Note: You can also catch Matt on Blue Amp Media. Today’s The Daily Whatever Show opened with its usual warmth and chaos, as I checked in “from the field” — specifically, the open-air, poolside setting of an L.A. airport hotel at 7 a.m. The vibes were already different, and the hotel staff specifically commented on how they loved my energy. My morning tea was elusive, but the Starbucks at the nearby Ralph’s made a surprise cameo. Los Angeles was immediately doing what Los Angeles does. Back home, Lawrence Winnerman was glowing, but not in a metaphorical way. A gym tanning, oops, left him in full Santa Lawrence mode. Somehow, we segued from tanning into a discussion of his new T-shirt inspired by actress Jennifer Coolidge in Legally Blonde 2. It read, “Makes me want a hot dog real bad,” proving once again that pop culture, gay high command, and Midwest confusion remain the backbone of our how. It was F****d Up Friday, and the stakes were high. Joining us as our guest today was Matt of The MattMcNeilShow, broadcasting from Minneapolis. He accurately described his location as “the current center of the universe.” After a brief tech hiccup that required the sacred ritual of turning things off and back on again, Matt launched into his Friday story, a devastating, firsthand account of what’s unfolding in Minnesota. His central thesis was blunt: everything federal authorities have said about Minneapolis is a lie. Protesters are not violent outsiders. ICE officers are not besieged heroes. And the people being arrested are not “the worst of the worst.” Instead, Matt described peaceful locals, aggressive federal tactics, and deliberate misinformation designed to distract from larger national scandals and stoke racist fear. Matt detailed incidents that were as horrifying as they were clarifying, including a family minivan hit with a flash bang grenade, tear gas affecting an infant, and the ongoing targeting of immigrant communities under false pretenses. The conversation made clear that this wasn’t a policy failure; it was intentional cruelty wrapped in propaganda. I followed with my Friday submission, underscoring two developments that were as chilling as they were clarifying: confirmation that Renee Nicole Good could have survived the initial shots that struck her, and credible evidence that the White House altered photos of protesters to make them appear darker, more chaotic, and emotionally unstable. In any other era, that alone would have detonated into a full-blown national scandal. Lawrence then zoomed out to the bigger picture, pointing out the grim paradox of our current moment. This bumbling, incompetent, asshole administration — astonishingly bad at governance and seemingly determined to break everything it touches — has somehow become ruthlessly efficient at the one thing that truly matters: dismantling global cooperation. Just weeks ago, we talked about the United States quietly withdrawing from 81 international organizations. Yesterday, the Associated Press confirmed another jaw-dropper: we are officially done with the World Health Organization. Fully out. No more WHO. And history tells us that pulling out — never works. Our country will no longer receive critical health intelligence from the rest of the world — no early pandemic warnings, no global disease surveillance, no coordinated outbreak data, and no shared vaccine strategy. We’ve effectively unplugged ourselves from the planet’s public-health smoke alarm. As we wrapped the show and opened the vote, it became clear the result was a three-way tie. But the larger truth wasn’t up for debate. Lies aren’t just circulating anymore; they’re being deliberately manufactured, endlessly repeated, and strategically weaponized. And the cost isn’t abstract. The price is human. Next Monday, January 26th, we’ll welcome independent journalist Arturo Dominguez continuing our commitment to centering human rights and lived reality over spin, propaganda, and power. Because if we don’t tell these stories clearly and honestly, someone else will tell them wrong. Thank you Nick Paro, Melissa Corrigan, she/her, Yanni Hamburger, Noble Blend,Jason Odell, Polly Walker Blakemore, Cat Poli-Pych, Karen C-Collector of Books 📖, Mason/She/Her🩷💜💙 and our chat mod Karen Marie Shelton and all the Whatevers for tuning in, We love you all—truly!—mean it. Get full access to The Daily Whatever Show at www.thedailywhatevershow.com/subscribe
