It's hard to take in all the horrific news of the past week alone. As if the first months of this regime had not already been defined by a relentless torrent of bad news and outright monstrosities, this week saw the formerly Supreme Court of the United States give the orange man carte Blanche to dismantle the federal government. In the same week, we've already also seen mounted military incursions into Los Angeles– and all this before the recently passed big ugly bill snatches healthcare from tens of millions of Americans and makes ICE a nationwide secret police with a budget to operate within the United States that dwarfs the budget of most countries’ militaries.

Meanwhile, the White House is playing defense against their own political base. They now claim that Jeffery Epstein, the famous pedophile with a network of powerful and wealthy friends, including none other than the Donald himself, never had a secret client list. For those playing along at home, this is the same Epstein who had been the subject of intense fascination by the very same conspiracy theorists who now make up this administration. Dan Bongino in particular profited from speculation about Epstein's relationships and the circumstances of his death, along with many other conspiracy theories.

Don't get me wrong: Epstein's death is suspicious, especially since the cameras trained on his cell were not functioning for one reason or another when he died. I can understand how the speculation could take off in every direction from there. I also don't doubt that this man, who was arguably the world's most famous pedophile, was good friends with Donald Trump. We've all seen the video of them partying together and we've all heard the clips in which DJT had lusted after his own daughter and bragged about assaulting women. The fact that he became so defensive when pressed about the “Epstein file” this week doesn't exactly seem like the behavior of an innocent man either.

It's not really the circumstances of this one case that matter. It's the fact that people who rode hype and more often than not, misinformation, exploited their audiences for profit and political power. Now that they're in power and can't deliver the constant stream of speculation to their base or the conclusion to the story they've told for years, there could be a rift growing. I'm not terribly optimistic in the short run. The fever has yet to break for adherents within the core of the cult. Yet every time the fictions they've heard come crashing against reality, the more the illusion cracks.

One disagreement with the leader won't be enough. It will take many successive acts that bring intense hardship and disillusionment. Their dear leader will never make their lives easier. He'll never bring back the manufacturing jobs they lost somewhere between Reagan and Clinton. He'll never replace the Affordable Care Act with something bigger and better. He's already taken the healthcare they had, even if they don't know if yet. Even on something as relatively small by comparison as this one, admittedly horrific criminal case, he can't deliver. They won't admit it now, and they may never. But their devotion will eventually prove to be more conditional than their leader ever believed.

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Today's June 12th, 2025, and if you've ever wondered to yourself, especially if you look somewhat like me, when, if, and how you should take action or speak out, I can't tell you what to do, but the time is now.

This episode, I'm joined by Katica Roy.

As the daughter of an immigrant and refugee, Katica is driven by a passion to eradicate economic inequality and champion the rights of refugees, women, and children. 

CNN, MSNBC, CBS, Bloomberg, Cheddar, MarketWatch, Yahoo Finance, NBC and Newsy have sought Katica for her sharp and unconventional take on the day’s headlines. She’s interviewed President Biden, Vice President Harris, Senators Booker and Gillibrand, Secretary Pete, Canadian Pay Equity Commissioner Karen Jensen, Sophia Bush, Eve Rodsky, Gretchen Carlson, and Dr. Maya Rockeymoore Cummings. 

Her high-octane, visionary articles have been published by the World Economic Forum, Fast Company, Fortune, Forbes, Bloomberg, NBC, Entrepreneur, The Hill, The Advocate, Harvard Business Review, and Morning Consult. Her articles have garnered over 2.9 billion impressions. 

In 2017 Katica was named a Luminary by the Colorado Technology Association; in 2018 a Colorado Governors' Fellow; in 2019 a Top 25 Most Powerful Women in Business and awarded the Stevie Entrepreneur of the Year—Gold Award; in 2020 she was named the Colorado Entrepreneur of the Year; in 2022 a LinkedIn Top Influencer for gender equity. She is a member of Fast Company’s Impact Council and Bloomberg’s New Economy Forum. 

Katica is the CEO of Pipeline, an award-winning company that uses advanced technology to make intersectional gender parity a reality in our lifetime. 

In addition to its core platform, Pipeline launched the first gender equity app on Salesforce's AppExchange. Pipeline was also named as one of TIME Magazine’s Best Inventions of 2019, Fast Company’s 2020 World’s Most Innovative Companies, Fast Company’s 2021 Next Big Things in Tech, and Fast Company’s 2022 World Changing Ideas.  Pipeline is backed by both Accenture and Workday. 

Before speaking with Katica, we cover the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the looming railroad strike, and the importance of curating quality news.

This week I'm joined by Barbara Ballard, Democratic state representative from the 44th legislative district in Kansas representing the communities of historic Lawrence.

We talk about the Kansas GOP's failed attempt at a referendum to remove a woman's right to choose from the state constitution, what this desperate attempt means about the GOP's tactics and the party's view on democracy, and how this party of a shrinking minority of Americans will continue to find ways to impose its will on the majority.

For Representative Ballard, one thing is clear: the people of Kansas didn't wait for a savior; they saved themselves. Whether at the state, local, or federal level, democracy is not a spectator sport.

To kick off the new season, we're back with friend and colleague Brittany McCants Garcia to talk January 6, Roe, Loving, Obergefell, the wild west of gun deregulation created by the Court and just where we're at in the state of our democracy. There's a few laughs, but if you're looking for a pep talk, this isn't it! Buckle up before you get this one started...

This week I'm joined by civil rights attorney, activist, and overall legend Khyla Craine to talk about the role of race in Democratic politics and the viability of Dems in general elections after the routing of Terry McAuliffe in Virginia as well as the racial and social issues around redistricting and gerrymandering across the country. Two things become clear from this conversation: racism is a tool to destroy democracy for all people, including white Americans, and fighting for democracy must include fighting against racism. 

This week I have the distinct pleasure of being joined by one of the leaders and activists behind the Equality Act, Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen, the newly minted Executive Director of the National Center for Transgender Equality. Rodrigo breaks down why the United States still needs federal legislation upholding the rights of LGBTQ people and banning discrimination against individuals based upon their sexual orientation, gender identity, or for simply being who they are. 

Before talking with Rodrigo, I get into why vaccines are just as important as ever to the fight against COVID and why we need to put shared responsibility - just every once in a while! - above our personal preferences.