The Drain

The Drain
  • 4.5 (16)
  • NEWS
  • UPDATED BIWEEKLY

The Drain is a podcast covering California news and culture. Hosted by Kempa (founding editor of VOICES: River City) and Max (a.k.a. Sweet Palma, cofounder of Seeking Derangements), we discuss the liberal California hegemony through a leftist lens, just steps from the state Capitol. Free episodes (The Drain) every Wednesday. Premium episodes (The Plug) every Saturday at: patreon.com/thedrain Tips/Pitches/Questions to thedrainpodcast@gmail.com Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/thedrain.bsky.social, https://bsky.app/profile/palma.ltd, https://bsky.app/profile/yeshelloitskempa.bsky.social

  1. 1D AGO

    Drainiversary episode!

    Hello friends, Kempa here. I'm publishing a somewhat overdue episode while preparing for the crew's Hole Hajj to the Lake Berryessa Glory Hole (patron-only recording on that forthcoming). It's a good one. For our one-year anniversary, Palma and I are discussing some of our faves, including: President Donald Trump's obsession with California in his marathon-length State of the Union California Democratic Party head Rusty Hicks's plea to loser Democrats in the state gubernatorial race to take a step back after polls show two Republicans leading the pack alongside three Dems. Why leftists should not put their time or money into the state gubernatorial race The major topics that ought to be nonstarters with Democratic candidates (including Medicare for All, Israel, and the billionaire tax) Thank you so much for your love in our first year of existing. We've got so much more coming for you in 2026, including some phenomenal guests 3 Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe to The Drain on your favorite podcast platforms. Questions? Comments? Pitches? Email us at thedrainpodcast@gmail.com. We're still hanging about on Twitter: @sweetxpalma and @youknowkempa We're also on Bluesky: @thedrain.bsky.social, @palma.ltd, @yeshelloitskempa.bsky.social

    1h 16m

  2. 6D AGO

    *Preview* LEAVE. BRITNEY. ALONE.

    **This is a preview of our premium show, The Plug. To listen to the full episode, go to patreon.com/thedrain.** Today we're discussing a few bizarre California stories, including: Britney Spears's incredible wherewithal in responding to a suspected drinking and driving incident in southern California. A registered sex offender posting up at a church across from a school (free link) while he holds a press conference for his mayoral run in Fresno. A good deal of MMA discourse, related to Lou Holtz and a couple of our Sacramento faves (which is what makes this town so oddly special). Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe to The Drain on your favorite podcast platforms. Questions? Comments? Pitches? Email us at thedrainpodcast@gmail.com. We're still hanging about on Twitter: @sweetxpalma and @youknowkempa We're also on Bluesky: @thedrain.bsky.social, @palma.ltd, @yeshelloitskempa.bsky.social

    5 min

  3. MAR 3

    Connie Chan for Congress (with Connie Chan)

    Hello, Drain-iacs! Max and Kempa are back this week with a real corker of an episode, with someone who we've been a fan of for quite some time – San Francisco's very own Connie Chan! As supervisor for SF's District 1, Connie is one of the progressive voices in the foreground of the local fight against the Tech Right, the Doom-Loopers, the Hacker News set and the Faux-gressives swarming City Hall – not to mention the SF Dems' propensity for supporting DINO politicians like Daniel Lurie and London Breed, at the expense of more progressive, even more popular, candidates. Now that Nancy Pelosi is (finally [lol]) retiring, Chan is running for her seat in Congress to truly represent a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, immigrant-plurality district like CA-11. We talk to Connie about her background as an immigrant, and how growing up in San Francisco's Chinatown has given her a unique perspective among elected officials when it comes to pretty much all the hot-button issues that have been cropping up this cycle – Immigration, of course, but also cost of living, housing, labor and worker's rights, and healthcare. In short, she champions a politics of dignity and love, a politics that is sorely needed in Congress. Though her stances on the genocide of Gaza and campaign finance set her apart from her challengers (Scott Weiner and Saikat Chakrabarti, respectively), it is this respect for human life and desire for dignity for all that truly places her a cut above the rest. In the 2026 congressional primaries, it's more important than ever for progressives in California to fight back against Silicon Valley's capture of local and state Dem parties by supporting local candidates with proven track records like Connie Chan. You can find out more (or even get involved directly) at her congressional campaign website: https://www.conniechansf.com/ Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe to The Drain on your favorite podcast platforms. Support us at https://www.patreon.com/c/thedrain.  Questions? Comments? Pitches? Email us at thedrainpodcast@gmail.com. We're still hanging about on Twitter: @sweetxpalma and @youknowkempa We're also on Bluesky: @thedrain.bsky.social, @palma.ltd, @yeshelloitskempa.bsky.social

