• President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday to discuss developments in the latest round of cease-fire talks. The White House says Biden also “reiterated his clear position” against Israel’s planned invasion of Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians have taken refuge since the start of the war in Gaza. Meanwhile, Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed back to the Middle East on Sunday ahead of meetings with with Arab leaders this week.
• And in headlines: Pro-Palestine protesters and counter-protesters supporting Israel clashed on UCLA’s campus Sunday morning, Biden roasted former President Donald Trump at Saturday’s White House Correspondents Dinner, and Republican vice presidential hopeful and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem writes about killing a puppy in her upcoming memoir.

• What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcast
• Follow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/

TRANSCRIPT

Tre’vell Anderson: It’s Monday, April 29th. I’m Tre’vell Anderson. 

Josie Duffy Rice: And I’m Josie Duffy Rice and this is What A Day where we like to go to the movies on the weekend. 

Tre’vell Anderson: Yes, I saw Zendaya’s new movie Challengers, and now I want to play tennis Josie. 

Josie Duffy Rice: I want to play tennis. I want to be part of a revenge plot. I mean, it brings out everything I could ever want? 

Tre’vell Anderson: Listen, go to the movies, y’all okay? It’s real good. 

Josie Duffy Rice: It’s real good. [music break] On today’s show, police arrest hundreds of people on college campuses protesting the war in Gaza. Plus, an excerpt from South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem’s forthcoming book has her making enemies. 

Tre’vell Anderson: But first, the International Criminal Court is expected to issue arrest warrants against top Israeli and Hamas officials for their actions in the ongoing war in Gaza. That’s according to a handful of Israeli and foreign officials who spoke to The New York Times anonymously. The ICC itself has not commented on the matter. But on Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on social media that any intervention by the court, quote, “would set a dangerous precedent that threatens the soldiers and officials of all democracies fighting savage terrorism and wanton aggression.” On Sunday, President Biden spoke with Netanyahu and according to the White House, he, quote, “reiterated his clear position” on Israel’s impending invasion of the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians have taken refuge. President Biden said last month that such an invasion would be a, quote unquote, “red line” for his administration. 

Josie Duffy Rice: And what is the latest in ceasefire talks? 

Tre’vell Anderson: So Secretary of State Antony Blinken is currently on another trip to the Middle East to help broker a deal. A U.S. drafted plan, if agreed to, would include a six week cease fire and the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli prisons in exchange for the release of 40 of the hostages still being held by Hamas. Later stages of the plan would extend the ceasefire in exchange for more hostages being freed. 

Josie Duffy Rice: Yes, and related to the hostages. On Saturday, Hamas released two more videos of hostages held in Gaza. The undated videos show Omri Miran, who is Israeli, and Keith Siegel, an American citizen, for the first time since they were abducted in Israel on October 7th, more than 200 days ago. Siegel’s wife, who was also taken hostage, was released in November. The videos come on the heels of another hostage video from last week of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who is also a U.S. citizen. 

Tre’vell Anderson: Now, you mentioned that the videos are undated. Do we have any idea when they were taken? 

Josie Duffy Rice: In all three videos, the hostages make reference to the 200 day mark, signaling that they could have been taken within the last week. And they also mentioned Passover, which began last week. But that’s not really a guarantee of anything. Media outlets have reported that they actually can’t be confident about when the videos were actually filmed. We won’t be sharing details on the videos, since this kind of footage is taken under duress, which makes the content entirely unreliable. But it does feel worth noting that all three hostages were visibly struggling. Siegel broke down in tears during the video. Meanwhile, 24 year old Goldberg-Polin spoke to his family, saying I love you so much and I think about you every day. All three have also clearly suffered physically as well. The Wall Street Journal notes that Siegel, who is 64 years old, and Miran, who is 47, look pale and thin. And the video of Goldberg-Polin shows an amputated arm from injuries he incurred on October 7th. And these videos are being released at a pretty crucial moment given the ceasefire negotiations. So back to those talks. Can you talk to us a little bit about what Hamas is saying right now? 

Tre’vell Anderson: Yeah. So most of the pressure is being put on Hamas to agree to the deal. But Hamas has said that they’ll only agree to a deal containing a permanent cease fire. On last Friday, Israel issued a counterproposal that, according to The New York Times, raised the prospect of a more sustained end to hostilities. But as of this weekend, Hamas was still considering it. 

