September 8, 2023 • 41 mins
SEASON 2 EPISODE 30: COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN
A-Block (1:44) SPECIAL COMMENT: It's BACK. Asked at his disbarment hearing in California about his December 2020 email to Boris Epshteyn referring to Mike Pence OR CHUCK GRASSLEY presiding over the January 6 Electoral College Vote count and certification, John Eastman said he couldn't answer because of attorney-client privilege. Asked WHICH client, he answered "President Trump."
And so it reignites. It is the Dracula of January 6 Coup Conspiracy threads. Each time it seems like it's been discredited, something like this arises. Now it's Eastman reigniting the belief that his email, and Grassley's bizarre statements on January 5 that they didn't expect Pence to preside, and Pence's refusal to get into the Secret Service vehicle during the coup, are all connected. And Grassley once again has changed his story.
I'll review the whole saga and I'll predict: if somebody breaks John Eastman, they'll get the truth. So let's break him!
Might be Fani Willis. She has now replied to Jim Jordan's fishing expedition with everything this side of an indictment of Jordan. The highlights are wonderful. Then there's Peter Navarro's conviction and the reappearance of Sign Woman to torture the pint-sized fascist. Roger Stone reveals he has no idea what would happen during a nuclear war. A self-identifying Air Force vet confronts Ron DeSantis about the Dollar Store slaughter and Ron and his aide and his dubious Surgeon General overreact so much it's clear they know the mass shooting was DeSantis's fault.
And we have to strip Elon Musk of his security clearance and all government contracts; a Russian propagandist goaded him into shutting off the satellite phone system he gave the Ukrainians when Ukraine needed it the most. Musk feared it would precipitate a "Mini-Pearl Harbor." Or, did he say "Minnie Pearl Harbor?" And that new CNN poll that's so dire for President Biden? Small detail. They polled 900 Republicans and only 600 non-Republicans.
B-Block (25:40) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: Mike Buckner, explorer, who says tomorrow he will prove the earth is flat and what we think is the horizon of a globe is actually "The Great Ice Wall." CNN Politics thinks I'm-All-Ears Tuberville doing China's bidding by hamstringing the US military is a "Dispute between Tuberville and Democrats." And disgraced Conservative Steven Crowder takes out an ad offering a laugh and based on the allegations he repeatedly exposed himself to men, I think we know what the laugh is.
C-Block (31:00) THINGS I PROMISED NOT TO TELL: Ever heard one of those stories of the guy who happens to run into the automobile manufacturer early in the 20th Century? And the businessman is just merging together a bunch of small firms and he needs a name for the new big one and the stranger says "How about General Motors?" The story is true - and it's about my great grandfather.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Countdown with Keith Olderman is a production of iHeartRadio two years,
eight months and two days after the fact, and more
(00:26):
circumstantial evidence now that Chuck Grassley really was being positioned
to preside over the electoral College count on January sixth,
and presumably he would have helped to steal the election
from Biden for Trump, and we would have been looking
for Pence next to Jimmy Hoffa bear with me on
the voice Yay steroids. Every single time, every single time,
(00:52):
this idea is thoroughly dismissed that there was some kind
of scheme afoot to make sure Mike Pence did not
make it to the joint session of the House and
the Senate for the electoral College certification on Jay six
Every single time it is dismissed, and god knows, I've
been one of the ones who dismissed it. Something new
pops up and it's weird and it's conspiratorial, and it
(01:16):
doesn't add up. And now it comes out of the
mouth of the weirdest, most conspiratorial figure who doesn't add
up in the entire Trump coup plot, John Efing Eastman.
This fake elector's mastermind is being disbarred in California. Hasn't
(01:37):
happened yet, but it will. And in cross examination by
the lawyer for the state board, Eastman was asked about
his December twenty three, twenty twenty, email to Boris Epstein,
in which he hoped nobody in Congress would do anything
to quote constrain Pence or Grassly from asserting the power
to block Biden's election. And Eastman replied to the question
(02:00):
on the stand attorney client privilege, and he said he
couldn't talk about it. And when the lawyer asked which client,
Eastman answered, quote President Trump. Oh, so here we go again.
The vampire of coup elements simply will not stay dead.
(02:22):
The Huffington Post caught up with Grassley yesterday. It's not
exactly a challenge. He'll be ninety in nine days and
asked Grassley again, what the f we were talking about
presiding over the Senate. He responded, well, I had the
look of a man who was thinking about hitting deer
with his car. But a lot of people get that
mixed up with some idea that I was going to
(02:44):
preside over the joint session, And you know that's not
what I ever intended to do. Unquote cool. This is
completely different than what Chuck Grassley and then his staff
said in real time. On January fifth, twenty twenty one.
Grassley said, quote, well, first of all, I will be
(03:05):
if the Vice President isn't there and we don't expect
him to be there, I will be presiding over. The
Senate staff rushed to correct him, saying that was a misinterpretation.
He was only talking about filling in for Pence when
Pence took a bathroom break. Of course the bathroom would
(03:25):
have been over the Mexican border somewhere. Anyway. This is
also not what Grassley said to the investigative reporter Lauren
Windsor a year ago this month.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
All I can point you to is the Constitution, and
the Constitution says that you open up the votes and count.
The only time that you that you would intervene in
that is if there's two slates coming from the same state.
So there was none of the fifty states not sent
(03:58):
in two slates. There was only one.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
So if you had those two slates, you would have
been able to stop the election.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
We wouldn't have been able to stop the election. We
would have been able to choose between this one or
that one.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
So we just were one slate away from having President Trumps,
is what you're saying. One slate away, said we needed
to slates slates from two.
Speaker 2 (04:26):
States, you would have to have two slates from one state.
You'd have to have a dispute in that state.
Speaker 1 (04:36):
So no, Grassley wasn't going to preside over the Senate
and thus preside over the joint session of the Senate
in the House during the electoral vote count because Pence
was indisposed in a rocket ship to the sun or something,
and they couldn't have been able to make Trump president
(04:57):
instead of Biden on January six because there weren't two
slates of electors from each state on January sixth, even
though the entire point of the insurrection outside the Capitol
and inside the Capitol on the afternoon of January sixth,
and the whole point of the one hundred and forty
seven Republicans who voted to not certify the electoral College
vote for Biden that night was to delay the certification
(05:20):
so that alternate sites of electors could show up from
Georgia and Michigan and Arizona and Pennsylvania, where Jack Smith's
grand jury is investigating invoices invoices that have turned up
that showed that Sidney Powell hired forensic computer firms to
(05:41):
infiltrate voting machines in Georgia and Michigan and Arizona and Pennsylvania.
And now what Jack Smith's grand jury is looking at
is whether or not she used Trump political donations to
pay for those forensic computer firms. No big deal, go
(06:03):
back to sleep. Just a potential ground zero for the
coup involving the President pro temporary of the Senate and
the Vice President who wouldn't get in the car with
the Secret Service, and a Trump lawyer writing an email
two weeks earlier talking about Grassly maybe instead of Pence
presiding over the vote count. But no, no, Now the
(06:25):
lawyer can't talk about that email because it's protected by
attorney client, pretty much as the client is Trump. I
don't know what the truth is here. I only know
we don't know what it is, and I am only
guessing this part, but I think it's a damn good guess.
If we can break John Eastman, we will get the truth.
