WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.600 --> 00:00:02.919 This is Gary and Shannon and you're listening to KFI 2 00:00:03.080 --> 00:00:05.839 AM six forty, the Gary and Shannon Show on demand 3 00:00:05.919 --> 00:00:07.280 on the iHeartRadio app. 4 00:00:07.400 --> 00:00:10.320 President Trump was on Capitol Hill today. He's trying to 5 00:00:10.320 --> 00:00:12.800 implore House Republicans to drop their fights. 6 00:00:12.519 --> 00:00:14.439 Over his big, beautiful bill. 7 00:00:14.560 --> 00:00:18.440 We'll talk more about it when we get into swamp Watch. Yesterday, 8 00:00:19.160 --> 00:00:21.960 at this time, we actually talked with Nick Berg, an 9 00:00:22.000 --> 00:00:26.640 author of former Special Operations Army member who has written 10 00:00:26.679 --> 00:00:29.640 a book about his life in Iran, coming to the 11 00:00:29.719 --> 00:00:32.960 United States, serving in the military, and maybe maybe not 12 00:00:33.119 --> 00:00:36.240 going back to Iran for some less than official acts. 13 00:00:36.280 --> 00:00:39.920 But Iran's Supreme leader has pushed back against criticism of 14 00:00:39.960 --> 00:00:43.280 the nuclear program there. The Iatola said that Tehran won't 15 00:00:44.079 --> 00:00:48.159 ask for permission from anyone to enrich uranium and called 16 00:00:48.240 --> 00:00:51.520 statements from America as nonsense. He made these comments during 17 00:00:51.520 --> 00:00:55.399 a memorial for the late President Rayisi, who died in 18 00:00:55.399 --> 00:00:56.560 a helicopter. 19 00:00:56.079 --> 00:00:56.880 Crash last year. 20 00:00:57.399 --> 00:00:58.840 If you want to go back and check out that 21 00:00:58.960 --> 00:01:00.920 interview that I did with Nick, he had some interesting 22 00:01:00.920 --> 00:01:05.159 insights into not just life in Iran having been born there, 23 00:01:05.799 --> 00:01:09.560 but what the current political climate is there in Iran 24 00:01:09.599 --> 00:01:10.560 and what these talks mean. 25 00:01:10.640 --> 00:01:12.400 So you can go back and check out the podcast. 26 00:01:12.920 --> 00:01:15.359 Anywhere you find your podcast, just type in Gary and 27 00:01:15.560 --> 00:01:18.280 Shannon and you'll hear it there all right. The la 28 00:01:18.359 --> 00:01:23.359 City Budget and Finance Committee is looking over Karen Bass's 29 00:01:23.400 --> 00:01:28.200 budget proposal and it's making its way through. There's still 30 00:01:28.239 --> 00:01:29.799 a lot of work that they have left to do. 31 00:01:30.000 --> 00:01:32.680 Michael Monks is an absolute nerd when it comes to 32 00:01:32.719 --> 00:01:36.560 this stuff, and we appreciate that because nobody else wants 33 00:01:36.560 --> 00:01:40.120 to do it. This is an important look at a 34 00:01:40.159 --> 00:01:44.319 city that's dealing with a billion dollar budget shortfall and 35 00:01:44.439 --> 00:01:48.439 how do we You can't close that, that's too big 36 00:01:48.799 --> 00:01:51.159 of a whole to sew up, but how do you 37 00:01:51.200 --> 00:01:52.120 make that smaller? 38 00:01:52.319 --> 00:01:53.239 That's what we're dealing with. 39 00:01:53.359 --> 00:01:57.120 That's exactly what they're working through the budget committee. The 40 00:01:57.159 --> 00:01:59.599 way procedurally this thing works is the mayor presents a 41 00:01:59.599 --> 00:02:02.280 budget and then the city Council's Budget Committee has a 42 00:02:02.319 --> 00:02:05.200 couple of weeks to comb through it and figure out 43 00:02:05.200 --> 00:02:06.879 what they like, what they don't like, things that they 44 00:02:06.879 --> 00:02:09.319 want to fix. That process has now completed as of 45 00:02:09.400 --> 00:02:11.960 last Friday. The Budget Committee has done its work. They've 46 00:02:12.000 --> 00:02:14.520 heard from all of the departments they've heard from the public, 47 00:02:14.800 --> 00:02:17.479 they've revised the numbers. When Mayor bask came out with 48 00:02:17.520 --> 00:02:20.560 this proposal was pretty shocking one. You know, the budget 49 00:02:20.560 --> 00:02:22.919 deficit was somewhere between eight hundred million and a billion dollars, 50 00:02:22.960 --> 00:02:26.400 as you said, but more concerning was the fact that 51 00:02:26.439 --> 00:02:28.840 she says we've got to layoff people more than sixteen 52 00:02:28.960 --> 00:02:31.840 hundred flesh and