To stay up to date on all the news that you need to know, there's no better place than right here on the DSR network. And there's no better way to enjoy the DSR network than by becoming a member. Members enjoy an ad-free listening experience, access to our Discord community, exclusive content, early episode access, and more. Use code DSR26 for a 25% off discount on sign up at the DSR Network.com. That's code DSR26 at the DSR Network.com. Slash by. Thank you and enjoy the show. Hello and welcome to the DSR Daily of David Rothkopf. I'm joined by Riley Fessler and Minnestine and we're here to help you ease into another week, a week of February at cold week that may actually warm up a little bit here in the east week. We can only hope by, there's only so much furniture we can burn to stay warm. Men, I wonder why don't you kick us off. All right. Bad Bunny delivered a high energy, fully Spanish, superbull halftime show, the celebrated Puerto Rican culture through a fast paced mix of reggaeton, bombah, hip hop, and pop packing 14 songs into 13 minutes. Surprise appearances by Lady Gaga, Ricky Martin, Cardi B, and Pedro Pascal added star power while the performance leaned heavily into cultural symbolism, pride, and joy rather than translation or explanation. Does by controversy and criticism, especially from political opponents, Bad Bunny framed the moment as an invitation for viewers to simply dance and embrace authenticity, reinforcing his global success without compromising his roots. Yeah, I think it was a little more complicated than that. I think it was a little better than that. I thought he did a great job. One sign of the fact that he did a great job was that Donald Trump immediately responded with a long-true social post saying it was terrible, and that no one could understand this. Donald Trump doesn't seem to know that 60 million Americans actually speak Spanish, but it did really get to the core point here, which is Trump's message when you boil it down is racism. Jen Rubin in a comment this morning, I saw it referred to what they're trying to do with immigration, but also with their attitudes more broadly, is ethnic cleansing. They don't want anybody except white Christians in this country, and they are going to fight to make life harder for anybody who doesn't meet those criteria. Bad Bunny on the other hand, who did a great performance, was a full of energy. He's an incredibly charming performer, made his points more subtle. But that's not to say he wasn't making them directly. When he was saying love is more powerful than hate, it's not that he didn't have haters in mind. When he said we are all America together, it's not that he wasn't making a point in direct contrast to that of the white Christian nationalists out there. When he said I'm proud to be an American and then listed every country in the Americas to point out that we are all here together. He was making a point. I think the fact that he felt that he could stick to his message of culture and of love, his celebration of who he was, I think also sent a powerful message. There was this countervailing Kid Rock program that people were screening for Maga World that had technical difficulties before. It started out that reached maybe six million extremists, but that involved Kid Rock in a T-shirt lip-syncing. Nothing redeeming about it, it stands in contrast to the 120 million or so people that saw bad money. This was another victory and a string of victories for the people who are standing up and saying, fuck ice and ice out and know we can't go in this direction of America. We are going to resist the efforts of the federal government to undermine the thing that makes America great, which is diversity and inclusion. I would point out that Donald Trump, who speaks contemptuously of bad money and the magas who talk about bad money. As if he were a foreigner, neglect a couple of things, one of which is we've had plenty of foreigners to have time shows, but bad money isn't one of them. Puerto Rico is part of the United States. In fact, Puerto Rico has been part of the United States and bad bunnies' relatives have been Americans far longer than Donald Trump's immigrant relatives who came over in the early part of the 20th century. Everywhere you look, there was fail for Trump, ugliness for Maga and just a beautifully powerful message from bad money and those who joined bad money that had in it in the most subtle way, at least I'm from New Jersey. This is how I see things, but an unmistakable fuck you to the president and his policies. Do you guys agree with me? I'm sorry I'd go on and on there. Did you both watch it? Yeah, I watched it. Yeah, I agree. It was clearly a dig-it-trump, but what's sad is, unless you have really hateful politics, there was nothing to find offensive about the show. It was literally just we should all accept one another and get along, which of course pisses off a big contingent of the right in this country, which is more of an indictment of them than anything. I thought the show was great, but yeah, overt messaging and undertones were pretty unmistakable. It's interesting that the white Christian nationalists are most defended by messages the closer they get to sounding like Jesus. Yep, pretty much. What about you, Minute? Did you go further? I thought it was expertly done. I thought it was