Kayal and Company

We open the final hour trying to beat the show’s recent YouTube like record before Shawn Farash joins our discussion of Florida’s governor race. Byron Donalds wins the Republican primary and David Jolly wins the Democratic primary, but Jolly’s argument that Donalds is running away from Trump gets a skeptical response from the crew after we compare the vote totals. We also check Donalds’ prior Democratic registration before finally rolling Kayal’s full handwashing tape and discovering just how much narration, dryer time and sanitizer he squeezes into four and a half minutes. Fight Club follows with a Flock-heavy intro and a fresh subway brawl before we open voting for Fight of the Week. The contenders include a Yankees-Rangers fan fight, a restaurant scuffle, a snowy alley knockout, a kitchen fight and the subway entry. The crew knocks one contender out, casts its own votes and sends the remaining fights to the audience. Ana Hummel then handles the Big Three while filling in for Dawn, beginning with the former car salesman legally recognized as Prince Laurent’s son in Belgium. We detour into Ana-versus-Anna pronunciation arguments, Tucker Carlson, JD Vance’s friendship with Tucker and a Darth Vader appearance at a San Diego hearing mocking Flock surveillance. We finish with Natalie Harp’s letters to Trump, Brie Bella passing out during a bathroom emergency, Today in Music History, weekend WPHT programming and Shawn Farash explaining where listeners can find his new national radio work.

Shawn Farash arrives with a Trump impression, gives us details on his new national radio work and then joins the Cut Sheet as we dig into Karmelo Anthony’s request for a new trial and evidence that never reaches the original jury. We continue with Karmelo Anthony as New Black Panther Party chair Krystal Muhammad backs him and celebrates the removal of the original judge from the retrial proceedings. We argue that a new trial may work against Anthony once previously excluded evidence becomes available, then hear James Talarico cite the absence of Black jurors while also saying he does not know the case in depth. That kicks off another argument over jury selection, race and whether politicians should make sweeping claims about a criminal case they have not closely followed. The Lindsay Clancy trial takes over as hundreds of supporters dressed in pink gather outside the courthouse. We hear women say Clancy’s case could have happened to them, discuss the defense surrounding postpartum psychosis and strongly dispute the idea that mental illness automatically erases responsibility for killing three children. Candace Owens then argues that Clancy is not guilty and blames the pharmaceuticals she was prescribed, while we distinguish concern about overmedication from criminal responsibility. The hour also introduces Meliza Campos-Sanchez, the Florida mother accused of pouring hot wax on her young daughters and intentionally starting a kitchen fire. Then the handwashing war gets serious. After admitting earlier in the week that he often uses sanitizer instead of soap at the station, Kayal agrees to prove how long a full bathroom trip takes, and Jimmy Kelly follows along with a camera. Kayal returns four minutes and 28 seconds later insisting that handwashing and the weak dryer consume most of the break. From there we hit the Washington IndyCar race, late-night UFC viewing, Trump’s interview with Michael Cohen, Mikie Sherrill’s comparison of AR-15 and abortion access and Michelle Wu’s plan to seek records connected to ICE’s search for Boston parking spaces.

The Flock debate keeps rolling when Michael Opelka tells us his plate appears in a Virginia theft search tied to a vehicle he says he has never owned. We acknowledge the other side by discussing how surveillance data helped investigators build the Bryan Kohberger case, but the privacy concerns grow when we watch footage showing cameras positioned at the entrance and exit of a public gun range in Florida. We ask what authorities gain by recording everyone who legally enters a shooting range and where the proper boundary should sit. Then we turn to newly surfaced footage of Mitch McConnell during a marathon Senate session. We watch staff and other senators apparently help him understand or correct votes, see a clerk use an under-the-table signal and hear that McConnell remains seated for nearly six hours. That sparks a larger discussion about elderly members of Congress, Dianne Feinstein, term limits, voters repeatedly returning the same people to Washington and why members of Congress have little incentive to restrict their own power. We return to Flock cameras with DeFlock.org and start punching in communities across the Philadelphia region, finding large numbers in Norristown, Cherry Hill, Pottstown and Philadelphia before expanding into countywide totals. Ro Khanna’s defense of Democrats remaining connected to Hasan Piker then sends us into a wider fight about party standards, controversial political voices and free speech.

We start with Ana Hummel in for Dawn Stensland and immediately get into her trip to the gym, Kayal’s preference for a two-hour nap and research connecting major album-release days with more fatal crashes. That leads to old CD changers, detachable faceplates and the crew arguing that familiar music may actually be the safer option. We also celebrate Shawn Farash’s new nationally syndicated radio gig and take a little credit for getting him onto Philadelphia radio before the rest of the country catches up. Ana’s news brings several major stories in rapid succession. Philadelphia police identify Zymire Hughes as the man accused of chasing and threatening people near City Hall in a mask, and we react to Larry Krasner’s public warning to the suspect. We then get into the federal allegations against Jessica Bowie in Albany, severe tornado damage in Dover, Philadelphia’s selection as a 2028 Democratic National Convention finalist and the gunpoint theft of a Lamborghini and Porsche from an Old City parking garage. After sports talk on the Phillies, Eagles joint practices, the Freedom 250 and Beijing’s humanoid robot games, we spend the rest of the hour on Flock cameras. We question the sales pitch that constant vehicle surveillance keeps everybody safe, replay a case in which an innocent woman is accused of package theft, revisit Rich Zeoli’s objections and dig into Abington Township Police ending its Flock contracts after privacy and data-security concerns. We also hear the company’s defense of its restrictions, question whether those safeguards are enough and show listeners how HaveIBeenFlocked.com lets them check whether their plate appears in released search data.

We open Friday with Ana Hummel filling in for Dawn Stensland as we learn why researchers connect major album releases from Taylor Swift, Harry Styles and others with a 15% rise in traffic deaths on release days. From there, we hit Philadelphia police identifying Zymire Hughes as the man accused of terrorizing people near City Hall in a Chucky-style mask, the federal case against Jessica Bowie over an alleged ISIS-inspired plot targeting the New York State Capitol, major tornado damage in Dover and Philadelphia landing among the final three cities competing for the 2028 Democratic National Convention. We also get into an armed Old City garage robbery involving a Lamborghini and Porsche, Eagles joint practices, the Freedom 250 IndyCar race in Washington and a humanoid robot race that ends exactly how the crew hopes it will. Our biggest fight of the morning centers on Flock cameras. We question their accuracy, privacy implications and potential for abuse after reviewing a false package-theft accusation, Abington Township Police ending Flock contracts after data-security concerns, camera searches appearing in public data dumps and reports of officers using the systems for personal tracking. The debate carries into 7 AM as we check local camera totals, discuss an alleged false hit involving Michael Opelka, weigh Flock’s usefulness in the Bryan Kohberger investigation and watch footage of cameras positioned at a public gun range. We then turn to troubling Senate footage of Mitch McConnell receiving help with votes, Ro Khanna defending Democrats who remain tied to Hasan Piker, and Shawn Farash joining us before the Cut Sheet turns to Karmelo Anthony’s bid for a new trial. The second half brings heated discussion of Anthony, James Talarico’s comments about the jury and Lindsay Clancy’s murder trial, where supporters dressed in pink rally outside the courthouse and Candace Owens says Clancy is not guilty. We also cover the allegations against Florida mother Meliza Campos-Sanchez before the morning takes a turn into one of our strangest running disputes: whether Kayal has enough time during a commercial break to wash his hands properly. Jimmy Kelly captures the evidence, Kayal clocks in at four minutes and 28 seconds, and the argument survives all the way into Fight Club. We close with Byron Donalds and David Jolly’s Florida governor matchup, Ana Hummel handling the Big Three, a Belgian car salesman becoming a prince, Darth Vader appearing at a San Diego hearing over Flock cameras, Natalie Harp’s letters to President Trump, Brie Bella’s frightening bathroom story, Today in Music History and Shawn Farash’s national radio launch.

Linda Kearns joins the final stretch, Phil Almquist runs August 20 music history, and an old KDKA broadcast sends us into early-radio history before Dawn’s Big Three begins with Texas Senate hopeful James Talarico’s “God is not a Christian” sermon. a 16-year-old Tennessee girl charged after running onto a middle-school football field and tackling a player during a scuffle. We react to the video, joke about whether the Eagles need to call her, and then longtime caller Pete suddenly reappears. Pete insists he has spent years unable to get through, says he is back after jail for unpaid taxes, talks about finding God, and jumps right back into the old Trump-DeSantis debate as if no time passes. The Big Three then turns to the Milligan University cycling team crash in Tennessee, where two student cyclists are killed and seven are injured after a driver strikes the training group. We follow that with the Oregon amusement-park case involving two teens trapped upside down on the AtmosFEAR ride, each receiving a $275,000 jury award. Linda Kearns joins the argument as we debate sue-happy behavior, personal responsibility, and the fact that a verdict can also expose real negligence and force safety changes. We close with an office hygiene revolt after Linda learns another co-worker does not wash his hands, producing threats of a staff-wide message and a mock suspension. The last Big Three item looks at the steep drop in summer employment among 16- to 19-year-olds compared with the 1990s, while Nick points to his daughters working in a family concession business and launching neighborhood childcare and dog-walking work. Ana confirms she is back tomorrow, Linda previews G. Love, and we end Kayal and Company at 10:15 before the next program begins.

