Red State Reboot

None. Of. This. Sh*t. Is. Normal. And neither is this ep! We pop off for a second on our Grammys/Groundhog Day projections followed by a Wheel of Doom headlines round-up from this past week. We chat some usual suspects, including Greg Bovino, Nicki Minaj, Luigi, White House dot gov, SBA, Josh Stein, the All-American Halftime Show, and of course Teflon Don.

RIPAP (Rest in Peaceful Actress Power) Catherine O’Hara :(

Oh, BTW! The new RSR Substack is live here:

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IG: @redstaterebootpod

Website: www.redstatereboot.com

Contact: [email protected]

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SOURCES:

Assoc. Press. 2026. “Trump Sues IRS and Treasury for $10 Billion Over Leaked Tax Information.” NPR, January 30.

Barrow, Bill, and Steve Karnowski. 2026. “Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar Announces Run for Minnesota Governor.” AP News, January 30.

Hayes, Alexander. Rossell. 2026. “Today More Americans Support Than Oppose Abolishing ICE.” YouGov, January 26.

Jacobs, Shayna. 2026. “Luigi Mangione Won’t Face Death Penalty in Case of UnitedHealthcare CEO’s Killing.” The Washington Post, January 30.

Kanno-Youngs, Zolan. 2026. “Did Trump Really Give Nicki Minaj a $1 Million ‘Gold Card’ Visa?” The Seattle Times. January 30, 2026.

Levine, Sam, and George Chidi. 2026. “FBI Raid in Georgia Has Little Legal Basis.” The Guardian, January 30.

Luciano, Lilia, et al. 2026. “Former CNN Anchor Don Lemon Appears in Court After Being Arrested Over Protest at Minnesota Church Service.” CBS News, January 31.

Murphy, Chris. 2026. “Is Turning Point USA’s ‘All American’ Halftime Show Really Happening?” Vanity Fair, January 29.

Richer, Alanna, and Steve Karnowski. 2026. “Man Who Squirted Vinegar on Rep. Ilhan Omar Is Charged.” AP News, January 29.

**Complete List of Sources: HERE!!

If you liked last week’s ep, you’re gonna love this one! If you hated last week’s ep, you’re gonna love this one! If you have never listened to Red State Reboot before, you’re gonna love this one! We’re starting off with a painful but necessary DEEP dive on two speeches (loose term) Trump gave last week: one from Washington to celebrate (HELL YEAH!) his first year in office, and then one on stage at Davos. In short… shit’s fucked. But… we also grant you permission to laugh your ass off, because what other choice do we have?

In the second half of the ep, we have a Wheel of Doom headlines roundup for you to catch you up on the past week, which includes Melania’s AI initiative, the Gaza Board of Peace, and the new Harry Styles album that Abby is hype about but doesn’t know the name of.

And another thing… A SUBMARINE IS NOT A FISHING BOAT. YA DON’T FISH!!!!!!!!!!!!

Xoxoxoxo stay safe in the winter storm!

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For more on white supremacy, check out Ben’s new project KLANLAND: https://klanland.substack.com/

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New eps every Monday!

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IG: @redstaterebootpod

Website: www.redstatereboot.com

Contact: [email protected]

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SOURCES:

Booth, Colin. 2026. “Leaked Signal Chat Shows NH House Education Chair Advocating Whites-only Schools.” Granite Post News, January 15.

Goba, Kadia, and Shayna Jacobs. 2026. “House Oversight Committee Votes to Hold Clintons in Contempt of Congress.” The Washington Post, January 22, 2026.

Handley, Lucy. 2026. “Trump Signed His Gaza ‘Board of Peace’ Into Being. Here’s Who’s on It — and Who Isn’t.” CNBC. January 23.

New Hampshire Democratic Party. 2026. “NEW: Leaked Signal Chat Reveals Republican Chair of New Hampshire House Education Committee in Favor of ‘Segregated’ Schools.”

Reuters [@reuters]. 2026. TikTok, January 22.

Sun, Albert. 2026. “How Many Immigrants Has Trump Deported?” The New York Times, January 18.

The White House. 2026. “First Lady Melania Trump Inspires America’s Children to Be Curious, Use AI to Achieve Their Career Ambitions.” January 16, 2026.

Trump, Donald [@realDonaldTrump]. 2026. Truth Social, January 20.

Can we just say? We’re in our flow state. This episode has it all: deep dive analysis on the Minnesota fraud case, followed by a Wheel of Doom that includes the Clintons’ contempt of Congress, Trump’s Jerome Powell probe, NC slaying on AI policy, Justice Department leaders resigning, Greenland, Iran, shade on NC Gov Josh Stein, Kristi Noem’s possible impeachment, and dogwhistles galore!

