What A Day - Full Hakeem Ahead

Episode Date: December 1, 2022

House Democrats voted unanimously Wednesday to make New York Congressman Hakeem Jeffries their new leader – making him the first Black person to lead a party in Congress.Meanwhile, the House passed legislation that would force rail companies and labor unions to accept a tentative deal to avert a nationwide rail strike — and while progressives pushed for a separate bill to guarantee paid sick leave, it faces an uncertain future in the Senate.And in headlines: the FDA is reportedly planning to allow more queer men to donate blood, a House panel finally has access to former President Trump’s federal tax returns, and the French baguette was added to UNESCO’s cultural heritage list.Show Notes:Every Last Vote | Vote Save America – https://votesaveamerica.com/every-last-vote/Crooked Coffee is officially here. Our first blend, What A Morning, is available in medium and dark roasts. Wake up with your own bag at crooked.com/coffeeFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/whataday/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday 

It's Thursday, December 1st. I'm Priyanka Arabindi. And I'm Juanita Tolliver, and this is What A Day, reminding you to proceed with extreme caution if you eat Thanksgiving leftovers on any day after today. Yeah, listen, we finished with that after the weekend was over. Also, how good was your food if you have leftovers at this point? I'm questioning the quality.

I mean, Juanita's coming for you a little bit, but I'm kind of with her. On today's show, a House committee finally has hands on Donald Trump's tax returns. Never thought we'd see the day. Plus, carb lovers rejoice because the French baguette was granted world heritage status. But first, y'all, we've got a Black history announcement. Make way for Democratic leader-elect Hakeem Jeffries. Yesterday, on Shirley Chisholm's birthday, no less, Representative Jeffries was unanimously elected Democratic leader, becoming the first Black person to ever lead a party in Congress,

and I am hype. Yeah, it's really exciting. It's so exciting. And I love that Representative Jeffries gave Shirley Chisholm a shout out in his remarks as she was the first member of Congress that he was ever aware of. So it's a historic moment. And it's also a bit of an expected moment, as Jeffries has been groomed for this ascension for years. Remember, he has served in leadership since 2018, and almost immediately after Speaker Pelosi made her floor speech stepping down as Speaker in November,

she, along with Representatives Clyburn and Hoyer, threw their support behind the 52-year-old representative for New York's 17th District in Brooklyn. Representative Jeffries has developed a reputation as a no-nonsense member who clearly loves hip-hop and stands at the ready to call out the asinine, cruel behavior of Republicans. No one can forget him quoting Biggie during the first impeachment proceedings or the way he lit up right-wing Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas after Roe v. Wade was overturned. So who else will be joining him in

Democratic leadership for the next Congress? Rounding out Democrats leadership team are Representative Catherine Clark of Massachusetts, who was elected to serve as Democratic whip, and Representative Pete Aguilar of California, a friend of WAD, who will serve as the Democratic caucus chair. And what's also history making about this trio is that this is the first time that the top three leadership positions for either party in either chamber are exclusively held by people of color and women.

That's huge. This transition also marks a generational shift as the previous slate of Democratic leaders were all 80-plus years old. And Speaker Pelosi noted that this shift, quote,

reflects the vibrancy and diversity of our great nation, and they will reinvigorate our caucus with their new energy, ideas, and perspectives. Yeah, it seems like people, you know, within the House are excited about this. It seems like this is exactly what, I mean, if you think back to 2020 primary season, which is like a cursed time to think back to, was what a lot of people wanted out of their government. So exciting things. And everyone seems like happy about this. So what should we be expecting from this new leadership team? So Democrats are going to be the source of accountability in the next Congress, and and Democrats are committed to combating the divisive extremist agenda that we know is going to come from House Republicans, as well as to find ways to help the American people as the minority party in the House.

And Jeffries also said that he is ready to, quote, extend the hand of partnership whenever and wherever possible to get things done for everyday Americans. So he'll definitely be keeping an eye on opportunities to pick off a few of those disgruntled Republicans to get their support for substantive legislation. I wish him the best of luck. It is in everyone's interest that we wish him the best of luck. I don't know how successful he'll be in that. Right. I don't think that's any fault of his. At all.