We open the hour with lighter material: the world’s most-ordered mixed drinks, the margarita taking the top spot, and the crew exposing strong opinions about mojitos, piña coladas, bourbon, tequila, donuts, and whether anyone has fun correctly. Then Fight Club moves into a kitchen, where a chaotic brawl turns into commentary on dated appliances, electric versus gas stoves, and what makes a kitchen an instant deal breaker when house hunting. A beach civics quiz quickly becomes one of the roughest tests of the morning. Young beachgoers miss the vice president, the three branches of government, amendments, Supreme Court justices, a 1990s president, bordering states, and New Jersey’s capital, producing answers such as “J.K. Rowling” and “Joe Clinton.” We argue over civic knowledge, voting rights, what schools actually teach well enough to stick, and whether a funny street interview is also a warning about how little basic government knowledge some adults carry. Later, a Pennsylvania family’s megalodon-tooth find at Sea Isle City has us wondering how a fossil that old reaches the Jersey Shore, and a 60 Minutes report on veterans traveling to Mexico for psychedelic therapy opens a serious discussion about access for people seeking relief after military service.

We play Shapiro defending his stricter posture and question how it squares with his earlier push for data-center investment. The hour closes with Brandon Dukes’ narrow special-election win over Scott Timko in Pennsylvania’s 12th District, a seat Trump carries by a wide margin in 2024, and a warning that working-class movement and affordability could cause real trouble for Republicans in November. We continue the midterm discussion with gas prices, food costs, and the danger of telling voters their finances are better than they feel. Angie Nixon’s Florida Democratic Senate primary win then pushes us back into the fight between party regulars and Democratic socialists. We also revisit a South Carolina candidate’s rough answer on Taiwan, then look at socialist primary wins outside the Northeast and ask whether the movement is becoming a much broader challenge for establishment Democrats. The surveillance debate gets concrete with a Colorado package-theft case in which license-plate cameras point police toward a woman who insists she is innocent. We hear an officer tell her the evidence is locked in, then follow the case as other evidence places her elsewhere and police drop it. Rich and the crew use the story to argue over warrantless vehicle tracking, government access to location data, and how easily a tool sold as a crime-fighting aid can become something much bigger. Jimmy Failla joins us and starts with Byron Donalds’ Florida GOP governor primary win, praising Donalds’ ability to make a broad economic and public-safety pitch without centering race. Failla also gives his read on why DeSantis stays out of the primary endorsement fight, then we get nostalgic over Columbia House finally shutting down after 71 years and the old penny-CD deals that always come with a catch. We close the hour with polling on socialism and capitalism, a New York City DSA co-chair defending police and prison positions, and Failla unloading on the public-safety argument.

We open the hour with the landmark Meta child-safety case and former safety engineer Arturo Béjar’s testimony that company leaders know about harmful material reaching children. We push hard on the central question: when a platform is built to keep people coming back, how much responsibility belongs to the company and how much belongs to parents? The crew gets into parental controls, two-hour phone limits, social-media challenges, endless short-video feeds, and why solitary scrolling is different from the shared television habits of our childhoods. After the break, we revisit the data-center fight before turning to former CNN anchor Brooke Baldwin. Her candid personal writing brings her 2017 clash with Clay Travis back into the conversation, and we question whether the new material is honest self-expression or attention-seeking. Then we get Trump’s planned sit-down with Michael Cohen, his former lawyer and longtime critic, and compare the reunion to the kind of adversary comeback that would fit perfectly in pro wrestling. Rich Zeoli joins us late in the hour and makes the case for local control over data-center projects rather than a blanket statewide answer.

We start with Ana Hummel filling in for Dawn Stensland and admitting to a nearly three-hour nap, which immediately sends the crew into sleep-science ridicule. Greg then brings us four 18-year-old New Jersey hikers who start the Franconia Ridge loop at 3:30 p.m. without enough food, water, lighting, or cold-weather gear and end up needing an overnight rescue. We move from debating taxpayer-funded rescue to backing New Hampshire’s decision to bill hikers when negligence and poor preparation create the emergency. Ana’s news run brings the Philadelphia Chucky-mask scare, where a woman says she squares up and kicks the masked man in the chest, followed by Philadelphia schools locking student phones away during class. We cover the fatal collision between a Cessna and a Pennsylvania State Police helicopter at Carlisle Regional Airport, the strangulation charge against a Chalfont Dunkin worker after a customer fight, bacteria advisories at 12 Jersey Shore beaches, and a Philadelphia family’s claim that a funeral home cremates their father before the scheduled viewing. Phil Almquist then has the Phillies’ sixth straight win, Aaron Nola tying Cole Hamels with 114 Phillies victories, the Nestor Cortes signing, and Nick’s disbelief over a $21 12-ounce ballpark drink. The Big Take is data centers and political damage control. We put Trump’s economic case against DeSantis’ warnings about power, water, local costs, and thin permanent staffing, then examine Shapiro’s new Pennsylvania restrictions and the growing local resistance around Chester County and elsewhere. Callers take it in every direction: Tom cites Loudoun County tax revenue, Charlie brings conspiracy theories, David makes the case for taxpayer savings and individualized insurance pricing, HVAC worker Jeremy explains why cooling equipment changes the noise problem, and Ryan connects Andrew Yang’s basic-income pitch to disruption from new technology.

We open Thursday with Ana Hummel in for Dawn Stensland, a three-hour nap confession, and four 18-year-old New Jersey hikers facing a rescue bill after setting out late and badly prepared on New Hampshire’s Franconia Ridge. From there, we hit the Philadelphia woman who kicks the Chucky-mask suspect in the chest, school phone lockups, the fatal Carlisle plane-helicopter collision, a Bucks County coffee-shop fight, Jersey Shore bacteria advisories, a Philadelphia family’s premature-cremation claim, and a sixth straight Phillies win. Then the Big Take turns to data centers: Donald Trump sees major economic upside, Ron DeSantis warns residents should not pay higher utility costs, Josh Shapiro tightens Pennsylvania rules, and we press the case over farmland, noise, local jobs, privacy, and whether anyone pushing these projects wants one next door. Hour two puts Meta’s child-safety trial under the microscope as a former safety engineer testifies that company leaders know about risks to children. We argue over liability, parental responsibility, screen limits, short-video feeds, and why endless scrolling hits differently than the television of our childhoods. Brooke Baldwin’s new personal disclosures bring back her 2017 clash with Clay Travis, Trump’s planned sit-down with Michael Cohen gets the pro-wrestling comparison, and Rich Zeoli joins us for Shapiro’s data-center shift, a Democratic flip in Pennsylvania’s 12th District, Angie Nixon’s Florida primary win, Democratic socialist gains, and a license-plate camera case that puts police surveillance under fire. Jimmy Failla joins us for Byron Donalds’ Florida win, the DeSantis endorsement question, Columbia House nostalgia, socialism polling, and a sharp argument over New York City DSA positions. In the final stretch, we rank cocktails, send Fight Club into a kitchen brawl, watch a beach civics quiz produce “J.K. Rowling” and “Joe Clinton,” react to a Sea Isle City megalodon tooth, and discuss veterans seeking psychedelic therapy in Mexico. Phil Almquist runs through August 20 music history before Dawn’s Big Three brings James Talarico’s 2023 sermon, a Tennessee football-field tackle, the Milligan cycling-team crash, the Oregon amusement-park verdict, teen summer-job numbers, and one last staff handwashing fight before we sign off.

We enter the 10 AM overlap with Linda Kearns joining Nick, Anna, Greg, Phil and Tony Bruno as the bathroom-hygiene fight immediately starts again. Phil delivers Today in Music History with John Deacon, Ian Gillan, Joey Tempest, Ginger Baker, Frank Beard, Duane Allman and several major rock milestones. Rock and Roll Jeopardy follows, with Tony answering Blondie, Phil getting Buddy Holly, Greg landing the Grateful Dead and Anna coming through with the Beach Boys. Dawn’s Big Three is handled by Anna Hummel while she fills in for Dawn. We cover Google’s proposed $10 million purchase of internal business data from bankrupt Spirit Airlines and debate how valuable personal and corporate data have become. Russia issues an arrest order for Conor Kennedy over his service with Ukrainian forces, Hayden Panettiere’s mother speaks following the actress’s death at 36, and NYC DSA co-chair Gustavo Gordillo’s expensive Brooklyn home becomes fuel for a socialism-versus-personal-wealth argument. Costco’s move into Medicare products closes the news run. The Costco story becomes a warehouse-club showdown involving Sam’s Club, BJ’s and Buc-ee’s before Wawa enters the picture. Nick’s handwashing confession resurfaces yet again, and Anna passionately defends dipping pizza in ranch while promoting Jet’s Pizza and its Turbo Crust. Linda previews what she has coming later, Tony plugs his afternoon appearance, and we close Kayal and Company at 10:29:41 AM ET as Nick and Anna make way for Linda.

