Sources with Knowledge

Yes, the rumors are true. (Stop saying, “what rumors, who are you people and how did you get into my living room?”) This is the final episode of Sources with Knowledge. Eric and Joe reflect on the program, which managed to outlast both Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and Madigan’s replacement in the legislature. So, that’s not nothing. Vaccine rollout is going actually really well, and an op/ed in the Wall Street Journal suggests that we could hit heard immunity by April. It’s time for optimism, folks. In a shocking surprise, Eric and Joe are joined by two ex-presidents who turned out to be fans of the program: Donald J. Trump and George W. Bush both join to the final episode. And finally, as if like Mexican manna from heaven, Taco Bell has released a Fried Chicken Taco as their entry in to the chicken sandwich wars. Don’t they realize they already made fried chicken perfection in the Naked Chicken Chalupa? Acknowledgments – Eric and Joe would like to thank a few people who made this program possible: Marcus Brown and everyone at AM 560 The Answer for giving us air time and the opportunity to do this program; Hilary Yelvington, Melanie Krakauer and Rachel Wittel who helped us name this show; Thea Baldwin for designing the program logo; John Giokaris for his appearance on this episode as Donald Trump; Zachary Urevig for his appearance on this episode as George W. Bush; and, finally, everyone who listened to this program. We’re humbled by it all, even if we’re also baffled as to why you wanted to hear what we thought about anything. Thank you. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After a mere 50 years in the Illinois General Assembly, Michael Madigan has resigned his seat. You just hate to see a career cut short like that. Eric and Joe discuss what this means for the future of Illinois. The media is not letting democracy die in darkness during the Biden administration, with hard hitting pieces looking at Jill Biden’s hair accessories and Joe Biden’s MarioKart triumphs over his granddaughter. Meanwhile, the media finally bothers to take a close look at Andrew Cuomo and finds out he didn’t really do such a good job after all. Was it all those nursing home deaths that clued them in? Talk radio titan Rush Limbaugh passed away this week at the age of 70. This show wouldn’t exist without him. Eric and Joe reflect on his legacy. It’s Britany b***h. The new documentary on Britany Spears looks mostly at her legal conservatorship, but the bigger story is how a young girl was explained for media headlines and paparazzi photos. And finally, Burger King enters the Chicken Sandwich Wars with a new sandwich that they promise to touch more than any other restaurant touches their sandwich.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is it just us, or was everything about the Super Bowl boring this year? The game? Dull and over before the 4th quarter. The halftime show? Only good for a new meme of The Weeknd looking confused. The commercials? Uninteresting and forgettable. Eric and Joe debate if the quality is really the problem, or if our online, immediate culture is destroying our ability to enjoy things. Impeachment Part Deux is underway. No one is taking it seriously, even though they should. Which is basically the story fo the last five years. Gavin Newsom is facing a possible recall election. Eric and Joe reminisce about the last California recall and conclude that the people of California chose their governor knowing who he was, and now they deserve to get it good and hard. A woman runs out of hairspray and decides to style her hair with Gorilla Glue. It goes about as well as you’d expect. And finally, a dietician ranks the healthiest meals at Taco Bell. Spoiler alert: they aren’t just the healthiest because you have to run to the bathroom 30 minutes after enjoying. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s Super Bowl weekend. How do we know? Because Tom Brady is playing. Is Saturday Night Live right that Tom Brady is the only thing left in America that still works right? And if so, shouldn’t we all be rooting for him? AOC inflates her Capitol riot story. Marjorie Taylor Greene believes all kinds of crazy crap. Maybe we should just stop focusing so much on back-bencher congress-critters? Pritzker will let the General Assembly jump the vaccine line. If they want to be treated as essential workers, shouldn’t they do some essential work first? Pension reform comes to mind. The bloom is off the Cuomo rose, as health officials resign and his own party’s attorney general releases a damning report on his handling of COVID and nursing homes. It’s not so easy without Trump around, is it Governor? And finally, Washington D.C. will use eminent domain to claim the “Weird Wendy’s” in the name of public safety. How dare DC rob its people of such an important piece of culture? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Biden era is underway with a flurry of executive orders. Queue the whataboutism. But what is everyone missing? This is all because Congress just won’t do its job. Hate the executive orders all you want, and do the dumb comparisons between Trump and Biden. But recognize that its Congress who should get the blame. It’s National School Choice Week, and the Chicago Teachers Union is celebrating it by trying to drive every Chicago parent to be a school choice fanatic as they continue to refuse to do their job like so many other front-line workers have been asked to do theirs. Fire them all, and do it now. A forced monkey labor controversy erupts in the coconut milk business. Yes, you read that correctly. But, how do we know the labor was forced? Maybe they were justly compensated monkeys? A bunch of people on Reddit send the stock price of GameStop through the roof and cause some hedge fund people to loose a ton of money. Eric and Joe explain what happened like they’re talking to a 5-year old, because that’s how they needed it explained to them. And finally, the Wall Street Journal ran a feature on the chicken sandwich wars, showing once again how Eric and Joe are ahead of their time in talking about these trends. Taco Bell, it’s your turn to introduce a chicken sandwich. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joe Biden is now President of the United States. I guess Q didn’t come through after all. Imagine that. Eric and Joe take stock of the beginning of the Biden administration and how, technically, for at least 9 minutes we had an illegitimate president. Former Cubs scout and Mets GM Jared Porter, after sending 16 unanswered text messages to a female reporter, decided to break out his, uh, personal bat to try to woo her. Has this ever worked? Now he’s out of a job and hopefully back in his pants. What state has been most effective in distributing the COVID vaccine so far? The answer might surprise you, but it’ll definitely “take you home.” The Chicago Teachers Union is threatening to strike if they’re asked to return to in-person teaching. How long are Chicago parents going to tolerate this kind of crap from them? And finally, one of the big changes with the new Biden administration in the White House: President Trump’s magic button to have a Diet Coke brought to him on a silver platter is no more. Pour one out for the button. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Everything is happening while Eric and Joe are talking about it. First, impeachment. It was inevitable and it was well deserved. Trump will forever be known as the only president to be impeached twice. Now, on to the Senate. In Springfield, the Madigan reign of power comes to an end. What do we know about new House Speaker Emmanuel “Chris” Welch? Well, let’s just say that math is hard. The youngest a member of Congress can legally be is 25, and we have a 25-year old congressman in North Carolina’s Madison Cawthorn. Is that really a good idea? Not sure if you’ve noticed this, but young people tend to act like they’re, ya know, young. Parler is dumped by Apple, Google and Amazon. Clear case of persecution of conservative speech? Not so fast. Maybe we should take a look at the actual evidence. And finally, former Bengals wide receiver Chad “Ocho Cinco” Johnson says he avoided injury in the NFL by eating a McDonalds diet. Look, if you can eat that much McDonalds, you probably are indestructible.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the heels of losses in both Georgia run-off senate races, a gaggle of Trump supports storm the U.S. Capitol building and bring the counting of the electoral votes to a halt. Who could have guessed that being lied to constant for two months about a stolen election would have ended up in such insanity? Sens. Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley commit to making fools of themselves in the process. Who would have guessed that two overly ambitious politicians could play themselves like that? For years we heard the argument that the good things to come out of the Trump administration (the judges, the deregulation, the tax bill, etc.) were worth the trouble that Trump created? Do we still think that? Or were the people who said this would all end badly from the get go right all along? A high ranking official in the Chicago Teachers Union who opposes opening schools shares her beach bikini pics from her vacation to Puerto Rico. The lesson: her leisure is more important than Chicago Public School students. And finally, KFC has introduced an upgraded chicken sandwich to the Chicken Sandwich Wars. Not to be outdone, McDonalds apparently released a flock of pecking chickens on unsuspecting customers. Those live chicken were as inedible as the rest of McDonalds fare. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New year, new Proco “Joe” Moreno? Not so much. The former alderman was charged with DUI after doing a nice job of sideswiping 8 cars in the Gold Coast. It’s just the latest in a long line of crazy Moreno stories. New outmigration numbers are out and it’s not nice news for Illinois. Eric and Joe talk with Illinois Policy Institute chief economist Orphe Divounguy about why people are fleeing the state for nicer pastures. President Trump may have signed the new COVID relief bill already, but he’s still making a last ditch effort to make the stimulus payments even nicer by raising them to $2,000. What would major historical events have been like if Twitter had existed. Yeah, we would have been able to get searing hot takes on the bombing of Pearl Harbor, which would be terrible, but at least we’d get some nice memes out of it, we guess? And finally, a man ends up in the hospital after drinking chocolate milk from McDonalds and experiencing a burning sensation in his chest. What did you expect, a nice time? It’s McDonalds. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2020: the year that will always feel like it was about 10 years long. Eric and Joe look back at the year that was … something. How will the Trump presidency be remembered? Initial polls show that people have soured even more on his one term, but it’s always difficult to look at the present the way we look at the past. The four teams are set for the college football playoff and, eh, it’s about as predictable as it could be. Why do we continue to cling to a process that was supposed to be a big improvement in the BCS that clearly isn’t a big improvement on the BCS. At all. Get yo wallet ready, because another $600 in Corona Cash is coming at you as Congress finally passes another stimulus package. And finally, Chick-fil-a’s Polynesian sauce is exploding and the KFC logo actually looks like a stick figure of Col. Sanders.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President-elect Joe Biden has his pick for Secretary of Transportation: former South Bend mayor Pete Buttieieg. You know, since South Bend is so famous for its transportation innovation and such. But rest assured, he’s ridden Amtrak a few times, and we presume he’s seen a boat before, so he should be fine. Is there a better example that these cabinet officials are chosen for reasons other than expertise than this? The Cleveland Indians are ditching the Indians name. They’re finally going to go by what everyone already calls them: The Cleveland Blew a 3-1 World Series Lead to the Chicago Cubs. Rolls right off the tongue. The Illinois legislative committee investigating Mike Madigan has ended and found no wrongdoing. We’re shocked, shocked! Everyone freaks out over an op/ed questioning Jill Biden’s use of the term “Dr.” when she possesses only an Ed.D., and not an MD or a Ph.D. Titles are stupid. Moving on. And finally, Popeyes is set to debut beignets across the country. The only thing that’ll be lower than our cholesterol after eating them will be the percentage of people who pronounce it correctly. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The latest entry in the annals of COVID hypocrisy from politicians: Chicago alderman Tom Tunney. Tunney kept indoor dining at his Ann Sather restaurant going even when all other restaurants are prohibited. Because he’s an alderman and the rules don’t apply to the king in his fiefdom, don’t you see? The Chicago Teachers Union tweets out that efforts to reopen schools are “rooted in sexism, racism and misogyny.” Don’t worry if you don’t know what they mean by that. They don’t either. It’s all so much woke virtue signaling as they continue to make life harder on Chicago parents for no good reason. We’ve already heard that it took only two days for Moderna to come up with their COVID vaccine. But did you know that vaccine was created On January 13th? Everything between then and now? Bureaucratic red tape. Thanks, FDA. The former Israeli space security chief says that aliens exist, we’re in contact with them, but that they don’t want to make their existence known to the world because we aren’t ready yet. The bigger question is, are they ready for us? And finally, KFC and Lifetime has partnered to create a steamy, crispy fried drama with Mario Lopez playing Colonel Sanders. Next up, an action thriller starring Gary Busey as Ronald McDonald? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Another week and another galling example of hypocrisy from politicians telling you to take COVID seriously while they clearly don’t. The newest example: the mayor of Austin, TX, telling people to stay at home while he’s vacationing in Cabo. But hey, at least he flew a private plane to get there and avoided those crowded commercial flights, right? The NFL season is a mess, as the Steelers and Raven played a Wednesday afternoon game, in that long tradition of, uh, mid-week afternoon NFL football games. Beyond that, NFL COVID polices left the Denver Broncos without another of their four quarterbacks for one game. Surprisingly cautious behavior for a league that we all know doesn’t give a rip about the health and wellbeing of its players. It’s only somewhat better in the NCAA, as some Big 10 teams like Ohio State will be lucky to play enough games to qualify for the conference title game. Sarah Fuller breaks a major gender barrier becoming the first female player to kick for a NCAA Power 5 conference football team. She’s an amazing, accomplished athlete, which makes sports journalists treating her like a Make-A-Wish kid all the more annoying. Eric and his family adopted a dog this week. Joe discusses this with him and sufficiently shames him for already making his dog an Instagram account. And finally, China joins the Chicken Sandwich Wars by creating a self-driving 5G KFC chicken sandwich truck. When will America enter his chicken arms (and wings) race with a self-driving 5G Popeyes chicken sandwich truck? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s finally over. Trump lost. Biden won. Which those of us who were paying attention for the last three weeks already knew. But not before we got the wildest conspiracy theory ever: that Hugo Chavez stole the election for Joe Biden from beyond the grave, because reasons and because obviously. Analysis from Eric and Joe flows forth, like Rudy Giuliani’s hair dye under sweat-inducing lights. Could it be? Mike Madigan is finally out as Illinois Speaker of the House. As of right now, enough House Democrats have said they won’t vote to reelect him to the position he’s held for almost all of the last four decades. President-elect Joe Biden has announced a few of his cabinet picks and they’re pretty boring. Is it too much to hope that we’re on the road back to boring politics? The latest COVID hypocrite politician is Naperville mayor Steve Chirico. But even that story isn’t as infuriating as NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo getting an Emmy for the eloquence of his COVID briefings while his actual policies killed scores of old people in nursing homes. And finally, a 12-hour-long line forms at the grand opening of an In-N-Out Burger in Denver. Is there any food you’d wait 12 hours in line for that wasn’t bread in a communist country? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thanksgiving is here, but the political overlords in Chicago, Illinois and many other parts of the country want to make sure you ignore it. That is, of course, unless you're J.B. Pritzker – then the only question is which mansion should you enjoy the holiday in. Eric and Joe discuss that latest hypocrisy from the governor, as well as fresh COVID hypocrisy from Mayor Lori Lightfoot. On the good news front, though, a vaccine may be coming and we have the latest on that. The guys also discuss the true value of political donations vs. real charity (spoiler: charity is more valuable), and why 2020 has taught us politics shouldn't dominate our lives. And finally, they discuss the week's most important issue: best Thanksgiving side dish. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former Vice President Joe Biden is now President-Elect Joe Biden. What can we expect from his presidency? Start off with executive order-palooza. Then the people who hated Trump’s executive actions will defend Biden’s and vice versa, as the hypocrisy wheel keeps spinning. The fact that Joe Biden will be the next president hasn’t stopped Donald Trump from yelling about a rigged election. The big problem? There’s no evidence of election fraud at a scale that would change the outcome as it is right now. But at least that provides an opportunity for another bite at the hypocrisy apple from people who wouldn’t accept the outcome of the 2016 election? Gov. J.B. Pritzker is ordering more COVID-19 restrictions in the Chicagoland area. You can’t gather with more than 10 people, but he’s totally allowed to celebrate Biden’s win in the streets of Chicago with hundreds of people. Are you noticing a hypocrisy theme yet? New Chicago White Sox manager Tony LaRussa was charged with a DUI one day before he was announced as the new Sox manager. That’s DUI number two for him. One more and he’ll have the same number of DUI’s as World Series rings. Why does no one seem to take this now recurring problem with LaRussa seriously? And finally, McDonald’s is launching the McPlant line of meatless McProducts. McHard Pass. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

