February 7, 2025 • 33 mins
The John Kobylt Show Hour 1 (02/07) - Mark Thompson fills in for John. Storm impacting SoCal and fire victims are bracing for mudslides. Josh Mankiewicz comes on the show to talk about being with Dateline for 30 years. Questions still remain in the aftermath a month after the fires. A federal judge has halted Pres. Trump's buyout program.
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 (00:00):
Can'f I am six forty. You're listening to the John
Coblt podcast on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Is the John Coblt Show.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
John has the day off, Mark Thompson sitting into for
a few hours.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
It's been a wild night.
Speaker 3 (00:13):
I know that they kept talking about this storm as
a mild storm week storm, but if you were out
traveling last night, it was anything but I mean what
it was. And I understand why they say it was weak,
because there wasn't any real heavy precipitation. It was generally lighter,
but it was unrelenting. I mean it just continued. And
(00:37):
I drove back from Pasadena last night co It's about
about eleven o'clock. There were massive pools of water everywhere,
all over the freeways, surface streets. I mean it was.
There were a bunch of cars pulled over to the
side of the road. It was very serious. The car
(00:58):
I was driving is into an electric car, you know,
so they have this regenerative braking thing, and I guess
when the brakes get wet, it doesn't regenerate anymore. So
it tells you that constantly, Like if that was supposed
to be the most important thing that I was thinking
(01:18):
about at that moment, I was going to constantly be
reminded that we're not regenerating. The brakes are not regenerating, right, Like,
it's like, guys, I got it. You don't have to
send off like a The dashboard lit up as though
it was the Space Shuttle or something, and then it
told me, by the way, also your ABS system, you know,
the other breaking system is effected. So that's how much
(01:41):
water was in the breaks. It was constantly bonging and binging,
and then the lights are going off constantly. I mentioned
this because in morning weather reports they were kind of
talking about it like it was a weak storm. And
meanwhile I was white knuckling back from Pasadena all the
way back over to Studio City, which shouldn't be a
(02:02):
particularly you know, tough route, but as I say, there
were major bits of pooling across the freeways. So as
we dry out a bit, they're already looking to next
week for perhaps a more potent storm.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Right.
Speaker 4 (02:17):
We have another major story today, which is the weather,
and that of course has an effect on the burnscar areas.
Speaker 5 (02:25):
Yeah, and you know, we're seeing some decent amounts that
have pushed through, especially with the second wave a little
bit more, and so obviously there's some concern there.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
And by the way, it's clearly the burnscare areas that
are the primary concern. But I'm just saying, even if
you're trying to get from here to there, the weather
has changed markedly and it may be a tougher ride.
Speaker 5 (02:42):
Overall, these were two at least as far as you
know storms are concerned. You know, they're kind of mild,
almost weak storms, and thank goodness for that. We also
heard Mayor Maass talking about the weather looking ahead towards
the future, hoping there's not an abundance of rain. Certainly
we hope that is the case. But I have been
saying this and I will continue to say it. We
(03:04):
have rain next week. Been talking about this storm since
last week, saying, hey, look we're going to have a
storm on Valentine's Day or at least close to it,
and you can see the rain developing. I think the
rain coming up the end of next week. We're going
to look at higher numbers and what's being reported right now,
and the reason for that is we look at computer models.
But there are some things in there that suggest that
I think we're going to see an inch to two
(03:25):
inches of rain possible.
Speaker 3 (03:26):
So wow, that will produce issues. You will see ground
movement with that kind of rain.
Speaker 5 (03:35):
This is not to cause alarm. This is just to
give you an idea that this weekend a big weekend.
I know for many reasons. For many people, They'll be sunshine,
they'll be dry conditions, yes, a little cool, but I
would anticipate that next week we're going to be talking
about some pretty decent storms moving through, and that of
course would pose a major threat.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
To those burn areas.
Speaker 5 (03:56):
Don't want to alarm, just want to keep you updated.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
This is the guy who I'd like to get bad
news from.
Speaker 3 (04:00):
Oh I don't know who this guy is, but like
he just sort of takes this long, circuitous way up
to telling me that I'm going to wash away next
to it.
Speaker 5 (04:09):
And that of course would pose a major threat to
those burn areas. Don't want alarm, just want to keep
you updated. I do think the numbers for next week
storms will be pumped up a little bit. I think
they're a little undervalued. I think we're looking at some
decent rain, some snow. You may have noticed the Mountain forecast.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
He said.
Speaker 3 (04:25):
I don't want to alarm, like four times, which absolutely
means I'm here to alarm colder temperatures.
Speaker 5 (04:32):
This will be more of a classic cold winter storm
for next week, Ginger, which means snow for the mountains
and some pretty good runoff with some rain coming into
the forecast.
Speaker 3 (04:42):
So obviously the key here is the movement that will
likely follow terrain will move when a significant storm comes
into the area, which is likely next week. I mean
two to four inches in the foothill areas that is Altadena,
(05:04):
And when you look at across the region one to
two inches of rain and varying amounts that like sort
of at minimum and inch of rain, there really might
be some problems in those burnscarred areas. And so we
watch with anticipation and with I think preparation, you know,
(05:27):
as that stuff happens. By the way, speaking of the
fires and speaking of the burn areas, there's some pretty
big news when it comes to so Cal Edison's report
on their own equipment having been behind the Eaten fires
and the Hearst fires.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
I mean it's a.
Speaker 3 (05:46):
Well, I'll say it's something that we talked about and
something we pointed to, I mean even in the hours
following it, you know, with so much surveillance video, so
much evidence. It was clear that so Cal Edison was
going to to likely bear some responsibility. They've been hit
with multiple lawsuits, right and those lawsuits came, as they
(06:08):
say right away, their equipment being behind the start of
the eaton fired Alta Dina and then the Hearst fire
in Silmar. That looks to be something that now there
is a true cause of relationship being pointed to. I
have more details on that and what will happen in
(06:32):
terms of these lawsuits. Also what's happening in terms of
insurance rates that are getting approval, jacking up our rates
even as they're falling out of the state of California.
We'll get to that a month after the LA fires.
A lot of questions still linger, all that still to come.
(06:56):
It's the coll belt Joe Mark Thompson sitting in for John.
Yes we will get to Washington. Yes, we'll get to
musk Yes we'll get to Doge. All of that as
we continue. We're KFI AM six forty live everywhere in
the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 6 (07:09):
You're listening to John Cobelt on demand from KFI AM.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
Sixty Dayline NBC. It's a juggernaut.
Speaker 3 (07:19):
You know, when they put out the podcast for Dateline NBC,
the true crime, you know, murder oriented show, it goes
right to number one every new epithet, I mean, the
most listened to podcasts in the country, Deborah.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
I'm sure you you love your date Line. I do.
I watch it on the weekend.
Speaker 3 (07:38):
Yes, and it is watchable in like five different places.