    52 min

  4. FEB 24

    *Preview* Eric Swalwangelou

    This was some of the most fun we've had recording in The Drain's 50-week existence. So if you're not a patron yet, subscribe today to listen to the full episode. We begin with a couple of excerpts from Kempa's favorite modern poet: California gubernatorial candidate Eric Swalwell. Does he yearn for another night with star-crossed Fang Fang? Move us to tears with vivid verse on uncontrolled farts? You'll have to listen to find out. Swalwell is, sadly, considered the frontrunner in the race for governor, edging out billionaire suck-up Tom Steyer and horrible boss Katie Porter. But there's a lot of runway before the June 2 primary. We take a look at the state of things, and also discuss Steyer's campaign manager--a former Elizabeth Warren presidential campaign staffer and former intern for America's Landlord/windshield wiper thief, Steve Maviglio. California's state Democratic convention was last weekend, which brought lots of drama between corporate Democrats and the rising progressive/leftist influence in the party--such as the race for Congress between Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains and local lefty darling Randy Villegas. Eons ago, Kempa wrote a cover story in the Sacramento News and Review on the 2017 California Democratic Convention. Things were the same back then as they are today, with party establishment types like former state chair John Burton (dead) telling nurses who were fighting for Medicare for All to "shut the f**k up." Thankfully, there are some bright spots for lefties, such as Representative Ro Khanna increasingly veering left as he prepares for a 2028 run for the White House. We also discuss Bernie Sanders's visit to the Golden State to kick off the campaign to tax the state's billionaires into oblivion. Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe to The Drain on your favorite podcast platforms. Questions? Comments? Pitches? Email us at thedrainpodcast@gmail.com. We're still hanging about on Twitter: @sweetxpalma and @youknowkempa We're also on Bluesky: @thedrain.bsky.social, @palma.ltd, @yeshelloitskempa.bsky.social

    7 min

  5. FEB 22

    Open the schools, with "Tommy"

    We're joined this week by a friend of the show, who we're going to call "Tommy", to discuss the continuing crisis in California's school funding. Tommy is a member of the California Teachers Association, working in our local unified school district, and has firsthand (and quite deep) insight into how Labor is dealing with the effects of the state's chronic school under-funding, while also expecting so much more from its staff. As school districts face a crisis in truancy, the state apportions its funding to school districts based on attendance, even if they're on the hook for services regardless. Faced with a shrinking pool of state assistance, and more competitive grant environments, school districts throughout California have chosen to bolster their administrations at the expense of other staff, fostering top-heavy, expensive, inflexible management styles that siphon general fund dollars away from students and educators. The ultimate result is bearing fruit all over the state, as labor actions erupt out of San Francisco, Natomas, and look to escape the bargaining room in LA and San Diego. Threats of state receivership in Contra Costa, and Sacramento can also be traced back to the same problems we're examining here with "Tommy" -- it's time for the State to finally put its money where its mouth is, and fully fund its education system, support the valuable labor educators provide, and ultimately reverse the unfortunate decline in education outcomes that come with underfunding. Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe to The Drain on your favorite podcast platforms. Support us at https://www.patreon.com/c/thedrain.  Questions? Comments? Pitches? Email us at thedrainpodcast@gmail.com. We're still hanging about on Twitter: @sweetxpalma and @youknowkempa We're also on Bluesky: @thedrain.bsky.social, @palma.ltd, @yeshelloitskempa.bsky.social

