On this episode of Firebrand, Ron Burgundy joins us to talk about his new podcast, Firebrand Dan, and why he thinks we need more people like Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-GA) in Congress.
00:02:55.000And a few years back, I got frustrated, just like you did, I'm sure.
00:02:59.000And I ran for Congress and lost in Southern California.
00:03:03.000It was for Mary and Sonny Bona's old seat, which, after some gerrymandering, the Democrats had flipped that one to a highly registered Democrat seat.
00:03:11.000And I knew what I was up against, but by golly, I felt a need to do it.
00:03:28.000That's what you get as the local anchor man, the Ron Burgundy of the city you're working in, right?
00:03:32.000I don't know how to put this, but I'm kind of a big deal.
00:03:38.000It's like you went from the Adrian Cronauer to the Ron Burgundy, right?
00:03:42.000Adrian Cronauer was at my graduation ceremony in the military as a guest speaker when I graduated my technical school in the Air Force to learn to be a journalist.
00:03:51.000And real quick story, that's the reason I went in and chose that job.
00:04:11.000After we lost, I attempted for a good solid two years, 19 and 20, applying to get back into the news industry, doing what I knew how to do for 20 some years.
00:04:23.000And I would get the initial phone call.
00:04:30.000Of course, then they start backgrounding you and looking at your social media and nobody ever called back because I had come out of the closet as a conservative, as a Republican, as a wait for it, Trump supporter.
00:04:44.000We can't hire that guy as a news anchor at our station ever again.
00:04:47.000And so I was never getting any offers.
00:04:49.000And Mr. Herring, who you intro so eloquently, our boss here, the boss man, he had contacted me and his son several years before when they first started the operation.
00:05:39.000This is credit to the American people.
00:05:41.000Within two months, we were the number one talk show on the network.
00:05:44.000Within six months, we were the highest rated show the network's ever had since its inception in 2013.
00:05:49.000And again, that's thanks to Americans seeking One American News out because they wanted truth in reporting.
00:05:56.000And all they get now on CNN and the rest of these monitors up here in my office is a bunch of spewing radical activists lying to them every single day.
00:06:20.000And a lot of the One American News viewers that I talk to, that is really not just part of the mosaic of news they get.
00:06:26.000That is the principal source of news they get.
00:06:29.000Tell me why you think there are some stories that get special attention or special investigative reporting on One American News that might not on other networks.
00:06:38.000And I think specifically about the Ukraine hoax.
00:06:41.000You know, we've had so many scandals in the Biden administration, we forget what Adam Schiff tried to do to the presidency in the Ukraine hoax.
00:06:47.000And the depth of the investigative reporting on One American News was far and beyond the best that we saw in the country.
00:06:55.000What is it about the philosophy there that might highlight a different lens for the information?
00:07:02.000I think that when our producers and the news director and the H's are looking at stories that we want to put, say, Pearson Sharp on and do more investigating at one depth on, we're looking at those ones specifically, too, that the mainstream either ignore or have skewed the narrative so far, the opposite side of the spectrum, that the story is so convoluted you can't make sense of it.
00:07:24.000Or they literally change the narrative.
00:07:26.000So if we're showing you facts and something is white, they're telling you it's black.
00:07:42.000That's all a bunch of bullshit, number one.
00:07:44.000Number two, to your question about the stories, if you have all of the networks for the past five years saying that Donald J. Trump colluded with Russia when the facts have been proven, the dossier was fake, he didn't collude, then, yeah, we're going to hit it even harder to try and offset because we're only one network and you've got half a dozen every day that are telling you the opposite and lying.
00:08:04.940So I'd say that's kind of how we pick and make sure that some of those stories that are just being blatantly lied about in the mainstream media have more attention so people get the facts.
00:08:13.940We don't know what hour they're watching, what show they're watching.
00:08:15.940So sometimes you've got to just keep repeating it so they see it, especially, again, when CNN, MSNBC, I've got them in my office, I'm watching their lies right now.
00:08:24.940You know, we've got Navarro getting subpoenaed, Peter Navarro that worked for the president, of course, MSNBC with the plot on January 6th.
00:08:33.940We've got Giuliani and prosecutors going after Giuliani in New York on CNN and then Russia's doing it.
00:08:40.940Well, let's talk about the DOJ for a moment.
00:08:43.940The Department of Justice concerned a lot of parents when they used the domestic terrorism label to try to have a basis to do what they wouldn't otherwise be able to do,
00:08:52.940and that's categorize people by their politics, to hunt them, to do everything they can to ruin their lives.
00:08:59.940There has been a recent Justice Department pronouncement that people who spread disinformation or misinformation may be labeled as domestic extremists and domestic terrorists.
00:09:10.940Senator Hawley unleashed his wrath at Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco after her boss, Attorney General Merrick Garland, issued this unprecedented memorandum.
