January 24, 2025 • 23 mins
KFI White House correspondent Jon Decker joins Bill to talk about Trump’s trip to California. Gov. Newsom signs $2.5BIL bipartisan relief package to help Los Angeles recover and rebuild faster. Award-winning documentary film maker Peter Williams joins the show to discuss his latest documentary on World War II poets.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
You're list Saints KFI AM six forty. The Bill handles
show on demand on the iheartradiof on KFI AM six forty,
and the morning crew Welcome back everybody. Now the President
is on his way here to southern California, and I
don't know. First he's going to North Carolina to visit
(00:23):
the western part of North Carolina or on a Carolina
because of their hurricane disaster. And then he's on his
way to Los Angeles. I don't know what time he's
hitting LA, but he's going to visit some of the
fire ravaged areas. And let me tell you, first of all,
whenever the president goes any place in this country, it's
a pain in the ass. The roads are closed down,
(00:47):
air space is shut down. He flies into lax he's
picked up at the tarmac, of course, and then they
do the motorcade through the city, or if we're lucky, helicopter.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Goes up in the air and delivers them wherever he's
going to go.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
And in this case, this is absolutely the worst time
for the president to come.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Now, it's important that he comes.
Speaker 1 (01:09):
I get that he has to connect and that's any president,
you have to be there. But the efforts that it
takes to bring a president here and get in the
way of everything. So he's coming down, not that it's
going to do anything to help, but it's a photo op.
And by the way, he's not himself, it's not just him,
it's every president who does this. Now, a couple of things.
(01:32):
He's already criticized Joe Biden for Biden's response to North Carolina.
He has shown complete disdain for California. Are leaders for
water policy that he says actually worsened the blazes. California
water policy's actually made the blazes worse. Oh, we have John,
(01:56):
You're absolutely right. Let's go ahead and talk to John.
I apologize for that, all right.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
John Decker. What a morning it is, isn't it? Man?
My head?
Speaker 3 (02:04):
So it is about forty five minutes ago, it was
when President Trump left the White House got in to
western North Carolina. He's going to be visiting Ashville. Ashville,
of course, still recovering from two hurricanes that hit the
region in twenty twenty four, and there's, according to North
Carolina officials, twelve thousand people who are still homeless in
(02:27):
the aftermath of those hurricanes. And then he'll fly across
the country out to Los Angeles and see for himself
the devastation of those wildfires in southern California.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
So, John, let me ask you, and I got into it.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
I was so excited about how miserable it is when
a president hits the ground any place, any city. So
I was getting excited about that man sitting here wondering
what it's.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
Going to be like.
Speaker 1 (02:53):
Youri, you travel with the president all the time, how
do you expect him to or how much you expect
to rip into California considering how much he actually dislikes
our governor, our politicians, our policies, and the fact that
California is the blue estate in the country.
Speaker 3 (03:13):
Well, I think that there's going to be a political
element to this trip. And the reason I say that
is because he's criticized the state response to the wildfires
in California. He's criticized the federal response by the Biden
administration to the hurricanes and the aftermath in western North Carolina.
(03:34):
And so for those two reasons, you know, Donald Trump
speaks his mind, he doesn't edit his thoughts. I think
that he'll speak about both of those issues and route
to both of those regions that have been hard hit
by these natural disasters. He actually spoke about that before
he departed the White House on Marine one, So I
think you're going to hear more of that on this
(03:55):
trip that he's going to be taking.
Speaker 1 (03:57):
Now, you have been covering the president for a while,
and you've got the White House press pool where all
of you guys talk to each.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Other, and I'm sure that there are.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
A lot of betting as to what is actually going
to happen and what is not going to happen visa
vid this administration. And my take on this and is
that there are certain things that he actually will do
and other things that are so impractical they make no sense.
One of them being that he wants to redo FEMA
and have the States get more involved in disaster relief,
(04:29):
because it basically says FEMA is screwing up, it's not
doing a good job, it's mismanaged.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
How does that work?
Speaker 3 (04:36):
Great?
Speaker 2 (04:37):
Yeah, How how.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
Do you translate and a federal agency that in fact
is set up for these disasters, that has the money,
uh the infrastructure to instantly go into one of those
places and transfer it to the states.
Speaker 2 (04:55):
Does the Press Corps take that.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
Seriously or is that just another bomb back asked from
the President.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
Well, I think a lot of those questions are still
unknown because President Trump is still not named a new
director of FEMA. There are some people that I've heard
being mentioned who could be in line for that post.
But you know, he's criticized FEMA in the past, including
in an interview that he did this past week with
Sean Hannity on Fox News. So it's going to be interesting.