beautiful. It's the only super bowl moment, super bowl half-time show that's ever moved me to tears when they brought out all the flags and they were carrying the American flag and all the other flags from around Central and South America. I was just so moved by that portion and that message that I started like openly weeping at my super bowl party that I was at. I just, yeah, the moment that we're in just really. You were at a super bowl party. I was with my family, so not there to celebrate super bowl, but there to watch the half-time show, there to hang out with my family. They're apparently to cry at this incredible, incredible, beautiful message of where all Americans were all in this together. All we have is each other, all we have is love and at the end of the day we're all fans of Lady Gaga. Yeah, okay, finally we've come to something we disagree on. I think Lady Gaga's okay. I don't think she belonged in that program. I think you would have been... Yes, this is a conspiracy theory, but the song she sang is a song she co-wrote with Bruno Mars who is Puerto Rican. My guess is they were supposed to be there together and something happened and he couldn't be there and she did it without him. That would be my guess. That's a conspiracy theory that I just don't think they needed, the interlude in English. He almost gave the first half-time show that was entirely in Spanish. It would have been fine with me if he did. I don't think she added that much. I thought, by the way, the surprise to me was Ricky Martin was so good. I thought about Ricky Martin a long time, but it was like, wow, that was a good performance. And looking incredible, almost unrecognizable, the group that I was with was like, wait, is that Ricky Martin? He's had some... He's had some work. That looks great. Oh, my God, tasteful work, that he's, you know. Anyway, the point is, I thought it was great. By the way, Super Bowl sucked. I mean, it was unbelievably boring, Super Bowl. It's kind of the best advertisement you could possibly have for watching, I don't know, the World Cup later this year or the Olympics. It was just blugh, by the way, just to continue on our theme here. Trump also when lashed out at members of the US Olympic ski team and others on the Olympic team who dared to suggest that it was uncomfortable being out there representing the US when the US was doing all this horrible stuff, who dared to actually use their right as American citizens to express themselves. And Trump was like, well, if you're going to be critical, you know, you shouldn't be on the team. Critical what, Don? Of America? No, they want America to be better. They were being critical of you, Don. And he, of course, hated that. And I think Trump is feeling it right now. I mean, I don't know, but I think Trump is feeling every single day that the choices they're making aren't working. At least I hope that I hope he is. This would get me up in the morning. Okay, what else we have? Well, a complete pivot because British Prime Minister Kierstarmler is facing an intensifying leadership crisis following the back-to-back resignations of Key Aids Morgan McSweeney and Tim Allen, not that one. These departures were triggered by the fall. That would be the end of the British labor porn. If, if, if mega Tim Allen were in their midst, but yeah, go ahead. These departures were triggered by the fallout from Starmler's controversial decision to a point Peter Mandelson as U.S. Ambassador and moving now under fire due to Mandelson's attires to Jeffrey Epstein and allegations of official misconduct. Despite mounting pressure from the conservative opposition and arising government borrowing costs, Starmler rallied his staff on Monday, expressing regret for the appointment while firmly signaling his refusal to step down. The Prime Minister now prepares for a high-six meeting with labor lawmakers in an attempt to stabilize his government and refocus on his economic agenda. Yeah, he'd be a lot better off if he didn't suck as Prime Minister, right? I mean, his problem is that he's been a lousy Prime Minister and so people weren't feeling that well-disposed towards him to begin with, but of course he did appoint this guy. There would be a very dark and unfortunate, I don't know if it's quite an iron but commentary on the United States if because a UK Prime Minister appointed somebody associated with Epstein, he was forced out of office and we here in this country have the person most associated with Epstein as our president and no sign of any movement against him on that front despite what some Chris Murphy and others suggest are 38,000 mentions of Trump and the Epstein pause, but more importantly, the fact that the accusations against Trump and what Trump did with Epstein and the whole idea of what George was Senator and now also Senator candidate John Asaf yesterday I think very smartly as the Epstein class, you know, I think defining the people around Trump and Epstein, the billionaires, the Brola Garkey, as the Epstein class sends the message that these are not only people who had impunity or believe they were had impunity, but they were also people who then abused that in the most revolting ways possible. Anyway, we'll see if Starmer goes. We also, by the way, had another story over the weekend which I don't think is on our list, but deserves noting which