What A Day - The "Abject Failure" Of Law Enforcement At Uvalde

Episode Date: June 22, 2022

The January 6th House committee held its fourth hearing on Tuesday, and we learned more about the effort to overturn the election by former President Donald Trump himself as well as two Republican congressmen.  Arizona’s House of Representatives Speaker Rusty Bowers testified that the pressure applied by Trump and his team was continuous, and that they weren’t taking no for an answer.It’s been a month since the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas, but we’re still learning more about how responding officers allowed so much time to pass before entering the classroom and shooting the gunman. Steve McCraw, head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, testified to a state Senate committee that the police response was an “abject failure.”And in headlines: Colombia elected its first leftist president, healthcare providers began giving the first dose of COVID vaccines to young children, and the Supreme Court ruled that Maine can't exclude religious schools from state funding.Show Notes:Donate to Crooked Media’s Pride Fund – https://crooked.com/pride/Follow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/whataday/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

it's wednesday june 22nd i'm gideon resnick and i am priyanka arabindi and this is what a day reminding the losers of tonight's westminster dog show finale that they are all good boys in our eyes yes good boys doggos so on and so forth these titles carry more weight than best in show yeah at the end of the day these dogs are probably just happy that it's over, though I can't say the same for myself. On today's show, a top Texas law enforcement official testified that the police response to the Uvalde mass shooting was a, quote, abject failure.

Plus, young kids were finally eligible for COVID vaccines yesterday, and we hear how exciting that was for two WOD toddlers or WODlers. I am obsessed with this name. I think that it is some of our best work yet. It's going to stay. But first, let's give you a quick update from the latest January 6th House hearing. Tuesday was hearing number four, and we learned lots of new details about the effort to overturn the election by former President Donald Trump himself and two Republican congressmen, Representative Andy Biggs of Arizona and

Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin. Yeah, so this was a pretty big day. Let's talk a little bit more about those details. How did we learn all of this? Yeah, there were three Republican officials who testified yesterday. They included Georgia's Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, his deputy, and Arizona's House of Representatives Speaker, Rusty Bowers. Bowers revealed that he received calls about overturning the election from Congressman Biggs, as well as Trump and his former attorney, Rudy Giuliani. According to Bowers, Giuliani admitted that he had not found any evidence of widespread fraud, but that he did try to use party loyalty to get Bowers to overturn the results. Bowers didn't do this. Here is what he said to the committee.

And I said, you're asking me to do something that's never been done in history, the history of the United States, and I'm going to put my state through that without sufficient proof? And that's going to be good enough with me, that I would put us through that, my state, that I swore to uphold both in constitution and in law? No, sir. The committee also saw a video of RNC chairwoman Ronna McDaniel's deposition.

She testified that Trump and conservative lawyer John Eastman personally called her about helping assemble non-existent electors using very similar tactics. Yeah, and so another big thing we should take away from this is that Trump and his allies kind of kept this pressure up, even though election workers were getting death threats and facing violence because of these very false claims they were espousing. So what did we hear about that?

Yeah, all of the witnesses who appeared before the committee yesterday talked about this. Bowers in particular had emotional testimony about protests outside of his home and the impacts that they had on his wife and his daughter. He spoke about friends he had who turned on him because of what they were hearing, you know, the former president's lies. And he described that the pressure was continuous. It wasn't like a one and done phone call. Trump and his team really weren't taking no for an answer and they were pretty relentless. Later in the day, the committee also heard from Shay Moss and her mother, Ruby Freeman, who were both election workers in Atlanta during the 2020 election. Rudy Giuliani released a video claiming that the two of them were colluding to commit voter fraud. Totally not true, but as a

result, they faced a deluge of death threats and hateful messages and really terrifying encounters in their own home. People trying to break in and threaten them. Shea Moss described how she is still terrified to leave her home to this day or even do something as simple as using her real name to order food. These people are just really terrified still for what these people put them through. Those are kind of the big takeaways from yesterday's hearing number four by the January 6th House Committee. The next one is scheduled for tomorrow at 1 p.m. Eastern. As always, you can check out the live group thread by Crooked Hosts reacting to it in real time. It's kind of a great way to make sense of what's happening. That'll be on youtube.com slash crooked media

