Make It Make Sense Podcast with Davette B and Travis Lee

The Big Beautiful Bill (That Ain’t So Beautiful)

This week, Davette and Travis break down the budget bill that broke the internet—and maybe your future. We’re talking student loan garnishments, attacks on people with disabilities, billionaires getting tax breaks while everyone else gets the boot, and Trump making money off digital coins like it’s Monopoly.💸 Who’s getting richer?⚠️ Who’s getting left behind?🧾 And why are people calling this bill “beautiful” when it’s giving “let them eat crypto”? In this supersized episode, we name names (hi Budget Gang 👋🏽), follow the money, and connect the dots on how this budget is a setup for disaster. Plus, Davette shares a deeply personal story about receiving a garnishment notice—and why this fight is more than just politics. It’s survival.📣 THE RESISTANCE BRIEF: Here’s how we fight back1. Demand TPD (Total & Permanent Disability) Discharge Reform * Call: 1-800-872-5327 (Federal Student Aid Info Center) * Email: disabilityinformation@ed.gov * Script: “Reinstate and expand automatic student loan discharge for all eligible disabled borrowers.” * Contact your reps via openstates.org [https://www.openstates.org] * Ask them to: “Protect low-income borrowers—ban wage and Social Security garnishments tied to federal student loans.” * Post about the House Budget Committee members who backed this bill. * Tag them. Call them out. Make noise. * (Need help? We got the receipts in the episode.) * The real history of student debt and disability * Billionaire welfare and media spin * Davette’s personal testimony * Our weekly segment: You Can’t Neva Eva Eva Eva Eva Eva Come to the Cookout 2. Block Garnishment Expansions in Your State3. Name and Shame the Budget Gang✊🏽 Plus:📢 Let’s be clear: this Big Beautiful Bill is not just ugly—it’s dangerous.—🔗 Follow us and stay loud:📱 IG: @welcometothemakeitmakesensepod [https://instagram.com/welcometothemakeitmakesensepod]🎥 TikTok: @themimspodwdtlee [https://www.tiktok.com/@themimspodwdtlee]#MakeItMakeSense #StudentLoanForgiveness #DisabilityRights #BigBeautifulBill #TrumpBudget #ResistanceBrief #TheCookout #DEIUnderAttack #FollowTheMoney

Love, Love, Love!

In a world that feels colder by the day, we’re turning up the heat with a full episode devoted to radical love. From the joy of Black excellence on center stage—hello Taraji, Usher, and Victoria Monét!—to the unapologetic artistry of Kendrick Lamar and Serena Williams, we’re spotlighting the beauty that still blooms in the chaos. But this isn’t just about feel-good moments. We’re grounding our conversation in the teachings of bell hooks, using her classic All About Love to explore how love—real love—can be a political act, a form of resistance, and a roadmap for collective healing. And don’t miss The Love Report—our special edition of the Resistance Brief—packed with real ways to put love into motion: THE LOVE REPORT: ACTIONS THAT CENTER LOVE AS POWER Love is radical. It’s not just about how we care for each other—it’s about holding power to account. Loving people means fighting for the systems they deserve. So this week, show your love by taking action: * Hold the government accountable. Demand policies that reflect justice, equity, and care. Show up, speak out, and don’t let cruelty go unchecked. * Defend Black & Brown women in power. From school boards to Congress, they are under constant attack. Call out the harassment, show up for them, and let them know: We got you. * Send some love to your local library. With bans, budget cuts, and hate campaigns coming their way, libraries need defenders. Send a thank-you note, donate a book, or show up for the next board meeting. * Protect the lovers of justice. Support activists, educators, and organizers who are fighting the good fight. Drop a Venmo, share their work, or offer help behind the scenes. * Love on your community. Host a block cleanup, a healing circle, or a joy-centered event. Radical love shows up where people need care—not where cameras are.

The Damage Report: “The 100 Days That Felt Like 100 YEARS!!!

100 days in—and we already need a nap, a protest sign, and a lawyer.Welcome to The Damage Report: Special Edition—where we break down the political whiplash of the first 100 days under Trump 2.0 and ask the only question that matters: how did it get this bad, this fast?We’re talking: • A Supreme Court that forgot the Constitution exists • ICE agents reopening Alcatraz (no Clint Eastwood, just fascism) • Tariffs on movies, books, and joy • Trans bans, Title IX rollbacks, DEI purges, and a Pope who’s Black, American, and already getting side-eyed by the regime • And of course—Trump declaring himself the world’s best war negotiator like it’s a deleted scene from The Apprentice: Dictator EditionBut here’s the thing: the people are NOT going quietly.From TikTok organizers to students in the streets, mutual aid networks to aunties calling Congress—we see y’all. We break it all down, connect the dots, and serve up receipts with a side of righteous rage.⸻RESISTANCE BRIEF – AKA: “Do Not Disturb, I’m Doing the Work” 1. Tariffs Got Us TwistedTrump’s taxing everything like culture personally insulted him in 1987. Books, music, food, and film are on the chopping block.Call 202-224-3121 and tell your rep:“These cultural tariffs are punishing students, artists, and small businesses. Shut them down.”Bonus: Tag your favorite indie bookstore or art house theater and ask how they’re impacted. 2. FDA = Fully Deregulated America?Food safety inspections are being tossed like leftovers.Email: fdaombudsman@fda.hhs.govTell them:“We need accountability, not excuses. Restore full food safety inspections now.”Then post about it: If prices are up and safety’s down? That’s not inflation—it’s deregulation. 3. Protect a School Like It’s Beyoncé TicketsTrump’s coming for DEI and Title VI like they owe him money.Pick a school—your alma mater, your kid’s, or one from the OCR hit list.Write the administration and say:“Don’t cave. Don’t compromise. Stand for DEI and student safety.”Tag them publicly. Use your voice and your coin. Silence is complicity—and we’re fresh out of complicit.Davette:That’s your Resistance Brief, hot and ready like a Little Caesars pizza—but with way more power behind it.⸻Like. Subscribe. Drop a comment.Tell us what broke your spirit this week—or what you’re doing to keep fighting.Follow us:TikTok: @themimspodwdtleeInstagram: @welcometothemakeitmakesensepod⸻#TheDamageReport #100Days100Years #MIMSPod #MakeItMakeSense #ResistanceBrief #SaveTheFuture #CulturalTariffs #FDAChaos #ProtectDEI #AdoptASchool #BlackPopeEra #TariffsOnJoy #YouCantSitHere #StayLoud #DoNotDisturbImDoingTheWork

The Damage Report: Last Week Of April

This week on The Damage Report, we’re pulling back the curtain on the chaos—and showing how it’s all by design. From Trump canceling a civil rights water settlement in Alabama, to RFK Jr.’s creepy DHS health registry plan, to the FDA straight-up stopping milk safety testing during a bird flu outbreak—we’re not just witnessing dysfunction. We’re watching the blueprint for Project 2025 in motion. We’ll break down: * How DEI became the scapegoat for everything * What rollback looks like in real time * And who’s really behind the attacks on civil rights, public safety, and truth itself Plus: we’ve got your Resistance Brief with real actions you can take right now—and yes, someone’s getting sent to the Principal’s Office. This ain’t just commentary. It’s strategy, it’s survival—and it’s about damn time we called it what it is.

The Damage Report: Deportations & Voter Suppression

This week on The Damage report, we're breaking down all of the mess coming from the White House in the past week. From unwarranted deportations, to normalizing hate, and even voter suppression; we've got all the troubling news from the Executive Branch and what you can do to help stop it. Thanks for listening and please us a comment with your thoughts!