The Rich Zeoli Show- Full Episode (03/12/2024):
3:05pm- On Tuesday, the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Department of Justice (DOJ) Special Counsel Robert Hur’s investigation into then-Vice President Joe Biden’s mishandling of classified documents when he left office. During one notable exchange, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) vociferously stated that Hur’s report “exonerated” Biden of all wrongdoing—Hur then interjected that his report to the DOJ did not amount to an exoneration, nor was “exoneration” used at any point in the report. While being questioned by Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-CA), Hur reiterated that “the report is not an exoneration” and confirmed that a reasonable jury could have voted to convict Biden if the case had ever been brought to trial. Hurr also confirmed that the Biden Administration did, in fact, recommend “edits” to an initial draft of the report prior to its public release.
3:30pm- On Tuesday, transcripts of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s interview with President Joe Biden over his mishandling of classified documents were released. Leif Le Mathieu of The Daily Wire writes: “Hur’s February report concluded that Biden willfully retained classified documents but recommended no criminal charges in part because it said that Biden had a faulty memory and would appear as a sympathetic old man to a jury. One of the key details included in the report was that Biden did not remember the year his son Beau died. Biden said that he was taken aback by a question about his son, claiming that it was Hur who brought up the death… The transcripts, obtained by ABC, show that it was actually Biden who brought up his son… Biden also discussed moving boxes, which were full of classified documents, out of the way in his garage to park his car. He said he did not know what was in the boxes. ‘I remember moving boxes, literally physically moving them, with help, one side to the other so I could get the Corvette in that garage on the left,’ Biden said. Other portions of the transcript show Biden talking about his Corvette and ‘making car sounds.’” You can read the full article here: https://www.dailywire.com/news/released-transcripts-show-biden-lied-about-key-detail-in-documents-probe
3:45pm- During Tuesday’s House Judiciary Committee hearing, while being questioned by Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND), Special Counsel Robert Hur said that there is an audio recording from February 2017 featuring Joe Biden speaking with his ghostwriter and explicitly referencing “classified” documents that he found in his house. At another point, Hur told committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) that Biden’s ghostwriter appeared to attempt to delete the audio file but failed.
4:05pm- During Tuesday’s House Judiciary Committee hearing on Joe Biden’s mishandling of classified documents, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) accused Special Counsel Robert Hur of using “pejorative” language in his report to the Department of Justice as part of an attempt to “ignite a political firestorm.”
4:20pm- On Sunday, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) appeared on ABC’s This Week with George Stephanopoulos. During the interview, Stephanopoulos questioned Mace’s endorsement of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump—saying Mace is endorsing a candidate accused of sexual assault. Mace responded by correctly noting that Trump has never been criminally convicted of assault. She continued, “you're asking me a question about my political choices—trying to shame me as a rape victim. And I find it disgusting.”
4:30pm- Byron Tau—Investigative Journalist for The Wall Street Journal and Politico—joins The Rich Zeoli Show to discuss his new book, “Means of Control: How the Hidden Alliance of Tech and Government is Creating a New American Surveillance State.” Tau explains that, disturbingly, elements of the American government—including police agencies—have been purchasing user data from little known data brokers. This methodology of data acquisition allows these government agents and agencies to bypass the Constitution’s Fourth Amendment, which prohibits “unreasonable searches and seizures.”
4:50pm- Should TikTok be banned? Last week, the House Energy and Commerce Committee voted 50-0 to advance a bill that would ban TikTok or force ByteDance (TikTok’s parent company) to sell the social media platform to an entity removed from Chinese influence. The full House of Representatives is expected to vote on the bill this Wednesday and, according to The Wall Street Journal, it is likely to pass with majority approval. According to reports, President Joe Biden has vowed to sign the bill into law if the bill ultimately passes the House and Senate and arrives at his desk. Shouldn’t individuals be allowed to choose which products they use? Or is the risk of Chinese leadership gaining access to American user data too great to respect individual autonomy and free markets? Senator Elizabeth Warren has suggested that the proposed bill doesn’t go far enough to prevent social media’s influence, explaining that she wants “curbs in place on social media across the board,” according to Politico.