blood workers, not vacant positions like last year, 53 00:02:31.879 --> 00:02:34.719 real people who would be losing their jobs and services 54 00:02:34.800 --> 00:02:37.919 that matter to the public in Los Angeles. Now, the 55 00:02:37.919 --> 00:02:40.719 budget Committee says, we've got the report together, We've moved 56 00:02:40.759 --> 00:02:43.560 some money around, we've finagled some numbers. We think we've 57 00:02:43.560 --> 00:02:47.639 got those layoffs down to about five hundred. You mentioned 58 00:02:47.759 --> 00:02:50.599 last year that it wasn't laying off real people, was 59 00:02:50.639 --> 00:02:54.479 it just the not hiring to fill vacant positions. That's 60 00:02:54.520 --> 00:02:57.439 exactly right, because when a department gets its budget each year, 61 00:02:57.479 --> 00:03:00.319 there are a number of positions that do not currently 62 00:03:00.360 --> 00:03:03.840 have bodies occupying them, but they're budgeted for, and often 63 00:03:03.879 --> 00:03:05.960 what we learned last year going through this process, like 64 00:03:06.039 --> 00:03:09.800 those positions often go years, So instead of just dedicating 65 00:03:09.800 --> 00:03:11.560 that money to a department, they put it back in 66 00:03:11.599 --> 00:03:14.159 the general fund. We see this year that that money 67 00:03:14.439 --> 00:03:17.159 eve operated very quickly. Well that almost so that echoes 68 00:03:17.240 --> 00:03:19.120 what we see in a lot of corporations. I'm not 69 00:03:19.159 --> 00:03:23.080 putting ours up as a glory of me either example 70 00:03:23.120 --> 00:03:27.639 of this. But if the job continues to be done 71 00:03:28.039 --> 00:03:31.759 with fewer people, even though there's a technically an open position. 72 00:03:31.599 --> 00:03:33.319 They'll just cut that position. 73 00:03:33.479 --> 00:03:35.039 They won't even bother with it. Well, you can get 74 00:03:35.080 --> 00:03:36.840 the job done with fewer people. Let's just get the 75 00:03:36.919 --> 00:03:39.400 job done with fewer people. Yes, And all of these 76 00:03:39.479 --> 00:03:42.199 managers last year and this year made their case to 77 00:03:42.240 --> 00:03:44.319 the budget committee. Look, if you take this from us, 78 00:03:44.639 --> 00:03:48.400 then this work won't be done. But somehow they have 79 00:03:48.479 --> 00:03:50.199 to figure out how to do it. It was going 80 00:03:50.240 --> 00:03:53.159 to be harder if the budget were adopted as proposed 81 00:03:53.280 --> 00:03:55.879 by mere Bass, because a lot of positions were on 82 00:03:55.919 --> 00:03:59.599 the chopping block, positions in street services, street cleaning, and 83 00:03:59.639 --> 00:04:02.759 of course the police department. And we learned that when 84 00:04:02.759 --> 00:04:05.000 you say there are four hundred jobs to be cut 85 00:04:05.039 --> 00:04:08.599 from the police department, not officers, just jobs, that there 86 00:04:08.639 --> 00:04:13.080 are jobs related to the process of justice that are 87 00:04:13.159 --> 00:04:15.919 not necessarily done by somebody wearing a badge. And so 88 00:04:16.079 --> 00:04:18.079 that got a lot of attention, not just from the 89 00:04:18.120 --> 00:04:21.240 public but from the people on the budget committee. There 90 00:04:21.240 --> 00:04:23.959 were about four hundred layoffs expected there. They think they've 91 00:04:24.000 --> 00:04:26.160 saved about one hundred one hundred and fifty of those. 92 00:04:26.199 --> 00:04:30.680 These are photographers, people who process evidence. They play significant roles, 93 00:04:30.959 --> 00:04:33.560 but they have asked the police department in this budget 94 00:04:33.600 --> 00:04:37.639 report to slow down their hiring. One of the big 95 00:04:37.680 --> 00:04:42.879 issues also has been homelessness and spending on homelessness. Do 96 00:04:43.720 --> 00:04:46.560 they address those issues at all a little bit. They 97 00:04:46.600 --> 00:04:49.160 are not going to grant Mayor Bass as much money 98 00:04:49.199 --> 00:04:52.480 as she would like to have for her inside Safe program. 