The Philip DeFranco Show - Trump Just Fired Pam Bondi Right Before Her Epstein Testimony

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Starting point is 00:00:57 When Westchaff first took flight in 1996, the vibe were a bit different. People thought denim on denim was peak fashion. Inline skates were everywhere, and two out of three women rocked, the Rachel. While those things stayed in the 90s, one thing that hasn't is that fuzzy feeling you get when WestJet welcomes you on board. Here's to WestJetting since 96. Travel back in time with us and actually travel with us at westjet.com slash 30 years. You're fired. Pam Bondi is officially out as Attorney General, and Tulsi Gabbard, she might actually be next on the chopping block. There had been some murmurs, some speculation, but Trump announced on truth social today that he axed Bondi.

Starting point is 00:01:35 And you've got reports already rolling in that he plans on replacing her with Lee Zelton, the administrator of the EPA. And this is absolutely huge news. I mean, we're talking about one of Trump's biggest proponents in attack dog. Someone who's gone to bat for him countless times and weaponized the DOJ for him in ways that we've truly never seen before. But it also isn't the most surprising because Trump's been souring on Bondi for a while now. With his biggest complaints being the way that she handled the Epstein files, which makes sense

Starting point is 00:01:56 because the whole thing's been a shit show no matter how you look at it. And actually to that point, the timing here is incredibly notable because it comes just before Bonnie's expected to give a deposition to the House Oversight Committee after being subpoenaed over the Epstein files. The were firing shouldn't change any of that, with the committee's ranking member saying in a statement that she is still legally obligated to appear. And then beyond that, as far as Trump's problems with her, he reportedly didn't think that she'd been aggressive enough in targeting his political opponents. And that's something he's been grumbling about for months. Right, he was especially angry with the Justice Department because he couldn't

Starting point is 00:02:22 get a win against the former FBI director James Comey and the New York Attorney General Tish James, though that wasn't for a lack of trying. Right, it activates the part of my brain when I'm watching some real housewives over my wife's shoulder, even though I said I wanted to watch something else and I didn't want to really watch this, but I'm kind of watching it. And oh my God, it's three hours later. According to the Daily Mail, her firing was messy as fuck. With him reporting that Bondi begged Trump not to fire her in an explosive showdown at the White House after he accused her of an unforgivable offense. And he added that when Trump told her she had been terminated, Bondi responded by pleading for the president to give her more time in the role. And as far as the

Starting point is 00:02:53 unforgivable offense that the Daily Mail is referencing there, you had them claiming. Trump's reasoning for the sudden dismissal comes in part because the president believes Bondi tipped off Eric Swalwell about the FBI's efforts to release investigative documents related to his relationship with an alleged Chinese spy. But despite all that, Trump's generally been in Bondi's corner publicly. And in fact, when asked for a statement after rumors of her firing first started circulating last night, Trump literally responded. Attorney General Pam Bondi is a wonderful person and she is doing a good job. And even in his post announcing her termination, Trump described Bondi as a great American patriot and a loyal friend who faithfully served as my

Starting point is 00:03:24 attorney general over the past year. We love Pam. And in her own statement, there wasn't any sign of begging or pleading, just her announcing that she was leaving the role and then patting herself on the back for her great accomplishments before closing by saying, I remain eternally grateful for the trust that President Trump placed in me to make America safe again. Now, as far as what happens from here, you know, unlike what we've seen with other top loyalists who Trump got rid of, it appears that Bonnie's not just going to be reshuffled to some lesser consolation prize job in his administration. And instead, you had Trump saying she will be transitioning to a much needed and important new job in the private sector to be announced at a date in the near future. Which to me,

Starting point is 00:03:56 I think if you read through the line sounds like that's that's him putting boot to ass, get her out the door. And he probably really doesn't care. But he also added that deputy attorney general Todd Blanche is going to serve as acting attorney general for now. Right, it doesn't look like he'd be transitioning into that role permanently. Instead, what we're seeing is that Trump's planning to tap EPA administrator Lee Zeldon is Bondi's replacement. And if that name doesn't ring any bell, Zeldon's a former Republican congressman from New York who unsuccess who unsuccessfully ran for governor. And he's also, and this is more important, a dedicated Trump foot soldier in his position at the EPA doing the work to enact Trump's plans for energy

