December 12, 2024 • 33 mins
Michael Kosta investigates a surprisingly modest manifesto from suspected UHC CEO shooter Luigi Mangione and Trump's appointment of Kimberly Guilfoyle as Ambassador to Greece. Grace Kuhlenschmidt asks New Yorkers, "Who Deserves a Pardon from Biden?" Author T.J. English discusses his latest book "The Last Kilo," chronicling the rise and fall of an American cocaine empire.
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
You're listening to Comedy Central.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
From the most trusted journalists at Comedy Center.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
It's America's only sorce for news.
Speaker 3 (00:14):
This it's the Daily.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Show with your host Michael Costa's Well, welcome to the
(00:36):
Mail Show.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
I'm Michael Costa. We have so much to talk about tonight.
It's happy hour at the Pentagon. Joe Biden is making
a list and checking it twice, and Mangioni drops a manifesto.
So let's get into the headlines. Let's begin with the story.
(00:57):
Everyone is still talking about the arrest of Luigi, alleged
CEO killer and the reason conjugal visit is trending on Google.
Everyone's been wondering what his motivation was, and now they
have his manifesto. Although for a manifesto, it's surprisingly modest.
Speaker 4 (01:15):
The US has the number one most expensive healthcare system
in the world, yet we rank roughly number forty two
in life expectancy. Obviously, the problem is more complex, but
I do not have space, and frankly, I do not
pretend to be the most qualified person to lay out
the full argument.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
Okay, okay, I don't really know what I'm talking about.
Is a surprising thing to put in a manifesto. This
is the first murder manifesto I've read that could have
ended with but no worries. If not, you know, either
way you never see the Taliban like death to America.
Although we're not experts, so grain of salt. Now. Whether
(01:53):
he's guilty or not will be decided by a trial.
But one thing we know for certain, MANGIONI is making
everyone Menja horny.
Speaker 4 (02:01):
Emily, I know you were inside that courtroom today with
the suspect.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
How was he behaving, Norah? It was remarkable. He walked
in confidence at times that he seemed defiant.
Speaker 4 (02:13):
He was looking around, he kept looking back at a
couple of times I felt like he was.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
Making eye contact. Oh, he looked at me, he saw me.
We had a moment, and Nora, I'm getting new reports
just now that I can change him. Okay, Can I
(02:38):
just say this is confusing as a straight man to me,
I don't know what I was supposed to do to
attract women. One day, Let's do more work around the house,
the next, it's be a better listener. And now apparently
it's execute the leader of a fortune five hundred company.
Which one is it? Ladies, Let's move on to someone
who never has to go to court again. In another
(03:00):
edition of Trump two point zero Coming for the White House.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
I'm gonna come.
Speaker 1 (03:11):
Look. Look, there are over twenty countries in the world,
and the president has to appoint an ambassador to every
one of them. And being an ambassador, it's a pretty
sweet gig, all right. You get paid six figures to
move to some mansion in another country, and you can't
even get arrested when you plow into a group of
tourists with your motorcycle. It's basically a dream. And Trump
(03:32):
just announced the latest lucky person to get one of
these coveted positions.
Speaker 5 (03:36):
President ELEC. Donald Trump tapping another loyalists with close family
ties to fill out his administration, naming Kimberly Guilfoyle to
be ambassador to Greece.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Kimberly Guilfoil, Kimberly guilfo Why does why does that ring about?
Why does that hurt my ears?
Speaker 5 (03:53):
She has no diplomatic experience, but she's a long time
Trump loyalist. Firing up the Republican National Convention during his
twenty twenty reelection campaign, The best is.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
Yet to come. That's it. I remember the screaming lady.
That's the screaming lady, although I guess in Greece that's
considered normal volume. Maybe now you might be wondering why
is Trump appointing Kimberly Guilfoyle if she has no diplomatic
experience and seemingly no ties to Grease. Well, it turns
out it might be a consolation prize.
Speaker 6 (04:25):
In a statement, the President elect calling her a close
friend and praising her sharp intellect, but he made no
mention of her four year long engagement to his eldest son,
amid tabloid rumors that Donald Trump Junior is now dating
someone new.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
Wow, Wow, what a great way to end a relationship
forget about Listen, it's not you, it's me. Now we've
got listen. How would you like to be the ambassador
to Grease? Good for Kimberly to score this position after
a breakup. Last time one of my relationships ended, I
couldn't even get my Valtrex back. Now it's okay, she
(05:02):
needs it now too, So boh, by gosh, kimber lady,
your relationship is over. But now you get to move
to Greece, or, as you might say.
Speaker 7 (05:10):
The best.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
Oh my godness hurts still. Meanwhile, things are a little
rockier for a different Trump appointee, Pete Hegseth, nominee for
Secretary of Defense and veteran of multiple tours with Captain
Morgan last week. Last week, his nomination looked like it
was in big trouble, probably because people were worried he'd
have to blow into a breathalyzer before entering the situation room.
(05:35):
Let's check in on how it's going now.
Speaker 8 (05:38):
After a rocky start, Pete hegg Seth, president Elect Trump's
intended choice to lead the Pentagon.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
He's on the rebaand.
Speaker 4 (05:45):
He's much better off this week than it was last week.
Speaker 9 (05:47):
Some Republicans, including ones like Senator Tommy Tubberville out of Ballabama,
someone who's very close to Donald Trump, have brushed off
these reports of excessive drinking.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
Is he a drunk? I mean, does he hang out
in arge? Does he drink for lunch and dinner and recklessly?
Speaker 1 (06:06):
Does he piss Martiniz and shit olives? Now? Well, then
give this man to care, Declarence. I'm sorry, but he's
not drunk every second of his life. It's a pretty
low bar, which, by the way, is the only bar
that peak Hegseth hasn't been thrown out of Look, you
can argue what the exact definition of a drinking problem is,
(06:30):
but I think a good barometer is is everyone in
the country talking about how much you drink, then you
probably have a drinking problem. So that's one excuse for
putting heg Seth in charge of the Defense Department. Well,
let's hear another one from Oklahoma Senator Mark Wayne Mullen. Yes,
that's his name.
Speaker 8 (06:46):
What I'm saying is, when you're talking about drinking at
ten in the morning, that's a drinking problem.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
Now, it doesn't mean that there's well, there's a lot.
Speaker 3 (06:55):
Of politicians that have a drinking problem, Jake, Yes, of course.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
But I guess my question is.
Speaker 8 (07:01):
Yeah, and then there's probably a lot of media that
has a drinking problem too.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
Yeah. Yeah, a lot of people have drinking problems, but
they're not trying to run the Pentagon. So yeah, it's different.
It's different when you agree that's why you're crapping. It's
like he's saying, Oh, nobody cared about my drinking before
I got behind the wheel, and now all of a sudden,
it's a problem. Yeah, it's a problem. Yeah. Ultimately, it's
(07:27):
worse if you're an alcoholic in certain jobs, Like you
don't want to have an alcoholic pilot, but a drunk
daily show host. What's the worst that happens? I pee
myself behind the desk, and I need LaToya to bring
me new pants right now. LaToya new pants. LaToya new pants.
(07:50):
But even if he's confirmed, Pete seems to understand that
being blackout drunk twenty three hours a day might be
a problem, which is why he's offering to change.
Speaker 9 (07:58):
He's been telling members of the Center Republican Conference that
if you were confirmed as Secretary of Defense, he would
not drink alcohol at all.
Speaker 1 (08:07):
You'd abstain from drinking.
Speaker 9 (08:08):
This is the biggest deployment of my life, and there
won't be a drop of alcohol on my lips while
I'm doing it.
Speaker 1 (08:15):
It's good enough for me when has an alcohol I
ever promised to do better and not followed through. What
a deal. Just put me in charge of the largest
military in history, and I'll stop drinking. By the way,
jello shots don't count as drinking. That's eating. That's a
solid And it seems like it's good enough for Donald
(08:36):
Trump too.
