The Breakfast Club - FBI's Unusual Hiring Change, Trump's Kennedy Center Clash & Macklemore Dropped From Ed Sheeran's Tour

Episode Date: September 17, 2026

FBI Director Kash Patel defends a controversial hiring change involving bestiality during a Senate grilling. Rep. Joyce Beatty says President Trump personally attacked her after a court blocked his name from being added to the Kennedy Center. And Macklemore is dropped from Ed Sheeran's U.S. tour after his pro-Palestinian remarks. From the Black Effect Podcast Network.YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BreakfastClubPower1051FMSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Didn't catch the latest Roland Martin unfiltered podcast? Here's what you missed. People wake up and go, oh, damn, wait a hold up. They change all of that? Yes. It's real.

This is a wholesale attack. It is targeting black people in every federal agency. It's raw. White folks have never allowed that reckoning to last more than a decade. Catch Roland Martin's daily commentary on the Black Information Network. And download Roland Martin Unfiltered on a Facebook. the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcasts. The FBI changed his hiring rules and one very unusual change had senators from both party asking the same questions.

What about the bestial? Tell me what it said before. And Congresswoman Joyce Beatty says President Trump came after her personally during a heated Kennedy Center meeting. And she says she gave it right back. He went into a tantrum. I mean, let me just make it simple. It was the most unprofessional thing that I've ever witnessed. And McElmore is out of Ed Sherin's U.S. tour after what he said on stage. One of the reasons why I wanted to come on this tour was because I wanted to stand up here on stages and stadiums across America and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart. We'll tell you what it is and why the fallout is getting even bigger.

It's Thursday, September 17th. From the Black Effect Podcast Network, I'm Amymy Brown. This is Front Page, and here are the day's biggest stories. Stay with me. If becoming an FBI agent was ever on your career list, apparently some things in your past may not automatically rule you out anymore. So the FBI has changed his hiring standards for people who have stolen from an employer paid for sex or engaged in beastiality. And that last one got a lot of attention during a...

Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. Republican Senator John Kennedy wanted FBI director Cash Patel to explain why the Bureau made the change. Let's listen. What about the bestiality? Tell me what it said before. It automatically disqualified any individual who participated on either side of it. Obviously, we are never going to hire the criminal.

The bestiality? Yes. So you disqualified the animal? Why would you even get in to beastia house? We are not into beastiality, but a lot of these individuals... I know you're not, but you changed... But I'm trying to explain it. Hang on.

You changed the qualifications and mentioned beastiality. If Joe participated in beastiality, not as the animal, but as the human, don't you think he ought to be qualified, disqualified? If he voluntarily did it, sure, but if he was trafficked into it, then you should be... Okay, how do you involuntarily do it? In a lot of these cases, when he... human traffickers who are some of the worst individuals on planet Earth, they don't just traffic you for prostitution. They traffic you for degrading acts of all kind and they force you into that type of conduct. And some of these individuals would go on to be law enforcement

officers who qualified to be law enforcement officers and later applied to the FBI. But Democratic Senator Dick Durbin challenged that explanation saying the policy itself refers to applicants who engage in the conduct, not specifically trafficking victims. So here's what actually changed, stealing from an employer paying for sex and beastiality used to be automatic disqualifiers. Now under certain circumstances, the FBI can review those applications on a case-by-case basis. For beastiality or animal cruelty, the conduct must have happened before the applicant turned 18. The FBI says it's not lowering its standards. It's allowing the Bureau to consider the circumstances surrounding what happened.

And senators now want to know how many applicants have actually been affected by the those changes. And now to the Kennedy Center, which is now closed after a fight over President Trump's name on the building got personal. The Kennedy Center says it's running out of money and needs major renovations. Trump says he can help raise that money to save it, but he wants recognition for doing it. In fact, the board laid out 10 different ways his name could appear on the building. One would say the Kennedy Center was, quote, renovated, restored, and sustained through the generosity of President Donald J. Trump. Another would say restored and renovated by President Donald J. Trump. But on Tuesday, a federal judge said no, ruling the board cannot put Trump's name on the

building or grounds without approval from Congress. And just hours later, the Kennedy Center board voted to close the building. Trump says the center needs major repairs, but he also says those renovations will not begin unless the courts allow his name to go back on the building. And during that meeting Ohio Congresswoman Joyce Beatty, who sued to get Trump's name removed, said she and the president got into a heated exchange. He went into a tantrum. I mean, let me just make it simple. It was the most unprofessional thing that I've ever witnessed or been a part of it. He went into name calling from everything from trying to say that I was an obstructionist, I was dumb. And he said he was going to hold me responsible if something fell out of the ceiling and