Starting point is 00:04:24 dominance. But also today, it doesn't look like it's just Bondi on the chopping block, right? Because there's also a report from the Guardian saying that Trump is polling his advisors about whether he should replace Tulsi Gabbard as Director of National Intelligence. And here, his big issues reportedly that she refused to condemn Joe Kent, right, the former deputy who resigned days after arguing that Iran didn't pose an imminent threat to the U.S. With Trump kind of giving her lukewarm support and a statement over the weekend when he was asked if he has confidence in her leadership, saying, and this is a quote, yeah, sure, I mean, she's a little bit different in her thought process than me, but that doesn't make somebody not available to serve. Then you had her

Starting point is 00:04:54 spokesperson seemingly clinging on for dear life responding. Over the past two weeks, President Trump said both that he has confidence in the DNI and that she did well at her hearings before Congress. She remains committed to fulfilling the responsibilities the president placed in her. But there's also been a notable back-and-forth about Gabbard in her place within Team Trump since he came back into office. And some of the things it earned her public criticism, including a video that she recorded warning about the horrors of nuclear war after a visit to Hiroshima or her testimony to lawmakers that Iran had not decided to build a nuclear bomb. Though others, it earned her support from Trump and his loyalists, like producing an

Starting point is 00:05:23 official report asserting that Russia didn't try to boost Trump's campaign in 2016 against Hillary Clinton. Now, what I will say is at this point, any word on Gabbard, it's largely just rumor, but it does come as Trump's been making other major shakeups in his cabinet. Just a few weeks ago, she's in the news for a different reason now, but DHS Secretary Christine Nome, she was ousted and replaced with Mark Wayne Mullen. And so now with his Bondi news, I mean, anyone in there who has even the slightest doubt about how much Trump likes them, they should be quaking in their lifts. So we're going to have to keep our eyes on this going forward. But also, I will say, well, you know, leadership of some of our biggest departments in the government, they're in limbo, Trump's still making assurances that no one's

Starting point is 00:05:55 buying. Because according to him, the war in Iran, it's going to be over in just two or three more weeks. He just has to send them back to the Stone Age, and also he doesn't know if they'll agree to a deal or if he's going to have to deliberately commit a war crime first. And he doesn't care if the straight-of-hormuz is opened, but it will be opened and prices will come back down even though they're not really going up. And Iran, they'll never be able to get a nuclear weapon, even though we supposedly destroyed their ability to do so earlier, but also they're gonna get to keep almost 1,000 pounds of nuclear fuel. That, it's pretty much what we learned in Trump's prime time address to the nation since the war began. In other words, we learned

Starting point is 00:06:26 this was Trump's rambly tweets in a different format. Or I guess you could say we learned that more than a month into this whole thing, we still have no clear rationale for this war and no real endgame. But if there was one big overarching goal behind all this, now that they kind of threw out all the different reasons and solidified on one, a goal that Trump suggested has defined both of his presidencies is that Iran must never have a nuclear weapon. With Trump saying at the beginning of his address. From the very first day I announced my campaign for president in 2015, I have vowed that I would never allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon. And with that, Trump rehashed his criticism of the nuclear deal negotiated under Obama, and he repeated his claim that U.S. strikes in June

Starting point is 00:07:04 had obliterated Iran's key nuclear site. But then, he also argued that in the months since, they had rebuilt their nuclear program, making clear they had no intention of abandoning their pursuit of nuclear weapons. And they're raised for a nuclear bomb, a nuclear weapon, a nuclear weapon, a nuclear weapon like nobody's ever seen before. They were right at the doorstep. There's no solid evidence that Iran was actively pursuing a nuclear weapon and as far as we know it would have taken the months or even years to do so if they want it. But said though, there is believed to be around 960 pounds of highly enriched uranium inside of the country deep underground but potentially within Iran's region, reportedly enough for 10 to 12 bombs.