Speaker 4 (08:37):
The fact that there are these allegations against him, the
fact that he said to some senators reportedly, he'll stop
drinking if he gets this job. Does that worry you?
Speaker 10 (08:48):
No, I think that everybody has something that they can stop.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Some people can stop eating.
Speaker 11 (08:55):
I'm lucky.
Speaker 3 (08:56):
I'm not a drinker, but he could stop eating.
Speaker 1 (09:01):
I think I speak for everyone when I say, sir, no,
you couldn't. All right, I guess he means eating junk food.
But still, there's a big difference between alcoholism and eating.
No one's ever said, dad, you came home full again.
You know what's weird. It's almost like the revelations about
Hagset's drinking have helped him, because now it feels like
(09:23):
if he can just steamroll the centators on this one issue,
he wins, like the whole completely unqualified part about his
resume is totally forgotten. But don't forget. If this guy
quits drinking to become Secretary of Defense, his only qualification
is that he quit drinking to become Secretary of Defense.
But hey, maybe this nomination isn't the worst way to
(09:45):
get someone off the sauce. In fact, some rehab centers
are already adopting this strategy.
Speaker 12 (09:51):
Has your drinking problem gotten out of control, then visit
five Star Recovery. Our program gets you back on your
feet by giving you full control of the higher US militant.
You don't have to face alcoholism alone. At five Star.
You will face it while managing a trillion dollar budget
and ten million soldiers. Put your mind at ease at
(10:11):
our lush grounds and spaw like facilities as you received constant,
overwhelming updates on the position and force posture of our
forces around the globe.
Speaker 7 (10:19):
When I went to five Star, I was a drunk.
They gave me peace of mind and the nuclear codes,
and it got me clean for light six and a
half weeks.
Speaker 12 (10:30):
Become your best self with our patented two step program.
Step one, admit you have a problem. Step two determine
how to redeploy our special forces in Syria without destabilizing
Kurtagh positions across the Euphrates.
Speaker 13 (10:44):
Do not our treaty with.
Speaker 12 (10:50):
Five Star. The journey to recovery starts with one confirmation
boats and by the way.
Speaker 7 (10:56):
If advice see those those cults guys the help.
Speaker 1 (11:03):
When we come back, Well, who's Joe Biden? We're pardon next,
don't blow up. Welcome back, to the Della shop. Last month,
(11:27):
Joe Biden pardoned his son Hunter, causing people to ask,
Joe Biden is still president, But he is, and he
still has pardon power for another month. Our own Grace, Coole,
and Schmidt hit the streets to ask New Yorkers who
they think he should use it on. Next.
Speaker 13 (11:41):
President Biden pardon two turkeys.
Speaker 14 (11:43):
Named Peach and Blossom on Thanksgiving and a human man
named Hunter. Biden a few days later to find out
who else he might pardon before leaving office, I decided
to ask my fellow friendly New Yorkers. Oh sorry, pardon me,
Pardon me, pardon me.
Speaker 13 (11:57):
That's my first. That's my first, that's my first. I
love this city.
Speaker 14 (12:03):
So they're saying that Biden might pardon enemies of Trump.
Can you think of anyone else who might be on
Trump's enemy list?
Speaker 13 (12:09):
Yes, me and all of my friends. Okay, gotcha. So
doctor bout to be pardoned for the crime of doing science.
We have to pardon Baucie. He got us through a
hard time.
Speaker 14 (12:17):
Yeah, he got me through actually a really really bad breakup.
Speaker 13 (12:21):
Do you think he should pardon Eric Adams, Eric Adams.
Speaker 11 (12:24):
Eric Adams, Eric Adams, who's Eric Adams The.
Speaker 14 (12:26):
New York saying, now, do you think that he should
pardon Giuliani for going goblin mode?
Speaker 13 (12:31):
Twenty four to seven?
Speaker 1 (12:32):
What's goblin mode?
Speaker 13 (12:33):
Well, it just kind of looks like a goblin.
Speaker 1 (12:36):
I think he's really disgusting.
Speaker 13 (12:37):
He shouldn't be pardoned for anything.
Speaker 14 (12:39):
Okay, So if he committed a crime, you're president, are
you pardoning him? The crime is actually disgusting, it's anus murder?
Speaker 13 (12:46):
One hundred people we've.
Speaker 15 (12:48):
Asked the conversation about our love is actually conditional and
really one of the things.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
Oh my god, all.
Speaker 13 (12:53):
Right, let's play Mary pardon you ready? Okay, Yeah, let's
do it. The QAnon Trauman O Trump, Eric.
Speaker 14 (13:01):
Adams Okay, and you can't lock them all, Okay, I
probably Eric Adams.
Speaker 13 (13:07):
You could watch this so you might have a chance, just.
Speaker 14 (13:09):
Because he's weak, and you know, you can like put
your kingerhooks balls and like make him square.
Speaker 3 (13:13):
Okay.
Speaker 13 (13:13):
You know what, I'll marry I'll marry Donald Trump, you
know what.
Speaker 1 (13:17):
Okay, I think i'd live a good life.
Speaker 12 (13:18):
I'm gonna marry Eric Adams interesting, just so that I
can play mind games with him.
Speaker 3 (13:24):
Love it thinks gaslight hate.
Speaker 16 (13:26):
Keith boss being in the city of New York. I
guess I'll pardon sure Adams.
Speaker 13 (13:32):
Congratulations, you're Cuana Truman. I forgot about that.
Speaker 1 (13:37):
You didn't.
Speaker 13 (13:38):
If you could get pardoned for one crime, what would
it be?
Speaker 1 (13:41):
Arson?
Speaker 13 (13:41):
That was a really quick answer. I like you like fire.
Let's get the matches away from this guy. Have you
ever done anything that you would need a pardon for? Uh,
marrying my first husband.
Speaker 17 (13:52):
I did pirate a lot of you know, LimeWire back
in the day.
Speaker 13 (13:56):
All LimeWire users should be pardoned.
Speaker 3 (13:58):
Absolutely.
Speaker 16 (13:58):
Do you ever like you're at or something and you're
holding a bunch of things and you forget to ring something.
Speaker 13 (14:04):
When you're doing self check out?
Speaker 14 (14:05):
To me, part of self checkout is maybe I am
gonna shop. Do you want to look into the pardoning
cam right here and ask Joe Biden to be partnered
for your linewier usage?
Speaker 1 (14:17):
Joe Biden, I'm sorry, I just really wanted that Lincoln Park.
Speaker 16 (14:20):
Single President Biden. I would like to be pardoned for
the occasional mistake of missing an item on self checkout?
Speaker 14 (14:29):
Right, she does it every single day, but she doesn't
mean to. Is there anything that you've done that you
think that you should get a pardon.
Speaker 15 (14:38):
For I guess telling people I love them when I don't.
Speaker 14 (14:41):
If you wouldn't mind looking into our pardon cam here
and asking Joe Biden for a pardon for that.
Speaker 15 (14:48):
Yes, Joe Biden, please pardon me for lying to men
all over the while. That's why Dave went, I'm black
to you too. This is the first time I'm mat
it on camera. I guess I am growing up, Biden.
Speaker 13 (15:01):
I need a pardon.
Speaker 14 (15:02):
I outed someone not buy television.
Speaker 13 (15:04):
To be fair, she said it herself.
Speaker 14 (15:06):
That's right, but I feel as though I was a
lesbian accomplice in this situation.
Speaker 13 (15:11):
I would date you by Did I need another pardon?
I picked someone up on camera. I'm an absolute player.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Thank you Rich when you come back. DJ's English are
the joining me on the show?