killed someone. And I told him, I said, you're already killing people. We're at war. We also have people who are starving. You're doing this. And then he wanted to talk about how great he was with developing and he didn't know anything about me, but I had never done anything. This was the biggest thing I had done. So I reminded him that he had more bankruptcies than anybody in the room. I was not going to let him bully me, intimidate me, and the facts stand for himself. Trump says he's willing to take the fight over his name all the way to the Supreme Court. For now, the Kennedy Center is closed and the ruling has been appealed. And the renovations, Trump says the building needs are tied up in the fight over whether his name can go on it.

Canadian women are looking for more. More out of themselves, their businesses, their elected leaders, and the world are at them. And that's why we're thrilled to introduce the Honest Talk podcast. I'm Jennifer Stewart. And I'm Catherine Clark. And in this podcast, we interview Canada's most inspiring women. Entrepreneurs, artists, athletes, politicians, and newsmakers, all at different stages of their journey.

So if you're looking to connect, then we hope you'll join us. Listen to the Honest Talk podcast on IHeartRadio or wherever you listen to your podcasts. Didn't catch the latest Roland Martin unfiltered podcast? Here's what you missed. And the argument is, do you want to win? If you don't win, you have no power. It's real. Those are the very people who I always say vote against their own economic interest,

and they complain about the very thing to receive. It's raw. I knew that the issue of transgender athletes was not going well with a lot of black men. Roland Martin unfiltered. I went off, I said, this is exactly what I'm talking about. You're going to scream at Chanel, but you don't want to see a black luxury company in the same vein. Catch Roland Martin's daily commentary on the Black Information Network. Twelve seats.

Those are moving south. So if you Democrats, you don't wait to 2030, you better be hitting the ground going hard in the South now. And download Roland Martin unfiltered on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts. Wherever you get your podcasts. And finally today, McLemore is officially out of the rest of Ed Sherin's U.S. tour. This started after McLemore performed at MetLife Stadium in Jersey earlier this month. During his set, he stopped the show to talk about Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. Let's listen.

I'm trying to figure out a way to say this all day. One of the reasons why I wanted to come on this tour was because I wanted to stand up here on stages and stadiums. across America and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart, free Palestine. I said free Palestine. I want those words to be loud and clear. So the people from Gaza all the way to the occupied West Bank know that we have not forgotten them. And this next song was inspired. by the bravery of Columbia University students who led an encampment movement that mobilized

the entire world, open up hearts, myself included. So thank you to those students that risked their diplomas, that risked their tuition, that risked their scholarships, that stood up and said no. CUAD students, students for justice and Palestine, and Jewish voices for peace. Thank you guys. to all of my Jewish brothers and sisters. Criticism of Israel, criticism of apartheid being against genocide in no way is a criticism of you.

My message is for peace, love for all human beings to be treated with dignity, respect, and equality. So I say free Palestine. I say free Lebanon. I say free Cuba. but I say free Congo, free Sudan, free all people in America, living in fear over this terrorist organization, ICE. None of us will be free until we are all free. This song is called Hens Hall.

After that, several venues reportedly told the tour, they would not host the shows if McClure remained on the lineup. McClure says New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft helped lead that effort. Kraft has confirmed that he objected to McLemore performing at Gillette Stadium. He says the decision was based not only on McClermore's comments that met life, but what Kraft described as a broader history of rhetoric and imagery that has been offensive and hurtful to members of the Jewish community. And Ed Sheeran says dropping McLemore was not his decision.

He says the tour promoter made the call after venue said they would not host the shows with McLemore on the bill. McLemore had been scheduled for eight of the final 10. 10 U.S. states. And he says if losing the stages brings more attention to Palestinians that in his words, it was the most successful tour

he's ever been on. That's your front page. I'm Mimi Brown. This podcast was brought to you by the Black Effect Podcast Network. Didn't catch the latest Roland Martin unfiltered podcast? Here's what you missed.

People wake up and go, oh damn, wait a hold up. They change all of that. Yes. It's real. This is a whole, sale attack. It is targeting black people in every federal agency. It's raw. White folks have never allowed that reckoning to last more than a decade.

Catch Roland Martin's daily commentary on the Black Information Network. And download Roland Martin unfiltered on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.