It's also important to note that it's not all roses within the Democratic caucus, as there has been some friction in the past between Jeffries and other progressive Democrats. Jeffries has stated in previous interviews how he has drawn a line between himself and more left-leaning progressives, saying he will, quote, never bend the knee. So we should keep an eye on how those tensions play out in the next Congress, especially around committee assignments and the policy priorities or goals Democrats set. Honestly, though, I think the harmful, destructive agenda of Republicans will be more than enough to keep Democrats unified completely for the next two years. Yeah, certainly not something I'm particularly worried about, especially in this next Congress. In other major news out of this Congress still,

the House passed legislation that would force a tentative rail labor agreement to ultimately avoid a nationwide rail strike. This followed calls on Congress from the White House earlier this week to take action. And now it heads to the Senate where Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has promised that it will be passed quickly. I know we talked about stuff passing the smell test earlier, and this shit stinks, Priyanka. Like, it stinks for the workers. It stinks for these rail workers. But give us some background here. Yeah, happily.

Because, like, you all might be hearing, strike possibly averted, like, good news. We're here to tell you that that, I don't know. It's not, as we said, not all roses. So freight companies and their unions have had disputes over pay and working conditions for a while now. You might remember us talking about this on the show earlier this year.

A strike was previously averted back in September when President Biden announced a tentative deal. But four of the 12 unions that represent rail workers, represent almost half of them in this country, rejected that agreement in recent weeks. So the prospect of a rail strike has come back to the forefront recently. And if those workers walk off the job, it would be a huge, huge deal. Massive. Yeah, it would not only affect commuters, people who use rail to travel.

That might be like the primary way that you and I are thinking about rail. But I mean, it's hugely important to the infrastructure of our country. I mean, it would affect the country's energy supply, our drinking water, as well as the infrastructure of our country. I mean, it would affect the country's energy supply, our drinking water, as well as the transportation of goods. President Biden said that a rail shutdown would devastate our economy, and it's estimated to cost the American economy $2 billion a day. So massive, massive impacts if that happened. The deal struck back in September included pay raises for union members, but one of the biggest sticking points has been over paid sick time. Rail workers have been pushing for paid sick days, which they currently do not receive at all in any form. And many union workers voted against the initial deal

because it only included one paid sick day for the entire year. I should note that in addition to the legislation that the House passed yesterday, lawmakers also passed a separate bill to provide seven days of paid sick leave to rail workers. But it's unclear yet whether or not the Senate will also be on board with that, which, you know, we would need to actually see that. Right. Like it's a good effort by House Democrats. We know what they're trying to do. It mirrors some of their previous efforts around getting paid sick leave and family medical leave. But we know Republicans are hard pressed and completely oppose this type of paid leave for any workers. Yeah, we saw it earlier this year when again, Democrats tried to pass it through the House. But I feel like these rail workers are right to reject one day to take care of their basic health or even their families. It's like people forget that COVID is actually still a thing.

But here we are. If you worked full time, would you want more than one paid sick day? I would. Come on. I don't know. Just think about that. Plain and simple. If you would answer one way, like why should the rail workers have to answer differently?

This is literally about dignity of work and basic human rights. That's what it comes down to, to me. And for everyone wondering why the government is so involved in this, can you explain? Yeah. No, because I, too, was wondering when we first started talking about this, like, why are they in the middle of this with the rail companies? I don't get it. But because of the Railway Labor Act of 1926, Congress actually has the power to intervene

in a railway strike, to stop a strike, and to force the railroad companies and their unions to adopt a new labor contract because back then the railways were deemed so critical to the American economy that Congress could literally intervene and make them work whether or not they wanted to be working. Biden himself has said that he is reluctant to override these unions' votes against the previous deal. It's definitely not the best look. It's not pro-union Biden. He promised pro-union stuff. This ain't it. That's not. Yeah,

exactly. So I get why he's like, I don't feel great about this. Of course, this is also happening as the rail industry has made record profits. They made 21 plus billion dollars in the first three quarters of this year. It's not like they don't have money and they can't afford to do this kind of stuff. But the administration's argument for getting involved is just how devastating a strike would be for the rest of the economy. The unions obviously aren't too happy about the idea of having an agreement forced on them and being denied their right to strike. It's unclear if the paid sick leave bill that was passed by the House and Senator Bernie Sanders is championing in the Senate will end up changing their minds. But it's also unclear that it will even pass the Senate and it'll be much of a factor there.