is that Trump supporter, when somebody Trump's a kind of a fan of the Japanese Prime Minister wouldn't fake landslide victory in Japan and her party looks much stronger than it did before and undoubtedly at some point today if it hasn't happened already, Trump will claim credit for that even though he shouldn't, but he's desperate. So he will, he will undoubtedly say, well see I supported her and look what happened there. Anyway, I'll do the next. Call my wife. Voice assistance not working for you. BlackRock investment trust has a lot working for you. Get to know them at blackrock.com, capital at risk, marketing material, blackRock investment management, UK limited, authorized and regulated by the financial conduct authority. President Trump plans to exclude Democrats from a traditionally bipartisan White House meeting with governors during the National Governors Association Summit and revoke invitations to Democratic governors, Westmore of Maryland and Jared Polis of Colorado for a related governor's dinner. More in polis criticized the decision as disrespectful and partisan with more saying he was confused and hurt by the move, especially given his recent bipartisan work with Trump and his status as the nation's only black governor. The NGA expressed disappointment saying the decision undermines a longstanding tradition of bipartisan federal state collaboration and unity. Look, you know, it's so in character of Trump. He doesn't care anymore. Pay attention to that. He is behaving like a man who knows he is not running for re-election again. And he is injecting his own pettiness and vitriol and fear of opposing ideas into everything he does. I mean, I'm looking at that way, folks. He's afraid to have Westmore. It was a legitimate Democratic presidential candidate in 2028, but who is also the only black governor in the state in the United States have dinner with it in a big room full of a lot of people. You know, Jared Polis, more than any other Democratic, I think of has been bending over to deal with Trump and, you know, was getting penalized for it. But it's because there is kind of bunker mentality in the White House. And I say that as they're actually building a bunker under the White House, a new improved luxury bunker that Trump can live in, you know, when people come at him with torches and pitchforks as they probably should. The Pentagon has announced it will sever all ties with Harvard University starting in the 2026 to 27 academic year, terminating all military training, fellowships, and certificate programs. Defense Secretary Pete Hegg said the justified the decision by stating the institution instills quote, globalist and radical ideologies that are incompatible with the military's warrior class. This move escalates a prolonged standoff between the Trump administration and Harvard, which has already seen billions in research funding cut and a recent demand for $1 billion payment to restore federal support. While Harvard maintains the administration is engaging in the legal retaliation, the Pentagon has indicated that similar programs at other Ivy League universities will be evaluated for potential cuts in the coming weeks. Yeah, because why not go after the best universities in the country and stop sending our military leaders there? Because I think anything that we can do to dumb down the military is bound to help us in the long run, right? I mean, it's bound to make the military stupider like Pete Hegg said, where did Pete Hegg said go to college guys? Did anybody remember? No, actually don't remember. Okay, well, let me help refresh your memory and this is incredibly embarrassing to the place he did when Pete Hegg said to Princeton that hotbed of anti-Ivy League thinking. Obviously, he presents his time there where he must have been viewed as a mistaken entry because he's such a frat boy moron, although I've met my share of frat boy morons who went to Princeton. We'll leave that for another day. But I know these programs. I've done a lot my wife is affiliated with the Harvard Kennedy School where a lot of these people go. I've a lot of my friends teach there. These are very smart people who you want to have getting good education. I'm also a little bit confused by this idea that we don't want our military exposed to globalist views. We have the most far-flung military in the world. We have military bases in every corner of the planet. Our whole point behind our military is the ability to project force in every direction around the planet at once. But how is that not the most extraordinary manifestation of globalist views that you can imagine? But of course, if you're looking for intellectual consistency from Pete Hegg said, you've gone to the wrong place. And this is just about politics, small-mindedness, short-termism, and bad decisions. And it's bad decision. And should get pushed back and probably should be a challenge to the courts because it is clearly political penalization for not bending the knee to the president of the United States. Last story for today, Mina. Yep, we're going to finish out our stories today, the way we started. Actually, it was something that you mentioned earlier, but big sports weekend, so important to talk about all the acts of resistance happening during those sports. President Trump criticized the US Olympic freestyle skier Hunter Hess