would love to hear from somebody in that world to figure out what's going on so that their logic goes down.

Yeah, but they ain't trying to do all that. Are y'all? Not yet. They're the one that created the Frankenstein. That's the problem. Let's see if they have any guts. All right, I'm gonna go to break. We come back, we're gonna get an update

on what happens today in the Sean Denny Combs Trial. Folks, don't forget, support the work that we do. Join our Bring the Funk fan club. If you want to, our goals get 20,000 of our fans contributing on average 50 bucks each a year. That's four hours and 19 cents a month, 13 cents a day. If you want to support us via cash app, use the Stripe QR code.

That's this right here on the screen. You can also, of course, go to BlackStor Network.com, RollerMartinUnfiltered.com to actually see it and get it as well. Checking money orders, make it payable to Roller Martin Unfiltered, send it to PO Box 57196, Washington, DC. 2003 7-DAD 0196, PayPal's R. Martin Unfiltered, Venmo RM Unfiltered, Zell, Roland at RolandSMartin.com,

Roland at RolandMartinUnfiltered.com. We'll be right back. On the next Get Wealthy with me, Deborah Owens, have you ever had a million dollar idea and wondered how to bring it to life? Well, it's all about turning problems into opportunities. On our next Get Wealthy, you'll learn of a woman who identified the overload bag syndrome

and now she's taking that money to the bank through global sales in major department stores. And I was just struggling with two or three bags on the train and I looked around on the train and I said you know what there are a lot of women that are carrying two two or three bags. That's right here on Get Wealthy only on Black Star Network. Now that Roland Martin is willing to give me the blueprint, hey, Sauron, I need to go to Tattler Parry and get another blueprint because I need some green money. The only way I can do what I'm doing,

I need to make some money. So you'll see me working with Roland. Matter of fact, it's the Roland Martin and Sherlock under the show. Well, it should be the Sherlock under the show and the Roland Martin show. Well, whatever show it's going to be, it's the Roland Martin and the Sherlock Lundin Show. Well it should be the Sherlock Lundin Show and the Roland Martin Show. Well whatever show it's gonna be, it's gonna be good. Alright folks, more wild testimonies today in the federal trial of Sean Diddy Comes in New York City.

Candace Kelly, legal analyst, what happened? Let's talk about this mistrial and let's talk about LAPD officer Christopher Ignacio. He is the one who arrived at the scene when Kid Cudi said that somebody broke into his home. He ran a license because he saw a car, a black SUV Cadillac that was there, ran the license. It belonged to who? It belonged to bad boy. So that was a connecting of the dots of a revelation. But I think more importantly, when we talk about the mistrial or the mistrial that was asked for and denied, there was an arson investigator by the name of Lance Jimenez.

He was the one who found the Molotov cocktail in Cuddy's home. So we're talking about a totally different time from this other break-in, if you recall. And he said that he felt that this was a personal target. He said that the personal Molotov cocktail actually didn't ignite the way that it was supposed to because it was a very expensive high-end cloth that was used in that bottle of gasoline. What he said though that was really important was that there were fingerprints. There was a fingerprint profile that was collected, that profile was collected and stored, but then all of a sudden, unbeknownst to him, the fingerprints disappeared.

Now this was brought out by the prosecution and the defense did not like this. They thought that this would lead the jury to believe that Sean Combs had something to do with the disappearance. The other thing that this arson specialist said is that when there's evidence that needs to be discarded or thrown away, I'm the one who has to give permission. Nobody got permission from this investigator,

yet the fingerprint profile, it disappeared. So the defense attorneys called for a mistrial. There was discussion about it and sidebars. And indeed that information was struck from the record. Jurors are supposed to not take it into consideration, but you can't unring a bell. They did hear it, but they did not like the implication of that.

I mean, it kind of was a stretch. You're going to declare a whole mistrial just because some fingerprint information went away. They need to make that tape go away of him beating Cassie, if you ask my opinion. But the bottom line is that a mistrial was not granted. We also heard from someone who was a personal stylist of Cassie for a number of years.

And he talked about his, he alleged that Sean Combs did threaten Cassie saying that he would release these videos and that he was the one who was in charge of her music and he was not going to release any more of his music. He said that he fought Sean Colmes, that he allegedly jumped on his back when he was beating Cassie. She was bleeding.

I mean, everyone who takes the stand has just a very personal story that has the same thread. Cassie is being beaten, and there's a power dynamic that you just, you have to acknowledge. So those were the folks that took the stand today. Miss trial called for, but the trial goes on. Well, that sounds like a whole bunch of drama.

And again, it just, more craziness continues. And again, explain to the audience, as you look at how the prosecutors are trying to build out these, these RICO charges. You know, little by little, it's kind of like a drop in the balloon each day that goes by. And then one day, I think during closing,

all that's going to burst in terms of putting all of these facts together. What they're really trying to establish the prosecutors, they're saying that, hey, these are consenting adults. I'm sorry, that these are, this is someone who did not have control. But even outside of that, Roland, if you remove Cassie, if you remove her testimony,

remove any freak offs, you still have extortion, you still have potential burglary, arson, unfair labor practices that have nothing even to do with Cassie, the beating, the tape. So it's like they're all these parallel forces, because on the one side you've got Cassie and everything that's connected, but on the other side, he allegedly has done so much else that all of that could check the boxes for a RICO. The defense, of course, is saying that, hey, these were two consenting adults that actually were drug addicts. So we need to take that into consideration. And we need to take into consideration the fact that, for example, yes, there was an

arson. And it seems like, based upon all the information and evidence, that Sean had something to do with it. But was there any video? Do you have anything connecting Sean to this? So there are places where the defense can poke holes, but there certainly, I think, would be a lot of places where the jury's going to be deliberating on certain things that seemed like, based upon circumstantial evidence, Sean had a lot to do with this.