Starting point is 00:07:37 But then also with that, Trump appeared to rule out an operation to retrieve the material. The nuclear sites that we obliterated with the B-2 bombers have been hit so hard that it would take months to get near the nuclear dust. And there I'll say he's not wrong. Getting in and out of a hostile country with almost half a ton of radioact material would be an extremely risky, complex, and time-consuming mission. And Trump also noted that the US is monitoring

Starting point is 00:07:59 those sides via satellite and would attack if Iran attempted to access them. But if it is, as he says, and he's leaving the material exactly where it was before the war started, when the alleged overarching goal of this war is preventing Iran from ever having a nuclear weapon, it begs the question of what the conflict

Starting point is 00:08:12 will have accomplished on that front. Right, the administration's argument has basically been that it is already, almost, you know, depending on the day, eliminated Iran's ability to hide its nuclear program behind its conventional weapons capabilities. Which is why the specific objectives of this war that have emerged and more or less solidified over the past weeks include destroying Iran's Navy and Air Force, missiles, and weapons factories. And with that last night, you had Trump insisting that these objectives are nearing completion. Iran's Navy is gone.

Starting point is 00:08:37 Their air force is in ruins. Their leaders, most of them, terrorist regime they led, are now dead. Their command and control of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is being decimated as we speak. Their ability to launch missiles and drones is dramatically curtailed, and their weapons, factories, and rocket launchers are being blown to pieces. But of course, Iran, you know, they've been battered, but definitely not beaten. And while Trump, he continued to insist that the regime change had been inadvertently accomplished, claiming that the country is now being led by a less radical and much more reasonable group, It appears that the new supreme leader may only be more hardline and the Revolutionary Guards may only have more influence.

Starting point is 00:09:21 And actually, regarding the country's military capabilities, you add a spokesperson pushing back against Trump's claim saying, your intelligence on our military power and equipment is incomplete. You know nothing of our vast strategic capabilities. Do not assume you have destroyed our strategic missile production sites, long range, attack, and precision drones, modern air defense systems, electronic warfare, or special equipment. Such assumptions will only deepen the quagmire you have fallen into. And adding the sites you think you hit are insignificant. Our strategic military production takes place at locations you do not know about and will never reach.

Starting point is 00:09:49 Do not bother trying to count our missiles, drones, and strategic systems. You will be wrong and achieve nothing. And of course, this guy, yeah, he's probably downplaying the impact of US and Israeli strikes, but the fact does remain. Iran does continue to launch attacks across the region, with Israel, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia, all responding to drone and missile strikes just today. And then, on top of all that, the Strait of Hormuz is still mostly locked down. Although as Horace Trump, he continued to try to play it off as a problem for other countries,

Starting point is 00:10:11 even though he had said hours earlier that he would not agree to any ceasefire deal unless the waterway was open. The United States imports almost no oil through the Hormos Strait and won't be taking any in the future. We don't need it. We haven't needed it and we don't need it. The countries of the world that do receive oil through the Hormone Strait must take care of that passage.

Starting point is 00:10:34 They must cherish it. They must grab it and cherish it. They can do it easily. We will be helpful, but they should take the lead in protecting the oil. that they so desperately depend on. But with that, you know, of course, Trump is ignoring reality. One, the reality that opening this rate is obviously not easy. I mean, if it was, why can't the most powerful military on earth do it?

Starting point is 00:10:54 And two, the reality that oil prices are set globally. And what's happening in the Middle East, it does affect the United States, despite it not being directly dependent on oil from the region. Not to mention that this isn't just about oil, but other key commodities like fertilizers. But Trump, he decided to barely acknowledge the economic consequences of his war. But he only once recognized the quote, recent rise in gasoline prices here at home,

Starting point is 00:11:12 but he argued that this was a short, term increase due to Iran's attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz. And in any event, he claimed that when the war is over, the the strait will open up naturally and prices will rapidly come back down. Though that has been widely contested by economists, and it's also not clear that ending the war opens up the strait, especially if Trump's now actually willing to pull the U.S. out and leave it to other countries. And also, in any case, Trump wasn't able to clearly lay out how the war is going to end.

Starting point is 00:11:34 We are on track to complete all of America's military objectives shortly, very shortly. We are going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks. we're going to bring them back to the Stone Ages where they belong. In the meantime, discussions are ongoing. If there is no deal, we are going to hit each and every one of their electric generating plants very hard and probably simultaneously. So just first things first, as we have talked about, targeting power plants is generally considered a fucking war crime under international humanitarian law. So just an absolutely insane way to try and bring someone to the negotiating table. But also, Trump's willingness to resort to extreme force that might be exactly.