Bob calls to announce that he is done listening because Greg predicts a socialist could eventually win the presidency, giving the crew plenty of material about political purity tests and listeners who announce their departure. We move to Florida Representative Randy Fine after Ring footage shows him looking through a voter’s mailbox while canvassing, then somehow land on Dan Bilzerian, pizza dipped in ranch and the increasingly rare habit of checking physical mail every day. Fight Club opens with a snowy street fight that looks tame until one clean punch ends it. We compare it with baseball-fan brawls before rolling footage of a Wisconsin State Fair fight involving multiple groups of teens and young adults. After the break, Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s primary win gives way to a far more serious argument about the insanity defense and a Virginia man found not guilty by reason of insanity who receives an unescorted pass from a mental-health facility and uses it to board a one-way flight to Tajikistan. We then return to the Lindsay Clancy trial and the massive financial support flowing toward her family. Clips from Clancy supporters blaming her husband ignite a fierce argument over internet sleuths, the insanity defense and claims made without courtroom proof. Lisa Rinna’s comments send us into a detour about cosmetic fillers before Phil delivers the Iowa State Fair Ladies’ Chicken Calling Contest, complete with Anna attempting a chicken call in her RFK Jr. voice. A caller then challenges our Clancy discussion before we head toward the final half-hour.

We continue the data-center discussion with a bizarre Jason Kelce campaign involving Garage Beer and Liquid Death, then return to Florida as Byron Donalds lays out his agenda after winning the Republican primary. Tony praises Donalds and unloads on James Fishback and political prediction markets, while Anna argues that Ron DeSantis remains difficult for any successor to match because of his decisions during the COVID years. South Carolina politics gives us another memorable clip when interim Senator Darline Graham is asked whether Taiwan and the South China Sea are national-security concerns and admits that national security is not her area of expertise. That turns into a debate over outsider candidates, political qualifications and AOC’s prospects in 2028. We also discuss Newsom, Shapiro, Mark Kelly, Chris Murphy and other possible Democratic contenders before CNN’s interview with Natalie Harp’s estranged brother leads us into Harp’s loyalty to Trump and her personal history. The back half gets personal and then criminal. We debate why younger high-profile women sometimes date or marry much older men, whether status changes attraction and how dating changes with age. Then we cover former Florida biology teacher Brooke Anderson, who serves prison time after sexually abusing a student and now faces a civil suit. Anna talks about dating apps, her skepticism toward marriage and why she values a partner freely choosing to stay before we prepare for the fourth hour and Fight Club.

We start hour two with the death of ZZ Top drummer Frank Beard and turn it into a spirited ranking of rock drummers. Anna then commits radio sacrilege by declaring the 1980s a bad decade for music, sending the crew through Jimi Hendrix, Guns N’ Roses, J. Geils Band, Fleetwood Mac, Luke Combs, HARDY and RÜFÜS DU SOL. Phil adds the news that MTV drops Best Rock from the VMAs, and Coldplay, Dave Matthews Band, Train, Creed and Nickelback all get dragged into the argument. We pivot to Disney and ABC suing the FCC over accelerated broadcast-license reviews. Nick argues that opinion programs such as Kayal and Company or The View should not be judged as straight-news programs, while Greg warns that conservatives cheering government pressure against media opponents may hate the same power when someone else controls it. We also get deep into broadcast profanity rules, competition from podcasts and satellite radio, and whether the FCC’s old restrictions still make sense. After another clash with the YouTube chat over Jimmy Kimmel and free speech, we hit the viral waitress who insists automatic gratuity is not a tip. The crew rejects the idea that customers should automatically add another large tip, while Anna explains why mandatory gratuity can make her avoid a restaurant entirely. Then the hour gets much more personal: Nick admits he sometimes skips washing his hands after using the restroom because he says the process is hands-free,

We begin with Anna Hummel in for Dawn and a California study finding that a large share of surveyed fifth-graders report needing mental-health care. That sends us into a much larger argument about how children describe anxiety, sadness and stress, whether adults encourage youngsters to dwell too much on their emotions and how parenting has changed across generations. Nick also puts Linda Kearns on notice with a spelling-bee challenge after her jab at his intelligence. Anna’s news brings Josh Shapiro’s new Pennsylvania data-center restrictions and the crew’s concerns about local development and electric bills. Byron Donalds cruises through Florida’s Republican gubernatorial primary, while we question why Ron DeSantis stays out of the endorsement fight. Former Fauci adviser David Morens pleads guilty in a federal records case, prompting a lengthy argument over accountability, public opinion and whether years of hearings ever change anyone’s mind. The Penn State fraternity cocaine case gives us one of the morning’s best nicknames — “Pablo Pledgskobar” — before we cover the Mayfair 7-Eleven ATM burglary and Phil’s sports report. The Big Take then centers on the divide between establishment Democrats and democratic socialists, the party’s attempt to sell younger candidates through looks and personality, and the mixed Florida primary results. We close the hour by debating Angie Nixon’s win over Alex Vindman, losses by other socialist-backed candidates and Josh Shapiro’s possible place in the Democrats’ future.

We open Wednesday with Anna Hummel filling in for Dawn Stensland and immediately debate a California study in which fifth-graders report a need for mental-health care. We move into Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro’s new restrictions on data-center development, Byron Donalds’ Florida gubernatorial primary victory and former Fauci adviser David Morens’ guilty plea in a federal records case. Then a Penn State fraternity cocaine ring gives us the unforgettable “Pablo Pledgskobar,” Philadelphia police hunt the suspect behind a Mayfair 7-Eleven ATM burglary, and Phil Almquist runs through the Phillies’ fifth straight win, West Chester’s Little League World Series trip and Roger Goodell’s prediction of an NFL club based outside the United States. Our Big Take digs into the Democrats’ two-front problem between establishment candidates and the socialist wing, including the party’s struggle to define what it stands for and its new attempt to sell younger candidates through sex appeal. We run through Florida’s mixed primary results, Angie Nixon’s upset of Alex Vindman and the debate over Josh Shapiro’s standing in a future Democratic presidential field. Hour two turns toward the death of ZZ Top drummer Frank Beard, Anna’s scorching take on 1980s music, MTV dropping its Best Rock category, Disney and ABC suing the FCC, our argument for consistent free-speech standards and a viral waitress insisting automatic gratuity does not count as a tip. Tony Bruno then walks into the studio just in time to discover Nick’s controversial restroom routine. We keep Tony Bruno with us as the morning moves through Jason Kelce’s bizarre data-center stunt, Byron Donalds’ victory speech, Darline Graham’s rough national-security answer, Natalie Harp’s place in Trump’s orbit, a Florida teacher-student sex-abuse case and Anna’s thoughts on dating and marriage. Fight Club brings a knockout in the snow and chaos at the Wisconsin State Fair before we turn to a Virginia insanity acquittee who flies to Tajikistan during an unescorted pass, the Lindsay Clancy trial and the Iowa State Fair chicken-calling contest. During Dawn’s Big Three, with Anna handling the feature while filling in for Dawn, we cover Google’s proposed $10 million Spirit Airlines data purchase, Russia’s arrest order for Conor Kennedy, the death of Hayden Panettiere, DSA co-chair Gustavo Gordillo’s $1.5 million Brooklyn home and Costco’s Medicare move. We finish with warehouse-club arguments, Wawa, Nick’s handwashing saga and Anna’s defense of ranch on pizza before handing the studio to Linda Kearns at 10:29:41 AM ET.

With Ana Hummel filling in for Dawn Stensland, we move through the recurring Dawn’s Big Three portion of the morning while Ana expands her stack into what the crew teases as her “Big 12.” Music and history start the hour with Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Ringo Starr, Mötley Crüe and the August 18 ratification of the 19th Amendment. Congressional candidate Elijah Manley’s attack on Debbie Wasserman Schultz in Florida’s 20th District follows just as Linda Kearns arrives carrying funeral cupcakes for the anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death. Ana then brings a string of stories that includes Gannon Jacox and Brooklyn Hicks being accused of barging into another family’s cruise cabin and attacking them, rising exemptions from kindergarten vaccination requirements and Unitree’s “Superman” humanoid robot, which the company says can sprint faster than Usain Bolt’s top speed. The robot story sends us into the prospect of robot athletic competitions, Olympic events and curling before the news turns far more serious. Nick Reiner’s effort to gain access to a $1.5 million trust while facing charges in the deaths of his parents leads Rooney and Linda into the legal questions surrounding California’s slayer statute. We then turn to the Tupac Shakur murder trial, where prosecutors say Duane “Keffe D” Davis helps orchestrate the 1996 shooting while his defense attacks his own prior statements and memoir. The lawyers explain why defendants should stop talking publicly, compare the memoir issue with O.J. Simpson’s If I Did It, and discuss how a claimed confession in a book or music could be handled before the crew closes out the morning and hands the studio to Linda.