(05:26):
Maybe we'll learn this on this multi day trip that
he's taking what he envisions for that agency that does
play a critical role when natural disasters hit regions of
the US.
Speaker 2 (05:37):
Yeah. I can't wait for that.
Speaker 1 (05:39):
All right, John, we'll be talking again, and I can't
wait to report on what actually happened here in LA.
And you've experienced just how difficult it is for the
people who are in those areas, how they deal with
the President coming into town. And I've been here when
it's happened. It's pretty insane, isn't it, with the Secret
(05:59):
Service and the responders and the traffic.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
And that's typical any place, isn't it. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (06:06):
You know, I see it from a different perspective than you,
because when I travel with the President I'm in the
motor cade and I don't have to, you know, deal
with this type of things that the people on the
other side of the highway have to contend with when
a president visits. I travel with President Trump in the
aftermath of Hurricane Maria to Puerto Rico, and you know,
(06:29):
obviously that was a major disaster, knocked out electricity on
half the island. And he not only did an aerial view,
an aerial inspection of the damage associated from Hurricane Maria,
he also met with residents on the ground. I would
expect he's going to do the same thing, you know,
while he's in North Carolina and also out in southern California.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
Yeah, and he's going through Sunset Boulevard probably to the
Palace Age, which is the only way in, and it
is going to be just an utter.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Utter disaster.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
I enjoy it because every time I get caught in
traffic when anything like this happens, I'm about to blow
my brains off that.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
You are yeadly for people on the other side of
the highway or other side of the street that have
been held up because of the presidential motor kit, I do.
I feel for those people, and you know, that's one
of the things that you have to contend with when
you're talking about a presidential business.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
Do you waive and say, don't you wish it was
that you were me at the crowd?
Speaker 2 (07:31):
Probably not?
Speaker 3 (07:32):
All right, I don't do that.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
All right, Well that's John, You're way too professional.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
John Decker Kfrice, White House Correspondent. Thanks Jean reporting on
the price here. Then we're going to talk more about
that now. A quick word about Governor Newsom signing a
two point five billion dollar relief package to help LA
recover and rebuild faster from the firestorm.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
And this is a big one, by the way. And
for those.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
People that are not really thrilled about government getting involved
in general, say you are conservative and you think government
should stay out of insert name of program philosophy here.
One of the things that government does do and has
to do is the safety of the citizens. This is
(08:17):
both federal, state, local, county wide, and that's exactly what's
happening here.
Speaker 2 (08:22):
And I have to give the governor some credit on
this one.
Speaker 1 (08:26):
You can say a lot about Newsom, you know, too
slick and everything is politically motivated.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
You know this one.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
I have to tell you, this was necessary. He came
to it very quickly. I think the first responders did
an incredible job on this. Now there's gonna be some
argument about wor they firefighters there quickly enough? Was their
poor planning? There was that reservoir that was empty. I mean,
there's a lot of stuff we're going to talk about,
but looking at what has happened, this is government doing
(08:56):
what it should do.
Speaker 2 (08:58):
And it was a special session of the legend that came.
Speaker 1 (09:02):
Into being and it's said, we've got to do this,
and this was bipartisan.
Speaker 2 (09:08):
I'd like to what the vote is. I can't imagine
anybody voted against it.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
So it's emergency protective measures, evacuation, sheltering for survivors, to
pre removal, clean up, post fire hazard assessments, traffic control,
necessary emergency response activities. Two point five billion dollars.
Speaker 2 (09:26):
That's going to be the start.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
And that doesn't count private donations. It doesn't count that
concert with everybody on the planet, in all the astar
A list performers, it doesn't count with the city, what the.
Speaker 2 (09:41):
County is doing.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
It's everybody is coming to the table big time on
this one. Four million dollars to help expedite rebuilding. Now,
we're not talking about four million dollars to actually help
you rebuild. It's too expediteed. Los Angeles, Southern California. California
in general is one of the most onerous places.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
This is anywhere to build. The regulations are crazy, and what.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
Is going on with the city, with the state is
we're going to undo all of that temporarily. The Coastal Commission,
which has very strict laws, we're putting everything on hold.
A million dollars to rebuild fire damaged school facilities. I
don't know how far that's going to go. A tax
relief for all of us postponing the individual tax filing
(10:30):
deadline to October fifteen for La County taxpayers. Also, businesses
get a tax break in terms of filing, in terms
of time, fast tracking temporary housing, and then tenant protection
and debris removal and clean up and survivors helping us
survive from price gouging because there are cockroaches out there
(10:54):
who are taking advantage of this.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
Now most people are pretty good about it.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
How about those resta on tours that have set up
kitchens and they're paying out of pocket to feed people
and offering places for rent. I know a couple people
that have offered their houses or part of their houses,
extra bedrooms for free if you need it, getting kids
(11:19):
back into the classroom. Real estate speculators, right, people coming
in and saying, hey, I'll buy your property and I'll
handle everything you.