(06:46):
So mister Special Counsel, Madam District Attorney of Fulton County,
please go ahead, Please do break, John Eastman, and do
you get the feeling that Madame District Attorney Fundy Willis
is this close to indicting Jim Jordan for obstruction of justice,
(07:09):
or at least that she would like to be that
close your letter, she writes, in replying to his demand
last month that she turn over all the records of
her investigation and indictment of the Trump nineteen to Jordan
and his committee to what's it called, Oh yeah, the
Committee to Obstruct Justice. Your letter makes clear that you
(07:29):
lack a basic understanding of the law, its practice, and
the ethical obligations of attorneys generally and prosecutors specifically. Unquote,
Well yeah, I thought that was our starting point. Quote
face this reality, Chairman Jordan. The select group of defendants
who you fret over in my jurisdiction are like every
(07:52):
other defendant, entitled to no worse or better treatment than
any other American citizen unquote. Fonnie Willis also writes that
Jordan's letter included quote, inaccurate information and misleading statements. Its
obvious purpose is to obstruct a Georgia criminal proceeding and
to advance outrageous misrepresentations. There is no justification in the
(08:13):
Constitution for Congress to interfere with a state criminal matter,
as you attempt to do unquote. Oh, and then as
Jim Jordan was staggering out of the metaphorical room, willis
need him in the groin quote. If you and your
colleagues follow through on your threats to deny this office
(08:35):
federal funds, please be aware that you will be deciding
to allow serial rapists to go unprosecuted. Well, that's old
hat for Jim Jordan, serial rapists to go unprosecuted, hate
crimes to be unaddressed, and to cancel programs for at
risk children. Such vengeful uncalled for legislative action would impose
(08:58):
serious harm on the citizens we serve, including the fact
that it will make them less safe un quote again,
Madame District Attorney. They're Republicans. That's their job, that's what
they do. Republicans like Peter Navarro pint sized, former advisor
(09:25):
to Trump, who has now been convicted of criminal contempt
of Congress. He defied a subpoena to testify to the
January sixth Committee, and that is well, criminal contempt of Congress.
This isn't a capital crime by any chance. Isn't it. No, sadly,
but Navarro has apparently been sentenced to be humiliated to
(09:46):
death by that same lady with that same Trump lost sign,
and people will not let me speak. This is my
first amendment, right. What I'm going to do now is allow.
Speaker 2 (10:02):
Marsha just saw you, Marcia, I saw you. You're in trouble.
Speaker 1 (10:06):
You're in trouble.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
You just assaulted me.
Speaker 4 (10:08):
That man just assaulted me. He stuck a plack pole
in between my Yeah, there you go.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
Right now, they're calling you, I did it?
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Fred?
Speaker 1 (10:26):
What this public property? I want to press charges.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Let the man talk. Charges. Are interested in hearing the
man go ahead. Some of the go ahead and talk,
man go ahead.
Speaker 1 (10:44):
Saday for America, and that not because not because they
were guilty verdicts, because I can't come out and have him.
Steve Bannon was sentenced to four months in jail for
the same crime he is appealing. Navara will likely get
a similar sentence. It was a Navara and Bannon, of course,
who called their plan to steal the twenty twenty election
from Joe Biden the quote green Bay Suite after a
(11:05):
play made famous by the Green Bay Packers football team
of the nineteen sixties. Neither of them apparently ever noticed
that after the Green Bay sweep stopped working, the Packers
only made the playoffs once in the ensuing fourteen seasons. Meanwhile,
Navarro's gnomish twin, Roger Stone, turns out he isn't dead
yet either. Stone the guy with the head shaped like
(11:27):
an onion, and the two pays so obvious you can
see where it gets stitched into his scalp, the way
the hair was on one of the dolls my sister
had in nineteen seventy and I continue to not really
know for sure if Roger Stone is really this dumb
and crazy, or he just realizes that the Trump cult
(11:48):
is really this dumb and crazy, or if it's both.
Occasionally evidence will bubble up to the top of the
cesspool that is Roger Stone's life that makes me lean
one way or the other. This piece of evidence suggests
he's crazy. Simply put, Roger Stone does not understand nuclear war.
(12:09):
The Biden administration is considering using the War Powers Act
and starting a nuclear war with the Russians in order
to avoid losing the next election. Biden's going to start
a nuclear war to cancel the twenty twenty four election.
See Roger a nuclear war it would cancel a lot
more than just the election. Because I'm sorry, I forgot
(12:33):
who I was talking to here. Roger Stone does not
understand nuclear war, and Roger Stone does not understand you know, death.
It's been a long time since we've gotten to watch
a politician self destructing real time in slow motion. So
(12:54):
enjoy Ron DeSantis while we can, because he seems to
be real close to spontaneously bursting into flame. After the
shooting at the Jacksonville dollar store where the South professed
Nazi mass murderer went to specifically kill black people, DeSantis
was appropriately heckled at a memorial vigil, and now he
has been confronted about his role ginning up racial hatred
(13:17):
in Florida by defending slavery. It's his platform. He's been
confronted about that role at an event at a bar
in Jacksonville by a self identified Air Force veteran, and
Ron lost his spit.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
Murder Rayvon Mark was not the first, the first of all.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
I did not allow anything with that.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Well, listen, excuse me.
Speaker 4 (13:46):
I'm not going to let you accuse me of committing
criminal activity.
Speaker 2 (13:49):
I am not going to take that. I am not
going to take that.
Speaker 4 (13:52):
So you should you want to have a civil conversation,
that's one thing.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
Try to say that I'm letting that guy.
Speaker 4 (13:59):
Was baker after he should have been He should have
been ruled ineligible, but they didn't voluntarily commit him, and
so they were.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
No, No, I don't know.
Speaker 4 (14:09):
No, there is the truth. There is something about the truth.
If not, everyone doesn't have their own truth. No, you
don't get to come here and blame me for some madman.
That is not appropriate and I'm not going to accept.
Speaker 1 (14:25):
The unidentified citizen was then pushed out of the room
by what appeared to be DeSantis henchwoman Christina Pushaw. And
I don't think anybody else on this planet looks like
Christina Peshaw. And after he left Desanta's hacked, State Surgeon
General Joseph Ladoppo, who has told Floridians to trust DeSantis
on COVID quote instead of all these PhDs and mds
(14:47):
forgetting that he himself is an MD. Duppo then told
the crowd that the man quote was obviously crazy, right,
He's completely completely disconnected. He was insane, He was insane,
just totally crazy, and it's not true. It's a total lie.
Quote doctor unquote, Ladappo, so may still be up there
kissing DeSantis's ass for all I know. And a reminder
(15:09):
about DeSantis. Our gun crisis may not be one hundred
percent Republican, but it is like ninety five percent, just
as our democracy crisis may not be one hundred percent Republican,
but it's like ninety five percent. And the other five
percent is Elon Musk. You've already heard this story, no doubt.
(15:31):
It's in My old Boss, Walter Isaacson's new book about Musk.
Walter writes that last year, Musk ordered his engineers in
secret to switch off the Starlink satellite network. He had
made such a big deal about supplying to Ukraine. Now,
why did he do that? To prevent a Ukrainian sneak
submarine drone attack on Russia's naval fleet. Elon hit the
(15:55):
off button and the explosive leaden drones lost guidance and
just harmlessly floated back to shore. Musk was a friend.
If the attack had gone through, it would be viewed
as a quote mini pearl harbor. And let's just discuss
for a second what a mini pearl harbor. Might look
(16:17):
like country and music fans with many Pearl harbor. He
thought it would be viewed as a mini Pearl harbor
according to Walter Isaacson's book, and then the Russians would
respond with nuclear weapons or possibly buck Owens and the
Bukereoos mini pearl harbor. There's a punchline besides many pearl
(16:46):
The noted twitter a liberal NYC Southpaw uncovered a Twitter
exchange from October ninth, twenty twenty two, in which somebody
asks Musk what his plans were for that Sunday, and
Musk answers, I've been up all night trying to think
of any possible way to de escalate this war, which
is when the fascist blogger from Malaysia, Ian miles Chong replies, quote,
(17:09):
might be a good idea to take starlink offline for
the terminals used on the front lines. Could encourage them
to reconsider their position on advancing towards CRIMEA and leading
the world further into the brink of total war. Unquote
guess who? Ian miles Chong works for RT, the Russian
propaganda network. Five days later, sure enough, Ukraine reported widespread
(17:31):
outages in the starlink service this country needs to revoke
any security clearances Musk might have, cancel all government contracts
with him and any Musk firm, particularly military ones, and
if possible, deport him. He is, and this is the
kindest interpretation, he is under the influence of Russia. Lastly,
(18:00):
nothing new out of DC nothing. I got nothing on
these sealed motions between Jack Smith and Trump's lawyers over
what Smith in the only part of this they made
public termed quote the defendant's daily extra judicial statements that
threatened to prejudice the jury pool in this case, what
a sentence. Smith has got to be asking the judge
(18:20):
to do something to Trump for that daily extra judicial
statements that threaten to prejudice the jury pool. What are
we supposed to do? Send him a card of congratulations,
a mini pearl CD. He's got to do something to him,
or he wants something to be done to him, and
(18:41):
maybe Judge Chutkin starts the trial sooner as she threatened
or sanctions Trump or gags Trump. Hopefully literally nothing new
on this, but something new about this. Those blood curdling
headlines yesterday from the CNN Biden poll, three quarters of
Americans concerned about his age including Democrats. There's no clear
(19:01):
leader in Biden versus Trump, or Biden versus dessiatists, or
Biden versus Dim Scott, or Biden versus Pence, or Biden
versus the cyborg Gramaswami, it's a nightmare. It's the end.