00:09:19.940It directs, quote, the Federal Bureau of Investigation to facilitate the discussion of strategies for addressing threats against school administrators, board members, teachers and staff,
00:09:29.940and will open dedicated lines of communication for threat reporting assessment and response.
00:09:36.940Parents waiting sometimes for hours to speak at a local school board meeting to express concerns about critical race theory or the masking of their students, particularly young children.
00:09:48.940Is that, in and of itself, is that harassment and intimidation, is waiting to express one's view at a school board meeting harassment and intimidation?
00:09:57.940As the Attorney General's memorandum made quite clear, spirited debate is welcome, is a hallmark of this country.
00:10:04.940It's something we all should engage in.
00:10:12.940Now, since One America News has falsely had to endure the smears of these labels, do you worry that you and your colleagues at One America News may be labeled domestic terrorists by the Department of Justice?
00:10:41.940So my question is, why are you doing this?
00:10:43.940Well, it's probably because you're either misinformed, blinded by fear, uneducated on the matter, or you simply lack the backbone to stand up to these tyrannical mandates.
00:10:50.940Note I said mandates, not laws, because they are not laws.
00:10:55.940A select few in power in this state and in the federal government lack the intestinal fortitude to stand up to these mandates.
00:11:02.940I've exposed and helped parents there get the recall going for the board members.
00:11:08.940And I would like to say that those brave parents that have been speaking out for the last year over the mask and vaccine mandates, the CRT, the over sexual books that are on the shelves in K through eight, because parents have taken action with that.
00:11:22.940But just in the schools my kid goes to, I'm proud to announce that the chairman just resigned.
00:11:27.940Now, he took another government job, but at least he's off the school board.
00:11:31.940So if they're going to call me a domestic terrorist because I went to my 14 year old daughter's school board meeting and said, my daughter feels faint when she has these damn masks on.
00:11:41.940She tells me you can't see people's expressions.
00:11:44.940She tells me the most damaging thing when I hear her go, it's OK, dad, I don't mind.
00:11:51.940So if parents have to go speak up to get these mandates pulled to get the CRT out of the schools and you get labeled as a domestic terrorist.
00:11:59.940So be it, parents, because soon enough, there'll be a reckoning.
00:12:03.940And, Matt, let's hope by the grace of God, Republicans take back control this November and come next year, the DOJ is going to have a lot of answering to do.
00:12:12.940And I have a feeling we probably won't see the current AG in his role once Republicans fully take everything back.
00:12:27.940We welcome all in the federal government to watch Firebrand and to watch Real America with Dan Ball.
00:12:33.940Dan, while the Department of Justice is not doing or while they are doing these very strange things to target Americans, there's important work that the Department of Justice is not doing, particularly in the area of antitrust.
00:12:45.940I'm very concerned that large technology companies and other large businesses in America have gained so much power that they've limited novel and unique voices, novel and unique experiences in the marketplace.
00:12:58.940We've seen that with Google, Facebook, where the DOJ does kind of just enough, but they don't really use antitrust powers.
00:13:04.940But now we see a tremendous amount of power being concentrated in the hands of those who distribute television content, whether that's through satellite, whether that is through coaxial cable.
00:13:16.940Do you believe that the Department of Justice should have further investigation into the power that some companies that have satellite and cable distribution have over the content that is on their platforms?
00:13:29.940So this is a slippery slope, so I have to watch how I answer this.
00:13:32.940So first and foremost, I believe in and love capitalism.
00:13:39.940I don't want them stepping in and telling me I can't have an opinion and say what I want and infringe upon my freedom of speech and freedom of the press, because this is what I've been doing for nearly 30 years.
00:13:51.940So with that said, because you have people in power, people of influence, and this woke cancel culture mob all ganging up on what you were just talking about, the providers, whether people that provide the servers or the platform, whether it be digital, satellite, cable, whatever it may be.
00:14:11.940If they are simply silencing people, whether it be on Facebook, on Dish, on whatever, because of political reasons, then whatever happened to political discourse in this country, we're supposed to have that.
00:14:24.940That's where the government should step in.
00:14:40.940I think any red blooded American, no matter left, right, independent, would agree that's OK for regulation.
00:14:45.940OK, how do you have a healthy discourse if you're allowing just a handful of these major owners of, again, whether it be cable, satellite, Facebook, Instagram, all the social media, that's only a handful of these overlords.
00:15:00.940If they're allowed to pick and choose what's misinformation, what's correct, what's not, where the hell did free speech go?
00:15:06.940Where the hell did freedom of press go?
00:15:25.940Whether you don't, whether you like it or you don't like it, whether it hurts your feelings or doesn't hurt your feelings, it doesn't matter.
00:15:30.940And when they want to try and say that OAN is misinformation because, and let's be real, the two main things people have hit us on is our coverage of the 2020 election and then also our coverage of the COVID pandemic hysteria nonsense.
00:15:47.940We talk about the fact that the vaccine isn't working and we back it up with the data to show it, you know, the science that masks don't work.
