The Philip DeFranco Show - Donald Trump Is In Epstein Files! DOJ Told Him Back in May!

Episode Date: July 23, 2025

Listen to my new podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/2CePXwDrvdQTes844wflKp?si=a5b6d0b842604024Go to https://www.rocketmoney.com/pds to cancel your unwanted subscriptions. Use code “PHIL” for $20 OFF your first SeatGeek order & returning buyers use code “PDS” for $10 off AND your chance at weekly $500 prizes! https://seatgeek.onelink.me/RrnK/PHIL    Get 25% OFF @ https://BeautifulBastard.com w/ code “TY25” ASK ME A QUESTION Got a question? Serious, silly, personal, or newsy — bring the good stuff. Send yours here: https://www.speakpipe.com/PDS  LISTEN TO THE SHOW iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-philip-defranco-show/id1278424954  Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6ESemquRbz6f8XLVywdZ2V  JOIN OUR COMMUNITY Instagram: https://instagram.com/PhillyDeFranco  Twitter: https://twitter.com/phillyd  TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@philipdefranco   – ✩ TODAY’S STORIES ✩ – 00:00 - Donald Trump Is in the Epstein Files 06:33 - Bryan Kohberger Gets Life in Prison 11:58 - Sponsored by Rocket Money 13:03 - The All-Out War in Over Texas Redistricting  21:23 - Ironmouse Brings Down Vshojo Over Alleged Stolen Money 26:12 - Beautiful Bastard Drop 27:06 - Uber Launches Women-Only Rides 30:46 - Sponsored by Seatgeek 31:13 - Comment Commentary ——————————   THE TEAM Produced by: Cory Ray Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry Art Department: William Crespo Writing/Research: Philip DeFranco, Brian Espinoza, Lili Stenn, Maddie Crichton, Chris Tolve, Star Pralle, Jared Paolino ———————————— #DeFranco  #EpsteinFiles #DonaldTrump ———————————— Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump is in the Epstein files and the justice department actually told him back in May according to new reports Where Democrats have to fight in the mud on redistricting or the 2026 elections are going to be stolen from them Regardless of how bad Trump's polling is. Brian Koberger had to face the families of his victims today And they held nothing back. This Ironmouse v Shoja scandal is crazy, but there is a good update We're talking about all that and even more on today's brand new Philip DeFranco show You daily dive into the news and actually a fun announcement. After today's show, go get my new podcast

In Good Faith with Philip DeFranco. Subscribe and listen over on Spotify and Apple. If you like this show, I think you're gonna love that show. It's the top link in the description, but that said, we have a lot to talk about today starting with this. The Trump Epstein scandal just continues to grow and grow by the day. With the Wall Street Journal dropping

what may be the biggest bombshell yet, Donald Trump is in the Epstein files. Right, and that according to senior administration officials who told the outlet that his name appears in the multiple times. And in fact, not only that, Trump allegedly knew about it. Right, because they also say that during a routine briefing back in May, where Epstein was not the main focus,

Attorney General Pam Bondi and her deputy informed the president that he was in the files. Which if true, means that Trump lied last week when he claimed that Bondi had not told him exactly that. And according to the journal sources, many more people knew about this as well, because reportedly, FBI Director Cash Patel has privately told other government officials the truth.

And all of this is the sources say that Trump was also told that many other high profile figures were named as well, with one official saying, it's hundreds of names. But to be clear, I am not saying, nor does it necessarily mean that Trump abused kids with Epstein. But if his name is in the files, we don't know why it's there

or if it suggests any wrongdoing. Though if this is true, you're gonna have many saying, well, why did he lie about not being told exactly this? More unanswered questions that people are gonna fill in the blanks on their own. Though this is notably in the report, you had some of the journal sources adding that they told Trump that the files contained

what officials felt was unverified hearsay about many people, including Trump himself. And that is he with the White House communications director adding, this is another fake news story, just like the previous story by the Wall Street Journal, referring to the leaked birthday letter. But also the journal's not the only news outlet that Trump's angry at right now.

But Donald Trump reportedly saying, you've got to be kidding me when he picked up the phone yesterday and CNN was on the other end. Right in that, because they called to ask him about a handful of newly unearthed photos and video footage that put Trump and Jeffrey Epstein together on several more occasions than were previously known.

