Comedians Joe Rogan and Shane Gillis trashed communism on Rogan&#8217;s podcast Thursday — then argued in the same breath that Americans should get free healthcare, with Rogan calling billionaire wealth &#8220;the problem with capitalism.&#8221;
Gillis said free healthcare &#8220;would be a good move&#8221; during the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBH4F5a6zAA&amp;t=10697s">episode</a> — and argued that supporting it does not make someone a communist. Rogan agreed. The two were joined by fellow comedians Mark Normand and Ari Shaffir.
&#8220;Communism is the gayest sh*t ever,&#8221; Gillis said. &#8220;Somebody needs to look into how gay communism is.&#8221;
&#8220;But isn&#8217;t it crazy that it&#8217;s making a comeback?&#8221; Rogan asked. &#8220;It always does. It&#8217;s a cycle.&#8221;
&#8220;The problem is if we could not call it communism if we get free healthcare,&#8221; Gillis added. &#8220;That would be a good move. We&#8217;re calling everybody communists. Free healthcare is cool. We should have that. That&#8217;s not communism. Communism is no private property.&#8221;
Rogan agreed, saying, &#8220;We should treat the whole country like it&#8217;s a community. If you have a community, would you want the sickest person to f*cking die, who could be very valuable if you could take care of them, if you have the resources to take care of them? You should take care of them.&#8221;
&#8220;This is the problem with capitalism, this is the reason people turn on all these billionaires,&#8221; Rogan added. &#8220;They turn on them because [they say], &#8216;Why do you have so much when people have so little?&#8217; But it&#8217;s because it&#8217;s the game, it&#8217;s the game that they&#8217;re playing, and you&#8217;re playing the game to — you&#8217;re just not playing it at that level.&#8221;
Normand then pushed back a little on Rogan&#8217;s statement.
&#8220;But again, these rich people pay a lot [in taxes] and give a lot of services,&#8221; Normand said.
&#8220;There&#8217;s that, but also the services, the amount of money they get, is all going to corrupt people that are funneling it into their own bank accounts. That&#8217;s the problem with it all,&#8221; Rogan replied.
Free healthcare of the sort Rogan and Gillis described already exists across the developed world, with mixed results. In Canada, where taxpayers fund the system, the median wait for a family doctor&#8217;s referral to treatment was 28.6 weeks in 2025 — the second longest on record — according to the Fraser Institute. Nearly 6 million Canadian adults have no regular family doctor at all, a survey by St. Michael&#8217;s Hospital and the Canadian Medical Association found. In England, the National Health Service backlog stood at roughly 7.1 million cases this spring, and the health service has not met its 18-week treatment standard since 2016.
Rogan, who describes himself as politically independent, endorsed Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in the 2020 Democratic primary and endorsed President Donald Trump on the eve of the 2024 election. Sanders even endorsed one of Rogan&#8217;s healthcare takes last year.
&#8220;I think healthcare 100% should be socially funded. I think that Medicare and Medicaid — having programs where people who are hurt can get an operation, and it&#8217;s not going to bankrupt them for the rest of their life,&#8221; Rogan said in March 2025, adding, &#8220;It should be a part of our agreement to take care of each other as a community, that we chip in money for what people would think of as socialist positions.&#8221;
&#8220;Joe Rogan is absolutely right about this,&#8221; Sanders said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Joe Rogan is absolutely right about this. <a href="https://t.co/xIvMSjARWD">https://t.co/xIvMSjARWD</a>
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) <a href="https://x.com/BernieSanders/status/1906405502046597253?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 30, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Joe Rogan/Shane Gillis

Joe Rogan, Shane Gillis Agree Communism Is ‘The Gayest Sh*t Ever’ — But ‘Free Healthcare Is Cool’