There is a new episode tonight, and in a moment,
Josh Mankowitz thirty years he's been at Dateline NBC, will
join us.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
But here's the episode for tonight from Paul.
Speaker 4 (07:56):
Came in around two thirty am. The man never gave
his name. He had only one desperate plea.
Speaker 7 (08:05):
I realized I had missed calls.
Speaker 8 (08:07):
It was San Francisco General Hospital.
Speaker 4 (08:11):
People may have thought they knew what happened, Well, this
was no ordinary crime.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
I think murder is always the last thing you expect, and.
Speaker 4 (08:20):
That man on the ground was no ordinary victim. Police
were about to learn what the tech world already knew.
Bob Lee was a big deal.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
He was building some of the best tools on the planet.
Speaker 7 (08:33):
He loved the opportunity to make the world a better place.
Speaker 4 (08:38):
So what brought him to that lonely block on the
streets of San Francisco.
Speaker 3 (08:43):
Wow, tonight it all happens. The yarn is told by
this guy, josh Mankowitch. Welcome to KFI. Yeah, so this
was a celebrated case because, as I recall, it was
wrapped down into sort of the image of San Francisco
as this decaying city where people are getting you know,
(09:05):
killed on the street.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
And it fits the narrative.
Speaker 7 (09:08):
Yeah, yeah, I mean it's said a very popular narrative,
which is that San Francisco has deteriorated and you know,
not even the not even the big names in tech
are safe. Anybody can be killed on the street at
any moment. Of course, Uh, that turned out to be
absolutely nothing to do with the case. It had nothing
to do with that, But that was a that was
(09:30):
the thing that a lot of people, Elon Musk included,
sort of jumped on, and many people assumed that they
knew what happened, and it turned out, of course, that
wasn't what happened at all. Now, police, San Francisco police
knew from the get go that this almost certainly was
not a robbery. This guy had his wallet, his very
expensive watch, and it's phone on him when they found him,
(09:53):
and he was almost dead when they found him, stabbed
underneath the Bay Bridge in downtown San Francisco. But you know,
police sort of let that robbery story sit out there
for a while while they looked at the people who
were who were ultimately responsible for this, and nine days
later they made an the rest, and last month there
was a conviction.
Speaker 3 (10:13):
It's interesting that they did let it sit out there.
That was a strategic move on the part of the cops.
Speaker 7 (10:17):
You're saying, I think they wanted to lull the actual
suspect into a feeling that the cops were going off
in the wrong direction.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Interesting, And so, I mean, I don't.
Speaker 7 (10:30):
Think they put that out there, but I think they
I think they I think they thought to themselves. I
know they thought to themselves, great, let's let everybody believe this.
It's fine.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
I mean, it's so clear, as you suggest here that
if he still had his expensive watch and his wallet,
et cetera, that it wasn't a robbery. But the fact
is that narrative did carry the day. So how long
from start to finish did cops take to actually get
the perpetrator they made They made.
Speaker 7 (10:57):
An arrest nine days later, and the trial was in
late twenty twenty four. And the Centain thing is coming
up pretty quickly now.
Speaker 2 (11:05):
So tonight is the episode nine o'clock? Is it?
Speaker 7 (11:09):
Tonight is the episode nine o'clock nine o'clock West Coast time,
also nine o'clock East Coast time called Under the Bay
Bridge on Dayline.
Speaker 3 (11:18):
No, you have, literally, I think in the last week
celebrated thirty years at Dayline NBC.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
Is that right now?
Speaker 7 (11:25):
I know I have. I started in nineteen ninety five,
it was earlier this week, and it was not I
will say it did go by very quickly.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
It was not a true crime show when you started.
Speaker 7 (11:37):
No, No, not at all. We were sort of the
faster moving sixty minutes. When we started. We were doing
five or six stories within an hour. They were not
related to one another, and they were all over the map.
I mean, I did celebrity profiles, I did investigative stories,
I did tech stories, I did stories about I did
(11:58):
a story of an this school of thought that you should
give your kids ice cream in the morning because it's
got as much it's got as many calories at eight
am as it does at eight pm, but don't burn
it off. All day long, which was at the times
very controversial. We did all kinds of stories, and then
(12:18):
after I'd been there about ten years, like Times two
thousand and six, we started making the turn to true crime, which,
as you know, because you and I have known each
other forever, was something that always interested in me anyway,
and it worked out. It's been a fun ride.
Speaker 3 (12:34):
And just to double back for a second, they made
that transition from the magazine show that you've described to
true crime because why lastic the.
Speaker 7 (12:44):
Audience was getting bored with the traditional magazine show. And
I also think I think our boss at the time,
a guy named David Corbo, figured out that nobody was
covering that part of American life that you know. And
this is still largely true. I mean, maybe not crimes
like Bob Lee, which are the murder of Bob Lee,
(13:06):
which is a very well known crime, but the most
of the stuff we cover on Dateline, those are people
you've never heard of, in a lot of cases in
towns you've never heard of. And what we say to
people to try to get them to come on Dateline
is one hundred percent true, which is this story is
not going to get this kind of treatment. Anywhere else.
You might get five or six inches in your local newspaper,
(13:29):
you might get forty seconds or a minute on your
local TV news, but you're not going to get what's
essentially a two hour documentary about not just the crime,
but the relationship of killer and victim and the life
that that person led. Before they got adlines, nobody was
doing that, and we started doing that and it took off.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
And it's that relationship.
Speaker 3 (13:52):
It's that yarn that you've described, the relationships between killer
and victim, etc. And maybe even these small towns that
we don't know. The sort of texture of the story
is added with all of the descriptive elements associated with that.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
You think that's what's made it so popular.
Speaker 7 (14:10):
Yeah, I do, because you know, most people in their
life will not be the victim of violent crime. Most
people will never experience that, but everybody has been in
a relationship that didn't work out the way you wanted
it to. Dayline is more about relationships than it is
about murders. It's but the choices people make, frequently astonishing
(14:31):
hard to believe, choices like the one to kill somebody
who might be the mother or father of their kids.
Those are the things we do. You know, we don't
do a lot of stories about serial killers. We're not
doing random crimes. We're doing stories in which killer and
victim almost always have a relationship. And that was true
about Bobby and the man to the victim of murdering him.
(14:53):
They had a relationship.
Speaker 3 (14:55):
Yeah, that story tonight. I can't wait to see because
it is it's all a twisted series of relationships. It's
not just killer and victim, it's also it is. Yeah,
it's a deep dive, so great stuff, Josh, look forward
to it.
Speaker 7 (15:11):
Yeah, but you know, next time I come on, I
want to spend some more time talking about that mail
enhancement drugs that you were talking about earlier. Because of
all the stuff I've hever on KFI, including this interview
that actually interested me the most.
Speaker 3 (15:23):
Well you look, look, those people wanted to get the
word out, so they bought time on the station, and
I say bravo to them all right now too.