That’s fine, America. We didn’t even really want a president anyway. Why are you laughing? We’re serious about that. The presidential election between Donald Trump is still officially undecided. Or maybe it’s not by the time you’re listening to this. Who knows? Who cares? Eric and Joe break down what they know, what they got right, what they got wrong, and what will make them want to tear their remaining hair out for the next four years. Ding, dong, the so-called Fair Tax is dead in Illinois. After spending $171 million to get elected and then spending another $50 million to pass the Fair Tax, all J.B. Pritzker has to show for it is having the worst job in America and it just got more difficult. That’ll put a dent in his Old Country Buffet budget. Say it with us, J.B.: pension reform. How weird is it that we’re now wishing that every state could count its ballots as quickly and efficiently in Florida? Its pick your poison for election night coverage on the cable channels. Eric and Joe discuss why they watched what they wanted, and why MSNBC’s Steve Kornacki is a national treasure. And finally, Eric and Joe compare notes on the best Halloween candy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The end of the election is within sight. At least we think it is, unless Election Day turns into Election Month and the living begin to envy the dead. Eric and Joe offer their semi-baseless predictions for what will and will not happen as America votes. Gov. J.B. Pritzker imposes new restrictions on bars and restaurants. But this time, some of the bars and restaurants say, “no.” Even the IHSA says no to postponing the basketball season after they agreed to punt on the football season. Who will emerge victorious? Congrats to the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers and a truly sarcastic bravo to MLB for managing to get to the 7th inning of the final game before screwing it up royally by pulling the Dodgers 3rd baseman Justin Turner for a positive COVID test and then allowing him onto the field to celebrate after the game. Big Tech is again on trial in Congress, as some politicians are calling for repeal or reform of Section 230. Eric and Joe break down what Section 230 actually is and does which, ya know, seems kind of relevant. And finally, White Castle will be closed on the morning of the election to allow their employees time to vote. Which is interesting, since the results of most elections are very smilier to the results to get from eating too much White Castle. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s week two of the Hunter Biden story. Now that some, but not all, of the emails have been corroborated by a former business partner, what are we to make of this? There are three stories in one here: a media story, a legal story and a political story. Eric and Joe break then all down. “But the polls were wrong in 2016!” Actually, they really weren’t. And as of yet, we have little reason to believe they’re wrong in 2020. That doesn’t mean Trump is sure to lose, but the myths being advanced for why the polls are wrong don’t hold much water. CNN and New Yorker legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin is caught, ahem, raising an objection of sorts on a work Zoom call. Eric and Joe try to address this story with dignity and grace. It doesn’t go well. Illinoisans will vote on the so-called Fair Tax amendment on November 3rd. The guys examine the state of play for that enormously important issue. And finally, a drunk man breaks into a closed McDonalds to steak Chicken McNuggets. What’s the bigger crime: robbery? Or bad taste in fast food items. We report, you decide. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The confirmation hearings for Amy Coney Barrett are … boring? Are they allowed to be boring? This is 2020, after all. The only mildly not boring parts were Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse’s conspiracy theory insanity and that Barrett said “sexual preference” instead of “sexual orientation.” Weak sauce for 2020. And the latter only was interesting when even Webster’s dictionary tried to pretend this had always been a thing. The New York Post published a less than credible “bombshell” about Hunter Biden. It then blew up bigger when Facebook and Twitter censored it. Which was even dumber because the story was so weak and now it’s just increased calls for big tech and social media regulation. So, yay? NBA Final TV ratings were way down. Was it because of the social justice stuff? Yes, in part, but not entirely. TV ratings for every sport are down, in part because they’re all on at the same time. Did Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot know that the Census Cowboy was a male stripper before she hired him as the Census Cowboy? On second thought, don’t answer that. And finally, a man froze three Taco Bell Spicy Potato Soft Tacos and then listed them for $200 on Facebook Marketplace. That price will seem like a steal compared to the medical bills you’ll get if you eat them. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You’ve already heard the buzz about the vice presidential debate. We promise not to bug you about it too much. Yes, Kamala Harris larvae’d big charges against Mike Pence for being too MAGAt. Okay, we’ll stop with the fly puns now. Eric and Joe break down the veep debate and, yes, the appearance of Mike Pence’s fly. The Trump gang gets COVID. President Trump says he’s fully recovered in record time, but numerous other members of the administration and the Republican Party are still on the mend. Wasn’t this narrative turn by the script writers of 2020 just too obvious? For the love of all that is holy, please stop telling people to vote. Vote if you want, don’t vote if you want, but why do so many people think things would be improved if everyone who previously didn’t care suddenly started voting? The NFL gang gets COVID. Does the first delayed game spell doom for a full NFL seasons? And finally, McDonald’s is apparently running out of their new Spicy McNuggets and new Spicy Dipping Sauce, striking another blow against he idea that the country would be better if everyone was voting. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Knock knock. Who’s there? Interrupting presidential candidates. Interrupting presidential canSHUT UP MAN. No matter how bad you expected the first presidential debate to be, it was worse. It’s almost impossible to talk about anything Trump or Biden said because you couldn’t hear it. Which is a shame, because there are things worth discussion. Eric and Joe try their best. The New York Times drops a major piece on Donald Trump’s taxes. Their big story is the wrong story, and the actual big story is that there’s more evidence that Trump’s presidential bid wasn’t an earnest attempt to win the White House. Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan has a challenger as suburban House Rep. Stephanie Kifowit launches a bid for Speaker. Is this the year the reign of Madigan finally ends? Hockey is over, baseball playoffs are underway and football is in full swing – all without, or mostly without, fans in attendance. People shouldn’t be so quick to dismiss sports as unimportant in our lives, and we should definitely care about what we’re missing out on. And finally, the Irish Supreme Court has ruled that Subway’s sandwich bread doesn’t actually meet the legal definition of bread. No word on if McDonalds meets the legal definition of Irish food. Or the legal definition of food in general. Where’s the justice?  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