Speaker 11 (15:25):
Don't go away?
Speaker 1 (15:42):
Welcome back to Girl Show. My guest Tonight is a
journalist and best selling author whose new book is called
The Last Kilo. Please welcome TJ English. It's got it all,
(16:11):
It's got it all. This book is so fun to read.
Speaker 3 (16:13):
Thanks.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
When I was the first half of this book, I said,
you know what, I want to quit my job and
become a cocaine smuggler. It changed.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
Yeah, But with that by the end of the book,
you had a whole different view on that. I'm sure.
Speaker 1 (16:27):
Yeah, I mean should I do that?
Speaker 3 (16:29):
Should I?
Speaker 1 (16:30):
Should I?
Speaker 3 (16:31):
If you do it as well as they did it, yeah,
you could possibly create a whole era of cocaine. It
would last for ten years. Yeah, and you'd be very popular,
and you'd be the king of the hill, and then
it would all come crumbling down.
Speaker 1 (16:45):
Yeah. And who's they? Who do you write about so well?
Speaker 3 (16:49):
In here? I write about a group that was called
Los Muchachos. They were led by a man named Willie Falcone,
who was a Cuban exile whose family had been chased
out of Cuba at the time of the King Cuban Revolution,
and he came to the United States in the seventies.
He kind of was working construction, and then some members
(17:09):
of the anti Castro movement came to him and said,
we need some young guys who will partner with us
on a plan. We have to bring cocaine into the
United States and to sell it in the United States
and use the proceeds to buy guns and explosives for
the contras in Central America.
Speaker 1 (17:28):
And Willie said drugs are not my thing, goodbye. End
of the story.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
He probably maybe wishes he had said that. No, he
said I can do that. I mean, his main motivation
was to get rid of Castro. I mean that was
that generation of Cubans woke up in the morning dreaming
of a dead Fidel cast So, in fact, they woke
up in the morning dreaming of strangling Fidel cast to
death with their own hands.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
But in a way, doesn't that romanticize this a little bit?
I mean it's like, it's easy for Willie Falcon to say,
it's okay that I'm doing all this because it has
a good I have fedibility, because I'm overthrowing this regime. Yeah,
But I mean it grew bigger than that.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
For Yeah, I think we refer to that as a
false value system. I mean, he believed in it. He
believed in it, believed in the cause, and he was
willing to do anything for the cause. And so when
they they asked him to do this, he was all
for it. Now, you got to remember, in the late
seventies when this started, cocaine was only used by the
very rich in Hollywood, rock stars and some professional athletes.
(18:30):
Nobody else could afford it. So the first thing they
did was they made it affordable. They brought in so
much quantity that they could lower the price and sell,
and they started to sell it, and it was available
at the working class level. Everyone was using.
Speaker 1 (18:45):
How much cocaine did you do to research this book?
Speaker 3 (18:49):
Well, if you look at to cover the book they
showed me to cover the book, I say, could we
make the cocaine embossed so it looks like a real
looks like a real line of cocaine. I think we'd
sell more books.
Speaker 1 (19:02):
That way, And they probably said, sell more books, and
then Alabasa. This book has forty pages of reference notes.
So you know this is an entertaining read about cocaine
smugglers and speedboat racing and and sex and women and
(19:24):
buying sheriffs to create airfields so they can fly in
cocaine from Columbia. But you tell me you actually research
this shit, hey man.
Speaker 3 (19:34):
When I started this book, I thought I knew this
era like a lot of people. I saw the movies Scarface,
Miami Vice. You know, this era existed in our culture,
and I came to believe that a lot of that
is not untrue. But sensationalized. Sure, there's a lot of
stereotypes in the presentation of the cocaine era. For instance,
(19:55):
this group did not use violence is part of their operation.
That was startling to me. I was even concerned. I
was like, how do we tell a cocaine story without
uzi submachine guns and chainsaws.
Speaker 1 (20:08):
It seems like their philosophy was he catched more flies
with honey than vinegar. I mean, there's examples of people
people lying to them and they actually don't use violence.
If anything, they would call them in for a meeting
and give them some money and say we should be friends.
Speaker 3 (20:25):
Right, Well, you know what they would do, They would
cut them out of the business. And Willie and his
partner Samagluda, William sal and Loso Muchacho's that was the
name of the organization, were so predominant in the cocaine business.
If you got cut out of their operation, you were
cut out of the business. They had the best product
at the best price. And we're talking about Miami as
(20:46):
a base, but what they were known for was their
distribution system. So bringing cocaine to La to San Francisco,
to Chicago to New York. They really created a system
that touched off that entire era.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
And you sat with Falcon, I sure did, yeah, once twice.
Speaker 3 (21:03):
Seven or eight times. Wow. And then we communicate a
lot through.
Speaker 1 (21:07):
Is he still doing blow a lot of times or what? No,
you know, I gotta wonder that. It's like he's doing blow,
he's on speedboats, they're doing this. And then I'm like,
then he goes to prison. I'm like, well, he's got
to be addicted to cocaine at this point.
Speaker 3 (21:19):
He was doing blow in prison. I'm sure, Oh wow,
that's that's one of the easiest places to get both.
Speaker 1 (21:25):
Yeah, you don't have to tell me TJ. Yeah, I've
never been to prison. So you sat with William bunch?
Speaker 3 (21:34):
I sat with him a bunch, Yes, And I traveled
to where he to the country that shall remain nameless,
where he is.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
Sure.
Speaker 3 (21:42):
And it wasn't easy because with the middle of the
COVID crisis, so flying in and out in the country
was really difficult at the time, but it was really important.
I knew I couldn't do the book unless we I
could take stock of him face to face as a person.
Speaker 1 (21:57):
There's kind of a funny party vibe with cocaine. It's
done at the club. That's what I hear, right, and
then but then you say crack and it changes quickly.
Speaker 3 (22:10):
Oh man.
Speaker 1 (22:10):
And I wonder if Willie Falcon feels any remorse or
does he feel I mean, the crack epidemic. You know,
it's not a laughing matter, it's not a cocaine isn't either,
But does he feel any of this or.
Speaker 3 (22:24):
Yeah, the crack, the emergence of crack, which they had
nothing to do with, was a phenomenon that was created
kind of at the street level. Changed everything. Yeah, up
until then you could say that the cocaine era was
all parties and good times. Crack was ugly, it was violent.
It brought it down to a street level and took
(22:46):
all the fun out of it. Yes, all of a sudden,
if you were a cocaine dealer, damn it crack. Yeah,
all of a sudden you had blood on your hands
if you were a cocaine dealer.
Speaker 1 (22:56):
I remember in nineteen eighty nine watching George H. W.
Bush Do Blow, Do Blow, And that's when I said,
I will no. It was in the White House he
did this press conference.
Speaker 3 (23:11):
Ever tell anybody about that him doing the White House?
Speaker 1 (23:15):
You know what it would it would help. Yeah, if
there's a party that does blow, it's probably Republicans, to
be honest with you. But he showed everybody this bag
of crack. I was watching it with my father. I
remember thinking, holy shit, drugs are bad. He says in
this press conference that they've they bought this crack outside
at the White House. I dare, don't do drugs, Nancy Reagan.
(23:37):
Holy shit. Then I read your book. I find out
that that whole bought crack at the White House thing
was fake. It was fake. In fact, the Dea said
to a drug dealer, you got to sell us crack
outside of the White House, and the drug dealer says,
where the is the White House? I mean, this is
all made up?
Speaker 3 (23:56):
Right?
Speaker 5 (24:01):
What?
Speaker 1 (24:02):
Let's talk about the American government's role in all this,
the war on drugs, the war on drugs, and also
helping fund oh, the rebellion that started this.
