Handel on the News

You're listening to Bill Handle on demand from KF I am six forty.

Digital amnesia.

We forget things as soon as we're told them because all we do is look them up. All we do is put in search words, like I just did with the pope Pope Joan, a woman pope. And do they now check that it's a man who is pope by checking.

Balls his balls?

Yes, but all you have to do is look it up, which I did, balls, Pope, Pope Joan.

Yeah, it's all there.

And now handle on the news, ladies and gentlemen, here's Bill Handleman.

Here we go.

Now my studio mic is working. Sorry about that, all right, let me do that again. Good morning everybody. This one I'm gonna give myself a pass on because I'm feeling like utter crap, fighting a cold, and still being the trooper.

That I am. You can make a lot of fun of me, which of course you do.

But one of the things about my work act think unless I am bleeding out, I'm behind the mic, and believe me, I've sounded like utter crap before.

Oh no, we have a saying, unless you're bleeding out or moving to Nevada, you're here.

Yeah.

Good well put, by the way, that promo about Pope Joan is true.

It is.

Remember I told you about Pope Joon. You guys didn't believe me, and I said, look it up, and there it is Pope Joan, a woman pope, which is why they check the Pope four balls talking about the Pope. He's taken a turn for the worst.

I understand, Amy, is that what we're hearing.

I'm going to go and investigate that because what we had heard that he was he was doing a little bit better.

That was as of yesterday.

That was this morning.

So yeah, oh, I don't know.

I don't know where I heard that. Maybe I didn't.

Maybe we'll go back to the days when John Paul the Second was people around the world were watching him die and there was no question he was dying.

You remember in the background Pope his dad, Pope his dad.

And that was before he died, and it was a huge uproar because he was thirty seconds from dying at that point, and it was just how dare that you announced that before?

There's an official that it was a news outlet.

It was I think it was CNN. I think it was a reporter on CNN.

Yeah, I just double checked, and everything that we're seeing is that he had another RESTful evening and he's resuming some of his duties. And they're saying that kidney failure wasn't really a cause for concern.

Mm ask Neil, I beg to differ. Yeah, all right, So Amy is back.

Good morning, Amy, good morning, and Neil.

There you are. Good morning, Willie wolf.

Cono Bill and the A team is back and will Cole Schreiber, who I cannot see but you will next week.

I'm getting a tablet, so I'll be right. Oh are you okay?

Yeah, so to sea and are you paying for the tablet?

It's only fifty bucks. It doesn't matter.

You should it's for work, and you submit it okay, and then it goes up the chain and then it goes to Bob Pittman, who is the CEO of iHeart, and then he signs off on it yes.

Or no, so no, you know, for fifty bucks. I don't know.

In reality, Pittman was extraordinarily.

Gracious to me when I was honored enough and for many people lucky enough to be inducted in the Radio Hall of Fame, and he really went.

To the table. He treated me very very well on that one. Okay, did you get a tablet for fifty bucks?

No?

No, he actually loser. You ready for this.

He actually put me out of corporate jet to.

Go to Chicago. I know you were kind enough to take me with you. Yeah, it was pretty neat. It was weird to carry all those bags, but you know.

And you know, we stayed. A whole bunch of us went the Morning crew and my family, et cetera. And we stayed at a Trump, the Trump Hotel in Chicago. And I've said this before. Let me tell you, you can say whatever you want politically about Donald Trump. The man knows how to run a hotel. I mean it was one of the best hotel experiences I have had. And this his organization, the Trump Hotel, I mean phenomenal management, the way they ran out hotel.

I mean, pardon that whole trip. That whole trip was fun. Yeah, dinner was.

I didn't even I couldn't imagine how much a dinner could cost for twenty five people.

It was, and I threw it and it was I didn't I didn't spend a dime. It was. I thought it was nice.

Oh, you're also talking this morning about Michael Monks, who is a good part of a major part of the KFI news team. About what nine and Michael I just found out and told me that the guy makes phenomenal ice cream. I mean, when one class should should be sold ice cream.

He brought in samples yesterday and they were delicious.

Oh I was here. What kind of ice cream? There was a strawberry, There was also a orange chocolate.

Mm.

Yeah, on that note, don't eat any samples. Bill brings in.

No, because I do smoke mac very unusual, very unusual ice cream.

I'd make. I make my own sometimes and yeah, that's my worry. Yeah, all right, guys, Yeah, let's try that. No, Yeah, let's do it.

Guys, your radio, It's time for Handle on the News on a Tuesday, February twenty five with Neil amy Is back and me lead story. If you have any doubts about Trump's philosophy and view about putin the US split with its European allies, the United Nations refusing to blame Russia for the invasion of Ukraine. There were three Union

Is a dictator.