And because it always bears repeating… RIPPP (Rest in Peaceful Puppy Power) Cricket!

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Subscribe to Ben’s new project KLANLAND.

Subscribe to FGTM’s Yesterday in Hell.

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SOURCES:

“Arrested: Worst of the Worst.” n.d. U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs (ASPA). 2026. “HHS Freezes Child Care and Family Assistance Grants in Five States for Fraud Concerns.” HHS.Gov, January 6.

Bradsher, Keith. 2026. “China Announces Record Trade Surplus as Its Exports Flood World Markets.” The New York Times, January 14.

Doran, Will. 2026. “NC Takes Lead in Push to Regulate AI, Despite Trump Order.” WRAL, January 15.

Groves, Stephen. 2026. “Clintons Refuse to Testify in House Epstein Investigation.” PBS News. January 13.

Londoño, Ernesto. 2026. “Threat to Suspend Aid for Minnesota Child-Care Centers Rattles Families.” The New York Times, January 1.

Miles, Kyra, and Regina Medina. 2026. “Somali Child Care Providers Report Vandalism, Threats After Viral Fraud Video.” MPR News, January 1.

Nawaz, Amna, and Doug Adams. 2026. “DOJ Prosecutors Resign in Protest Over Handling of ICE Shooting Investigation.” PBS News, January 14.

O’Brien, Connor, and Jordain Carney. 2026. “Senate Republicans Derail Effort to Rebuke Trump on Venezuela.” POLITICO, January 15.

Solender, Andrew. 2026. “Scoop: Over 50 House Dems Sign Onto Kristi Noem Impeachment Articles.” Axios, January 13.

1, 2, 3, release ‘em (new eps of RSR)! WELCOME BACK TO RED STATE REBOOT!!! In this week’s ep, we’re talking about ICE in Minnesota. We also cover Steven Miller in high school and reiterate that, when people show you who they are… believe them. Y’all, shit is really bad right now, but we do get a few laughs in on StingRays, stingrays, new nicknames for Kristi Noem, and 2020 Democratic primary core ( Liz Warren fucking destroying everyone she debates).

Subscribe to Ben’s new project KLANLAND: www.klanland.substack.com

We’re glad ur here :)

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New eps every Monday!

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IG: @redstaterebootpod

Website: www.redstatereboot.com

Contact: [email protected]

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SOURCES:

Associated Press. 2026. “Shooting Is Reported in Minneapolis, Where the Feds Are Conducting an Immigration Crackdown.” WRAL. January 7.

Bosman, Julie et al. 2026. “Officials Dispute Federal Account of Fatal ICE Encounter in Minnesota.” The New York Times, January 10.

Berman, Mark, David Nakamura, and Patrick Marley. 2026. “Minnesota Leaders Escalate Dispute Over Federal Handling of ICE Shooting.” The Washington Post, January 9.

This week we're rebooting an episode to celebrate the week countdown until the beginning of Season 3! Also, HAPPY JAN 6th!!!!

There's a new intro so make sure to listen ;)

We’ll see you when we get drafted to fight Venezuela (and at the mandated 10-person prayer meet-up!)

SUBSTACK LINKS:

KLANLAND --> www.klanland.substack.com

LACarolina --> www.lacmonthly.substack.com

In this EMERGENCY BROADCAST: we're talking Trump, Venezuela, and how much Dick Cheney would have loved lying to invade Venezuela (R.I.Piss.).

See y'all for Season 3 soon!!!

BTW - Don’t let anyone ever tell you you won’t use a Master’s Degree in Latin American Studies. We used 2 of ‘em in this ep ;)

Released 8:00PM 03 Jan 2026.

Consider yourselves bonused!!! We just had to get one more Wheel of Doom in before the end of 2025… ET VOILA! In this ep, we laugh, we analyze, and we hawk our goods like all good grifters do. You can trust we cover ALL the headlines from the last couple of weeks. HAPPY HOLIDAYS, FELIZ NEW YEARS, AND THANK YOU FOR A BIG, BEAUTIFUL, FIRST YEAR OF RSR!!!!!

BTW, NC Rebooties! Please check the NC registration repair database. If you are on this list, you need to verify your voter registration with the state to be able to vote with a regular ballot!

SOURCES*:

Brasch, Ben. 2025. “Library Board Ousted After Voting to Keep Children’s Book About Trans Boy.” The Washington Post, December 14.