99 00:04:52.680 --> 00:04:56.759 Mayribas also proposed a thirty six million dollar program that 100 00:04:56.839 --> 00:05:00.160 would be new within the fire department to have some 101 00:05:00.199 --> 00:05:03.399 of that first interaction with homeless people to be housed 102 00:05:03.519 --> 00:05:06.439 in that fire department. It was thirty six and a 103 00:05:06.480 --> 00:05:10.639 half million dollars, So the Budget Committee's report takes that away. 104 00:05:11.040 --> 00:05:14.360 One other pieces, they are calling for more oversight of 105 00:05:14.399 --> 00:05:17.160 the homeless spending in this budget. Recall that it wasn't 106 00:05:17.160 --> 00:05:19.759 that long ago that we all kind of learned there's 107 00:05:19.800 --> 00:05:22.920 no point person at Los Angeles City Hall keeping tabs 108 00:05:22.920 --> 00:05:25.360 on these dollars. We learned it through a federal court hearing, 109 00:05:25.399 --> 00:05:27.120 and then we learned it through conversations out in the 110 00:05:27.160 --> 00:05:29.839 open during city council meetings that there's a lot of 111 00:05:29.879 --> 00:05:33.000 money exiting that building and nobody keeping tabs of the receipts. 112 00:05:33.959 --> 00:05:37.639 You have another segment in you can you stick around? 113 00:05:37.680 --> 00:05:39.759 I'd love to you know, I'm Debora Mark today too, 114 00:05:39.800 --> 00:05:40.920 So at ten thirty, it's a lot. 115 00:05:41.000 --> 00:05:44.319 Manny's got to relieve me. I'll tell you what you 116 00:05:44.399 --> 00:05:45.120 relieve Heather. 117 00:05:45.680 --> 00:05:47.920 But we'll do the next segment in the other room, 118 00:05:48.040 --> 00:05:50.519 because these are just going to be general, random questions. 119 00:05:50.560 --> 00:05:54.439 Absolutely about Michael Monks, specifically about city Hall, but we'll 120 00:05:54.480 --> 00:05:55.279 talk about that we come back. 121 00:05:55.279 --> 00:05:58.959 We'd love that you're listening to Gary and Shannon on 122 00:05:59.040 --> 00:06:01.480 demand from six forty. 123 00:06:02.639 --> 00:06:05.759 Michael Monks has joined us and we're talking about what's 124 00:06:05.800 --> 00:06:08.920 going on in terms of the La City budget. Karen 125 00:06:09.000 --> 00:06:11.560 Bass has made her proposal, and now that the five 126 00:06:12.240 --> 00:06:15.120 five member Budget and Finance Committee has reviewed the proposal 127 00:06:15.639 --> 00:06:20.079 and made some additions and subtractions to it, we're getting 128 00:06:20.120 --> 00:06:22.600 a better idea. One of the things Michael you mentioned 129 00:06:22.759 --> 00:06:25.480 was the proposal calls for a reduction in this sworn 130 00:06:25.759 --> 00:06:28.759 hiring in the La Police Department at two hundred and 131 00:06:28.800 --> 00:06:30.519 forty recruits in six classes. 132 00:06:33.160 --> 00:06:34.759 We talked about this off the air. 133 00:06:34.839 --> 00:06:37.839 There's been a problem in the last several years simply 134 00:06:37.879 --> 00:06:41.480 recruiting people to work in the LA Police Department. That's 135 00:06:41.480 --> 00:06:44.480 sort of the natural occurrence based on current events and 136 00:06:44.480 --> 00:06:48.240 that sort of thing. And now there artificially reducing the 137 00:06:48.319 --> 00:06:51.839 number of sworn officers that they're looking for because of 138 00:06:51.879 --> 00:06:54.399 the budget problems. That's right, and the police Department's not 139 00:06:54.480 --> 00:06:57.759 necessarily happy about this. They are funded each year the 140 00:06:57.879 --> 00:07:01.079 highest funding any department receives. It's a big department and 141 00:07:01.120 --> 00:07:04.240 takes a lot of resources and it's very expensive. But 142 00:07:04.319 --> 00:07:06.600 in all of these years that you have heard chiefs 143 00:07:06.600 --> 00:07:09.720 even come on our air or speak publicly somewhere else 144 00:07:10.000 --> 00:07:12.800 and say we can't fill our ranks to the numbers 145 00:07:12.839 --> 00:07:15.800 that we want, it doesn't mean that they haven't received 146 00:07:15.839 --> 00:07:16.560 the money to do so. 147 00:07:16.680 --> 00:07:17.199 They have. 148 00:07:17.480 --> 00:07:20.639 This is the first year where some members of city Council, 149 00:07:20.720 --> 00:07:24.000 namely the Budget Committee, says, why don't we just deliberately 150 00:07:24.040 --> 00:07:27.560 slow down hiring. I mean, you're not filling these positions anyway, 151 00:07:27.680 --> 00:07:30.720 and we can reallocate some of those resources elsewhere to 152 00:07:31.000 --> 00:07:35.720 save