The Mincing Rascals 5.14.25: Pope Leo XIV, Qatari jet, Biden’s decline
05/14/25 • -1 min
The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, political pundit Marj Halperin, and longtime Chicago journalist Cate Plys! This week, the Rascals start the podcast talking about their favorite story, meme, etc. about Pope Leo XIV. Are we pope’d out yet? As usual, plenty of news about the Trump administration this week. The gift of the plane from Qatar, the attempt to assert control of the Library of Congress, Trump meme coin. What’s an attraction and what’s a distraction? Former Chicago resident Ken Griffin said he will loan his copies of the Constitution and Bill of Rights to the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. John wonders if the current Constitution as written is still a relevant document. CNN’s Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson from Axios are making news this week as excerpts from their book about President Biden’s decline are starting to come out. What do the Rascals make of these stories about Biden’s competency and behavior? And will we eventually hear similar stories about Donald Trump when his term is over? In a couple of interviews this week, Mayor Brandon Johnson is still denying he fired Dr. Allison Arwady despite evidence to the contrary. Why is Johnson still saying Dr. Arwady quit? And now that Johnson is two years in, what are the major takeaways from his term so far. And finally, it’s time for red light, yellow light, green light! What are the Rascals recommending (or not recommending) this week?
https://serve.castfire.com/audio/7417533/5-14-25_Mincing_Rascals_Pope_Leo_XIV_Trump_Qatar_Ken_Griffin_Biden_book_Mayor_Johnson_Arwady_2025-05-14-234333.64kmono.mp3Recent Posts
The Mincing Rascals
DOJ investigation, ‘snap curfews,’ Biden cancer
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Pope Leo XIV, Qatari jet, Biden’s decline
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Senate race, George Ryan, Alcatraz, movie tariffs
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Trump 100 days, Durbin’s successor, Amazon tariffs
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Durbin retiring, Pritzker’s future, economic turmoil
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd} Click for more
The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, political pundit Marj Halperin, and longtime Chicago journalist Cate Plys! This week, the Rascals start the podcast talking about their favorite story, meme, etc. about Pope Leo XIV. Are we pope’d out yet? As usual, plenty of news about the Trump administration this week. The gift of the plane from Qatar, the attempt to assert control of the Library of Congress, Trump meme coin. What’s an attraction and what’s a distraction? Former Chicago resident Ken Griffin said he will loan his copies of the Constitution and Bill of Rights to the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. John wonders if the current Constitution as written is still a relevant document. CNN’s Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson from Axios are making news this week as excerpts from their book about President Biden’s decline are starting to come out. What do the Rascals make of these stories about Biden’s competency and behavior? And will we eventually hear similar stories about Donald Trump when his term is over? In a couple of interviews this week, Mayor Brandon Johnson is still denying he fired Dr. Allison Arwady despite evidence to the contrary. Why is Johnson still saying Dr. Arwady quit? And now that Johnson is two years in, what are the major takeaways from his term so far. And finally, it’s time for red light, yellow light, green light! What are the Rascals recommending (or not recommending) this week?
https://serve.castfire.com/audio/7417533/5-14-25_Mincing_Rascals_Pope_Leo_XIV_Trump_Qatar_Ken_Griffin_Biden_book_Mayor_Johnson_Arwady_2025-05-14-234333.64kmono.mp3Recent Posts
The Mincing Rascals
DOJ investigation, ‘snap curfews,’ Biden cancer
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Pope Leo XIV, Qatari jet, Biden’s decline
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Senate race, George Ryan, Alcatraz, movie tariffs
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Trump 100 days, Durbin’s successor, Amazon tariffs
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Durbin retiring, Pritzker’s future, economic turmoil
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd} Click for more
Previous Episode
The Mincing Rascals 5.7.25: Senate race, George Ryan legacy, Alcatraz, movie tariffs
The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, Austin Berg of the Illinois Policy Institute, and political pundit Marj Halperin! The Rascals begin the podcast discussing U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL 8) announcing that he’ll be running for the senate seat being vacated by Dick Durbin. The Rascals break down the early stages of the race. The Rascals also talk about U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky making the decision to not seek reelection. What do the Rascals think of Kat Abughazaleh, the progressive social media star who already announced her intentions to replace Rep. Schakowsky. Former Illinois Governor George Ryan passed away last week. What should we remember about Ryan’s legacy? The Christopher Columbus statue in won’t be returning to Arrigo Park and will now be displayed in a new Chicago Museum of Italian Immigration on Taylor Street. Where are the Rascals on the latest Columbus controversy? President Trump continues to make news this week. There was the AI image of Trump as the Pope, the idea to reopen Alcatraz, tariffs on films made outside of the U.S, 2 dolls vs. 30 dolls, $1000 to self-deport, Canada at the 51st state, etc. Are these attractions or distractions?
https://serve.castfire.com/audio/7404361/5-7-25_Mincing_Rascals_Senate_race_Schakowsky_Columbus_George_Ryan_Trump_2025-05-07-232501.64kmono.mp3Recent Posts
The Mincing Rascals
DOJ investigation, ‘snap curfews,’ Biden cancer
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Pope Leo XIV, Qatari jet, Biden’s decline
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Senate race, George Ryan, Alcatraz, movie tariffs
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Trump 100 days, Durbin’s successor, Amazon tariffs
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Durbin retiring, Pritzker’s future, economic turmoil
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd} Click for moreNext Episode
The Mincing Rascals 5.21.25: DOJ investigation, ‘snap curfews,’ Biden cancer
The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, Brandon Pope, of WCIU, and longtime Chicago journalist Cate Plys! The Rascals start off the podcast talking about the Department of Justice looking into the hiring practices of Mayor Brandon Johnson. What do the Rascals make of the DOJ probe? The Chicago City Council did not take a vote today on ‘snap curfews.’ Do the Rascals think that ‘snap curfews’ could be effective? Pivoting to the WNBA, the Rascals chat about the game between the Chicago Sky and the Indiana Fever last weekend. What are the Rascals thoughts on the budding rivalry between Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese? It was revealed over the weekend that former President Biden was diagnosed with an advanced stage of prostate cancer. The Rascals talk about the diagnosis, and the controversy surrounding the book by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson on Biden’s mental decline. And speaking of controversy, the Sun-Times is being criticized for using AI to create a summer reading guide containing books that don’t exist. The Rascals break it all down. And finally, it’s time for Red Light, Yellow Light, Green Light. What are the Rascals recommending (or not recommending) this week.
https://serve.castfire.com/audio/7428542/5-21-25_Mincing_Rascals_DOJ_probe_Chicago_hiring_snap_curfew_WNBA_Biden_Cancer_Sun_Times_use_of_AI_2025-05-21-235442.64kmono.mp3Recent Posts
The Mincing Rascals
DOJ investigation, ‘snap curfews,’ Biden cancer
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Pope Leo XIV, Qatari jet, Biden’s decline
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Senate race, George Ryan, Alcatraz, movie tariffs
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Trump 100 days, Durbin’s successor, Amazon tariffs
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd}Durbin retiring, Pritzker’s future, economic turmoil
.cls-7{fill:#fff;fill-rule:evenodd} Click for moreIf you like this episode you’ll love
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