Starting point is 00:12:14 why Iran is hesitant to even come to the negotiating table, with a spokesperson for Iran's foreign ministry, saying after Trump's address, we will not tolerate this vicious cycle of war, negotiations, ceasefire, and then repeating the same pattern. This is disastrous not only for Iran, but for the entire region and beyond. We are defending against an illegal war.

Starting point is 00:12:30 Now that said, you've had two Iranian officials and a Pakistani official telling the New York Times that public statements from Iran they've been harsher than private messages passed to the United States, also claiming that the Iranian government could engage diplomatically under the right conditions, or which could include something to show that the US is willing to talk seriously about ending the war permanently.

Starting point is 00:12:46 And actually with that, Iran's president came out with a letter addressed to the American people yesterday, defending Iran's actions criticizing the United States and suggesting diplomacy might be possible. Writing today, the world stands at crossroads. The choice between confrontation and engagement is both real and consequential.

Starting point is 00:12:59 Its outcome will shape the future for generations to come. But with that, it's also not totally clear who in the Iranian leadership actually has the authority to make a deal right now. And it's not clear whether the president's letter was written in coordination with the Supreme Leader or the Revolutionary Guard. Though I will say hardliners in the country

Starting point is 00:13:12 reportedly went after him for suggesting that Iran was open to negotiations. And in the meantime, all this uncertainty combined with Trump's escalation and the seemingly lack of interest in opening the straight-of-hrues back up, it has shaken the markets once again. Were you the price of oil dropping more than 7% after Trump's speech and stock markets around the world fell? Especially in Asian countries that are extremely reliant on oil and gas from the Middle East. And actually, shortages are so bad in some parts of Asia that people are being killed. In Bangladesh, for example, criminal groups have reportedly rated transport vehicles to stockpile fuel. And there, as well as in India and Pakistan, some workers have been

Starting point is 00:13:41 killed and robberies or attacks stemming from anger over the lack of supplies. And then, actually, there's more we've got to dive into in just a minute. But first, let me thank a sponsor and say, you know, you ever think about how much of your life is tied to just one email address and how most of us picked ours when we were just too young with zero long-term thinking? Because, yeah, not ideal. And that's why today's sponsor, Proton Mail is pushing something that I actually think is pretty smart with their newborn private campaign.

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Starting point is 00:14:44 After 19 years, they're back. Frankie Munes, Brian Cranston, and the rest of the family reunite in Malcolm in the middle, life's still unfair. After 10 years avoiding them, how and lowest demand Malcolm be at their anniversary party, pulling him straight back into their chaos. Malcolm in the middle, life's still unfair. A special four-part event, streaming April 10th on Hulu on Disney Plus. Then, I've been right back into the news.

Starting point is 00:15:09 there are new concerns that prediction markets might have an outsized influence over oil markets. Because you decide energy traders telling the Guardian that Polymarket has been the best predictor of the oil markets direction since the war with Iran. The data from these platforms is being used in algorithms that advise on trading in the Brent crude futures market. Goldman Sachs, which forecasts oil prices, now includes prediction market data in its research for investors and clients. And the Intercontinental Exchange also has a tool that provides a feed of Polymarkets predictions for traders to use in their assessments. This ends up not being that surprising because you had a leader at one agency telling the outlet that, that polymarket is having an increased impact on many markets now into adding there. Petting markets do have a long history of strong prediction accuracy, and since

Starting point is 00:15:45 polymarket is in the ascendancy, traders are indeed increasingly turning to it for market indicators. And when it comes to oil, polymarket has a ton of events to trade on. But that also doesn't mean that it comes without potential consequences with the guardian explaining. Energy market traders have said that the deepening ties between prediction platforms and the global oil market could amplify the impact of insider betting on global markets or incentivize betting behavior. Because it's worth noting that outside of the polymarket, of it all, we already had tons of concerns regarding insider trading on oil prices amid the war. And so now what you're seeing is that there are fears that