Now I'm just saying that I'm not on the jury, obviously, but if I was, I would want to hear a lot of conversation about a couple of things that might be slightly askew, but it just feels like to me, like the prosecution is making its case. All right then, Candace, we appreciate it. Thanks a bunch. All right, quick break. We come back.

Trump issues another pardon. This time, a major gang dealer out of Chicago. Also, issues a pardon to rapper NBA Youngboy. What is he doing? We'll explain. Be right back on the Black Star Network. This week on the other side of change. We're talking centers.

We're talking the Met Gala. We are talking about Black and Asian solidarity just in time for AAPI Heritage Month. And we're talking with our brilliant friend, Melavica Cannon. Nothing about these alliances is necessarily natural, except for the fact that we all are people who are trying to stay safe.

Tune in only on the other side of change on the Black Star Network. Hey, this is Motown recording artist, Kim. You are watching Roland Martin unfiltered. Hey 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 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. So do So So Well, folks, today Donald Trump issued more pardons, this time for a couple of notable African Americans. One of them is rapper NBA Youngboy. He also issued his own statement, and he dropped this here. I want to thank President Trump for granting me a part

and giving me the opportunity to keep building as a man, as a father, and as an artist. This moment means a lot. It opens the door to a future I've worked hard for. I'm fully prepared to step into this. Big thanks to the pardoned czar, Miss Alice Marie Johnson, for fighting for second chances for so many people and to my lawyer

and Brittany K Barnett for being in my corner and all your hard work to make this possible. And thank you to everyone who believed in me. I'm grateful I'm focused. I'm ready. Ken trail. Now, again, this is related to his previous convictions. As a result, and he also of course,

is a middle of going on tour. He faced a variety of legal issues, including gun possession charges. That was one of the things that the Baton Rouge rapper was facing. Now, let's now talk about Larry Hoover. Now, Larry Hoover, well-known Chicago gangster, led the Gangster Disciples, also a drug kingpin.

This is the Chicago Sun Times, it's on their front page. President Trump commutes drug kingpin, Larry Hoover's federal prison sentence. Hoover and David Barksdale created the gangster disciples in the late 1960s, ruling as King Larry and King David until Barksdale was killed in 1974. Now, the White House didn't explain why he was granted the commutation.

They said, the story says, but Hoover attorney Justin Moore said Trump committed Hoover's sentence to time served. He still faces essentially life in prison on a state murder conviction. And then Justin Moore says, we did what so many said was impossible. We got Larry Hoover out of federal prison. Now, as the story notes, Hoover still has a state court murder sentence to serve. Illinois prison officials have previously said he likely served it in the federal system. And then it says right here,

the news comes eight months after US District Judge John Blakey heard a mercy bid from Hoover. The judge challenged Hoover's attorneys during that hearing asking how many murders is he responsible for? Hoover's lawyers ultimately responded by asking the judge to disqualify himself from the case. Blakely hasn't ruled in the month since. So the story says Hoover was convicted of murder after a trial in December 1973,

and a judge sentenced him to 150 to 200 years in state prison. He said that didn't stop Hoover from running the gang, though Hoover was charged in federal court with 40 crimes, to 150 to 200 years in state prison. It said that didn't stop Hoover from running the gang though. Hoover was charged in federal court with 40 crimes, including engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise who was found guilty on May 9th, 1997. The late US District Judge Harry Lineweber

handed down Hoover's life sentence in 1998, telling him he had misused a gift from God. And again, so what you have here is Trump doing this. Now, what many people suspect is that here you have Trump trying to appeal to black male voters with these pardons. We saw him do this before other rappers as well. And then that bit, now remember, you asked the rappers who want a campaign trail for him

and one of them was later indicted for murder after the fact. And remember, remember that crazy deranged moment when Kanye was in the Oval Office crazy deranged moment when Kanye was in the Oval Office and then he was pleading for Trump to pardon Larry Hoover. Y'all remember this here? Five million surrounding suburbs where we can create some factories. I think it would be cool for them to be Trump factories because he's a master of industry. He's a builder.

And I think it would be cool to have Yeezy Ideation Centers, which would be a mix of education that empowers people and gives them modern information. Like sometimes people say, this kid has ADD, this kid has ADD, he don't have ADD, school is boring. 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 Business Week. I'm Max Chafkin. 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. With guests like Businessweek editor, Brad Stone, sports reporter, Randall Williams, and consumer spending expert, Amanda Mull, we'll take you inside the boardrooms, the backrooms, even the signal chats that make our economy tick.

Hey, I want to learn about V chain. 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 podcast, 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 call 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 One, Taser Incorporated.