Speaker 7 (15:31):
Yeah, if you can hook me up with them, then
this friendship will finally have delivered something.
Speaker 3 (15:35):
Worthwhile I had no idea. I will look into it.
Josh mccowitz, dateline nine o'clock to I. Congratulations on thirty years, sir,
good stuff, Thanks Bud, Thank you. When we come back,
so Cal Edison saying that its equipment may have caused
the Eaton and Hurst fires. Lawsuits abound, we'll discuss it next.
(15:57):
It is the Cobalt Show, Thompson sitting in for Josh
ONFI AM six forty live everywhere in the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 6 (16:04):
You're listening to John Cobels on demand from KFI AM
six forty.
Speaker 3 (16:10):
Yes, it's been an active week or three weeks in Washington.
We'll get to a lot of the DC news a
little bit later, but Southern California, we're really trying to
piece together a lot of aspects of what we've been
through with the fires. I mean cause of the fires,
(16:30):
degree to which any of the damage could have been
mitigated with strategies and attackling the fires and ultimately evacuations,
I mean, could that have been done better? All of
the alert systems are being looked at, so you know,
this is a truly extensive and multifaceted kind of investigation.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
But when it comes to the cause of.
Speaker 3 (16:53):
The fire, you're talking about what talking about? Lawsuits? Lots
of them and now this word out of SOCO.
Speaker 2 (17:00):
We're learning that Southern California.
Speaker 8 (17:01):
Edison says it is its equipment likely sparked the Hurst
wildfire that broke out on January seventh. So this is
all according to a filing with state utility regulators. The
hearst fire for nearly eight hundred acres around the Silmar
neighborhood in La. It did not destroy any structures, will
result in any deaths. Meantime, so Cal Edison is also
(17:22):
investigating whether an idle transmission line in the Eaton fire
became energized and possibly sparked the devastation.
Speaker 5 (17:29):
That happened in Altadena.
Speaker 2 (17:32):
Let's take a look at this.
Speaker 9 (17:34):
This is footage from a gas station security camera. Attorney
j Edelson alleges this real time video is the strongest
evidence yet showing sparks falling, then ten minutes later the
entire hillside is on fire.
Speaker 3 (17:48):
That was one of the one He's a video that
we saw early on that really did point to so
Cal Edison involvement. There's no question that that video is
damning this morning.
Speaker 9 (17:59):
So Cal Edison maintains there is no evidence that its
equipment is responsible for starting the Eating fire, which burned
fourteen thousand acres.
Speaker 8 (18:08):
Of course, as that investigation continues, will keep you posted
on any updates there.
Speaker 3 (18:12):
Yeah, and there's no wonder that they are pushing back
on it because that is an insane liability. I mean,
we don't need to discuss further what happened to Altadena
and those communities around that area devastated. So when you
talk about a fire torching fourteen thousand acres, you're talking
about a responsibility legally that will be excruciating crippling, right, So,
(18:38):
so cal Edison is pushing back on that, but it
does appear and look, there are major investigations going on.
FEDS are here atf IS here and these guys are,
you know, top of the game when it comes to
investigations around fires and the cause and so the Eaton fire,
(18:58):
they will make a decision and a determination as to
how that fire started. But they've been hit with multiple lawsuits,
has so cal Edison, and those lawsuits alleged that their
equipment started the Eaton fire, And they say, again, this
is how we got here, that their equipment did likely
(19:20):
start the Hurst fire in Silmour, in Silmar, but in
Silmar there wasn't the damage that you found in Altadena.
So their equipment very much a part of this investigation.
But as I say, it's not just how the fire starts,
it's what happened once the fire began. And it's not
(19:44):
just those fires, right, the Palisades fire with this bizarre
origin story of the fire breaking out on that hiking trail,
and it was likely embers that were left over from
a New Year's Eve celebration and fireworks display that was
(20:05):
just kind of a one off that had been done
by a bunch of people celebrating or hanging out. And
even though those fires and that small fire on that
hiking trail was put out, those embers lived on and
on January seventh, they were re animated by the winds
(20:26):
and spread into the Palisades in Malibu. So again you've
got ATF on the scene, and they're going to determine
without question, I would think there'll be some sort of
essentially determinative decision that they'll make as to, you know,
what their investigation yields. But these fires and their cause
(20:48):
is just part of it all. I mean, fire preparations.
Could there have been more done to you know, forego
all of this damage. Could you have strategically placed manpower
sets around the area. I think that's a tough argument
to make, and I think that there were failings. Without question,
there were failings. I mean, I've told you before, I
(21:12):
don't see the mayor surviving it. Mayor bass out of
the country during this whole thing that was anticipated, talked
about record winds were coming into an area that was
tender dry, and she's not around. I just don't see
her surviving that. I mean, I get why she's not resigning.
(21:34):
I mean from a political standpoint, I understand what she's
trying to do now right the ship, but I just
think it's reputationally too harmful. But in any case, I
don't know, having said that, that you could have with
any sort of certainty, anticipated where the fire was going.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
To break out.
Speaker 3 (21:54):
I was having dinner last night in Pasadena. We're talking
about these people with people who evacuated from the Altade fires,
and they were saying the same thing, say, gosh, you know,
we are just a general anxiety when the Santa Ana
wins start. We don't know where those embers are going
to blow and where there will be a fire breaking out,
and neither do firefighters. They did have on some level
(22:17):
assets ready, but they had no way to beat back
flames being driven by eighty mile an hour winds. I mean,
should there be local water infrastructure? Should there be you know,
storage tanks that should be expanded. I mean, these are
questions that are being asked. I mean to what extent
(22:39):
should additional assets be brought in, additional manpower. These are
all questions that are not just local. I mean, this
isn't just LA. These are being asked statewide. It's a
statewide issue. I mean, Northern California has had their own
degree of pain through Sonoma, through Paradise. So this is
(23:00):
a contemporary consideration for all Californians. And this is a
horrible way to have to come to grips with it
what we've just been through. But these investigations continue, and
then these lawsuits continue. When we come back a federal
judge halting Trump's buyout program, there are legal challenges to
(23:24):
the Fed buyout program where they're saying, hey, we're cutting
back on government, but good news for you, eight months
of pay and you don't even have to come into
the office anymore. A judge says, not so fast. We'll
get to that next John Cobelt Show, Mark Thompson sitting in.
I'm KFI AM six forty. We're live everywhere on the
iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 6 (23:46):
You're listening to John cobelts on demand from KFI AM sixty.
Speaker 3 (23:52):
Is the John cobelt Show. Mark Thompson sitting in. And
there is stuff going on in Washington, d C. I mean,
this is an extraordinary thing in virtually every agency of government.