Starting point is 00:16:15 that is adding fuel to that fire and the prediction markets in general, it could be used to influence the price of oil. And there you have outlets like Axios noting, as the Iran war sends prices soaring for ordinary Americans, a select few appear to be profiting in plain sight. It's precisely the kind of alleged corruption Trump built his political career railing against. But of course, in his administration,

Starting point is 00:16:32 they don't actually seem to be motivated to do much about it. No, could it be because he or others benefit in some way, and or his son has his hands in both Polymarket and Kalshi? Who's to say? You, you're probably saying yes. And so really no one's expecting him to act here. But I will say we are seeing at least some baby steps in some other areas. Right this week, you had reports that federal prosecutors

Starting point is 00:16:50 in the Southern District of New York are exploring how suspicious bets on these platforms might violate insider trading laws. So there, no one's been charged or even formally accused of any wrongdoing in the district yet. Right, chiefs in the securities and commodities fraud unit simply met with Polymarket reps to discuss how existing laws might apply to potential misconduct.

Starting point is 00:17:04 And with this, you had an attorney in the district previously sending a warning on this issue saying, because it's a prediction market, doesn't insulate you from fraud. And then also you might have seen headlines over in Congress this week. And that's because 40 Democrats in the Senate and House sent a letter to Trump administration officials

Starting point is 00:17:16 about training to curb insider trading among government employees, with the letter being specifically sent to leaders of the CFTC and the Office of Government Ethics. And it noted that not only is there rising evidence suggesting possible governmental insider trading, but it also appears that there is confusion around the laws that exist in this arena.

Starting point is 00:17:31 So it asks these groups to issue executive branch-wide guidance, reminding federal employees of their existing legal obligation to refrain from using their insider governmental information to profit from prediction market trades. The theory of the White House kind of shooting back at the notion that insider trading is even an issue, or the spokesperson telling NBC News that all federal employees are subject to government ethics guidelines that prohibit the use of non-public information for financial benefit. However, any implication that administration officials are engaged in such activity without evidence is baseless and irresponsible reporting. And so for now, it really looks like it's just going to kind of be the

Starting point is 00:18:00 the Wild Wild West until someone gets in there that actually wants to regulate things. And then also in the In the meantime, we've got to talk about how the Trump administration is trying to kill the Presidential Records Act, or the law that requires memos, emails, briefing papers, and other records to be turned over at the end of a president's term. It's a law that literally exists because of Nixon. It was passed after Watergate, specifically to stop a president from destroying incriminating records. And now, the administration that wants to gut it is led by the first president in American history

Starting point is 00:18:23 convicted of 34 felonies. Felonies that include charges related to mishandling classified documents that he stored in his bathroom at Mar-a-Lago. As far as why and what they're doing, the administration has decided that the Presidential Records Act, and then, is unconstitutional and overreach of congressional power. With the Trump DOJ official saying, Congress does not have the power to compel an entire branch of government

Starting point is 00:18:42 to create and save every single possible piece of paper. There's the thing, Congress does in fact have that power, and they have it for that specific reason we just talked about. After Watergate, Nixon wanted to destroy recordings that incriminated him. And the Presidential Records Act was passed in 1978 to make sure that that could never happen again. It established that presidential records belong to the public,

Starting point is 00:18:58 not the president, and that they must be preserved and turned over at the end of each term. The National Archives, they already allow the release of official records, five years after a president leaves office. This isn't some crazy radical transparency requirement. It is a standard part of how American democracies function for nearly five decades. But this administration, they say,

Starting point is 00:19:13 well, Congress, they can still access records through a negotiation process. Because you know, Trump respects Congress. But also, here's what makes this so suspicious. Reports say that Trump's already been telling White House employees to preserve documents for historical value to explain past actions and guide future ones.

Starting point is 00:19:27 So he's apparently fine with the concept of keeping records. He just doesn't want it to be legally required. And you have many wondering if they're okay apparently with the public eventually, seeing these records anyway, what's in them that they want the power to decide whether or not to hand them over. You know, during a time of war, covered up scandals and an administration staffed with loyalist first, yes, men, gutting the one law that guarantees that the public will eventually see what happened inside of the White House, it is not a transparency move. It is a cover-your-ass moon. And of course, this is where Trump's history makes this

Starting point is 00:19:52 exponentially worse. I know so many of us don't have memories anymore, but he received a 37-count federal indictment for allegedly mishandling classified documents that were found stored throughout his Mar-a-Lago estate. That included, infamously, boxes stacked in his bathroom. An indict moves unsealed, charging Donald J. Trump with felony violations of our national security laws, as well as participating in a conspiracy to obstruct justice. I got indicted. And next week, I'll be indicted again, and the following week again, and then again and again and again. I did nothing wrong at all.