on Truth Social, calling him, quote, a real loser. After Hess said he had mixed emotions about representing the United States amid current political issues, Hess explained that while wearing the flag, he feels he represents his personal values, loved ones, and positive aspects of the country, rather than all actions of the US government. Other athletes, including T.Mate Chris Lilis, echoed similar concerns expressing heartbreak over domestic issues and emphasizing respect, rights, and unity as the values they hope to represent at the Olympics. And more power to them. And what is more American than expressing your views as we have said? Trump, of course, doesn't like the idea that the Olympic team might represent diverse views. He probably would like an all-maga Olympic team, which would guarantee our failure across the board in many of these sports. This team has got Americans have every sort on it, and that's why it's kind of inspiring, inspiring to watch. But I think said that, I don't know how you guys feel. I feel uncomfortable watching the Olympics this time. When the Americans came in, when JD Vance got booed at the opening ceremony, I'm proud to be an American for what I think America stands for. I'm proud to be an American for whom my neighbors are. But I could not be more embarrassed or disgusted with our government. And when you think of how that government has treated the rest of the world, the contempt it has shown for our allies and our friends, the embrace it has made to enemies and criminals around the world. The values it is demonstrating, the fact that it is shown the opposite of hospitality to international visitors, the fact that we are making it a place that no one wants to go to anymore. I don't know. I really think it's colored how I view the Olympics. Because the Olympics is so tied up in this idea of I'm winning for my country. And it really puts the athletes in a bad position. I don't know if you guys agree with me, but it's affected. I don't disagree with you that it's a complicated feeling because I'm a really big Olympics fan. Obviously, I don't like sports. I don't follow sports, but you can put any sport on the Olympics and I'm watching it and I'm pretending like I know exactly how the game has played and what is supposed to happen to win. I'm a big fan and I agree with you that it's complicated to root for the United States. That being said, I do feel proud to be an American when people like Hunter Hesse or Chris Lilis or Bad Bunny or any of these people stand up and do the right thing. And I feel proud to be associated with people who are, who continue to be brave, continue to do the right thing even when it's hard or dangerous. I'm proud to be associated with those people. I'm with you. Riley had even watched the Olympics. I watched part of the opening ceremony, but I haven't actually watched any of the events yet. But I go up. I'm weird because I historically don't watch any of the Olympics at all and I've been judged harshly for that. I've read between each his own, but I have to say as a side that has nothing to do with this and then we will wrap up this podcast. When I was a kid, you'd go watch the Olympics, you'd turn it on at night, watch the whole thing. If it was happening on the other side of the world, you probably didn't hear what was happening. So you were like, I'm going to wait and see who wins and all this then there was a period where there would be five Olympic channels and you'd watch the Olympics. You know, as you wanted to and you could go even as today, you know, NBC has the gold zone. You can just watch people win if that was your thing. But we now live in an era where so much of the information we get is streamed and in fairly real time. That if you're just going through your Instagram feed or your TikTok feed or your blue sky feed or God forbid some of the other feeds, you're going to get all the highlights in video in real time. And so I don't watch it the same way as I did before. There's no urgency for me to turn on NBC because I'm getting so much of it in my social media feed and I think that it changes the whole vibe of the Olympics to me. And once was this kind of big thing that for two weeks every four years, you kind of zoom in on and it was you talked to people about it and everybody was watching it. And now it's, you know, I watched Lindsey Vaughn get airlifted out on a little clip and then I watch the American skating team win a gold medal or breezy Johnson win a gold medal. I feel sorry for her because the her whole story was overshadowed by the Lindsey Vaughn story. But you know, it's net net it took up six minutes of my day. You know what I mean? It was not watching all the time. Anyway, the Olympics is going on this week. Maybe something interesting will happen there. Donald Trump will remain our president throughout the week. You know, I'm at least that has to be the betting position. You know, will care. Starmer remain the prime minister of the UK. What's going to happen elsewhere in the world? Who knows? But we'll be here and we will follow these things and we have great schedule of all of our other podcasts coming at you this week. So join us. We're even doing a couple later today. So maybe they'll be up sooner. Join us and until then, welcome to a new week. Thanks, Riley. Thanks, Bennett. Thanks, everybody.
