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To The Daily Show, my name is Jon Stewart. We got a show for you tonight. Our guest tonight, a formerly incarcerated firefighter, Royal Ramey, is going to be here to discuss his journey from prison firefighter to organizer. But first, I just want to very clearly state to you guys something. I found last week exhausting. The return to 1600 Trumplevania Avenue was as disorienting and chaotic as I imagined.
But then we had a weekend. Serenity now. And we can finally catch our breath. Begin to move forward with intentionality. Namaste. Chaos on Wall Street. We are in the middle of a market sell-off. Tech stocks sent the markets into a tailspin today. Tech stocks have just taken a battery. Will these... No! What has happened to Liveda? What the f***? I was promised a new...
of American prosperity and greatness will happen. A powerful new Chinese AI tool called DeepSeek is threatening the U.S. dominance of this emerging technology. DeepSeek is on par with what OpenAI and Google have made, even though those companies are sinking billions of dollars, tons of years, and lots of development into this space. DeepSeek did it for cheaper in a matter of months. Who would have expected the Chinese to do it cheaper? I can't believe it.
It's as though when you don't have labor laws or f***ing rights. And by the way, DeepSeek? DeepSeek? We're getting our asses kicked by DeepSeek? Who names an AI company after the thing it actually does? Where are your random letters? Where's your GPT? Your grok? DeepSeek sounds like what you might use it for. China's even beating us at naming shit.
By the way, I do know this is bad news financially, but is anyone else somewhat excited that AI had its job replaced by AI? That's something. But listen, man, this is a minor setback. We will bounce back. Russia had Sputnik, and it spurred us on to land on the moon. I'm sure it's not going to be that bad. Has Chinese AI put American AI out of a job? I mean, who knows? I'll find out.
Siri, how bad is it? John, check out my OnlyFans. Send me a link. But enough about the apparently tenuous underpinning of everything we've banked our entire future economy on. What's the news freaking out about closer to home? Friday night massacre. Late Friday night purge. A chilling purge. The purge. Trump has ushered in the purge!
I for one. Everyone will take full advantage by doing some unpermitted lawn work. Your God is powerless. Although just in case I'm misinterpreting, what is this purge about exactly? Breaking news, the mass firing of government agency watchdogs. Trump fired at least 17 inspectors general. Oh, got rid of 17 inspectors general.
That only leaves, no one knows how many there are. I have no idea. Oh, I'm sorry, did I break the illusion? You know, here's a nice thing. You don't know if that's the axe or my desk. Which one is fake? I'll never tell. The point is, we have 17 less inspectors general. Who knows how many generals will now go uninspected.
Democrats, inspire my anger in the least charismatic way possible. Donald Trump's decision to fire 12 of the federal government's independent watchdogs is a glaring sign that it's a golden age. And Donald Trump's decision to fire 12 of the federal government's independent watchdogs is a glaring sign that it's a golden age for abuse in government and even corruption. He started again, right? He said it twice?
Like, no recognition, just f***ing start it again. Is that what happened? Normally, humans in that scenario would go, oh, God, I'm sorry, where was I? Let me take that from the top, and maybe this time I'll look up. Can you legally just restart without acknowledgement? Is Schumer AI? Is he deep-sea? But regardless of how slowly NPC Chuck Schumer laid it out,
What Trump did violated the law. He can't just fire these people. Title 5, Section 403 of the U.S. Code Federal Law. An inspector general may be removed by the president. So what's the purge? What's the matter? Why do I have an ax? There is a specific law that requires notice, 30 days, and a statement of reasons. Substantive and detailed rationale. What? I'm sorry, what?
Oh, apparently you can fire them, but you have to give them 30 days notice. Oh, so that's what we're upset about? No! You can do it, but not in that font! That's Hitler's font! But this is the cycle we find ourselves in. First law of Trumpodynamics. Every action is met with a very not equal overreaction. Thus throwing off our ability to know when shit is actually getting real.
like last week's pardons. -These pardons are sick. They are offensive. They are un-American. -This is one of the most egregious, despicable acts in American history. -This is textbook authoritarian takeover 101. -I knew I should have taken that class and not majored in submissive liberal crying 101. Oh, do what you will, Trump-esky.
Was it shitty? Yes. Should you have let some of those terrible people? No. Is it an abuse of pardon power? I don't know. But that is his constitutional power. Again, for some reason, we have given presidents the power of a king. And then we say, oh, by the way, with that power, you're not going to get all like kingly and shit on us, right? To put that in constitutional terms, if I could, don't hate the player.