if you want to follow along. We are going to turn to some news now about the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. So it's been four weeks since 19 children and two teachers were killed there. Yet we're still learning more details about the timeline of the day and how responding officers allowed so much time to pass before entering the classroom and shooting the gunman. Yeah, this is because yesterday a state Senate committee held the first public hearing on school safety, police training, and more. What did we learn from that? Yeah, so Steve McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, or DPS, testified here. That department oversees statewide law enforcement, and he had this really blistering assessment of the response by uvalde police this is a long clip but worth the listen there's compelling evidence that the law enforcement

response to the attack at rob elementary was an abject failure and antithetical to everything we've learned over the last two decades since the columbine massacre three minutes after the subject entered the west Building, there were a sufficient number of armed officers wearing body armor to isolate, distract, and neutralize the subject. The only thing stopping a hallway of dedicated officers from entering room 111 and 112 was the on-scene commander who decided to place the lives of officers before the lives of children. The officers had weapons. The children had none. The officers had body armor. The children had none.

Yeah, so this is pretty shocking, pretty disturbing to hear, upsetting. What else did he have to say? Yeah, so in addition to saying the entire response was a, quote, abject failure, McCraw also contested this prior point we had heard about the classroom purportedly having been locked. He said that officers on scene effectively wasted time while waiting for a key to the door without even checking if they could, in fact, open it. McCraw said that the door could not, in fact, even be locked from the inside and, quote, I don't believe, based on the information that we have right now, that the door was ever secured. So to recap here, the head of Texas DPS said during this committee hearing that there were enough officers on the scene to have stopped the gunman within three minutes of him arriving.

That's according to this evidence that he has. However, they didn't check whether the classroom door was unlocked and instead did not make it into the room for more than an hour. Over that span, there were reportedly a number of 911 calls from students inside the room. Yeah, so these new details are incredibly infuriating if you are a person listening to this and operating with a reasonable expectation that like maybe they have a job to do and maybe they would do it. There's clearly an incredibly strong indictment of the police response here. And once again, a change in the timeline that we have been told by officials. This has been happening several times since this happened.

What else did McCraw say went wrong and how did he back all of this up? Yeah, so over the course of this hearing, he walked the committee through this detailed timeline with maps and poster boards. Much of it confirmed prior reporting from the New York Times, including the following that I'm pulling from their write-up of this hearing. So for one thing, in addition to the fact that officers were there within minutes, a school district officer had informed others that his wife, a teacher, was shot but still alive in the classroom, a fact that indicates how time was of the essence. Every second was important. Shields that could have helped officers enter the classroom arrived on scene

almost an hour before they went into the room. Separately, McCraw said that the school district police chief, Pete Arradondo, did not have a radio with him. Other radios apparently belonged to other police were not working in the school. And some diagrams that were used to plan the response were also apparently wrong as well.

Yeah, this is like, I don't even know what more to say. It's just incredibly upsetting. Yeah, and McCraw placed much of the blame on Arredondo saying that he had, quote, decided to put the lives of officers ahead of the lives of children, as we heard in that clip. McCraw said that Arredondo was the on-scene commander,

even as Arredondo has previously said that he didn't consider himself in charge that day. Okay, so this all comes after McCraw said that Arredondo was the on-scene commander, even as Arredondo has previously said that he didn't consider himself in charge that day. Okay, so this all comes after McCraw's own department stopped holding public hearings on the shooting after details he and Governor Greg Abbott shared turned out to be wrong. Yeah, so on that point, you know, to demonstrate how much the public line has changed from basically every official in Texas at certain points, here is Abbott in his first press conference after the shooting. But the reality is as horrible as

what happened, it could have been worse. The reason it was not worse is because law enforcement enforcement officials did what they do. They showed amazing courage by running toward gunfire for the singular purpose of trying to save lives. Yeah. And yet now we have this guy from DPS, you know, excoriating law enforcement. So anyway, days later, Abbott said that he was, quote, misled about what happened. But this is another example of that sort of journalistic skepticism necessary when considering these accounts that we get from law enforcement. Yeah. And that quote from Greg Abbott, there's not a single part of that that still holds up. And I know that he's, you know, since walked it back. But just like you're saying, the information here has changed so many times and it is just completely infuriating. What comes next after all of this?