Speaker 2 (11:29):
So you want to get out of here. It's horrible.
Look what you're going to do. So I'll give you
fifty cents on the dollar.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
And people are vulnerable now, and real estate developers and speculators, well,
they don't have the best reputation in the.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
World, do they. So two point five billion dollars and
this is just the start. This is the state.
Speaker 1 (11:49):
And I do believe that the Feds are going to
come in, and I mean the politics of it, I
think are going to disappear. I think at this well
maybe not, maybe not on the federal level. I'm guessing wrong,
but I believe there is at some point federal help
without politics comes in. It always has with natural disasters.
(12:10):
There's never been strings attached. Now, well, we'll see what happens,
especially as we look at the President and what his
comments are going to be today when he comes out.
Speaker 2 (12:19):
Here to Los Angeles.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
All right, you know, I've often talked about what the
pandemic has done to us. So we don't even know.
I mean, we're studying it. It's going to go on forever.
But one of the things is that office buildings became
empty because everybody was working remotely, and so as people
come back to work, there's still plenty of office space
empty because companies are laying off people like crazy, and
(12:44):
so as for example, KFI has people come back to
work talking about management.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
And sales, etc. It's still the footprint is so much smaller.
Speaker 1 (12:53):
As a matter of fact, here on the fourth floor,
I understand they're negotiating with the city to set up
a homeless shelter.
Speaker 2 (12:59):
Right here ATFI.
Speaker 1 (13:00):
You wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the
folks that work here and the homeless people. But what's
happening also is that developers are coming in and buying
office buildings that will never have tenants because it is
a different world. Look at CNN just laid off what
(13:20):
six percent of its workforce.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
Companies are downsizing.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
Down sousing means that they don't need the office space.
They don't need the office space. Office space is empty.
People that own office buildings are going, now, what the
hell do we do?
Speaker 2 (13:35):
And there's a couple of choices.
Speaker 1 (13:37):
You try to get tenants back, good luck. Or what
people who buy office buildings now, or people who own
office buildings is they put housing into office buildings. Downtown,
particularly here in southern California, Los Angeles, tons of office
buildings that are empty or have whole floors that are empty.
(13:58):
And do you convert now converting office space into apartment buildings. Well,
let me tell you it's not that difficult. I mean,
they have to gut the building, but the plumbing is
already there. They can use a lot of the mechanicals,
the HVAC, a lot of the electrical. The big problem
(14:21):
was always bringing them up to seismic levels, in other words,
requirements for the seismic retrofits.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
And the only way these could be done is, first
of all, is very expensive.
Speaker 1 (14:35):
Second of all, the whole building has to become vacant
before the seismic retrofit comes into being.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
Well, you know what the city has done for buildings
that are older.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Say before nineteen eighty five, where before they change the code, they've.
Speaker 2 (14:54):
Said, you know what, you don't have to seismically retrofit.
You know if the.
Speaker 1 (14:58):
Building falls down with a bunch of people in it, eh,
small price to pay. We need the economy, which, by
the way, if I were the mayor, I would do
exactly the same thing.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Take your chances. If the building collapses, God bless you.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
In the meantime, you get housing, and you get good housing.
And so that alone makes it so much cheaper, easier,
faster to put housing into those office buildings. And the
other thing is you can go floor by floor now.
(15:33):
Prior to now they had to get everybody out of the.
Speaker 2 (15:36):
Building for a seismic retrofit.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
Now what developers can do is go in and say
we'll take floor twelve and get everybody out of there
of an office building because let's say that's the most empty,
and just do that floor while businesses are on eleven
and fourteen and seven, and do.
Speaker 2 (15:56):
It floor by floor, which all of.
Speaker 1 (15:59):
A sudden now makes it economically feasible or more feasible.
On top of that, you we desperately need housing. People
want to live downtown. And it's not just the businesses,
it's the restaurants that are in that area. It's just
what are that Neil, you live pretty near or a
(16:20):
downtown and your area is thriving. And if housing, well,
if it was all business and it disappeared, what do
you do with that?
Speaker 2 (16:30):
You know, you shut down the restaurant? Do you not
open one up?
Speaker 4 (16:36):
After the During the pandemic and afterwards, the vast majority
of restaurants shut down and didn't come back. It was
it was pretty interesting to see how it took a
while for it to You know, some of the best
restaurants in Los Angeles are within walking distance.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
So there was a dark.
Speaker 4 (16:57):
Time when there was a lot of things that were
shuttered here.