It's it's, it's, it's it's.
Speaker 2 (19:12):
I told you.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Once that MSNBC's original plan in two thousand and three
was for a show at eight pm every night called
Countdown with Sam Donaldson. And then they found out that
instead of getting one of America's top journalists in Sam
Donaldson and crying him away from ABC, then they found
out that ABC was desperately trying to get rid of
(19:34):
Sam Donaldson. And they found this out after NBC had
drawn up a contract with Sam Donaldson, and they needed
a way out and fast. And I was sitting there
as Phil Griffin of MSNBC called up the pollster Frank
Lunz and said, Frank, I need a focus group done
tomorrow that shows that nobody would watch Countdown with Sam Donaldson.
(19:54):
And I need another one that says everybody would watch
Countdown with Keith Alderman and Hot Damn. The two focus
groups were on Griffin's desk forty eight hours later, and
six weeks later we launched Countdown with Keith Alderman and
without Sam Donaldson. Ever since that moment, I have known
that polls and focus groups and research and pollsters, they
(20:18):
are the balloon animals of politics twist the many way
you want because they're just made out of hot air.
That Biden shouldn't run. In fact, you should retire, In
fact you should resign, In fact you should change his name.
CNN poll quoting the overview in the back, which is
on page like three hundred ninety seven quote. Surveys were
(20:43):
obtained August twenty five to thirty one, twenty twenty three,
with a representative sample of n equals one thousand, five
hundred and three respondents, including an oversample of Republicans and
Republican leaning independents, to reach a total of eight hundred
and ninety eight Republicans and Republican leading independence unquote. So
(21:09):
you're telling me what here, CNN asked like nine hundred
Republicans but only six hundred non Republicans these questions for
their poll that shows Biden is doing poorly with Democrats
and independents. Did John Eastman take this poll. Where's that
(21:35):
under attorney client privilege? Also, you got over sample here
like junior samples from here, Haull along with many Pearl Harbor,
many Pearl Harbor. Okay, the Predni zone is kicking in,
so I can still do Worse Persons starring Republican podcaster
(21:57):
and Weenie Wagger Stephen Crowder. That's next. This is countdown?
Speaker 2 (22:04):
Is this countdown with Keith Olberman.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
Still a head on countdown? Ever heard the story of
the guy who gives the owner of the new, big
merged automobile company early in the twentieth century a suggestion
for the new name of the company, and he turns
down stock in the new company, And the next thing
you know in the new company is General Motors. That
was my great grandfather. No, I'm not kidding. Plus, Okay,
(22:44):
I think I can get through the daily roundup of
the Misscreens, morons and Dunn Krug effect specimens who constitute
today's worst persons in the world. Let's find out, shall we.
The Bronze Mike Buckner. Mike is an explorer. Maybe what
he surely is is a flat earther. Mike is in
root now for his big trip by Saturday, he will
have reached the ice wall. The ice wall, the ice wall,
(23:10):
come on, the thing that circles Australia and South America
and Hawaii, and it keeps us from reaching Atlantis and
Magellan's Aisles and the walls of Asgard, and gives us
this mistake and believes that the Earth is a globe
rather than the flat terrain that's just north of the
frozen wastes and just each of the scorched wastes. You know,
(23:32):
I will expose the globe myth, Buckner writes, I will
live stream this journey. This will be the biggest event
of all time. Mike's a looney, but he's a happy loony.
He's happy now. I don't know what happens when he
finds out that Atlantis is just a resort in Wisconsin.
Dell's Wisconsin, the runner up CNN Politics. Boy, they had
(23:53):
a bad day yesterday, you know the Tubberville story. Of course,
this idiot with the giant ears is holding up three
hundred military promotions, aiding and abetting the Communists, according to
the Secretary of the Navy, in a political stunt. And
then he has the gall to complain that a board
naval vessels. They're doing poetry, like, what would that matter
to Tommy Tuberville. He can't read and the people who
(24:14):
voted for him can't read you now, CNN Politics headlined
this story how this disloyal, anti American backwards failed football
coach OAF is undercutting the American military. This was their
headline on CNN's website. The escalating feud between Democrats and
Senator Tommy Tuberville over the Alabama Republicans hold on roughly
(24:36):
three hundred military nominees could soon lead to an even
riskier stitution. Really, CNN, the escalating feud is between Tommy
Tuberville and people who like America. An escalating feud between
Democrats and Tubberville ought to be in prison. It's not
a feud. There aren't two sides here. You aren't playing
it straight down the middle. That headline is lending authenticity
(24:58):
to a dickhead, racist, cracker scumbag doing the work of
China from Alabama. Shame you, but our winner someone who
knows no shame disgraced conservative influencer Stephen Crowder, who has
been gradually disappearing from the conservative scene since he was
accused by one group of male employees of exposing himself
(25:19):
to them. Then he was accused by another group of
exposing himself to them. Then he was accused by another
group of sending them pictures of it. Crowder has now
bought an Elon musk ad and this is telling. It
only appeared in like two thousand users feeds in the
first four hours, and it was retweeted a total.
Speaker 2 (25:38):
Of three times. Three times.
Speaker 1 (25:42):
The ad reads quote can't stand liberals need a laugh?
Follow me to heal myself unquote a laugh, Crowder, You
mean you're gonna expose you're junk again, Stephen and hand
out magnifying glasses. Crowder two days worst person, I can't
(26:03):
do the high end of this worst person in the world,
to the top of the countdown and the number one
(26:23):
story in my favorite topic, me and what is some
much needed comic relief today. I think though my late
father would never have agreed with that statement, not at all.
My great grandfather told this story something like every day
until he died. It was legendary in the family. There
is considerable circumstantial evidence that it is all true, and
(26:46):
the last possible date that it could have happened was
one hundred and fourteen years ago last Friday, September sixteenth,
nineteen oh eight. Anthony Zelinski was born in Crackoff in
Poland in eighteen sixty eight. My sister just found some
evidence that he changed the way his name was spelled,
that it was originally Zelenski with two ys or two
(27:09):
eyes at the end, just like the Ukrainian president. We're
kind of pleased with her discovery. Anthony, or as my
father nicknamed him, the Great Financier, was a natural musician.
He could sing, play any instrument, He could compose music
and lyrics. He could teach you how to play. He
could build or repair anything from a kazoo to a
grand piano, and that from his late teens is how
(27:31):
he made his money. He traveled all around Europe from
maybe eighteen eighty six onwards, staying at rich people's houses
for several days, teaching the girls how to sing and
the boys how to play whatever was lying around the house,
fixing the family harpsichord, cobbling together the odd flute. One day,
we're guessing around eighteen eighty nine eighteen ninety he traveled
(27:53):
to the home of well off merchants in Odessa, then
part of Russia, the Shevchenkos. He taught the boys how
to sing and the girls how to play the organ,
and then he fell in love with the young daughter, Matrona.
The Chefshenkos were not happy when they discovered them in
love and chased my great grandfather and their daughter out
(28:15):
of the house, out of the city, and out of
the country. Antony went home to Poland, married his child bride,
returned to Crackoff, where all of his family then chased
them out of that house, out of that city, and
out of that country. Get lost with you and your
Russian horror, he would later tell the nephew for whom
my father was named, Teddy. Antony and Matrona had to
(28:36):
think fast. It's eighteen eighty nine, eighteen ninety. Where's a
hard working guy thrown out of Russia and Poland going
to go? They arrived in New York City within weeks.