Starting point is 00:20:25 In fact, my boxes, it was secure. It was everything was good. Those documents appear to be stored in a facility where public events and gatherings took place, though Trump has maintained his innocence. And they come after Donald Trump, weaponizing the Justice Department, weaponizing the FBI. We can't let this continue to go on because it's ripping our country to shreds. We have such big problems, and this shouldn't be one of them. Right in that case, it ended up getting dropped when Trump was reelected.

Starting point is 00:20:52 Also in February, a Trump appointed judge permanently blocked the release of former special counsel Jack Smith's final report, keeping the public from ever knowing the full findings of that investigation. And then there's the leaked audio from after his first term where he appeared to reference a classified memo about an attack on Iran. See, as president, I couldn't have declasseted. No, I can't, you know, but this is classic. Something that contradicted his own prior claims. I have no classified documents.

Starting point is 00:21:13 And by the way, they become automatically declassified when I took them. And he's also been caught tearing up documents before, a practice that itself violates the Presidential Records Act. And that beyond the transparency question, there is a genuine security concern. If he took classified documents into his personal possession once and stored them in a bathroom,

Starting point is 00:21:28 what is stopping him from just doing it again? And if the legal requirement to preserve and turnover records is gutted, what mechanism actually exists to ensure that classified material stays where it's supposed to be. And so as threats against government officials from hacks and leaks continue to grow, weakening the system that tracks where presidential records go, it's not just suspicious, it's dangerous. So as far as why this matters and we've got to talk about it, this isn't just like a policy disagreement. This is a dismantling of one of the post-Watergate safeguards that exists specifically because we already

Starting point is 00:21:52 learned what happens when the president gets to decide what the public sees. We already learned that lesson in 1974 and the guy that's trying to undo it stored evidence in his bathroom. But also, you know, if it feels like life down here on Earth, it keeps getting more and more hopeless, maybe we can, you know, find at least a little reason for optimism up and outer space, right because humanity's going back to the moon for the first time since 1972. And last night, you had thousands of people camping out on Florida's Cocoa Beach to watch that enormous rocket shooting up from the Kennedy Space Center. Four, three, two, one, booster ignition, and lift off the crew of Artemis II now bounce. They are on the way and God bless them. These are,

Starting point is 00:22:30 brave people. This mission, it's called Artemis 2 because it's the second out of four missions that NASA has planned. And the first one actually went up in 2022, but no one was kind of really paying attention that time except like the really hardcore people. It was uncrewed, there wasn't a lot of fanfare. But this one, it had people pumped. He had four astronauts, three Americans, one Canadian. But also, they're not actually gonna land on the moon.

Starting point is 00:22:47 They're gonna fly around it. And actually, the third mission in 2027, that one's not gonna land either. It's just to test the equipment to dock with the landers that they planned to use. But in the fourth, in 2028, that's when they're gonna put boots on the lunar surface again for the first time since the Apollo missions. But also, and I have to stress this because my son will get very angry if I don't, just because the astronauts on this flight aren't going to be landing, that doesn't mean it's not super fucking cool.

Starting point is 00:23:06 I mean, for one thing, space is dangerous, no matter what. There is a risk tied to it, there's a million things going on, and a lot of those impact life or death. But then also, they are going into deep space on this one. I mean, to put it into perspective, the ISS, it orbits just 250 miles above her. And the moon, it's some 250,000 miles away. And they're going to be going around that even further than we've ever done before. And they're also flying aboard a spacecraft that's never,

Starting point is 00:23:29 carried humans before, ever. All while again, anything could go wrong. During the first uncrewd mission, the spacecraft's heat shield suffered unexpected damage. And that's just one example, but you know, not great because the craft is gonna have to deal with heat of up to 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit when it re-enters Earth's atmosphere.