I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, really, really bad. on June 4th, ad free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. 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 band. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown.

Got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette. MMA fighter Liz Karamouche. 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. I always had to be so good no one could ignore me.

Carve my path with data and drive. But some people only see who I am on paper. The paper ceiling. The limitations from degree screens to stereotypes that are holding back over 70 million stars. Workers skilled through alternative routes rather than a bachelor's degree. It's time for skills to speak for themselves. Find resources for breaking through barriers at tearthepapersillin.org, brought to you by Opportunity at Work and the Ad Council. It was boring. It's not as exciting as this. We have to make it more exciting. We have to mix curriculums. You play basketball while you're

doing math. You learn about music while you meditate in the morning. We have to instate mental health and art programs back into the city. And also, Larry Hoover is an example of a man that was turning his life around. As soon as he tried to turn his life around, they hit him with six life sentences. So I believe he's with... You say don't tear down the statues? Larry Hoover is a living statue. He's a beacon for us that needs to see his family, that needs to go out and represent.

When you have a block leader on every single block, they can own the block as they own. That's something I learned from Jim Brown from AmeriCan. We need to put curriculums for people who really came from the streets, not people who are just trying to set us up to go into a work system or a prison system that applies to what people are really going through, which Jim Brown has created. What about gun violence with all the debate about the Second Amendment going on? The problem is illegal guns. Illegal guns is the problem, not legal guns. We have...

That was Kanye and all of his ranting. Now, Chris Tolar, we've seen Chris Tolar on our show many I'm gonna go ahead and get started with the next one. I'm gonna go ahead and get started with the next one. I'm gonna go ahead and get started with the next one. I'm gonna go ahead and get started with the next one. I'm gonna go ahead and get started with the next one.

I'm gonna go ahead and get started with the next one. I'm gonna go ahead and I fear may work really well. Chris go, this is my worry too. And not so much that he will win over a ton of new voters from this, but it will make it more difficult to convince certain people it's worth their time and energy to go out and vote against him

or his party in the future. Now that was one of the tweets that Chris had posted. And then this is what he also said. He said, this is exactly how the far right plays right into the misinformation machine, something that was very effective creating apathy among black men in 2024. Unless JB, that's the governor of Illinois,

commutes his state sentence, Hoover isn't set free, but the media narrative is all about Trump's move to free a black man. Here's the reality here, and I'll start with you, Candace. Let's just understand politics. And there were people who were calling for Obama to commute Larry Hoover's federal sentence.

There were people who were calling for Biden to do it as well. And the reality is, if either one of them had commuted a federal sentence of Larry Hoover, Fox News, Conservative Talk Radio, Steve Bannon, all the blogs, Obama, Biden, let out, thug drug kingpin, murdering Larry Hoover. Those would be the headlines. They would, they would. But as you mentioned, what he did was really inconsequential. Why?

Because he still has state charges and that's what he's going to be serving. What he knows how to do is marketing. And you know, I was sitting in this spillover room in court the other day, so that's where the public is. You don't go into the main room, but you can see the Sean Combs case. So there were about 40 people who were there from the public. A lot of them, by the way, were tourists. They made this as a stop for them. After they saw the Statue of Liberty, they would come there to Sean Combs' trial.

But the people who I spoke to, a lot of black men, who are probably the demographic that he's speaking to, they didn't even believe the Cassie tape. They just believed, let Sean Combs go. Let all the rappers go. Let all the black men go. I mean, that was their mentality. So for him to make a move like this, it translates into a lot,

but it also translates into nothing because he's still behind bars. Now, the fact that he was pardoned as opposed to commuted, that's a big deal. When you're pardoned, you know, everything's a clean slate. When you're commuted, your sentences decrease. Larry was pardoned.

That speaks well. Well, again, the story, so the problem the White House hasn't talked about it. So once they say that he was, that he commuted his life sentence. That's what the Chicago Sun-Time story, but the White House hasn't talked about anything. So they haven't explained,

and they did it before where they don't explain commutation or pardon. Oh, okay. All right. So I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, So according to Justin Moore, Justin Moore, his attorney said, Trump commuted Hoover's sentence to time served. He still faces essentially life in prison

on a state murder conviction. Go ahead. Okay, yeah. And then all of that ends up the same result. He's still behind bars and that makes everybody happen. It's the most exquisite plan that he gets credit to release somebody or commute their sentence, but Larry's going nowhere.

It's just marketing and I think that he is going to get a lot. Listen, this is the man who was, he's going to be in some more rap videos. Well, I wouldn't put it past Trump to be in some rap videos. That's just the eighth grader in him who wants to be popular. He was popular with rap artists back in the day, and popular with some of them now. But he's making sure that again, I just see an eighth grade guy when I think about

how he functions and wants to interact with people. He's trying to work on being that popular guy, and he gained some points here. Is this also Rebecca, about appealing to the people who don't pay attention to the news and oh my God, Trump part Larry Hoover and we know his name has been in numerous records, Rick Ross has shouted him out and so many others. Your thoughts on this?