Speaker 5 (17:00):
But it came back. Except office space has not come space.
No office space. You're you're absolutely right, office space. I
still see signs out for places like that.
Speaker 2 (17:15):
All right.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
I want to introduce to you a dear friend of mine,
an award winning a documentary filmmaker who've known I don't
know thirty five years, who is involved.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
I'm sorry, at least at least that's right, Peter. Yeah,
we're both getting old, you far more than I am.
I might add.
Speaker 1 (17:36):
Peter has won many awards and he's involved in a
documentary film that is pretty extraordinary. It's about a man
who we don't know about who has a life that
was simply extraordinary. A lot of poems come out of
World War One, you know, flanders Field, the Poppies and
(17:57):
all that. Almost none come out of World War Two.
And Peter jumped into this. And so Peter, good morning
or good afternoon to you. Tell us about this documentary
film that you're doing.
Speaker 6 (18:10):
Well. It's about a chap called Louis Simpson. And Louis
was a remarkable man I met simply because he came
to Europe on D Day too, helped to liberate occupied Europe,
Europe occupied by the Nazi armies, and he saw the
(18:32):
war through the eyes of a poet. Because it was
a poet, he made his reputation. He won a Gurgendheim Fellowship,
he was in nineteen sixty four. He won a Politzer Prize.
But he paid the price of being in the US
(18:52):
Airborne Regiment and landing there because he had a breakdown
at the end of the war and was out of
it for a couple of years. But he came back
and he was one of the outstanding poets on either
side of the Atlantic. With regard to World War Two,
(19:16):
if you compare it, as you said, with World War One,
there's a certain lyricism as well as tragedy in the
poetry of World War One, but there's very little poetry
about World War Two.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
It's something as I was reading about it and talking
to you about it. He is one of the personalities
characters that came out of World War Two, and there's
so many extraordinary stories. I know you've been wanting to
do a film about him for a very long time,
and knowing what Peter does in the films that he does,
(19:53):
it's going to be extraordinary. And I know you've done
a lot of films over your career, and.
Speaker 2 (19:59):
So let me do this.
Speaker 1 (20:01):
I'm gonna actually invite those people who are interested in
Anybody who's interested in history, anybody who's.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
Interested in an extraordinary character like.
Speaker 1 (20:10):
This, you have to look up his biography and get
involved in Peter's film, Because Peter, you're about.
Speaker 2 (20:19):
Halfway through it. Do I have that right? So again,
you're about halfway through your film? Correct?
Speaker 6 (20:26):
Yes, Well, I've put about thirty pounds into it.
Speaker 1 (20:29):
Oh lovely, and this is out of pocket and that
doesn't usually happen, and it's so worthwhile. So let me
do this for people who are interested in getting involved
with Peter on this extraordinary project.
Speaker 2 (20:44):
Peter, how do they get hold of you? How does
that done?
Speaker 6 (20:49):
Just contact me by email. It's Peter Williams Television. The
email addresses Peter at PWTV dot co dot uk. That's
Peter at p w TV, Peter Williams Television dot co
dot UK and Peter, anybody, I.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
Am going to put this on my website and the
kf I have white website so people can contact you
and get involved in this film because it is worthwhile.
Speaker 2 (21:22):
It's extraordinary.
Speaker 1 (21:23):
Anybody who's interested in history, anybody who's interested in an
American who is not well known enough and should be.
And what a story, What a story, Peter, Thanks greatly appreciated,
and we'll get going on this.
Speaker 6 (21:38):
Okay, Yeah, can I if you have the time, can
I tell you a little bit about what Simpson wrote about?
Speaker 2 (21:48):
Yeah, King, can we do it in about a minute
minute and a half?
Speaker 6 (21:51):
You can it a minute?
Speaker 2 (21:52):
Yeah, Okay, go ahead.
Speaker 6 (21:53):
He paratute into northern France and he wrote a poem
which is one of the best known poems about the
World War Two, which is called Karenton Oh Karenown. And
(22:13):
that's where he was wounded I'll read you three verses
of it.
Speaker 2 (22:19):
Yeah, Peter, we're not gonna have time for that.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
So what I'm gonna do is that'll be on the
website Carrington, Oh Carrington, and it's I've read part of
this and it is well worth reading. So Peter, let
me do this because I got to bail out. We
have to go to another topic. At the top of
the hour. It's Peter at PTV as in Peter Television,
Peter at p TV dot.
Speaker 2 (22:44):
I'm sorry, it's p WTV.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
Sorry this I always do this, p thanks for correcting me.
P WTV dot co dot UK. And I'll make sure
that people will get hold of that, all right, peterks Bill.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
Thank you. I appreciate it and I do, and we'll
see what we can do, all right. Take care.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
KFI AM sixty. You've been listening to the Bill Handle Show.