Starting point is 00:23:43 And so yeah, I'm gonna agree with Trump on this one thing. He said these guys and one gal, they're brave. Unfortunately, so far, things are going well. And the launch itself went pretty smoothly. Outstanding stand, we see the same and we have a beautiful moon rise, we're headed right at it. So there, I'll say they're technically not headed

Starting point is 00:23:57 to the moon yet. Because first they're gonna circle the earth and conduct a bunch of tests to make sure that everything's good before making what's called a trans lunar injection. Which really quick, calm down R of K, that is not something getting cooked up by Pfizer and Moderna.

Starting point is 00:24:08 It just means getting on a trajectory toward the moon. And assuming that everything's normal, they're supposed to do that tonight, but also there was an issue, potentially gut wrenching problem, if you will, the toilet didn't work. But apparently its fault light was blinking when the astronauts tried to turn it on,

Starting point is 00:24:20 so NASA told them to kind of just shit in bags in the meantime, which I will say is actually how the Apollo astronauts did it back in the day. So, you know, they just stumbling all their waste on the moon where presumably it is still sitting there today. But by contrast, the Artemis crew, they're supposed to enjoy the luxury of a dedicated private bathroom at the toilet.

Starting point is 00:24:36 You have a urine hose, so this is where you collect all your urine, and then this is just like a toilet seat, and this is where the solid waste is collected. The feces get sucked down into the bottom, into a bag, and you close that off, and you squish it down into the bottom into the canister. The room also comes with pan-rails and foot tether, so you know you've got something to hold on into zero gravity and or you, I guess, haven't been eating on enough fiber. And then actually, one more fun fact, instead of recycling their own urine and drinking it the next day like they do on the ISS, the Artemis crew, they're just gonna bend it out into

Starting point is 00:25:08 space. So yeah, the Artemis crew, they're gonna be literally pissing into the void multiple times a day. But back to the actual news, NASA said, you know, they did fix whatever was wrong with the toilet, so barring any other hiccups that they should be on their way tonight. With them then expected to reach the moon by Monday, and since they'll swing even further past it than the Apollo guys did, they'll break the record for distance from Earth by over 4,000 With the astronauts then spending hours gawking at the lunar surface, including portions of the far side that have never been seen by human eyes before. And in fact, they were trained by geologists before they left so that they could spot unique features and snap

Starting point is 00:25:35 photos of them for further study. And meanwhile, tiny chips containing the astronaut cells are distributed throughout the spacecraft so that medical researchers can study the effects of space travel, zero G, and radiation exposure. With them then slingshotting around the moon, hurtling back toward Earth, where they'll end up parachuting down in the Pacific Ocean on April 10th, completing a nearly 700,000 mile journey. And then presumably we're off to the races, first to, a... put humans on the moon before China does, then to build a permanent base on the lunar service,

Starting point is 00:26:00 which it just sounds fucking awesome, and finally realizing Elon Musk's dream of reaching Mars. And hopefully he does it make it a hell hole like he did with X. Though also speaking of Elon Musk, his company, SpaceX just found to go public in June, which could be one of the biggest IPOs in history.

Starting point is 00:26:13 It values itself at over a trillion dollars and Elon's open to raise another 50 to 75 billion with this. So yeah, man, I hate my brain. This is supposed to be like just a positive story, but now I'm like, oh yeah, the same money getting us to Mars is also eroding our democracy back on Earth. But that right there, my friend, you beautiful bastards is the end of today's show,

Starting point is 00:26:28 though it doesn't really have to be. Because we can keep this party slash dumpster fire going, whether it's you clicking or it's happened to watch that brand new episode of crashing out my podcast with myself and Alex Perlman, and or you take 30 seconds to click the link and subscribe to Philip DeFranco.com. We're in addition to getting solo breakdowns with sourcing on stories covered in the show and sometimes more.

Starting point is 00:26:44 I also do exclusive posts that I'm aiming to do once a week on every Friday. I'm actually in the middle of writing one now. I've been having a lot of fun, like figuring out the ecosystem and gearing up for like what the next three, six, 12 months are. But whatever you do, let me just say, thank you for watching. I love yo faces, and I'll see you right back here next time.

The Philip DeFranco Show - Trump Just Fired Pam Bondi Right Before Her Epstein Testimony

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