Nick Has Already Left The Studio

Fight Club, Faith Snacks, And The FCC Comes For ABC

The Hour opens with the O.J. Simpson debate and the Buffalo Bills’ decision to leave him off honors in the new stadium. Shannon and Greg argue over whether on-field accomplishments can be separated from off-field infamy, then connect that to Pete Rose, Bill Cosby, the NFL Hall of Fame, and whether a legacy can survive a scandal. The crew then moves through a caller’s take on Tom Kean Jr., Mikie Sherrill, and New Jersey politics before reacting to the New Jersey middle school yearbook that accidentally includes a baby photo of Adolf Hitler. From there, they cover a Maine Senate poll involving Susan Collins and Graham Platner, AOC and JD Vance as possible 2028 nominees, whether democratic socialists are gaining power because young voters feel priced out, and why Republicans may be underestimating the appeal of economic populism. The hour closes with an extended FCC and ABC debate, asking whether The View and late-night television serve the public interest or act like partisan cable programming. Greg makes the libertarian case against government overreach while Shannon argues for broadcast-license accountability, then the show rolls into Fight Club, a study tying religious cues to junk-food choices, motorcycles and helmet laws, a caller’s question about talk radio and the FCC, and Phil’s “Today in Music History” segment before the crew signs off.

Why Do We Need A New Word To Describe Summer?”

The hour then turns lighter and stranger: Bobby Bonilla Day and Bruce Sutter’s deferred money, Philadelphia landing among friendly World Cup cities, Europeans and air conditioning, the death of Victor Willis from the Village People, Trump’s use of “Y.M.C.A.” at rallies, Good Charlotte sending a cease-and-desist to WPHT, Gen X versus Gen Z rest habits, and the rise of “lie down clubs.” The Nancy Guthrie case and reports that three ransom letters connected to her disappearance are fake. Shannon and Greg talk about what Savannah Guthrie must be feeling, whether fame made her mother a target, and how hard it must be to return to a morning show while living through that kind of family tragedy. From there, the crew moves into Trump’s E. Jean Carroll appeal loss, the $5 million judgment, and the broader lawfare debate. Then the show swings into Florida weirdness with Reagan Cox allegedly hiding cocaine during jail intake and claiming it may have come from an “intimate encounter,” before moving to Ketanji Brown Jackson using “understood the assignment,” the false NPR Alito retirement report, and Tom Kean Jr.’s depression diagnosis. The final stretch of the hour centers on whether Kean owed voters more information during his months-long absence, Lauren Boebert calling his explanation embarrassing, and listener reaction over how debilitating depression can be. The crew then turns to JB Pritzker, Trump dementia claims, GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, obesity in America versus Japan, food additives, portion control, and whether RFK Jr.’s food agenda is making people rethink what they eat.

Shannon Burke Takes Over: Vigilantes, SCOTUS, Crypto, And Cocaine Excuses

The 7 AM hour starts with Trump’s financial disclosure and the crew’s debate over whether a president should be able to keep making money from investments, licensing, crypto, real estate, golf clubs, watches, and branded products. Shannon compares Trump’s business world to Jimmy Carter’s peanut farm and argues that critics are often angrier about Trump’s marketability than any clear conflict. The crew returns to the birthright citizenship ruling, playing JD Vance’s response and talking through the “anchor baby” argument, family separation claims, and the legislative route through Congress. That leads back to the Supreme Court’s ruling on transgender athletes, Riley Gaines, NCAA numbers, the role of the states, and why Shannon and Greg say the issue comes down to basic fairness and biology.

“Dangerous Heat Dome” Is Just July

We open with Shannon Burke sitting in for Kayal and Company with Greg Stocker and Phil Almquist, and the hour begins with the controversial Armie Hammer movie Citizen Vigilante. The crew talks through the movie’s vigilante plot, its anti-migrant themes, Germany’s rating fight, Elon Musk posting the film, Armie Hammer’s attempt at a comeback, and the broader panic over whether movies, music, and video games actually cause violent behavior. The conversation then shifts from movie violence to real immigration policy as Shannon brings up the Supreme Court allowing Trump to strip Temporary Protected Status from Haitians. The crew ties that into a Fort Myers murder case involving a Haitian illegal immigrant, then moves into local headlines: Philly’s “dangerous heat dome,” the Bensalem freight train derailment and hazmat worries, and the search for two teen suspects in the fatal shooting of Penn State student Billy Schmidt. The hour closes with major national political and court stories. We cover the Supreme Court’s birthright citizenship ruling, JD Vance’s coming reaction, the false NPR report that Justice Samuel Alito was retiring, the Supreme Court ruling on transgender athletes in women’s sports, Tom Kean Jr.’s return to Congress after a depression diagnosis, and a sports update featuring the Phillies shutout win, Jeffrey Lurie’s ESPYS honor, the Flyers, Ben Simmons rumors, and soccer.

Full Show For Wednesday July 1 2026

We kick off Kayal and Company with Shannon Burke filling in alongside Greg Stocker and Phil Almquist, and the crew wastes no time jumping into the Armie Hammer movie Citizen Vigilante, Elon Musk boosting it, and the larger argument over violent media, immigration, Europe, and whether art actually pushes people toward real-world action. From there, we move into the Supreme Court allowing Trump to strip TPS protections from Haitians, a Fort Myers murder case, the “dangerous heat dome” panic in Philly, the Bensalem CSX derailment, and the latest on the killing of Penn State student Billy Schmidt in South Philadelphia. We spend major time on the Supreme Court’s rulings on birthright citizenship and transgender athletes in women’s sports, with Shannon, Greg, and Phil digging into JD Vance’s reaction, the 14th Amendment fight, congressional action, and why some rulings feel like common sense while others leave conservatives frustrated. We also cover Tom Kean Jr.’s months-long absence from Congress over depression, Lauren Boebert’s harsh response, NPR’s false Samuel Alito retirement story, Ketanji Brown Jackson’s “understood the assignment” line, and the way political media turns mistakes and court rulings into a new round of combat. The second half of the show mixes politics, sports, and full-on Kayal and Company chaos: Trump’s financial filings and crypto money, Bobby Bonilla Day, Philadelphia’s World Cup reputation, Europeans discovering air conditioning, the death of Village People singer Victor Willis, Gen Z “lie down clubs,” Nancy Guthrie ransom-note updates, E. Jean Carroll, a Florida cocaine excuse for the ages, O.J. Simpson being left off the Bills’ new stadium honors, AOC versus JD Vance in the 2028 talk, ABC’s broadcast license fight, Fight Club, junk food and faith, and a packed “Today in Music History” close.