I mean, the world is turning on its head, and that Europe has got it has to come to the table in a big way.

No longer rely on the US.

Big changes are coming, Big changes are coming, They're already here.

And that actually was the second.

Story, also refusing to go ahead, No, no, amy go ahead, and expands.

Refusing to call a spade a spade. President Trump was asked yesterday while he was having a meeting with French President in Malouel Macron in the Oval Office if he would call Putin a dictator the same way he called President Zelensky a dictator. And he says, I don't use those words lightly. I think we're going to see how it all works out.

Nice deflection.

And then Trump the deal Maker came into play where he said he's willing to cut a deal with Ukraine, but we the United States want access to the rare earth minerals in exchange for the AID and once fifty percent of the rare earth minerals, which is really necessary. Those rare earth minerals are used to make all kinds of technology. Right now, it's China that really controls that entire market around the world.

All right, Okay, so the FBI former officials and current officials are expressing shock and dismay over Trump's latest pick, and it's for his number two at the FBI. It's Dan Bongino, who's a former Secret Service agent. He has a talk show and he's a big critic of the FBI.

I mean, yeah, a big critic of the FBI.

Also conspiracy theorists of the First Order, First Water, and a former Fox I think beyond a news contributory.

Was the host of a show, wasn't he.

He had like a once a week show.

I think he's still a host. Yeah.

A lot of people coming out of Fox, so Amy let me ask you, what are the chances of someone coming out of MSNBC to have a senior position in the Trump White House.

Well, Joy Reid has availability. She dies talking about that in a couple of minutes.

Oh yeah, they have shaken up NBC. Wow, and we will talk about that.

Okay.

So AI.

Might be firing people at least indirectly. Responses to the email that Elon Musk sent out to federal workers telling them you need to send in your accomplishments over the last week.

That's going to be scrubbed basically by AI.

The information is going to go into an LLM, which is a large language model. That's an advanced AI system that looks at all this data and it then tries to understand, generate, and process human language. The AI system will apparently determine whether someone's work is mission critical or not.

Yeah, it's important when you use a word scrubbed.

We're not talking about scrubbed in the sense of no longer applicable. It's being looked at and gone through with this AI system.

Have you noticed an AMM? Sure you report on this and.

You have that this Paul see that Musk has implemented and it was last night at midnight, where the deadline was that all federal employees had to write in an email what they did in the past week, five five things they did in terms of work. And you had the Department of Justice, you had the FBI saying, n don't do it. You had Trump saying that if people had not put in their five they would be fired. And then it became semi fired. Explain that one to me.

I mean, there's no question.

I yesterday I mentioned the Department of Education.

Okay, what have they done?

Literally, test scores are lower than it was created and it was started the philosophy among many people. As you turn this over, you turn it over to the states. Here's the problem with turning it over to the states, because this is one.

Issue, and there was.

One of the states, Kansas, as a matter of fact, turned over curriculum to local school boards. One of the local school boards had as part of the curriculum, and this is kids must be told this that whenever you mentioned evolution as a scientific fact, you have to also mention creationism at the same level of scientific knowledge. Have to say they're both theories. That God created the dinosaurs, that man did not, was not a proto man, and then the eight family split off.

None of that.

No, I think you make a great case for that possibility proto man that you what proto man.

Proto bats, proto wise you look like you I am a proto branched off of apes. Yeah, pretty much.

So anyway that's going on, I thought I would share that with you.

So, the US trade war continues. China is escalating beyond tariffs now through the plan of Donald Trump and his administration, he's going to impose not only those tariffs, but steep fees on Chinese shipping companies and any Chinese built vessels that enter US ports.

That's an interesting one.

Yeah, it's also a massive number. I mean, we're on the verge of a full blown trade war.

That's it.

A tariff war because China does not roll over.

When there is a tariff, China comes right back and says, Okay, we're going to impose a tariff, and then quite often we'll impose another tariff. I will see you and I will bet more. And now Trump goes, okay, I'll see you and I'll put down more money or more tariffs.

Yep. Let me tell you.

If you don't think inflation is on its way up, you just wait.

Not a joyful day at MSNBC. MSNBC has announced that it is canceling The read Out Show, which Joy Reid has hosted since twenty twenty, so she's out and leaving the network. It part of their efforts to consolidate production operations and add some names to try to get more audience. Obviously, the network's making some big changes to its weekday weekend lineups.

Yep, back to where she was.

She's now doing the first hundred Days of the Trump administration. And Lester Holt is stepping down this summer, and they don't mention the fact that it's to save a pile of money.

That's what's called line is.

Of course it is, of course it is.

I've never thought MSNBC was a legitimate outlet ever, it just seems like a complete, you know, college grade level you know what?

Does anybody know what Lester Holt makes a year? By the way, I don't know.