Bernie Sanders

Communism

Healthcare

Joe Rogan

Medicaid

Medicare

Shane Gillis

Socialism

I want to talk about the responsibility of our political leadership when it comes to conspiracies.
That is perhaps the biggest issue in today&#8217;s politics, with ramifications far beyond whatever benighted crap Candace, Joe Rogan, or Theo Von dump on their podcast.
“Whatever the spin is about Tyler Robinson, there&#8217;s some bullsh*t to it,” Rogan said. “I don&#8217;t know how much of it is bullsh*t, but there&#8217;s some bullsh*t.”
I like Joe personally. He&#8217;s a nice guy.
Also, this kind of stupidity ought to immediately make you question Joe&#8217;s capacity to discern truth from fiction. This is essentially the same as endorsing the theory that staring at hieroglyphics can solve your health problems.
Joe did that recently.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ben-shapiro-show-ep-2486?elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-981859" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/ben-banner.avif" alt="" width="1024" height="171" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/ben-banner.avif 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/ben-banner-300x50.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/10/ben-banner-768x128.jpg 768w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
I&#8217;m not super shocked by this kind of stuff. Joe tends to believe pretty much every conspiracy theory that he can find, because let&#8217;s be real, conspiracies are fun. They’re chatty. You can fill five hours talking with your comedian friends about how the moon landing was fake, and underwater demons who might be aliens control our lives.
Joe’s shtick is that he is basically a caveman discovering the world by talking with everyone — which never results in any firmly held beliefs. Thus he&#8217;ll endorse James Talarico, the psychotic Left-wing Howdy Doody of Texas, but also Donald Trump within two years of each other.
But it&#8217;s fun to watch the journey. It&#8217;s just sitting with your friends in college and popping open a beer or, in Joe&#8217;s case, smoking a blunt and waxing philosophic on “whether your chair really exists, man,” or “whether when you see the color red and I see the color red, is it the same color red, bro?” Or, “Which Kardashian sister is the hottest?”
Under normal circumstances, that&#8217;s fine and fun; it’s a free country; you can listen to what you want.
But.
Two things make this kind of stuff a problem for America more generally: first, when people start treating it seriously, and second, when politicians start treating it seriously.
Part and parcel of Joe&#8217;s comedic world is black-pilling. This is very common in comedy because comedy is about making fun of the world as it is. It&#8217;s not about offering solutions. It&#8217;s not about trying to come to a consensus. Comedy is inherently black-pilled.
I&#8217;m not going to blame Joe for any of this sort of stuff. One of the things that makes Joe such a successful podcaster is that he contains multitudes, including a variety of totally conflicting viewpoints.
But a bunch of young men use Joe Rogan as a sort of political litmus test. It turns out that young men will follow pretty much anybody — even using the alleged sex-trafficking Tate brothers as a moral litmus test.
Following these people is stupid. If you&#8217;re not doing it for fun, if you&#8217;re using them as political guides rather than gossipy buddies, there’s a problem.
But the more dangerous problem is when our political leaders decide to follow this group.
Which brings us to the modern GOP.
Top members of the GOP, most prominently the vice president, think the path to political victory lies in winning over the Rogan bros. And the vice president has made this pretty clear — over and over and over.
The New York Times reported: &#8220;Vance made clear to colleagues he feared losing some of the so-called low-propensity voters, the young men who were not traditional Republicans, but who had voted for the Trump-Vance ticket in 2024. This was an audience tuned into the &#8216;manosphere&#8217; podcasters like Joe Rogan, and it was worrisome that the podcast hosts themselves were now rebelling.&#8221;
And of course, the vice president has recommended that everyone ought to listen to the benighted musings of Theo Von, a double-digit IQ comedian whose discernment is on par with that of a brick.
Vance said a few months ago, “You know, I think if you want a good laugh, I love Theo Von, like he&#8217;s one of my favorite — He&#8217;s just incredible. He&#8217;s got one of these senses of humor where like 30% of the time it goes completely over my head and 70% of the time he&#8217;s the funniest person imaginable. But I think Theo has a good heart. And that&#8217;s one of the reasons why I really like listening to his show.”
So, so, so much great stuff in Theo Von. Here&#8217;s Theo Von with Joe Rogan, rapping on the conspiracy theories:
<blockquote>People are like, we’ll elect the Democrats next time. It&#8217;s like, but it&#8217;s all the same sh*t that has been happening forever. They haven&#8217;t been helping anybody forever. They&#8217;re letting politicians slurp on kids. All of our f*cking money goes to Israel and they&#8217;re using it f*cking genocide people. It&#8217;s like everybody is scared out of their wits right now. It&#8217;s like our religious leaders are afraid to speak out. And it&#8217;s like a time where it&#8217;s like Satan is amongst us and our religious leaders are talking about bullshit. It&#8217;s just like, I don&#8217;t know, man.</blockquote>
The black-pilling. This is what you need more of. You need more of the black-pilling, more of the conspiracies. Here’s more of his drivel:
<blockquote>But I think that this starts to happen. News stories get created, right?  Whether they&#8217;re fictional. Whatever goes on, you don&#8217;t even know a lot of times what&#8217;s news stories. You can send actors out to create a scene. You see a video; you believe it &#8230; then you see movies and stuff come out later about it. So it&#8217;s like you&#8217;re almost creating your own news to, then, make like a based on a real story. You know what I&#8217;m talking about?</blockquote>
This is what you need. You need a guy who tells you that news stories are actually created by actors. That&#8217;s what you really need.
Says the guy who literally acts for a living.
I can see why the vice president is recommending this genius-level talk. It is definitely edifying for the young male population of the United States to listen to people who may be borderline retarded talking about politics.
I think that Vance’s particular strategy is flawed for a couple of particular reasons.
First, you have to build your own coalition. You can&#8217;t just duplicate President Trump&#8217;s. I know the vice president of the United States thinks that if he just keeps Trump&#8217;s coalition, he wins in 2028.
This is wrong and politically stupid. No politician can duplicate the coalition built by another politician. That is not how this works. If you take Donald Trump&#8217;s coalition and you map JD Vance onto that coalition, JD Vance loses participants in literally every area of that coalition. He wins fewer women, fewer Hispanics, fewer blacks, and fewer blue-collar voters.
You can&#8217;t outcompete President Trump with blue-collar white voters; Vance does worse with the manosphere. He wins fewer of everyone.
Second, if you try to follow the people around, remember that they are fickle.
Take Joe Rogan, for example. Trump has been in three elections. Joe Rogan voted for Donald Trump once. He is now endorsing James Talarico for Senate in Texas. The notion that if you go on Joe Rogan’s show and you mirror his conspiratorial musings and black-pill super-hard the way that JD Vance actually did on Joe Rogan’s show, that all the &#8220;Joe Rogan voters&#8221; will end up with you is silly. People can change their minds.
Joe Rogan is fickle. Theo Von is fickle. All these people are fickle because they don&#8217;t have any consistent worldview.
Thus, if you just try to follow them around, there&#8217;s a very good shot they will run away from you, just on a pragmatic level.
Third, successful leaders lead, and the coalitions follow in their wake. Politicians who tend to pander and chase the crowd do not work.
This is where President Trump is unique. President Trump doesn&#8217;t go on Joe Rogan and mirror what Joe Rogan is saying. President Trump says whatever President Trump wants to say, and then whoever follows him wants to follow him. That&#8217;s how it works.
Trump is the same dude everywhere. He doesn&#8217;t change what he is saying whether he&#8217;s on Joe Rogan, Theo Von, my show, or anyone else’s.
Fourth, and most importantly, it is immoral and wrong as a leader to forego truth in favor of popularity. I know sticking to the truth has fallen out of favor. We&#8217;re supposed to just believe that our politicians’  job is to chase the people around with a butterfly net.
That is wrong. It is politically stupid, and it is also morally wrong.
There are a bunch of people purportedly on the Right now who say things like “vox populi, vox dei&#8221; meaning the voice of the people is the voice of God.
That is stupid and nonsense. It actually comes from an eighth-century letter to Charlemagne, in which the author called that idea and crowds following crowds around “madness.”
It turns out that people are often wrong. This is why we have a Constitution. You wouldn&#8217;t need a Constitution if the people were awesome all the time.
Our founders feared and despised the mob. They wanted a Constitution because they knew certain rights had to be off-limits, so the people could not run roughshod over them.
That&#8217;s why checks and balances exist. That is why they&#8217;re still there today, after the last century and a half.
But we, in all our great wisdom, decided to dismantle many of those checks and balances in pursuit of a far more activist and centralized government that does things, but then has some pretty bad side effects.
I believe that the truth always wins eventually, because reality always wins.
But the key word there is “eventually.” I get the logic as to why politicians pander and why they lie, and why they always follow the people around with the butterfly net — why they&#8217;re always chasing the parade.
This has always been true. There is nothing new about this. This is what demagoguery is.
But if you try to follow the people, you likely won&#8217;t catch up with them, especially if what you&#8217;re doing as a Republican is just pitching a softer version of what Democrats are hard-selling.
Even if you do win on that platform, you&#8217;ll lose the country, because running that car toward the cliff at 60 mph is only marginally better than running that car at the cliff at 90 mph.

IMG_6055

The Political Gamble That Could Backfire Spectacularly

Ben Shapiro

black-pill

Conspiracy Theory

JD Vance

Opinion

President Trump

Theo Von

Joe Rogan claimed on Wednesday’s <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/07/23/us-news/joe-rogan-reveals-former-podcast-guest-sheldon-johnson-allegedly-decapitated-a-man-after-appearing-on-the-joe-rogan-experience/">episode</a> of &#8220;The Joe Rogan Experience&#8221; that a man who sat across from him in 2024 allegedly killed someone and cut off the victim’s head weeks later.
Rogan brought it up while talking with physician Zach Bush about sociopaths. “We had a guy in the studio that cut a guy’s head off after the podcast. He killed a guy and cut his head off,” Rogan said, per the <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/07/23/us-news/joe-rogan-reveals-former-podcast-guest-sheldon-johnson-allegedly-decapitated-a-man-after-appearing-on-the-joe-rogan-experience/">New York Post</a>. 
The guest was Sheldon Johnson. He appeared on Rogan&#8217;s podcast with civil rights attorney Josh Dubin, who runs the Perlmutter Center for Legal Justice. Rogan said Johnson was right there in the room with them only weeks before the killing.
“He does the podcast and then afterward goes and visits this guy that apparently he had a beef with, kills him, cuts his head off, puts him in a [suitcase], like puts a wig on, and tries to escape in the hallway through the cameras,” Rogan told Bush.
Johnson was arrested in March 2024. Police found a human torso in a blue bin and a head in a freezer inside a Bronx apartment. The victim was 44-year-old Colin Small. Neighbors had called for a wellness check after hearing gunshots and witnessing a stranger going in and out of the apartment with cleaning supplies.
Surveillance video showed a man matching Johnson’s description stepping off a sixth-floor elevator, looking around, and walking into the apartment. He left around 2 A.M. carrying a blue bin. Earlier, he had been seen with a mop and a bag of cleaning supplies. He later came back wearing a blond wig and different clothes.
When investigators searched Johnson’s Harlem apartment, they found a human arm, legs, and a head with a gunshot wound stored in the freezer. He was charged with murder, manslaughter, criminal possession of a weapon, and concealment of a human corpse. He pleaded not guilty.
At the time of the Rogan interview, Johnson was working as a client advocate at the public defender’s office in Queens. He had been released from prison in 2019 after serving 25 years for a string of armed robberies committed in 1999. He told Rogan he had once been a member of the Bloods gang. He was sentenced to a maximum of 50 years for using a gun to rob men who owed him drug money.
During the interview, he talked about that shift and the criminal justice reform work he was doing after his release. He got his GED. “I made the decision that I was going to walk away, and I didn’t care about what the consequences was,” he told Rogan. “And I said to myself, ‘I’ve been doing bad for so long. I’m going to try to do something good.’”