As I said, he was a natural musician. He picked
up English quickly, and supposedly within a month or two,
he was leaving his wife, my great grandmother, in an
apartment in the Bronx and getting on trains for distant
(28:56):
cities as far west as Chicago, going to the rich
people's homes and getting one hundred dollars to teach the music,
write music, repair musical instruments, and then get right back
on the train to New York. Though he earned a
very good income doing this, especially for an immigrant, Antony
and Matrona lived frugally, often without hot water in their
home because my great grandfather was now driven, driven to
(29:21):
avenge himself deady He would tell his nephew, who sold
my dad, I save every dollar I can save I
in west in the safest investment in the world, the
Polish National Bonds. For one day, I shall return to Krackoff.
I shall buy the biggest house on top of the
biggest hill and stand outside all day waiving my money
at my relatives who made me and your aunt leave,
(29:43):
and saying to them, f you, this is my goal.
And on and on. This went for a decade and
more until he went to Flint, Michigan, to do his
usual routine to stay at the house of a prosperous American,
write a family song, repair the broken tuba, teach the
kids to play the guitar, and generally delight the family.
(30:03):
In this case, the fan only of a businessman who
he remembered as mister Billy. Came the end of my
great grandfather's stay with mister Billy in Michigan and his
family in Michigan, and mister Billy was so taken with
Antony's Zlynsky that he took him personally to the train
station in Flint and went with him onto the platform
(30:24):
to wait for the train. Mister Zelinsky, he said, we
have been delighted to have you here that I would
be honored if you would accept instead of the five
hundred dollars I owe you, please take one thousand dollars
in stock certificates from my business, my way of saying
thanks and hoping you can return and visit us again.
My great grandfather said he was almost moved to tears
(30:46):
by the gesture. But mister Billy, he explained, I live
very inexpensively and I invest all my money in the
world's safest in westmon the Polish National Bonds. Mister Billy
congratulated Antony on his prudence, but said, I believe I
am at the cusp of the next great business in
this country. I would again offer you this stock. I
think you will make so much money that you could
(31:07):
buy all the Polish National Bonds. My great grandfather, standing
there on the train station in Flint, Michigan, fought for
a moment. I know, mister Billy, you mentioned you own
a manufactory in town. What is this you manufactor? Mister
Billy said, we are in the automobile business. Mister Zelinsky,
my great grandfather lit up, Iss, the streets of New
(31:30):
York are filled with automobiles. This is the coming thing.
But I will still take the cash and in West,
in the world's safest in westment the Polish National Bonds.
The train was late. There was an awkward silence now
between them, which my great grandfather finally broke. Do I
know the name of your company, mister Billy? And mister
(31:50):
Billy replied, well, that's the topic of the moment, mister Zelensky,
and I must say, having gotten to know you a
little bit, I'm not at all surprised you brought this
subject up. Currently, my company is called Buick Motor Cars.
My great grandfather said, I, yes, Buck, I've heard of Buck.
You're changing the name, not exactly, said mister Billy. I
(32:11):
believe the automotive business is going to grow exponentially, but
we have one large company in the field, Ford, and
we have dozens of smaller ones like Buick. And I'm
about to buy up several of my competitors and form
one big company, bigger than Ford, and we will dominate
automobiles for decades to come. Ah, yes, said my great grandfather.
(32:31):
And what will you call this behemoth? Mister Billy laughed again.
You cut to the heart of the matter, mister Zelenski.
We're debating that right now. We need a name that
expresses our national stature. My great grandfather shook his head
at the obviousness of this. The problem is an easy one. No,
you use National National Motor Cars. Mister Billy laughed again.
(32:53):
Your insight is extraordinary. That was our first thought as well.
But which you believe. There is a company in Indiana,
of all places. They make electric automobiles which will never work,
and they're called National Motor Vehicles. We need another name.
American has also taken, Continental has taken. Damn it, mister Zelinsky.
We can't think of a good name that isn't already taken.
(33:16):
My great grandfather, who had just turned down the stock
and a thousand dollars worth of the stock in this company,
thought for a second, you wish to express the national,
the American, the broadly available or available national continental national.
What is the word in English? The general, the general
(33:38):
availability of your vehiculars? Well, mister Billy, why not that?
Why not general? General automobiles, general automotive, general motor car. Maybe, uh,
general motors. Now it was time for mister Billy to
become pensive. Finally he spoke General motors. Hmmm, do us
(34:04):
have a certain ring to it, mister Zelinsky, Oh, look,
here's your train. Mister Billy was, of course Billy Durant,
and he owned Durant Dorte, and then he owned Buick.
And then he consolidated thirteen auto manufacturers and ten parts
and accessory companies together into as it was called, on
(34:25):
the day Billy and his partners opened the escrow account Wednesday,
September sixteenth, nineteen oh eight, General Motors Holding Company, My
great grandfather, having gotten another five hundred dollars to invest
in the world's safest investment instead of one thousand dollars
in stock in not General Motors in nineteen oh eight,
but the company that would become General Motors, and having
(34:48):
given its chairman the name General Motors for free waved goodbye,
got on the train returned to New York. He died
fifteen years later, and to his credit, we know of
the detail of this story because the person who told
it to everyone with a laugh, with a warning to
his relatives that none of them had the genes of
(35:08):
a businessman either, was my great grandfather himself. Needless to say,
this good self deprecating humor makes him my favorite of
all my ancestors, and I hope wherever he went when
he died in nineteen twenty three, his humor went with him,
because there were several postscripts to this story that lend
(35:29):
it authenticity and induce further rage in his descendants. My
father was very much alive in nineteen forty. He was
an eleven year old boy with his uncle Teddy Antony's nephew,
living with my dad and grandparents and my uncles in
the Bronx. My dad, who did not meet his grandfather,
Antony Zelinski, said there was a knock on the apartment
(35:51):
door one day and he opened it to the site,
as he put it, of the two best suits of
clothing I had ever seen. The men wearing them asked
for my dad's uncle. He got him and the men
began to speak Polish to uncle Teddy, gentlemen, we are
here in America. You will please speak English in front
of my family, Mister Zelensky. One of them said, we
(36:14):
know that your uncle left you his investments in Polish
national bonds. He was obviously a great patriot. We represent
the Polish government in exile when we run the Nazis
out of our homeland and freedom is again ours. I
know your uncle would have and you would want the
free Polish National state to not be burdened financially, to
be unburdened. In fact, to the greatest possible degree, mister Zelensky,
(36:38):
your uncle was the fourth largest private investor in Polish
national bonds in North America. In fact, he was just
behind the National Bank of Mexico. Will you retire his
bonds for a nominal fee as a great Polish patriot.
My dad was never sure how nominal the fee was,
but he was convinced his uncle got less than five
(36:59):
hundred dollars for what was at least one hundred thousand
dollars in bonds dueing the year nineteen fifty or later.
My dad did not spend his life wondering about his
grandfather's magnificent moment of investment stupidity, but it would occasionally
wake him in the middle of the night, and on
his nightly commutes from Manhattan to our little home in
the suburbs, he came to know the other regulars on
(37:21):
the train, just like Don Draper did on Mad Men.
Same train, in fact, and one of the regulars on
the train turned out to be a stock historian. Eventually
Dad told him the story of Antony Zelensky and Billy
Durant and General Motors, and the stock historian invited him
to stop by the office at lunch one day. Sit down, Ted,
(37:42):
and I mean sit down, Ted. The historian showed his math.
This was what one thousand dollars in Buick in nineteen
oh eight turned into when Billy Durant created General Motors
in nineteen oh eight, And here's where it split, and
see and here's where it split again, and here's where
it quartered after they forced Durant out and then he
bought Chevrolet, and he came back and took over General
(38:05):
Motors again, and it split. And my father said, he
started to sweat. Just tell me already, Ted, the thousand dollars,
your great grandfather turned down in general motors in nineteen
oh eight would now be worth approximately sixty million dollars.