Rooney Tuesday continues as we cover New York City’s report on congestion pricing and air quality, then turn the discussion toward New Jersey’s bag restrictions, reusable bags and the everyday aggravations created by similar rules. Rooney circles back to Lindsay Clancy before putting real money on the line: if the show reaches 600 YouTube likes, he pledges $601 to the Families Behind the Badge Children’s Foundation. Fight Club arrives with a chaotic restaurant brawl involving two women, hair pulling, a head slam and plenty of amateur detective work as the crew tries to identify the venue. After the break, the like count climbs while we cover Tyson’s decision to close its Joslin, Illinois beef facility, the workers losing jobs and the cattle shortage squeezing the company’s beef business. A man accused of trying to smuggle roughly 200 lizards through Tokyo inside 22 pairs of socks then gives Ana an excuse to reveal her middle-school herpetarium-club past. We finish the hour with polling showing Democrats holding a more favorable view of socialism than capitalism and Andy Beshear pushing back on socialism while positioning himself nationally. Rooney and the crew debate Beshear, the Electoral College and costs in heavily Democratic states before the YouTube counter finally clears 600. Rooney owes the $601, the crew celebrates the long-running bit finally paying off, and Linda Kearns begins making her way into the studio for the final stretch.

The Cut Sheet brings Rosie O’Donnell’s Jimmy Kimmel guest-hosting stint before we get to 16-year-old lifeguard Ryder Williams, who is honored at the White House after rescuing 10-year-old Nathaniel Rai in Santa Cruz. Trump then responds to Jon Ossoff’s criticism by reviving his Pee-wee Herman comparison, setting off a discussion of Ossoff’s 2026 Senate race and possible 2028 ambitions. The hour closes with a woman introducing her chatbot child “Lumen,” fired Detroit anchor Taryn Asher’s newsroom blowup and Ana telling her own story about getting fired from a customer-service job. Matt Rooney is supposed to join at 8:30, which means the first order of business is naturally Rooney’s latest late arrival. We then hear Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud recount having a gun pulled on him as a Muslim child after 9/11, and the crew debates both the story and the political framing surrounding it. New York Assemblywoman Emily Gallagher’s claim that theft involving items such as soap and toothpaste can be a “crime of poverty” produces another heated response. Gretchen Whitmer tells Gavin Newsom she shuts politics out after Trump wins Michigan in 2024, watches eight seasons of Dexter and then gets back to work. The crew fixates on the staged-looking beers before discussing Whitmer’s decision to work with Trump on Michigan priorities and why Republicans so often struggle to replicate Trump’s performance in battleground states. The final stretch centers on Lindsay Clancy, who admits killing her three children while her defense argues severe postpartum mental illness leaves her without criminal responsibility. The crew reacts to a huge fundraiser benefiting Clancy’s parents and a viral defense of the sympathy surrounding the case. Rooney finally joins the legal discussion and explains mens rea, criminal intent, the insanity defense and why prosecutors place so much importance on Clancy’s searches, planning and behavior before the killings.

National Fajita Day starts the hour before Greg Stocker gets into it with members of the YouTube chat who accuse the show of being controlled by George Soros. From there we get to the morning’s “Fang Fang Bang Bang” story as newly released FBI files say Eric Swalwell admits to physical encounters with suspected Chinese operative Christine Fang. The crew also learns more about Katie Miller’s past with Swalwell and turns Washington dating history into a ridiculous discussion of political figures who might make entertaining party guests. After a caller gives Ana a strong review in Dawn’s chair, we move toward the Cut Sheet with radio and rock-trivia banter, Howard Stern staff stories and a larger argument over ego, self-criticism and parenting. The crew argues that adults have become too reluctant to criticize bad behavior, then compares raising kids to coaching: pressure them when things are going well and help build them back up when they are struggling.

We open with Ana Hummel in for Dawn Stensland and an unexpected ending to Ana’s other job. She plans to help finish the week and train her replacement, only to learn management wants her gone immediately. That leads into a report on young adults who still spend little or no time interacting with people face to face after the pandemic, with the crew debating phones, AirPods, stress toys and what younger workers have lost socially. The news stack starts with 14 people charged in an alleged cocaine-trafficking operation tied to two Penn State fraternities. We move to the disturbing Philadelphia City Hall surveillance footage of a young man in a Chucky-style mask chasing and threatening people, including a woman asked whether she was ready to die. We also cover a North Carolina basketball coach’s killing and a suspect arrested in Montgomery County, unsafe E. coli readings in Philadelphia waterways, Wawa employees restraining an accused knife attacker in Hockessin, and the Phillies extending their winning streak. Nick’s Big Take turns to Iran and the political bill coming due before the midterms. We cover the expiration of the 60-day negotiating period, Trump floating U.S. territorial control over the Strait of Hormuz, new Iranian threats, a massive polling swing away from Trump among Hispanic men and Wall Street Journal reporting that Iranian hardliners are preparing several paths for escalation. Ana and the crew debate what victory could even mean against ideological extremists before Dana Perino calls for a communications reset from the White House.

We start Tuesday with Ana Hummel filling in for Dawn Stensland and sharing how her other job cuts her final week short, then jump into a report finding a lingering post-pandemic social divide among Gen Z. Local news brings an alleged Penn State fraternity cocaine ring, a Chucky-mask suspect terrorizing people near Philadelphia City Hall, unsafe E. coli readings in the Delaware and Schuylkill Rivers, a stabbing at a Delaware Wawa and another Phillies win. From there, Nick Kayal’s Big Take centers on Iran, the expired 60-day negotiating window, Donald Trump’s Strait of Hormuz comments, Iranian threats against American troops and a major polling collapse for Trump among Hispanic men. We dig into reporting that Iranian hardliners are preparing possible new escalation, while Ana and the crew debate whether a limited war against committed extremists can ever stay limited. Dana Perino’s call for a White House communications reset adds another warning sign before we turn to newly released FBI files involving Eric Swalwell and suspected Chinese operative Christine Fang. The Cut Sheet then runs through Rosie O’Donnell, a teenage lifeguard honored at the White House, Jon Ossoff’s clash with Trump, a woman describing herself as the mother of a chatbot child, and fired Detroit anchor Taryn Asher’s profane newsroom confrontation. Matt Rooney arrives late for Rooney Tuesday and walks directly into everything from Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud and Emily Gallagher’s “crimes of poverty” remarks to Gretchen Whitmer’s post-election Dexter binge and the Lindsay Clancy murder trial. Rooney explains the legal fight over intent and the insanity defense before Fight Club takes us inside a wild sushi-restaurant brawl. We close with Tyson layoffs, 200 smuggled lizards stuffed into socks, polling on Democrats and socialism, Rooney finally triggering his $601 donation, Elvis history, rising school-vaccine exemptions, Unitree’s super-fast humanoid robot, Nick Reiner’s trust-fund fight and opening arguments in Duane “Keffe D” Davis’ Tupac Shakur murder trial.

We carry the handoff into the 10 AM hour with Linda Kearns in for Dawn, Harry Mays still hanging around, an Elvis prop in the studio and Phil’s Today in Music History. The crew marks the anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death, runs through Soul Asylum, Eric Clapton and Santana history, and revisits the Justin Barber murder case in which prosecutors played a Guns N’ Roses track he had downloaded. That gives way to a trial run of Rock and Roll Jeopardy, with Linda, Greg, Harry and Phil testing who really knows the music they claim to know. Dawn’s Big Three begins with a Berkeley mathematics professor saying some calculus students arrive unable to handle fractions and basic algebra, sparking a debate over admissions standards and the academic damage left by pandemic-era schooling. A malfunctioning studio board briefly hijacks the conversation before we return to the math story. The next item updates Hayden Panettiere’s death: a friend finds her unresponsive at a South Carolina home, emergency crews respond to a cardiac-arrest call, and the crew revisits her roles, personal struggles and family circumstances. The final items center on young men and foreign policy. We discuss a report showing labor-force participation among men ages 16 to 24 has fallen sharply from 2000 and debate what workplace automation could mean for young workers. Then Trump’s foreign-policy moves take over: he orders the Pentagon to scale back military drills with South Korea while praising his ties with Kim Jong Un, then threatens Oman as U.S.-Iran negotiations over the Strait of Hormuz remain stuck. We close with AOC presidential speculation, the Iran war and a final round of studio banter before Anna celebrates the freedom of leaving her day job

We open the hour with Hakeem Jeffries declining to back the current Medicare for All proposal, then pull apart the health-care argument from several directions: satisfaction with existing plans, insurance premiums, personal responsibility and the cost of a government-run system. Ro Khanna follows with a direct defense of Medicare for All, arguing that it would lower costs and raise worker pay, which sends us straight into the broader affordability fight. That fight takes a sharp turn when a CBS News/YouGov poll shows support for government price controls not only among Democrats and independents, but among a majority of Republicans. Nick recoils at the result and argues that broad price caps collide with the free-market principles Republicans claim to support. We then compare Wall Street strength and retirement accounts with the daily pressure of gas, groceries and bills before pivoting into Fight Club, where a Yankees-Rangers fan brawl submitted by Kristen Kayal earns the crew’s approval and plenty of blood-in-the-stands commentary. The final Cut Sheet run starts with Jake Tapper describing the tight Biden inner circle that some administration figures called the “Politburo,” renewing the crew’s frustration with disclosures that arrive after the presidency ends. UFC 330 brings debate over Ian Machado Garry’s finishing instinct and Josh Shapiro’s appearance at the Philadelphia event, followed by a savage South Dakota high-school soccer brawl. We finish rapid-fire: a 24-hour robot coffee shop in Beijing serves 202 cups in an hour, a Tesla crashes through a New Jersey garage and into a kitchen, an Amazon delivery van rolls into a North Carolina garage door, and a woman escapes an 11th-floor Berlin fire by jumping into a fire-brigade rescue basket.