2Screenshot 2024-02-08 at 9.54.26 AM copy 2

Joe Rogan Says Former Guest ‘Cut A Guy’s Head Off’ Weeks After Interview

Joe Rogan Says Former Podcast Guest Allegedly Cut a Man’s Head Off Weeks After Interview

Murder

Vice President JD Vance told Joe Rogan he believes the White House &#8220;mishandled&#8221; the Epstein files in an interview that aired Wednesday, and claimed Epstein had connections at the &#8220;highest levels&#8221; of both American and Israeli intelligence.
&#8220;We absolutely screwed up the comms of the Epstein files,&#8221; Vance told Rogan as the two discussed the dramatic 2025 release of the files. &#8220;We just did. But do I think the reason we screwed up the comms is because we were trying to hide something? No.&#8221;
Vance pointed to former Attorney General Pam Bondi&#8217;s claim that the &#8220;client list&#8221; was sitting on her desk — a falsehood that drew massive backlash toward the administration once it was confirmed no such list existed. Bondi&#8217;s team then offered binders of &#8220;Epstein files&#8221; to right-wing influencers that held no new information and prompted even more scrutiny.
&#8220;The effect of it was to make people distrust the entire effort,&#8221; Vance explained. &#8220;Look, I know Pam, I like Pam.  I don&#8217;t think there was anything malicious going on. I think Pam was trying to respond to the political moment. I think she overstated what we have and what we didn&#8217;t have, and I think she got roasted for it publicly, by a lot of people, including me.&#8221;
The vice president maintained that he is one of the &#8220;OG Epstein conspiracy theorists,&#8221; and has gone down every possible rabbit hole on the subject. He&#8217;s convinced that the evidence showing Epstein blackmailed influential people was destroyed back in 2006 or 2007 — or that no one ever properly gathered that evidence.
<div id="attachment_1136427" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/vance-tells-joe-rogan-trump-team-mishandled-epstein-case-alleges-intel-ties/us-politics-justice-epstein-5" rel="attachment wp-att-1136427"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1136427" class="wp-image-1136427 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-2201631069-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-2201631069-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-2201631069-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-2201631069-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-2201631069.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" /></a>(Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP via Getty Images)</div>
&#8220;You go back to the original warrant back in 2008,&#8221; Vance said, pointing to Alex Acosta, who originally investigated Epstein. &#8220;What was he looking for? What was he allowed to look for? What were they collecting? It was not looking at a broader conspiracy.&#8221;
&#8220;So that happens, Epstein gets pinched. I think he goes to prison or maybe this is when he was on house arrest,&#8221; Vance explained. &#8220;Anything that existed from the 80s, 90s, up to 2006, 2007, anything that existed that we didn&#8217;t get back then, was disappeared.&#8221;
He added: &#8220;So when people say, has what you seen on the inside make you think that Epstein never blackmailed people or that Epstein never engaged in broader sex trafficking? No, absolutely not. What I have seen, and I&#8217;ve looked at most of the files, is that there just wasn&#8217;t dispositive evidence. And if that dispositive evidence ever existed, it was probably destroyed after 2006, 2007.&#8221;
Vance agreed with White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles&#8217; assessment that on this topic, he is a conspiracy theorist. When Rogan pointed out that many people think Epstein was a Mossad agent, Vance lent credence to the idea.
&#8220;Yeah, Mossad or CIA or some other deep state, whether in America or Israel or another country,&#8221; he reflected. &#8220;Or both! Look he clearly had connections to the highest levels of American intelligence. He clearly had connections to the highest levels of Israeli intelligence.&#8221;
Vance then admitted there was no actual evidence in the files for those claims.
&#8220;I&#8217;ve asked, were there like, were there documents connecting Jeffrey Epstein directly to our intelligence agencies or anybody else&#8217;s, and the answer is no. But if that sh*t existed, it wouldn&#8217;t exist in 2026,&#8221; Vance claimed.
&#8220;One of the reasons I&#8217;m always careful and I say there are some elements within the Israeli government who don&#8217;t like our peace process, because there are a lot of elements within the Israeli government that actually do like our peace process, they recognize that this indefinite campaign is not good for them either.&#8221;
&#8220;The Epstein thing is interesting,&#8221; he continued, &#8220;because as much as I know Prime Minister Netanyahu is not a particularly popular person in the United States of America right now, Epstein seemed to be connected to the elements of the Israeli deep state that were left of center. I&#8217;ve always found that fascinating. It wasn&#8217;t like he was super connected to the right of center of Israeli politics.&#8221;
In the United States, Vance pointed out, Epstein was connected &#8220;across the board.&#8221;
&#8220;He had Republican friends, he had Democratic friends,&#8221; the vice president said. &#8220;He had much deeper connections to the Israeli left of center than right of center, I don&#8217;t know what that means, but I find that interesting.&#8221;
<div id="attachment_1136425" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/vance-tells-joe-rogan-trump-team-mishandled-epstein-case-alleges-intel-ties/patrick-mcmullan-archives-43" rel="attachment wp-att-1136425"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1136425" class="wp-image-1136425 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-590696434-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-590696434-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-590696434-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-590696434-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/GettyImages-590696434.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" /></a>(Photo by Joe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)</div>
&#8220;I also just think there&#8217;s an element of, he was a scumbag, he was a very sick person, he built relationships with a lot of other rich and powerful people who just didn&#8217;t have any real moral judgement about the fact that the guy was obviously a scumbag,&#8221; Vance noted, before telling Rogan that Democrats continue to accuse the president of wrongdoing related to Epstein without any evidence.
&#8220;Who was the guy who narc&#8217;d on Epstein to the Palm Beach police?&#8221; Vance asked. &#8220;That&#8217;s in the Epstein files. It was Donald Trump!&#8221;
Asked by Rogan how the administration should have handled the matter, Vance responded that &#8220;we should have just dropped everything at the very beginning.&#8221; He acknowledged that it does take time to redact the documents when victims are involved, but they should have done it as quickly as possible.
Vance also said that he believes Epstein was absolutely trying to influence people and compromise people.
&#8220;There is a story there — I will go to my deathbed believing there is a story there, but I can&#8217;t prove it,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And I promise there&#8217;s not some document, that at least I&#8217;m hiding, that allows us to prove exactly what was going on and how.&#8221;
Vance also used the interview to allege that opponents of his negotiations with Iran were being paid by Israel, referencing a <a href="https://time.com/article/2026/07/13/brad-parscale-israel-influence-operation/">TIME Magazine investigation</a> into former Trump campaign operative Brad Parscale&#8217;s paid lobbying efforts.
&#8220;I definitely think you have seen this very discreet, extremely well-funded campaign to try to derail the negotiation,&#8221; Vance told Rogan. &#8220;Those people are attacking me viciously for quite literally trying to accomplish the negotiation objective the president set for the country.&#8221;
&#8220;They&#8217;re leaking to reporters, they&#8217;re attacking me obsessively saying that we should not be negotiating with Iran, we should just keep the military campaign going indefinitely &#8230; people have come after me and said that I&#8217;m influenced by Qatar, that I&#8217;m influenced by foreign governments, that I take my marching orders from Tucker Carlson, there&#8217;s so much bullsh*t out there.&#8221;
&#8220;What I&#8217;m actually trying to do is accomplish what the president of the United States told me to accomplish,&#8221; Vance said.