RIP RBG. The untimely passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is, for the stability of our political system, just that: untimely. Strap yourself in for the most starkly naked displays of lying, hypocrisy and exercise of raw political power you’ve ever seen. Or as it’s known it Washington these days: Monday. Fresh off acting like a normal human being in reaction to RBG’s death, President Trump says he can’t guarantee he’ll accept a peaceful transition of power. Yes, Trump is unconventional, but his unconventional handling of softball questions to make them nightmares is truly a terrible superpower. The audience for Fox News is overwhelming Republican, while the audiences of MSNBC and The New York Times are overwhelmingly Democratic. In other news, water is wet, the sky is blue and Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead. The NHL puts out an ad that highlights how physical toughness is a part of the sport. Some people get mad, because we can’t have nice things anymore and they were shocked to learn that there’s gambling going on here. And finally, Taco Bell has launched their own wine, a Jalapeño Noir to pair with their Toasted Cheesy Chalupa. They do know most people get drunk before eating Taco Bell, not during it, right? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If a major Middle East peace deal falls in the woods and there’s only minimal media coverage of it, does it make a sound? No idea, because that question doesn’t make any sense. But the Abraham Accords are a huge deal. And get this: you can acknowledge both the flaws of the Trump administration’s approach to foreign policy in the region and the huge success that just happened on their watch. Try it. It’s not hard. Joe Biden, in trouble Hispanic voters in Florida, tries to give those voters what they want. And apparently he thinks what they want is the 2017 Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee reggeton hit “Despacito” streamed in his iPhone, followed by a speech from 1990s pop star Ricky Martin. Because, obviously. A new poll on the political and demographic makeup of sports fanbases tells us more about people’s ignorance of how polls work than it does about the political and demographic makeup of sports fanbases. Borrowing a dormant idea from The Fifth Column podcast, Eric and Joe debut a new segment of the show: Some Idiot Wrote This. First up, a take about Big 10 football returning to play that’s so nuclear you can’t stare directly into it or you’ll be blinded. And finally, Red Lobster introduces the Dewgarita, a Mountain Dew margarita. There aren’t enough Cheddar Bay Biscuits in the world to make that sound appealing. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Donald Trump talked to Bob Woodward for his upcoming book on the Trump presidency, “Rage.” This raises a very interesting question: WHY!? Over the course of those interviews Trump apparently admitted to downplaying the seriousness of COVID-19 and had nice things to say about Kim Jong Un. Is anyone shocked? Not if you’ve been paying attention. Will it matter much? Of course not. It’s 2020 after all. Eric saw a movie in the theater for the first time in what feels like an eon. And there are identity politics changes coming to the criteria a movie must meet to win a Best Picture Oscar. We’re sure there’s no way this ends up working out poorly at all, no sir. Fireworks from a gender reveal party start a fire that is currently burning down about half of California. You know another way to have a gender reveal? Just have the baby. That’s almost certain to not to burn anything down. At least we hope it’s not. And finally, Phil Collins is running for President as the candidate of the Prohibition Party. No, not that Phil Collins. But this one did get his political start here in Illinois. We know he’s running against all odds, but that’s the chance he’s gotta take. We know you’re thinking that there must be some misunderstanding, that there must be some kind of mistake. But it’s true. At least we’ll always be in his heart. Okay, we’ll stop now. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