Harry Mays joins near the end of the hour, and Mays Monday moves into the Cut Sheet with AOC’s decision to freeze her eggs, reports that her engagement to Riley Roberts ended, complaints about the scrutiny women in politics receive and a very Kayal and Company detour into handwashing, germ fears and attraction rankings. The Cut Sheet keeps rolling with AOC as the crew debates whether her intensely public personal life is part of a larger political brand and whether the egg-freezing announcement feeds 2028 speculation. We compare her political star power with Kamala Harris, then stumble into a long Trump-body-image riff before Sophie Cunningham’s bar appearance after an Indiana Fever win sends the crew into another argument about why the WNBA keeps producing so much off-court material for sports media. We move to former Lumberton mayor Gina LaPlaca and charges that she and her husband allegedly forged petition signatures to secure ballot access, then detour through Anna’s 65-mile bike ride, sunscreen, aging, GLP-1 drugs and fasting. When the Cut Sheet returns after the break, a woman charged in the vandalism of the World War II Memorial draws a much harsher reaction. From there, Terry Moran’s claim that ABC watered down a Wuhan lab-leak report after review involving Anthony Fauci prompts the crew to question why so many major media disclosures seem to arrive years after they mattered most. The political portion of the hour closes with scrutiny of Abdul El-Sayed’s half-sister after her arrest at an anti-ICE protest and a debate over how much responsibility candidates should bear for adult relatives. Hakeem Jeffries then faces questions over whether democratic socialists belong in the Democratic Party, and we compare the insurgent left’s battle with party leadership to the Tea Party’s fight against the Republican old guard strictly as an internal-party revolt. Jeffries’ comments on ICE and the border keep the argument going, and we tee up Medicare for All and Ro Khanna for the 9 AM

We begin hour two by giving Phil Almquist his flowers for the performance of his Saturday-night rock show and the deep cuts he plays before turning hard into affordability. A Financial Times poll says 53 percent of registered voters feel financially worse off, and credit-card delinquencies are sitting near Great Recession territory. Bill Maher’s “Burrito Gate” argument becomes the centerpiece: if a burrito reaches $20 because someone adds delivery and fees, does that prove food itself is unaffordable, or does it prove convenience has become an expensive habit? That opens a full crew debate over Gen Z finances, Nick’s college-era $5 lunches, ramen, coffee runs, restaurant markups, cocktails, fast food and the disappearing psychological sting of spending when cash becomes taps, automatic payments and subscriptions. We keep coming back to the same tension: housing, fuel and groceries can be harder to afford while consumers can also make costly choices that deepen the problem. The conversation stays grounded in day-to-day spending rather than broad market statistics, with the crew asking how much of the anger voters feel this fall comes from what leaves their bank accounts every week. After the break, Cape May’s juvenile curfew returns as we debate whether Jersey Shore towns have reached the point where age restrictions are the only realistic response to fighting, drinking and large teen gatherings. That spins into shore-town memories before Nancy Mace’s newly visible tattoos send us into a debate over ink, attraction, professionalism and whether standards change between casual dating and marriage

We start with Anna Hummel sitting in for Dawn Stensland and sharing the biggest personal news of the morning: she has quit her day job and no longer has to hide the radio side of her life from coworkers. Greg follows with the BRAT diet, the old bananas-rice-applesauce-toast standby, and a report arguing that its reputation as the automatic answer for stomach trouble is shaky. The conversation quickly becomes a referendum on all the questionable health advice parents handed down, from ginger ale to bland toast, before we preview the morning’s major political and local stories. Anna’s news run begins with the death of Hayden Panettiere at 36 and expands into a discussion of child stars, addiction and the toll of growing up in Hollywood. We then get into Cape May’s new curfew for minors, an off-duty Philadelphia police officer killed outside an after-hours lounge, South Philadelphia fighter Jeremiah Wells winning at UFC 330, and a robbery involving a $25,000 Rolex in which an armed victim’s gun malfunctions. The hour also includes a Port Richmond father-and-daughter murder-suicide investigation, the Phillies erasing a five-run deficit to sweep Minnesota, UFC 330 results and the Eagles’ preseason loss to Baltimore. The Monday Big Take begins after the break with FBI data showing a historic national drop in violent crime. Nick argues that the encouraging numbers sit beside a troubling appetite for political violence among some radical voices, moving through Luigi Mangione’s guilty plea, commentary from Michael Smerconish and Bill Maher, Hasan Piker’s rhetoric, a Texas imam clip, Bucks County Commissioner Bob Harvie and Tommy Lahren’s argument about people using violence to settle political grievances. Anna and the crew then widen the discussion into social feeds, political obsession, purpose, family life and why people who spend every waking hour inside ideological bubbles can come to see a country that looks very different from everyday life.

We open the week with Anna Hummel in for Dawn Stensland, a newly liberated Anna announcing she has quit her day job, and Greg Stocker taking aim at another childhood health myth: the BRAT diet. From there, we hit the death of Hayden Panettiere at 36, Cape May’s new juvenile curfew, the fatal shooting of an off-duty Philadelphia police officer, Jeremiah Wells scoring a hometown UFC win, a $25,000 Rolex robbery, a grim Port Richmond murder-suicide, and a Phillies comeback sweep. Our Monday Big Take centers on the historic drop in violent crime and Nick Kayal’s argument that influential voices on the far left still flirt with political violence even as the numbers improve. Affordability takes over the 7 AM hour as we dig into a Financial Times poll showing voters feel worse off, rising credit-card delinquency, and Bill Maher’s attack on the $20 delivery burrito as a symbol of Gen Z spending habits. The crew argues over financial literacy, restaurant markups, coffee costs, invisible spending and whether two things can be true at once: everyday life costs more, and plenty of people spend badly. Cape May’s boardwalk rules spark a larger debate over teen behavior at the Jersey Shore before Nancy Mace’s tattoos send us into a long, ridiculous discussion about ink, dating and public image. Harry Mays then joins for Mays Monday and the Cut Sheet, where AOC’s egg-freezing news, her split from Riley Roberts and the crew’s political speculation keep the room moving. The final stretch turns back toward politics and chaos. We get into Terry Moran’s claim about an ABC report on the Wuhan lab-leak theory, Abdul El-Sayed’s half-sister, Hakeem Jeffries trying to put distance between himself and democratic socialists, Medicare for All, Ro Khanna’s response and surprising Republican support for government price controls. Fight Club brings a Yankees-Rangers fan brawl, Jake Tapper’s “Politburo” discussion brings fresh Biden-era questions, and the Cut Sheet closes with UFC 330, a South Dakota soccer brawl, a robot-run coffee shop, a Tesla in a kitchen, an Amazon van in a garage door and a terrifying Berlin high-rise rescue. At 10 AM, we hand things over with Today in Music History, Rock and Roll Jeopardy and Dawn’s Big Three, featuring Berkeley calculus students struggling with basic math, the latest Panettiere details, young men leaving the labor force, Trump scaling back drills with South Korea and a fresh threat involving Oman and the Iran war. 3. Hourly Breakdowns

The closing stretch hits Miss Universe Canada’s appropriation dispute, the University of Michigan’s plan to hide first-semester freshman letter grades from external transcripts, and Mike Rowe’s case for trades and owning less stuff. A millennial mother’s grocery and diaper complaints launch a generational affordability fight over wages, mortgage rates and bulk buying. Phil Almquist finishes with Today in Music History before Foo Fighters talk carries us into 10 AM We open the hour with Tony Bruno challenging Phil Almquist to a future music-trivia showdown, complete with Rock and Roll Jeopardy talk and a possible listener spot. Then Dawn’s Big Three arrives in its regular slot; Dawn is off, so we take over the segment. Luigi Mangione’s expected guilty plea leads the run before Matt Rooney joins the room and immediately gets praise, abuse and a fresh donation challenge. Rooney weighs in on New Jersey landing at No. 2 in WalletHub’s state rankings before Dawn’s Big Three moves to Florida’s flying-car testing push. Ron DeSantis, SunTrax and air taxis trigger Jetsons and Flintstones jokes, then a Philadelphia woman’s stolen Honda leads to the stunning claim that she finds pieces of her own van for sale on Facebook Marketplace. We also hit charges against Gina LaPlaca and Jason Carty in a ballot-petition case and revisit the Sea Isle City dogfish mystery. Dan Borowski previews his next show with the McKenna West surrogate dispute in Texas and Bob Auth’s questions about New Jersey voter registrations. Breaking news that a woman faces charges over vandalism at the World War II Memorial gets one last reaction from the crew.