Catch My Show Monday through Friday six am to nine am,
and anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app.
You're list Saints KFI AM six forty. The Bill handles
show on demand on the iheartradiof on KFI AM six forty,
and the morning crew Welcome back everybody. Now the President
is on his way here to southern California, and I
don't know. First he's going to North Carolina to visit
(00:23):
the western part of North Carolina or on a Carolina
because of their hurricane disaster. And then he's on his
way to Los Angeles. I don't know what time he's
hitting LA, but he's going to visit some of the
fire ravaged areas. And let me tell you, first of all,
whenever the president goes any place in this country, it's
a pain in the ass. The roads are closed down,
(00:47):
air space is shut down. He flies into lax he's
picked up at the tarmac, of course, and then they
do the motorcade through the city, or if we're lucky, helicopter.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Goes up in the air and delivers them wherever he's
going to go.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
And in this case, this is absolutely the worst time
for the president to come.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Now, it's important that he comes.
Speaker 1 (01:09):
I get that he has to connect and that's any president,
you have to be there. But the efforts that it
takes to bring a president here and get in the
way of everything. So he's coming down, not that it's
going to do anything to help, but it's a photo op.
And by the way, he's not himself, it's not just him,
it's every president who does this. Now, a couple of things.
(01:32):
He's already criticized Joe Biden for Biden's response to North Carolina.
He has shown complete disdain for California. Are leaders for
water policy that he says actually worsened the blazes. California
water policy's actually made the blazes worse. Oh, we have John,
(01:56):
You're absolutely right. Let's go ahead and talk to John.
I apologize for that, all right.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
John Decker. What a morning it is, isn't it? Man?
My head?
Speaker 3 (02:04):
So it is about forty five minutes ago, it was
when President Trump left the White House got in to
western North Carolina. He's going to be visiting Ashville. Ashville,
of course, still recovering from two hurricanes that hit the
region in twenty twenty four, and there's, according to North
Carolina officials, twelve thousand people who are still homeless in
(02:27):
the aftermath of those hurricanes. And then he'll fly across
the country out to Los Angeles and see for himself
the devastation of those wildfires in southern California.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
So, John, let me ask you, and I got into it.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
I was so excited about how miserable it is when
a president hits the ground any place, any city. So
I was getting excited about that man sitting here wondering
what it's.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
Going to be like.
Speaker 1 (02:53):
Youri, you travel with the president all the time, how
do you expect him to or how much you expect
to rip into California considering how much he actually dislikes
our governor, our politicians, our policies, and the fact that
California is the blue estate in the country.
Speaker 3 (03:13):
Well, I think that there's going to be a political
element to this trip. And the reason I say that
is because he's criticized the state response to the wildfires
in California. He's criticized the federal response by the Biden
administration to the hurricanes and the aftermath in western North Carolina.
(03:34):
And so for those two reasons, you know, Donald Trump
speaks his mind, he doesn't edit his thoughts. I think
that he'll speak about both of those issues and route
to both of those regions that have been hard hit
by these natural disasters. He actually spoke about that before
he departed the White House on Marine one, So I
think you're going to hear more of that on this
(03:55):
trip that he's going to be taking.
Speaker 1 (03:57):
Now, you have been covering the president for a while,
and you've got the White House press pool where all
of you guys talk to each.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
Other, and I'm sure that there are.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
A lot of betting as to what is actually going
to happen and what is not going to happen visa
vid this administration. And my take on this and is
that there are certain things that he actually will do
and other things that are so impractical they make no sense.
One of them being that he wants to redo FEMA
and have the States get more involved in disaster relief,
(04:29):
because it basically says FEMA is screwing up, it's not
doing a good job, it's mismanaged.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
How does that work?
Speaker 3 (04:36):
Great?
Speaker 2 (04:37):
Yeah, How how.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
Do you translate and a federal agency that in fact
is set up for these disasters, that has the money,
uh the infrastructure to instantly go into one of those
places and transfer it to the states.
Speaker 2 (04:55):
Does the Press Corps take that.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
Seriously or is that just another bomb back asked from
the President.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
Well, I think a lot of those questions are still
unknown because President Trump is still not named a new
director of FEMA. There are some people that I've heard
being mentioned who could be in line for that post.
But you know, he's criticized FEMA in the past, including
in an interview that he did this past week with
Sean Hannity on Fox News. So it's going to be interesting.
(05:26):
Maybe we'll learn this on this multi day trip that
he's taking what he envisions for that agency that does
play a critical role when natural disasters hit regions of
the US.
Speaker 2 (05:37):
Yeah. I can't wait for that.