What it is? No matter of fact, why wouldn't we know?

No, it's because you should know, because that's the reason consolidating we should.

I'm sorry.

According to the US Sun, he makes ten million a year.

Yeah, that's what I would have guessed.

And if he's replaced by someone two three million dollars a year, four million dollars a year. I mean, these anchors do very very well. And there's who's in the running?

I said, Tom?

Is it? Tony Lamas? Is that his name?

Who is one of the uh? One of the reporters? I like jose Diaz Ballard. I really think he is terrific.

Front runners are Tom Lamas or yea, I don't know how to say his name. I think he's Lamas and Hallie Jackson. I bet Howley gets it.

I don't And I don't understand why Jose Dias Billard doesn't. He's my absolute favorite guy. Well it's because he's my absolute favorite guy. That's why they would never go to him. But he is Hispanic, completely bilingual.

And he is He just has a great Q rating.

He's just a nice, nice guy.

And he ends the broadcast. He's on Saturday nights, which I think he's going to stay. He ends his broadcast with thank you for the privilege of your time.

I love that. I absolutely love that.

Lester Holt, for example, he has his what does he say the other networks are crap? Thank you for listening or watching, take care of yourself and others.

I like the way you sign off the show every day is this thing off?

Do you remember Walter Cronkite, the most trusted man in America CBS News.

He retired way too early.

Regretted that that's the way it is.

Tuesday, February twenty five.

Who said good night and have a pleasant tomorrow.

Wasn't that the Saturday Night Live?

Oh?

Probably?

I think it was Chevy Chase.

Now that was Jane Curtin. Wasn't it have a pleasant tomorrow?

All right? Listen, yes, we happily show up.

Should we get an invite, the Philadelphia Eagles would be honored, they say, to visit the White House and celebration of their Super Bowl win. This comes from a source that talked to CNN. There was all kinds of rumors apparently that were going over social media that team had declined what is a traditional visit, But apparently they said no, we haven't received an invitation yet, but we'd love to go.

Yeah. The question is are they going to receive an invitation because they turned it down during their win super Bowl win Trump's first term, they said no, thank you.

Oh I thought he actually hold the imitation off the table.

I don't know, I don't know, but no, that was in twenty eighteen.

Yeah, during Trump's first turn they said no, and then he got very upset and said a bunch of things that weren't true. Got what a shocker, And now you know he is not a very forgiving gentleman.

If you want to call him a gentleman.

That's he's just not that kind of guy.

Although maybe if they say sure will come, it's a different story. He showed up to the Super Bowl first time the president did, and did you notice he travels around the track, around the field in the limousine, the big presidential limousine.

I mean, just weird stuff he likes being seen.

We'll call that a hard pass.

The Supreme Court has passed on the chance to get rid of protest free zones at abortion clinics. The Court declined to hear challenges to a law in southern Illinois and also a twenty fourteen ordnance in Englewood, New Jersey that created a protest free buffer zone around certain health care facilities. Justice as Thomas and Alito said they would have taken the cases, but apparently the overall the Court said, now we're going to pass on that.

You know, it's I mean, look at the buffer we're talking about eight feet from another person. This is a case where the Court basically did the same thing in Hill versus Colorado and one hundred foot zone surrounding a healthcare facility.

And the reason they do this is the.

Pro life peepers, the pro life people actually a cost women getting in front of them, screaming at them.

When they go into an abortion clinic.

I mean, they can protest all they want, but a costing someone come on, and these women are.

Very vulnerable going in.

They're scared, they're having all kinds of issues emotionally. I mean, even folks that are pro pro choice. It's not easy for a woman to make that decision, much less deal with people coming in and screaming at them.

You know what I've never seen.

I've never seen someone from the church lay in front of a false teacher, like a faith healer. That's what I'd like to see, because that's more problematic to the church, don't you think, Hello, Yeah, I'm.

Just thinking laying in front of I mean accosting some of that.

They go in front of an abortion clinic, but they won't go in front of a false teacher.

Oh I see.

Yeah, Well abortion is abortion is the big one. That's why Trump has all the support from the evangelicals. Keep in mind, these are very religious people who look at morality as being very important. Morality being a mill. Yes, no adultery, boy, Trump has adultery plastered all over his face.

It's just you tell me.

That was a weird wick put it it. So.

Bill says over and over, how we're in a new day, new way, and you know what, we're not the only ones on our heels, So are House Republicans looking at everything. House Republicans are eyeing, of course, the tariff revenue, clawbacks, of clean energy incentives, and savings from President Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency. These are all potential alternatives to this steep Medicaid cuts they're considering as part of their

This is plan and be on Medicaid and millions of people look at Medicaid for help for.

Services, medical services, and that is going to piss off a lot of people.