Hate the founding fathers. That's not... Why do we even have it? Because I don't know if you've met Donald Trump. He pushes shit.
President Trump deploying executive action to end birthright citizenship. This unconstitutional, un-American attack. Shredding our Constitution. Who wants to be a strongman authoritarian? Birthright citizenship was very specifically tailored to send a message to people that America was a place, an idea. It wasn't for one race. It wasn't for one gender. Citizenship in America was based on where you were, not who you were.
And to just stroke of a pen, finally I agree. That is authoritarian. We do begin tonight with the federal judge blocking President Trump's executive order that would end birthright citizenship. And we're back. See how easy that was? It was a dictatorship. The judge went... It's like when you have an electric fence. You never check it and you're not really sure if it works. Because you have a good voice. You have a very good voice.
But then one day, zap! By the way, I fundamentally disagree with the use of electric fences. I, it is true, I prefer to discipline my dogs with a series of passive-aggressive comments about their weight. Really tearing through the bowl tonight, huh? Take a breath, Tubbs. It's called kibble, not gobble. By the way, my dog's name is Tubbs. Anyway, birthright citizenship!
No, obviously we'll appeal it. Damn you constitutionally enshrined judicial review of executive action and its relief through the appellate process. Look, we are facing a deluge of these executive actions and certainly we must be prepared for those most vulnerable to the consequences of these actions. But the this is all fascist argument has become almost a reflex for the left.
Donald Trump promised to be a dictator on day one, and he's carried that forward through the entire week. Five days into this administration, the abuse is already rampant. Well, the rest of the week, shredding the Constitution as he went. On a fascism scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being peak fascism, how would you rate Trump's first week?
a scale of Mussolini to the Holocaust. You know, I would say it's not fascism. Do I not understand what fascism is? And also, if I may, and this may be petty, why are we asking someone who, at the end of January, still has his f***ing Christmas tree up? Why are we asking him anything? You know who used to leave their Christmas tree up all the time? Hitler. Hitler.
Somebody in the audience literally jumped my Hitler joke. You know who used to do that, by the way? Pol Pot. Now look, I have a lot of fear that as this term goes on, things are going to get a little fascisty. And we must be vigilant. But part of vigilance is discernment.
Republicans control the House, the Senate, the executive and the judiciary. And just about every move that has been made till this point, we have granted them electorally. It's our fault. And the constant drug. Yes. And.
The constant drumbeat of encroaching fascism will erode the credibility we will need if, hopefully if, and not when, it hits. But the truth is that for now, his most objectionable actions have taken place almost entirely within our designed democratic system. Like the confirmation process. Despite claims of meritocracy, Trump has put forth some of the least LinkedIn people you could imagine. Right?
I don't know what responsible hiring process you can create that looks at this. I'm going to get another refill. Hold on. I feel good. You know, I'm sad a little bit of extra. It's already in there anyway. What do we care? Duncan dad on New Year's Eve. Who's that guy? I want him leading defense. And how did this individual who has never so much as successfully managed a Waffle House pop up
gonna run the three million people Department of Defense? But he wasn't foisted upon us by a dictator. There was no authoritarian end run. No royal edicts. This shit happened to us as designed. Advise, but mostly consent. Passed through the Armed Services Committee. Put through a Senate vote. Three Republicans, of course, made a show of, this is the most outrageous, I cannot in good conscience, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah
Because they knew they could lose three. It was a performance. And J.D. Vance broke the tie democratically. Trump's using the almost absolute power we have constitutionally granted him and the Republicans. Because this is Trump's theory in governance. He's already laid it out to not President Bush in 2005, back when he was still accessing Hollywood. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab them by the pussy. That's his governing philosophy.
For all of it. Appointing people, firing people, writing executive orders, taking Greenland, making Wikipedia-like edits to the literal globe. But unfortunately, as of now, he's pretty much just democratically grabbing our pussy. Yeah, we said yeah. He has the consent of the people.
For God's sakes, his deportation orders are so popular, they have collabs. TV personality Dr. Phil tagged along on a Chicago raid. You've never been deported before? Dr. Phil. Yeah, Dr. Phil. Yeah? How do you know me? No, I've seen Dr. Phil, you know, on TV. Yeah? Yeah. How do you know me? You've been in one thing.
How do you know I'm Dr. Phil? Because you're on the Dr. Phil show. You're Dr. Phil. How do you know me? Oh, weren't you in Goodfellas? No, you're that little egghead anywhere. Little bald mustache, southern drawl. What are you doing out here? How do you know me? Good picture. I guess Dr. Phil finally cashed someone outside. How about that?