Speaker 1 (05:39):
All right, John, we'll be talking again, and I can't
wait to report on what actually happened here in LA.
And you've experienced just how difficult it is for the
people who are in those areas, how they deal with
the President coming into town. And I've been here when
it's happened. It's pretty insane, isn't it, with the Secret
(05:59):
Service and the responders and the traffic.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
And that's typical any place, isn't it. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (06:06):
You know, I see it from a different perspective than you,
because when I travel with the President I'm in the
motor cade and I don't have to, you know, deal
with this type of things that the people on the
other side of the highway have to contend with when
a president visits. I travel with President Trump in the
aftermath of Hurricane Maria to Puerto Rico, and you know,
(06:29):
obviously that was a major disaster, knocked out electricity on
half the island. And he not only did an aerial view,
an aerial inspection of the damage associated from Hurricane Maria,
he also met with residents on the ground. I would
expect he's going to do the same thing, you know,
while he's in North Carolina and also out in southern California.
Speaker 1 (06:51):
Yeah, and he's going through Sunset Boulevard probably to the
Palace Age, which is the only way in, and it
is going to be just an utter.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Utter disaster.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
I enjoy it because every time I get caught in
traffic when anything like this happens, I'm about to blow
my brains off that.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
You are yeadly for people on the other side of
the highway or other side of the street that have
been held up because of the presidential motor kit, I do.
I feel for those people, and you know, that's one
of the things that you have to contend with when
you're talking about a presidential business.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
Do you waive and say, don't you wish it was
that you were me at the crowd?
Speaker 2 (07:31):
Probably not?
Speaker 3 (07:32):
All right, I don't do that.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
All right, Well that's John, You're way too professional.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
John Decker Kfrice, White House Correspondent. Thanks Jean reporting on
the price here. Then we're going to talk more about
that now. A quick word about Governor Newsom signing a
two point five billion dollar relief package to help LA
recover and rebuild faster from the firestorm.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
And this is a big one, by the way. And
for those.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
People that are not really thrilled about government getting involved
in general, say you are conservative and you think government
should stay out of insert name of program philosophy here.
One of the things that government does do and has
to do is the safety of the citizens. This is
(08:17):
both federal, state, local, county wide, and that's exactly what's
happening here.
Speaker 2 (08:22):
And I have to give the governor some credit on
this one.
Speaker 1 (08:26):
You can say a lot about Newsom, you know, too
slick and everything is politically motivated.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
You know this one.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
I have to tell you, this was necessary. He came
to it very quickly. I think the first responders did
an incredible job on this. Now there's gonna be some
argument about wor they firefighters there quickly enough? Was their
poor planning? There was that reservoir that was empty. I mean,
there's a lot of stuff we're going to talk about,
but looking at what has happened, this is government doing
(08:56):
what it should do.
Speaker 2 (08:58):
And it was a special session of the legend that came.
Speaker 1 (09:02):
Into being and it's said, we've got to do this,
and this was bipartisan.
Speaker 2 (09:08):
I'd like to what the vote is. I can't imagine
anybody voted against it.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
So it's emergency protective measures, evacuation, sheltering for survivors, to
pre removal, clean up, post fire hazard assessments, traffic control,
necessary emergency response activities. Two point five billion dollars.
Speaker 2 (09:26):
That's going to be the start.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
And that doesn't count private donations. It doesn't count that
concert with everybody on the planet, in all the astar
A list performers, it doesn't count with the city, what the.
Speaker 2 (09:41):
County is doing.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
It's everybody is coming to the table big time on
this one. Four million dollars to help expedite rebuilding. Now,
we're not talking about four million dollars to actually help
you rebuild. It's too expediteed. Los Angeles, Southern California. California
in general is one of the most onerous places.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
This is anywhere to build. The regulations are crazy, and what.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
Is going on with the city, with the state is
we're going to undo all of that temporarily. The Coastal Commission,
which has very strict laws, we're putting everything on hold.
A million dollars to rebuild fire damaged school facilities. I
don't know how far that's going to go. A tax
relief for all of us postponing the individual tax filing
(10:30):
deadline to October fifteen for La County taxpayers. Also, businesses
get a tax break in terms of filing, in terms
of time, fast tracking temporary housing, and then tenant protection
and debris removal and clean up and survivors helping us
survive from price gouging because there are cockroaches out there
(10:54):
who are taking advantage of this.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
Now most people are pretty good about it.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
How about those resta on tours that have set up
kitchens and they're paying out of pocket to feed people
and offering places for rent. I know a couple people
that have offered their houses or part of their houses,
extra bedrooms for free if you need it, getting kids
(11:19):
back into the classroom. Real estate speculators, right, people coming
in and saying, hey, I'll buy your property and I'll
handle everything you.