Right. When I look at this entire thing, it's just literally capitalism doing what capitalism does. Coins and corporations come before the people and it comes before workers and it's disgusting. But I got to say, I appreciate Senator Sanders, who's calling for a basic roll call vote on the seven days of paid leave before they take up the first part of the deal, which would force this agreement onto the workers. But let's be real, it's an empty effort because Republicans want workers to lose, and they're so committed to it, they're going to vote against this every single time. And we all know why. Republicans put corporations and corporate greed over anybody else. So here we are. So there is no timeline yet on the Senate vote, but something does need to happen before December 9th. That is the deadline for the unions and railways to reach an agreement before workers said that they will go on strike. We'll obviously keep you updated on this, more on all of this very soon, but that is the latest for now.

Let's get to some headlines. We have an update on the ongoing water contamination crisis on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. To refresh your memory, last November, thousands of gallons of jet fuel leaked from underground tanks at the U.S. Navy's Red Hill Storage Facility. It leaked into the local water supply, leaving thousands of residents at a military base near Pearl Harbor without safe drinking water for months. Local activists have long called on the Navy to permanently close Red Hill and defuel its tanks, which sit right above one of the island's main aquifers. The Navy finally started that process last month, but on Tuesday night, over a thousand gallons of toxic firefighting

foam leaked from the facility and into the above-ground soil. State and military officials said the spill hasn't impacted the drinking water supply, but there's renewed concern that it could further delay the shutdown and pose even more health risks. Hawaii's health department is currently investigating Tuesday's leak. ISIS acknowledged yesterday that its most recent leader, Abu Hassan al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, was recently killed in combat. This comes after the U.S. military said that al-Qurashi was recently killed in combat. This comes after the U.S. military said that al-Qurashi was killed in Syria in October, so it's not clear why the extremist group announced his death just now. ISIS also said that it has picked a new leader, but he may not want that promotion.

Al-Qurashi only held the leadership position for nine months before his death, making him the second Islamic State leader to be killed this year. The FDA could soon implement a new screening process to allow more queer men to give blood. Right now, the agency does allow gay and bisexual men to give blood, but only if they abstain from sex with other men for at least three months. An official familiar with the proposed plan told the Wall Street Journal the FDA may lift that rule as long as they're in a monogamous relationship and haven't had any new sexual partners in three months. The exact details are still being worked out. LGBTQ plus advocates have long fought to end the ban on queer men donating blood, which started in the 80s at the height of the AIDS epidemic.

The new plan comes amid an ongoing blood shortage in the U.S. that has only worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. In a massive win for CNN circa 2017, the House finally obtained six years' worth of former President Trump's federal income tax returns. The Supreme Court ordered the IRS to hand them over last week, turning down Trump's request to block their release. This marks the end to what seemed like a never-ending crusade by Democrats,

who are probably experiencing a sinking realization that now they have to read a ton of tax returns. They could still catch a break. The House committee granted access to these returns, hasn't said how quickly it expects to get these documents, and Republicans are expected to drop the request for them when they take control of the chamber in January. So yeah, they might be off the hook, but not exactly for the best reasons. This feels like a massive flashback because I remember a time when these were the

most incriminating documents we could have had on Trump. And there's so much worse shit right now. That was basic. That was like grade school level problems. We didn't even know. And the world is honoring the long history of one of the longest breads. French baguettes have been added to the UN's intangible cultural heritage list, ensuring the protection of the iconic crunchy loaf for many years to come. This comes amid a continuous decline in the number of traditional French bakeries, with hundreds closing every year. Experts from UNESCO, the UN's heritage agency, said the decision was made to recognize that a baguette is more than just a baguette. It represents the daily ritual of baking in France, not to mention

it's the thing you hit the ball with in the beloved sport of French baseball. France's government celebrated the news by saying it plans to support programs and scholarships to train bakers and create a national baguette day called the Open Bakehouse Day. One, I fully support this. Two, baguettes on the ground in France

are chef's kiss. And three, yes, preserve this. It is truly a novelty. I love everything about this, but now I'm just getting hung up a little bit on French baseball. I feel like if the baguette is the bat, I think butter has to be the ball. Yes.

Oh my God. Does that work? Yes. I'm into it. And those are the headlines. We'll be back after some ads to keep up with the very expensive divorce proceedings of the West Kardashians. Dun, dun, dun.