Trump travels to Kenosha to visit business owners. Biden travels to Kenosha to meet with Jacob Blake’s family. The question, as always: will any of it matter? Meanwhile, Trump proffers conspiracy theories to Laura Ingraham while Joe Biden stumbles through a speech. Only two more months of this, right? It’s the blowout heard ‘round the world. Nancy Pelosi gets her hair did in violation of California COVID-19 policy, gets caught, and promptly employs the Marion Barry defense. How big of a problem is it when our politicians constantly break their own rules? College football is back, thanks primarily to the University of Notre Dame. (If you listen closely you can hear Joe rolling his eyes.) A true American hero takes up the fight against the lie that are boneless chicken wings in Lincoln, Nebraska. And finally, Taco Bell to tank more menu items like the Mexican Pizza – and surprisingly *not* because of woke reasons. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

With the Republican National Convention having drawn to a close, what is the state of play? What looked just a couple of weeks ago like it might be a Biden blowout could be tightening thanks to an underwhelming DNC, a successful RNC and continued civil unrest in the country. Eric and Joe walk through how the narrative of the election is changing. Another police-involved shooting is caught on video. But this time, it’s not in a major city. It’s in Kenosha, Wisconsin – a city of 100,000 people in a state that both Trump and Biden need to win. Is the burning of Kenosha a turning point in how we deal with civil unrest? NBA players walk off the court in protest. Okay, fine. But now comes the enforcers of the new norms who want to make sure they get a harrumph from you and every other pro sports league, too. Just don’t ask them about China. You’ll be made to care. Gov. Pritzker’s new mask mandate requires you to wear a mask when interacting with waitstaff at restaurants. No word yet on if you have to wear it while chewing. And finally, McDonalds reveals new Spicy Chicken McNuggets. Wendy’s twitter smacks them back down. You take a shot at the queen you best not miss. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

The Democratic National Zoom Call Convention is here and gone. Hey, Bernie, you’re on mute, you’ve got to take yourself off mute. On the upside, it made the 90 minute speeches last only 90 seconds. The downside? Those 90 seconds were still agonizing. The Republicans will have their turn next week, and the beatings will continue until morale improves. The GOP nominates two legit conspiracy theorist crazy people for Congress in Marjorie Taylor Greene and Laura Loomer. At least one of them will join the more subtly crazy people in the House in January. Goodyear apparently bans MAGA gear at work. Will Trump supporters now go slash their tires like they smashed their Keurigs? Cincinnati Reds broadcaster Thom Brennaman drops an anti-gay slur on a broadcast and we watch his career go down in flames before our very eyes. Cubs broadcaster Mark Grace is bounced for calling his wife a dingbat, prompting at least one dingbat “journalism” think piece. And finally, Burger King in Belgium has created facemasks with your order on them so you don’t have to open to mouth to let people know you made the mistake of eating at Burger King. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

Joe is out and Eric is joined for the program by Jonathan Greenberg. It’s Kamala! Biden picks a completely craven, unprincipled, totally self-interested person who basically called him a racist rapist. That’s always want you want in your second in command. But the question is, does it even really matter? Riots and looting hit Chicago again, this time with an even more tenuous to protest topics like police brutality. Gee, it’s starting to seem like the rioting and looting never really had anything to do with these big, important causes in the first place. Another NBA dope plays the moral equivalency game between the US and China. The Big 10 postpones college football. Will Purdue fans notice? It looks likes likely than ever that we’ll have football of any kind this fall. And finally, Jonathan gives all of his best and worst food takes as Eric marvels at the market coordination of Chinese restaurants. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

Another major interview for President Trump, another crazily poor performance. What is it about Trump that prevents him from crushing even the softball questions in otherwise challenging interviews? And why does Trump’s team keep putting him in these no-win situations with competent interviewers? It’s Covid Regulationplaooza, which replaces Lollapalooza, since that was canceled by Coronavirus. Restaurants won’t seat large families together because of table limits, LA threatens to turn off water and power to houses breaking social distancing regulations, and Nashville arrests a man for not having a mask probably because he also doesn’t have a home. Are we going to stop getting dumber about this stuff at some point? The 1990 Arnold Schwarzenegger comedy classic KINDERGARTEN COP is canceled because it glorifies “over-policing.” But not for transphobia, which is kinda surprising. The Chicago Teachers Union does what it does best: hold the city of Chicago hostage. A strike threat causes Chicago Public Schools to cave immediately to start the school year with all distance learning. And finally, a man has marital problems for decorating a room in his house in 1990s Taco Bell style. If he sought a divorce, how could anyone not take his side? See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