Starting with this one in 1993, when the photographer, Daffy Jones, captured Trump and his kids, Eric and Ivanka, together with Epstein at the opening of a Harley Davidson cafe in New York. And then two months later, Jones snapped a photo of Epstein entering the Plaza Hotel to attend Trump's wedding to Marla Maples. With an Epstein popping up at another photo

from that wedding amidst a group of other guests, like a pedophilic, where's Waldo? And lastly, archival footage from a 1999 Victoria's Secret fashion show in New York, it shows Trump and Epstein laughing and chatting together before the models came out. Which also wasn't the first time they attended

a Victoria's Secret event. I mean, you saw them together also at an angels party two years earlier as well. You know, as far as Trump's response to this, I'll just let CNN's Andrew Kaczynski describe it. Yeah, we were not on the phone very long. I think our call's about 30 seconds or so. But when I asked him about the wedding photo,

he said, he sort of paused for a second and then said, "'You've got to be kidding me before calling CNN fake news and then hanging up on me. With the White House Communications Director later adding, these are nothing more than out of context frame grabs of innocuous videos and pictures of widely attended events to disgustingly infer something nefarious. But the thing is, adding that context,

it doesn't exactly make Trump look any better here. Because since 2019, and especially over just the past few weeks, the media has been digging up more and more evidence showing just how close Trump and Epstein were. For example, the New York Times publishing a piece over the weekend detailing the evolution of their friendship.

Friendship, which apparently started around 1990 when Epstein bought a property near Mar-a-Lago. Then in 1992, NBC captured Trump and Epstein at a party in Mar-a-Lago with cheerleaders at Trump at one point dancing among a crowd of young women. But then later appearing to whisper something in Epstein's ear while pointing at other women, causing him to double over with laughter.

Months later, when Trump hosted another party there for young women in a so-called calendar girl competition, the organizer recalls having been surprised to discover that Epstein was the only other guest. With him telling the Times, I said, "'Donald, this is supposed to be a party with VIPs. "'You're telling me it's you and Epstein?' Also, the organizer's girlfriend at the time

later accused Trump that night of taking her into a bedroom, forcibly kissing and fondling her and restraining her from leaving. With friendship then continuing with flight logs showing that Trump flew on Epstein's jet at least seven times over four years in the 1990s. Then in 2000, Trump appeared alongside Ghislaine Maxwell and Prince Andrew

at a Mar-a-Lago charity fundraiser. You also have CNN now reporting that in his 2004 book, "'How to Get Rich' Trump described taking a call from a man that he dubbed the mysterious Jeffrey, writing, as mysterious as Jeffrey is, he's one of the few people I know who can get by on just a first name. My staff never asked for a last name in his case,

which in a way puts him up there with Elvis. Not that Elvis calls in much these days, but you never know. I will say, you know, it is unclear whether that's Epstein or, you know, some other mysterious man named Jeffrey. We have many noting that it's reminiscent of the cryptic birthday letter to Epstein a year earlier in which Trump appeared to call the man an enigma and alluded to wonderful secrets they shared.

Well, as a comment about them having a lot in common, which really makes one wonder what that kind of stuff might be. And if you ask the Times, it remarks in its investigation, what seemed to draw them together, according to those who knew them at the time, was a common interest in hitting on and competing for attractive young women at parties, nightclubs, and other private events.

And even Trump himself seemed to admit as much in 2002 when after calling Epstein a terrific guy whom he'd known for 15 years, he told New York Magazine, it is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do and many of them are on the younger side. And although, you know, the White House has maintained that Trump cut off ties with Epstein because he was a creep, reporting from the Times

and the Washington Post suggests that they actually split over a real estate deal that they had competed for. So you know, for many, you know, this is just evidence of two rich and powerful men hanging out as rich and powerful men do, but for others, it suggests something darker. But either way, you know, it seems like new bits

of information, new allegations, new photos and videos, they just keep coming up on a weekly, if not daily basis now. And all of that is Trump is doing literally everything he can to deflect from the situation. Threatening to arrest Obama, blackmailing the Washington commanders, even posting weird videos like this one

of an incredible stunts, such as a woman catching a cobra mid-strike with her bare hand. Which by the way is fake, but it also doesn't take away from the fact that the president is essentially posting like Vine compilations going like, stop looking at the Epstein stuff.

Though so far nothing has fully deflected and we are seeing that reflecting in the polls. New reports coming in saying, as of today, 43.5% of Americans approve of the job he's doing and 53.8% disapprove. Though that also may not be just specifically because of the Epstein files. Right, terror, chaos, and uncertainty,

that's looming in the air. Well, you know, immigration, it is still technically his strongest issue. You had reports noting that his net immigration approval rating has dropped from plus 2.2 to minus 5.6 between June 1st and July 22nd. For now, we'll have to see what else comes out, what happens with the new developments,

and of course how the public perceives everything. And then next up in the news, Brian Koberger is facing the families of his victims today and they are not holding back. Because earlier this month, Koberger, he pleaded guilty to killing four University of Idaho students. This, it's been one of the most high profile cases

in the nation ever since the murders happened back in 2022, which then resulted in a manhunt that led to his arrest. But with Kohlberger then taking a plea deal that gave him four life sentences as opposed to the death penalty. And today he had his sentencing hearing where families of the dead and the surviving roommates got to address him in the court.

