Share This Podcast

• Call Congress – 202-224-3121
• Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/y4y2e9jy
• What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcast

Follow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/

TRANSCRIPT

Erin Ryan: It’s Wednesday, June 3rd. I’m Erin Ryan, in for Jane Coaston, and this is What a Day, the show with no skin in the game when the Knicks Spurs NBA Finals matchup tips off tonight, but is enjoying the good-natured Texas-New York rivalry nonetheless. [music break] On today’s show, Russia’s attacks on Ukraine intensify, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio argues semantics with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He wasn’t partying at a UFC fight in Miami while other members of the administration were in Pakistan for Iran negotiations. No, he was co-located with the president so that he could immediately inform him about events occurring halfway around the world. In addition to having served as Secretary of State, National Security Advisor, Acting U.S. Archivist, and Acting Head of the U. S. Agency for International Development, Marco Rubio is also President Trump’s human telephone. But before we get to those stories, today President Donald Trump announced that he’s appointing Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence. The post recently vacated by Tulsi Gabbard after she either left willingly or was forced out by the Trump administration. Pulte is another Trump henchmen type whose only qualification for the position seems to be an ability to do just about anything Trump wants him to do. This has raised some red flags among people in the know, including today’s guest, Arizona Democratic Senator Mark Kelly, who serves as a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee and Senate Armed Services Committee. Senator Kelly, welcome back to What a Day. 

Mark Kelly: Good to be here. Thank you. 

Erin Ryan: Alright, on Tuesday, President Trump announced he’s appointing the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Bill Pulte, as Acting Director of National Intelligence following Tulsi Gabbard’s resignation. Now what was your reaction when you heard the news? 

Mark Kelly: Well I was, I knew a little bit about him and I was uh shocked, I think, like most Americans that understand this job and the requirement that, first of all, you should have some experience either in the military, in the intelligence community, and he has none of that. And this is a big job. This is managing all the intelligence that goes to the president, but also the 18 intelligence agencies. Think about that for a second, 18 agencies. And when the president announced this, they also said he was gonna stay in his other job. I mean, this is not prioritizing the safety of Americans and the national security of our country. So it’s a problem. And the president should uh should wake up and realize he made a big mistake here and find somebody who’s actually qualified for the position. 

Erin Ryan: When he was at the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Pulte was instrumental in the indictments of Trump foes, Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook and New York Attorney General Letitia James. What does it say to you that this is who President Trump wants in his top intelligence position?

Mark Kelly: Yeah, maybe put him there for that reason, because he’s loyal to the president and he’s willing to weaponize the federal government against political opponents of the president. And that’s wrong. We’ve seen it over and over again. I’ve experienced this myself, where I said something the president didn’t like, and then he responded with, I should be hanged, executed, prosecuted. And then have the Department of Defense come after me, after 25 years of service to this country to try to reduce me in rank because I said something that was truthful, which was in the law. Um. So that’s who Bill Pulte is. He’s a guy that will do the president’s bidding and will use the tools he has in a government agency to go after political opponents of the president. So maybe that’s why he put him in this job as the Director of National Intelligence, because the DNI does have a lot of levers he can pull, a lot of tools at his disposal to go after the American people. 

Erin Ryan: What are some of those levers and what are those tools look like? 

Mark Kelly: Well, when you’re in charge of 18 intelligence agencies, I mean, you’re managing everything from the CIA to the National Security Agency to the Defense Intelligence Agency, the National Reconnaissance Office, National Geospatial Agency. I mean it’s just kind of endless. I mean think about that for a second, 18 agencies. This is a enormous responsibility. And your job is to keep the American people safe, to prevent terrorists from attacking our nation, to make sure that our adversaries don’t have you know the ability to come after us, to make sure that our military is just well-prepared and has the information it needs that in case we wind up in a conflict with another nation, we are best prepared to be successful in that conflict. And you put a guy that has no experience at this in this role when by statute, and it was written by Susan Collins is my understanding, who sits on the Intelligence Committee with me, is that she added a requirement that you have to be an experienced person to to have this role. Now, of course, he’s going to be acting. And I think that’s often why this President puts people in as acting roles, especially when he realizes that they’re unqualified for the job. 

Erin Ryan: As you mentioned, you’ve been a very public target of the Trump administration this term. As someone who’s seen firsthand how this administration goes after the president’s enemies, combined with the fact that Pulte has no intelligence experience, beyond what you’ve already enumerated, do you have any more concerns as he takes over the role? 

Mark Kelly: Well, yeah, I mean, I mean that’s it. That’s the that’s the bottom line. He’s he’s not qualified for the job. I don’t think he’s going to be able to do the job, um and you know the job is at the the nexus of every individual’s safety and the safety of their family. So uh you combine that with his willingness to use whatever power he had in his former role and weaponize that power against the opponents of this president. And you’ve got a recipe for a disastrous uh term. And by the way, probably his own personal experience in this job, it’s not going to be good. I mean, how how how many minutes were we into this nomination for him to be the acting DNI? And you have Republicans in the United States Senate coming out and and being very vocal about how he is not qualified for this. 

Erin Ryan: So we’re in the middle of a war right now. You’re a retired Navy captain and a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee and the Senate Armed Services Committee. Um. How does the DNI interface with the military at a time like this? 

Mark Kelly: Well, when you have 18 intelligence agencies, uh there’s a lot of movement of information around and there’s a you got to figure out where the resources go and what we need to be focused on. And you know that’s the job of the Director of National Intelligence. And you know he’s got his own organization, whoever is in that job, whether it’s Tulsi Gabbard. And I by the way, I didn’t support Tulsi’s nomination, but I never questioned her you know experience, you know she had relevant qualifications he he does not but you’ve got to do an incredible amount of coordination you know every single day and this president also left him in his last job as well. I mean what does that say? That says that Donald Trump doesn’t you know highly consider the importance of this role, you know, I I think it even indicates that he has little value in intelligence as something he needs to do his job.  