Speaker 3 (24:12):
This opened my eyes and again I thought I knew
a lot about this era going into it, the ways
in which cocaine was used as a political tool. Here's
something that's interesting. William Sal's main money launderer was a
banker in Panama City known as Kiermo and Dara. He
(24:34):
was burying their billions and billions of dollars in bank
accounts in Panama when they.
Speaker 1 (24:39):
Would ship in drywall palace down to Panama. I mean,
I read this stuff and I'm like, discuss should be
the head of wal Mart or.
Speaker 3 (24:45):
Something, you know what I mean. They're inventive, right, I mean,
they basically were making it up as they went along.
These are guys who are high school dropouts. I mean,
it's ingenious. I find this in the criminal world quite often.
Criminal organization people with very little formal education that construct
these phenomenal criminal operations. If they had chosen legit form
(25:09):
of business, they probably would have been really success for sure.
Willi's Ghermo and Dara. So they deposed Manuel Norega in Panama.
The United States is done with him. He's no longer
their buddy. They force him out, they bring him the
United States put him away in prison. As a successor,
you know who, President Bush chooses to be president of Panela.
(25:30):
Guermo and Dara, William Sal's money launderer, becomes the president
of Panama.
Speaker 1 (25:37):
And there's an interesting partner here where they get worried
that they're not going to get their money from him,
and he says, don't worry, I'm going to become president.
Speaker 3 (25:44):
Yeah. And they thought they were going to get their
money and they lost four hundred million dollars in those accounts. Wow.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
Yeah, the money. And then he ends up being in
a cell next to Noriega and they're kind of chatting
to each other, and he was kind of like, Noriega
is annoying. I don't want to talk to.
Speaker 3 (25:58):
A strange bedfellows.
Speaker 1 (26:00):
Yeah, you write so much about the criminal underworld. You
know some of your other books, The Westies, Havana, Nocturne,
Dangerous Rhythms, Born to Kill. It's about the bloodiest Asian gang,
the Cuba of Mafia, the Irish mob. Just admit it.
You want to be a criminal.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
This is what keeps me from being a criminal. It
is yes, absolutely, what is it that?
Speaker 1 (26:25):
I mean, it's very entertaining to read this stuff, But
you are diving in.
Speaker 3 (26:29):
I've always thought of organized crime not as some fringe
aspect of American culture, but as the main vein of
American culture. And if you research it that way and
you look at it that way, you learn a lot
about America, politics, sociology. It really is an interesting prism
or angle to look at I call it from the gutter.
(26:49):
It's looking at America from the point of view of
the gutter. And you learn so much about it. It's
an inexhaustible topic to me. I can go back in
history and tell stories. I can do contemporary versions of it.
Speaker 1 (27:02):
I can't walk around Manhattan anymore because when Willie Falcone
was hiding, yes he had to hide from the federal government,
he did it here in New York on the Lamb.
He didn't want to stay home where I think his
wife was there where the living Upper east Side or.
Speaker 3 (27:17):
Something, the West Soupper west side along the park.
Speaker 1 (27:19):
So his his work partner would pick him up in
a van and he would had the Cebee radio and
they would drive him around Manhattan. He would talk to
Escobar on the Cebe radio, organizing every time I see
a van out there, I'm going, that's cocaine smuggling happened
right now.
Speaker 3 (27:35):
You might be onto something there, right, Yeah, a mobile
headquarters where he was consummating cocaine, international cocaine deals from
the back of the van.
Speaker 1 (27:46):
They were doing encrypted messaging.
Speaker 3 (27:47):
Yeah yeah, well yeah, they really. I mean, I'm telling
you if you if you bend your mind around what
it is they had to do to create this operation,
it's pretty extraordinary.
Speaker 1 (27:57):
I love there's a speedboat on the cover here because
they also.
Speaker 17 (28:00):
Were powerboat racing champions, Champion power I mean it's like,
but also, if you're doing coke, you want to go fast,
So that if they became power.
Speaker 1 (28:10):
Boat champions and they were high on marijuana, that'd be different.
Now you're only going three miles an hour, really felt rope.
Speaker 3 (28:17):
If they I am marijuana, they'd be doing their power
bow racing in the bathtub.
Speaker 1 (28:23):
I hate to say this because it romanticizes them, but
it does seem like they were. They were winners, or
at least they went big. Now it should everyone should know.
It ends poorly. It ends very very poorly. And there's
also a part of me that gets so mad at
all the rules they broke. Yeah, that's not fair. You
(28:44):
can't buy a sheriff fixing the jury they fixed, I
mean that blew me away, and tell me a little
bit about that.
Speaker 3 (28:51):
Well, they finally go to trial, a big federal racketeering trial,
and they're so popular in South Florida that they not
only fix the jury, they fix one two three four,
five jurors out of twelve they buy off to give
them a not guilty verdict, and they're found not guilty.
(29:11):
It was a shock to everybody. They own the system.
They were like Robin Hood's in South Florida. They were
revered by many Cuban Americans because they funneled money back
into the community. They've built baseball parks and they spread
they spread the money around. They were very popular.
Speaker 1 (29:28):
Some of the more powerful moments in the book are
when they're faced with those decisions through their families. Yes,
where parents who came over dangerous situations and almost act
now embarrassed of their children.
Speaker 3 (29:41):
That's very poignant. It was very poignant to me because
you know, their parents were kicked out of Cubea. Some
of them had been professionals, and they lost everything and
they wound up in South Florida with nothing. And here's
the kids eleven, twelve, thirteen are looking at their parents.
They grow up watching their parents suffer. I think what
(30:02):
was driving a lot of this cocaine generation was to
succeed and to make their parents proud. Ironically, that was
their goal to show that they could make it in
America in a way that would make their parents proud.
And it was the parents that came to them, knew
they were in the cocaine business and came to them
and said, son, you got to get out. You got
(30:23):
to get out of this business. It's not going to
end well.
Speaker 1 (30:26):
And that's easy. It's easy to cheat. It's hard to
do it the right way.
Speaker 3 (30:31):
It's hard to cheat too.
Speaker 1 (30:32):
It's hard to cheat. And that's the lesson I want
to ask you this. This is your tenth book. Yes,
for any young writer author out there. Advice for anyone
who wants to write. I don't even know if his
kids read books anymore, but there is a kid out
there that wants to write books. What would you say,
(30:53):
it's a him or her at this.
Speaker 3 (30:54):
Point, Write every day, write something every day, and get
out into the world, because writing is basically transforming your
experiences into the written word down on the page. And
so get out. If you're a kid who's in school,
get away from school. And I don't mean drop out.
(31:16):
I don't mean drop out, but I mean there's a
reality other than school, and that's the reality you got
to learn. Let go with the side of the pool
and push yourself out into the deep end. That's how
you become a writer.
Speaker 1 (31:28):
Well, you write wonderfully. My family was happy when I
finished this book because they were talking to me and
I'm going, like sex in prison, what the hell it's coin?
But it's a great book. Thank you for coming and
talking with us today. The last kilo is available out
TJ English and there's a quick break and right back
(31:49):
after that. How can I show up for time? But
before we go, please consider donating to One Simple Wish,
a charity that grants wishes to children in foster care.
(32:12):
If you can grant a wish or donate towards their
holiday Wish fund, please do so at the link below.
Now Here it is your moment of zep.
Speaker 10 (32:18):
Isn't that enough to figure out what the drone is
and who's behind it? I don't understand why we have
no information on this. It feels I don't believe it.
I think they do have information on if they're not
telling us. I mean my guess is that it's China
and they just aren't doing anything about it.
Speaker 3 (32:34):
Am I right?
Speaker 1 (32:37):
If the drone is large enough, we are going to
be able to find out who made it and who
brought it into effect.