Very notably, many of these family members, they weren't happy about the deal that was reached thinking that he should in fact be getting the death penalty. And their grief and their anger, it was clear as they delivered their messages with, for example, the sister of victim, Kayleigh Goncalves, getting a lot of attention online for saying this. Don't ever try to convince yourself you mattered

just because someone finally said your name out loud. I see through you. You want the truth? Here's the one you'll hate the most. If you hadn't attacked them in their sleep in the middle of the night, like a pedophile, Kaylee would have kicked your fucking ass. Many of the other family members,

they also repeated this idea that he is of no importance. But this is the story of four people who were taken away too soon and his memory, it's not gonna live on. The world's watching because of the kids, not because of you. Nobody cares about you. I realized this moment isn't about you.

It's about justice for Xana, Ethan, Kaylee, and Maddie. It's about honoring the beautiful people they were and still are in God's eyes. Her light still shines and her voice will echo louder than this pain. You didn't take that from us and you never will. You are entering a place where no one will care who you are and no one will ever respect you. You will be forgotten, discarded, used, and erased. You will always be remembered as a loser, an absolute failure. And when

those prison doors slam shut behind you, I hope that sound echoes in your heart for the rest of your meaningless days. You also had other family members focusing on the pain that they felt the losses in their lives without their child or sibling or grandchild. Maddie was my only and child. Maddie was my only child that I ever had. She was the only great thing I ever really did and the only thing I was really ever proud of. My heart aches for the kids' roommates and the families of the other victims. And also the family of the perpetrator going forward.

We Mogan's are choosing to put our energy and focus into honoring Maddie's too short life and sweet spirit. And then you also had moments where family members said they forgave Coburger. You know, this is probably gonna bother everybody, but Brian, I'm here today to tell you I have forgiven you. Because I no longer could live with that hate in my heart. And for me to become a better person, I have forgiven you. And anytime you wanna talk and tell me what happened,

get my number, I'm here. And that last part, it's about her still wanting answers. And that's a huge part of this case. Because the motive, it still remains unknown. I mean, we don't know why these four kids were killed. And that is today, Coburger declined to speak. And so it's just still this big disturbing question mark. But with all this, some of the most talked about statements

have come from two of the roommates who survived. Because there were two other people home at the time of the murders. And one said that she heard what sounded like crying from the other room and she later opened her door and saw a man in black clothes and a mask and once he left she began texting another roommate who lived. They also notably didn't call 911 until a friend discovered one of the bodies the next day. And their story prompted a ton of judgment but they got to share their pain and their perspective with the public today. I couldn't be alone. I had to sleep in my mom's bed because I was too terrified to close my eyes. Terrified that if I blinked, someone might be there. I made escape plans everywhere I went. If something happens, how do I get out? My nervous system never got the message that it is over and it won't let me forget what he did to them.

People call me strong. They say I'm a survivor, but I don't see what my new reality looks like. They don't see the panic attacks, the hypervigilance, the exhaustion. What if it happens again? What if next time I don't survive? I was still out of it and still didn't know what happened.

If I had known, I of course would have called 911 right away. I still carry so much regret and guilt for not knowing what had happened and not calling right away. Even though I understand it wouldn't have changed anything not even if the paramedics had been right outside the door. I hated and still hate that they are gone but for some reason I am still here and I got to live. I still think about this every day. Why me? Why did I get to live and not them? For the longest time I could not even look at their families without feeling sick with guilt. And then finally after after all the statements were read, the judge formally sentenced Coburger

to four consecutive life sentences. And that is he told the families to sort of release themselves from wondering what the motive is and saying that, quote, there was no reason for these crimes that could approach anything resembling rationality. And then you've got more news in just a minute, but first, you know, if you're the kind of person