Vice President Vance Speaks At TPUSA Event In Athens, Georgia

Vance Tells Joe Rogan Trump Team ‘Mishandled’ Epstein Case, Alleges Intel Ties

Epstein Files

Israel

Jeffrey Epstein

Pam Bondi

Podcast host Joe Rogan revealed the fear he voiced to President Donald Trump ahead of the UFC Freedom 250 fight night at the White House — and what the president said to him in return.
Rogan, speaking with UFC fighter Justin Gaethje and MMA trainer Trevor Wittman, discussed his concerns ahead of fight night about how vulnerable they could be to an attack — particularly because Trump had been targeted so many times in the past.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
HILARIOUS: Justin Gaethje: “I was like, f*ck it. If I get taken out in the middle of the case, how f*cking legendary would that be?”
Joe Rogan: “I said to Trump, ‘I hope we don’t die in a terrorist attack.’ He goes, ‘We gotta go somehow.’ I go, ‘What the f*ck, dude?’” <a href="https://t.co/6y32fDS1mL">pic.twitter.com/6y32fDS1mL</a>
— RedWave Press (@RedWavePress) <a href="https://x.com/RedWavePress/status/2068441306574073962?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 20, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;I was honestly really nervous, Joe,&#8221; Wittman said. &#8220;I was like, dude, there&#8217;s like — just being around everybody and something could happen — the drones, that kid that you know they stopped, like &#8230; Again, I wasn&#8217;t knowing what to expect and then &#8217;til after the fight because again, we couldn&#8217;t take it in, it was a beautiful thing, and Justin —&#8221;
&#8220;I was like, f*ck it, if I get taken out in the middle of the cage, how f*cking legendary&#8217;d that be?&#8221; Gaethje chimed in.
Rogan said then that he&#8217;d actually brought concerns to President Trump before the event, saying, &#8220;I said to Trump, ‘I hope we don’t die in a terrorist attack.’ He goes, ‘We gotta go somehow.’ I go, ‘What the f*ck, dude?’&#8221;
Gaethje said he was right there with Trump, adding, &#8220;Everyone will remember it for the rest of eternity!&#8221;
&#8220;I&#8217;ll pass,&#8221; Wittman interjected as Gaethje declared, &#8220;Sign me up!&#8221;
&#8220;It&#8217;s better the way it went,&#8221; Rogan replied. &#8220;The way it went was way better, it was a way better outcome.&#8221;

UFC 276: Adesanya v Cannonier

Joe Rogan Reveals Crazy Comment Trump Made Backstage At UFC: ‘What The F*ck, Dude!’

Joe Rogan Reveals Crazy Comment Trump Made Backstage At UFC: 'What The F*ck, Dude!'

America 250

Donald Trump

UFC Freedom 250

The CIA and U.S. military may have employed a secret, never-before-used technology to rescue the second American airman stranded behind Iranian enemy lines.
On April 3, Iran shot down an F-15E Strike Eagle during Operation Epic Fury, triggering a dramatic search-and-rescue mission to save the two crew members.
The pilot was found and rescued in “broad daylight,” but finding the weapons systems officer (WSO) proved far more difficult.
For nearly 48 hours, a &#8220;<a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116351956955900185">seriously wounded</a>&#8221; American colonel evaded capture by scaling a ridge and hiding inside a mountain crevice as Iranian forces worked to close in on his position, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/heres-everything-we-know-about-the-daring-mission-to-save-an-american-warfighter-in-iran">The Daily Wire previously reported</a>.
President Donald Trump later described the mission as an &#8220;Easter Miracle,&#8221; <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/video/exclusive-trump-reacts-to-easter-miracle-rescue-of-downed-u-s-airman-260734533647">according to NBC News</a>.
Speculation about how the United States ultimately located the airman has drawn attention online. The New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/04/07/us-news/ghost-murmur-a-never-used-secret-tool-deployed-to-find-lost-airman-in-iran-in-daring-mission/">reported</a> that the CIA used a classified system known as &#8220;Ghost Murmur&#8221; to detect the airman&#8217;s heartbeat from dozens of miles away. In a recent <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrRJimixWEc">podcast</a>, Joe Rogan and guest Duncan Trussell discussed the technology.
“This is science fiction. This is full minority report, science fiction-level technology. We can find a guy&#8217;s heart rate,&#8221; Rogan said. &#8220;What sick f*ck invented this?”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Joe Rogan: “CIA found the pilot who got shot in Iran by using classified tech called Ghost Murmur and AI that detects human heartbeats up to 40 miles away. What sick f*ck invented this. What else don’t they tell us?”<a href="https://t.co/A3L9fge3CT">pic.twitter.com/A3L9fge3CT</a>
— Defiant L’s (@DefiantLs) <a href="https://twitter.com/DefiantLs/status/2042391861311258724?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 9, 2026</a></blockquote>
&#8220;They find this guy&#8217;s &#8230; heartbeat, he&#8217;s hiding in some kind of crevice, and then they&#8217;re able to go extract him,&#8221; Trussell told Rogan. &#8220;Heartbeat says a lot about a person — are they sleeping? Are they like in good shape, bad shape? Bet you can learn so much from a heartbeat.&#8221;
The classified technology &#8220;uses long-range quantum magnetometry to find the electromagnetic signal of a human heartbeat,&#8221; <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/04/07/us-news/ghost-murmur-a-never-used-secret-tool-deployed-to-find-lost-airman-in-iran-in-daring-mission/">according to the Post</a>, &#8220;and pairs the data with artificial intelligence software to isolate the signature from background noise.&#8221;
“It’s like hearing a voice in a stadium, except the stadium is a thousand square miles of desert,” a <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/04/07/us-news/ghost-murmur-a-never-used-secret-tool-deployed-to-find-lost-airman-in-iran-in-daring-mission/">s</a><a href="https://nypost.com/2026/04/07/us-news/ghost-murmur-a-never-used-secret-tool-deployed-to-find-lost-airman-in-iran-in-daring-mission/">ource told the Post.</a> “In the right conditions, if your heart is beating, we will find you.”
CIA Director Jon Ratcliffe did not confirm specifics, but referenced advanced capabilities during a White House press briefing, calling the tools used in the operation &#8220;exquisite&#8221; and unlike anything possessed by other intelligence services.
He described the rescue as a &#8220;race against the clock,&#8221; comparing it to &#8220;hunting a single grain of sand in the middle of a desert.&#8221;
Ratcliffe also said the CIA carried out a deception campaign to mislead Iranian forces searching for the downed airman, adding that U.S. intelligence indicates Iran was &#8220;embarrassed&#8221; and &#8220;humiliated&#8221; by the outcome of the mission.
Not everyone is convinced of the government&#8217;s account or the powers behind the alleged technology.
Scientific American, <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-is-the-quantum-ghost-murmur-purportedly-used-in-iran-scientists/">a popular science magazine</a>, spoke to researchers with expertise in magnetic fields, who describe the story &#8220;as almost certainly not true,&#8221; claiming the described ability of Ghost Murmur &#8220;finds no support in decades of peer-reviewed physics.&#8221;
Chad Orzel, a professor of physics at Union College, said to detect a heartbeat, a Ghost Murmur device would have to sort through more than the Earth&#8217;s natural magnetic field, but with “the heartbeats of the sheep and dogs and jackrabbits—whatever else is running around out there,” according to Scientific American.
&#8220;Quantum atomic transitions obey classical antenna physics,&#8221; <a href="https://x.com/AetherCzar/status/2042192828940394668?s=20">Hans G. Schantz</a>, scientist and engineer, posted on X. &#8220;Vastly superior performance, such as that attributed to Ghost Murmur, defies the known behavior of quantum systems.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Quantum atomic transitions obey classical antenna physics. Vastly superior performance, such as that attributed to Ghost Murmur, defies the known behavior of quantum systems. <a href="https://t.co/1U0Ephx05z">https://t.co/1U0Ephx05z</a> <a href="https://t.co/IAqdpGaHe3">https://t.co/IAqdpGaHe3</a>
— Hans G. Schantz (@AetherCzar) <a href="https://twitter.com/AetherCzar/status/2042192828940394668?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 9, 2026</a></blockquote>
“Somebody yanking a reporter’s chain,” Orzel told Scientific American. &#8220;It could be a &#8216;snarky, clever way to say, ‘Of course, I’m not going to tell you how we figured this out.&#8221;
The Daily Wire reached out to alleged Ghost Murmur developer Lockheed Martin, but we have received no reply as of publication.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
BREAKING🚨: The CIA just revealed its game-changing secret weapon: “Ghost Murmur” — an AI-powered tool that can detect a human heartbeat from MILES away.
It was used for the first time in the field to locate and rescue the downed U.S. airman stranded in Iran, according to the… <a href="https://t.co/OmkdFDfNSq">pic.twitter.com/OmkdFDfNSq</a>
— Officer Lew (@officer_Lew) <a href="https://twitter.com/officer_Lew/status/2041646461411094841?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 7, 2026</a></blockquote>

Human Heart

Did CIA Use Covert Tech To Find Lost Airman?