Josie Duffy Rice: You mentioned earlier that Blinken is back in the Middle East. He’ll be in Saudi Arabia for the World Economic Forum. He’s also meeting with Egyptian and Qatari officials, who have been serving as the intermediaries between the parties in the negotiations. 

Tre’vell Anderson: Yeah, and I want to highlight a speech that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas actually gave at the forum on Sunday in which he called out the United States. Here he is, as translated by Al Jazeera. 

[clip of Mahmoud Abbas translated by Al Jazeera into English] What is happening in Gaza, what will happen in the coming days, and what Israel will do by invading the city of Rafah? All the Palestinians from Gaza are gathered in the city of Rafah, and only a small blow remains to get them all out. Then it would be the biggest disaster in the history of the Palestinian people. We appeal to the United States of America to ask Israel to stop the Rafah operation, because America is the only country capable of preventing Israel from committing this crime. 

Tre’vell Anderson: Now, this is the first time that a senior leader in the Palestinian Authority has made such a statement. But it helps illustrate just how catastrophic many believe an attack on Rafah would be for the Palestinian population already in crisis. Also on the call, Biden and Netanyahu discussed the status of humanitarian aid deliveries for civilians while deliveries into the besieged territory have increased, more is still needed. This week, new crossings are set to open to help aid get to more folks in need, particularly in the northern part of Gaza. And we also have some updates from the World Central Kitchen. Is that right, Josie? 

Josie Duffy Rice: Yeah. So about a month after an Israeli strike killed seven World Central Kitchen Aid workers, the organization is going to once again start providing assistance in Gaza. The April 1st strike had led World Central Kitchen leadership to halt operations in the region. But on Sunday, CEO Erin Gore said, quote, “we have been forced to make a decision, stop feeding altogether during one of the worst hunger crises ever, ending our operation that accounted for 62% of all international NGO aid. Or keep feeding, knowing that aid, aid workers and civilians are being intimidated and killed.” The organization had provided 43 million meals in Gaza since October. On Sunday, they said they had 276 trucks holding an equivalent of eight million meals ready to enter through Rafah and would be sending more trucks from Jordan. So we will continue to follow this story, and that is the latest for now. We’ll be back after some ads. [music break]. 

[AD BREAK]

Josie Duffy Rice: Now let’s wrap up with some headlines. 

[sung] Headlines. 

Josie Duffy Rice: Pro-Palestine protesters and counterprotesters supporting Israel clashed on UCLA’s campus Sunday morning. In a statement, school officials lamented the quote, “violence” that broke out after protesters broke a barrier separating the dueling groups, though school officials didn’t say which group initiated the, quote, “physical altercations.” This comes after we’ve seen pro-Israel demonstrations emerge in response to growing pro-Palestine demonstrations on college campuses nationwide. Meanwhile, hundreds more campus protesters were arrested over the weekend. [clip of people chanting and speaking indistinct] That was the sound of authorities confronting pro-Palestine protesters at Washington University in Saint Louis on Saturday. Local police arrested 100 people who were attempting to start an encampment. University security locked down the campus shortly after. That same day, 100 protesters were arrested at Northeastern University in Boston, while dozens of others were arrested at Arizona State University and Indiana University Bloomington. Authorities have arrested nearly 900 college protesters since April 18th, the day that New York police cleared the pro-Palestine encampment at Columbia University. Most of those arrested have been released. 

Tre’vell Anderson: Protests also erupted outside the annual White House Correspondents Dinner on Saturday. Hundreds gathered near the Washington Hilton to demonstrate against Biden’s support for Israel and the American media’s coverage of the war. Some protesters shouted shame on you as guests walked in. [clip of people shouting shame on you] Others laid motionless on the ground, dressed in mock press jackets and helmets. A nod to the nearly 100 journalists who’ve died covering the war. Inside the event, though, there was little mention of the protests outside or the war. Saturday Night Live’s Colin Jost hosted to mixed reviews, and President Biden focused his speech on his rival in the upcoming election, former President Donald Trump. Biden started with jokes. 

[clip of President Joe Biden] The 2024 election is in full swing, and yes, age is an issue. I’m a grown man running against a six year old. [laughter] 

Tre’vell Anderson: And he ended with a serious warning to the audience of journalists about what would happen if Trump wins in November. 