00:15:55.940What do you think the other, why do you, why do you think, why do you think that so many other news organizations were unwilling to cover instances of fraud or illegal voting or irregularity or whatever, whatever synonym they want to use for it?
00:16:12.940Why do you think that OAN seemed to have almost a laser-like focus into those things and they were ignored by other news outlets?
00:16:19.940The other ones ignored it because the corporate tyrant CEOs, like the guy who just got pushed out at CNN, Jeff Zucker, who deserved it, told them to.
00:16:30.940I mean, you're, I know your audience on Firebrand probably follows James O'Keefe and the great work Project Veritas guys.
00:16:37.940Let's talk about those two months of phone calls because a whistleblower was kind enough to give James the phone number and he got to call in and listen to two months of their 9am meeting where it's supposed to be.
00:16:48.940And you may have been in a newsroom before, an editorial meeting, folks, is supposed to be everybody coming together, the news director, the reporters, photographers, producers, and here's your ideas for stories of the day.
00:16:59.940Then you go out and cover them and you're, sorry about that, you're supposed to be out covering them neutrally, showing both sides.
00:17:06.940But if you listen to those phone calls, Jeff Zucker was blatantly telling them this is the way we're going to skew stories.
00:17:12.940And this was right before the election, I believe.
00:17:14.940Trump continuing to undermine election integrity with bracelets claims of fraud.
00:17:23.940And that leads to the question of whether or not Trump in himself is a national security threat.
00:17:29.940I just want to reemphasize that, you know, I think we cannot normalize what has happened here in the last week with Trump and his behavior.
00:17:43.940And I go back to what David said, David Challian said, that this is a president who knows he's losing, who knows he's in trouble, is sick, maybe is on the aftereffects of steroids or not.
00:17:59.940Like they're literally, again, spewing the narrative and controlling it.
00:18:30.940That's why people watch, because it's real.
00:18:32.940And CNN is hemorrhaging ratings because it all is so contrived in so many circumstances.
00:18:38.940Now, there was a circumstance a while ago where the head football coach of Oklahoma State University wore a One America News T-shirt while fishing.
00:18:46.940And no offense, Dan, but everybody knows you don't wear your favorite shirt fishing.
00:18:51.940You wear the shirt that you don't mind getting some blood and guts and bait on.
00:18:55.940And he later had to apologize for wearing your network shirt, which I've met a number of the great people who work in your organization from the Herrings all the way to the fine greeters who ensure that everybody has a great experience when they come to your studios there in San Diego.
00:19:12.940And everyone is kind and welcoming and just American.
00:19:16.940And so I'm wondering how it makes the people at OAN feel when the woke mob literally says that someone is a racist for wearing a T-shirt with your logo on it.
00:19:27.940And I don't know if you know, because he came out and apologized after and then said, I didn't realize OAN stirred up so emotion and hurt feelings and that we provided misinformation and were racist.
00:20:20.940So when they played for their bowl game or championship game right a month or so back and lost right to Baylor, I think I sent him a gift right before the game on Friday.
00:20:30.940We know he received it because we got confirmation.
00:20:33.940I sent him a set of balls and a brand new golf T-shirt with a collar and a nice embroidered away and not that T-shirt he got.
00:20:40.940So I don't know if he's going to wear it.
00:20:42.940I don't know if he's going to play with those golf balls I sent him, but I figured he needed a pair.
00:20:45.940So, yeah, that's how I feel about the cave.
00:20:50.940There's just too much that we saw with Joe Rogan apologizing for some past comments.
00:20:56.940I mean, we're supposed to all grow and be better humans.
00:20:59.940And it would just be nice if everyone was a little more forgiving and that we weren't trying to rip each other off the air or not engage in discussion and discourse with each other.
00:22:12.940But a platform to be able to get truth before people.
00:22:15.940What message would you share with your viewers who are concerned that come May, you might be off the air?
00:22:22.940Anyone that watches the show knows I don't censor myself, or at least I try not to ever censor myself.
00:22:29.940But because there are a couple hundred hardworking employees at the OAM network, and because of the man and his two sons that are here every single day, eight, nine, ten hours a day running this place.
00:22:40.940I don't want to see anyone get in trouble or lose anything.
00:22:54.940Are they going to stay on the carrier?
00:22:56.940I'm not allowed now to mention anything about this situation because I have been threatened by an army of lawyers by a certain large company.
00:23:34.940You sound like Churchill during the tough days of World War II where he said even if we lose England, even if they cross the channel, we'll go to the British Empire's faraway lands and we'll fight from there as long as we can.
00:23:47.940I know that your voice is an important one.
00:23:50.940The voice that One America News offers is absolutely critical to our national discourse.
00:23:56.940I'm rooting against the woke mob that tries to cancel everyone that seems to raise a ruckus or raise their voice or raise tough questions like OAN has done about the 2020 election and about the efficacy of these vaccines.
00:24:09.940We should be able to question these things.