Shawn Farash signs off with congratulations for his new Silverloch show while confirming Fridays with Kayal and Company remain part of his schedule. Then we watch the rescue of two women and a boy who survive three days after a Michigan tubing trip goes wrong. The crew fixates on one question: how do you get off a river, lose the river and stay missing for three days? Fight Club finally arrives with a chaotic McDonald’s brawl, followed by a 1984-versus-2026 fast-food comparison. Fight of the Week brings back the classroom throwdown, a wheelchair fight, a mascot brawl and the hockey-rink contender in which a man knocks himself out on the glass. The self-KO pulls strong support as we make the final pick.

The Cut Sheet heads to UFC 330 in Philadelphia, where a reporter asking whether Rocky Balboa could survive a fighter’s camp sends us into Darth Vader, movie logic and lazy sports-media questions. We also deal with blocked YouTube users before circling back to Trump’s aircraft switch and the question of who leaks a sensitive presidential security tactic. The World War II Memorial vandalism story closes the hour and sets up the next run of news clips. We begin with a deeply disturbing lawsuit tied to alleged assaults at a San Diego Dollar Tree and reports of similar incidents involving other women. That turns into a discussion of punishment and public safety before we move to ICE’s planned electric-shock gloves. We debate the nonlethal device, how officers could use it at close range and the criticism already surrounding the plan. A Democratic Socialists of America leader gets pressed on what replaces police and prisons when a violent crime occurs, and the answer about spending, streetlights and root causes becomes a major crew argument. JD Vance then talks about the appeal of socialism among younger voters and says Republicans have to answer affordability concerns instead of relying on slogans. From there, lower chicken prices, supply and demand, pork chops and the vague dinner answer “chicken” take over. Hakeem Jeffries’ midterm warnings lead us into redistricting, voter suppression claims and federal scrutiny at polling sites. RFK Jr.’s comments about Trump choosing national fast-food chains on the road turn into fermented foods, cholesterol, water and kidney-stone banter. We also check in on the Families Behind the Badge ride, debate New York City’s free Parents’ Night Out pilot and finish with Tony Bruno recalling his years working with Keith Olbermann.

We open the hour with WalletHub ranking New Jersey as the second-best state to live in, and the phones light up fast. We stack the ranking against property taxes, utility bills, safety, the Jersey Shore and the cost of living, while Big Al and Ed from Delran make the case against the survey. Somewhere in the middle, sushi becomes its own election as the crew and YouTube audience pick sides. Then Nick asks a simple parenting question: when are kids old enough to play outside alone? We use stories of parents investigated after children walk, bike or play without an adult to debate government overreach, neighborhood safety and the differences parents see between boys and girls. A bipartisan childhood-independence bill gives the discussion a policy hook as we argue for room to use parental judgment.

We start Friday with Tony Bruno, Shawn Farash and Greg Stocker joining Nick while Dawn takes the morning off. An Arizona eighth-grader’s dodgeball assault charge gets us arguing over when schoolyard play turns into a criminal case, then Upper Merion’s data-center fight puts noise, water use and utility costs under the microscope. From there, we hit the Whole Foods jalapeño recall, the cyclosporiasis surge, a Bucks County hot-car case and the dead dogfish washing ashore in Sea Isle City. Phil Almquist shifts us to sports with the Phillies and Twins walking through the corn for the Field of Dreams game. Kyle Schwarber’s power and Aaron Nola’s strong outing headline a 7-1 Phillies win, then we hit the Sixers’ 34 national broadcasts and the Eagles’ preseason opener against Baltimore. The cornfield spectacle also gives us plenty of movie and ballpark jokes before politics takes over. The Big Take goes straight at Iran and the media response to Trump’s secret aircraft switch. We debate Chris Coons’ criticism, the presence of press and cabinet members on the decoy plane, Secret Service protocol, the Strait of Hormuz, the naval blockade, gas prices and the midterm risk if the conflict drags on. Tony and Shawn keep the argument rolling, then frozen Ellio’s, Pop-Tarts, air fryers and keto turn the back half of the hour into an all-out food fight.

Dawn is off, so we load up a Friday with Tony Bruno, Shawn Farash and Greg Stocker alongside Nick Kayal. We open with an Arizona dodgeball assault case, Upper Merion’s data-center fight, Whole Foods’ jalapeño recall, the national cyclosporiasis surge, a Bucks County hot-car case and nearly 30 dead dogfish in Sea Isle City. Phil Almquist gives us the Phillies’ Field of Dreams win behind Kyle Schwarber and Aaron Nola, the Sixers’ 34 national-telecast schedule, and the Eagles’ preseason opener against Baltimore. Then we put Iran at the center of the Big Take. We hammer the continuing press outrage over Donald Trump’s secret aircraft switch, debate who gets priority when presidential security is at stake, and turn to the Strait of Hormuz, the U.S. naval blockade, gas prices and the political cost of a conflict with no quick finish. Tony and Shawn push the media argument further before the morning veers into frozen Ellio’s, sushi, childhood independence, UFC 330, the Air Force One security leak, Dollar Tree assault allegations, ICE shock gloves, a DSA police-and-prisons debate, JD Vance on affordability and RFK Jr. on Trump’s fast-food habits. We finish with a Michigan tubing rescue, Fight Club and a hockey self-KO, Miss Universe Canada’s appropriation dispute, Michigan’s freshman grading change, Mike Rowe on trades, grocery costs and Today in Music History. Dawn’s Big Three stays on the board even with Dawn off: we hit Luigi Mangione’s expected plea, Matt Rooney on New Jersey’s No. 2 ranking, Florida flying-car testing, a stolen Honda whose parts surface on Facebook Marketplace, the Gina LaPlaca/Jason Carty petition case, the Sea Isle dogfish story, the McKenna West surrogate dispute, New Jersey voter-registration questions and charges tied to vandalism at the World War II Memorial.

The final hour opens with studio-control nonsense before we turn to AOC’s reported split with Riley Roberts and the line between private-life questions and her own public discussion of egg freezing. Adam Schiff’s comments about socialists remaining inside the Democratic big tent bring the DSA argument back, and we debate whether the midterms become a verdict on the party’s competing factions. Fight Club moves to the hockey glass, where a fan brawl features showboating, a possible self-KO and an ending worthy of an M. Night Shyamalan twist. We then praise an Amazon driver who untangles an American flag and salutes it, debate tipping and work ethic, hear Marco Rubio describe a football-heavy ideal day off, and size up Pat McAfee’s power at ESPN after his appearance with Trump at the Patriot Games. Shawn signs off, Phil Almquist runs through August 13 milestones in Today in Music History, and Kathy Romano joins us for Kathy’s Clips. Kathy explains why she starts the Wigs for Kids drive, how donated hair becomes free wigs for children facing medical hair loss, the 12-to-14-inch donation range and the hair requirements for participants. We close with the August 28 Southampton event details before handing the station to the next program.

The Cut Sheet starts with Harry Enten’s voter-priority numbers and a debate over how low global warming sits compared with pocketbook concerns. We turn that into a wider argument about environmental rules, wealthy advocates and everyday inconvenience before the federal courts enter the picture. DOJ charges 11 people in an alleged sham-marriage immigration operation, and ICE’s planned electric-shock gloves immediately send the room into another round of jokes. The electric-shock glove story carries into the hour as Nick volunteers for an ICE ridealong focused on violent offenders. Minnesota politics follows: Mike Lindell loses his GOP gubernatorial primary, Michele Tafoya wins the Republican Senate nomination, Peggy Flanagan becomes the November opponent, and Thomas Massie’s Kentucky defeat becomes part of a larger campaign-focus discussion. A viral smart-thermostat clip then raises a basic question about whether utilities should ever block a homeowner from changing the temperature. Rosie O’Donnell’s “they” wrist tattoo starts another “Woke 2” round after she slips on her child’s pronouns while explaining the tattoo. Stephen Miller’s response to AOC’s “Woke 1 was crazy” line leads into police, violent crime and anti-ICE politics, while Chris Matthews’ criticism of the DSA sparks a long argument about whether Democrats still have a meaningful line between their old guard and socialist candidates. Shawn’s Trump press briefing returns for a second round, mixing voter polling with the Air Force One decoy story and a catering-truck security gag. Marco Rubio’s description of keto as a near-psychotic experience gives Shawn room to explain carb withdrawal, “keto flu” and electrolytes. We finish the hour with 1984 McDonald’s footage, old packaging and prices, then unload on Cracker Barrel after another CEO change tied to the rebrand backlash.