It meets Larry Hoover, one nation under guy getting money. Yeah, like look, I think for a lot of people, Larry Hoover is more of a pop icon. I think of some of the people who were connected in Chicago with who he is, who he was, who he has been. I think some of those people aren't as active on social media right now. But, you know, to your point, this is a pop icon. His name, his folklore, stories about him

is a narration that's in a lot of hip-hop. What I find fascinating about this latest set of commutation slash pardon, so we really don't know what it is, because the White House hasn't really told us which one it is. It's the fact that NBA Youngboy got more out of Trump than Tim Scott. If I was Tim Scott, I would feel really bad.

I did all that shucking and jiving over the last few years and I got nothing, but NBA Youngboy got something from Trump. The other thing, another point I want to make is black men aren't dumb. And I think black men are tired of performative politics, whether or not it's Democrats pandering to black men or it's Republicans pandering to black men.

I think to the greater point, and this is something that Candace mentioned earlier about the 90 million voters who just don't show up. I think that 90 million is going to be more impressed by this than folks who are expected to turn out to vote in 2026 and 2028. But what I find interesting in the pivot towards Black men is with that crypto party that happened last week. One of the people that was there was Lamar Odom.

Now, I mean, I'm not exactly gonna count Lamar Odom's pockets. I don't think he has a million or five million to invest in crypto. But I've heard some reports that he was paid to be there. He got an appearance fee, because there still is that perception of Donald Trump wants black men to see black men around him. That's the part that I find a little bit more interesting than Larry Hoover. Derek. You know, uh, I definitely agree with, um, Rebecca and Candace.

The two points I would add is this. We're at a point of no return. There was a time how we viewed in our society, from a democratic standpoint, about how the pardoning and the commuting should be done. It was a process, a very rigorous process. But now, since day one, when he let go 1,500 individuals, it was his way of thumbing the nose at a justice system that was coming after him fast and furious.

I mean, this man was threatening to see himself dying in prison. He thought he was gonna end up like Bernie Madoff, right? Dying in prison. And so he threw everything but the kitchen sink to run and to become president. And so now that he is in that seat rolling, we had a point of no return.

He's saying, you know what, I'm so transactional. The hell with the rule of law, the hell with justice. I don't care what the perception may be. And so the reason why I think we're at a point of no return because the future president is going to have to deal with this. You're going to have to deal with a public that say, hey, the other guy had a disregard of due process. The other guy didn't have a problem with accountability.

The other guy devalued punishment. The other guy dealt with cynicism. The other guy didn't have a problem with accountability. The other guy devalued punishment. The other guy dealt with cynicism. The other guy had to do, and so now, what happens when the over office become transactional for both parties? See, I, okay, so I wanna unpack that. See, I, okay, so let, I wanna unpack that. And I need people to listen to me very clearly. I need people to listen to me very clearly.

Even when Obama was there, one of the critiques that I had is that I felt that President Obama played it too safe. And what I often argue is that the presidency is, has, it holds tremendous power. And what we've had are individuals who know about the power but have been unwilling to maximize the power. And there have been instances where

I believe that it was too safe. Take these pardons. Derrick is right. This whole idea of process. I can tell you, up until I visited the White House Friday before the inauguration, and there were battles going on inside of the White House regarding pardons. Pardons for former Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr.

Pardons for former Congressman Jefferson out of New Orleans. Pardons for Marilyn Mosby. I was told that Biden drew a red line for what he deemed public official corruption. That was his red line. That's why he issued those pardons. I disagree with him, especially on Marilyn Mosby. That pardon should have been granted. I thought it was BS that she was convicted for using her own money. But I believe the problem, and I said this earlier,

and I wasn't joking when I said that Democrats play too nice. It's like what's artificial. They, it's like what's artificial. 2010, I was fed up watching how Obama was responding to Republicans, and even some Democrats. This is what I wrote for CNN.com. Anthony, go to my iPad. Time for Obama to go gangster on GOP. And this is what I

said. Civil rights activist, Fan Lou Hamer made famous the phrase, I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired. For me, I'm sick and tired of Democrats having power and being unwilling to use it. I've always respected Republicans when they had power because they were willing to use it and maybe apologize later. I then talked about Obama watching Republicans block many of his appointments and now he says he made it clear to them that he will quote consider unquote making some of the U.S. Senate goes into recess. Quote one senator as you are all aware had put a hold on every single nominee that we had put forward due to a dispute over a couple of earmarks in our meeting.

I ask the congressional leadership to put a stop to these holes in which nominees for critical jobs are denied a vote for months. Surely we can set aside partisanship and do what's traditionally been done to confirm these nominations. If the Senate does not act, and I make this very clear, if the Senate does not act to confirm these nominees, I will consider making several recess appointments during the upcoming recess because we can't afford to allow politics to stand in the way of a well-functioning government.

I write, this is where the president needs to show his toughness and just do it. Forget threats. The actions of Senator Richard Shelby and other Republican obstructionists will continue if President Obama allows them to run a rough shot over him. When you're the top dog, you do what you have to do to govern. Allowing Republican senators to continue to deny your appointments is nonsense. If all of them choose to support a filibuster, then you take it to the American people and show the obstructionists for what they are. You get your grassroots movement fired up to stand up and do something. The political right used its base to go after Democrats who blocked appointments to the federal bench and other positions.