Global Politics

Iran

Technology

World

On the surface, Pierre Poilievre’s recent appearance on the Joe Rogan <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtbGgSwuE_U">podcast</a> had more good than bad. The Conservative leader came across as likable, down-to-earth, and clear. He stressed the need to unleash Canada’s energy potential. He called for cutting regulations that have suppressed innovation. He pushed for lower government spending. These are all sound ideas and Canada would surely benefit from them.
But one key moment showed the real substance of Poilievre’s platform: empty individualism. This view defines human dignity as absolute self-expression. It not only cheapens human life, it weakens the institutions that support Canadian culture.
The moment happened when Rogan critiqued the current state of Canada’s euthanasia program.
Rogan expressed a reasonable concern. He noted that <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c0j1z14p57po">1 in 20</a> Canadian deaths now come from so-called assisted suicide or Medical Aid in Dying (MAID). Poilievre replied that he believes people should “have the choice” to be euthanized. His main concern was the idea that it would be offered to kids or to people whose only condition is mental illness.
In other words, his issue is not with Canada’s current euthanasia rules. His issue is only with suggestions that have not yet become law.
Canada’s euthanasia regime is abhorrent, with or without amendments. Track 2 euthanasia lets individuals apply for MAID based on an incurable physical condition. This includes a disability. The Atlantic recently <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/0">published</a> a piece on the ethical and practical questions facing “providers.” A more accurate word would be deprivers. These providers must interpret euthanasia rules on their own. One story described a doctor who euthanized a man in his 30s. The man had a treatable form of cancer, but he had refused all other treatment. This made his condition “irremediable.”
Human dignity should be the first commitment of any conservative. Poilievre often touts individual rights. Yet he ignores the most fundamental one: the right to life. To say someone has an intrinsic right means they possess it simply because of who they are. It does not depend on what they do.
But Poilievre’s willingness to allow euthanasia for those who are suffering and dying sends a clear message. It says the value of human life depends on personal judgment.
His criticism of euthanasia for the mentally ill is confusing. If people should have a “freedom” to die on their terms — in Canada that includes the terminally ill, disabled, and chronically sick — why must those symptoms be physical? In fact, we know they often are not.
Stories abound of individuals struggling with depression who have applied for MAID. One <a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/kiano-vafaeian-medical-assistance-in-dying">example</a> is 26-year-old Kiano Vafaeian. He was struggling with vision loss and depression.
At the heart of Poilievre’s blunder on euthanasia is a false understanding of human dignity. Ironically, it is the same understanding that drives the woke excesses of the Liberal elite. They see dignity as absolute self-expression. This empty individualism separates life’s meaning from the broader context of nature, community, and tradition.
When applied to culture, this leads to a cheapening of human life. It is no surprise that places that legalize assisted suicide see an increase in overall suicide rates. Chosen or not, Poilievre fails to understand one key point. Euthanasia is a symptom of a sick, depressed, and lonely culture.
A culture that is killing itself is not going to be saved by lower housing costs. Economic prosperity can certainly help but it is not the sole solution.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Joe Rogan Experience #2470 - Pierre Poilievre" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JtbGgSwuE_U?start=706&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Poilievre’s wholesome vision for Canada is admirable. He wants a future where families enjoy the fruit of their labor without government interference. Ideally, they live in a white-picket-fenced home that they can afford. But this vision is unachievable without cultural renewal. The expressive individualism of the Liberal and Conservative elites will not deliver that renewal.
Canadian culture is not only suicidal it is also sterile. Nearly <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/11638221/canada-ultra-low-fertility/">one in four</a> Canadian women in their 40s have no kids. Last year, Poilievre was absurdly <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/pierre-poilievre-biological-clock-1.7499220">reprimanded</a> by Liberal MPs. They criticized him for recognizing that unaffordable housing causes couples to run out of time to start families before their “biological clocks” expire. The idea that government should be completely impartial to marriage and fertility rates is ludicrous.
These rates can give a glimpse into the hope people place in their future. Economic strain can suppress this hope and so can a nihilistic culture that has cheapened human life. The family is not merely an economic unit. It is a legacy-making enterprise. A culture that sees no value in life beyond individual expression makes the self-sacrificial reality of marriage seem absurd.
Unlike Poilievre, a true conservative recognizes that dignity is not rooted in our personal judgment. It is intrinsic to who we are. Our identity should be understood in reference to the people, institutions, and traditions that shape us. We should seek economic prosperity. But we should not seek it at the cost of the integrity of those institutions.
Poilievre has an impressive ability to explain those institutions. One of the best moments from the podcast was his explanation of the Westminster tradition, which is deeply connected to Canada’s British heritage.
What Poilievre takes for granted is this: hopelessness grows when people feel isolated. Yet the political elite — both Conservative and Liberal — expect the average Canadian to accept this isolation without complaint. Canada has some of the highest immigration rates per capita in the world. Conservatives claim to support assimilation into Canadian culture but they lack the ability to identify and preserve what is exemplary of that culture.
At Confederation, Canadian culture wasn’t divorced from a broader religious and moral consensus. It was founded against the backdrop of a predominantly Christian society. The 1871 census showed over <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/cambridge-history-of-religions-in-america/religion-in-canada-18671945/3AA29A820C78AB35B6F22D2F4F763E65">98%</a> of the population as Christian. All 36 Fathers of Confederation were raised in a Christian tradition. This included Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism, and Presbyterianism. Yet Poilievre’s policies, especially on immigration, fail to take this into account. His view is that anyone can “become” Canadian. He defines it loosely as a belief in “freedom.” This view will not produce the assimilation needed for cultural unity. It will lead Canada further down the path of cultural decay.
Does this mean that people of non-Christian faiths should not come to Canada? Not at all. But it does mean that policymakers should protect the shared morality, customs, and traditions passed down from the time of Confederation. They should make judgments on immigration policy with prudence. They should keep the interests of Canadians in mind. Those interests should not be measured only in economic output. They should include cultural unity.
Poilievre’s discussion was typical of the decades-long drift of the Conservative establishment. It has moved toward a “balancing the budget” style of liberalism. This style redefines human dignity. It has cheapened human life. It has undermined the family. It has squandered Canada’s cultural inheritance. It has failed.
Moving forward, the Conservatives should let their party’s name guide their ideology. Canadians do not just want lower costs, they want flourishing families. They want a unified nation and a culture of hope. That is the true mission of conservatism. The Conservative establishment would do well to remember it.
* * *
Liana Graham is a research assistant in domestic policy at the Heritage Foundation. She is originally from Oakville, Ontario, Canada.