We open the hour with Shawn’s new weekday show and the future of Farash Fridays, then turn directly to the Republican Party after Trump. Ben Shapiro’s warning about JD Vance starts a long Vance-versus-Marco Rubio debate, with Nick and Shawn comparing blue-collar appeal, Hispanic voters, policy continuity, presentation and the risk of a bruising primary. The WNBA takes center stage when its trans-athlete task force meets without producing an eligibility rule. We discuss the league’s prior rhetoric, Enes Kanter Freedom, Royce White, Caitlin Clark and Sophie Cunningham before moving to Hugh Laurie’s comments and the WTA’s genetic sex testing at the Cincinnati Open. Colin Kaepernick’s old NFL-slavery comparison supplies the bridge into our wider argument over sports takes that age badly.

Shawn Farash fills in for Dawn Stensland and Greg Stocker, giving Nick Kayal a full morning to test Shawn’s bid to serve as White House press secretary for one day. Karoline Leavitt’s exit sets up a long Trump-impression press briefing that turns the Air Force One decoy story into a Mission Impossible gag and introduces “Donna J. Trump,” a fictional WNBA star with presidential ambitions. We shift into local and national news with a Pennsylvania survey showing growing resistance to data centers, then compare concerns about water use, noise and power costs with what Shawn hears in Tennessee. Montgomery County’s social media litigation opens a larger argument about children, addictive phone use and parental limits, while Del Oro softball players provide a real-world example of a month without smartphones. Phil Almquist brings the sports desk as the Phillies fall 7-1 to St. Louis, the Field of Dreams matchup approaches and the Lakers’ $12.5 billion sale gets our attention. The hour’s major political discussion is “Woke 2,” built around David Crowley’s Wisconsin primary upset over Francesca Hong. We argue about the DSA wing, Abdul El-Sayed, polling, prediction markets and why voters still have to show up when the odds look ugly. Shawn then shares details of his new weekday show, we react to Hassan Piker’s Black-voter rant, and we close the hour by testing socialist rhetoric against wealthy supporters, the New York luxury-home tax fight and Michigan’s coming statewide test.

Shawn Farash joins Nick Kayal for the full morning, and we waste no time turning Karoline Leavitt’s White House exit into Shawn’s one-day press secretary audition. The Trump impression takes over the room with a mock briefing on the Air Force One decoy flight and the fictional rise of “Donna J. Trump.” We then get serious about growing opposition to data centers, Montgomery County’s entry into youth social media litigation, a California softball team’s month without smartphones, the Phillies’ 7-1 loss to St. Louis and the Lakers’ $12.5 billion sale. Our main political fight centers on “Woke 2” after David Crowley defeats Francesca Hong in Wisconsin. We debate the DSA wing, Abdul El-Sayed, polling and prediction markets, Republican turnout, Hassan Piker’s rhetoric, wealthy socialist supporters and whether Michigan becomes the clearest test of socialist candidates in a battleground state. From there, we turn to the post-Trump GOP and debate whether JD Vance or Marco Rubio offers the stronger path for 2028. Sports and pop politics collide as we dig into the WNBA’s trans-athlete task force, WTA genetic sex testing and old Colin Kaepernick rhetoric before the Cut Sheet brings immigration marriage fraud and ICE electric-shock gloves. The morning also runs through Mike Lindell and Michele Tafoya in Minnesota, smart thermostats, Rosie O’Donnell’s “they” tattoo, Stephen Miller versus AOC, Chris Matthews versus the DSA, Marco Rubio on keto, 1984 McDonald’s nostalgia, Cracker Barrel’s CEO change, AOC’s reported split, Fight Club, an Amazon driver’s flag salute and Pat McAfee with Trump. Phil Almquist closes with Today in Music History before Kathy Romano joins us to explain Kathy’s Clips and her Wigs for Kids hair-donation drive.

Dawn’s Big Three begins with Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday’s lawsuit against TikTok. We hear Sunday argue that the app is marketed as suitable for young teens while using features that encourage compulsive use, then debate “bed rot,” phone limits, parental responsibility and the proper role of state action. The discussion expands into Josh Shapiro, federal funding for gender procedures involving minors and Stacy Garrity’s visibility in Pennsylvania media. Sunday’s office says its complaint targets TikTok’s age rating and features aimed at keeping young users engaged. The second and third Big Three threads are much lighter. Dawn shares her Naples fishing trip with Captain Patrick Gould and gives Tony a tour of Seed to Table, then we come home to Ridley Park Lake, where eight-year-old Seamus Coffey reels in a piranha and state officials warn against dumping exotic pets. The crew then turns skyward for the August 12 solar eclipse and the Perseid meteor shower before Tony signs off. NASA lists both the eclipse and the Perseids among the major sky events for August 12

The final Kayal and Company hour opens with Mike Lindell’s loss in Minnesota, which quickly turns into MyPillow stories, sleeping-position arguments and Tony dubbing Robin the “pillow princess.” Trump’s Patriot Games and Pat McAfee’s backward hat then spark a debate about how to greet a president, followed by Michael LaRosa criticizing Abdul El-Sayed’s comments surrounding 9/11 and a wider discussion of the approaching 25th anniversary of the attacks. Fight Club features a chaotic brawl among costumed Mickey-and-Minnie characters, which sends Tony and the crew into Times Square mascot stories and WNBA jokes. Later, Lancaster Cupcake’s repeated mustard vandalism earns a full round of condiment puns, and a Florida man accused of driving 110 mph to catch a cheating girlfriend launches a debate about speeding, older drivers and the Schuylkill. The Lancaster prank and Florida traffic stop are both documented by local reports. A Saratoga race featuring One Big Beautiful Bill gives us one of the morning’s best calls and sends Nick and Tony into off-track betting memories. We then grade NFL head coaches by looks, move into a sports-media argument involving Mike Vrabel and Dianna Russini, and pitch our own WNBA team

The Cut Sheet begins with the crew trying to rewrite the spelling of Wednesday before Hasan Piker explains his expensive home. Robert Redfield’s criticism of Anthony Fauci moves us back into pandemic-era shutdowns, school closures and state restrictions, with Tony, Dawn and Nick comparing Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Tennessee and other states. The hour ends by setting up Dr. Paul Offit’s comments about Trump’s childhood vaccine order and the larger argument over mandates, medical guidance and parental choice. Dr. Paul Offit argues that pediatricians will largely follow established vaccine guidance rather than Trump’s new executive order, which sends us into a long debate over mandates, parental choice, MMR scheduling and hepatitis B vaccination at birth. From there, Massachusetts abortion legislation becomes the next flashpoint, with the crew arguing over gestational limits, viability and the role of doctors and nurses. Reuters and AP both detail the new federal vaccine policy and the medical response to it. Reports surrounding AOC and longtime partner Riley Roberts lead directly into her egg-freezing videos. We watch the self-injection footage, talk through fertility procedures and IVF, hear Tony’s family experience, and debate why politicians turn intimate parts of their lives into public content. Dawn then takes a longer look at fertility and age before a playful AOC-Elon Musk montage sends the conversation in a much less serious direction. AOC’s egg-freezing process has drawn broad national coverage this week. After the break, we correct the record on Culver’s Butter Burger, talk fast food and the places kids love spending money, then get a full Tony Bruno update on pillows, his boat and his quest for a Florida pool. Dawn reveals her Naples visit and Seed to Table stop before the Cut Sheet swings back to politics with Nancy Pelosi discussing what she knew about Joe Biden’s condition, Tucker Carlson’s Hunter Biden apology and another pass through Hong’s Wisconsin loss.

We start hour two with Crowley’s Wisconsin upset and the late-night USB issue in Milwaukee, then widen the primary conversation to Minnesota, where Michele Tafoya advances on the Republican side of the Senate race while Peggy Flanagan and Amy Klobuchar win major Democratic contests. Nick revisits his bet with Greg over whether AOC ever reaches the White House, and we debate whether Republicans are better off facing socialist candidates or seeing them knocked out before a general election. The Wisconsin and Minnesota results are confirmed in current election reporting. Hong’s Thanksgiving posts, Culver’s comments and campaign problems keep the Wisconsin discussion moving, along with questions about Crowley’s late momentum and the Milwaukee vote reporting. We connect the result to Abdul El-Sayed, Zohran Mamdani and Hasan Piker, play El-Sayed discussing football, and get into Wisconsin’s debate over data centers and tax incentives. Piker’s rhetoric, wealth and multimillion-dollar West Hollywood home then dominate the next stretch.