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and reach your financial goals faster with Rocket Money. Just go to rocketmoney.com slash pds today. It's rocketmoney.com slash pds and for the multi watchers out there, rocketmoney.com slash pds. And then next up in the news, we have to talk about the fact that the battle for the multi watchers out there, rocketmoney.com slash PDS. And then next up in the news, we have to talk about the fact that the battle for the future of this country and democracy,

it is playing out right now. And you may not have seen it because it is inside of one of the most boring fucking stories. I'm talking about redistricting. And while this has been brewing for a while now, it has exploded over the last few weeks because of an ongoing situation that's been playing out in Texas. Right. So back in June, it was reported

that Donald Trump was pushing Texas Governor Greg Abbott to call for a special session of the legislature to redraw congressional districts so that Republicans could gain as many as four to five seats in the midterms. A move that would be massively significant for a few reasons. First of all, that alone, it could be enough

to tip the scale to determine the control of Congress if the elections are tight, with Republicans currently only holding 219 seats in the House, so they can barely afford any net losses. And secondly, mid-decade redistricting is extremely rare. I mean, normally states redraw their maps at the beginning of each decade when the new census comes out

and congressional seats are reallocated to match population shifts nationwide. In Texas, they actually have a history of successfully redistricting mid-decade to benefit Republicans and cement their power. And if you look back, after taking control of the state legislature, Republicans passed new maps in 2003

that tore apart Democrat held districts. And in doing so, they gave Republicans a majority of congressional seats in the state. Before that, Democrats actually held 17 of the state seats while Republicans controlled 15. And then in the first election, after the redrawing of the districts, Republicans successfully won four more seats,

collecting a total of 21 and leaving Dems with just 11. So one, a big powerful shift, and two, we see that there's precedent for using gerrymandering in Texas to gain seats in the House. And what do you know, a month after reports came out that Trump talked to Abbott, Abbott goes, hey, it's July 9th, let's convene a special session

largely meant to address the tragic flooding that killed at least 135 people. But then wouldn't you know it, that agenda also included a number of other legislative priorities, including congressional redistricting. With Abbott even specifically citing a letter from Trump's Justice Department sent just two days earlier

where the agency claimed that four of Texas's congressional districts had been racially gerrymandered. Arguing that the districts have been drawn so that black and Latino people made up the majority of the population, which is a move that the DOJ says is unconstitutional. And Abbott, he appeared to agree,

reportedly acknowledging concerns that some districts were drawn, quote, along strict racial lines. But there, you Democrats calling bullshit, arguing that this is clearly just a thinly veiled excuse for Republicans to redraw the district so they can win more seats and ensure Trump can keep control of Congress. And there are a few things that back up their claims here.

First of all, the map that the DOJ and Republicans now say is racially gerrymandered, yeah, it was literally drawn by the Republican controlled legislature after the 2020 census. So Republicans, they're now basically saying the map they drew is racially gerrymandered, yeah, it was literally drawn by the Republican controlled legislature after the 2020 census. So Republicans, they're now basically saying the map they drew is racially gerrymandered, though that actively contradicts sworn statements

that they've made in the past. But immediately after the Republicans approved their most recent maps, numerous different rights groups sued, with them alleging that the maps do the exact opposite of what the Trump administration now claims, saying that the maps, they actually discriminate against black and Latino voters

because they were designed to dilute their voting power by gerrymandering lines arbitrarily to split up concentrations of those groups. Now notably here, that lawsuit, it's still playing out in the courts, but Republicans, they have repeatedly defended their maps in legal filings and proceedings by arguing that the GOP used a race blind process

to draw the boundaries. So in other words, Republicans have been defending their maps as completely illegal just for Abbott to turn around and say, hey, actually, you know, they are illegal, but in a totally different way that the Trump administration just so happened to find four years after we drew them.

Which is then why you have Democrats saying that Abbott's apparent contradiction here, it just proves that he's using this as a political ploy to carry out Trump's marching orders to create more Republican seats. Right, and all the while, Trump, he's not even really trying to pretend there's a pretense for doing this.

He has openly made it very clear that his intent is to get more red seats But when he was asked by a reporter last week about the special session in Texas and how many seats he wants to pick up Trump responded I think we get five and there could be some other states We're gonna get another three or four or five in addition Texas would be the biggest one Are you calling them for a complete redrawing of the congressional map?