jobs that also directly interface with the public. One 153 00:07:35.759 --> 00:07:37.759 of the other issues that Karen Bass brought up in 154 00:07:37.800 --> 00:07:39.920 her original proposal was that she was going to take 155 00:07:39.959 --> 00:07:43.360 a pay cut, or at least not the scheduled race. 156 00:07:44.480 --> 00:07:46.879 We haven't heard a whole lot else about that or 157 00:07:46.920 --> 00:07:49.720 what that means. Here's what happens. The Budget Committee does 158 00:07:49.759 --> 00:07:52.079 its thing for two weeks and then they come out 159 00:07:52.120 --> 00:07:55.800 with their report. This is our final revision to the budget. 160 00:07:55.800 --> 00:07:59.160 They did that last Friday. Tomorrow at La City Hall, 161 00:07:59.199 --> 00:08:01.839 the full City Counsel will get their hands on this, 162 00:08:01.920 --> 00:08:04.639 and that might be where you hear things about salaries 163 00:08:04.680 --> 00:08:06.079 for elected officials. 164 00:08:06.279 --> 00:08:07.800 It's also the last time that. 165 00:08:07.800 --> 00:08:11.759 The public can really weigh in before significant decisions are 166 00:08:11.800 --> 00:08:14.800 made about this thing. The fiscal year starts July one, 167 00:08:14.959 --> 00:08:19.040 but the only item on tomorrow's agenda is this. Where 168 00:08:19.040 --> 00:08:23.240 do we stand With Karen Vass's ask of Gavin Newsom 169 00:08:23.319 --> 00:08:25.199 for the state to pick up some of this. It 170 00:08:25.240 --> 00:08:30.000 looks like we're progressing without that happening, and the La 171 00:08:30.079 --> 00:08:32.919 Times reported yesterday that Governor Newsom was basically like, that's 172 00:08:32.919 --> 00:08:34.679 not happening. I mean, the state is in its own 173 00:08:34.720 --> 00:08:38.120 financial conundrum. They've got a twelve billion dollar budget shortfall. 174 00:08:38.279 --> 00:08:42.080 Gavin Newsom has his own headaches related to finances. And 175 00:08:42.120 --> 00:08:44.559 then what kind of standard would you set, especially in 176 00:08:44.639 --> 00:08:47.240 lean financial times, for the state government if you bail 177 00:08:47.279 --> 00:08:50.759 out Los Angeles. What happens when Oakland, San Francisco, San Diego, 178 00:08:50.840 --> 00:08:53.360 the rest of them have significant problems like this too, 179 00:08:53.399 --> 00:08:56.840 and by the way, they do in general ten thousand 180 00:08:56.960 --> 00:09:01.360 maybe twenty thousand foot level. What's the power dynamic in 181 00:09:01.600 --> 00:09:05.159 LA in terms of the way the city charter allocates 182 00:09:05.200 --> 00:09:08.320 power to the mayor versus the city council, et cetera. 183 00:09:08.399 --> 00:09:10.679 And how does that compare to other other big cities. 184 00:09:11.000 --> 00:09:14.919 A lot of cities are different. There are many ways 185 00:09:15.000 --> 00:09:18.120 to cook a city government. And the mayor does have 186 00:09:18.240 --> 00:09:21.039 some executive authority in Los Angeles, but much of the 187 00:09:21.120 --> 00:09:24.399 power really lies with the city council here, and that 188 00:09:24.559 --> 00:09:26.679 is true in a lot of big cities, but not 189 00:09:26.919 --> 00:09:30.039 all of them. So you know, where I come from, 190 00:09:30.159 --> 00:09:33.080 a little place called northern Kentucky, you might have a 191 00:09:33.159 --> 00:09:37.320 mayor who sits on a board with commissioners, yet they 192 00:09:37.320 --> 00:09:39.559 all have the same amount of power. It's just that 193 00:09:39.600 --> 00:09:41.559 the mayor might get a longer term, or the mayor 194 00:09:41.639 --> 00:09:44.600 might be the guy who signs certain documents to make 195 00:09:44.600 --> 00:09:48.559 them legal, and or the mayor is the grandson of 196 00:09:48.679 --> 00:09:51.799 the guy who founded the town. You've been there, I 197 00:09:51.840 --> 00:09:55.440 see you visited. Say hello to my mom next time 198 00:09:55.480 --> 00:10:00.200 you're in town. Oh, trust me, bear in mind. Sorry, sorry, no, 199 00:10:00.240 --> 00:10:04.039 it's all right, go for it. I would call you stepdaddy, absolutely, 200 00:10:04.519 --> 00:10:06.840 stepdad or stepdaddy, whatever you like. 201 00:10:07.000 --> 00:10:09.120 Okay, what's happening here? Move on? Yeah, all right. 