Lawrence and I welcomed Democratic strategist Mike Nellis to a The Daily Whatever Show episode that was equal parts hilarious and deeply unsettling—our favorite combo.
Mike, founder of Endless Urgency and a longtime digital fundraising force for major Democratic candidates, came in hot with a résumé that somehow gets more impressive the more Fox News arguing it contains.
I set the tone immediately by borrowing Mike’s signature “Good fucking morning to everyone except…” and directing it squarely at Republican Senator Tim Scott—after Trump shared an AI video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes and Scott’s strongest response was, “hoping it was fake.”
Of course the video was fake.
Of course the President actually shared it.
And of course there will be no consequences. We talked about how Republicans will almost certainly claim they “never saw it,” as if that absolves them of anything.
Mike’s take was blunt: the media should stop politely looking away. Put the image in front of every lawmaker pretending ignorance and make them answer for it. No ducking. No deflecting.
From there, the conversation spiraled into billionaires, Bezos hollowing out The Washington Post, and the grim reality that a man can rent Venice for a wedding but somehow can’t keep journalists employed.
Mike argued that the issue isn’t capitalism vs. socialism so much as the total collapse of any sense of public obligation among the ultra-rich. I noted that the only billionaires doing anything remotely decent seem to be women—MacKenzie Scott, specifically.
The throughline of the episode was deflection and instability: Trump’s slipping popularity, the Epstein fallout, and the increasingly frantic effort to rig the rules instead of winning voters. That energy carried straight into the Fucked-Up Friday competition.
Mike went first, sounding the alarm on election interference—seized ballots, Tulsi Gabbard lurking in the background, cryptic whistleblower letters, and the creeping sense that something far worse than rhetoric is being normalized.
I followed with the SAVE Act—a voter suppression measure that would disproportionately purge married women and anyone whose legal name doesn’t match their birth certificate. The point is simple: this isn’t about “integrity.” It’s about erasing votes at scale.
Lawrence closed with a chilling reminder that the last nuclear arms control treaty is effectively collapsing, leaving the world without inspections or limits—just guesswork and fear.
The vote ended in a near tie between Mike and me. We had too many folks in the chat voting to really take a tally—and we’re so grateful for it.
Huge thanks to everyone who joined us, including Ellie Leonard, Caro Henry, Polly Walker Blakemore, Noble Blend, Eric Lullove, Nick Paro and many more. Thank you to Karen Marie Shelton for moderating The Whatever chat and Yanni Hamburger for moderating our YouTube channel.
Next week on Monday, Lawrence will kick off his Monday queer-focused takeover show with his first guest Aidan Wharton. The show will be framed honestly as both community-building and necessary in a political climate where basic rights feel newly fragile.
We love you all—truly!—mean it.