Speaker 8 (32:45):
Explore more shows from the Daily Show podcast universe by
searching the Daily Show wherever you get your podcasts. Watch
The Daily Show week nights at eleven ten Central on
Comedy Central, and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount plus
Speaker 5 (33:05):
Paramount Podcasts
You're listening to Comedy Central.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
From the most trusted journalists at Comedy Center.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
It's America's only sorce for news.
Speaker 3 (00:14):
This it's the Daily.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Show with your host Michael Costa's Well, welcome to the
(00:36):
Mail Show.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
I'm Michael Costa. We have so much to talk about tonight.
It's happy hour at the Pentagon. Joe Biden is making
a list and checking it twice, and Mangioni drops a manifesto.
So let's get into the headlines. Let's begin with the story.
(00:57):
Everyone is still talking about the arrest of Luigi, alleged
CEO killer and the reason conjugal visit is trending on Google.
Everyone's been wondering what his motivation was, and now they
have his manifesto. Although for a manifesto, it's surprisingly modest.
Speaker 4 (01:15):
The US has the number one most expensive healthcare system
in the world, yet we rank roughly number forty two
in life expectancy. Obviously, the problem is more complex, but
I do not have space, and frankly, I do not
pretend to be the most qualified person to lay out
the full argument.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
Okay, okay, I don't really know what I'm talking about.
Is a surprising thing to put in a manifesto. This
is the first murder manifesto I've read that could have
ended with but no worries. If not, you know, either
way you never see the Taliban like death to America.
Although we're not experts, so grain of salt. Now. Whether
(01:53):
he's guilty or not will be decided by a trial.
But one thing we know for certain, MANGIONI is making
everyone Menja horny.
Speaker 4 (02:01):
Emily, I know you were inside that courtroom today with
the suspect.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
How was he behaving, Norah? It was remarkable. He walked
in confidence at times that he seemed defiant.
Speaker 4 (02:13):
He was looking around, he kept looking back at a
couple of times I felt like he was.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
Making eye contact. Oh, he looked at me, he saw me.
We had a moment, and Nora, I'm getting new reports
just now that I can change him. Okay, Can I
(02:38):
just say this is confusing as a straight man to me,
I don't know what I was supposed to do to
attract women. One day, Let's do more work around the house,
the next, it's be a better listener. And now apparently
it's execute the leader of a fortune five hundred company.
Which one is it? Ladies, Let's move on to someone
who never has to go to court again. In another
(03:00):
edition of Trump two point zero Coming for the White House.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
I'm gonna come.
Speaker 1 (03:11):
Look. Look, there are over twenty countries in the world,
and the president has to appoint an ambassador to every
one of them. And being an ambassador, it's a pretty
sweet gig, all right. You get paid six figures to
move to some mansion in another country, and you can't
even get arrested when you plow into a group of
tourists with your motorcycle. It's basically a dream. And Trump
(03:32):
just announced the latest lucky person to get one of
these coveted positions.
Speaker 5 (03:36):
President ELEC. Donald Trump tapping another loyalists with close family
ties to fill out his administration, naming Kimberly Guilfoyle to
be ambassador to Greece.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Kimberly Guilfoil, Kimberly guilfo Why does why does that ring about?
Why does that hurt my ears?
Speaker 5 (03:53):
She has no diplomatic experience, but she's a long time
Trump loyalist. Firing up the Republican National Convention during his
twenty twenty reelection campaign, The best is.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
Yet to come. That's it. I remember the screaming lady.
That's the screaming lady, although I guess in Greece that's
considered normal volume. Maybe now you might be wondering why
is Trump appointing Kimberly Guilfoyle if she has no diplomatic
experience and seemingly no ties to Grease. Well, it turns
out it might be a consolation prize.
Speaker 6 (04:25):
In a statement, the President elect calling her a close
friend and praising her sharp intellect, but he made no
mention of her four year long engagement to his eldest son,
amid tabloid rumors that Donald Trump Junior is now dating
someone new.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
Wow, Wow, what a great way to end a relationship
forget about Listen, it's not you, it's me. Now we've
got listen. How would you like to be the ambassador
to Grease? Good for Kimberly to score this position after
a breakup. Last time one of my relationships ended, I
couldn't even get my Valtrex back. Now it's okay, she
(05:02):
needs it now too, So boh, by gosh, kimber lady,
your relationship is over. But now you get to move
to Greece, or, as you might say.
Speaker 7 (05:10):
The best.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
Oh my godness hurts still. Meanwhile, things are a little
rockier for a different Trump appointee, Pete Hegseth, nominee for
Secretary of Defense and veteran of multiple tours with Captain
Morgan last week. Last week, his nomination looked like it
was in big trouble, probably because people were worried he'd
have to blow into a breathalyzer before entering the situation room.
(05:35):
Let's check in on how it's going now.
Speaker 8 (05:38):
After a rocky start, Pete hegg Seth, president Elect Trump's
intended choice to lead the Pentagon.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
He's on the rebaand.
Speaker 4 (05:45):
He's much better off this week than it was last week.
Speaker 9 (05:47):
Some Republicans, including ones like Senator Tommy Tubberville out of Ballabama,
someone who's very close to Donald Trump, have brushed off
these reports of excessive drinking.
Speaker 3 (05:57):
Is he a drunk? I mean, does he hang out
in arge? Does he drink for lunch and dinner and recklessly?
Speaker 1 (06:06):
Does he piss Martiniz and shit olives? Now? Well, then
give this man to care, Declarence. I'm sorry, but he's
not drunk every second of his life. It's a pretty
low bar, which, by the way, is the only bar
that peak Hegseth hasn't been thrown out of Look, you
can argue what the exact definition of a drinking problem is,
(06:30):
but I think a good barometer is is everyone in
the country talking about how much you drink, then you
probably have a drinking problem. So that's one excuse for
putting heg Seth in charge of the Defense Department. Well,
let's hear another one from Oklahoma Senator Mark Wayne Mullen. Yes,
that's his name.
Speaker 8 (06:46):
What I'm saying is, when you're talking about drinking at
ten in the morning, that's a drinking problem.
Speaker 1 (06:52):
Now, it doesn't mean that there's well, there's a lot.
Speaker 3 (06:55):
Of politicians that have a drinking problem, Jake, Yes, of course.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
But I guess my question is.
Speaker 8 (07:01):
Yeah, and then there's probably a lot of media that
has a drinking problem too.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
Yeah. Yeah, a lot of people have drinking problems, but
they're not trying to run the Pentagon. So yeah, it's different.
It's different when you agree that's why you're crapping. It's
like he's saying, Oh, nobody cared about my drinking before
I got behind the wheel, and now all of a sudden,
it's a problem. Yeah, it's a problem. Yeah. Ultimately, it's
(07:27):
worse if you're an alcoholic in certain jobs, Like you
don't want to have an alcoholic pilot, but a drunk
daily show host. What's the worst that happens? I pee
myself behind the desk, and I need LaToya to bring
me new pants right now. LaToya new pants. LaToya new pants.
(07:50):
But even if he's confirmed, Pete seems to understand that
being blackout drunk twenty three hours a day might be
a problem, which is why he's offering to change.
Speaker 9 (07:58):
He's been telling members of the Center Republican Conference that
if you were confirmed as Secretary of Defense, he would
not drink alcohol at all.
Speaker 1 (08:07):
You'd abstain from drinking.
Speaker 9 (08:08):
This is the biggest deployment of my life, and there
won't be a drop of alcohol on my lips while
I'm doing it.
Speaker 1 (08:15):
It's good enough for me when has an alcohol I
ever promised to do better and not followed through. What
a deal. Just put me in charge of the largest
military in history, and I'll stop drinking. By the way,
jello shots don't count as drinking. That's eating. That's a
solid And it seems like it's good enough for Donald
(08:36):
Trump too.