But let's just talk about one thing that's happening, and
that is the buyout. Now, the way government works, as
(24:15):
you know, is associated with an appropriation. Congress appropriates money
for something and then the money is spent. So much
as we'd like to just come in and declare something like,
in this case, a buyout offer if you're trying to
trim government. Let's leave aside the whether it's smart to
(24:38):
trim government, whether it's you know, ham fisted to go
in so hot and just like offer everybody a buyout, like,
you know, not to even figure out, well, does this
agency require more of a trimming than that agency. Let's
just leave that all aside now, it's just about the
reality of the buyout. What struck me when I saw
(25:01):
the buyout was, wait a minute, where does that money
come from? Again, there's an appropriations process that is stipulated constitutionally,
so you need Congress to appropriate money. So be that
as it may. I mean, these guys totally have their
own thing. When I say these guys, it's really you
(25:23):
know Musk and his view of government alongside those that
you know share, giving him sort of free reign. So
this is a very draconian proposal, we get it. But
the thing that's happened now is a people have taken
that buyout. In fact, not an incidental number. It looks
(25:47):
like sixty five thousand government workers have now taken that buyout.
That's about three percent of the two million people who
were given the offer. So they will resign and that
will reduce the bureaucracy, is the argument. Okay, and they'll
be paid out. Now again I'm leaving aside whether that's
(26:10):
smart policy. I just an unclear eyes to whether the
money is there to pay for them. But now there
is a judge halting this buyout completely, which brings an
entirely new element to this that hadn't existed before, which
is the legal element.
Speaker 4 (26:29):
Elon Musk, We've got a message for you.
Speaker 2 (26:32):
You will be fired.
Speaker 10 (26:34):
Democrats are ramping up their pushback against Elon Musk and
his Department of Government Efficiency. The efforts by DOGE to
downsize government have led to access to multiple sensitive systems
in various government agencies and an attempted purge of civilian
federal workers. More than sixty thousand federal employees had reportedly
taken a deferred resignation offer allowing them to resign with
(26:56):
pay through September. A majority of the more than two
million and civilian federal workers were eligible, and they were
up against a Thursday night deadline to take it or
leave it and possibly face layoffs in the near future.
A judge's order could now temporarily delay that decision. Many
Republicans have cheered on the breakneck speed Doze is working at.
Speaker 11 (27:15):
We certainly are always concerned when there's a bull in
the china shop, and that's certainly something that we're seeing here.
This is going to be a messy and sloppy and
not pretty, but it's not going to be illegal.
Speaker 10 (27:29):
But at least one Senate Republican isn't so sure about
Musk's power. Main Senator Susan Collins told reporters this week
that President Trump appears to have empowered Elon Musk far
beyond what I think is appropriate, and that she thought
a lot of what Musk and Doze are doing is
going to end up in court. Musk's team reportedly now
has access to Medicare and Medicaid records, two areas that
(27:51):
had more than one hundred billion dollars of improper payments
in twenty twenty three, according to the Government Accountability Office.
The White House has defended the Doze work to try
and streamline the government.
Speaker 12 (28:01):
We encourage that all workers in this city to accept
the very generous offer. If they don't want to show
up to the office, if they want to rip the
American people off, then they're welcome to take this buyout
and we'll find highly competent individuals who want to fill
these rules.
Speaker 3 (28:15):
One potential what was the what was that they want
to if they want to rip the American people off?
Speaker 2 (28:19):
What was that quote?
Speaker 12 (28:20):
If they want to rip the American people off, then
they're welcome to take this buyout, and we'll find highly
competent individuals who want to.
Speaker 3 (28:26):
Fill these rus I think the idea is hey, and
this is really the way it has played out. Apparently
in follow up memos, if you don't want to take
this buyout. You should be aware of the fact that
we're going to be making some big changes to your agency,
including adding AI into many positions, such that you may
not have a job here anyway. So we strongly recommend
(28:49):
you take the buyout. These are the messages being communicated
to staffers.
Speaker 13 (28:54):
Now, one potentially huge hurdle for the so called buyouts
is this the government is currently funded through mid March
and workers taking buyouts or being promised money through September,
but that could all hinge on what Congress is willing
to appropriate for the rest of the year.
Speaker 3 (29:08):
So that's what I'm talking about. That there's not money there,
So there might be money there, but Congress has to
appropriate the money.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
Whis interesting to me.
Speaker 3 (29:15):
Also, just speaking of Congress, is it's interesting that Congress
is so willing to surrender their power. Their power all
comes in their ability to appropriate money. I mean, I
understand that the House also is an investigative body, they
have other powers, but my god, the biggest power they
have is the power of appropriations. And that you all
(29:39):
of a sudden go yeah, I think it's a good idea.
This guy comes in no history in Washington, hasn't been
elected by anybody, but he's yeah, he's he's changing things up,
shaking up the snow globe. It just seems as though
it's a it's a kind of surrendering of power that
you don't see in Washington much so. DOGE has estimated
(30:01):
that between five and ten percent of government workers will
take that offer, and they estimate that it'll save one
hundred billion dollars a year. Now, again, there may be
people listening right now will go, yeah, it'll save money,
but the government will collapse. Obviously, there are a lot
of aspects of government that are fat, that are bureaucracy,
(30:25):
that are the administrative state that is needless. But there
are also many parts of government that are critical that
must continue. And there is a slash and burn quality
to the way Musk and the uh, you know, the
youngsters he has with him there between eighteen and twenty six.
(30:48):
I think there is a slash and burn, aggressive quality
that may not really take stock of those distinctions between
those things that are just bureaucratic mess and waste and
those things that are critical. And the other thing about
Musk is that a lot of this is personal. He
is being investigated, as you may be aware, by the
(31:13):
very organizations within government that he's shutting down. So when
you look at his EPA jihad that's associated with finds
that he's received from the EPA for the rocket launches.
The FAA they find him and began an investigation as
a result of him having rocket launches that went bad
(31:36):
and they had to re plot a bunch of aviation
traffic because the rocket launches went bad. So he did
what he got rid of the head of the FAA
and he wiped away that whole incident with his rocket
launch and then finally USAID he's closing that down. He's
(31:57):
reduced the workforce to three percent. I think because it
suggested that USAID was investigating him for Starlink and the
fact that he shut down starlink at the behest of
the Russians during the Ukraine Russia conflict, the Ukrainians were
using starlink and musk shut it down. Again, this is
(32:22):
all out there. There are a lot of different interpretations
as to what's happening, but it is definitely a wild
time in Washington, and might there be a cleanup on
Aisle five because of the mess that's made. Yeah, both
legally and governmentally, but we'll see how it all shakes out.
(32:43):
There was a huge back and forth with Democrats trying
to get into the Department of Education. We may get
to that a little bit later in the show, but
that's a snapshot of what's happening with the Musk buyout
and beyond. John Cobalt Show, Mark Thompson sitting in on
KFI AM six forty. We're live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (33:03):
Hey, you've been listening to the John Cobalt Show podcast.
