Inside the Briahna Joy Gray firing at Rising

Briahna Joy Gray, the former Bernie Sanders deputy press secretary and fierce defender of Palestine, has been ejected from the Hill’s YouTube show Rising. Gray, the regular co-host with Reason’s Robby Soave, tweeted out an unsigned termination letter from parent company Nexstar, in which her first name had been misspelled twice. Sources confirm that the decision was made by the parent company and that Hill management had no say.

She was binned while Soave was on a rare vacation after a number of contentious incidents, including a fairly frosty interview with the sister of an October 7 hostage — during which Gray rolled her eyes and sighed when the sister told her to “believe women” — and a protracted social media argument with her fellow guests and the moderator of a panel she appeared on in New York last month. “This is the most Islamophobic, racist audience I’ve ever seen,” she said while exiting the stage. “It’s disgusting. I hope someone drops a bomb on this entire building.” 

“Rising gained popularity and success through its championing of free speech and open debate, something that audiences clearly crave and lack from mainstream media,” one former producer told Cockburn. “The firing of Briahna proves that management does not recognize or care about the core mission of the show and why audiences gravitate toward perspectives like hers and Robby’s.”

Gray criticized Israel for its war in Gaza on a near-daily basis — and she has characterized her ouster as following a similar pattern to that reflected at MSNBC, who axed a couple of pro-Palestine anchors at the tail-end of last year. “There was sort of a running joke behind the scenes that she would always try and tie whatever story we were trying to do to Israel/Palestine,” another former producer told Cockburn. “Whenever we would have a pro-Israel guest on, she would constantly cut them off and was always really rude.”

Two years ago, Katie Halper, another progressive Rising guest host, was let go after referring to Israel as an apartheid state in a segment that never aired. The YouTube debate show — one of the few American TV forums that doesn’t resemble an echo chamber — has been troubled of late, with a number of producers leaving to pursue roles elsewhere. One staffer remarked that they’d never worked in a place with this many constant issues. So much for free speech…

A message to you Rudy

Spotted on a flight to Detroit Wayne: Rudy Giuliani, very possibly on his way to a court date. America’s Mayor was in a wheelchair at the gate and so boarded first…

NIMBYs versus golfers in Rock Creek Park

A group of DC residents and environmental groups are trying to halt a renovation of a historic golf course in the nation’s capital. Rock Creek Park’s golf course is shoddy and run down; only fourteen of its eighteen holes are currently playable and fairways and greens throughout the course are rough and patchy. The National Links Trust, a non-profit that oversees DC’s three public golf courses, is supposed to start a major restoration project this fall. Rock Creek Golf Course will be split into two nine-hole courses — one full-length, one par three — and the NLT will add a driving range, a new clubhouse, pro shop and indoor practice area.

However, the coalition against the project claims too many trees will be cut down in the process. The National Park Service has responded to concerns by pointing out that half of the trees scheduled for removal “were either dead, rotting, compromised by invasive vines or creating conditions that hampered turf growth on the course” and that hundreds of new native trees would be planted in their place. They will also add a walking trail around the perimeter of the course for non-golfers.

“I bet all the people against this are the one’s [sic] wanting to turn Connecticut into a bike lane. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander. You get your bike lanes, they get their golf course. See? It’s called sharing,” one Washington Post commenter snarked.

The NLT is also set to renovate Langston Golf Course, named after John Mercer Langston, the first African American elected into public office. The course, located in the northeast part of the city, is in the National Black Golf Hall of Fame. Cockburn will update if DC residents dare to challenge upgrades to this historic course, as well.

Clooney’s White House relationship Up in the Air

As the war between Israel and Hamas continues, one new casualty may be George Clooney’s relationship with the White House. Following the unprecedented arrest warrants sought by prosecutors at the International Criminal Court for Israeli orime minister Benjamin Netanyanu, his defense minister and the terrorist leadership of Hamas, the actor called in to express his disappointment that President Joe Biden dubbed the warrants “outrageous.”

Clooney’s rationale? His wife may be harmed. Amal Clooney, while far less well-known than her silver fox of a husband, worked on the arrest warrants of Netanyahu. Were the United States to follow through on sanctions against the ICC, she may be targeted. Fortunately for her, the White House currently opposes a Republican-led bipartisan bill that would sanction the ICC.

This is all immensely awkward for Biden and Clooney, who donated over half a million dollars to Biden campaign entities in 2020 — and who remains slated to co-host a fundraiser with the president later this month. It is unclear if Amal Clooney will be joining her husband and the president who sometimes sounds willing to sanction her at this upcoming event.

We can hit up Capitol Hill, just a lil’ bit…

Legendary rapper 50 Cent took Congress by storm this week as he pushed for increased diversity in the liquor industry. Fiddy met with lawmakers from across the political spectrum, including Speaker Mike Johnson. The two now share Louisiana ties, with the rapper having recently opened up G-Unit Studios in Shreveport. He also posed for a photo with the newly-single Lauren Boebert. After it went viral, 50 Cent defended himself. “Wait, wait, guys i took pictures with everyone and all you seem to care about is Lauren what did she do in a dark theater that hasn’t been done, my God,” he said. “Hey I don’t have chlamydia by the way. LOL.”

He also caused a tizzy when he said that black men are “identifying with [Donald] Trump” over President Joe Biden. The former president has longstanding ties to the rap community — and 50 Cent’s remarks come as Biden is seeing slippage with black voters across the country. Just off Capitol Hill, the National Republican Congressional Committee sent heads spinning by posting a meme of the rapper and Speaker Johnson, where they labeled 50 cent as “500 Cent.” Their point about inflation fell on massively deaf ears, based on the meltdown the post caused. 

It wasn’t all selfies and smiles for the rapper, however. He was briefly confronted by an angry CODE PINK protester who asked him why he hasn’t said anything about the Israel-Hamas war. 50 Cent ignored the woman and walked on.