Speaker 4 (08:37):
The fact that there are these allegations against him, the
fact that he said to some senators reportedly, he'll stop
drinking if he gets this job. Does that worry you?
Speaker 10 (08:48):
No, I think that everybody has something that they can stop.
Speaker 3 (08:53):
Some people can stop eating.
Speaker 11 (08:55):
I'm lucky.
Speaker 3 (08:56):
I'm not a drinker, but he could stop eating.
Speaker 1 (09:01):
I think I speak for everyone when I say, sir, no,
you couldn't. All right, I guess he means eating junk food.
But still, there's a big difference between alcoholism and eating.
No one's ever said, dad, you came home full again.
You know what's weird. It's almost like the revelations about
Hagset's drinking have helped him, because now it feels like
(09:23):
if he can just steamroll the centators on this one issue,
he wins, like the whole completely unqualified part about his
resume is totally forgotten. But don't forget. If this guy
quits drinking to become Secretary of Defense, his only qualification
is that he quit drinking to become Secretary of Defense.
But hey, maybe this nomination isn't the worst way to
(09:45):
get someone off the sauce. In fact, some rehab centers
are already adopting this strategy.
Speaker 12 (09:51):
Has your drinking problem gotten out of control, then visit
five Star Recovery. Our program gets you back on your
feet by giving you full control of the higher US militant.
You don't have to face alcoholism alone. At five Star.
You will face it while managing a trillion dollar budget
and ten million soldiers. Put your mind at ease at
(10:11):
our lush grounds and spaw like facilities as you received constant,
overwhelming updates on the position and force posture of our
forces around the globe.
Speaker 7 (10:19):
When I went to five Star, I was a drunk.
They gave me peace of mind and the nuclear codes,
and it got me clean for light six and a
half weeks.
Speaker 12 (10:30):
Become your best self with our patented two step program.
Step one, admit you have a problem. Step two determine
how to redeploy our special forces in Syria without destabilizing
Kurtagh positions across the Euphrates.
Speaker 13 (10:44):
Do not our treaty with.
Speaker 12 (10:50):
Five Star. The journey to recovery starts with one confirmation
boats and by the way.
Speaker 7 (10:56):
If advice see those those cults guys the help.
Speaker 1 (11:03):
When we come back, Well, who's Joe Biden? We're pardon next,
don't blow up. Welcome back, to the Della shop. Last month,
(11:27):
Joe Biden pardoned his son Hunter, causing people to ask,
Joe Biden is still president, But he is, and he
still has pardon power for another month. Our own Grace, Coole,
and Schmidt hit the streets to ask New Yorkers who
they think he should use it on. Next.
Speaker 13 (11:41):
President Biden pardon two turkeys.
Speaker 14 (11:43):
Named Peach and Blossom on Thanksgiving and a human man
named Hunter. Biden a few days later to find out
who else he might pardon before leaving office, I decided
to ask my fellow friendly New Yorkers. Oh sorry, pardon me,
Pardon me, pardon me.
Speaker 13 (11:57):
That's my first. That's my first, that's my first. I
love this city.
Speaker 14 (12:03):
So they're saying that Biden might pardon enemies of Trump.
Can you think of anyone else who might be on
Trump's enemy list?
Speaker 13 (12:09):
Yes, me and all of my friends. Okay, gotcha. So
doctor bout to be pardoned for the crime of doing science.
We have to pardon Baucie. He got us through a
hard time.
Speaker 14 (12:17):
Yeah, he got me through actually a really really bad breakup.
Speaker 13 (12:21):
Do you think he should pardon Eric Adams, Eric Adams.
Speaker 11 (12:24):
Eric Adams, Eric Adams, who's Eric Adams The.
Speaker 14 (12:26):
New York saying, now, do you think that he should
pardon Giuliani for going goblin mode?
Speaker 13 (12:31):
Twenty four to seven?
Speaker 1 (12:32):
What's goblin mode?
Speaker 13 (12:33):
Well, it just kind of looks like a goblin.
Speaker 1 (12:36):
I think he's really disgusting.
Speaker 13 (12:37):
He shouldn't be pardoned for anything.
Speaker 14 (12:39):
Okay, So if he committed a crime, you're president, are
you pardoning him? The crime is actually disgusting, it's anus murder?
Speaker 13 (12:46):
One hundred people we've.
Speaker 15 (12:48):
Asked the conversation about our love is actually conditional and
really one of the things.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
Oh my god, all.
Speaker 13 (12:53):
Right, let's play Mary pardon you ready? Okay, Yeah, let's
do it. The QAnon Trauman O Trump, Eric.
Speaker 14 (13:01):
Adams Okay, and you can't lock them all, Okay, I
probably Eric Adams.
Speaker 13 (13:07):
You could watch this so you might have a chance, just.
Speaker 14 (13:09):
Because he's weak, and you know, you can like put
your kingerhooks balls and like make him square.
Speaker 3 (13:13):
Okay.
Speaker 13 (13:13):
You know what, I'll marry I'll marry Donald Trump, you
know what.
Speaker 1 (13:17):
Okay, I think i'd live a good life.
Speaker 12 (13:18):
I'm gonna marry Eric Adams interesting, just so that I
can play mind games with him.
Speaker 3 (13:24):
Love it thinks gaslight hate.
Speaker 16 (13:26):
Keith boss being in the city of New York. I
guess I'll pardon sure Adams.
Speaker 13 (13:32):
Congratulations, you're Cuana Truman. I forgot about that.
Speaker 1 (13:37):
You didn't.
Speaker 13 (13:38):
If you could get pardoned for one crime, what would
it be?
Speaker 1 (13:41):
Arson?
Speaker 13 (13:41):
That was a really quick answer. I like you like fire.
Let's get the matches away from this guy. Have you
ever done anything that you would need a pardon for? Uh,
marrying my first husband.
Speaker 17 (13:52):
I did pirate a lot of you know, LimeWire back
in the day.
Speaker 13 (13:56):
All LimeWire users should be pardoned.
Speaker 3 (13:58):
Absolutely.
Speaker 16 (13:58):
Do you ever like you're at or something and you're
holding a bunch of things and you forget to ring something.
Speaker 13 (14:04):
When you're doing self check out?
Speaker 14 (14:05):
To me, part of self checkout is maybe I am
gonna shop. Do you want to look into the pardoning
cam right here and ask Joe Biden to be partnered
for your linewier usage?
Speaker 1 (14:17):
Joe Biden, I'm sorry, I just really wanted that Lincoln Park.
Speaker 16 (14:20):
Single President Biden. I would like to be pardoned for
the occasional mistake of missing an item on self checkout?
Speaker 14 (14:29):
Right, she does it every single day, but she doesn't
mean to. Is there anything that you've done that you
think that you should get a pardon.
Speaker 15 (14:38):
For I guess telling people I love them when I don't.
Speaker 14 (14:41):
If you wouldn't mind looking into our pardon cam here
and asking Joe Biden for a pardon for that.
Speaker 15 (14:48):
Yes, Joe Biden, please pardon me for lying to men
all over the while. That's why Dave went, I'm black
to you too. This is the first time I'm mat
it on camera. I guess I am growing up, Biden.
Speaker 13 (15:01):
I need a pardon.
Speaker 14 (15:02):
I outed someone not buy television.
Speaker 13 (15:04):
To be fair, she said it herself.
Speaker 14 (15:06):
That's right, but I feel as though I was a
lesbian accomplice in this situation.
Speaker 13 (15:11):
I would date you by Did I need another pardon?
I picked someone up on camera. I'm an absolute player.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Thank you Rich when you come back. DJ's English are
the joining me on the show?
Speaker 11 (15:25):
Don't go away?
Speaker 1 (15:42):
Welcome back to Girl Show. My guest Tonight is a
journalist and best selling author whose new book is called
The Last Kilo. Please welcome TJ English. It's got it all,
(16:11):
It's got it all. This book is so fun to read.
