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The Politics Guys

Omar Attack, ICE De-escalation?, Trump’s Fed Pick

The Politics Guys

Michael Baranowski

Politics, News

4.4783 Ratings

🗓️ 31 January 2026

⏱️ 56 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Mike, Trey, and new-to-the-show cohost Russ Gifford open with the January 27 assault on Rep. Ilhan Omar at a Minneapolis town hall. Trey frames the incident as crossing a line but notes it was closer to an “enhanced protest” than a lethal attack, stressing that it could have been far worse. Russ draws a parallel to symbolic political assaults like the shoe thrown at George W. Bush, while Mike emphasizes that President Trump’s response—suggesting Omar staged the attack—says more about the coarsening of political norms than about the physical harm involved. Next, the guys turn to the escalating ICE controversy in Minneapolis following the killing of Alex Pretti, with video evidence undermining the official account and intensifying public backlash. Trey argues that the administration’s actions have perversely handed Democrats a political win, while underscoring due-process concerns and warning against shifting legal standards based on a suspect’s past behavior. Russ criticizes both federal and local leadership, portraying the administration’s approach as driven by spectacle rather than policy coherence, while Mike focuses on structural issues—especially the use of administrative warrants and the Fourth Amendment implications — suggesting that any de-escalation will hinge on whether Congress meaningfully reins in ICE authority. They close with a look at President Trump’s nomination of Kevin Warsh to chair the Federal Reserve. Trey contends Warsh is a serious, experienced figure rather than a crank, though the politics of confirmation remain fraught. Mike highlights the tension between Warsh’s past inflation hawkishness and his current openness to rate cuts. Both agree that Trump’s broader economic agenda—especially tariffs—sits uneasily with calls for lower rates and risks undermining institutional credibility. The Politics Guys on Facebook | X Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo, we’re @PoliticsGuys. The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Atheists, agnostics, long-haired widows, short-haired widows, vandal, hooligans.

0:05.2

I love the government, hug the government, hug the government, love, the government, hug the government.

0:12.0

Welcome to the politics, guys, a place for bipartisan, rational, and civil debate on American politics and policy.

0:18.7

I'm Northern Kentucky University political scientist Michael

0:21.4

Barronowski. I'm joined today by not only longtime politics guy host, Trey Orndorff, who

0:27.0

listeners know was a student of mine at Northern Kentucky University way back in my early days

0:32.8

as a professor there, but also today I'm joined by another former student of mine, someone from the latter part of my time in NKU, Russ Gifford.

0:41.7

And like Trey, after graduating from NKU, Russ went off to graduate school.

0:47.2

He got a master's in political science from Ohio University.

0:51.2

And also like Trey, Russ was one of the smartest students I had the pleasure of

0:56.9

teaching during my time at NKU. But very much unlike Trey, Russ was, I'll say a real rabble rouser

1:06.5

in my classes. He regularly challenged me, the authors of the stuff I assigned, all from his

1:14.4

kind of far left position. And honestly, he reminded me a lot of me as an undergraduate, though

1:21.3

I was a hard right guy back then. And honestly, I was kind of a smug jerk at times, which Russ

1:26.5

really wasn't.

1:35.5

So I always appreciated having him in class because I knew I would have to bring my A game or suffer the consequences.

1:39.5

So I am glad to have him here looking forward to having him on the show.

1:40.6

Welcome, Russ.

1:41.6

Thank you, Mike.

1:46.6

So before we get started today, though, I do want to thank not exactly a new supporter,

1:52.3

Andres, a longtime supporter and listener who recently increased his level of support for the show.

1:53.5

Thank you very much.

...

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