5:05pm- Jimmy Quinn of National Review writes: “Warner Bros. Discovery distanced itself from its recent partnership with a Chinese Communist Party propaganda organ after several GOP members of Congress wrote to the company’s CEO demanding answers, National Review has exclusively learned. The entertainment giant had worked with the China Global Television Network (CGTN) to produce a documentary series, called ‘World’s Ultimate Frontier,’ about the Xinjiang region. The series conspicuously declined to mention Beijing’s ongoing atrocities against Uyghurs and other minority groups and instead portrayed the area as a thriving cultural and industrial hub, leading Representative Jim Banks to accuse Warner Bros. of ‘whitewashing’ the abuses.” You can read Quinn’s full report here: https://www.nationalreview.com/2024/03/warner-bros-distances-itself-from-partnership-with-chinese-propaganda-outlet/
5:10pm- In a post on the social media platform X, Tucker Carlson wrote: “In a classified briefing this afternoon, attended by officials from the Biden Justice Department, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez claimed that Elon committed ‘election interference’ in 2022 by ‘changing the algorithms’ on X to alter the results of the midterms that year. Not coincidentally, the anti-TikTok legislation now being debated on the Hill would allow the federal government to force the sale of any social media platform that interferes in elections. Just so you know what’s coming in 2025.”
5:15pm- Should TikTok be banned? Last week, the House Energy and Commerce Committee voted 50-0 to advance a bill that would ban TikTok or force ByteDance (TikTok’s parent company) to sell the social media platform to an entity removed from Chinese influence. The full House of Representatives is expected to vote on the bill this Wednesday and, according to The Wall Street Journal, it is likely to pass with majority approval. According to reports, President Joe Biden has vowed to sign the bill into law if the bill ultimately passes the House and Senate and arrives at his desk. Shouldn’t individuals be allowed to choose which products they use? Or is the risk of Chinese leadership gaining access to American user data too great to respect individual autonomy and free markets? Senator Elizabeth Warren has suggested that the proposed bill doesn’t go far enough to prevent social media’s influence, explaining that she wants “curbs in place on social media across the board,” according to Politico.
5:20pm- While appearing on MSNBC with Katy Tur, Vaughn Hillyard claimed that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s campaign is so cash strapped that they may not be able to afford to host rallies moving forward.
5:30pm- Rebecca Davis O’Brien of The New York Times reports: “Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has recently approached the N.F.L. quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the former Minnesota governor and professional wrestler Jesse Ventura about serving as his running mate on an independent presidential ticket, and both have welcomed the overtures, two people familiar with the discussions said. Mr. Kennedy confirmed on Tuesday that the two men were at the top of his list. It is not clear if either has been formally offered the post, however, and Mr. Kennedy is still considering a shortlist of potential candidates, the people familiar with the discussions said. Mr. Kennedy said that he had been speaking with Mr. Rodgers ‘pretty continuously’ for the past month.” You can read the full article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/12/us/politics/rfk-jr-aaron-rodgers-jesse-ventura.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&sgrp=c-cb
5:40pm- Theo Leggett of BBC News writes: “A former Boeing employee known for raising concerns about the firm's production standards has been found dead in the US. John Barnett worked for Boeing for more than 30 years before retiring in 2017. In the days before his death, he had been giving evidence in a whistleblower lawsuit against the company. Boeing said it was saddened to hear of Mr. Barnett's passing. The Charleston County coroner confirmed his death to the BBC on Monday. It said the 62-year-old had died from a ‘self-inflicted’ wound on 9 March and police were investigating.” You can read the full article here: https://www.bbc.com/news/business-68534703
5:50pm- Lead singer of the Raspberries Eric Carmen has died at age 74. While listening to “All By Myself,” Rich reveals that a girlfriend once broke up with him over voicemail.
6:05pm- On Tuesday, the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on Department of Justice (DOJ) Special Counsel Robert Hur’s investigation into then-Vice President Joe Biden’s mishandling of classified documents when he left office. During one notable exchange, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) vociferously stated that Hur’s report “exonerated” Biden of all wrongdoing—Hur then interjected that his report to the DOJ did not amount to an exoneration, nor was “exoneration” used at any point in the report. While being questioned by Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-CA), Hur reiterated that “the report is not an exoneration” and confirmed that a reasonable jury could have voted to convict Biden if the case had ever been brought to trial. Hurr also confirmed that the Biden Administration did, in fact, recommend “edits” to an initial draft of the report prior to its public release.
6:15pm- During Tuesday’s House Judiciary Committee hearing, while being questioned by Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND), Special Counsel Robert Hur said that there is an audio recording from February 2017 featuring Joe Biden speaking with his ghostwriter and explicitly referencing “classified” documents that he found in his house. At another point, Hur told committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) that Biden’s ghostwriter appeared to attempt to delete the audio file but failed.
6:40pm- While briefly speaking with reporters in New Hampshire, President Joe Biden was asked if he is considering executive action to address the chaos at the U.S. Southern border. Biden said, “I’m counting on the border action happening by itself.”
6:50pm- While speaking with Manu Raju of CNN, Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) referred to Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) as a “sleazeball.” Menendez has been charged with obstruction of justice, conspiring to act as an agent of Egypt, and accepting bribes.