Why not be just as aggressive? And if there are members of your own party who stand in the way, such as Senator Ben Nelson, then you also blast them and make them pay for acting so foolishly. This president got rolled by the Senate over healthcare. His team made some boneheaded mistakes and now they are paying for them.

Continuing to play footsie with opponents will only get him into more trouble. He should set a deadline to have his folks confirm. If not, appoint them all during the recess and go on about your business. Obama's critics keep blasting him for Chicago. 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 Business Week. 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. With guests like Business Week editor Brad Stone, sports reporter Randall Williams, and consumer spending expert Amanda Mull, we'll 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 call 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 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 1, Taser, Inc. on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Binge episodes one, two, and three on May 21st, and episodes four, five, and six on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glodd. And this is season two of the War on Drugs podcast. Sir, we are back. In a big way.

In a very big way. Real people, real perspectives. It's 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 band. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. Got B-Real from Shinedown. Got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL enforcer Riley Cote. Marine Corvette.

MMA fighter, Liz Caramouche. 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 are 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 Podcast. 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. ...style politics. So fine, channel your inner Al Capone

and go gangsta against your foes. Let them know that if you aren't with you, if they aren't with you, then they are against you and we'll pay the price. That beautiful big budget bill we're going to talk about in a second, there were some holdouts to Republicans, hardcore. Trump looked at me and I said, get your ass in line and vote for it. They did.

It passed. What I'm saying here, Candace, is that I disagree with how Democrats do pardons. We're gonna wait till the end of the year. We're gonna issue all of them around Christmas like it's a gift. No! The power is literally with the president. The president can issue a pardon or a commutation anytime, any day. Damn it, do it!

And let me be real clear. Fuck Fox News. Fuck conservative media. They're gonna criticize you anyway. So you do it. And if they say, why don't you do it? Because I'm the president. See, again, this to me is when you play a game with folk

and you don't let it be known, I am the president, yo ass deal with it. And if y'all want to swing, let's swing. Recess appointments. Hell yeah. Do it. I'm not threatening you. The moment y'all hit that damn gavel and recess appointment, boom, boom, boom, don't play games with me. I'm gonna do it again. At some point, and here's the other thing, whether they want to own it or not, this is actually one of the reasons why a lot of people didn't vote for them most times, because they are responding to strength. And let me be real clear.

Donald Trump is a thug. Donald Trump is a misfit. Donald Trump is a shameful, despicable human being. But what he is doing is maximizing the office of the president to its full potential. I think, frankly, he's breaking the law as well, but the Supreme Court gave him a get out of free jail office of the president to its full potential. I think frankly he's breaking the law as well, but the Supreme Court gave him a get out of free jail card.

But this is where if you're Democrats, damn y'all rules. Again, if a Democrat wins in 28, I'm not waiting for that once a year part and stuff. I'm gonna drop it now and move to hell on. But you know what they do? Once a year and then the media credit, they pick it apart, Republicans criticize, then some Democrats, look at all the Democrats.

Look at all them whiny ass Democrats, Candace, who bitched and moaned because Biden issued preemptive pardons for his family and others. And the fact of the matter is he was right. This asshole would have investigated every single one of them. They would have ran up multimillion dollar legal bills. And that's exactly, and that's why Biden did it.

And he should have actually done it. Now, the other thing, when you talk about timing and doing it just at one part of the year, because it's a gift of some sort, when it's really the right that a president has at all times during his presidency, is that you throw people off, you get these pardons in all throughout the year, where a lot of people aren't paying attention, because we are trained to look at pardons at a certain part of the year. So, again, this is just breaking rules with power that you actually do have.

You are right in that the Democrats have to play it a lot differently and exert their power in a different way to a point of course where it's legal. But this is one of those things where you can push, you can push the envelope a little bit. And it's something that, listen, he's using effectively and using it as a campaign strategy, right? For someone who's trying to get votes,

if he hopefully in his estimation runs again. So it's all strategy, it's all marketing, but when it comes to these pardons, it is indeed power that he has that we are so much more tight fisted with and it doesn't serve us good. And Rebecca, remember, President George W. Bush commuted the sentence of Scooter Libby,

who unveiled the name of a CIA operative. But remember, people gotta remember that Dick Cheney was mad as hell because Bush did not give a full pardon and people were really upset by that. Libby still had to pay the $250,000 fine, still stand probation for two years and that's how he did it. Well guess what? Trump is issuing these partings and these people who he's letting off, there are fines that have been imposed

