The internet was outraged after the euthanization of social media star Peanut the Squirrel by New York authorities, along with his housemate Fred the Raccoon. The pet squirrel was forcibly taken from his home in an all-out raid after a neighbor reported that he might have rabies. And somehow, it quickly turned into a rallying cry for the MAGA crowd against government tyranny. Glenn and Stu review the story, which proves we’re living in “Clown World,” as Glenn’s new book, “Propaganda Wars,” describes. Is this just a distraction, or is there a legitimate reason why this is the top story a day before the 2024 election? The truth is more shocking than Glenn and Stu expected …
Transcript
Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors
GLENN: Do I think this is the weaponization of government?
Yes. Some anonymous person made a complaint. Apparently said, he might have rabies. The person came in without the permission of the people, and grabbed him, and he bit him.
Of course he did! My dog might bite you too if you are aggressive to my family.
What the hell is this? Now, I don't know about you. But I suspect Karen.
STU: Uh-huh.
GLENN: That's what I -- that's who I suspect.
All Karens should be investigated today. And let me make this promise. If Donald Trump is elected, oh, all the Karens will be investigated. And probably, probably put in a camp someplace.
They're already building it, you know they are.
STU: This is an insane story.
GLENN: Insane.
STU: And it is so bizarre, when you're talking about the actual content of what occurred here.
You're talking about a squirrel and a raccoon, living as a pet. All of that. It is also one of the most egregious abuses of government power, I can ever remember.
It's like one of those things similar to -- like women's sports, where we talk about the transgender issue. There's a million different things that are really important about the transgender issue. Women's sports is not probably number one. The fact that a lot of medals get taken away.
It's dramatic. I have a girl, this might happen to. It's concerning. It's not the most serious part. It's the part that brings it home. Like the most. Right?
Moms and dads are like, wait a minute, my daughter will get hit in the face with a volleyball at 120 miles an hour. What are we talking about here? Right?
GLENN: Right.
STU: This is kind of in a weird way, sort of the same.
GLENN: It is! It is.
STU: You don't think about, it's a squirrel being killed. They get run over 9 trillion times a day.
GLENN: You know, can you stop just holding up the squirrel while you forget Fred the raccoon?
STU: I know, he's getting the shaft. Poor Fred.
GLENN: Poor Fred.
STU: But, I mean, if they will do this to a family, that is -- has documented all of this millions of millions of people. Followed this.
They see the squirrel is the little most adorable thing, jumping around. And the fact that they would do this.
GLENN: It's crazy.
STU: Knowing how visible it was. Just shows that they don't care. You think they care about you?
These people have millions and millions of people watching their daily life with this.
They took the squirrel and murdered it!
For no reason at all! In the most visible way possible.
They will not care about what your little complaint is.
Let me just point out, for no reason possible?
STU: No reason.
GLENN: Really? Okay.
Let me just quote Jen, early voter, Reuben from the Washington Post.
STU: Oh, God.
GLENN: Quote, the MAGA squirrel deserved to die. Now, I think this is both an absolutely ridiculous clown world story.
But I also think, it is a microcosm of everything this election is about.
Everything!
You know, they called Donald Trump vengeful.
They're going to get the MAGA squirrel, and kill him!
These people with peace in their hearts.
These animal lovers. The ones who just love the planet. Take an innocent squirrel.
That if he had a MAGA hat on, I can guarantee you, he didn't know what the hat was.
Not that he didn't know it was a MAGA hat!
He didn't even know it was a hat! And they kill him! This is nuts.
STU: Is that a squirrel joke?
GLENN: You've got a squirrel joke?
STU: You just said, it's nuts. You said, this is nuts. That's the ultimate squirrel joke. You made it, and didn't even realize it.
(laughter)
STU: I am really shocked by this, though.
I don't know -- I don't know, it's funny. Because I don't -- did the -- did the people who the parents -- did the parents of the squirrel, are their politics known at all?
Like, are they?
GLENN: I don't know. Apparently, she deleted this post, because she started to get hammered for it.
STU: Okay.
GLENN: But Jen Reuben, Washington Post. She seems to know, it was a MAGA squirrel. I haven't asked the squirrels in my area, who they're for.
So there's no little teeny squirrel signs that I've seen for Trump, around any of the trees that I have in my house.
STU: I have heard that particular squirrel, peanut, supports lower corporate taxes.
So I'm concerned.
But it became a political issue. Not because --
GLENN: Everything is political!
STU: But not because -- as far as I know, these were like big MAGA people, who had a squirrel.
It's because the people who want your squirrel to live, are conservatives!
The people who don't want the government to have the power, to invade your home. And take your pets.
And murder them, for no reason, that's now a political issue!
Because the left wants the government to have that power!
They do. They want them to be able to do that. And they might say, well, I love my pet.
What are you talking about?
I love my pet, and I'm voting for Kamala Harris.
It doesn't matter, what you're advocating for is the power of the government to be able to do this stuff to you.
GLENN: And you believe that it will never do it to you!
STU: Uh-huh, which is selfish, by the way. Incredibly selfish.
That you don't care about anybody else, because you don't think it might happen to you.
That's not -- that's an incredibly selfish, instinct. You have that already.
STU: Hmm.
GLENN: Who did I see over the weekend, talk about, you know, people wonder how -- people just in Germany, just went full-fledged Nazi. And he said, look, what happened with COVID.
He's like, I'll bet you, at least 30 percent of our population, couldn't wait to turn a neighbor in!
Because it signaled their virtue.
STU: First among them, Tim Walz, by the way.
GLENN: Yeah. Put a hotline up. A hotline up.
STU: Report your neighbors.
If they're not handling an illness the way you want them to.
GLENN: That's unbelievable.
STU: This man, might be vice president, after he did that. Just that.
Forget the fact that he allowed cities to burn to the ground. And the other crap that he's been doing.
GLENN: Well, this time. This time, they're not taking any chances.
They have put the National Guard on standby, in Seattle, Washington.
Portland. And Washington, DC.
You know, all those deeply red areas.
(laughter)
A lot of tiki torchers, parades going on.
GLENN: Yeah. Yeah. They're worried about all the Trump supporters there.
STU: Well, Jussie Smollett is one of the first, that let us know, that MAGA country is not exactly where we think it is.
Sometimes it's downtown Chicago, sometimes it's Portland, Oregon. Right. That's MAGA country, for you.
GLENN: Yeah. Well, we have infiltrated all those areas with the squirrels.
So and they are pissed.