And you've got Republicans that are in swing districts going, whoa, because that's going to hit them really hard. During the election, when Trump said that he wants to get rid of Obamacare and he's got ideas, do you think they're going to get rid of Obamacare? Thirty million Americans rely on Obamacare. WHOA. That's a tough one. That is the third rail. You know,

Try doing that today.

Stand up and say we want to get rid of Social Security and see how quickly that person is going to be unelected next time out. And that's what happened with medicaid and medicare.

Well.

I pose the question, how will we make our own clothes now that Joeanne Fabrics is closing?

Who makes her own clothes?

I don't know who still does it, but that's what they do. They're fabric store. They have crafts, but they're mainly a fabric store. They announced that they were going to close like five hundred stores just a couple of months ago, and now they said, nah, we're closing them all.

My mom used to make our clothes when we were kids.

My mom used to make our clothes, you know, and then ago.

Then they went to the store bought clothes after paying their lawyer with the side of bacon.

Right, my mom could whip up a shirt like nobody's business.

She's very good.

Hmmm.

I'd put her.

I'd put her clothes up against those shoddy sweatshop clothes that you wear.

Mister.

I love Costco doesn't sell shoddy goods.

North Korean hackers. Man, they're getting so good. They've stolen one stolen one point five billion in cryptocurrency in a single heist, making it the largest crypto hack on record.

Good for them, number one.

And when they well, I don't know when they had the time to do it. I guess when they're not going to Costco and going for the samples, which inevitably is the huge fight.

Now they're going a thing.

Yeah, it depends on it depends on which Costco?

Well, yes, is it in a Korean neighborhood, Asian neighborhoods okay, because mine's Latinos.

Yeah, well, I think Latinos.

Koreans are just particularly aggressive when it comes to those samples.

That's all.

Oh my people, we that's like a pilgrimage on Sundays.

Oh yeah, during the week. I go because it's two crowded on Sundays. And have you ever noticed when you go to Costco? Well, well, I digress, but you ever noticed when you go to Costco the good stuff, you know, the little burritos, a little samples of those, or the deep fried whatever, you know, anything that's solid food they go for like crazy. And then you have those supplemental drinks that everybody.

Ignores because they're horrible.

Also, if you notice now is they're much more aggressive about selling. I'm talking about the vendors, people that work for the companies where they do. Yeah, they're pushing four nine. Just come over here and take a taste and you can buy them four ninety nine. It used to be there where they just sat there and were bored silly.

Now it's better.

Also, the really good stuff people.

Wait in line for. You know what it's like finding a parking spot at Costco. You have to just circle and circle and circle.

Set up a dog food one. Just see if anybody, Yeah, haste it.

Damn the First Amendment. Full speed ahead, Okay.

A federal judge has declined to temporarily restore the AP's access to the Oval Office and Air Force One.

Of course, the Trump administration.

Banned AP from being in these press pools because it said it was going to continue to use Gulf of Mexico even though Trump renamed it to Gulf of America. So the judge said that the AP didn't show that irreparable harm was being done to it. That's why he didn't issue that temporary restraining order.

Denying a White House correspondent access to the White House.

You don't think that's irreparable harm. And this goes back.

Jim Acosta had the same situation going because he was really anti Trump and he was tossed out of the White House Press Office butt and they went.

To court yep, and won it back.

By the way, Jim Acosta also gone, he's being tossed from CNN.

He got fired a couple months ago. Didn't he yea his podcast now?

But the judge did say that they're going to hold a hearing on March twentieth to hear arguments over the ap Maybe not well, the judge said it's obvious it's a First Amendment issue. He just said it didn't cause immediate irreparable harm to these.

Oh, because they're still writing stories.

But being there is primary.

It's hard to be a news outlet with any credibility if you're not there and they get it from other sources.

That's all. And I think that's legitimate.

Now here's where I think the Supreme Court may back up the White House, and that is they're fine with giving the presidency insane powers. They're in that that they're going in that direction.

Well, you know what, it's twenty twenty five, ladies and gentlemen, and we're still concerned about train robbers. Congratulations to us as a humanity. Thieves had targeted freight trains running through the desert of California and Arizona in a string of heists.

This is nuts. There.

They stolen more than two million dollars worth of Nike sneakers, which.

Gets you about three sneakers. The price of Nikes are ridiculous.

Well, some of these haven't even hit the market yet. Hey, what are you wearing? Cono? You got what? Let me see your sneaks? You got Nikes on? Or now I got pumas.

Oh, Pumas also expensive as hell. So two hundred and twenty five bucks per pare yeah.

Market. When they're the ones that are in high demand, they go for a lot more than that.

Yep, all right, We're done, guys, So much for Handle on the news. On this Tuesday morning, February twenty five, KFI AM six forty.

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.