They now I think the numbers approaching a hundred million dollars Rebecca that these people don't even have to pay back So there are they were victims a part of these crimes. He's like now y'all gotta pay the money back Don't worry about it. Don't worry about it. We good You know this is we really got to unpack this because, one, I don't support the criminal legal system that we have in this country. It does not bring justice. It does not rehabilitate people. Um, and I don't think it's working. I think it's failing. But when we were talking about pardons, uh, you know, I would say,

uh, having an arbitrary pardons is also a problem as well. There should be a clear standard of, hey, this is what you do in order to get a pardon. You shouldn't have to know Kim Kardashian. You should not have to know other high-profile people in hopes that maybe your name will be whispered somewhere in the White House, and maybe perhaps you'll get a pardon. So I don't like how pardons are issued under Democratic presidents. I typically don't like how they're used under Republican presidents either. But what Trump is showing, so for the next future presidents who actually want to do

good in this country, the thing that Trump is showing is how you maximize the presidency. Like it's power. It's not absolute power, but in this world, it is very close to it. There's a lot of transformative change, a lot of positive things that can happen through that White House. And so the next person who gets in that White House, if you actually believe in the power of this country,

the power of the people in this country, then use it for good. Don't be feckless. Don't be so caught up into the histrionics of what the opposition party's gonna say. Do your thing, because the Supreme Court has already said that you can do so. So we actually need someone in the White House

who has that power, who will wield that power, but will wield it in a just way. And bottom line is, if they gonna criticize you anyway, well damn it, just roll with it. I just, listen, I understand need for a process, but here's a reality. In that, and again, I accept this for what it is.

I'm not saying it's great, I'm not saying it's great. I'm not saying it's perfect. I'm not saying all of that. But the fact of the matter is this here, is that when it just says right here, Article 2, Section 2, Clause 1, that the President shall be the commander in chief of the army and navy of the United States

and of the militia of the several states. When called into the actual service of the United States, he may require the opinion in writing of the principal officer in each of the executive departments upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices. And he shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.

That's all it says. That's all it says. It actually, and I totally understand what Derek says, Rebecca says, what Candice says. There's a call for process. It literally says, the power rests in the hands of this one individual. This one individual can decide

for whatever reason they want. In fact, this individual doesn't even have to give a reason. They don't have to issue a press release. And what I am saying is for Democrats, you need to toughen your ass up, and you need to buck up and recognize that when you have the power, you fucking use it because you're not always going to have it.

I say it to people all the time, Obama's only gonna be there eight years, period. Not nine, not 10, not 12, eight. And when I was championing for him to appoint a black woman to the Supreme Court, not that feckless ass Merrick Garland. He had 10 months left, and black organizations, black female organizations,

were scared to publicly call for him to do it. And I said, what the hell are y'all doing? The hell with invites to the White House, he is gone in January, but that Supreme Court justice could be there for the next 30, 40, 50 years. But a lot of black folks, no, we don't wanna pray. And I'm just telling y'all right now, I've told this story beforehand. They had a Black History Month reception in 2016,

and it was the seasoned saints and the young folk. And here we were at the White House at the reception, waiting for folks, the reception started late because the meeting had ran over. Now, never forget, I ran away to Henderson. Wait. because the meeting had ran over. Now, I'll never forget, I ran away to Henderson. Wade, anybody in the meeting? Raise the point about, a point of black will in the Supreme Court?

No. I ran to Melanie Campbell. I ran to Rashad Robinson. And I was like, how in the hell were all of y'all in that meeting? And nobody looked at me and across the hell were all of y'all in that meeting and nobody looked that man across the table and said, Mr. President, we staying here right now and we want you to appoint a black woman as Supreme Court justice

to replace Anthony Scalia. Well, you know, some of us didn't want to say anything cause Loretta Lynch, you know, we hear she's on the short list and she was sitting right next to him. I don't give a shit if she was sitting right next to him. Y'all had an opportunity sitting in front of the President of the United States, and here were all of the young bucks and the OGs,

and not one black person had the audacity to bring it up. They were silent. And I just shook my head. to bring it up, they were silent. And I just shook my head. I said, I cannot believe y'all did that. And the letter that they had written, the black female groups, they slid it across the table to Valerie Jarrett privately.

I said, what the hell are y'all doing? You need noise. So what I am saying is when you have the power, you use the power and you use it for good. You don't let off somebody who gave a million dollars at a dinner and Donald Trump like sure partner partner her son but you use it for good. But see when you try to play it safe when you oh what are gonna be the optics? Who, what are they gonna say? What's the right gonna say?

What the left is gonna say? You spend too much time giving a damn about what the right and the left is gonna say. Then they ask why'd you do it? Because I'm the fucking president of the United States. That's why. Next. That's how you respond. I'll be back.

This week on A Balanced Life with Dr. Jackie, we're talking all things faith, family, and fatherhood. Men step in and out of our lives in a variety of ways, as fathers, uncles, cousins, and different ways in which we enjoy ways, as fathers, uncles, cousins, and different ways in which we enjoy their company and presence, and in other ways, when they get on our nerves. This week on our show, we will be talking about what it means to be a father, how women

can support the men in their lives, as well as how do we heal the wounds that we have had from poor conversation, lack of desire, and all of the other ways that we sometimes as women check out and cause our men to feel emasculated. That's all this week on A Balanced Life with Dr. Jackie. Coming soon to the Black Star Network. Let's go. Truth Talks is the fastest growing show about pop culture. And now exclusively on our own channel.

What's up, man? I'm Ken Jones. We're back. We gotta stop letting this shit slide. Bigger and stronger than ever. I mean, I just have questions. Season two is reloading May 26th at 8 p.m. Eastern Time. What's up?