You can always hear the show live on KFI AM
six forty from one to four pm every Monday through Friday,
and of course anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app.
Can'f I am six forty. You're listening to the John
Coblt podcast on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Is the John Coblt Show.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
John has the day off, Mark Thompson sitting into for
a few hours.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
It's been a wild night.
Speaker 3 (00:13):
I know that they kept talking about this storm as
a mild storm week storm, but if you were out
traveling last night, it was anything but I mean what
it was. And I understand why they say it was weak,
because there wasn't any real heavy precipitation. It was generally lighter,
but it was unrelenting. I mean it just continued. And
(00:37):
I drove back from Pasadena last night co It's about
about eleven o'clock. There were massive pools of water everywhere,
all over the freeways, surface streets. I mean it was.
There were a bunch of cars pulled over to the
side of the road. It was very serious. The car
(00:58):
I was driving is into an electric car, you know,
so they have this regenerative braking thing, and I guess
when the brakes get wet, it doesn't regenerate anymore. So
it tells you that constantly, Like if that was supposed
to be the most important thing that I was thinking
(01:18):
about at that moment, I was going to constantly be
reminded that we're not regenerating. The brakes are not regenerating, right, Like,
it's like, guys, I got it. You don't have to
send off like a The dashboard lit up as though
it was the Space Shuttle or something, and then it
told me, by the way, also your ABS system, you know,
the other breaking system is effected. So that's how much
(01:41):
water was in the breaks. It was constantly bonging and binging,
and then the lights are going off constantly. I mentioned
this because in morning weather reports they were kind of
talking about it like it was a weak storm. And
meanwhile I was white knuckling back from Pasadena all the
way back over to Studio City, which shouldn't be a
(02:02):
particularly you know, tough route, but as I say, there
were major bits of pooling across the freeways. So as
we dry out a bit, they're already looking to next
week for perhaps a more potent storm.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Right.
Speaker 4 (02:17):
We have another major story today, which is the weather,
and that of course has an effect on the burnscar areas.
Speaker 5 (02:25):
Yeah, and you know, we're seeing some decent amounts that
have pushed through, especially with the second wave a little
bit more, and so obviously there's some concern there.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
And by the way, it's clearly the burnscare areas that
are the primary concern. But I'm just saying, even if
you're trying to get from here to there, the weather
has changed markedly and it may be a tougher ride.
Speaker 5 (02:42):
Overall, these were two at least as far as you
know storms are concerned. You know, they're kind of mild,
almost weak storms, and thank goodness for that. We also
heard Mayor Maass talking about the weather looking ahead towards
the future, hoping there's not an abundance of rain. Certainly
we hope that is the case. But I have been
saying this and I will continue to say it. We
(03:04):
have rain next week. Been talking about this storm since
last week, saying, hey, look we're going to have a
storm on Valentine's Day or at least close to it,
and you can see the rain developing. I think the
rain coming up the end of next week. We're going
to look at higher numbers and what's being reported right now,
and the reason for that is we look at computer models.
But there are some things in there that suggest that
I think we're going to see an inch to two
(03:25):
inches of rain possible.
Speaker 3 (03:26):
So wow, that will produce issues. You will see ground
movement with that kind of rain.
Speaker 5 (03:35):
This is not to cause alarm. This is just to
give you an idea that this weekend a big weekend.
I know for many reasons. For many people, They'll be sunshine,
they'll be dry conditions, yes, a little cool, but I
would anticipate that next week we're going to be talking
about some pretty decent storms moving through, and that of
course would pose a major threat.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
To those burn areas.
Speaker 5 (03:56):
Don't want to alarm, just want to keep you updated.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
This is the guy who I'd like to get bad
news from.
Speaker 3 (04:00):
Oh I don't know who this guy is, but like
he just sort of takes this long, circuitous way up
to telling me that I'm going to wash away next
to it.
Speaker 5 (04:09):
And that of course would pose a major threat to
those burn areas. Don't want alarm, just want to keep
you updated. I do think the numbers for next week
storms will be pumped up a little bit. I think
they're a little undervalued. I think we're looking at some
decent rain, some snow. You may have noticed the Mountain forecast.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
He said.
Speaker 3 (04:25):
I don't want to alarm, like four times, which absolutely
means I'm here to alarm colder temperatures.
Speaker 5 (04:32):
This will be more of a classic cold winter storm
for next week, Ginger, which means snow for the mountains
and some pretty good runoff with some rain coming into
the forecast.
Speaker 3 (04:42):
So obviously the key here is the movement that will
likely follow terrain will move when a significant storm comes
into the area, which is likely next week. I mean
two to four inches in the foothill areas that is Altadena,
(05:04):
And when you look at across the region one to
two inches of rain and varying amounts that like sort
of at minimum and inch of rain, there really might
be some problems in those burnscarred areas. And so we
watch with anticipation and with I think preparation, you know,
(05:27):
as that stuff happens. By the way, speaking of the
fires and speaking of the burn areas, there's some pretty
big news when it comes to so Cal Edison's report
on their own equipment having been behind the Eaten fires
and the Hearst fires.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
I mean it's a.
Speaker 3 (05:46):
Well, I'll say it's something that we talked about and
something we pointed to, I mean even in the hours
following it, you know, with so much surveillance video, so
much evidence. It was clear that so Cal Edison was
going to to likely bear some responsibility. They've been hit
with multiple lawsuits, right and those lawsuits came, as they
(06:08):
say right away, their equipment being behind the start of
the eaton fired Alta Dina and then the Hearst fire
in Silmar. That looks to be something that now there
is a true cause of relationship being pointed to. I
have more details on that and what will happen in
(06:32):
terms of these lawsuits. Also what's happening in terms of
insurance rates that are getting approval, jacking up our rates
even as they're falling out of the state of California.
We'll get to that a month after the LA fires.
A lot of questions still linger, all that still to come.
(06:56):
It's the coll belt Joe Mark Thompson sitting in for John.
Yes we will get to Washington. Yes, we'll get to
musk Yes we'll get to Doge. All of that as
we continue. We're KFI AM six forty live everywhere in
the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 6 (07:09):
You're listening to John Cobelt on demand from KFI AM.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
Sixty Dayline NBC. It's a juggernaut.
Speaker 3 (07:19):
You know, when they put out the podcast for Dateline NBC,
the true crime, you know, murder oriented show, it goes
right to number one every new epithet, I mean, the
most listened to podcasts in the country, Deborah.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
I'm sure you you love your date Line. I do.
I watch it on the weekend.
Speaker 3 (07:38):
Yes, and it is watchable in like five different places.
There is a new episode tonight, and in a moment,
Josh Mankowitz thirty years he's been at Dateline NBC, will
join us.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
But here's the episode for tonight from Paul.
Speaker 4 (07:56):
Came in around two thirty am. The man never gave
his name. He had only one desperate plea.