President Trump tweets a suggestion of delaying the November election. Is this one of those things we’re supposed to take seriously but not literally? It would be nice if he could delay sending such tweets out. Does this add fuel to Joe’s theory that Trump will drop out of the race before election day? Gov. Pritzker announces the cancellation of IHSA sports. Will they come back by spring? Is there a sport seemingly more tailor-made for spreading a communicable disease than football? Is there any chance the NFL plays a full season, even considering that they obviously don’t care a wit about the health and safety of their players? Baseball is back, but with the distractions of bizarre virtual fans, weird crowd noise, empty stadiums and social justice virtue signaling. Hockey is back, too, and seemingly pulling off this return better than expected. Covington high schooler Nick Sandmann is (probably) a multi-millionaire at 18, thanks to settling parts of an enormous defamation lawsuit against CNN and the Washington Post. Would you endure what he did for that big of a payout? And finally, Eric and Joe discuss fast food restaurants that they have blacklisted, never ever to eat at under any circumstances. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

President Donald Trump’s Fox News Sunday appearance was … something. Eric and Joe take a look at some of the question on that cognitive test he bragged about – that is intended to test people for dementia. Chicago changes the COVID rules for bars, prohibiting alcohol service in-doors, but doesn’t roll back to Phase 3. Welcome to COVID Calvinball, where the rules are made up and the points don’t matter. The New York Times’ classical music critic wants to do away with blind auditions to increase racial and gender diversity in the orchestra. But what about, ya know, musical quality? Does that matter? Trader Joe’s decides to deep-six allegedly racist in-house brands like Trader Jose’s and Trader Ming’s. Yeah, that’s probably the right call. And finally, the Washington Redskins have their new name: The Washington Football Team. Eric and Joe are offended at the dumbness. See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot threatens to roll the city back to Phase 3 of reopening. Based on what metrics? The same kind of metrics that government officials have been arbitrarily conjuring out of the ether from the beginning. The odds that people are just going to go along with it? Not very good. The Washington Redskins are official changing their name. But it’s not going to stop there. Or with the Indians and Braves. Apparently Texas Rangers is also offensive and needs to go. Eric and Joe work their way through all the offensive sports team names that will need to be canceled because someone is offended on behalf of other people who really aren’t actually offended. Worried that people won’t complete the Census? Fear no more! The Census Cowboy is here to save the day. We really wish we were joking, but this is an actual thing that’s happening. ESPN suspends NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski for a profane reply to an email from Sen. Josh Hawley. MLB looks to start piping in crowd noise to empty stadiums. Eric and Joe aren’t impressed with either of these developments. And finally, Taco Bell is rumored to be on the cusp of a menu revamp that removes a bunch of items, including the spicy potato taco. When will this war on our tastebuds end? See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

Can Donald Trump tweet open schools into existence? He’s sure determined to try. Father of school-aged kids Eric shares with childless Joe all the pathologies created by having kids at home for months, doing e-learning, with the possibility that they might not be going back to school in the fall. Plus, Eric shares is most “unpopular” opinion that, yeah, teachers are kind of babysitters, whether they want to be or not. A litany of quasi-famous people pen an anodyne letter supporting free expression in the face of cancel culture. So of course some of them must now be canceled. Was that the intention of the letter all long? Who is ready for Kanye for President? Not the people who print the ballots for the November election, that’s for sure. Eric goes off on the incompetence of the post office. And finally, it looks like the Washington Redskins will be changing their name. How many most sports teams will follow suit? See omnystudio.com/policies/listener for privacy information.

Four months to go before the 2020 election. On one hand, a lot of experts expect the roughly 10 point lead Joe Biden has over Donald Trump to tighten. On the other hand, it could also get worse. Given 2020, what do you think is most likely? Could it get so bad that the Republicans lose control of the Senate? Just like with the presidential polls, it’s not looking so hot for the GOP right now. Could it get so bad that President Trump quits the race rather than face the voters? Joe serves up his theory on that. The NBA might allow social justice slogans on the backs of jerseys in the place of players’ names. Brooklyn Nets point guard Spencer Dinwiddie wants to make his “trillion” to draw attention to our trillions in national debt. Something tells us that’s not what the NBA had in mind. Coronavirus is surging in some states. But that’s frequently reported without the context of the level of testing and the age of those diagnosed. The smart thing would be to be patient and wait to understand all the information. But this is a hot take-based economy so that’s not happening. And finally, former Cubs star Dexter Fowler trolls the city of St. Louis over its pizza, which prompts Eric to defend the one good part of STL pizza: provel cheese. 

If Trump rallies in Tulsa and no one attends, does it still make a sound? Maybe holding an indoor rally in a smaller-sized city in the middle of a viral pandemic isn’t the best way to turn out a million people. And yet, somehow the media coverage has been even worse. The Black Lives Matter protests didn’t lead to a spike in COVID outbreaks, but a Trump rally of 7,000 people definitely will? Pick a lane, people. Speaking of the media, how on Earth has CNN continued to allow Gov. Andrew Cuomo to be interviewed fawningly by his brother Chris when Andrew’s state’s as seen more COVID deaths than Florida, which has a larger population? Just over four months until Election Day and it’s not looking good for President Trump. Eric and Joe break down the latest polling data. Baseball is returning! And yet, somehow, discussion of the most vulnerable people in the ballpark is glossed over because they’re lumped into the ownership side of the conversation, and everyone just hates billionaires apparently. Some prominent conservatives are ditching Facebook and Twitter for something called Parler. But not before talking about it endlessly on Facebook and Twitter. And then hanging around those social media platforms endlessly. And finally, Sonic surprises as one of the most popular fast food restaurants during the pandemic. But how the heck was McDonalds more popular in California when they have In-and-Out!?!