It is Thursday, Wild Squad, and today we are doing a segment where we visit the last place justice can be served in America, a place where the law is administered by people with no professional legal experience apart from knowing parts of Legally Blonde by heart, a place called the Podcaster's Court. Juanita, I'm going to tell you about a recent thing that happened in our nation's courts, and you get to evaluate it on its merits. Are you ready? I mean, is it hard to get into Harvard or something?

In the span of about seven days, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West has lost out on a presidential running mate in Donald Trump and a life running mate in Kim Kardashian. Gay's divorce from Kardashian was finalized this week, according to multiple sources, almost two years after Kardashian filed for it in February of 2021. The split wasn't easy by any means. Ye cycled through at least five divorce lawyers, while Kim stuck with one, the same high-powered Hollywood attorney, who many think is the basis for Scarlett Johansson's lawyer in Marriage Story. Kim and Ye will divide up their assets, including 21 properties, according to their prenup. They have agreed to joint custody of their four children, and if you want to know how much it costs to grow up as a Kardashian West, Ye will reportedly pay Kim $200,000 a month in child support payments, on top of one half of the kids' medical, educational, and security expenses,

which probably increased because he keeps telling everybody where those kids go to school. So Juanita, based on your knowledge of big celebrity breakup law, what are your thoughts on this settlement? If the kids have primary residency with Kim, sure. You're going the legal route. But here's the thing, though. 50K per kid. I come back to the question of what is the lifestyle to which they have become accustomed

that requires 50,000 per month per kid that makes no sense to me those seats on came air seem kind of expensive like I really thought it might be what they're going to I guess but what I come back to the fact that Kanye got got he wrote gold digger he knew what was up and did it anyway like it's sickening but I have no sympathy for him I get that she's getting the child support probably because as you said like they're living in what is her house now yeah but the concrete block yeah I think she has more money than him like it's not about that though no no totally but like I don't think she's a gold digger like I think she's getting this money because she's legally entitled to it she came up in plenty of ways because of Kanye he was her

access point to fashion he was her access point to fashion. He was her access point to black culture. She is a culture vulture gal. So he gave her an entree to a lot of her deals that make her have coins. So I disagree. And let's be real. I'm not on Kanye's side. He ain't shit.

I just need to be clear about that. The way he harassed and verbally abused this woman, unacceptable. It's's wrong he ain't shit but he gave kim validation that took her to new heights that chris jenner never could have yeah that's fair the last 10 years of her life would look very different had she not been in that relationship though i am now kind of like this is also happening he just lost like one and a half billion dollars in like the last like a couple months. Like this man, like he's not going to be poor. That's a small chunk.

The royalty checks are still coming. If there is going to be a massive decline in his earnings, then the judge will modify that number. It'll go from 50K per kid per month, probably down to 40K per kid per month. Right? Wow. I thought you were going to cut him a break. I thought you were going to him a break i thought you were gonna say 25 nope just 40 no he got money money as quinta would say he got money money

that was the podcaster's court this court is adjourned one more thing before we go. It's runoff time in Georgia, and early voting is now underway for the December 6 election, and that's just five days away, y'all. If you're a Georgia voter, head over to votesaveamerica.com to make your plan now. And if you want to help out, no matter where you live, you can donate and find both remote and in-person volunteer opportunities to make sure the Warnock campaign has the resources it needs.

51 senators means the difference between a true majority or another two years of potential roadblocks. We're looking at you, Kirsten Sinema and Joe Manchin. Yes, I'm grinding my teeth. Again, visit VoteSaveAmerica.com to make sure that every Georgia voter can make their voice heard. That's all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe, leave a review, hire the lawyer from Marriage Story if you need to, and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading and not just the crib notes on Trump's tax returns like me, What A Day is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at crooked.com

slash subscribe i'm juanita tolliver i'm priyanka arabindi and we never doubted you french baguette not for one second what did we call it priyanka butterball is coming to a town in france near you when's butterball getting added to the intangible cultural list. Put it on there. Put it on there. What a Day is a production of Crooked Media. It's recorded and mixed by Bill Lance, Jazzy Marine, and Raven Yamamoto are our associate producers. Our head writer is John Milstein and our executive producer is Lita Martinez. Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kashaka.