202 00:10:09.200 --> 00:10:13.360 Anyway, across the river from Covington where I'm from, in Kentucky, Cincinnati, 203 00:10:13.759 --> 00:10:16.000 and just about fifteen years ago, they decided the mayor 204 00:10:16.000 --> 00:10:18.720 needed more power, so they created a directly elected mary. 205 00:10:18.759 --> 00:10:21.600 I mean basically, that's to say, all over the country 206 00:10:21.639 --> 00:10:24.039 people are figuring out what the dynamics are. But it 207 00:10:24.080 --> 00:10:27.080 does seem that the legislative body at the municipal level 208 00:10:27.320 --> 00:10:30.120 does wield a lot of power. Now, the mayor is 209 00:10:30.159 --> 00:10:32.480 the one who presented this budget, and the council is 210 00:10:32.480 --> 00:10:34.759 the one that dices it up and adopts it. But 211 00:10:34.799 --> 00:10:36.600 we will have to see what the mayor has to 212 00:10:36.639 --> 00:10:39.879 say about these revisions. Yeah, and the reason I ask 213 00:10:40.039 --> 00:10:43.799 is because of the person herself of Karen Bass herself, 214 00:10:43.840 --> 00:10:46.000 because of the time she spent in Congress, because of 215 00:10:46.039 --> 00:10:48.600 the time she spent in the state legislature. I'm just 216 00:10:49.480 --> 00:10:51.960 I'd be curious to have a conversation with her about 217 00:10:52.360 --> 00:10:55.200 how much power she feels she actually has for the 218 00:10:55.240 --> 00:10:58.759 city compared to those other positions that she's held in government. 219 00:10:58.879 --> 00:11:02.159 I think she's been wounded by the fires, undoubtedly, public 220 00:11:02.200 --> 00:11:06.120 opinion polls indicate that that is true, But at city 221 00:11:06.159 --> 00:11:09.799 Hall she appears to still be quite influential. I think 222 00:11:09.840 --> 00:11:11.879 we can point to the firing of former fire chief 223 00:11:11.960 --> 00:11:15.240 Kristen Crowley that went her way, the Mayor's way, exactly 224 00:11:15.279 --> 00:11:17.960 the way that she wanted, with very few falling out 225 00:11:18.000 --> 00:11:22.080 of line. Council President Marquise Harris Dawson is a disciple 226 00:11:22.320 --> 00:11:25.240 of Karen Bass, ran the same community based organization that 227 00:11:25.320 --> 00:11:28.960 she did before she went into elected office, and even 228 00:11:29.039 --> 00:11:33.200 some of the farther maybe democratic, Socialist, progressive members of 229 00:11:33.279 --> 00:11:37.200 council still seem to be very strongly in Mayor Bass's camp. 230 00:11:37.279 --> 00:11:41.639 Despite her strong position on wanting more police officers, they 231 00:11:41.679 --> 00:11:44.399 seem to be pretty well aligned too. So if it 232 00:11:44.480 --> 00:11:47.559 were a different person with the dynamics change, could they 233 00:11:47.639 --> 00:11:51.279 change possibly, but right now, even though her popularity may 234 00:11:51.279 --> 00:11:54.559 be fading among the electorate, she seems to still have 235 00:11:54.600 --> 00:11:56.159 a lot of influence at city council. 236 00:11:56.440 --> 00:11:58.279 All right, thank you for that, my pleasure. 237 00:11:58.320 --> 00:12:01.039 Michael Monks from Campfine News'll hear more of him today. 238 00:12:01.679 --> 00:12:04.080 We will talk next segment about what's going on in 239 00:12:04.120 --> 00:12:07.200 the investigation into the explosion in Palm Springs. 240 00:12:07.240 --> 00:12:09.399 Conway did a lot on this yesterday. 241 00:12:09.440 --> 00:12:14.559 It was pretty fascinating because the biggest question that investigators, FBI, 242 00:12:15.240 --> 00:12:19.080 Palm Springs, PD, everybody's going to have is where did 243 00:12:19.080 --> 00:12:21.840 the explosives come from? We know that the twenty five 244 00:12:21.960 --> 00:12:25.279 year old kid, I say kid, twenty five year old 245 00:12:25.279 --> 00:12:28.919 guy blew himself up when he attacked that fertility clinic, 246 00:12:29.559 --> 00:12:34.960 had shown some excitement towards explosives for his entire life. 247 00:12:35.519 --> 00:12:39.120 But this goes beyond just model rocketry and lighten things 248 00:12:39.120 --> 00:12:42.440 on fire with matches. So where did he get these explosives? 249 00:12:42.519 --> 00:12:45.480 And we'll talk about that and the next few steps 250 00:12:45.480 --> 00:12:46.960 in that investigation we come back. 251 00:12:48.159 --> 00:12:51.639 You're listening to Gary and Shannon on demand from KFI 252 00:12:51.879 --> 00:12:53.039 AM six forty. 