[clip of President Joe Biden] He tells supporters he is their revenge and retribution. When in God’s name have you ever heard of another president, say something like that? And he promised a bloodbath when he loses again. We have to take this seriously. Eight years ago, we could have written off as just Trump talk, but no longer. Not after January 6th. 

Tre’vell Anderson: Well, he’s not wrong about that. 

Josie Duffy Rice: That’s true. Candace Parker, one of the greatest players the WNBA has ever seen, announced Sunday that she is retiring from the league after 16 seasons. She made her announcement in an Instagram post where she wrote, quote, “the competitor in me always wants one more, but it’s time. My heart and body knew, but I needed to give my mind time to accept it.” The two time WNBA champ’s 2023 season with the Las Vegas Aces was cut short because of a foot injury. She cited the need for another surgery as part of her decision to retire. Parker was the number one draft pick in 2008 after an incredible college career at the University of Tennessee. She started out with the Los Angeles Sparks and won rookie of the year and MVP honors that same year. 

Tre’vell Anderson: South Dakota Republican Governor Kristi Noem may have done some serious damage to her bid to be Trump’s running mate after she, and I can’t believe I’m saying this, wrote about killing a puppy in her upcoming memoir. The Guardian got an advance copy of Noem’s book, No Going Back, and on Friday, the paper highlighted a part of Noem’s book where she writes about shooting and killing her 14 month old puppy named Cricket. After the dog ruined a hunting trip, killed her neighbor’s chickens, and then, she says, tried to bite her. The story continues with her meting out the same violent end to a, quote, “mean” and “disgusting” uncastrated male goat on her farm. The excerpt drew bipartisan condemnation. On Friday, Noem defended her actions as one of the, quote, “tough decisions” that have to be made on farms. She doubled down on Sunday. In posts on Truth Social and X, Noem said what she did was legal and tried to spin her actions as those of a, quote, “responsible parent, dog owner and neighbor.” Apparently, Noem also writes in the book, quote, “I guess if I were a better politician, I wouldn’t tell the story here.” You think? Maybe she should have followed her own instincts, Josie. Why would you share this information publicly? 

Josie Duffy Rice: I have no idea. First of all, she should not follow her instincts ever clearly. But also, don’t you feel like her ghostwriter must hate her? Nobody would put this in a book. 

Tre’vell Anderson: Because she obviously didn’t write this herself, is what you’re saying? 

Josie Duffy Rice: She didn’t write this herself. And nobody who respects you would include this in your book. It’s so crazy to do this and then tell the world. 

Tre’vell Anderson: But you know what? Shout out to the ghost writer then. 

Josie Duffy Rice: Shout out to you. Thank you.

Tre’vell Anderson: Saving our democracy. 

Josie Duffy Rice: Thank you. 

Tre’vell Anderson: One ghost writer at a time. 

Josie Duffy Rice: Literally. 

Tre’vell Anderson: Okay. 

Josie Duffy Rice: And also, it seems you knew Kristi Noem wouldn’t even read the final draft. So I also, way to test the waters. 

Tre’vell Anderson: And those are the headlines. 

[AD BREAK]

Tre’vell Anderson: That is all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe, leave a review, save an animal and tell your friends to listen. 

Josie Duffy Rice: And if you’re into reading and not just Kristi Noem hate tweets like me, What a Day is also a nightly newsletter, so check it out and subscribe at crooked.com/subscribe! I’m Josie Duffy Rice.

Tre’vell Anderson: I’m Tre’vell Anderson. 

[sung] And I’m glad I’m not Kristi Noem’s ghost writer.

Josie Duffy Rice: Yeah, thanks for taking one for the team. 

Tre’vell Anderson: Although the check has probably cleared, I’m certain. 

Josie Duffy Rice: And beggars can’t be choosers in this industry [?].

Tre’vell Anderson: That part. Okay. [laugh]

Josie Duffy Rice: I haven’t gotten there yet. 

Tre’vell Anderson: Listen, people got bills to pay Josie. 

Josie Duffy Rice: Look. [laugh] [music break] What a Day is a production of Crooked Media. It’s recorded and mixed by Bill Lancz. Our associate producers are Raven Yamamoto and Natalie Bettendorf. We had production help today from Leo Duran, Greg Walters and Julia Claire. Our showrunner is Erica Morrison and our executive producer is Adriene Hill. Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kashaka. 

[AD BREAK]