With new hosts. Let me tell you what damn time it is. And big celebrity surprises. Kiss my behind, kiss Oprah Winfrey. Subscribe today at Truth Talks Live. Give Black people what they need, and we'll show them for you. And don't miss out on all the upcoming viral moments. Simulcasting weeknights at 8 PM on Roland Martin Unfiltered

and Black Star Network and Truth Talks Live. I'll see you there. On the next Get Wealthy with me, Deborah Owens, have you ever had a million dollar idea and wondered how to bring it to life? Well, it's all about turning problems into opportunities. On our next Get Wealthy, you'll learn of a woman who identified the overload bag syndrome,

and now she's taking that money to the bank, through global sales, and major department stores. And I was just struggling with two or three bags on the train. And I looked around on the train and I said, you know what, there are a lot of women that are carrying two or three bags. That's right here on Get Wealthy,

only on Black Star Network. Hatred on the streets, a horrific scene. Only on Black Star Network. Now we approach Trump mob storm to the US Capitol. We're about to see the rise of what I call white minority resistance. We have seen white folks in this country who simply cannot tolerate black folks voting. I think what we're seeing is the inevitable result of violent denial. This is part of American history. Every time that people of color have made progress, whether real or symbolic, there has been what Carol Anderson at Emory University calls white rage as a backlash. This is the rise of the Proud Boys and the Boogaloo Boys.

America, there's going to be more of this. Here's all the Proud Boys guys. This country is getting increasingly racist in its behaviors and its attitudes because of the fear of white people. The fear that they're taking our jobs, they're taking our resources, they're taking our women. This is white fear. I'm Russell L. Honore, lieutenant general, United States Army retired, and you're watching Roller Martin on Viltage.

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 Business Week. I'm Max Chafkin. 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 call 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 One, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. It's really, five, and six on June 4th. Add free at Lava for Good Plus on Apple podcasts. I'm Clayton English. I'm Greg Glodd. And this is season two of the World of 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. Benny the Butcher. Brent Smith from Shinedown. Got B-Real from Cypress Hill. NHL Enforcer Riley Cote, Marine Corvette, MMA fighter Liz Karamouche. 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 2 on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts are 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 podcast. Lava for Good Plus Lava for Good Plus 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. All right, they're calling it the big, beautiful bill, but guess what? People are not happy at all.

They are lightening these Republicans up. Watch. these Republicans up. Watch. Well, you know, I was like disappointed to see the massive spending bill, frankly, which increases the budget deficit, not just decrease it. And that reminds the work that the Doge team is doing. I actually thought that when this big, beautiful bill came along, I mean, like, everything he's done on Doge gets wiped out in the first year. I think a bill can be big or it can be beautiful. But I don't know if it can be both. My personal opinion. It has been hilarious literally watching these people get roasted in these town halls.

I'm going to pull up one in a moment, Rebecca. It was just, they're getting blasted. I saw this one video that I thought was just lovely, man. This one Democrat rep, man, she just destroyed James Comey by asking him to read portions of the bill and he could not even read portions of the bill. And one thing he was claiming, she was kinda like, no, that ain't what it says.

No, that's not quite what it says. And the fact of the matter is he hadn't even read the bill himself. And again, she was just, I was just sitting, I was cracking up laughing. She was ethering his ass. Watch this. As I read it, your bill is giving

the congressional authority to the executive to do it without Congress. No, that's not true. You're misinterpreting the bill. Can you please point us to the language in the bill that retains Congress's authority? It requires a privilege resolution in Congress. Can you please point us to the page and the line number that requires congressional consent for reorganization of the federal government? in the section 908 and 909. Of Title 5.

I'm sorry Mr. Chairman, section 908 says striking December 31st, 1985. Can you please refer to the language that retains Congress's authority under the United States Constitution to rein in the executive to stop it from eliminating unnecessary duties, reducing federal employees, amending rules and regulations, and eliminating executive departments, agencies, independent establishments, offices, or officers of the executive branch. You're intentionally misrepresenting the bill.

Mr. Chairman, I'm reading the bill, and I'm asking you as the sponsor to point to us where your bill, which you are trying to pass through this committee today, retains the authority of Congress. It changes the day to 2026. Y'all, but it just gets better. Mike Flood of Nebraska, yo, he straight ass got cooked by his folks at his town hall.

Man, give me one second. I got to pull this up, y'all, because this was just too damn good. I mean, he was so he had a town hall and he made the biggest mistake you could ever make if you stand in front of the people and you admit, you know what, my bad, I ain't really read the bill. Watch this. Can you please tell us why you voted to approve a budget bill that includes section 70302,

which effectively prohibits federal courts from enforcing contempt orders, which would then allow current and future administrations to ignore those contempt orders by removing the enforcement capabilities. I do not agree with that section that was added to that bill. This provision was unknown to you. So you voted for a bill that you did not. Why? Really? You didn't admit it?

Here's more. The president is destroying our democracy by defying the courts and the constitution, attacking and silencing free speech in the media, allowing security breaches, erasing history, using tax dollars and presidential power for personal gains, blaming DEI and using it to discriminate, and promoting eugenics and genocide, all while showing signs of cognitive decline. Your votes, actions, and inactions show that you are a fascist politician so please explain how you are not encouraging fascism and are you going to invoke

articles of impeachment against Trump? I get that you get an applause line when you call me a fascist, but I'm not I Am Fascist but you're somebody who ain't rich on damn bill This is why they're not trying to have town halls Derek they don't want that heat We don't want that especially when you go. Oh, I didn't I didn't read I didn't read the bill Right. They can't read the bill. Right. They can't face the music rolling. I mean, folks are starting to wake up.