In a world where things are often not what they seem, the supposed “autonomous zone” in Seattle actually ins’t so autonomous. Is it CHAZ or is it CHOP? Let’s go with CHOP, since that’s the sound the guillotine makes. What does the future hold for them, and how soon before they start promising that Mexico will pay for their border wall? All-around failure Rick Wilson tries to dunk on Dominos. Dominos dunks on him by… make a completely reasonable and salient point about the stupidity of our modern times. Eric got tested for COVID. It’s not fun guys. Try to avoid it by taking all the reasonable precautions. Food brands are ditching their product names and images linked to racial stereotypes. Is it a good thing? Yeah. Are we making too much out of it? Of course we are. And finally, are we really going to get baseball? Maybe. But not before we have one more chance to pretend that rich people just have a Scrooge McDuck vault of money to dump into stuff we like without making anything back.

Robby Soave, senior editor at Reason and author of the book “Panic Attack: Young Radicals in the Age of Trump” joins Eric and Joe on this episode of Overthinking to discuss how the campus culture of “safetyism” has spread to the real world, particularly The New York Times, resulting in the firing of the paper’s opinion editor for the thought crime of publishing an op/ed from a sitting U.S. Senator that a large number of Americans happen to agree with. Robby also discusses what impact the Great Awokening is having on media, and what that could mean for political coalition building in the future. Does he think the campus culture problems are likely to get worse now that the culture is spreading beyond the quad? 

The streets of Chicago are calmer now, so Eric and Joe take stock of the last few weeks. Was blocking the protests out of the Loop the right move when it resulted on pushing not only the protests but also some rioting and looting into Chicago’s north, west and southside neighborhoods? No offense, but Ald. Ray Lopez sure doesn’t f-ing think so. Reason senior editor Robby Soave joins the program to discuss the striking new relevance of his book “Panic Attack: Young Radicals in the Age of Trump,” the meltdown over a Sen. Tom Cotton op/ed at The New York Times and the rise of campus safetyism in the larger world. Eric shares an op/ed from a Millikin University Theater professor who contends that asking student theater performers to arrive 10 minutes early is "enforcing a white colonialist conception of time on our students.” And that’s just one of the insane ideas in that piece. If “defund the cops” doesn’t actually mean defunding the cops, maybe it isn’t the best slogan? Just a thought. And finally, Wendy's Twitter account wants you to know that they aren’t racist. Ya know, just in case you thought they were, we guess?

What started as peaceful protests over the truly outrageous death of George Floyd at the hands of the police in Minneapolis police turned into riots, looting and violence. Do the rioters want more Trump? Because this is how they get more Trump. Could MN AG Keith Ellison screw up the prosecution by over-charging the case? JB Pritzker is recorded on a bizarre phone call with Trump. At least he wasn’t trying to buy a political office this time. In addition to the rioters themselves, you have the very-online people doing pseudo-intellectual, performative virtue-signaling on social media to try to excuse rioting, which just takes the focus off of what happened to George Floyd more and more. Do we really need to be extorting statements from brands and sports teams and keeping track of who posted a black box on Instagram and who didn’t? Because that’s certainly what some people are doing. And finally, what are some actual reforms that people can support that could make things better?

In Minneapolis, an iPhone video of a police officer causing the death of George Floyd. In Central Park, an iPhone video of two Karens acting like, well, Karens. These two events aren’t morally comparable at all, but there’s a common thread running through them: cell phone video has made them national news. Eric and Joe discuss the good and the bad of our connected, video-recorded life. Trump tweets despicable conspiracy theories alleging Joe Scarborough is responsible for the death of a young woman. This is what our president is focused on in the midst of two major crises? Lots of young people gather to party on Memorial Day at the Lake of the Ozarks. Dumb? Yes. Irresponsible? Sure. But exactly what the hell do the scolds outraged about it want? Eric watched THE LAST DANCE and discuss how unlikely it would be to get another Michael Jordan figure in the iPhone, social media age. And finally, Burger King has developed social distancing crowns to keep people at a safe distance. Now if the only had food the made you want to go there.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker says restaurants can open for patio dining. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot says no, they won’t be ready for that. Do these people talk to each other? Does anyone know what they’re doing anymore? Plans continue to swirl to bring sports back. You’d think Major League Baseball would have an easier path than the NBA or the NHL, but alas. The long history of tension between the players union and owners in baseball could tank the season, at a huge cost to baseball both financially and reputationally. NBA fan Joe does his best to convince the NBA-indifferent Eric that he should watch ESPN’s Michael Jordan/Chicago Bulls documentary THE LAST DANCE. That small mom-and-pop pizza restaurant you’re ordering from online might just turn out to be Chuck E. Cheese. How could the distinguished Charles Entertainment Cheese deceive us so? And finally, the Nassau County Executive has some very, um, interesting instructions about how we should handle our, uh, tennis balls.

How do you grapple with a complex problem that involves a viral pandemic, a cratering economy, individual liberty concerns, pubic health imperatives, populist movements and possibly some murder hornets? By pretending you're Mr. Wizard, apparently. Governors like J.B. Pritzker and Gavin Newsom love to praise science, but don’t quite seem to understand what it is. If you super pro-reopening shouldn’t you also be super pro-maskwearing? Apparently not, because some people have to be more manly than others. Gov. Jay Inslee in Washington wants to punish people who don’t comply with his COVID-19 orders with getting then a butler/personal shopper. Incentives. How do they work? Hoffman Estates: home of narcing on ice cream trucks. The really psychological phenomenon of Zoom exhaustion. And finally, one restaurant suggests mannequins in empty restaurant seats to help with the atmosphere when socially distanced restaurants reopen. We guess nothing’s gonna stop them now.  