My father said he struggled to not pass out his
friend from the train, then said, plus the value of
(38:28):
the name. I can't get that exactly, the stock historian said,
but it's got to be another couple million, five ten maybe,
especially if he'd taken stock in exchange for the name.
There's one more twist to the knife. Well, so far,
there's still plenty of time for more. When the Unions
(38:49):
ran the Soviets out of Poland and Lech Valsa became
President of the Free Poland in nineteen ninety, he gave
a speech establishing the new government. He spoke naturally in Polish,
until that is, it was time to address one topic.
The president read that part of the speech in English.
My government will recognize and honor the following years of
(39:09):
the Polish national bonds. My father called me in Los
Angeles that night. He had spoken to his stock history
and friend again and gotten a new rough estimate. My
great grandfather had turned down sixty maybe seventy million dollars
in general motors stock to keep say one hundred thousand
dollars in Polish bonds due in the year nineteen fifty,
(39:31):
and lec Valessa had just said, we'll pay on those
bonds that were due in nineteen fifty. And so if
great grandfather's nephew Teddy had just sat on them, those
bonds would have been worth five or six million dollars. Keith,
my father said, quietly, let me remind you again what
(39:53):
the great financier my grandfather told everyone told all of us,
none of us, none of us have the genie s
sup A business Man Countdown with Keith Oldreman is a
(41:21):
production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the
iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Countdown with Keith Olderman is a production of iHeartRadio two years,
eight months and two days after the fact, and more
(00:26):
circumstantial evidence now that Chuck Grassley really was being positioned
to preside over the electoral College count on January sixth,
and presumably he would have helped to steal the election
from Biden for Trump, and we would have been looking
for Pence next to Jimmy Hoffa bear with me on
the voice Yay steroids. Every single time, every single time,
(00:52):
this idea is thoroughly dismissed that there was some kind
of scheme afoot to make sure Mike Pence did not
make it to the joint session of the House and
the Senate for the electoral College certification on Jay six
Every single time it is dismissed, and god knows, I've
been one of the ones who dismissed it. Something new
pops up and it's weird and it's conspiratorial, and it
(01:16):
doesn't add up. And now it comes out of the
mouth of the weirdest, most conspiratorial figure who doesn't add
up in the entire Trump coup plot, John Efing Eastman.
This fake elector's mastermind is being disbarred in California. Hasn't
(01:37):
happened yet, but it will. And in cross examination by
the lawyer for the state board, Eastman was asked about
his December twenty three, twenty twenty, email to Boris Epstein,
in which he hoped nobody in Congress would do anything
to quote constrain Pence or Grassly from asserting the power
to block Biden's election. And Eastman replied to the question
(02:00):
on the stand attorney client privilege, and he said he
couldn't talk about it. And when the lawyer asked which client,
Eastman answered, quote President Trump. Oh, so here we go again.
The vampire of coup elements simply will not stay dead.
(02:22):
The Huffington Post caught up with Grassley yesterday. It's not
exactly a challenge. He'll be ninety in nine days and
asked Grassley again, what the f we were talking about
presiding over the Senate. He responded, well, I had the
look of a man who was thinking about hitting deer
with his car. But a lot of people get that
mixed up with some idea that I was going to
(02:44):
preside over the joint session, And you know that's not
what I ever intended to do. Unquote cool. This is
completely different than what Chuck Grassley and then his staff
said in real time. On January fifth, twenty twenty one.
Grassley said, quote, well, first of all, I will be
(03:05):
if the Vice President isn't there and we don't expect
him to be there, I will be presiding over. The
Senate staff rushed to correct him, saying that was a misinterpretation.
He was only talking about filling in for Pence when
Pence took a bathroom break. Of course the bathroom would
(03:25):
have been over the Mexican border somewhere. Anyway. This is
also not what Grassley said to the investigative reporter Lauren
Windsor a year ago this month.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
All I can point you to is the Constitution, and
the Constitution says that you open up the votes and count.
The only time that you that you would intervene in
that is if there's two slates coming from the same state.
So there was none of the fifty states not sent
(03:58):
in two slates. There was only one.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
So if you had those two slates, you would have
been able to stop the election.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
We wouldn't have been able to stop the election. We
would have been able to choose between this one or
that one.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
So we just were one slate away from having President Trumps,
is what you're saying. One slate away, said we needed
to slates slates from two.
Speaker 2 (04:26):
States, you would have to have two slates from one state.
You'd have to have a dispute in that state.
Speaker 1 (04:36):
So no, Grassley wasn't going to preside over the Senate
and thus preside over the joint session of the Senate
in the House during the electoral vote count because Pence
was indisposed in a rocket ship to the sun or something,
and they couldn't have been able to make Trump president
(04:57):
instead of Biden on January six because there weren't two
slates of electors from each state on January sixth, even
though the entire point of the insurrection outside the Capitol
and inside the Capitol on the afternoon of January sixth,
and the whole point of the one hundred and forty
seven Republicans who voted to not certify the electoral College
vote for Biden that night was to delay the certification
(05:20):
so that alternate sites of electors could show up from
Georgia and Michigan and Arizona and Pennsylvania, where Jack Smith's
grand jury is investigating invoices invoices that have turned up
that showed that Sidney Powell hired forensic computer firms to
(05:41):
infiltrate voting machines in Georgia and Michigan and Arizona and Pennsylvania.
And now what Jack Smith's grand jury is looking at
is whether or not she used Trump political donations to
pay for those forensic computer firms. No big deal, go
(06:03):
back to sleep. Just a potential ground zero for the
coup involving the President pro temporary of the Senate and
the Vice President who wouldn't get in the car with
the Secret Service, and a Trump lawyer writing an email
two weeks earlier talking about Grassly maybe instead of Pence
presiding over the vote count. But no, no, Now the
(06:25):
lawyer can't talk about that email because it's protected by
attorney client, pretty much as the client is Trump. I
don't know what the truth is here. I only know
we don't know what it is, and I am only
guessing this part, but I think it's a damn good guess.
If we can break John Eastman, we will get the truth.
(06:46):
So mister Special Counsel, Madam District Attorney of Fulton County,
please go ahead, Please do break, John Eastman, and do
you get the feeling that Madame District Attorney Fundy Willis
is this close to indicting Jim Jordan for obstruction of justice,
(07:09):
or at least that she would like to be that
close your letter, she writes, in replying to his demand
last month that she turn over all the records of
her investigation and indictment of the Trump nineteen to Jordan
and his committee to what's it called, Oh yeah, the
Committee to Obstruct Justice. Your letter makes clear that you
(07:29):
lack a basic understanding of the law, its practice, and
the ethical obligations of attorneys generally and prosecutors specifically. Unquote,
Well yeah, I thought that was our starting point. Quote
face this reality, Chairman Jordan. The select group of defendants
who you fret over in my jurisdiction are like every
(07:52):
other defendant, entitled to no worse or better treatment than
any other American citizen unquote. Fonnie Willis also writes that
Jordan's letter included quote, inaccurate information and misleading statements. Its
obvious purpose is to obstruct a Georgia criminal proceeding and
to advance outrageous misrepresentations. There is no justification in the
(08:13):
Constitution for Congress to interfere with a state criminal matter,
as you attempt to do unquote. Oh, and then as
Jim Jordan was staggering out of the metaphorical room, willis
need him in the groin quote. If you and your
colleagues follow through on your threats to deny this office
(08:35):
federal funds, please be aware that you will be deciding
to allow serial rapists to go unprosecuted. Well, that's old
hat for Jim Jordan, serial rapists to go unprosecuted, hate
crimes to be unaddressed, and to cancel programs for at
risk children. Such vengeful uncalled for legislative action would impose
(08:58):
serious harm on the citizens we serve, including the fact
that it will make them less safe un quote again,
Madame District Attorney. They're Republicans. That's their job, that's what
they do. Republicans like Peter Navarro pint sized, former advisor
(09:25):
to Trump, who has now been convicted of criminal contempt
of Congress. He defied a subpoena to testify to the
January sixth Committee, and that is well, criminal contempt of Congress.