Like, where do we go from here? Yeah, there are other overlapping investigations. There's a three-person investigative committee in the Texas House conducting their own investigation with a report expected next month. They actually, according to The Washington Post, were speaking to Arradondo in closed-door testimony yesterday. Then the Department of Justice is also conducting its own investigation at the federal level. So we will presumably be hearing more on all this soon. Yeah, I mean, I hope. I really hope we get to the bottom of this at some point. It really sounds like some people did majorly mishandle this in the biggest way. Lastly, there was some movement on the federal gun legislation that

Congress was working on. What did we find out there? Yesterday, the Senate released a final draft of what is hopefully going to lead to some kind of gun reform, including enhanced background checks and resources for states to implement red flag laws. We'll get into more about the specifics soon, but it's anticipated to come up for a vote before the July 4th recess, maybe as early as this week, actually. More on all of that soon, but that is the latest for now. Let's get to some headlines. Headlines.

Colombia made history on Sunday when voters elected the country's first leftist president. Gustavo Petro, a former guerrilla fighter who once fought the Colombian state, shocked the world when he beat out his conservative opponent, Rodolfo Hernandez, for the presidency. Petro ran on a fiercely progressive platform advocating for free college, taxes for big landowners, and economic reform. Petro's election brings an end to his country's long track record of conservative leadership. Colombia now joins a number of other traditionally conservative Latin American countries that have elected leftist, anti-establishment leaders in recent years, a shift that's been largely driven by how the pandemic has devastated economies and led to spikes in poverty.

Petro will replace the current conservative president, Yvonne Duque, on August 7th. And human rights activist Francia Marquez is set to be his vice president and will be the first black person to serve in that role. After the election results were announced on Sunday night, Petro addressed his supporters in Bogota, the country's capital, and said of his victory, quote, real change is coming. This is another Colombia. Kids and antibodies are due for a play date. Yesterday, health care providers across the U.S. began giving the first dose of COVID vaccines to children between six months and five years old. This comes after the FDA and CDC both gave the green light to authorize Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech shots for this age group last weekend.

And it brings a huge relief to parents who haven't been able to protect their children against the virus. Here is one dad, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy on CNN Tuesday morning. We now have every age group six months and above in the country which is now eligible. And I'll tell you as a dad of a four-year-old, this is a big deal for my family as well. But to really grasp the impact of this news, we had to talk to the true experts, the toddlers and the babies themselves. Here is what 15-month-old Tyler told us. He is the nephew of our producer Jazzy Marine. Let's give it a listen. Are you excited to get vaccinated? No. Do you know what a vaccine is? No. Listen, if he doesn't know, how could he be excited? This is a fair point he's making.

It's true. That's very healthy skepticism. And here is Max, the three and a half year old nephew of our head writer, John Milstein. He gave us the information we should all know about this medicine that we've put into our bodies. Tell me what a vaccine is. Vaccine is where you go to see someone doing a movie. A vaccine is where you go to see someone doing the movies? Yeah. Listen, maybe for some people, right?

We don't know. Yeah. Max could be right. You could see a movie, you get a vaccine in the same place. Max sounds interested, unsure about Tyler. Jury's out there. We'll follow up later. But it seems like, you know, we're half and half at the moment. Yeah, that's a good 50%. We will take it. The conservative Supreme Court gave us a pro Bible ruling yesterday before the really bad pro Bible ruling. They said

the state of Maine cannot exclude religious schools from state funding. For context, Maine has a unique tuition assistance program that covers the cost of attendance for students at public schools and a handful of non-religious private schools. The court argued in yesterday's ruling that excluding religious schools from state aid goes against the First Amendment, and that if Maine uses taxpayer money to fund non-religious private schools, it must do the same for religious ones. The court's decision goes against decades of precedent where justices have traditionally sided with state constitutions,

most of which do not allow states to use taxpayer money for religious schools. But religious schools across the country seeking state aid could use Tuesday's ruling as leverage to create programs that are similar to Maine's. The vote was 6- three and unsurprisingly along ideological lines with the court's three liberal justices dissenting. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in her dissent that the court, quote, continues to dismantle the wall of separation between church and state that the framers fought to build and that the ruling's consequences, quote, must not be understated. Yeah, this does not sound good. I can think of a lot of things that could use taxpayer money

before religious schools. I don't know. That's just me. Your disposable snowshoes aren't welcome in Canada anymore because the country announced on Monday that it will ban companies from making

and importing single-use plastics by the end of this year. Oh my God, that is so soon. They are ruthlessly efficient up there. This is part of a major effort to combat plastic waste and to fight climate change. Starting this December, there will be regulations on things like grocery store bags, straws, and styrofoam, takeout containers, and plastic utensils, which means it's time to pick your lucky poutine fork and stick with it for the rest of your life. The government will only make a few exceptions that include items used for medical reasons.