Speaker 3 (16:13):
Thanks.
Speaker 1 (16:14):
When I was the first half of this book, I said,
you know what, I want to quit my job and
become a cocaine smuggler. It changed.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
Yeah, But with that by the end of the book,
you had a whole different view on that. I'm sure.
Speaker 1 (16:27):
Yeah, I mean should I do that?
Speaker 3 (16:29):
Should I?
Speaker 1 (16:30):
Should I?
Speaker 3 (16:31):
If you do it as well as they did it, yeah,
you could possibly create a whole era of cocaine. It
would last for ten years. Yeah, and you'd be very popular,
and you'd be the king of the hill, and then
it would all come crumbling down.
Speaker 1 (16:45):
Yeah. And who's they? Who do you write about so well?
Speaker 3 (16:49):
In here? I write about a group that was called
Los Muchachos. They were led by a man named Willie Falcone,
who was a Cuban exile whose family had been chased
out of Cuba at the time of the King Cuban Revolution,
and he came to the United States in the seventies.
He kind of was working construction, and then some members
(17:09):
of the anti Castro movement came to him and said,
we need some young guys who will partner with us
on a plan. We have to bring cocaine into the
United States and to sell it in the United States
and use the proceeds to buy guns and explosives for
the contras in Central America.
Speaker 1 (17:28):
And Willie said drugs are not my thing, goodbye. End
of the story.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
He probably maybe wishes he had said that. No, he
said I can do that. I mean, his main motivation
was to get rid of Castro. I mean that was
that generation of Cubans woke up in the morning dreaming
of a dead Fidel cast So, in fact, they woke
up in the morning dreaming of strangling Fidel cast to
death with their own hands.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
But in a way, doesn't that romanticize this a little bit?
I mean it's like, it's easy for Willie Falcon to say,
it's okay that I'm doing all this because it has
a good I have fedibility, because I'm overthrowing this regime. Yeah,
But I mean it grew bigger than that.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
For Yeah, I think we refer to that as a
false value system. I mean, he believed in it. He
believed in it, believed in the cause, and he was
willing to do anything for the cause. And so when
they they asked him to do this, he was all
for it. Now, you got to remember, in the late
seventies when this started, cocaine was only used by the
very rich in Hollywood, rock stars and some professional athletes.
(18:30):
Nobody else could afford it. So the first thing they
did was they made it affordable. They brought in so
much quantity that they could lower the price and sell,
and they started to sell it, and it was available
at the working class level. Everyone was using.
Speaker 1 (18:45):
How much cocaine did you do to research this book?
Speaker 3 (18:49):
Well, if you look at to cover the book they
showed me to cover the book, I say, could we
make the cocaine embossed so it looks like a real
looks like a real line of cocaine. I think we'd
sell more books.
Speaker 1 (19:02):
That way, And they probably said, sell more books, and
then Alabasa. This book has forty pages of reference notes.
So you know this is an entertaining read about cocaine
smugglers and speedboat racing and and sex and women and
(19:24):
buying sheriffs to create airfields so they can fly in
cocaine from Columbia. But you tell me you actually research
this shit, hey man.
Speaker 3 (19:34):
When I started this book, I thought I knew this
era like a lot of people. I saw the movies Scarface,
Miami Vice. You know, this era existed in our culture,
and I came to believe that a lot of that
is not untrue. But sensationalized. Sure, there's a lot of
stereotypes in the presentation of the cocaine era. For instance,
(19:55):
this group did not use violence is part of their operation.
That was startling to me. I was even concerned. I
was like, how do we tell a cocaine story without
uzi submachine guns and chainsaws.
Speaker 1 (20:08):
It seems like their philosophy was he catched more flies
with honey than vinegar. I mean, there's examples of people
people lying to them and they actually don't use violence.
If anything, they would call them in for a meeting
and give them some money and say we should be friends.
Speaker 3 (20:25):
Right, Well, you know what they would do, They would
cut them out of the business. And Willie and his
partner Samagluda, William sal and Loso Muchacho's that was the
name of the organization, were so predominant in the cocaine business.
If you got cut out of their operation, you were
cut out of the business. They had the best product
at the best price. And we're talking about Miami as
(20:46):
a base, but what they were known for was their
distribution system. So bringing cocaine to La to San Francisco,
to Chicago to New York. They really created a system
that touched off that entire era.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
And you sat with Falcon, I sure did, yeah, once twice.
Speaker 3 (21:03):
Seven or eight times. Wow. And then we communicate a
lot through.
Speaker 1 (21:07):
Is he still doing blow a lot of times or what? No,
you know, I gotta wonder that. It's like he's doing blow,
he's on speedboats, they're doing this. And then I'm like,
then he goes to prison. I'm like, well, he's got
to be addicted to cocaine at this point.
Speaker 3 (21:19):
He was doing blow in prison. I'm sure, Oh wow,
that's that's one of the easiest places to get both.
Speaker 1 (21:25):
Yeah, you don't have to tell me TJ. Yeah, I've
never been to prison. So you sat with William bunch?
Speaker 3 (21:34):
I sat with him a bunch, Yes, And I traveled
to where he to the country that shall remain nameless,
where he is.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
Sure.
Speaker 3 (21:42):
And it wasn't easy because with the middle of the
COVID crisis, so flying in and out in the country
was really difficult at the time, but it was really important.
I knew I couldn't do the book unless we I
could take stock of him face to face as a person.
Speaker 1 (21:57):
There's kind of a funny party vibe with cocaine. It's
done at the club. That's what I hear, right, and
then but then you say crack and it changes quickly.
Speaker 3 (22:10):
Oh man.
Speaker 1 (22:10):
And I wonder if Willie Falcon feels any remorse or
does he feel I mean, the crack epidemic. You know,
it's not a laughing matter, it's not a cocaine isn't either,
But does he feel any of this or.
Speaker 3 (22:24):
Yeah, the crack, the emergence of crack, which they had
nothing to do with, was a phenomenon that was created
kind of at the street level. Changed everything. Yeah, up
until then you could say that the cocaine era was
all parties and good times. Crack was ugly, it was violent.
It brought it down to a street level and took
(22:46):
all the fun out of it. Yes, all of a sudden,
if you were a cocaine dealer, damn it crack. Yeah,
all of a sudden you had blood on your hands
if you were a cocaine dealer.
Speaker 1 (22:56):
I remember in nineteen eighty nine watching George H. W.
Bush Do Blow, Do Blow, And that's when I said,
I will no. It was in the White House he
did this press conference.
Speaker 3 (23:11):
Ever tell anybody about that him doing the White House?
Speaker 1 (23:15):
You know what it would it would help. Yeah, if
there's a party that does blow, it's probably Republicans, to
be honest with you. But he showed everybody this bag
of crack. I was watching it with my father. I
remember thinking, holy shit, drugs are bad. He says in
this press conference that they've they bought this crack outside
at the White House. I dare, don't do drugs, Nancy Reagan.
(23:37):
Holy shit. Then I read your book. I find out
that that whole bought crack at the White House thing
was fake. It was fake. In fact, the Dea said
to a drug dealer, you got to sell us crack
outside of the White House, and the drug dealer says,
where the is the White House? I mean, this is
all made up?
Speaker 3 (23:56):
Right?
Speaker 5 (24:01):
What?
Speaker 1 (24:02):
Let's talk about the American government's role in all this,
the war on drugs, the war on drugs, and also
helping fund oh, the rebellion that started this.
Speaker 3 (24:12):
This opened my eyes and again I thought I knew
a lot about this era going into it, the ways
in which cocaine was used as a political tool. Here's
something that's interesting. William Sal's main money launderer was a
banker in Panama City known as Kiermo and Dara. He
(24:34):
was burying their billions and billions of dollars in bank
accounts in Panama when they.