253 00:12:53.000 --> 00:12:58.559 Saturday's explosion outside that fertility clinic in Palm springs was 254 00:12:58.799 --> 00:13:01.480 perpetrated by a a twenty five year old guy that 255 00:13:01.600 --> 00:13:05.639 was known as a rocket hobbyist. We told you that 256 00:13:05.679 --> 00:13:11.759 he had some very strange nihilistic views. This anti life 257 00:13:11.799 --> 00:13:16.960 philosophy and readdit as a side note, has banned the 258 00:13:16.960 --> 00:13:22.279 community that was devoted to people like this guy. Yesterday, 259 00:13:22.440 --> 00:13:25.200 a spokesperson for Reddit confirmed to NBC that they had 260 00:13:25.240 --> 00:13:33.879 banned the efilism e filismism the subreddit after the explosion. 261 00:13:34.639 --> 00:13:38.480 Reddit said that they banned that community specifically because they 262 00:13:38.519 --> 00:13:43.039 have rules on Reddit that prohibit somebody from promoting self harm. 263 00:13:43.360 --> 00:13:48.720 And again, these nihilist anti lifers believe that the most 264 00:13:48.879 --> 00:13:54.039 altruistic thing to do is kill yourself so that you 265 00:13:54.120 --> 00:14:00.519 don't tax the rest of society. Why they're people that 266 00:14:01.039 --> 00:14:03.600 believe that and then write about it doesn't make sense 267 00:14:03.639 --> 00:14:07.039 because I would have thought that, well, they would have 268 00:14:07.159 --> 00:14:07.519 killed them. 269 00:14:07.679 --> 00:14:09.360 Again, it's a weird I don't get it. 270 00:14:10.120 --> 00:14:14.200 The FBI now has to figure out where this guy 271 00:14:14.600 --> 00:14:21.120 got this extraordinary amount of high range explosives, and the 272 00:14:21.200 --> 00:14:25.360 FBI says, based on their preliminary investigation, that these were 273 00:14:25.559 --> 00:14:30.320 used with precision. This guy knew what he was doing, 274 00:14:30.480 --> 00:14:34.399 at least at least in their early investigation. We know 275 00:14:34.480 --> 00:14:37.039 that he lived in twenty nine Palms, farther out in 276 00:14:37.039 --> 00:14:39.120 the desert, about an hour away from where the explosion 277 00:14:39.120 --> 00:14:41.679 took place. In twenty nine Palms is the home of 278 00:14:41.799 --> 00:14:45.240 the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center. It's the largest 279 00:14:45.240 --> 00:14:48.639 Marine training base in the world, and yes, they have 280 00:14:48.799 --> 00:14:51.720 explosives there, but it's not like you can walk on 281 00:14:52.679 --> 00:14:57.480 to a Marine Corps combat center and walk out with 282 00:14:57.639 --> 00:15:01.639 boxes of explosives. So how did this guy Not that 283 00:15:01.639 --> 00:15:04.159 that's where he got him from, but how did this 284 00:15:04.200 --> 00:15:09.200 guy get the explosives? Is there a possibility, sure, but 285 00:15:09.759 --> 00:15:13.279 there is no affiliation that this guy has with the 286 00:15:13.320 --> 00:15:19.240 Marine Corps. In twenty twenty one, there was a small 287 00:15:19.799 --> 00:15:25.120 about a small amount ten pounds of plastic explosives that 288 00:15:25.480 --> 00:15:29.200 was missing from twenty nine Palms during a training exercise. 289 00:15:29.840 --> 00:15:33.600 At the time, it was suspected to have been stolen. 290 00:15:34.120 --> 00:15:36.799 The military says they did recover it, but they haven't 291 00:15:36.799 --> 00:15:41.080 explained much of the details In all of that, a 292 00:15:41.080 --> 00:15:48.039 former bomb expert with ATF says that this guy's proximity 293 00:15:48.519 --> 00:15:52.480 to twenty nine Palms to the Marine Corps base is 294 00:15:52.759 --> 00:15:55.039 clearly something that they would have to look into. That's 295 00:15:55.039 --> 00:16:01.080 an obvious line of investigation, and they will interview people 296 00:16:01.360 --> 00:16:04.440 that this guy may have corresponded with on social networks, 297 00:16:04.480 --> 00:16:06.559 whether it was Reddit or any other way that he 298 00:16:06.639 --> 00:16:09.080 was talking to people, and focus on somebody who may 299 00:16:09.200 --> 00:16:12.919 or may not have had security clearance that would have 300 00:16:13.000 --> 00:16:15.879 provided access to explosives. Again, they're not