Corasaniti, Nick. 2025. “Mike Lindell, MyPillow Founder, Announces Run for Minnesota Governor.” The New York Times, December 11.

Dean, Korie. 2025. “UNC System Weighs Requiring Course Syllabi to Be Public.” The Assembly NC, December 15.

Doran, Will. 2025. “Michele Morrow Enters Republican Primary for NC’s Open US Senate Seat.” WRAL.Com, December 19.

Howard, Andrew. 2025. “MAGA Infighting Erupts at Turning Point USA Conference.” POLITICO, December 19.

Kang, Cecilia. 2025. “Trump Moves to Stop States From Regulating AI With a New Executive Order.” The New York Times, December 12.

Kingsberry, Janay, et al. 2025. “Kennedy Center Adds Trump’s Name to Building, Despite Legal Concerns.” The Washington Post, December 20.

Samuels, Brett. 2025. “Trump Announces ‘Patriot Games,’ With 2 High School Athletes From Each State.” The Hill, December 19.

Whipple, Chris, and Christopher Anderson. 2025. “Susie Wiles, JD Vance, and the ‘Junkyard Dogs’: The White House Chief of Staff on Trump’s Second Term (Part 1 of 2).” Vanity Fair, December 16.

*Additional sources can be accessed on our Substack here https://redstatereboot.substack.com/p/sources.

And ANOTHER thing… We know we ghosted y’all. F*ck our f*cking chungus lives. But it was all worth it, Rebooties, because this episode is a RICHHHHH text. Yep… SCAM JAM LIVE! 2025 IS HERE.

Let’s just say we were NOT want for scams this year. Our list of the top 10 scams cover a range that are mostly political, occasionally personal, and all at least moderately funny. So many of the classic characters from the whole year make it into this one, and - just like in Scam Jam Live! 2024 - the scamception is real. Join us, Spalexma, George Santos, and more in the chaos, joy, and liability that is OUR SEASON 2 FINALE!

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Buy our Activity Book! Click here:

https://www.friedgreentomatomedia.com/store

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IG: @redstaterebootpod

Website: www.redstatereboot.com

Contact: [email protected]

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SOURCES:

Cheung, Brian. 2025. “Release of Trump Mobile Phones Plagued by Delays.” NBC News, September 25. https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/trump-mobile-phone-customers-left-waiting-months-delay-rcna245035.

DailyWire+. 2017. “Ben Answers a Mailbag Question by Singing From ‘Les Miserables.’” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcjnyKCQg_M

Dredge, Stuart. 2025. “GenAI ‘We Are Charlie Kirk’ Track Has a Strange Back-story.” Music Ally, November 27. https://musically.com/2025/11/27/genai-we-are-charlie-kirk-track-has-a-strange-back-story/

PBS. 2025. “WATCH: Trump Signs TikTok Executive Order on Sale of Social Media Company.” September 25. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/trump-expected-to-sign-tiktok-executive-order

Shapero, Julia. 2025. “Senate Democrat asks Trump for TikTok divestiture details.” The Hill, November 24. https://thehill.com/policy/technology/5620329-markey-questions-tiktok-deal/

The White House. 2025. “Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Saves TikTok While Protecting National Security.” September 25. https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/09/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-saves-tiktok-while-protecting-national-security/

We have updates on (most of) the things we said we’d come back to this year…

Time for a fridge cig.

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Our S2 FINALE has been postponed until later in December. Talk then!

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IG: @redstaterebootpod

Website: www.redstatereboot.com

Contact: [email protected]

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SOURCES:

Le, Judy. 2025. “UVA President Resigns Amid Pressure From Trump Administration on Diversity Practices." Virginia Magazine. https://uvamagazine.org/articles/uva_president_jim_ryan_resigns.

Montgomery, Mimi. 2025. “D.C. Plastic Surgeons See Surge in ‘Mar‑A‑Lago Face’ Requests From Trump Insiders.” Axios, November 10. https://www.axios.com/local/washington-dc/2025/11/10/plastic-surgeons-dc-mar-a-lago-face-trump-insiders

In preparation for the MINISODATHON, we were going back over promises we haven’t kept - per usual. Well anyway, all the way back at the beginning of 2025, we promised a Trump Merch update and here it is! Say thank you!

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Check back in tomorrow for the last day of our MINISODATHON!

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IG: @redstaterebootpod

Website: www.redstatereboot.com

Contact: [email protected]m

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SOURCES:

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/14/us/trump-oval-office-study-merch.html