This isn't a capital crime by any chance. Isn't it. No, sadly,
but Navarro has apparently been sentenced to be humiliated to
(09:46):
death by that same lady with that same Trump lost sign,
and people will not let me speak. This is my
first amendment, right. What I'm going to do now is allow.
Speaker 2 (10:02):
Marsha just saw you, Marcia, I saw you. You're in trouble.
Speaker 1 (10:06):
You're in trouble.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
You just assaulted me.
Speaker 4 (10:08):
That man just assaulted me. He stuck a plack pole
in between my Yeah, there you go.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
Right now, they're calling you, I did it?
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Fred?
Speaker 1 (10:26):
What this public property? I want to press charges.
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Let the man talk. Charges. Are interested in hearing the
man go ahead. Some of the go ahead and talk,
man go ahead.
Speaker 1 (10:44):
Saday for America, and that not because not because they
were guilty verdicts, because I can't come out and have him.
Steve Bannon was sentenced to four months in jail for
the same crime he is appealing. Navara will likely get
a similar sentence. It was a Navara and Bannon, of course,
who called their plan to steal the twenty twenty election
from Joe Biden the quote green Bay Suite after a
(11:05):
play made famous by the Green Bay Packers football team
of the nineteen sixties. Neither of them apparently ever noticed
that after the Green Bay sweep stopped working, the Packers
only made the playoffs once in the ensuing fourteen seasons. Meanwhile,
Navarro's gnomish twin, Roger Stone, turns out he isn't dead
yet either. Stone the guy with the head shaped like
(11:27):
an onion, and the two pays so obvious you can
see where it gets stitched into his scalp, the way
the hair was on one of the dolls my sister
had in nineteen seventy and I continue to not really
know for sure if Roger Stone is really this dumb
and crazy, or he just realizes that the Trump cult
(11:48):
is really this dumb and crazy, or if it's both.
Occasionally evidence will bubble up to the top of the
cesspool that is Roger Stone's life that makes me lean
one way or the other. This piece of evidence suggests
he's crazy. Simply put, Roger Stone does not understand nuclear war.
(12:09):
The Biden administration is considering using the War Powers Act
and starting a nuclear war with the Russians in order
to avoid losing the next election. Biden's going to start
a nuclear war to cancel the twenty twenty four election.
See Roger a nuclear war it would cancel a lot
more than just the election. Because I'm sorry, I forgot
(12:33):
who I was talking to here. Roger Stone does not
understand nuclear war, and Roger Stone does not understand you know, death.
It's been a long time since we've gotten to watch
a politician self destructing real time in slow motion. So
(12:54):
enjoy Ron DeSantis while we can, because he seems to
be real close to spontaneously bursting into flame. After the
shooting at the Jacksonville dollar store where the South professed
Nazi mass murderer went to specifically kill black people, DeSantis
was appropriately heckled at a memorial vigil, and now he
has been confronted about his role ginning up racial hatred
(13:17):
in Florida by defending slavery. It's his platform. He's been
confronted about that role at an event at a bar
in Jacksonville by a self identified Air Force veteran, and
Ron lost his spit.
Speaker 2 (13:35):
Murder Rayvon Mark was not the first, the first of all.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
I did not allow anything with that.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Well, listen, excuse me.
Speaker 4 (13:46):
I'm not going to let you accuse me of committing
criminal activity.
Speaker 2 (13:49):
I am not going to take that. I am not
going to take that.
Speaker 4 (13:52):
So you should you want to have a civil conversation,
that's one thing.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
Try to say that I'm letting that guy.
Speaker 4 (13:59):
Was baker after he should have been He should have
been ruled ineligible, but they didn't voluntarily commit him, and
so they were.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
No, No, I don't know.
Speaker 4 (14:09):
No, there is the truth. There is something about the truth.
If not, everyone doesn't have their own truth. No, you
don't get to come here and blame me for some madman.
That is not appropriate and I'm not going to accept.
Speaker 1 (14:25):
The unidentified citizen was then pushed out of the room
by what appeared to be DeSantis henchwoman Christina Pushaw. And
I don't think anybody else on this planet looks like
Christina Peshaw. And after he left Desanta's hacked, State Surgeon
General Joseph Ladoppo, who has told Floridians to trust DeSantis
on COVID quote instead of all these PhDs and mds
(14:47):
forgetting that he himself is an MD. Duppo then told
the crowd that the man quote was obviously crazy, right,
He's completely completely disconnected. He was insane, He was insane,
just totally crazy, and it's not true. It's a total lie.
Quote doctor unquote, Ladappo, so may still be up there
kissing DeSantis's ass for all I know. And a reminder
(15:09):
about DeSantis. Our gun crisis may not be one hundred
percent Republican, but it is like ninety five percent, just
as our democracy crisis may not be one hundred percent Republican,
but it's like ninety five percent. And the other five
percent is Elon Musk. You've already heard this story, no doubt.
(15:31):
It's in My old Boss, Walter Isaacson's new book about Musk.
Walter writes that last year, Musk ordered his engineers in
secret to switch off the Starlink satellite network. He had
made such a big deal about supplying to Ukraine. Now,
why did he do that? To prevent a Ukrainian sneak
submarine drone attack on Russia's naval fleet. Elon hit the
(15:55):
off button and the explosive leaden drones lost guidance and
just harmlessly floated back to shore. Musk was a friend.
If the attack had gone through, it would be viewed
as a quote mini pearl harbor. And let's just discuss
for a second what a mini pearl harbor. Might look
(16:17):
like country and music fans with many Pearl harbor. He
thought it would be viewed as a mini Pearl harbor
according to Walter Isaacson's book, and then the Russians would
respond with nuclear weapons or possibly buck Owens and the
Bukereoos mini pearl harbor. There's a punchline besides many pearl
(16:46):
The noted twitter a liberal NYC Southpaw uncovered a Twitter
exchange from October ninth, twenty twenty two, in which somebody
asks Musk what his plans were for that Sunday, and
Musk answers, I've been up all night trying to think
of any possible way to de escalate this war, which
is when the fascist blogger from Malaysia, Ian miles Chong replies, quote,
(17:09):
might be a good idea to take starlink offline for
the terminals used on the front lines. Could encourage them
to reconsider their position on advancing towards CRIMEA and leading
the world further into the brink of total war. Unquote
guess who? Ian miles Chong works for RT, the Russian
propaganda network. Five days later, sure enough, Ukraine reported widespread
(17:31):
outages in the starlink service this country needs to revoke
any security clearances Musk might have, cancel all government contracts
with him and any Musk firm, particularly military ones, and
if possible, deport him. He is, and this is the
kindest interpretation, he is under the influence of Russia. Lastly,
(18:00):
nothing new out of DC nothing. I got nothing on
these sealed motions between Jack Smith and Trump's lawyers over
what Smith in the only part of this they made
public termed quote the defendant's daily extra judicial statements that
threatened to prejudice the jury pool in this case, what
a sentence. Smith has got to be asking the judge
(18:20):
to do something to Trump for that daily extra judicial
statements that threaten to prejudice the jury pool. What are
we supposed to do? Send him a card of congratulations,
a mini pearl CD. He's got to do something to him,
or he wants something to be done to him, and
(18:41):
maybe Judge Chutkin starts the trial sooner as she threatened
or sanctions Trump or gags Trump. Hopefully literally nothing new
on this, but something new about this. Those blood curdling
headlines yesterday from the CNN Biden poll, three quarters of
Americans concerned about his age including Democrats. There's no clear
(19:01):
leader in Biden versus Trump, or Biden versus dessiatists, or
Biden versus Dim Scott, or Biden versus Pence, or Biden
versus the cyborg Gramaswami, it's a nightmare. It's the end.
It's it's, it's, it's it's.
Speaker 2 (19:12):
I told you.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Once that MSNBC's original plan in two thousand and three
was for a show at eight pm every night called
Countdown with Sam Donaldson. And then they found out that
instead of getting one of America's top journalists in Sam
Donaldson and crying him away from ABC, then they found
out that ABC was desperately trying to get rid of
(19:34):
Sam Donaldson. And they found this out after NBC had
drawn up a contract with Sam Donaldson, and they needed
a way out and fast. And I was sitting there
as Phil Griffin of MSNBC called up the pollster Frank
Lunz and said, Frank, I need a focus group done
tomorrow that shows that nobody would watch Countdown with Sam Donaldson.