Speaker 2 (11:29):
So you want to get out of here. It's horrible.
Look what you're going to do. So I'll give you
fifty cents on the dollar.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
And people are vulnerable now, and real estate developers and speculators, well,
they don't have the best reputation in the.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
World, do they. So two point five billion dollars and
this is just the start. This is the state.
Speaker 1 (11:49):
And I do believe that the Feds are going to
come in, and I mean the politics of it, I
think are going to disappear. I think at this well
maybe not, maybe not on the federal level. I'm guessing wrong,
but I believe there is at some point federal help
without politics comes in. It always has with natural disasters.
(12:10):
There's never been strings attached. Now, well, we'll see what happens,
especially as we look at the President and what his
comments are going to be today when he comes out.
Speaker 2 (12:19):
Here to Los Angeles.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
All right, you know, I've often talked about what the
pandemic has done to us. So we don't even know.
I mean, we're studying it. It's going to go on forever.
But one of the things is that office buildings became
empty because everybody was working remotely, and so as people
come back to work, there's still plenty of office space
empty because companies are laying off people like crazy, and
(12:44):
so as for example, KFI has people come back to
work talking about management.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
And sales, etc. It's still the footprint is so much smaller.
Speaker 1 (12:53):
As a matter of fact, here on the fourth floor,
I understand they're negotiating with the city to set up
a homeless shelter.
Speaker 2 (12:59):
Right here ATFI.
Speaker 1 (13:00):
You wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the
folks that work here and the homeless people. But what's
happening also is that developers are coming in and buying
office buildings that will never have tenants because it is
a different world. Look at CNN just laid off what
(13:20):
six percent of its workforce.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
Companies are downsizing.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
Down sousing means that they don't need the office space.
They don't need the office space. Office space is empty.
People that own office buildings are going, now, what the
hell do we do?
Speaker 2 (13:35):
And there's a couple of choices.
Speaker 1 (13:37):
You try to get tenants back, good luck. Or what
people who buy office buildings now, or people who own
office buildings is they put housing into office buildings. Downtown,
particularly here in southern California, Los Angeles, tons of office
buildings that are empty or have whole floors that are empty.
(13:58):
And do you convert now converting office space into apartment buildings. Well,
let me tell you it's not that difficult. I mean,
they have to gut the building, but the plumbing is
already there. They can use a lot of the mechanicals,
the HVAC, a lot of the electrical. The big problem
(14:21):
was always bringing them up to seismic levels, in other words,
requirements for the seismic retrofits.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
And the only way these could be done is, first
of all, is very expensive.
Speaker 1 (14:35):
Second of all, the whole building has to become vacant
before the seismic retrofit comes into being.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
Well, you know what the city has done for buildings
that are older.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Say before nineteen eighty five, where before they change the code, they've.
Speaker 2 (14:54):
Said, you know what, you don't have to seismically retrofit.
You know if the.
Speaker 1 (14:58):
Building falls down with a bunch of people in it, eh,
small price to pay. We need the economy, which, by
the way, if I were the mayor, I would do
exactly the same thing.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Take your chances. If the building collapses, God bless you.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
In the meantime, you get housing, and you get good housing.
And so that alone makes it so much cheaper, easier,
faster to put housing into those office buildings. And the
other thing is you can go floor by floor now.
(15:33):
Prior to now they had to get everybody out of the.
Speaker 2 (15:36):
Building for a seismic retrofit.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
Now what developers can do is go in and say
we'll take floor twelve and get everybody out of there
of an office building because let's say that's the most empty,
and just do that floor while businesses are on eleven
and fourteen and seven, and do.
Speaker 2 (15:56):
It floor by floor, which all of.
Speaker 1 (15:59):
A sudden now makes it economically feasible or more feasible.
On top of that, you we desperately need housing. People
want to live downtown. And it's not just the businesses,
it's the restaurants that are in that area. It's just
what are that Neil, you live pretty near or a
(16:20):
downtown and your area is thriving. And if housing, well,
if it was all business and it disappeared, what do
you do with that?
Speaker 2 (16:30):
You know, you shut down the restaurant? Do you not
open one up?
Speaker 4 (16:36):
After the During the pandemic and afterwards, the vast majority
of restaurants shut down and didn't come back. It was
it was pretty interesting to see how it took a
while for it to You know, some of the best
restaurants in Los Angeles are within walking distance.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
So there was a dark.
Speaker 4 (16:57):
Time when there was a lot of things that were
shuttered here.
Speaker 5 (17:00):
But it came back. Except office space has not come space.
No office space. You're you're absolutely right, office space. I
still see signs out for places like that.