jre poil

The Most Telling Moment Of Poilievre’s Joe Rogan Interview

Assisted Suicide

Canada

Conservatives

Euthanasia

Heritage Foundation

Pierre Poilievre

Wayne LaPierre

Vice President JD Vance clapped back at popular podcast host Joe Rogan on Friday after Rogan blasted President Donald Trump&#8217;s &#8220;Make America Great Again&#8221; slogan and movement.
During an episode of the &#8220;Joe Rogan Experience&#8221; that dropped earlier this week, Rogan said the &#8220;Make America Great Again&#8221; phrase &#8220;sucks,&#8221; adding that MAGA has become &#8220;a movement of a bunch of dorks.&#8221;
&#8220;First of all, America is great,&#8221; Rogan said during an interview with comedian Dave Smith. &#8220;Make America greater? I&#8217;m down. But &#8216;Make America Great Again&#8217; and then it becomes a movement of a bunch of f*cking dorks? Because a lot of them are dorks. A lot of them are these really weird, f*cking uninteresting, unintelligent people that have got something that they cling to.&#8221;
Rogan added that &#8220;there’s a lot of people that are just real genuine patriots and they’re all lumped into this one group and you got to accept the dorks, too? F*ck that!&#8221;
Vance, who has been friendly with Rogan and appeared on Rogan&#8217;s podcast in October 2024, responded to the comedian&#8217;s comments during an interview with conservative commentator Benny Johnson on Friday.
&#8220;I think we have many, many fewer dorks than the far-Left,&#8221; Vance said. &#8220;But everybody&#8217;s got some dorks. We love our dorks. We love our cool kids. We love anybody who wants to save our country.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Vice President JD Vance PUNCHES BACK at Joe Rogan for Calling MAGA ‘Dorks’
“Far fewer dorks than the far-left. But we love our dorks. We love our cool kids. We just want to save the country”
Vance Also HIT BACK at Joe Rogan for Claiming Obama And Hillary Were ‘Better At… <a href="https://t.co/s8ViWvjnrt">pic.twitter.com/s8ViWvjnrt</a>
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) <a href="https://twitter.com/bennyjohnson/status/2037599563864059907?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 27, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" async="" charset="utf-8"></script>
Both Rogan and Smith backed Trump and Vance in the 2024 election, but they have become increasingly critical of the president over his handling of foreign policy and the Epstein files. Smith, a regular guest on Rogan&#8217;s show, aligns with many of the anti-Israel views spouted by commentators and politicians on the far-Left. Both Rogan and Smith suggested that Trump has betrayed his base over the Iran war, but polling consistently shows that Trump&#8217;s supporters back his actions in Iran.
In another episode of his podcast this week, Rogan brought up MAGA and quipped that Democrats like former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton used to be &#8220;more MAGA than MAGA” on border security.
“Her take on the border was like hardcore,” Rogan said. “If you’ve been convicted of a crime, get out. If you stay here, pay a stiff penalty, and you have to get in line, and you have to learn English! And everyone cheers. Like, that is a hardcore right-wing 2026 perspective.”
He then said that Obama &#8220;deported more people than Trump did.&#8221;
Vance also responded to Rogan&#8217;s comments on Democrats&#8217; past support for border security and said Rogan was &#8220;wrong&#8221; for suggesting that Obama was better at deporting illegal immigrants than Trump.
&#8220;I&#8217;m going to text Joe because that is definitely wrong,&#8221; Vance told Johnson. &#8220;Here&#8217;s why this is wrong: when you look at the deportation numbers that go back to the Obama administration, they would count somebody who showed up at the border and they turned away as a deportation. Now, we have almost no one showing up at the border because the border is secure.&#8221;

Trump/Vance/Rogan

JD Vance Responds After Joe Rogan Hurls Insults At Trump’s Movement

MAGA

The DailyWire+ series “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/show/the-pendragon-cycle?utm_campaign=pendragon&amp;utm_content=20260212_desktop_aa&amp;utm_medium=website">The Pendragon Cycle</a>” received high praise from “Pulp Fiction” screenwriter Roger Avary, who said he was “completely blown away.”
“These days, you almost don’t know… where to find television. And that’s because you can find it anywhere,” the 60-year-old Academy Award winner told Joe Rogan during a podcast appearance. He added that big studios are no longer dominating the industry and that smaller, independent studios are making superior content. 
“The mainstay producers of it, the studios … they’re no longer reliable in producing quality television. And so suddenly we see stuff rising out of places that are completely unexpected … this was produced by The Daily Wire of all places.”
“And this is good?” Rogan inquired about the series.
“This is better!” Avary replied, “I have a very high watermark for Arthurian mythology. Like to me, [the 1981 drama] ‘Excalibur’ is the high watermark. And this really went there …”
The producer and screenwriter admitted he had a “chip on his shoulder” when he started watching “Pendragon” and expected not to like it. But he was impressed not just with the quality, but with how it didn’t come from a major studio.
“They did it on a microbudget, effectively. They made something that… kind of reinvents the mythology and they do it like proper television, where you kind of love the characters, and they weave an entire reality and universe that is just fantastic. And it’s done for very, very little…” 
Avary added, “They’re spending billions making these ‘Lord of the Rings’ things, and nobody cares, they’re just awful to watch. In the meantime, these guys, without anyone paying attention, cranked this out. I’ve only seen four episodes of it, but I am completely blown away by it!”
“This is, to me, as good as classic television,” he added.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Oscar-winning screenwriter <a href="https://twitter.com/AVARY?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AVARY</a> gives massive praise to &#8216;The Pendragon Cycle&#8217; on <a href="https://twitter.com/joerogan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@joerogan</a>:
&#8220;They&#8217;re spending billions making these &#8216;Lord of the Rings&#8217; things&#8230;and they&#8217;re just awful to watch&#8230;In the meantime, these guys&#8230;cranked this out&#8230;I am like completely blown away… <a href="https://t.co/guviJGswqe">pic.twitter.com/guviJGswqe</a>
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/2021662679962730581?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 11, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin” is an epic fantasy series based on Stephen R. Lawhead’s award-winning novels.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/show/the-pendragon-cycle?utm_campaign=pendragon&amp;utm_content=20260212_desktop_aa&amp;utm_medium=website">WATCH THE PENDRAGON CYCLE ON DAILYWIRE+</a>
The saga unfolds in the aftermath of Roman-occupied Britain, where the seeds of Christianity are beginning to take root in the wake of overwhelming spiritual and physical darkness. Barbarian invaders threaten to lay claim to the Island of the Mighty, and only those with faith in the true God will prevail. 
Against this perilous backdrop, Merlin emerges not as the wizard we remember from typical Arthurian retellings that lean on medieval imagery and rote chivalry, but as a complex prophetic figure caught in a world of spiritual warfare, political chaos, and the dawn of Western civilization.
The series was filmed across Hungary, Italy, and the Danube River valley. Multiple production diaries provided fans a glimpse of the endless challenges and the grand scope of the production, including the costumes, the stunning locations, and the epic battle scenes that take place during the series.
Watch the 7-part series “The Pendragon Cycle: Rise of the Merlin” now — <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/show/the-pendragon-cycle?utm_campaign=pendragon&amp;utm_content=20260212_desktop_aa&amp;utm_medium=website">only on DailyWire+</a>. New episodes every Thursday.