No, no, I just a very simple redrawing of the congressional map ahead of next week? No, no, just a very simple redrawing. We pick up five seats. And where is it? But we have a couple of other states where we'll pick up seats also. With a special session in Texas kicking off this week, Republicans have reportedly made their redistricting effort

their number one priority. With the Times now reporting that Republican lawmakers are holding off votes on measures to address the deadly floods until after they can approve their redistricting plans and order to prevent Democrats from staging a walkout and blocking their new maps. Because if Dems can stage a walkout to deny Republicans the quorum needed to hold a vote,

they would also be impeding flood-related legislation. Which is then why you've had tons of Democrats in Texas lashing out, condemning Abbott for slipping this into a special session that's supposed to be dedicated to the floods and condemning Republicans for putting Trump's needs above the victims. With one state rep arguing, you're using one of the absolute worst tragedies that has hit Texas families in a long time since like Uvalde and use that

to give yourself a political advantage. What kind of craven, disgusting political maneuver is that? And with all that, you have some saying there are some major political risks that come with this effort. And that's beyond just the bad optics because optics seemingly doesn't matter anymore. For one, any map that the GOP approves

is all but certain to face legal challenges. The counter argument at the same time, those legal challenges can take years to resolve and experts say that a flawed map could easily still be in place for the midterm elections and help determine control of the house, even if it's later found to be illegal. Additionally, if Republicans try to claim too many seats,

it could actually end up hurting them and endanger more solidly-red districts that they currently hold. Because in order to gerrymander the maps that benefit their party, the GOP has to redraw the lines to push Republican voters into neighboring Democratic districts. But in doing so, it can dilute Republican voters

in the district that they pulled from, effectively making the district that they siphoned from more competitive for Dems. So of course, since they have control, they can kind of decide at what certain levels. But arguably, the biggest risk that this effort could cause is a redistricting arms race around the country. Possibly entering a situation where you have blue states

countering by gerrymandering their districts to benefit Democrats. And in fact, we're actually seeing numerous party leaders vowing to do exactly that. With one of the most notable players there being California governor Gavin Newsom saying in a press conference last week, we can act holier than thou.

We can sit on the sidelines, talk about the way the world should be, or we can recognize the existential nature that is this moment. And that, it would be absolutely massive if California redrew its maps. Cause California, the most populous state in the United States has 52 house seats,

43 of which are held by Democrats. And that, as you have experts saying that if California redrew the maps, Dems could easily gain two or three seats, maybe even as many as five or six. But that's also a really big if. It could be very hard and potentially even impossible for California to read district

because the state uses an independent commission for drawing political maps. And that is unlike Texas, where the Republican controlled legislature has the power. And while Newsom has floated some ways to get around that, there'd be major hurdles. But also, like I mentioned, it's not just California. New York representative, Richie Torres said that,

if Republicans do this, Democrats will have no choice but to fight back. You know, to just simply stand by passively and allow Republicans to rig the process in their favor is actually a form of complicity. It's the opposite of protecting democracy. And that is Senator Alyssa Slotkin of Michigan recently told Axios,

if they're going to go nuclear in Texas, I'm going to go nuclear in other places. And also CNN reporting that in Congress, plans are already in motion saying, "'House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries "'and his political team have begun privately shaping "'illegally risky and likely expensive strategy "'to redraw house districts

"'in several Democratic controlled states.' And while leaders have flagged specific states with Democrat trifectas, Jeffries hasn't ruled anything out saying that his team will look at every single state of the union. While some Democrats are reportedly worried about throwing their districts deep into the trenches of partisan politics, it is very important to note

that redistricting efforts by Republicans, they haven't just been limited to Texas. In Ohio, for example, you have lawmakers gearing up to redraw their lines as well. The Republicans who hold a slim majority in the state Congress, looking to take advantage of the competitive districts that right now are held by Democrats.

They want to redraw the lines in their own favor. Well, obviously we're gonna have to keep an eye on that. It's also been reported that Republicans are already looking at a number of other red states. And if Democrats go forward with their threats to redistrict and retaliation, Republicans would likely wanna counter by doing the same, though that's also saying that they aren't

already going to do that. And so very likely we're gonna be seeing huge fights play out, but I think it comes down to one thing and that was the news and here's my opinion. It is my belief that it is not a time for Democrats to worry about optics or try to take some sort of high road. They have no choice but to fight in the mud with Republicans.

And I agree, if they do not, they are then complicit. When you show up to a fist fight and your opponent whips out a knife or a gun, you don't worry about your honor. You note the situation has changed, you'd rather not, but you arm yourself. You fight where the fight has been taken because you have no other choice.