(19:54):
And I need another one that says everybody would watch
Countdown with Keith Alderman and Hot Damn. The two focus
groups were on Griffin's desk forty eight hours later, and
six weeks later we launched Countdown with Keith Alderman and
without Sam Donaldson. Ever since that moment, I have known
that polls and focus groups and research and pollsters, they
(20:18):
are the balloon animals of politics twist the many way
you want because they're just made out of hot air.
That Biden shouldn't run. In fact, you should retire, In
fact you should resign, In fact you should change his name.
CNN poll quoting the overview in the back, which is
on page like three hundred ninety seven quote. Surveys were
(20:43):
obtained August twenty five to thirty one, twenty twenty three,
with a representative sample of n equals one thousand, five
hundred and three respondents, including an oversample of Republicans and
Republican leaning independents, to reach a total of eight hundred
and ninety eight Republicans and Republican leading independence unquote. So
(21:09):
you're telling me what here, CNN asked like nine hundred
Republicans but only six hundred non Republicans these questions for
their poll that shows Biden is doing poorly with Democrats
and independents. Did John Eastman take this poll. Where's that
(21:35):
under attorney client privilege? Also, you got over sample here
like junior samples from here, Haull along with many Pearl Harbor,
many Pearl Harbor. Okay, the Predni zone is kicking in,
so I can still do Worse Persons starring Republican podcaster
(21:57):
and Weenie Wagger Stephen Crowder. That's next. This is countdown?
Speaker 2 (22:04):
Is this countdown with Keith Olberman.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
Still a head on countdown? Ever heard the story of
the guy who gives the owner of the new, big
merged automobile company early in the twentieth century a suggestion
for the new name of the company, and he turns
down stock in the new company, And the next thing
you know in the new company is General Motors. That
was my great grandfather. No, I'm not kidding. Plus, Okay,
(22:44):
I think I can get through the daily roundup of
the Misscreens, morons and Dunn Krug effect specimens who constitute
today's worst persons in the world. Let's find out, shall we.
The Bronze Mike Buckner. Mike is an explorer. Maybe what
he surely is is a flat earther. Mike is in
root now for his big trip by Saturday, he will
have reached the ice wall. The ice wall, the ice wall,
(23:10):
come on, the thing that circles Australia and South America
and Hawaii, and it keeps us from reaching Atlantis and
Magellan's Aisles and the walls of Asgard, and gives us
this mistake and believes that the Earth is a globe
rather than the flat terrain that's just north of the
frozen wastes and just each of the scorched wastes. You know,
(23:32):
I will expose the globe myth, Buckner writes, I will
live stream this journey. This will be the biggest event
of all time. Mike's a looney, but he's a happy loony.
He's happy now. I don't know what happens when he
finds out that Atlantis is just a resort in Wisconsin.
Dell's Wisconsin, the runner up CNN Politics. Boy, they had
(23:53):
a bad day yesterday, you know the Tubberville story. Of course,
this idiot with the giant ears is holding up three
hundred military promotions, aiding and abetting the Communists, according to
the Secretary of the Navy, in a political stunt. And
then he has the gall to complain that a board
naval vessels. They're doing poetry, like, what would that matter
to Tommy Tuberville. He can't read and the people who
(24:14):
voted for him can't read you now, CNN Politics headlined
this story how this disloyal, anti American backwards failed football
coach OAF is undercutting the American military. This was their
headline on CNN's website. The escalating feud between Democrats and
Senator Tommy Tuberville over the Alabama Republicans hold on roughly
(24:36):
three hundred military nominees could soon lead to an even
riskier stitution. Really, CNN, the escalating feud is between Tommy
Tuberville and people who like America. An escalating feud between
Democrats and Tubberville ought to be in prison. It's not
a feud. There aren't two sides here. You aren't playing
it straight down the middle. That headline is lending authenticity
(24:58):
to a dickhead, racist, cracker scumbag doing the work of
China from Alabama. Shame you, but our winner someone who
knows no shame disgraced conservative influencer Stephen Crowder, who has
been gradually disappearing from the conservative scene since he was
accused by one group of male employees of exposing himself
(25:19):
to them. Then he was accused by another group of
exposing himself to them. Then he was accused by another
group of sending them pictures of it. Crowder has now
bought an Elon musk ad and this is telling. It
only appeared in like two thousand users feeds in the
first four hours, and it was retweeted a total.
Speaker 2 (25:38):
Of three times. Three times.
Speaker 1 (25:42):
The ad reads quote can't stand liberals need a laugh?
Follow me to heal myself unquote a laugh, Crowder, You
mean you're gonna expose you're junk again, Stephen and hand
out magnifying glasses. Crowder two days worst person, I can't
(26:03):
do the high end of this worst person in the world,
to the top of the countdown and the number one
(26:23):
story in my favorite topic, me and what is some
much needed comic relief today. I think though my late
father would never have agreed with that statement, not at all.
My great grandfather told this story something like every day
until he died. It was legendary in the family. There
is considerable circumstantial evidence that it is all true, and
(26:46):
the last possible date that it could have happened was
one hundred and fourteen years ago last Friday, September sixteenth,
nineteen oh eight. Anthony Zelinski was born in Crackoff in
Poland in eighteen sixty eight. My sister just found some
evidence that he changed the way his name was spelled,
that it was originally Zelenski with two ys or two
(27:09):
eyes at the end, just like the Ukrainian president. We're
kind of pleased with her discovery. Anthony, or as my
father nicknamed him, the Great Financier, was a natural musician.
He could sing, play any instrument, He could compose music
and lyrics. He could teach you how to play. He
could build or repair anything from a kazoo to a
grand piano, and that from his late teens is how
(27:31):
he made his money. He traveled all around Europe from
maybe eighteen eighty six onwards, staying at rich people's houses
for several days, teaching the girls how to sing and
the boys how to play whatever was lying around the house,
fixing the family harpsichord, cobbling together the odd flute. One day,
we're guessing around eighteen eighty nine eighteen ninety he traveled
(27:53):
to the home of well off merchants in Odessa, then
part of Russia, the Shevchenkos. He taught the boys how
to sing and the girls how to play the organ,
and then he fell in love with the young daughter, Matrona.
The Chefshenkos were not happy when they discovered them in
love and chased my great grandfather and their daughter out
(28:15):
of the house, out of the city, and out of
the country. Antony went home to Poland, married his child bride,
returned to Crackoff, where all of his family then chased
them out of that house, out of that city, and
out of that country. Get lost with you and your
Russian horror, he would later tell the nephew for whom
my father was named, Teddy. Antony and Matrona had to
(28:36):
think fast. It's eighteen eighty nine, eighteen ninety. Where's a
hard working guy thrown out of Russia and Poland going
to go? They arrived in New York City within weeks.
As I said, he was a natural musician. He picked
up English quickly, and supposedly within a month or two,
he was leaving his wife, my great grandmother, in an
apartment in the Bronx and getting on trains for distant
(28:56):
cities as far west as Chicago, going to the rich
people's homes and getting one hundred dollars to teach the music,
write music, repair musical instruments, and then get right back
on the train to New York. Though he earned a
very good income doing this, especially for an immigrant, Antony
and Matrona lived frugally, often without hot water in their
home because my great grandfather was now driven, driven to
(29:21):
avenge himself deady He would tell his nephew, who sold
my dad, I save every dollar I can save I
in west in the safest investment in the world, the
Polish National Bonds. For one day, I shall return to Krackoff.
I shall buy the biggest house on top of the
biggest hill and stand outside all day waiving my money
at my relatives who made me and your aunt leave,
(29:43):
and saying to them, f you, this is my goal.
And on and on. This went for a decade and
more until he went to Flint, Michigan, to do his
usual routine to stay at the house of a prosperous American,
write a family song, repair the broken tuba, teach the
kids to play the guitar, and generally delight the family.