    1h 8m

  6. FEB 10

    Kevin Kiley needs a home

    It's official: The Supreme Court is letting Proposition 50 stand (free link), allowing California Democrats (led by political GURU Paul Mitchell) to slice up the state's congressional districts in a manner that will obliterate Republican representation in D.C. This is another embarrassing loss for Assistant Attorney General/longtime state GOP attorney Harmeet Dhillon, who made headlines weeks ago by arresting former CNN anchor Don Lemon and independent journalist Georgia Fort for covering an anti-ICE protest in a Minneapolis church. But perhaps the biggest loser of the day is District 3 Representative Kevin Kiley (free link), whose current constituency has been torn into six pieces by the court ruling. In all likelihood, Kiley must now hoist the ol' bindle over his shoulder and find a new district if he wants to stay in office. We take a look at his current options, which are so dire that his best bet might be to take a step back from Washington and return to the state legislature. We take a deep dive into Kiley's options, before taking a larger look at the partisan gerrymander battles taking place throughout the country. No matter the outcome, special elections are already hinting at a very bad election cycle for the GOP, and a very good one for progressives and Leftists. We also take a moment to check in on labor leaders like the California Labor Federation's Lorena Gonzalez, who is warning Governor Gavin Newsom that he needs to start taking workers' job safety in the face of the rising AI tide seriously if he wants to be the next president. Oh, and of course we have to touch on a Congress member going wild (free link), posting feet on main. Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe to The Drain on your favorite podcast platforms. Support us at https://www.patreon.com/c/thedrain.  Questions? Comments? Pitches? Email us at thedrainpodcast@gmail.com. We're still hanging about on Twitter: @sweetxpalma and @youknowkempa We're also on Bluesky: @thedrain.bsky.social, @palma.ltd, @yeshelloitskempa.bsky.social

    1h 15m

  7. FEB 5

    Mayors gone wild/corporate/AWOL

    We begin today with a look at Californians' responses to ICE agents murdering Alex Pretti in the streets of Minneapolis. By and large, the Golden State is horrified by what it's seeing--even members of some of the Golden State's most right-leaning, rural Second Amendment rights groups. But not all of the state's mayors are living up to the population's standards. Down in California City, for example, Mayor Marquette Hawkins and his council are facing strong backlash for their lack of response to the atrocities taking place in the city's massive immigrant detention facility, which is run by for-profit agency CoreCivic (free link). Up here in Sacramento, where city council appears ready to take great strides to make life harder for ICE and DHS agents (free link), Mayor Kevin McCarty decided to skip the latest meeting--opting to join a national mayors conference rather than face over 800 of his constituents who commented both online and in-person to support council's decision. Speaking of bad mayors, San Jose's very own Matt Mahan thinks that--with the help of rich Bay Area pricks like Garry Tan--he can become California's next conservaDem governor. Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe to The Drain on your favorite podcast platforms. Support us at https://www.patreon.com/c/thedrain.  Questions? Comments? Pitches? Email us at thedrainpodcast@gmail.com. We're still hanging about on Twitter: @sweetxpalma and @youknowkempa We're also on Bluesky: @thedrain.bsky.social, @palma.ltd, @yeshelloitskempa.bsky.social

    1h 9m

  8. FEB 1

    *Preview* Last of the Mujicas

    **This is a preview of our premium show, The Plug. To listen to the full episode, go to patreon.com/thedrain.** Today we're joined by El Güero to discuss the Costa-Gavras classic, État de Siège. Based on the 1970 killing of an American official by the Tupamaro guerrillas in Uruguay, this film examines how police states backed by the United States in Latin America forced the hands of rebels. We all know how this ended up for Uruguay: The following year, leftists formed the Broad Front coalition, which eventually got former Tupamaro/political prisoner José Mujica elected president. But many countries suffered much deeper blowback from US intervention. Stay tuned for further film discussions in this series (next up, our dear friend Hesse is planning to join us for an Argentine classic). Don't forget to like, rate and subscribe to The Drain on your favorite podcast platforms. Questions? Comments? Pitches? Email us at thedrainpodcast@gmail.com. We're still hanging about on Twitter: @sweetxpalma and @youknowkempa We're also on Bluesky: @thedrain.bsky.social, @palma.ltd, @yeshelloitskempa.bsky.social

    5 min
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4.5
out of 5
16 Ratings

About

The Drain is a podcast covering California news and culture. Hosted by Kempa (founding editor of VOICES: River City) and Max (a.k.a. Sweet Palma, cofounder of Seeking Derangements), we discuss the liberal California hegemony through a leftist lens, just steps from the state Capitol. Free episodes (The Drain) every Wednesday. Premium episodes (The Plug) every Saturday at: patreon.com/thedrain Tips/Pitches/Questions to thedrainpodcast@gmail.com Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/thedrain.bsky.social, https://bsky.app/profile/palma.ltd, https://bsky.app/profile/yeshelloitskempa.bsky.social

Information

  • Creator
    The Drain
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    68
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2025 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    The Drain

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