For now, we'll one, have to wait to see what individual Democrats like Gavin Newsom do and what they try to do with the others in their state. Two, wait to see what the establishment dems that apparently reports are saying are moving actually do. Because unfortunately, a lot of what we have seen from the establishment is that they would rather stay

the captains of a sinking ship than shake shit up. And then next up in the news, this is one of the most requested non-political stories out there. And that is the Iron Mouse v Shojo scandal. Because the VTubing world, it blew up after one of its biggest creators put the biggest talent agency in the space

on blast for not paying creators and possibly stealing charity money. Also, first things first, like if you don't know what a VTuber is, that's someone who uses an animated avatar for when they stream or post videos. And you had fans in this space raising eyebrows after the biggest name there,

Iron Mouse, suddenly stopped streaming. You know, this isn't like just a big creator within a niche space. Iron Mouse was actually at one time the most subscribed person on Twitch before barely being beaten out by Kaisenet. Right, initially she just added a confusion when she cryptically tweeted out,

"'I have so many questions, man,' on Sunday." Then on Monday, she dropped a bomb in a video called, why left Vshojo? Or with Vshojo being the talent agency that I mentioned a second ago and according to her, I recently found out that for the past couple of months, I have been misled by Vshojo. With the information that I currently have,

I believe that I am owed a significant amount of funds, which I have not been paid. And most importantly, the thing that hurts me the most is that the Immune Deficiency Foundation, which is the most important charity to me, and also the reason why I'm here today, is owed over half a million dollars from Vshojo. With Ironmouse then going on to say that she can't give many more details on the advice of her legal team.

Right in the rest of the video, it's her going into her story and how she suffered from an autoimmune disease, which is why she was so bothered that the Immune Deficiency Foundation never got the $500,000 that she had raised for them. And immediately we saw creator after creator reacting to this news.

For example, CdogVA jokingly tweeting out, well, VsShow Joe better be cycling and start raising some money, which is a reference to various cycling charity streams that he's done across Japan. You also had major creators like K-So in the space commenting on the situation. I did see that.

That's, I was like, legitimately like, bro, there's no way they did my homie Iron Mouth like that. I was hurt. With it then not taking much longer for a lot of talent of V-Show Joe to start removing the company from their bios. Implying that they had a mass exodus on their hands and many of them made it seem like this was the straw

that broke the camel's back and that they've been dealing with issues for a while now. And so for example, you had music composer Starlight Darrell claiming that they were screwed by the company, writing, nowhere near what Mouse is going through, but for the past approximately year, V. Shojo has been habitually late in paying me for commissions.

Sometimes leaving thousands of dollars in my invoice is unpaid for months at a time. I tried to be patient, but knowing they were stealing charity money from Mousy while this was all happening makes me sick to my stomach. And it didn't stop there. K-Son, who is one of Vshojo's other major creators, decided to confront one of the company's CEOs.

And I say one of, because Vshojo was actually split in two with one half catering to English speaking audiences and the other Japanese. Or with it appearing that K-Son's saying that she hasn't been paid since last September, that's almost an entire year. However, there was some confusion

because the Japanese CEO said that his side of the company is actually doing well. Which then led K-Son to demand to know why she wasn't getting paid if there was money. The CEO then appearing to try to backpedal and say that he was actually taking a big pay cut. Although saying that staff was still getting paid, which led to K-Son reportedly saying something

along the lines of talent first my ass, was it like staff first? And during the call she said, I quit V-Show Joe today. I quit V-Show Joe. And then as far as the English side of the company, which is where a lot of this is stemming from, it appears to have mostly been radio silence with fans pointing out that the CEO of the English side

hasn't said anything since it all started. But there are hints that it just imploded, like the fact that the merch store has been taken down. Although there I'd say it'd be hard to see how they would recover, considering it looks like almost their entire English speaking roster has left. And then on top of all this,

there's also strong suggestions that a staff member at E! Shojo is using their position to dox the real identities of talent. You know, doxing, while it's already an incredibly shit thing to do, in this space where many people do not wanna be seen, it's considered an even worse betrayal. But with all this, I'll say there is some good news

that appears to be coming out of it. Because fans have now come together to raise money for the Immuno Deficiency Foundation, which is the charity that Iron Mouse raised half a million dollars for only for V. Shojo to apparently never pay them. And it happened fast. Within like 24 hours, they were flooded with donations,

surpassing half a million, and it currently has over $900,000. Some of the donations coming from companies like Gamersupps giving $15,000. And that, as donations coming from companies like Gamersup's giving $15,000. And that as you had, I mean, everyday people giving thousands as well as creators like Ludwig and CdogVA handing over $5,000. Right, and all of this is, you know,

you have just many fans wondering what could have gone wrong? You know, some making jokes like Vshojo just learned the biggest industry lesson that everyone in modern media has known for over a century. Don't fuck with the mouse. Meanwhile, others, they pointed out, Vshojo contracts were fairly lax

and actually let creators keep almost all of their revenues while still making a ton of services, which they think makes the entire thing unsustainable. It also didn't help that apparently the Shoujo is just one of a few VTuber talent agencies on the rocks right now. With some saying this is kind of just the latest in the long line of talent agencies

that have been falling apart across the space. But that is where we are for now. We're seeing some good coming out of an otherwise seemingly very negative situation, people rallying together and actually with this, especially if you're a part of the VTuber community or a consumer of it, what are your thoughts with everything that's happened here?