Speaker 7 (08:05):
I realized I had missed calls.
Speaker 8 (08:07):
It was San Francisco General Hospital.
Speaker 4 (08:11):
People may have thought they knew what happened, Well, this
was no ordinary crime.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
I think murder is always the last thing you expect, and.
Speaker 4 (08:20):
That man on the ground was no ordinary victim. Police
were about to learn what the tech world already knew.
Bob Lee was a big deal.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
He was building some of the best tools on the planet.
Speaker 7 (08:33):
He loved the opportunity to make the world a better place.
Speaker 4 (08:38):
So what brought him to that lonely block on the
streets of San Francisco.
Speaker 3 (08:43):
Wow, tonight it all happens. The yarn is told by
this guy, josh Mankowitch. Welcome to KFI. Yeah, so this
was a celebrated case because, as I recall, it was
wrapped down into sort of the image of San Francisco
as this decaying city where people are getting you know,
(09:05):
killed on the street.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
And it fits the narrative.
Speaker 7 (09:08):
Yeah, yeah, I mean it's said a very popular narrative,
which is that San Francisco has deteriorated and you know,
not even the not even the big names in tech
are safe. Anybody can be killed on the street at
any moment. Of course, Uh, that turned out to be
absolutely nothing to do with the case. It had nothing
to do with that, But that was a that was
(09:30):
the thing that a lot of people, Elon Musk included,
sort of jumped on, and many people assumed that they
knew what happened, and it turned out, of course, that
wasn't what happened at all. Now, police, San Francisco police
knew from the get go that this almost certainly was
not a robbery. This guy had his wallet, his very
expensive watch, and it's phone on him when they found him,
(09:53):
and he was almost dead when they found him, stabbed
underneath the Bay Bridge in downtown San Francisco. But you know,
police sort of let that robbery story sit out there
for a while while they looked at the people who
were who were ultimately responsible for this, and nine days
later they made an the rest, and last month there
was a conviction.
Speaker 3 (10:13):
It's interesting that they did let it sit out there.
That was a strategic move on the part of the cops.
Speaker 7 (10:17):
You're saying, I think they wanted to lull the actual
suspect into a feeling that the cops were going off
in the wrong direction.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Interesting, And so, I mean, I don't.
Speaker 7 (10:30):
Think they put that out there, but I think they
I think they I think they thought to themselves. I
know they thought to themselves, great, let's let everybody believe this.
It's fine.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
I mean, it's so clear, as you suggest here that
if he still had his expensive watch and his wallet,
et cetera, that it wasn't a robbery. But the fact
is that narrative did carry the day. So how long
from start to finish did cops take to actually get
the perpetrator they made They made.
Speaker 7 (10:57):
An arrest nine days later, and the trial was in
late twenty twenty four. And the Centain thing is coming
up pretty quickly now.
Speaker 2 (11:05):
So tonight is the episode nine o'clock? Is it?
Speaker 7 (11:09):
Tonight is the episode nine o'clock nine o'clock West Coast time,
also nine o'clock East Coast time called Under the Bay
Bridge on Dayline.
Speaker 3 (11:18):
No, you have, literally, I think in the last week
celebrated thirty years at Dayline NBC.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
Is that right now?
Speaker 7 (11:25):
I know I have. I started in nineteen ninety five,
it was earlier this week, and it was not I
will say it did go by very quickly.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
It was not a true crime show when you started.
Speaker 7 (11:37):
No, No, not at all. We were sort of the
faster moving sixty minutes. When we started. We were doing
five or six stories within an hour. They were not
related to one another, and they were all over the map.
I mean, I did celebrity profiles, I did investigative stories,
I did tech stories, I did stories about I did
(11:58):
a story of an this school of thought that you should
give your kids ice cream in the morning because it's
got as much it's got as many calories at eight
am as it does at eight pm, but don't burn
it off. All day long, which was at the times
very controversial. We did all kinds of stories, and then
(12:18):
after I'd been there about ten years, like Times two
thousand and six, we started making the turn to true crime, which,
as you know, because you and I have known each
other forever, was something that always interested in me anyway,
and it worked out. It's been a fun ride.
Speaker 3 (12:34):
And just to double back for a second, they made
that transition from the magazine show that you've described to
true crime because why lastic the.
Speaker 7 (12:44):
Audience was getting bored with the traditional magazine show. And
I also think I think our boss at the time,
a guy named David Corbo, figured out that nobody was
covering that part of American life that you know. And
this is still largely true. I mean, maybe not crimes
like Bob Lee, which are the murder of Bob Lee,
(13:06):
which is a very well known crime, but the most
of the stuff we cover on Dateline, those are people
you've never heard of, in a lot of cases in
towns you've never heard of. And what we say to
people to try to get them to come on Dateline
is one hundred percent true, which is this story is
not going to get this kind of treatment. Anywhere else.
You might get five or six inches in your local newspaper,
(13:29):
you might get forty seconds or a minute on your
local TV news, but you're not going to get what's
essentially a two hour documentary about not just the crime,
but the relationship of killer and victim and the life
that that person led. Before they got adlines, nobody was
doing that, and we started doing that and it took off.
Speaker 2 (13:51):
And it's that relationship.
Speaker 3 (13:52):
It's that yarn that you've described, the relationships between killer
and victim, etc. And maybe even these small towns that
we don't know. The sort of texture of the story
is added with all of the descriptive elements associated with that.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
You think that's what's made it so popular.
Speaker 7 (14:10):
Yeah, I do, because you know, most people in their
life will not be the victim of violent crime. Most
people will never experience that, but everybody has been in
a relationship that didn't work out the way you wanted
it to. Dayline is more about relationships than it is
about murders. It's but the choices people make, frequently astonishing
(14:31):
hard to believe, choices like the one to kill somebody
who might be the mother or father of their kids.
Those are the things we do. You know, we don't
do a lot of stories about serial killers. We're not
doing random crimes. We're doing stories in which killer and
victim almost always have a relationship. And that was true
about Bobby and the man to the victim of murdering him.
(14:53):
They had a relationship.
Speaker 3 (14:55):
Yeah, that story tonight. I can't wait to see because
it is it's all a twisted series of relationships. It's
not just killer and victim, it's also it is. Yeah,
it's a deep dive, so great stuff, Josh, look forward
to it.
Speaker 7 (15:11):
Yeah, but you know, next time I come on, I
want to spend some more time talking about that mail
enhancement drugs that you were talking about earlier. Because of
all the stuff I've hever on KFI, including this interview
that actually interested me the most.
Speaker 3 (15:23):
Well you look, look, those people wanted to get the
word out, so they bought time on the station, and
I say bravo to them all right now too.
Speaker 7 (15:31):
Yeah, if you can hook me up with them, then
this friendship will finally have delivered something.
Speaker 3 (15:35):
Worthwhile I had no idea. I will look into it.