Speaker 2 (17:15):
All right.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
I want to introduce to you a dear friend of mine,
an award winning a documentary filmmaker who've known I don't
know thirty five years, who is involved.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
I'm sorry, at least at least that's right, Peter. Yeah,
we're both getting old, you far more than I am.
I might add.
Speaker 1 (17:36):
Peter has won many awards and he's involved in a
documentary film that is pretty extraordinary. It's about a man
who we don't know about who has a life that
was simply extraordinary. A lot of poems come out of
World War One, you know, flanders Field, the Poppies and
(17:57):
all that. Almost none come out of World War Two.
And Peter jumped into this. And so Peter, good morning
or good afternoon to you. Tell us about this documentary
film that you're doing.
Speaker 6 (18:10):
Well. It's about a chap called Louis Simpson. And Louis
was a remarkable man I met simply because he came
to Europe on D Day too, helped to liberate occupied Europe,
Europe occupied by the Nazi armies, and he saw the
(18:32):
war through the eyes of a poet. Because it was
a poet, he made his reputation. He won a Gurgendheim Fellowship,
he was in nineteen sixty four. He won a Politzer Prize.
But he paid the price of being in the US
(18:52):
Airborne Regiment and landing there because he had a breakdown
at the end of the war and was out of
it for a couple of years. But he came back
and he was one of the outstanding poets on either
side of the Atlantic. With regard to World War Two,
(19:16):
if you compare it, as you said, with World War One,
there's a certain lyricism as well as tragedy in the
poetry of World War One, but there's very little poetry
about World War Two.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
It's something as I was reading about it and talking
to you about it. He is one of the personalities
characters that came out of World War Two, and there's
so many extraordinary stories. I know you've been wanting to
do a film about him for a very long time,
and knowing what Peter does in the films that he does,
(19:53):
it's going to be extraordinary. And I know you've done
a lot of films over your career, and.
Speaker 2 (19:59):
So let me do this.
Speaker 1 (20:01):
I'm gonna actually invite those people who are interested in
Anybody who's interested in history, anybody who's.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
Interested in an extraordinary character like.
Speaker 1 (20:10):
This, you have to look up his biography and get
involved in Peter's film, Because Peter, you're about.
Speaker 2 (20:19):
Halfway through it. Do I have that right? So again,
you're about halfway through your film? Correct?
Speaker 6 (20:26):
Yes, Well, I've put about thirty pounds into it.
Speaker 1 (20:29):
Oh lovely, and this is out of pocket and that
doesn't usually happen, and it's so worthwhile. So let me
do this for people who are interested in getting involved
with Peter on this extraordinary project.
Speaker 2 (20:44):
Peter, how do they get hold of you? How does
that done?
Speaker 6 (20:49):
Just contact me by email. It's Peter Williams Television. The
email addresses Peter at PWTV dot co dot uk. That's
Peter at p w TV, Peter Williams Television dot co
dot UK and Peter, anybody, I.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
Am going to put this on my website and the
kf I have white website so people can contact you
and get involved in this film because it is worthwhile.
Speaker 2 (21:22):
It's extraordinary.
Speaker 1 (21:23):
Anybody who's interested in history, anybody who's interested in an
American who is not well known enough and should be.
And what a story, What a story, Peter, Thanks greatly appreciated,
and we'll get going on this.
Speaker 6 (21:38):
Okay, Yeah, can I if you have the time, can
I tell you a little bit about what Simpson wrote about?
Speaker 2 (21:48):
Yeah, King, can we do it in about a minute
minute and a half?
Speaker 6 (21:51):
You can it a minute?
Speaker 2 (21:52):
Yeah, Okay, go ahead.
Speaker 6 (21:53):
He paratute into northern France and he wrote a poem
which is one of the best known poems about the
World War Two, which is called Karenton Oh Karenown. And
(22:13):
that's where he was wounded I'll read you three verses
of it.
Speaker 2 (22:19):
Yeah, Peter, we're not gonna have time for that.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
So what I'm gonna do is that'll be on the
website Carrington, Oh Carrington, and it's I've read part of
this and it is well worth reading. So Peter, let
me do this because I got to bail out. We
have to go to another topic. At the top of
the hour. It's Peter at PTV as in Peter Television,
Peter at p TV dot.
Speaker 2 (22:44):
I'm sorry, it's p WTV.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
Sorry this I always do this, p thanks for correcting me.
P WTV dot co dot UK. And I'll make sure
that people will get hold of that, all right, peterks Bill.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
Thank you. I appreciate it and I do, and we'll
see what we can do, all right. Take care.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
KFI AM sixty. You've been listening to the Bill Handle Show.
Catch My Show Monday through Friday six am to nine am,
and anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app.
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