Tony Bruno is in for Greg Stocker, and we open with the overnight shocker in Wisconsin: Francesca Hong loses to David Crowley after entering the Democratic gubernatorial primary as the heavy favorite. We preview the day’s other big threads, including falling homicide numbers, Hasan Piker, federal funding for gender procedures involving minors and the WNBA controversy surrounding Sophie Cunningham. Dawn then turns to Philadelphia and Pennsylvania news with Janet Klein’s death, the Billy Schmidt case, Cheltenham High School’s hazing scandal, the Harrisburg child-abuse arrests and Dave Sunday’s TikTok lawsuit. Phil takes us through the Phillies’ 2-0 loss to St. Louis after six scoreless innings from Cristopher Sánchez, then the crew riffs on the newly released NBA prime-time slate and the Sixers’ early-season matchups. The Big Take follows with falling homicide and robbery numbers from major cities, a broader argument over law enforcement and Philadelphia crime, and pointed criticism of Larry Krasner. The national decline in homicides is backed by fresh midyear reporting showing another sharp drop across major cities. The Big Take shifts to artificial intelligence as Bernie Sanders asks major technology companies to pause development, John Fetterman argues America must stay ahead of China, and we question automated 911 calls, Waymo mishaps and self-driving SEPTA buses. The final piece turns toward midterm forecasts and whether Hong’s Wisconsin loss signals trouble for socialist candidates outside friendly districts. Dawn and Tony then join Nick for a Philadelphia-centered debate over crime, the border, Krasner, Cherelle Parker, Kevin Bethel, Dave Sunday and Josh Shapiro before Milwaukee’s USB issue becomes the final twist of the hour.

Tony Bruno joins us for a full What Up Wednesday, and the Wisconsin Democratic gubernatorial primary immediately takes over the morning. We react to David Crowley’s surprise win over Francesca Hong, the Milwaukee USB controversy and what Hong’s defeat says about socialist candidates in battleground states. Dawn also brings us the local docket: a tribute to Janet Klein, a surrender tied to the Billy Schmidt murder investigation, the Cheltenham football hazing scandal, a horrifying Harrisburg child-abuse case and Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday’s lawsuit against TikTok. Crowley’s upset and the late Milwaukee reporting are also reflected in current election coverage. The Big Take puts three major questions on the table: why homicides are falling across major American cities, where the risks of artificial intelligence are becoming impossible to ignore, and what the midterms could look like after Wisconsin’s result. We get into Bernie Sanders calling for a pause in artificial intelligence development, John Fetterman’s China response, automated 911 calls, Waymo vehicles and the possibility of self-driving SEPTA buses. From there, the Cut Sheet turns to Hasan Piker’s multimillion-dollar home, Robert Redfield’s criticism of Anthony Fauci, Dr. Paul Offit’s reaction to Trump’s childhood vaccine order, Massachusetts abortion legislation and AOC’s egg-freezing videos. The final stretch gets loose with Mike Lindell’s Minnesota primary loss, Pat McAfee’s backward hat, Michael LaRosa taking aim at Abdul El-Sayed, a costumed Mickey-and-Minnie Fight Club, Lancaster’s mustard vandal, a Florida man doing 110 mph for a cheating girlfriend and a Saratoga horse named One Big Beautiful Bill charging home. We close Kayal and Company with an NFL coaches-by-looks survey and Today in Music History before Dawn’s Big Three takes over with Dave Sunday’s TikTok suit, Dawn’s Naples fishing trip, an eight-year-old catching a piranha at Ridley Park Lake and the August 12 solar eclipse.

Dawn's Big Three begins with the active search connected to Billy Schmidt’s killing and the theft of an off-duty Philadelphia police officer’s Dodge Charger. Dawn details the search for 19-year-old Kadfi Fleming, the arrest of his younger brother in Colorado and charges against stepfather Donte Abdulmalik for allegedly hindering apprehension and tampering with evidence. The conversation expands into parental accountability, the Michigan case involving James and Jennifer Crumbley and frustration over how much attention the Schmidt investigation receives locally. The middle of Dawn's Big Three centers on RFK Jr.’s claims about the increase in autism diagnoses and his insistence that researchers investigate outside exposures rather than assuming genes explain the change. Dawn uses a longtime teacher friend’s first-grade classroom as a real-world example, while Greg argues that widening diagnostic standards help explain a substantial part of the statistical increase. We debate the 1994 expansion of the autism spectrum, environmental exposures, medication, parental age, IVF, maternal and paternal age, and the need for published evidence rather than political declarations. The pregnancy-vaccine dispute returns with Dawn pulling up the archived August 2021 CDC guidance and the Fauci-Walensky-Murthy text chain. The crew again separates Fauci’s theoretical first-trimester concern from a disputed interpretation of later pregnancy data and argues that Walensky, Murthy and other officials should face detailed questioning about what was known at the time. Dawn then delivers the sports surprise: LeBron James opens his first Sixers season against the defending champion Knicks and returns to Los Angeles to face the Lakers on Christmas Day, before the available transcript closes with Dawn comparing the age of first-time mothers across generations.

The first major story of the hour is a Long Island Little League team having its best season in 63 years after coaches begin taking players’ phones five hours before games. Nick immediately connects it to his first season as a softball dad and the one time he gets angry after spotting his daughter looking at her phone shortly before first pitch. That rolls into a debate about coaches setting rules for young athletes, followed by Nick’s irritation when his golf club refuses to let him walk the cart paths during a private event because of potential liability from an errant shot. Fight Club arrives with one of the strangest entries yet: a viral street scuffle involving amputees, wheelchairs and enough material to keep the room laughing for several minutes. After the break, the conversation turns serious again with Alaska Airlines Flight 305 returning to the gate in Miami after threats aboard the Seattle-bound flight, including an alleged threat to take over the aircraft. The crew debates putting a federal air marshal on every commercial flight before turning to a federal recruiting push aimed at gamers as potential air traffic controllers. The gaming discussion turns into a much broader argument over training, pay, relocation and the value of a four-year college degree for somebody who wants to enter law enforcement. Wisconsin then returns to center stage as David Crowley objects to being branded the establishment candidate while he tries to stop Francesca Hong, and the crew considers what a Hong-versus-Tom Tiffany general election means for Republicans. We also get Troy Jackson replacing Graham Platner in Maine, a report concerning Jackson and his second cousin, resurfaced Zohran Mamdani clips showing radically different speech patterns, Dawn’s story of changing the way she spoke after moving north as a child,

The Cut Sheet rolls directly into Hunter Biden’s sit-down with Tucker Carlson. We discuss Carlson’s sobriety, his stated regret over mocking Hunter’s addiction, Hunter’s laptop and Carlson’s claim that Israeli-linked figures pushed allegations involving minors. The conversation grows into a larger argument over Carlson’s current stance toward Israel, whether unnamed intelligence sources deserve automatic trust and whether Carlson’s political persona has changed because his business incentives have changed. We also revisit Hunter’s gun conviction, tax case and presidential pardon, then turn to his conduct toward daughter Navy Joan Roberts and the wider Biden family’s handling of her. Hunter and Carlson’s discussion of stock trading leads us into Joe Biden’s finances after leaving the vice presidency and questions about Burisma. The Cut Sheet then pivots sharply to newly released video involving Jamie Lee Komoroski, whose drunk-driving crash on Folly Beach kills bride Samantha Miller and severely injures groom Aric Hutchinson, with the crew fascinated by officers calmly talking about dogs and ice cream while keeping Komoroski speaking. A much more uplifting police clip follows as Nashville Lt. Mike Hotz talks a man away from the edge of the Victory Memorial Bridge and reaches out to shake his hand. We discuss crisis intervention, the temperament required for police work and the risks officers accept before the hour goes lighter with a viral Shake Shack kiosk video from Salt Lake City. Shake Shack says a price jump after a customer selects no tip is a technical error rather than company policy, but that explanation still sparks a long debate over tip screens, tip pooling, coffee shops, bagel counters, Pennsylvania’s tipped wage and whether cash is still the better way to reward good service.

We open the hour with the first batch of messages recovered from Anthony Fauci’s government phone and released by Sens. Ron Johnson and Rand Paul. The crew focuses on a January 2021 discussion involving Fauci, Rochelle Walensky and Vivek Murthy in which Fauci raises a theoretical first-trimester miscarriage concern tied to fever and an intense immune response after a second COVID shot. That gets compared with Fauci’s public messaging at the time, while we also hear Dr. James Thorp offer a heavily disputed interpretation of pregnancy data that produces an 80-plus-percent figure. Dawn brings a deeply personal perspective to the subject as she discusses her own history of miscarriages and what pregnancy loss means to families who have already seen ultrasounds, heard heartbeats and begun planning for a child. Nick’s central complaint is transparency: medical officials do not have to be perfect, but Americans need access to conflicting evidence and changing guidance. We then move into the Trump administration’s childhood-vaccine order and RFK Jr.’s announcement of new autism research awards, while debating mandates, parental choice and the difference between established childhood shots and newer recommendations. Dawn walks through Pennsylvania school requirements for DTaP, polio, MMR, hepatitis B and varicella, while the crew discusses separating doses, newborn hepatitis B vaccination and the long-term damage created when public trust collapses.