And then I've got even more news for you in a second, but first I've got a great BB update and self-spawn, and that is that over at Beautiful Bastard, we just brought back the canvas prints for your home and the mugs for that mouth of yours. And specifically with those canvas prints, we did a test run just to see how people like them. And it was just so overwhelmingly positive

that we're making them a staple of the site. And actually to celebrate, we're giving you a code TY25 for 25% off your order this week. And that code, it even extends to orders that have the new lighter summer tees that y'all just been loving. And in fact, we've been getting awesome reviews and emails like from Michelle who wrote,

"'As an autistic person, I have very specific texture reviews and emails like from Michelle who wrote, as an autistic person, I have very specific texture requirements. While I adore Phil's shirts, I don't often buy them because the standard BB blanks are not to my preferences. These on the other hand are perfect. Well, definitely the long-term goal is to bounce between the two

or offer both at the same time. But for right now, especially with how hot it's been getting, you can go grab these new lighter ones and really anything you want over at beautifulbatcher.com and just remember use code TY25 this week for 25% off. And then next up an interesting business and societal news. If you're a woman who relates to this audio. Why would a man be there?

Why would a man be there? No, it's actually pissing me off. Then Uber has got some great news for you. Right now, because the app's launching a feature in the United States, it's giving female riders and drivers the option to be paired with other women when selecting rides. With Uber announcing announcing news this morning

and saying that pilots of this program are beginning in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Detroit in the next few weeks. And for the riders, it's gonna work in a few ways, with the first just being a button allowing you to choose a female driver as you call a ride, and so you can just do it on demand. But also, because women only make up one in five Uber drivers,

that doesn't guarantee that you'll get a woman right away. So if the wait time is just too long, you can opt for another ride with a faster pickup time. Also, if you wanna increase your odds of getting a female driver, you can reserve a ride in advance to pre book a woman behind the wheel. And then for the drivers,

they can toggle a women rider preference filter in their settings that'll allow them to be matched with other women on essentially every trip. They'll be able to turn that feature on and off whenever they want. But part of this actually connected with Uber, hoping that this is gonna attract more female drivers. Also notably, if you do book a ride using these settings

and you've been told by the app that you're going to meet a female driver and then that person shows up and they're not a woman, they will shoot and kill them. Actually, no, that's not what happens. According to The Verge, Uber just recommends that you cancel the ride and report the incident to Uber. Though there, the app does require identity verification

to hopefully prevent that from happening. Though I will say, especially with the food service app, it feels like there's a lot of people using their girlfriend's IDs. I'm not saying that Veronica can't be a six foot three person with facial hair that I just, I wish that I could have but that person is a different skin color. That's not you, my guy.

But also something interesting with all this is this is not actually the first time that Uber's launched a feature like this because back in 2019, Uber introduced a female rider preference in Saudi Arabia. Not long after that landmark law gave women the right to drive. And because it was a success there, Uber rolled that out to 40 other countries

and their rival, AppLift, it introduced a similar feature last year. Though also part of the introduction of this, it's probably related to just a really horrible thing. And that is that there have been thousands of sexual assault incidents reported during Uber rides. In the company's most recent safety report, it found 2,700 cases of sexual assault

between 2021 and 2022, which was actually a decrease from previous years, though there you had the report explaining. We know that even one report of sexual assault or harassment and 2022, which was actually a decrease from previous years, though there you had the report explaining. We know that even one report of sexual assault or harassment is one too many, which is why we're continuing our work to end sexual violence on the Uber platform. With that, noting that national data shows

that women are disproportionately affected by sexual violence. And adding in Uber related reports of non-consensual sexual penetration, women were 89% of the survivors, while men represented 8%. And so by matching women with women, they're hoping that the assault rates go down.

And then according to Uber's data, as far as who is more at risk regarding the rider versus the driver, they noted that largely the riders are the ones whose safety is most at risk with 68% of sexual assault incidents being reported against drivers and just 31% being reported against riders.