Speaker 1 (24:39):
Would ship in drywall palace down to Panama. I mean,
I read this stuff and I'm like, discuss should be
the head of wal Mart or.
Speaker 3 (24:45):
Something, you know what I mean. They're inventive, right, I mean,
they basically were making it up as they went along.
These are guys who are high school dropouts. I mean,
it's ingenious. I find this in the criminal world quite often.
Criminal organization people with very little formal education that construct
these phenomenal criminal operations. If they had chosen legit form
(25:09):
of business, they probably would have been really success for sure.
Willi's Ghermo and Dara. So they deposed Manuel Norega in Panama.
The United States is done with him. He's no longer
their buddy. They force him out, they bring him the
United States put him away in prison. As a successor,
you know who, President Bush chooses to be president of Panela.
(25:30):
Guermo and Dara, William Sal's money launderer, becomes the president
of Panama.
Speaker 1 (25:37):
And there's an interesting partner here where they get worried
that they're not going to get their money from him,
and he says, don't worry, I'm going to become president.
Speaker 3 (25:44):
Yeah. And they thought they were going to get their
money and they lost four hundred million dollars in those accounts. Wow.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
Yeah, the money. And then he ends up being in
a cell next to Noriega and they're kind of chatting
to each other, and he was kind of like, Noriega
is annoying. I don't want to talk to.
Speaker 3 (25:58):
A strange bedfellows.
Speaker 1 (26:00):
Yeah, you write so much about the criminal underworld. You
know some of your other books, The Westies, Havana, Nocturne,
Dangerous Rhythms, Born to Kill. It's about the bloodiest Asian gang,
the Cuba of Mafia, the Irish mob. Just admit it.
You want to be a criminal.
Speaker 3 (26:19):
This is what keeps me from being a criminal. It
is yes, absolutely, what is it that?
Speaker 1 (26:25):
I mean, it's very entertaining to read this stuff, But
you are diving in.
Speaker 3 (26:29):
I've always thought of organized crime not as some fringe
aspect of American culture, but as the main vein of
American culture. And if you research it that way and
you look at it that way, you learn a lot
about America, politics, sociology. It really is an interesting prism
or angle to look at I call it from the gutter.
(26:49):
It's looking at America from the point of view of
the gutter. And you learn so much about it. It's
an inexhaustible topic to me. I can go back in
history and tell stories. I can do contemporary versions of it.
Speaker 1 (27:02):
I can't walk around Manhattan anymore because when Willie Falcone
was hiding, yes he had to hide from the federal government,
he did it here in New York on the Lamb.
He didn't want to stay home where I think his
wife was there where the living Upper east Side or.
Speaker 3 (27:17):
Something, the West Soupper west side along the park.
Speaker 1 (27:19):
So his his work partner would pick him up in
a van and he would had the Cebee radio and
they would drive him around Manhattan. He would talk to
Escobar on the Cebe radio, organizing every time I see
a van out there, I'm going, that's cocaine smuggling happened
right now.
Speaker 3 (27:35):
You might be onto something there, right, Yeah, a mobile
headquarters where he was consummating cocaine, international cocaine deals from
the back of the van.
Speaker 1 (27:46):
They were doing encrypted messaging.
Speaker 3 (27:47):
Yeah yeah, well yeah, they really. I mean, I'm telling
you if you if you bend your mind around what
it is they had to do to create this operation,
it's pretty extraordinary.
Speaker 1 (27:57):
I love there's a speedboat on the cover here because
they also.
Speaker 17 (28:00):
Were powerboat racing champions, Champion power I mean it's like,
but also, if you're doing coke, you want to go fast,
So that if they became power.
Speaker 1 (28:10):
Boat champions and they were high on marijuana, that'd be different.
Now you're only going three miles an hour, really felt rope.
Speaker 3 (28:17):
If they I am marijuana, they'd be doing their power
bow racing in the bathtub.
Speaker 1 (28:23):
I hate to say this because it romanticizes them, but
it does seem like they were. They were winners, or
at least they went big. Now it should everyone should know.
It ends poorly. It ends very very poorly. And there's
also a part of me that gets so mad at
all the rules they broke. Yeah, that's not fair. You
(28:44):
can't buy a sheriff fixing the jury they fixed, I
mean that blew me away, and tell me a little
bit about that.
Speaker 3 (28:51):
Well, they finally go to trial, a big federal racketeering trial,
and they're so popular in South Florida that they not
only fix the jury, they fix one two three four,
five jurors out of twelve they buy off to give
them a not guilty verdict, and they're found not guilty.
(29:11):
It was a shock to everybody. They own the system.
They were like Robin Hood's in South Florida. They were
revered by many Cuban Americans because they funneled money back
into the community. They've built baseball parks and they spread
they spread the money around. They were very popular.
Speaker 1 (29:28):
Some of the more powerful moments in the book are
when they're faced with those decisions through their families. Yes,
where parents who came over dangerous situations and almost act
now embarrassed of their children.
Speaker 3 (29:41):
That's very poignant. It was very poignant to me because
you know, their parents were kicked out of Cubea. Some
of them had been professionals, and they lost everything and
they wound up in South Florida with nothing. And here's
the kids eleven, twelve, thirteen are looking at their parents.
They grow up watching their parents suffer. I think what
(30:02):
was driving a lot of this cocaine generation was to
succeed and to make their parents proud. Ironically, that was
their goal to show that they could make it in
America in a way that would make their parents proud.
And it was the parents that came to them, knew
they were in the cocaine business and came to them
and said, son, you got to get out. You got
(30:23):
to get out of this business. It's not going to
end well.
Speaker 1 (30:26):
And that's easy. It's easy to cheat. It's hard to
do it the right way.
Speaker 3 (30:31):
It's hard to cheat too.
Speaker 1 (30:32):
It's hard to cheat. And that's the lesson I want
to ask you this. This is your tenth book. Yes,
for any young writer author out there. Advice for anyone
who wants to write. I don't even know if his
kids read books anymore, but there is a kid out
there that wants to write books. What would you say,
(30:53):
it's a him or her at this.
Speaker 3 (30:54):
Point, Write every day, write something every day, and get
out into the world, because writing is basically transforming your
experiences into the written word down on the page. And
so get out. If you're a kid who's in school,
get away from school. And I don't mean drop out.
(31:16):
I don't mean drop out, but I mean there's a
reality other than school, and that's the reality you got
to learn. Let go with the side of the pool
and push yourself out into the deep end. That's how
you become a writer.
Speaker 1 (31:28):
Well, you write wonderfully. My family was happy when I
finished this book because they were talking to me and
I'm going, like sex in prison, what the hell it's coin?
But it's a great book. Thank you for coming and
talking with us today. The last kilo is available out
TJ English and there's a quick break and right back
(31:49):
after that. How can I show up for time? But
before we go, please consider donating to One Simple Wish,
a charity that grants wishes to children in foster care.
(32:12):
If you can grant a wish or donate towards their
holiday Wish fund, please do so at the link below.
Now Here it is your moment of zep.
Speaker 10 (32:18):
Isn't that enough to figure out what the drone is
and who's behind it? I don't understand why we have
no information on this. It feels I don't believe it.
I think they do have information on if they're not
telling us. I mean my guess is that it's China
and they just aren't doing anything about it.
Speaker 3 (32:34):
Am I right?
Speaker 1 (32:37):
If the drone is large enough, we are going to
be able to find out who made it and who
brought it into effect.
Speaker 8 (32:45):
Explore more shows from the Daily Show podcast universe by
searching the Daily Show wherever you get your podcasts. Watch
The Daily Show week nights at eleven ten Central on
Comedy Central, and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount plus
Speaker 5 (33:05):
Paramount Podcasts
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