saying that that's 301 00:16:15.919 --> 00:16:19.679 where it came from, but you I want them to 302 00:16:19.759 --> 00:16:20.639 track that down. 303 00:16:21.840 --> 00:16:26.000 You can also you can also use. 304 00:16:27.559 --> 00:16:32.120 Other materials from nearby training facilities, military training facilities and 305 00:16:32.159 --> 00:16:36.759 firing ranges to make larger explosives. And in fact that 306 00:16:36.840 --> 00:16:39.639 former bomb expert Scott sweet Howe told the La Times 307 00:16:39.639 --> 00:16:42.080 that he worked a similar case in the early in 308 00:16:42.120 --> 00:16:44.720 his career with the ATF in which a guy was 309 00:16:44.799 --> 00:16:49.679 building pipe bombs from spent ammunition and was using them 310 00:16:49.799 --> 00:16:55.320 in attacks here in southern California, but also as far 311 00:16:55.600 --> 00:16:59.279 east as Chicago. You can buy a lot of the 312 00:16:59.320 --> 00:17:03.000 chemicals used to make explosives online, and again that's part 313 00:17:03.039 --> 00:17:07.720 of the inquiry is was this guy compiling smaller amounts 314 00:17:07.799 --> 00:17:10.880 of these materials. If you buy some of this stuff 315 00:17:10.920 --> 00:17:14.119 into large of an amount right in one fell swoop, 316 00:17:14.519 --> 00:17:18.839 it raises red flags and the government, the ATF they'll 317 00:17:18.960 --> 00:17:21.599 they'll you know, they'll drop a dime. They'll do a 318 00:17:21.599 --> 00:17:23.480 little quick door knock to see if you're going to 319 00:17:23.519 --> 00:17:27.160 blow things up or if you had a legitimate reason 320 00:17:27.200 --> 00:17:30.880 for buying it. As we saw though in the Oklahoma 321 00:17:30.960 --> 00:17:35.519 City bombing, there are some very common chemicals that can 322 00:17:35.559 --> 00:17:41.759 be used to make very very powerful bombs. One major 323 00:17:41.880 --> 00:17:47.759 vendor of these kinds of chemicals warns customers that federal 324 00:17:47.839 --> 00:17:52.200 regulations require them to go through all the orders for 325 00:17:52.279 --> 00:17:55.480 the possible use in constructing m ads or other illegal 326 00:17:55.519 --> 00:17:59.119 exploding fireworks. And obviously that's the more common version of it. 327 00:17:59.240 --> 00:18:02.839 Someone wants to make a small explosion, not blow up 328 00:18:02.880 --> 00:18:05.720 their car and try to take other lives with them. Now, 329 00:18:05.920 --> 00:18:08.440 if this guy, if there's twenty five year old suspects 330 00:18:08.480 --> 00:18:12.519 in the bombing and Palm springs, was researching or was 331 00:18:12.640 --> 00:18:15.720 buying these bomb making materials without trying to cover his tracks, 332 00:18:17.799 --> 00:18:23.200 it's pretty funny, because this former bomb expert says, you 333 00:18:23.279 --> 00:18:26.319 and I would be pretty disappointed or surprised to know 334 00:18:26.519 --> 00:18:31.200 there is no all encompassing AI program. There's no algorithm, 335 00:18:31.240 --> 00:18:34.200 there's no software that the government has used to screen 336 00:18:34.240 --> 00:18:39.119 their search histories. That seems like it's a pretty I 337 00:18:39.160 --> 00:18:43.759 wouldn't say easy fix, but something that to atf ATFE, 338 00:18:44.000 --> 00:18:46.759 now that they include explosives, would want to get on. 339 00:18:46.960 --> 00:18:50.799 It seems like the images from that explosion in Palm 340 00:18:50.799 --> 00:18:53.960 Springs appear to be focused, they said, in one direction, 341 00:18:54.319 --> 00:18:59.079 and that's why the current thinking from the FBI is 342 00:18:59.400 --> 00:19:02.759 this guy knew what he was doing. It was specifically 343 00:19:02.799 --> 00:19:08.839 a targeted directional explosion intended to cause maximum damage to 344 00:19:08.920 --> 00:19:13.160 that fertility clinic. They're still trying to figure out whether 345 00:19:13.359 --> 00:19:16.359 he was inside the car or outside the car at 346 00:19:16.400 --> 00:19:19.000 the time of the explosion. I mean, if you've seen 347 00:19:19.039 --> 00:19:22.519 the images, he's clearly out of the car obviously when 348 00:19:22.559 --> 00:19:25.839 the thing blows up after it blew up. But they 349 00:19:25.880 --> 00:19:28.480 also said that he may have tried to live stream 350 00:19:28.559 --> 00:19:31.759 all