Screenshot: The Joe Rogan Experience

‘Pulp Fiction’ Writer Says ‘The Pendragon Cycle’ Left Him ‘Completely Blown Away’

'Pulp Fiction' Writer Says 'The Pendragon Cycle' Left Him 'Completely Blown Away'

Entertainment

Television

The Pendragon Cycle

Actor Billy Bob Thornton is one of many who believes celebrities should stick to talking about entertainment and stay out of politics.
The 70-year-old star said as much during a recent appearance on “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast, referencing Ricky Gervais’ infamous monologue at the 2020 Golden Globes.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Joe Rogan Experience #2407 - Billy Bob Thornton" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0loSsJ1mHVE?start=3690&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
“It’s like Ricky Gervais said &#8230; ‘Look, come up here, accept your little award, and f*** off.’ First of all, unless you’ve really studied stuff and know about a subject fully, who the hell would want to listen to a musician or an actor talk about politics?” Thornton said. &#8220;It’s like, ‘Are we supposed to follow this?&#8217; If we are, what if they lead you down the wrong road?&#8217;”
The “Sling Blade” actor went on to describe himself as a “radical moderate.”
“I’m very strong in my opinions, but my opinions don’t belong to any political party. I just look at what makes sense, and I think we need a common sense party in this country. That’s actually what I think we need. Just figure it out. It&#8217;s pretty easy to figure out what this is all about.&#8221;
Thornton also said he doesn’t really “care about awards anymore,” because he’s “got plenty of them” and had won those “under the wire, when awards were kind of real still.”
“I’ve won a couple recently,” the actor added. “But these days I just look at it as like, ‘Oh, OK, we’re gonna go over here and, you know, have some dry chicken breast and green beans, you know, and we’ll listen to people get up there and pontificate about how awesome they are.&#8217;”
Thornton said awards show stages should not become soapboxes for bringing awareness to different causes, either.
“There is a time and place for that,” he said, adding that at awards shows, “you should just stick to what it is.”
“Don’t go up there and talk about saving the badgers in Wisconsin or something, you know what I’m saying?” he told Rogan. “And people would argue and say, ‘Well, no, because I have a voice and because everybody knows me. This is a great platform for me to put this out there.’”
“Well, how about this? If you have a billion dollars, and you want to save the badgers, f***ing save them,” he added. “I mean, you got plenty of money to save the badgers, trust me. That is not, that’s barely gonna cut into your budget.”

Billy Bob Thornton

Billy Bob Thornton Talks Hollywood, Politics With Joe Rogan

Celebrities

Politics

U.S.

Actor Charlie Sheen was recording a conversation for podcast host Joe Rogan&#8217;s next episode when they learned about the assassination of conservative commentator and Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk on Wednesday afternoon.
Rogan and Sheen were both clearly taken aback, shaken by the news — and both immediately assumed that the shooting had been politically motivated as they reacted in real time to the news.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🚨NEW: Joe Rogan &amp; Charlie Sheen react to Charlie Kirk Assassination🚨
ROGAN: &#8220;We just found out that Charlie Kirk got sh*t.&#8221;
SHEEN: &#8220;It&#8217;s f*cking awful.&#8221;
ROGAN: &#8220;Whoa!&#8221;
SHEEN: &#8220;M*rdered for having a different opinion from somebody else.&#8221;
&#8220;Rest in peace. F*ck!&#8221;
&#8220;He doesn&#8217;t… <a href="https://t.co/zdDx7SHqtr">pic.twitter.com/zdDx7SHqtr</a>
— Jason Cohen 🇺🇸 (@JasonJournoDC) <a href="https://twitter.com/JasonJournoDC/status/1966191482206863583?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 11, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;Should we bring this up? I guess we have to,&#8221; Rogan began, clearly just having received the news himself. Bringing his hands to his forehead and taking a deep breath, he said, &#8220;So this just happened, we just found out that Charlie Kirk got shot.&#8221;
Rogan paused then, apparently unsure how to react.
&#8220;That&#8217;s f***ing awful,&#8221; Sheen said.
&#8220;And — is he dead?&#8221; Rogan asked. Off camera, one of his producers said he didn&#8217;t think so.
&#8220;That&#8217;s what was just —?&#8221; Sheen asked. &#8220;— that in the lobby was &#8230;&#8221;
&#8220;One of the guys out there just confirmed that he&#8217;s dead,&#8221; Rogan said, his voice flat.
Rogan let out a heavy sigh as his producer went to confirm the details: &#8220;Whoa.&#8221;
&#8220;Murdered for having a different opinion from somebody else,&#8221; Sheen posited. &#8220;A different ideology from somebody else.&#8221;
&#8220;Yeah, I mean, I don&#8217;t know,&#8221; Rogan said.
&#8220;&#8230; beliefs that didn&#8217;t align,&#8221; Sheen continued.
The producer interrupted to confirm that Kirk had died.
&#8220;Rest in peace,&#8221; Sheen said immediately. &#8220;F***. Twenty-seven years old? Thirty, maybe?&#8221;
&#8220;Do they even have a suspect?&#8221; Rogan asked, but the producer had no more answers.
&#8220;F***,&#8221; Sheen said again. &#8220;Nobody deserves that, he didn&#8217;t deserve that, nobody deserves that.&#8221;