Wait, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no,
what the he's so emboldened he wants to start deporting people from other people's countries meanwhile dr phil will be down in gaza how do you know me what do you know me sir habibi i don't have a television i don't know you i don't know habibi look i really hope the democrats figure out a way to contain this guy
The question is probably not how dare he, though. The question should be what are you learning from this? How would you use this power? What's your contract with America? Democrats exist outside of him. Tell people what you would do with the power that Trump is wielding and then convince us to give that power to you.
As soon as possible. That's the goal. It's enough with the, he's a Hitler, he's a thing. Stop doing it. That's terrible. What would you do? And if not, you know what? If you don't have any of the answers, maybe AI has a solution for you. Hey, Siri, what can Democrats do to stop Trump? They don't have to worry. Xiao En, our Chinese rulers will soon solve all our problems.
When we come back, Royal Ramey will be here. We'll be right back. Welcome back to The Daily Show. My guest tonight, you're going to like this, a formerly incarcerated firefighter who is now the CEO and co-founder of the Forestry and Fire Recruitment Program, also the subject of the forthcoming documentary, Firebreak. Since World War II, there's been a growing reliance for imprisoned people to do some of the front work of firefighting.
We were both formerly incarcerated in fire. We got out we were dedicated to know fire. I'm from love with it, but I have a blueprint. I was just lost. Welcome to the program Royal Ramey. You know very little out as we get economists on the show judges very rarely do they go.
It's so nice to see you and so nice to meet you. When I heard the story, not even just your story, but just the general story of incarcerated firefighters that were, I was very surprised. And
I'll run the thoughts that were going through my head and I'll have you speak to them. One was, oh my God, the bravery that these folks who don't have their own liberty are showing on our behalf is astonishing. Right? Right. Number two, I bet they're paying them shit. Right.
And is this indentured servitude? And is this being coerced? And then number three was, if I wanted to escape from prison, I would light a fire. How do they keep them from not running away in the middle of the fire? And then everybody being like, where's Slim Pete? And then they're like... So run this through. You were in this program. What is this? Why did you get into it?
What made you get into the firefighting program from prison? So honestly, around the time that I went to prison, it was overcrowding in California. So I ended up getting transferred to Arizona and then Mississippi.
And I was in prison for about 20 plus months, close to two years. In Mississippi? So I went to Arizona first. So it was like that time of being out of state. It was an opportunity for me to go back to California, see my family, because I didn't see him for that amount of time. Oh, wow. And obviously, I heard the rumors around, like, it's better food. You have a dormitory setting when you're out there. It's not like you're behind in a cell.
And you're not or you can be able to get the most money that that you can earn in prison, which is a dollar an hour on fires. Right. Which is a dollar an hour on fires is the most money. Like, yeah. So you make about around twenty six dollars a day when you out there fighting a fire. So that's the most money you can make in prison. OK, great.
So here's where it's going to get here. Here's where it gets ugly for liberals, right? Because the liberal reaction is exploit the incarcerated. But in prison, it's so bad that this is great. Is that it?
Yeah, it's the best. It's one of the best programs that California Department of Correction and Rehabilitation has, actually. Especially when it comes down to when you, you know, most people when they come home, they come home with $200 gate money, right? Right. And then have an opportunity to go to fire camp, you know, gain a family-winning career in the fire sector, right? That's like monumental. A lot of folks don't, you can't even fathom of like,
never having a job like that, like having a career, you know, just having that felony, you know, on your record, right? Right. To being able to possibly have a six-figure career benefits retirement and be able to be, take care of your family, you know, for a long time. So, I mean, in some ways, it's a new model for...
of rehabilitation, you know, I was reading that the recidivism rate generally is pretty high, 50%, sometimes 60%. The recidivism rate on those who have been inducted into this program is less than 10%. Is that correct?
I know that from our program. Right. But that's amazing. Yeah, it is. It is. It changed my life, honestly, John. It gave me an opportunity to know what a team kind of feel like. And when you're out there fighting fires and you have to rely on the next person, you know, it does take a lot. You know, it takes a lot of courage and being able to, like, you know, come together when it's all, you know, when it's...
The fire's raging and you're out there on the line and you're putting your life on the line. It does give you a sense of teamwork and partnership with folks that you probably never have had a communication with in a positive light when you're out there in the streets. Because you got to think about it. It's folks that's been in gangs, right? Right. Had some trauma in their life. And it's segregation within California prisons. There's a lot of politics in it. Right.