Josh mccowitz, dateline nine o'clock to I. Congratulations on thirty years, sir,
good stuff, Thanks Bud, Thank you. When we come back,
so Cal Edison saying that its equipment may have caused
the Eaton and Hurst fires. Lawsuits abound, we'll discuss it next.
(15:57):
It is the Cobalt Show, Thompson sitting in for Josh
ONFI AM six forty live everywhere in the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 6 (16:04):
You're listening to John Cobels on demand from KFI AM
six forty.
Speaker 3 (16:10):
Yes, it's been an active week or three weeks in Washington.
We'll get to a lot of the DC news a
little bit later, but Southern California, we're really trying to
piece together a lot of aspects of what we've been
through with the fires. I mean cause of the fires,
(16:30):
degree to which any of the damage could have been
mitigated with strategies and attackling the fires and ultimately evacuations,
I mean, could that have been done better? All of
the alert systems are being looked at, so you know,
this is a truly extensive and multifaceted kind of investigation.
Speaker 2 (16:52):
But when it comes to the cause of.
Speaker 3 (16:53):
The fire, you're talking about what talking about? Lawsuits? Lots
of them and now this word out of SOCO.
Speaker 2 (17:00):
We're learning that Southern California.
Speaker 8 (17:01):
Edison says it is its equipment likely sparked the Hurst
wildfire that broke out on January seventh. So this is
all according to a filing with state utility regulators. The
hearst fire for nearly eight hundred acres around the Silmar
neighborhood in La. It did not destroy any structures, will
result in any deaths. Meantime, so Cal Edison is also
(17:22):
investigating whether an idle transmission line in the Eaton fire
became energized and possibly sparked the devastation.
Speaker 5 (17:29):
That happened in Altadena.
Speaker 2 (17:32):
Let's take a look at this.
Speaker 9 (17:34):
This is footage from a gas station security camera. Attorney
j Edelson alleges this real time video is the strongest
evidence yet showing sparks falling, then ten minutes later the
entire hillside is on fire.
Speaker 3 (17:48):
That was one of the one He's a video that
we saw early on that really did point to so
Cal Edison involvement. There's no question that that video is
damning this morning.
Speaker 9 (17:59):
So Cal Edison maintains there is no evidence that its
equipment is responsible for starting the Eating fire, which burned
fourteen thousand acres.
Speaker 8 (18:08):
Of course, as that investigation continues, will keep you posted
on any updates there.
Speaker 3 (18:12):
Yeah, and there's no wonder that they are pushing back
on it because that is an insane liability. I mean,
we don't need to discuss further what happened to Altadena
and those communities around that area devastated. So when you
talk about a fire torching fourteen thousand acres, you're talking
about a responsibility legally that will be excruciating crippling, right, So,
(18:38):
so cal Edison is pushing back on that, but it
does appear and look, there are major investigations going on.
FEDS are here atf IS here and these guys are,
you know, top of the game when it comes to
investigations around fires and the cause and so the Eaton fire,
(18:58):
they will make a decision and a determination as to
how that fire started. But they've been hit with multiple lawsuits,
has so cal Edison, and those lawsuits alleged that their
equipment started the Eaton fire, And they say, again, this
is how we got here, that their equipment did likely
(19:20):
start the Hurst fire in Silmour, in Silmar, but in
Silmar there wasn't the damage that you found in Altadena.
So their equipment very much a part of this investigation.
But as I say, it's not just how the fire starts,
it's what happened once the fire began. And it's not
(19:44):
just those fires, right, the Palisades fire with this bizarre
origin story of the fire breaking out on that hiking trail,
and it was likely embers that were left over from
a New Year's Eve celebration and fireworks display that was
(20:05):
just kind of a one off that had been done
by a bunch of people celebrating or hanging out. And
even though those fires and that small fire on that
hiking trail was put out, those embers lived on and
on January seventh, they were re animated by the winds
(20:26):
and spread into the Palisades in Malibu. So again you've
got ATF on the scene, and they're going to determine
without question, I would think there'll be some sort of
essentially determinative decision that they'll make as to, you know,
what their investigation yields. But these fires and their cause
(20:48):
is just part of it all. I mean, fire preparations.
Could there have been more done to you know, forego
all of this damage. Could you have strategically placed manpower
sets around the area. I think that's a tough argument
to make, and I think that there were failings. Without question,
there were failings. I mean, I've told you before, I
(21:12):
don't see the mayor surviving it. Mayor bass out of
the country during this whole thing that was anticipated, talked
about record winds were coming into an area that was
tender dry, and she's not around. I just don't see
her surviving that. I mean, I get why she's not resigning.
(21:34):
I mean from a political standpoint, I understand what she's
trying to do now right the ship, but I just
think it's reputationally too harmful. But in any case, I
don't know, having said that, that you could have with
any sort of certainty, anticipated where the fire was going.
Speaker 2 (21:52):
To break out.
Speaker 3 (21:54):
I was having dinner last night in Pasadena. We're talking
about these people with people who evacuated from the Altade fires,
and they were saying the same thing, say, gosh, you know,
we are just a general anxiety when the Santa Ana
wins start. We don't know where those embers are going
to blow and where there will be a fire breaking out,
and neither do firefighters. They did have on some level
(22:17):
assets ready, but they had no way to beat back
flames being driven by eighty mile an hour winds. I mean,
should there be local water infrastructure? Should there be you know,
storage tanks that should be expanded. I mean, these are
questions that are being asked. I mean to what extent
(22:39):
should additional assets be brought in, additional manpower. These are
all questions that are not just local. I mean, this
isn't just LA. These are being asked statewide. It's a
statewide issue. I mean, Northern California has had their own
degree of pain through Sonoma, through Paradise. So this is
(23:00):
a contemporary consideration for all Californians. And this is a
horrible way to have to come to grips with it
what we've just been through. But these investigations continue, and
then these lawsuits continue. When we come back a federal
judge halting Trump's buyout program, there are legal challenges to
(23:24):
the Fed buyout program where they're saying, hey, we're cutting
back on government, but good news for you, eight months
of pay and you don't even have to come into
the office anymore. A judge says, not so fast. We'll
get to that next John Cobelt Show, Mark Thompson sitting in.
I'm KFI AM six forty. We're live everywhere on the
iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 6 (23:46):
You're listening to John cobelts on demand from KFI AM sixty.
Speaker 3 (23:52):
Is the John cobelt Show. Mark Thompson sitting in. And
there is stuff going on in Washington, d C. I mean,
this is an extraordinary thing in virtually every agency of government.