See, they all thought when they were voting on November 5th of last year that this dude with just all his Project 2025 was just going to negatively impact us. And now what they're discovering is that it's going to impact all of us to include them. I mean, listen, um, yes, this bill is big. It is beautiful. It is not that thousand pages. I mean, I get it, right? Not everyone will read the bill.

They may have their staffers rolling, you know this, where to synthesize the information and give them two or three paragraphs summary. They don't read it. Now they're being called out because citizens are going line by line because they realize this is gonna hurt them so much as it relates to Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security.

And then here's the thing, Roland, for your listening audience. When government revenue declines due to tax cuts, here's the little dirty secret. That's less money available for those crucial things that we all demand. Public investments like infrastructure, public education, research and development, environmental protection. So FEMA is going to go away.

They're going to be going after the meteorologists. They're gonna fire 400 of them. So we won't get a heads up when the hurricane and tornadoes are coming. So when folks like, yes, tax cuts, we want that. You got to understand that those dollars that government manage are those investments that are vital to our wellbeing,

our economic growth, and our societal needs to have quality of life. Folks, we got some breaking news here. ["The Daily Show Theme"] Well, guess what? A federal judge has ruled that Donald Trump broke the law when it came to the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act. And so you remember all those liberation day tariffs he announced? They were like, yeah, that's, that's got to go because you're wrong.

Go to my iPad. The court holds for the foregoing reasons that I E P A does not authorize any of the worldwide retaliatory or trafficking tariff orders. The worldwide and retaliatory tariff orders exceed any authority granted to the president by I E P A to regulate importation by means of tariffs. The trafficking tariffs failed because they do not deal with the threat set forth in those orders. This conclusion entitles plaintiffs to judgment as a matter of law. As the court further finds no genuine dispute as to any material fact, summary judgment will enter against the United States. The challenge tariff orders will be vacated and their operation permanently enjoined. This is a three-judge panel. That's a huge ruling, Candace. And again, the video that I

showed you of that Democratic congresswoman challenging James Comer, like dude, y'all just turn the authority that granted to Congress to the president. He kept sitting there arguing, oh he can do this, declaring that the economy was a national emergency. And they're like, uh, no, it wasn't. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. And not only that, but when you look at this and everything that he's put in place, this essentially wipes out everything.

Now, the question is, will it be followed? The question is, is he going to do something to try to trump what they already put in place? Because look what happened to the Supreme Court. I think that kind of rests in the back of everybody's mind. But for today, in this moment of breaking news, essentially what they're saying is that everything that he's put in place is wiped clean. Rebecca, he stayed losing when it came to losing in 2020, and his ass losing a lot with these federal judges.

Yeah, what's really important to point out, we do talk about the Supreme Court often, but remember the federal judiciary is largely comprised of the last 10 years. The majority of folks have been appointed, have not been Trump appointees. So there are pro-democracy, pro-voting rights, pro-quote-unquote rule of law judges that are on the federal bench all across the country. And one thing that we are noticing in this presidency is that Trump is losing when he has to go to the federal courts. When he's going to the Supreme Court, it's been a mixed bag. But it is affirming to know that the judiciary is trying to prove

that it has not fallen to what appears to be a fascist. And this is the U.S. Court of International Trade, these three judges. And so I'm sure we're going to be seeing a crazy, demented rant on truth social, Trump's joke of a social media platform. Let me thank Rebecca, Derek, and Candace for being on today's show. We appreciate it, folks. Thank you so very much. Don't forget to support what we do.

A couple of minutes, folks, Truth Talks comes up. Support the work that we do by joining our Brena Funk fan club. You want to give via Cash App, use the Stripe QR code. You'll see it right here. Send your check and money order. Come on guys, let's go. Thank you very much. That's the Stripe Cura code for cash app.

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Startengine.com forward slash fanbase. And so all these things, what you can do, of course also we got some great things going. So if you want to support again our shows, you're supporting this show, you're supporting also all the other shows we have right here on the black star network alright folks now it's time for The season 2 episode 3 of the show truth talks. I'll see y'all tomorrow right here. How black star network Oh, no punches! A real revolution there right now.

Thank you for being the voice of Black America. All the 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 scared. It's time to be smart. Bring your eyeballs home, ya 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 One, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. Listen to Absolute Season One, Taser Incorporated on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

I always had to be so good. No one could ignore me, carve my path with data and drive. But some people only see who I am on paper. The paper ceiling. The limitations from degree screens to stereotypes that are holding back over 70 million stars. Workers skilled through alternative routes rather than a bachelor's degree. It's time for skills to speak for themselves. Find resources for breaking through barriers at tearthepaperceiling.org. Brought to you by Opportunity at Work and the Ad Council. I'm Clayton English.

I'm Greg Glodd. And this is season two of the War on Drugs by a Cat. Last year, a lot of the problems of the drug war this year. A lot of the biggest names in music and sports. This is kind of star-studded 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 iHeart radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an iHeart podcast.