A sense of fear hangs over this entire episode, almost like a swarm of murder hornets. Seriously, we have murder hornets now? It seems like only yesterday that Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker was laughing off notions of a regional re-opening of the state. Actually, it pretty much was just yesterday that he was laughing at the idea before he embraced it. The buck stops with him. Until it doesn’t. What will be the political consequences if schools don’t open in the fall? Will frustrated parents seek their vengeance on elected officials, no matter who they are? At an appearance in Arizona, President Trump toured a factory floor without a mask and soundtracked by Guns N’ Roses rendition of “Live and Let Die.” Worst James Bond film ever. Eric and Joe share their new-found, long-standing passion for Korean baseball, and totally not because it’s the only live baseball we can watch right now. Go Giants and Dinos! And finally, Japanese honey bees kill murder hornets by sacrificing one bee to the hornet while the others swarm, vibrate their bodies to raise the temperature inside the swarm and cook the hornet to death. Sounds delightful. Eric and Joe share their worst-ever sacrificial bee-like job experience.

IL State Rep. Darren Bailey prevailed in a lawsuit challenging Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s quarantine orders. But it only applies to him. So that’s good news for all of you State Rep. Darren Baileys out there who want to get out of the house. Also, NYC Mayor Bill DeBlaso comes for the Jews in a threatening tweet. What could possibly go wrong? We’re sure it sounded more charming, or at least more angry, in the original German. Libertarian Congressman Justin Amash joins the presidential race. When Eric types his name out it’s autocorrected to “smash” so that’ll be fun. CNN memory-holes a Larry King episode where Tara Reade’s mother called in. Yeah, the media has been bad on this stuff, but do people really want the Kavanagh standard (or lack thereof) for everyone? We miss sports. Just how desperate are we to get them back? Enough to blow of the AL and NL in MLB for a year? And finally, Eric dropped his phone and cracked the screen. How does one get a new phone when our political leaders have determined phone stores aren’t essential?

The sheltering and quarantining will continue. For how long, we’re not sure. As protests bubble up, 26 million people are now unemployed and people still fear the consequences of opening back up too soon, what will finally be the breaking point? Eric and Joe dispel the false binary about reopening and lay out real choices we need to start making. Illinois Senate President Don Harmon asks for a federal bailout of our fiscal basket-case of a state. Never let a good crisis go to waste, right? Friendly reminder: there’s still a presidential election going on. Will Trump’s immunity from the “really around the flag” effect on presidential approval ratings that president’s usually enjoy spell doom for him in November? And finally, a Morning Consult poll on the best sports movies seems to suffer from a big definitional problem of what exactly is a “sport."

People keep asking if we should “open the economy” as if it’s a decision that one person or a group of politicians can actually make. Like it or not, people aren’t rejoining normality until they feel safe to do so. So, sorry, Mr. President. Your authority isn’t total. Illinois is facing a $2.4 billion budget deficit because of the economic shut down. But that hasn’t stopped Gov. J.B. Pritzker from pushing forward with his progressive tax idea that would sock it small businesses again. Speaking of debt problems, AMC Theaters has a whopping $4.9 billion of it. Will COVID-19 spell the end of the movie theater? Joe Biden has been accused of sexual assault. Did he do it? Not sure. Has the media treated it the same way they did Brett Kavanaugh? Not even close. Is the seeming call by some conservatives that they do so idiotic. Absolutely. And finally, Eric shares his experience cutting his own hair, or how he learned to to stop worrying and love the bald spot.

Bernie Sanders finally drops out of the presidential race. Bernie who? In the end twas the reality of life with COVID-19 that ran headlong into Sander’s implausible ideas. No one is paying attention to Joe Biden at all, and honestly that’s probably the best case scenario for him. Will coronavirus cause him to reconsider his promise to pick a woman VP? Wisconsin votes, COVID-19 be dammed. What will elections look like in November and for years to come? Could warm weather in Chicago end the lockdown before politicians say so? Joe has adopted mask wearing. No one cared who he was before it put on the mask. How long will mask-wearing be with us? Eric and Joe share the TV and movies they’re watching to kill the time. And finally, Uber Eats shared the top take-out items during the COVID-19 lockdown. Illinois’? French fries. Be better, Illinois.

Are you ready to answer the 4am screaming emergency alert looking for qualified medical personnel from Gov. Pritzker? Turns out Eric and Joe were, even if they didn’t know it until their phones blew up. With that panic-inducing message in mind, who has handled the Coronavirus crisis well? And who hasn’t? Why do our political leaders seem to what to out-do each other’s shut down orders when it would just make way more sense to take it all in 2 week chunks? Has Coronavirus caused you to rethink anything you previously believed? Eric and Joe give a few things they’ve reconsidered. Even if the entire 2020 MLB season is canceled, rumor has it the suspensions of the cheating Houston Astros’ leadership will be considered served. How to put this? Hell to the no. And finally, what are your go-to snack items while you’re locked inside?

Coming to you from their undisclosed bunker for the second week in a row, Eric and Joe try to take seriously the conversation no one seems to want to have: what are the actual trade-offs between the public health measures we’re implementing and the human toll those choices are taking on people’s economic wellbeing? There’s still a presidential election going on. What happens when everyone’s sworn in to office in January 2021 and they discover they can’t do any of their big plans because we have no more money? Speaking of that, Congress is ready to spend $2.2 trillion on Coronavirus relief. If we’re going to do this, why are we means-testing it? Does anyone really care of Jeff Bezos gets a check as long as people who really need one do, too? It’s all quiet on the streets of Chicago as everyone shelters in place. For those used to life in the city, that’s incredibly unnerving. And finally, Supreme Oreos are selling for as much as $1,200 on eBay. So now you have something to do with your Covid-19 relief check.

Eric and Joe are broadcasting from an undisclosed location beneath a mountain, wrapped entirely in bubblewrap to make sure they don’t get Coronavirus. Going stir crazy yet? Hopefully not because we don’t know how many more weeks of social isolation are in our future. How do we deal with all the uncertainty? Should Gov. Pritzker have canceled the Illinois primary election?” How are Eric and Joe dealing with a world without sports? (Not well.) Know who should be socially isolated? The Bernie Sanders campaign. Someone tell him that Roy Orbison’s “It’s Over” is now our favorite song. And finally, after usually discussing fast food to end the show, Eric and Joe share what they’ve been cooking at home.