But let's just talk about one thing that's happening, and
that is the buyout. Now, the way government works, as
(24:15):
you know, is associated with an appropriation. Congress appropriates money
for something and then the money is spent. So much
as we'd like to just come in and declare something like,
in this case, a buyout offer if you're trying to
trim government. Let's leave aside the whether it's smart to
(24:38):
trim government, whether it's you know, ham fisted to go
in so hot and just like offer everybody a buyout, like,
you know, not to even figure out, well, does this
agency require more of a trimming than that agency. Let's
just leave that all aside now, it's just about the
reality of the buyout. What struck me when I saw
(25:01):
the buyout was, wait a minute, where does that money
come from? Again, there's an appropriations process that is stipulated constitutionally,
so you need Congress to appropriate money. So be that
as it may. I mean, these guys totally have their
own thing. When I say these guys, it's really you
(25:23):
know Musk and his view of government alongside those that
you know share, giving him sort of free reign. So
this is a very draconian proposal, we get it. But
the thing that's happened now is a people have taken
that buyout. In fact, not an incidental number. It looks
(25:47):
like sixty five thousand government workers have now taken that buyout.
That's about three percent of the two million people who
were given the offer. So they will resign and that
will reduce the bureaucracy, is the argument. Okay, and they'll
be paid out. Now again I'm leaving aside whether that's
(26:10):
smart policy. I just an unclear eyes to whether the
money is there to pay for them. But now there
is a judge halting this buyout completely, which brings an
entirely new element to this that hadn't existed before, which
is the legal element.
Speaker 4 (26:29):
Elon Musk, We've got a message for you.
Speaker 2 (26:32):
You will be fired.
Speaker 10 (26:34):
Democrats are ramping up their pushback against Elon Musk and
his Department of Government Efficiency. The efforts by DOGE to
downsize government have led to access to multiple sensitive systems
in various government agencies and an attempted purge of civilian
federal workers. More than sixty thousand federal employees had reportedly
taken a deferred resignation offer allowing them to resign with
(26:56):
pay through September. A majority of the more than two
million and civilian federal workers were eligible, and they were
up against a Thursday night deadline to take it or
leave it and possibly face layoffs in the near future.
A judge's order could now temporarily delay that decision. Many
Republicans have cheered on the breakneck speed Doze is working at.
Speaker 11 (27:15):
We certainly are always concerned when there's a bull in
the china shop, and that's certainly something that we're seeing here.
This is going to be a messy and sloppy and
not pretty, but it's not going to be illegal.
Speaker 10 (27:29):
But at least one Senate Republican isn't so sure about
Musk's power. Main Senator Susan Collins told reporters this week
that President Trump appears to have empowered Elon Musk far
beyond what I think is appropriate, and that she thought
a lot of what Musk and Doze are doing is
going to end up in court. Musk's team reportedly now
has access to Medicare and Medicaid records, two areas that
(27:51):
had more than one hundred billion dollars of improper payments
in twenty twenty three, according to the Government Accountability Office.
The White House has defended the Doze work to try
and streamline the government.
Speaker 12 (28:01):
We encourage that all workers in this city to accept
the very generous offer. If they don't want to show
up to the office, if they want to rip the
American people off, then they're welcome to take this buyout
and we'll find highly competent individuals who want to fill
these rules.
Speaker 3 (28:15):
One potential what was the what was that they want
to if they want to rip the American people off?
Speaker 2 (28:19):
What was that quote?
Speaker 12 (28:20):
If they want to rip the American people off, then
they're welcome to take this buyout, and we'll find highly
competent individuals who want to.
Speaker 3 (28:26):
Fill these rus I think the idea is hey, and
this is really the way it has played out. Apparently
in follow up memos, if you don't want to take
this buyout. You should be aware of the fact that
we're going to be making some big changes to your agency,
including adding AI into many positions, such that you may
not have a job here anyway. So we strongly recommend
(28:49):
you take the buyout. These are the messages being communicated
to staffers.
Speaker 13 (28:54):
Now, one potentially huge hurdle for the so called buyouts
is this the government is currently funded through mid March
and workers taking buyouts or being promised money through September,
but that could all hinge on what Congress is willing
to appropriate for the rest of the year.
Speaker 3 (29:08):
So that's what I'm talking about. That there's not money there,
So there might be money there, but Congress has to
appropriate the money.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
Whis interesting to me.
Speaker 3 (29:15):
Also, just speaking of Congress, is it's interesting that Congress
is so willing to surrender their power. Their power all
comes in their ability to appropriate money. I mean, I
understand that the House also is an investigative body, they
have other powers, but my god, the biggest power they
have is the power of appropriations. And that you all
(29:39):
of a sudden go yeah, I think it's a good idea.
This guy comes in no history in Washington, hasn't been
elected by anybody, but he's yeah, he's he's changing things up,
shaking up the snow globe. It just seems as though
it's a it's a kind of surrendering of power that
you don't see in Washington much so. DOGE has estimated
(30:01):
that between five and ten percent of government workers will
take that offer, and they estimate that it'll save one
hundred billion dollars a year. Now, again, there may be
people listening right now will go, yeah, it'll save money,
but the government will collapse. Obviously, there are a lot
of aspects of government that are fat, that are bureaucracy,
(30:25):
that are the administrative state that is needless. But there
are also many parts of government that are critical that
must continue. And there is a slash and burn quality
to the way Musk and the uh, you know, the
youngsters he has with him there between eighteen and twenty six.
(30:48):
I think there is a slash and burn, aggressive quality
that may not really take stock of those distinctions between
those things that are just bureaucratic mess and waste and
those things that are critical. And the other thing about
Musk is that a lot of this is personal. He
is being investigated, as you may be aware, by the
(31:13):
very organizations within government that he's shutting down. So when
you look at his EPA jihad that's associated with finds
that he's received from the EPA for the rocket launches.
The FAA they find him and began an investigation as
a result of him having rocket launches that went bad
(31:36):
and they had to re plot a bunch of aviation
traffic because the rocket launches went bad. So he did
what he got rid of the head of the FAA
and he wiped away that whole incident with his rocket
launch and then finally USAID he's closing that down. He's
(31:57):
reduced the workforce to three percent. I think because it
suggested that USAID was investigating him for Starlink and the
fact that he shut down starlink at the behest of
the Russians during the Ukraine Russia conflict, the Ukrainians were
using starlink and musk shut it down. Again, this is
(32:22):
all out there. There are a lot of different interpretations
as to what's happening, but it is definitely a wild
time in Washington, and might there be a cleanup on
Aisle five because of the mess that's made. Yeah, both
legally and governmentally, but we'll see how it all shakes out.
(32:43):
There was a huge back and forth with Democrats trying
to get into the Department of Education. We may get
to that a little bit later in the show, but
that's a snapshot of what's happening with the Musk buyout
and beyond. John Cobalt Show, Mark Thompson sitting in on
KFI AM six forty. We're live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (33:03):
Hey, you've been listening to the John Cobalt Show podcast.
You can always hear the show live on KFI AM
six forty from one to four pm every Monday through Friday,
and of course anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app.
The John Kobylt Show News
Host
John Kobylt
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.