So obviously that's still horrible for the women driving. And in fact, on that note, back in 2022, you had the Ver verge doing a big report talking to a couple dozen female rideshare drivers in the US and they just had story after story of sexual harassment, unwanted advances and other just generally shitty scenarios. Drivers saying things like,

it just feels like they don't care about our safety. With some carrying pepper spray and other weapons, even if the app that they're driving for bans them. You also had others dressing in baggy or more masculine clothes or wearing fake wedding bands and saying, you know, they have a husband in law enforcement. And so ultimately we're going to have to wait to see what the public reaction to this news is,

as well as what happens with these flagship programs. But I, you know, I think that this is going to be a feature that sticks. I think it's very likely going to bring in more women to drive for the service. Not only because some might feel more comfortable, but there's a selection of this customer base that's only going to be comfortable with them.

And then for Uber, I never believe that a corporation actually cares about people or safety, but I do know they care about money. And I mean, this company has faced so many lawsuits over sexual assault. In fact, just in March, you had a San Francisco judge ruling

that over 1,600 sexual assault claims against Uber could move forward and merge. So they'd probably love to limit the amount of mass litigation they have to deal with. But yeah, in the meantime, I'd love to know your thoughts and it does feel like a ticking time bomb. If it's not already, someone's gonna turn this into a trans issue.

But then finally today, let's end with a congratulations and talk about y'all's comments. Starting with a congratulations to Christina F. SeatGeek's latest weekly winner, who just scored $500 in tickets and is excited to go see Billie Eilish. For the rest of y'all, that's right, SeatGeek is still giving away $500 in tickets

and you should definitely enter today if you haven't already. You could be the next winner and snag $500 towards seeing your favorite artist, sporting event or play. I mean, there's over like 70,000 events to choose from. And all you gotta do is add code PDSTHERCEEKEEKAPPROFILLE for a chance at the weekly $500 prize, no purchase necessary. But with that said, let's talk about y'all's comments

and some comment commentary. And yesterday we got like double the amount of comments we normally get. With many of y'all talking about Trump saying, Trump, are you still talking about Epstein? Also Trump, Obama in 2016, to which I say, hey, chill out. However, the president wants to try to distract

from the fact that there is a Trump-Epstein scandal and a lot of Trump-Epstein stuff keeps coming out. That is his right, guys. You also had Matt saying, Trump reposting a video with big letters saying, nobody is above the law while being above the law with little to no way to prosecute him for anything is next level of lacking self-awareness. You had many saying and agreeing with gonna say it before the inevitable

Ghislaine Maxwell did not kill herself though. Honestly, I think the more likely outcome here is to be on Ghislaine Maxwell pardon Why I mean really just look at the situation Trump and Epstein had friends. He has history with these two He's he wished Ghislaine Maxwell well and Trump's gonna be president for the next three and a half years That's in a situation where Ghislaine Maxwell would be primed and incentiv be president for the next three and a half years. If that's not a situation where Ghislaine Maxwell would be primed and incentivized to say anything positive about Donald Trump, or at the very least, not anything negative, and maybe only negative stuff about perceived enemies of Trump, I don't know what is.

And so, you know, I'm very interested to see what's gonna come from the situation, but I'm also gonna enter it skeptical. Though also in addition to the Trump, Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell of it all, you had people sounding off on the Nelk Netanyahu interview. With Lee saying, next week on the Nelk Boys,

Vladimir Putin explains the history of Ukrainian aggression against Russia. As well as Dempsey saying, calling the Nelk thing an interview is an insult. That was basically just Netanyahu giving a speech. They might as well have just given him a list of questions and left the room. And all of that, as you had some going on to say,

they are smirking because they know one thing, it's about to go viral, and that's truly all they care about. Which hey, I'm not in their head, i don't know if that's what they're thinking but whether they're thinking that or not i don't know if this plays out in their favor of having controversy for controversy sake because in the past a lot of their controversies have been like oh my god i can't believe they did insert blank but the thing that was in that blank was something that most right-wing people would defend and israel gaza or anything with kind of israel

in general there is a very notable and divisive split among the right right now. Especially across certain age demos and especially in their age demo. And so that's why, like I said yesterday, I'm very interested to see what they do in the next week or two, or if they're just saying they're gonna bring on

someone different and then they just hope that this dies. Or who knows, maybe they'll have the ghost of Jeffrey Epstein on next week to talk about how innocent he is. We'll see. But then my friend, you beautiful bastard, is the end of today's show. The friendly reminder, I just launched a brand new podcast called In Good Faith over on Spotify and Apple Podcast.

Link to that down below. Really, if you like the PDS, I think you're gonna love that one. But no matter what you do, remember, I'll see you again tomorrow, because of course I've got a brand new show for you every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday here at 6 p.m. Eastern, 3 p.m. Pacific.

Stay safe out there, stay sane out there, and I'll see you then.