of this and failed to do so. As far 351 00:19:31.839 --> 00:19:36.119 as what they believe, so it is, it's still an 352 00:19:36.119 --> 00:19:38.680 ongoing investigation. It's going to be some time before we 353 00:19:38.759 --> 00:19:42.799 figure out what exactly drove this guy. Outside of mental 354 00:19:42.839 --> 00:19:48.559 health instability, shall we say so, speaking of, there is 355 00:19:48.640 --> 00:19:55.559 a natural explosion that could possibly be awaiting us. Right 356 00:19:55.599 --> 00:19:59.480 off the coast to California. A mysterious and very highly 357 00:19:59.519 --> 00:20:04.640 active volcano right under the ocean. We'll explain where that 358 00:20:04.759 --> 00:20:07.359 is and why we need to be careful of it, 359 00:20:07.400 --> 00:20:09.640 even though it's about seven hundred miles off the coast 360 00:20:09.680 --> 00:20:10.920 of San Francisco. 361 00:20:11.680 --> 00:20:15.119 You're listening to Gary and Shannon on demand from KFI 362 00:20:15.359 --> 00:20:16.240 AM six forty. 363 00:20:16.319 --> 00:20:20.079 There's one specific congressman and Michael Monks. I think it's 364 00:20:20.119 --> 00:20:23.559 a congressman from your state, from your home state of Kentucky, 365 00:20:23.599 --> 00:20:27.000 that the Donald Trump is not happy with. James Comer. Wrong, 366 00:20:27.160 --> 00:20:31.039 Thomas Massey, you got, that's my congressman, my old one. 367 00:20:31.079 --> 00:20:34.680 Thomas Massey is he don't give two corny turds what 368 00:20:34.720 --> 00:20:39.359 Donald Trump says. But we'll explain what the deal is 369 00:20:39.359 --> 00:20:42.720 between those two guys. Federal health officials are no longer 370 00:20:42.759 --> 00:20:46.480 going to routinely approve annual COVID shots for younger people 371 00:20:46.519 --> 00:20:49.240 and kids who are healthy. Companies that want to market 372 00:20:49.240 --> 00:20:51.839 their vaccines are going to need to conduct very large 373 00:20:52.039 --> 00:20:54.799 new studies. According to the FDA, This is a huge 374 00:20:54.960 --> 00:20:58.599 change in the FDA's approach to updating these vaccines. The 375 00:20:58.680 --> 00:21:02.240 FDDA said today that annual COVID shots will still be 376 00:21:02.359 --> 00:21:07.720 regularly approved for seniors and for younger people who might 377 00:21:07.759 --> 00:21:09.079 have increased. 378 00:21:08.640 --> 00:21:10.839 Health risks from the virus. 379 00:21:11.079 --> 00:21:14.400 Mortgage rates actually up over seven percent yesterday at one point. 380 00:21:14.400 --> 00:21:17.720 They're at six point nine to nine percent as of 381 00:21:17.799 --> 00:21:20.640 right now. And then the story, of course of Joe 382 00:21:20.640 --> 00:21:25.720 Biden and his prostday cancer diagnosis made the headlines yesterday. 383 00:21:25.799 --> 00:21:31.559 Not as headline e was that Scott Adams, the creator 384 00:21:31.680 --> 00:21:35.039 of the Dilbert comic strip, revealed that he has also 385 00:21:35.079 --> 00:21:40.079 been diagnosed with prostate cancer, but said in a very 386 00:21:40.440 --> 00:21:43.720 heartrending post that he does not have long to live. 387 00:21:44.079 --> 00:21:48.319 Put a live stream up yesterday. Scott Adams is sixty seven. 388 00:21:48.599 --> 00:21:50.640 He said that he has also been diagnosed with prostate 389 00:21:50.720 --> 00:21:53.599 cancer that has spread to the bone. He said my 390 00:21:53.640 --> 00:21:58.240 life expectancy is maybe this summer, and went on to 391 00:21:58.279 --> 00:22:00.720 say I expect to be checking out from this domain 392 00:22:01.359 --> 00:22:03.759 sometime sometime this summer. 393 00:22:04.920 --> 00:22:05.960 A couple of talkbacks to. 394 00:22:05.960 --> 00:22:08.599 Get to Hey, Gary, just returned back from a week 395 00:22:08.680 --> 00:22:11.680 trip in Tennessee. We attended our daughter's graduation from the 396 00:22:11.759 --> 00:22:14.519 University of Tennessee. I just wanted to say thank you 397 00:22:14.559 --> 00:22:17.160 though for the hot tip at the Salt and Pepper 398 00:22:17.240 --> 00:22:21.640 Museum in Gatlinburg. We spent today there visiting whiskey tasting, 399 00:22:21.720 --> 00:22:24.079 but we definitely stopped at the Salt and Pepper Museum. 400 00:22:24.200 --> 00:22:26.680 It is truly a sight to be seen, and you 401 00:22:26.680 --> 00:22:29.559