So, you know, race, you know, is a big thing. And when you're in fire camp, you have different... In prisons, it's very segregated to a white gang, a Hispanic gang, a black gang. Absolutely. And firefighting, none of that. No, you have to put that all to the side, and you accrue. So you have a mixture of folks. It's amazing. Did you, you know... Did you not believe that you could do it? Is the idea that...
People in that environment have been so lack the network and confidence and competence that goes along with things that this is a revelation for themselves that I'm, oh, I'm worthy. I'm actually worthy. That's the deal. Yeah, absolutely. I think so when you out there on those big, you know,
Fire campaigns, you know, you see signs that says, thank you, firefighters. And then when you actually, you know, doing the work, the same thing that you see a hot shot crew do or a type two crew that do like you doing pretty much the same work. So, you know, you do feel that that sense of pride and and purpose there.
And it gives you a way to be able to utilize the knowledge, skills, and abilities that you learned in fire camp to transition into the fire service professionally. And that's what the forestry and fire recruitment do. So your organization tries to take that training because you're not...
If you go through the prison program, are you certified to fight fires at that point in California? No, you still got some more certifications that you would need in order for you to be able to be a professional firefighter. Even though they've already put you in fires, you're already doing the job. Right. But they're saying to you, yes, you can fight the fires.
but you're not qualified to fight the fires. Yeah, it's some things to that, definitely, right? Right. But, you know, it's definitely things to that. I love how diplomatic you're being. Right, right, a little bit, yeah. Yeah, yeah, so, you know, just being transparent and real...
It's definitely, like, it's a gatekeeping thing, I think. And a lot of folks don't understand the actual process, right? Like, you have to have the certifications to be able to apply to these positions. You have to understand, you know, what to put on a resume. Right. How to apply to the job, like, making sure that you read everything, right? But they train you. Yes. Okay. Yes, you get the training. They don't just get prisoners and go, all right. Yeah, they give you minimum training. They do. Is there anybody in there, like, for
For arson? They're on there and you're like, hey, Phil, what would you do in this situation? You're not allowed to, I would think of you. No, you can't have arson.
Hey, it could be the dumbest question I've ever asked. No, no, and the sex crime, that's one of the two major things. I think they're trying to revisit some things around certain violent crimes. Okay. But they're trying to, you know, evaluate, and my big, my best, one of my best friend and mentor...
Ralph Diaz, he would kill me, and Fred Money would kill me. Oh, don't worry, you won't see this. Right? They would tell me if I was rogue or not, but no, it's definitely, they have some requirements for you to be able to be a part of it. For the prisoners, how do they view that bargain? That bargain of, look,
They are... The state exploits prison labor. I mean, I think that's just straight down the line. Common fact. Common fact. Yeah, that's a common fact. And the penalties on felony makes it almost impossible for people to reintegrate into... Like, our prison system, as you have experienced... Right, right, right. ...is... And obviously, like, I'm not a sociologist or anything, but I think the word is f***.
I love you, man. I love you, John. But it is true. So how do they console each other in that? How do you guys talk to each other about what this opportunity means and what the system is doing to you guys while that's all happening? You ready for the real deal at Holyville? Be honest with you. I don't know what the I was getting myself into. Really?
They say fire camp. I'm a kid from the inner city. Like, fire camp, fire, okay, around the camp. You know what I'm saying? I didn't know. You had gotten into a program where you were going to make s'mores. Right. I didn't know. Honestly, it wasn't like, oh, you're going to be on the front lines. You're going to be fighting fire. You're going to carry this pack. You're going to be having this tool. It's dangerous. Right. You're going to be working 24-hour shifts. You're going to be doing, you know. I'm like, what? Like,
Fighting fire. And when I first got to camp, and they was like, here, give my equipment, and we start hiking. I'm like, it was like, yeah, here's these boots. And I'm like, I'm used to wearing Nikes. Like, boots? Like, okay, then did I get the boots? And okay, they gave me a pack and a tool, and we hiking. I'm like, man, I got...
You know, I need to have you. I'm like, whoa, this is intense. But I end up talking to one of my captains and he was like, Ramey, you're one of the youngest dudes on the crew and you're the slowest one, you know, dude on the crew. And I'm like, you know, just being from the inner city, you know, in so many words, he was like, you calling me a, you know,
A sissy in this is, right? Right. A little something. A little something. I got to tell you, in that story when you were going there, I really thought you were going to be like, he pulled me aside and he said, I like you, son. You've really got something. I can't believe he pulled you aside and he's just like, what the f***, man?