(30:03):
In this case, the fan only of a businessman who
he remembered as mister Billy. Came the end of my
great grandfather's stay with mister Billy in Michigan and his
family in Michigan, and mister Billy was so taken with
Antony's Zlynsky that he took him personally to the train
station in Flint and went with him onto the platform
(30:24):
to wait for the train. Mister Zelinsky, he said, we
have been delighted to have you here that I would
be honored if you would accept instead of the five
hundred dollars I owe you, please take one thousand dollars
in stock certificates from my business, my way of saying
thanks and hoping you can return and visit us again.
My great grandfather said he was almost moved to tears
(30:46):
by the gesture. But mister Billy, he explained, I live
very inexpensively and I invest all my money in the
world's safest in westmon the Polish National Bonds. Mister Billy
congratulated Antony on his prudence, but said, I believe I
am at the cusp of the next great business in
this country. I would again offer you this stock. I
think you will make so much money that you could
(31:07):
buy all the Polish National Bonds. My great grandfather, standing
there on the train station in Flint, Michigan, fought for
a moment. I know, mister Billy, you mentioned you own
a manufactory in town. What is this you manufactor? Mister
Billy said, we are in the automobile business. Mister Zelinsky,
my great grandfather lit up, Iss, the streets of New
(31:30):
York are filled with automobiles. This is the coming thing.
But I will still take the cash and in West,
in the world's safest in westment the Polish National Bonds.
The train was late. There was an awkward silence now
between them, which my great grandfather finally broke. Do I
know the name of your company, mister Billy? And mister
(31:50):
Billy replied, well, that's the topic of the moment, mister Zelensky,
and I must say, having gotten to know you a
little bit, I'm not at all surprised you brought this
subject up. Currently, my company is called Buick Motor Cars.
My great grandfather said, I, yes, Buck, I've heard of Buck.
You're changing the name, not exactly, said mister Billy. I
(32:11):
believe the automotive business is going to grow exponentially, but
we have one large company in the field, Ford, and
we have dozens of smaller ones like Buick. And I'm
about to buy up several of my competitors and form
one big company, bigger than Ford, and we will dominate
automobiles for decades to come. Ah, yes, said my great grandfather.
(32:31):
And what will you call this behemoth? Mister Billy laughed again.
You cut to the heart of the matter, mister Zelenski.
We're debating that right now. We need a name that
expresses our national stature. My great grandfather shook his head
at the obviousness of this. The problem is an easy one. No,
you use National National Motor Cars. Mister Billy laughed again.
(32:53):
Your insight is extraordinary. That was our first thought as well.
But which you believe. There is a company in Indiana,
of all places. They make electric automobiles which will never work,
and they're called National Motor Vehicles. We need another name.
American has also taken, Continental has taken. Damn it, mister Zelinsky.
We can't think of a good name that isn't already taken.
(33:16):
My great grandfather, who had just turned down the stock
and a thousand dollars worth of the stock in this company,
thought for a second, you wish to express the national,
the American, the broadly available or available national continental national.
What is the word in English? The general, the general
(33:38):
availability of your vehiculars? Well, mister Billy, why not that?
Why not general? General automobiles, general automotive, general motor car. Maybe, uh,
general motors. Now it was time for mister Billy to
become pensive. Finally he spoke General motors. Hmmm, do us
(34:04):
have a certain ring to it, mister Zelinsky, Oh, look,
here's your train. Mister Billy was, of course Billy Durant,
and he owned Durant Dorte, and then he owned Buick.
And then he consolidated thirteen auto manufacturers and ten parts
and accessory companies together into as it was called, on
(34:25):
the day Billy and his partners opened the escrow account Wednesday,
September sixteenth, nineteen oh eight, General Motors Holding Company, My
great grandfather, having gotten another five hundred dollars to invest
in the world's safest investment instead of one thousand dollars
in stock in not General Motors in nineteen oh eight,
but the company that would become General Motors, and having
(34:48):
given its chairman the name General Motors for free waved goodbye,
got on the train returned to New York. He died
fifteen years later, and to his credit, we know of
the detail of this story because the person who told
it to everyone with a laugh, with a warning to
his relatives that none of them had the genes of
(35:08):
a businessman either, was my great grandfather himself. Needless to say,
this good self deprecating humor makes him my favorite of
all my ancestors, and I hope wherever he went when
he died in nineteen twenty three, his humor went with him,
because there were several postscripts to this story that lend
(35:29):
it authenticity and induce further rage in his descendants. My
father was very much alive in nineteen forty. He was
an eleven year old boy with his uncle Teddy Antony's nephew,
living with my dad and grandparents and my uncles in
the Bronx. My dad, who did not meet his grandfather,
Antony Zelinski, said there was a knock on the apartment
(35:51):
door one day and he opened it to the site,
as he put it, of the two best suits of
clothing I had ever seen. The men wearing them asked
for my dad's uncle. He got him and the men
began to speak Polish to uncle Teddy, gentlemen, we are
here in America. You will please speak English in front
of my family, Mister Zelensky. One of them said, we
(36:14):
know that your uncle left you his investments in Polish
national bonds. He was obviously a great patriot. We represent
the Polish government in exile when we run the Nazis
out of our homeland and freedom is again ours. I
know your uncle would have and you would want the
free Polish National state to not be burdened financially, to
be unburdened. In fact, to the greatest possible degree, mister Zelensky,
(36:38):
your uncle was the fourth largest private investor in Polish
national bonds in North America. In fact, he was just
behind the National Bank of Mexico. Will you retire his
bonds for a nominal fee as a great Polish patriot.
My dad was never sure how nominal the fee was,
but he was convinced his uncle got less than five
(36:59):
hundred dollars for what was at least one hundred thousand
dollars in bonds dueing the year nineteen fifty or later.
My dad did not spend his life wondering about his
grandfather's magnificent moment of investment stupidity, but it would occasionally
wake him in the middle of the night, and on
his nightly commutes from Manhattan to our little home in
the suburbs, he came to know the other regulars on
(37:21):
the train, just like Don Draper did on Mad Men.
Same train, in fact, and one of the regulars on
the train turned out to be a stock historian. Eventually
Dad told him the story of Antony Zelensky and Billy
Durant and General Motors, and the stock historian invited him
to stop by the office at lunch one day. Sit down, Ted,
(37:42):
and I mean sit down, Ted. The historian showed his math.
This was what one thousand dollars in Buick in nineteen
oh eight turned into when Billy Durant created General Motors
in nineteen oh eight, And here's where it split, and
see and here's where it split again, and here's where
it quartered after they forced Durant out and then he
bought Chevrolet, and he came back and took over General
(38:05):
Motors again, and it split. And my father said, he
started to sweat. Just tell me already, Ted, the thousand dollars,
your great grandfather turned down in general motors in nineteen
oh eight would now be worth approximately sixty million dollars.
My father said he struggled to not pass out his
friend from the train, then said, plus the value of
(38:28):
the name. I can't get that exactly, the stock historian said,
but it's got to be another couple million, five ten maybe,
especially if he'd taken stock in exchange for the name.
There's one more twist to the knife. Well, so far,
there's still plenty of time for more. When the Unions
(38:49):
ran the Soviets out of Poland and Lech Valsa became
President of the Free Poland in nineteen ninety, he gave
a speech establishing the new government. He spoke naturally in Polish,
until that is, it was time to address one topic.
The president read that part of the speech in English.
My government will recognize and honor the following years of
(39:09):
the Polish national bonds. My father called me in Los
Angeles that night. He had spoken to his stock history
and friend again and gotten a new rough estimate. My
great grandfather had turned down sixty maybe seventy million dollars
in general motors stock to keep say one hundred thousand
dollars in Polish bonds due in the year nineteen fifty,
(39:31):
and lec Valessa had just said, we'll pay on those
bonds that were due in nineteen fifty. And so if
great grandfather's nephew Teddy had just sat on them, those
bonds would have been worth five or six million dollars. Keith,
my father said, quietly, let me remind you again what
(39:53):
the great financier my grandfather told everyone told all of us,
none of us, none of us have the genie s
sup A business Man Countdown with Keith Oldreman is a
(41:21):
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