They'll also let businesses keep selling single-use plastics until the end of 2023, if and only if they have them stockpiled already so that stuff doesn't get thrown out unnecessarily. Canada joins the United Kingdom, members of the EU, and several other countries in implementing these types of bans. Meanwhile, here in the U.S., we still rank as the world's leading contributor of plastic waste,

according to a congressional report last year. Clearly grasping the urgency of the problem, our government announced its own gradual ban on single-use plastic earlier this year, but only on public lands and national parks and not until 2032. Doesn't really seem like that will be making that much of a dent for quite a while. So cool. It's a good thing.

Nothing will change between now and then. That's the good news there. Yeah, cool. And those are the headlines. We'll be back after some ads with an analysis of what could be the best anti-capitalist dance song of the summer. Just could be. It is Wednesday, WOD Squad.

And for today's Temp Check, we are talking about the latest shockwave to the U.S. labor movement. No, it is not that an Apple store in Maryland became the first one to unionize this weekend, though that was important. It was the release yesterday of the first single from Beyonce's upcoming album, Renaissance. Here is a small taste of Break My Soul. Is that how much we're literally allowed to play without getting sued? We were getting right to the cusp. In addition to sampling vocals from New Orleans bounce legend Big Freedia over a beat that turns work from home into work from the club,

the song includes Beyonce's full endorsement of the great resignation. She sings, quote, Now I just fell in love and I just quit my job. While Big Freedia tells us, quote, release your job, release the time. Overall, the song carries a message of empowerment and resilience, but it's release your job message contrasts strongly with the self-help advice

of a different billionaire millennial icon, Kim Kardashian, who a few months ago told us this. Get your fucking ass up and work. It seems like nobody wants to work these days. That's so true. Why is that set to piano? I don't know. It's perplexing every time. So Priyanka, a lot of big ideas here, but how are you responding to Beyonce's single and its message? Love Beyonce. Fun little bop. I mean, it's only been out for like what, a day? I'm liking it so far. I think this is real big summer bot potential. Love that message. I

mean, if you're in a stable work situation, maybe don't quit your job unless you absolutely have to. But, you know, I'm going to side with Beyonce's because I think it's a better vibe. And I think the background music is a lot better than Kim's. I don't know how she got stuck with piano. It's got to be Beyonce for me. Gideon, what is your take on this? It's clearly Beyonce. Clearly. I'm very excited for the DJ that at some point is going to be clever enough to do a drop that involves both of these.

I just want to say at that point when that DJ does that, I would like there to be a small credit to yours truly who conceived of this very idea of mashing these two statements together. Beyonce wins here. There's a reason Big Freedia is not collaborating with Kim Kardashian. Yeah, and one of these has been received a hell of a lot better than the other one.

Just a note. It's true. Just like that, we have checked our temps. They are hot because we are dancing to anti-capitalist jams. We've worked up a sweat. Definitely. That is all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe, leave a review,

avoid disposable snowshoes, and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading and not just Beyonce lyrics, whenever guidance is needed, like me, I want to say it's also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at crooked.com slash subscribe. I'm Priyanka Arabindi. I'm Gideon Resnick. And you're still the best in our show, dogs.

That's right. Yeah, you are. No contest. That is why we don't host a dog show because everyone would be a winner. You know how many trophies we'd have to make? So many. I don't have that many hands to hand that out. All that single use plastic, please. I know they allow it here. There are no rules, but like, we're not about that. Public lands are where the dog show

takes place. So we can't do it. Sorry. Yeah, we can. 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 producers are Leo Duran and me, Gideon Resnick. Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kashaka. Good news, WOD Squad. Crooked Coffee is officially here. Our first blend, What a Morning, is available in medium and dark roast. They're both so delicious. I am a dark roast person myself, but either will get you going for the day.

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