Erin Ryan: Mm-hmm. Back in 2004, as you mentioned, when the DNI role was first established, Congress made it law that anyone nominated for the position, as you mentioned, needed to have extensive national security expertise. Is there anything legally Congress can do here to step in and make sure that those guidelines are actually enforced? 

Mark Kelly: Yeah, we’re looking looking at that right now. And you know we’ve got a budget reconciliation process you know coming up. Here, we’ll have an amendment process. And you know this is one of the things that we we can try to address in that process. There’s a difference between being an acting person put in the role and being the nominee where you have to be confirmed before you go into the role. And this is brand new to us today. So we’re trying to sort this out. 

Erin Ryan: Is there anything else before we go that the American people should know about Bill Pulte? 

Mark Kelly: Well, I don’t have all the background on him. I do know this. He didn’t serve in the military. He hasn’t served in any intelligence agency. He has no relevant experience to do this job. 

Erin Ryan: Well, Senator Kelly, thank you so much for joining me. 

Mark Kelly: Thank you. Appreciate it. 

Erin Ryan: That was my conversation with Arizona Democratic Senator Mark Kelly. We will never appoint an unqualified goon to get revenge on our enemies. Qualified goons only. That’s the What a Day guarantee. So please make sure to subscribe, leave a five-star review on Spotify and Apple podcasts. Watch us on YouTube and share with your friends. More to come after some ads. [music break]

[AD BREAK]

Erin Ryan: Here’s what else we’re following today.

[sung] Headlines.

[clip of Fox News host John Roberts] So I’m just gonna start this off by saying, Brett, that I’m a little puzzled as to what the actual strategy of negotiation is. 

Erin Ryan: My sentiments exactly, Fox News host John Roberts. In the latest Iran war, he said, she said, two semi-official Iranian news agencies reported that Iran stopped communicating with mediators about extending a ceasefire with the U.S. and Israel. The reports came as tensions flared in Israel’s separate but related fight against Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militia in Lebanon. President Trump disputed the claim on Truth Social Tuesday, saying talks were continuing, quote, “where they lead, one never knows. But as I told Iran, it’s time one way or another for you to make a deal.” Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill, Marco Rubio gave his first public testimony since the Iran War started. 

[clip of Marco Rubio] There is the prospect before us, which could happen today, it could happen tomorrow, it could happen next week, that for the first time, certainly in my memory, they have agreed to negotiate aspects of their nuclear program that just a month ago just a year ago, they were refusing to even mention, much less enter into discussions about. 

Erin Ryan: Naturally, Rubio defended the Trump administration’s approach to Iran, as well as other global hotspots. Lawmakers also grilled him about the status of U.S. Foreign assistance to respond to diseases such as the Ebola outbreak centered in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Rubio insisted that the dismantlement of U S aid had not affected Washington’s ability to assist with global humanitarian responses. Russia launched hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles against Ukraine in an attack that killed at least 22 civilians and wounded 138 others, Ukrainian authorities said on Tuesday. In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appealed for more U.S. and European support. Per the AP, he described the attack as, quote, “an explicit statement by Russia. If Ukraine is not protected from ballistic missiles and other missile strikes, those strikes will continue.” 

[clip of unnamed NBC news reporter] Why is it a crime to go into a manhole? 

[clip of John Monaghan] It’s dangerous. It’s the same as jaywalking or walking down the middle of a highway. 

Erin Ryan: Add that to the list of questions I didn’t think I’d ever need answered. That was an NBC News reporter talking to retired NYPD captain John Monaghan about, wait for it, recent online videos that show people popping in and out of manholes across New York City. New New York City based fear unlocked. Now why would anyone ever voluntarily enter a sewer? A senior law enforcement official told NBC News so far the best guess is that people are quote, “scouring the system for valuables that get into the sewage.” Or maybe they’ve been training under Master Shredder. And that’s the news. [music break] Before we go, starting June 8th, What a Day episodes will be hitting YouTube and your podcast feeds early enough for your evening commute, but not so late in the day that the news ruins the whole night. If you enjoy this show, you know the news never stops, so this new publishing time brings you the freshest updates and analysis on the news you need to know before you tuck into the night’s argument about whether your main TV will be showing the NBA Finals or Love Island USA. If you aren’t already, make sure you’re subscribed to What a Day on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and follow Crooked Media on socials so you never miss an episode. [music break] That’s all for today. If you like the show, make you subscribe, leave a review, only use AI for subtle muscle enhancements and not to turn your schlubby old man body into a Chip and Dale’s physique and tell your friends to listen. And if you’re into reading and not just about how a staffer for Michigan Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers tweeted out a photo of him with obviously fake muscles and now other Michigan Senate candidates are dunking on him, like me, What a Day is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at crooked.com/subscribe. I’m Erin Ryan and when it comes to editing your photos, less is more, Mike. 

Jane Coaston: What a Day is a production of Crooked Media. Our show is produced by Caitlin Plummer, Emily Fohr, Erica Morrison, and Adriene Hill. Our team includes Hayley Jones, Greg Walters, Matt Berg, Joseph Dutra, Johanna Case, and Desmond Taylor. Our music is by Kyle Murdock and Jordan Cantor. We had help today from the Associated Press. Our production staff is proudly unionized with the Writers Guild of America East. [music break]