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Media

Woke is on the run.
The cultural scourge has stifled free thought, promoted hard Left extremism and corrupted the arts. Now, the pendulum is finally starting to swing in the opposite direction.
As Justine Bateman eloquently <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/justine-bateman-feels-she-breathe-135914542.html?guccounter=1&amp;guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&amp;guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAL59qaEAl5oQrn9Sbhjt_qu8fKo-iKLly0Qx1-59i0ZovkUgRNIkxBmkeb-90BXJs3RGFTKYXYPTw_0PpiYQZ4TC2vvcuf68E0zkXRjgeC_GgEgtbOqvca4Zg9u6iEw0q-H7gvODkFclXkVCbMI5yfWMT2bU8ni8NIdlhYRwH5Zd">put it</a>, it’s like we can all breathe again.
Woke may have been destined to crash and burn on its own. It’s antithetical to the American spirit and goes against basic biology. Plus, it’s often meted out in a cruel, hypocritical two-tier fashion.
Hunter Biden <a href="https://nypost.com/2021/06/08/hunter-biden-repeatedly-called-his-white-lawyer-the-n-word-texts-show/">repeatedly texts</a>  the &#8220;n-word&#8221; — zero punishment. Morgan Wallen calls a white friend the “n-word” in a private moment caught on tape – his career implodes overnight. 
Yet, over the past decade we&#8217;ve witnessed a number of brave souls stand up to the woke onslaught. While there are many on team sanity who deserve a shout out — including the voices at The Daily Wire — here are seven culture warriors who hastened woke’s demise and deserve a curtain call.
<h3>Robby Starbuck</h3>
<div id="attachment_901451" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-901451" class="size-large wp-image-901451" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Untitled-design-32-1024x576.jpg" alt="Conservative influencer Robby Starbuck prior to an interview in New York, US, on Wednesday, March 5, 2025." width="1024" height="576" />Bess Adler/Bloomberg via Getty Images</div>
The filmmaker/activist became the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-robby-starbuck-joins-heritage-foundation-to-continue-fight-against-woke-corporations?author=Spencer+Lindquist&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=EXCLUSIVE%3A+Robby+Starbuck+Joins+Heritage+Foundation+To+Continue+Fight+Against+Woke+Corporations">one person</a> woke companies fear more than anyone else. Starbuck’s crusade to expose corporate shenanigans, like excessive DEI policies, proved shockingly effective in recent years.
Just ask <a href="https://www.axios.com/2024/11/27/robby-starbuck-influencer-dei-walmart">Walmart, Target, John Deere, Harley Davidson</a> and more.
A single social media post from Starbuck could send company executives into damage control mode. Sunlight remains the best disinfectant.
Starbuck brings the receipts, too. His recent <a href="https://x.com/robbystarbuck/status/1958868634287161604">exposé on Cracker Barrel</a>, coming on the heels of the brand’s calamitous logo “update,” proved he isn’t done spotlighting woke on steroids.
<h3>Jennifer Sey</h3>
<div id="attachment_457893" style="width: 394px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-457893" class="size-large wp-image-457893" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/11/seyspring2022-0562-2-384x576.jpg" alt="" width="384" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/11/seyspring2022-0562-2-384x576.jpg 384w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/11/seyspring2022-0562-2-200x300.jpg 200w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/11/seyspring2022-0562-2-768x1152.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/11/seyspring2022-0562-2-1024x1536.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/11/seyspring2022-0562-2-1365x2048.jpg 1365w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/11/seyspring2022-0562-2-1360x2040.jpg 1360w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2022/11/seyspring2022-0562-2-scaled.jpg 1707w" sizes=" (max-width: 384px) 100vw, 384px" />Courtesy of Jennifer Sey</div>
The former gymnast defied her woke overlords at Levi’s and lost, if only on the surface. Sey left her job as Global Brand President after speaking out against pandemic school closures. The woke company demanded she toe the line and not share her opinion publicly. She refused.
She could have licked her wounds or stayed silent. Not Sey. The Colorado resident rolled up her sleeves and kept fighting. She assembled a team to create a documentary detailing just how punishing lockdowns proved for millions of kids, even as we weren’t always allowed to admit it aloud. That upcoming documentary, “Generation-Covid,” is just part of her anti-woke agenda.
She also created XX-XY Athletics, a clothing brand designed for women, not biological men living as women. Her company speaks out against trans women in women’s sports, helping strike a blow against a movement that often shames citizens into silence.
Now, the tide is turning on the subject, with more Americans allowed to speak their minds. Sey helped make that happen.
<h3>Elon Musk</h3>
<div id="attachment_902957" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-902957" class="size-large wp-image-902957" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2180240111-864x576.jpg" alt="A portrait picture of Elon Musk photographed in Krakow, Poland on January 22nd, 2024 and X, former Twitter, logo are screened for illustration photo in Krakow, Poland on October 25, 2024." width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2180240111-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2180240111-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2180240111-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2180240111.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images</div>
He may be “frenemies” with a certain world leader these days, but Musk struck a mighty blow against woke by buying Twitter. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-bought-twitter-over-free-speech-concerns-media-groupthink-2022-12">Partly inspired</a> by the platform’s attack on The Babylon Bee and other free speech punishments, Musk took over and restored many censored accounts. His new, streamlined X let free speech reign anew. Suddenly, users didn’t have to self-censor for fear their unwoke opinions could cost them their digital voice.
The platform is far from perfect, but under Musk’s control, it’s a vastly superior product and a woke-free zone.
<h3>Christopher Rufo</h3>
<div id="attachment_877257" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-877257" class="size-large wp-image-877257" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/02/Untitled-design-33-1024x576.jpg" alt="Christopher Rufo, a conservative activist and New College of Florida trustee, walks through protestors on his way out of a bill signing event featuring Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who signed three education bills on the campus of New College of Florida in Sarasota, Fla. on Monday, May 15, 2023." width="1024" height="576" />Photo by Thomas Simonetti for The Washington Post via Getty Images</div>
Starbuck may be corporate America’s worst nightmare, but Rufo offers a similar service for academics gone wild. Rufo’s relentless pressure campaigns, and fact-based measures, proved highly effective in recent years.
Rufo helped expose former Harvard President Claudine Gay’s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/claudine-gay-who-resigned-due-to-plagiarism-allegations-to-teach-reading-and-research-class-at-harvard-in-fall">plagiarism scandal</a>, but that’s just a fraction of his recent activism. Here, he describes why he <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/conservative-activist-christopher-rufo-on-his-push-to-scrutinize-higher-education">focuses his attention</a> on Ivy League institutions.
“They&#8217;re promoting from their central administrations racial discrimination, scapegoating and even segregation.”
In some cases, they “were” promoting all of the above. Rufo gets results.
<h3>J.K. Rowling</h3>
<div id="attachment_913089" style="width: 828px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-913089" class="size-large wp-image-913089" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/JK-Rowling-818x576.jpg" alt="JK Rowling" width="818" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/JK-Rowling-818x576.jpg 818w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/JK-Rowling-300x211.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/JK-Rowling-768x541.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/JK-Rowling.jpg 1200w" sizes=" (max-width: 818px) 100vw, 818px" />Samir Hussein/WireImage via Getty Images</div>
Many celebrities, even the biggest stars in the galaxy, stand down under intense woke pressure. Remember how <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2020/07/rub-and-tug-tv-show-our-lady-j?srsltid=AfmBOooqto0TGS1QBSZKn_jSJCQPHkCoAhh3bv_wnxbTxhD4YsIThjEW">Scarlett Johansson buckled</a> rather than accept a role playing a trans character?
Not Rowling. The “Harry Potter” author, an old-school progressive, began <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/j-k-rowling-hilariously-shreds-transgender-activist-over-bra-fitting-boast">questioning</a> elements of the trans agenda in 2020. That put her squarely in the Left’s cross-hairs, and she’s remained there ever since.
Death threats. Endless cultural cancelations. Serial attacks from the same Legacy Media outlets that once praised her ability to inspire young readers.
And Rowling refused to back down. That posture, combined with the work Sey has done on trans matters, allowed others to speak out against biological men in women’s sports.
<h3>Joe Rogan</h3>
<div id="attachment_909823" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-909823" class="size-large wp-image-909823" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-07-PM-2073-1024x576.jpg" alt="Screenshot: Joe Rogan Experience #2303. Dave Smith and Douglas Murray. PowerfulJRE. YouTube.com" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-07-PM-2073-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-07-PM-2073-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-07-PM-2073-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-07-PM-2073-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-04-07-PM-2073-2048x1152.jpg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Screenshot: Joe Rogan Experience/YouTube.com</div>
Rogan&#8217;s relentless curiosity, eagerness to let so many voices share his platform, and his dedication to an open, long-form conversation has given free speech a major boost. 
Even more important, Rogan had a change of heart regarding one potential guest. Two years ago, Rogan seemed disinterested in chatting up former President Donald Trump.
Then, as he watched the Democratic Party stifle speech across the culture, he realized his platform could give Trump a boost in the 2024 presidential campaign. It’s likely why other rebel comics did the same with the Trump-Vance ticket, from Andrew Schulz to Tim Dillon.
<h3>President Donald Trump</h3>
<div id="attachment_942191" style="width: 875px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-942191" class="size-large wp-image-942191" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/GettyImages-2222437639-865x576.jpg" alt="President Donald Trump speaks to the media before boarding Marine One outside the White House on July 1, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post via Getty Images)" width="865" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/GettyImages-2222437639-865x576.jpg 865w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/GettyImages-2222437639-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/GettyImages-2222437639-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/07/GettyImages-2222437639.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 865px) 100vw, 865px" />Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post via Getty Images</div>
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIF2rdXnpMo">“Everything woke turns to s***,”</a> The 45th and 47th president once said, slicing through the noise to make perfect sense. He’s right, of course, and he helped make woke retreat to its current, cornered state.
The president’s frank talk, blustery persona and eagerness to speak sans filter did more than burnish his brand. He gave us permission to do the same, to shoot straight and take the consequences.
Plus, he used his executive orders to protect female athletes against biological male competitors and doubled down on Rufo’s efforts to rein in woke colleges. His anti-DEI initiatives will be part of his legacy, no doubt.
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Woke is far from gone, despite the work of these culture warriors. Some companies and schools are using sleight-of-hand techniques to keep on discriminating on the basis of race and gender.
The disgraced Gay is still teaching students at Harvard.
Hollywood will keep making movies about five-foot-nothing women beating up men double their size. Gender and race-swapped stories won’t fade to black like 3D movies and found footage shockers.
Still, woke has taken body blow after body blow. And these powerful figures threw some of the heaviest punches.
* * *
Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic and editor of <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News’ Big Hollywood. Follow him at <a href="https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HollywoodInToto.com</a>.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

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