Get off you. Right, right. How long did it take you to acclimate to this, and how long was the training? So, to answer the second question first, so the training was about a couple of weeks, just like physical training that you get, and then you go into like a classroom setting where you get the S-190. I know a couple people are going to kill me for this, but it's the interlocking.
entry level position or entry certification for wildland fire behavior. And then from there, you kind of like get a pack and you got to make sure you hike within a certain amount of time. And then once you complete that, then you're eligible to go to a fire camp. That was when I was there in 2012. So you guys are wildland firefighters, certified firefighters. And very different from like what L.A. County urban fire,
residential fire. Right. So your role in this is more in those areas where the, maybe the chaparral is or where the wilderness stuff is. Is that generally where the incarcerated guys? Yes. Yeah. So it's a couple of things. So you got, um, so the main objective is to, they pretty much train and deploy folks that's incarcerated to fight fire, um, wildland fires. Right. And then, um,
When you're not fighting fires, you're out there doing fire prevention work or projects within the community. So that's one of the pluses, too, is you're not actually in a cell. You're actually in the community doing different work or whatever. It could be a project. It could be laying cement somewhere. You could be cutting brush, or you can do weed abatement. And these are necessary jobs that they do have trouble finding jobs.
candidates for and people for. You know, it's been so interesting. And I wonder how you sort of process this in your head. But this idea of like DEI, like, oh, the Los Angeles fire only happened because she's a lesbian. Like, like.
You're on the other side of that where you're like, we want to get into this business. There are a lot of gatekeepers that keep us out. But boy, we're capable. Right. And how do you reckon that? So you just... So I'm a doer, right? So when I first was in fire camp, obviously it was a transition for me mentally, emotionally, spiritually. And I grew to love it. And I fell in love with it. And it was that one thing in my head was like, man, like...
I want to do this. I want to do this for my career. I want to make this happen, right? And me and my co-founder, Brandon Smith, he, you know, we was talking one day and was like, look, man, you know, you want to be able to do it. I want to do it. Let's figure this out, you know, and be like the modern day Harriet Tubman's of the fire service, right? Right. Underground fire. Right. Because you knew that...
Generally, those jobs are, you know, connections play a large part in them, and it's relatively homogenous in those areas. And it was going to be tough to break through. Yeah, yeah. And just the cultural thing, too, and understanding that, you know, you're going to have to do, you're going to put in the work. You've got to make sure that you understand the culture, understand how to be a professional, because you've got a lot of folks that consider people that's been incarcerated as zeros, right? And then when you look at them as a hero, it's like a
you know, a public nuisance and a public servant. Like, that kind of, like, doesn't mix our... You know, prison and public service don't mix. And you have to change that narrative with people because once... Because I remember when I was actually, um...
I went to my first pretty much like month in my job with Cal Fire and one of my captains was like, "Hey, we went on this fire. I was cutting with the saw and stuff." He was like, "Man, you did a pretty good job with that. Like, where did you learn that from?" Like usually, and usually folks like myself,
learned that in camp right right i was like you know i kind of shied away from it um yeah i worked for the forest service first so it was like you know i kind of had that kind of spiel but i wanted to make sure that they looked at me as a human being first and not just based off of what um you know my previous experiences were when i when i was in prison right it's it's uh
Incredibly impressive. And maybe what's the most impressive thing about it is that you took that knowledge and you took that experience and you have created this organization to make sure that
You keep the ladder down for people, the fire ladder, to help other people up. And I love that prison-to-public-service road because so often in this country, it's public service to prison. That's a political thing. Here goes the other one. It's so, so good to meet you. For more information about the Forestry Fire recruitment, check out Chief Royal Raymond. Quick break and we'll be right back. Come on. That's our show for tonight.
But as always, before we go, we're going to check in with your host for the rest of the week, Michael Kosta. Michael, what do you got for us for the rest of the week? Michael Kosta. John, we'll be going through all the secret files on JFK, MLK, and RFK. You know, Trump declassified them last week, and we're already learning some really shocking stuff. For example, John, did you know that RFK is RFK Jr.'s dad?
I did know that. Okay, I thought that was news, but check this out. Did you know that JFK and RFK were brothers? Both of their last names were Kennedy, but John, the K in MLK is not.
for Kennedy. This is crazy stuff. Also, they all fake their dads and they're living in Oregon. But other than that... Well, at least we have some closure. Check out Michael Kosta this week. Here it is, your moment is at. You know, there are a lot of things that Donald Trump has done in his first week in office that Americans do support. This ain't one of them. This ain't one of them. I don't know what the heck he's doing because not only did that judge spank him like he was a young child back in the 1960s, but the American public ain't with him either.
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