On May 7, 2025, the White House withdrew Janette Nesheiwat’s nomination for U.S. surgeon general without stating an official reason. Speculation suggests that conservative opposition, driven by her strong support for COVID-19 vaccines and her views on gender identity, played a significant role in the decision. The same day, President Trump announced Dr. Casey Means as his new pick on Truth Social, praising her "impeccable 'MAHA' credentials" and her alignment with the "Make America Healthy Again" movement. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s former running mate, Nicole Shanahan, however, isn’t thrilled with this pick. On a recent episode of “The Glenn Beck Program,” she told Glenn all about her major reservations. “Casey Means is a founder of a company that does biometric harvesting. She's very close with many of the big data biometric harvesting companies in Silicon Valley,” says Nicole. “I know several of these people. You do not want them running in a government position that is responsible for everybody equally.” Nicole explains that biometric harvesting is anything from “heart rate data” and “all of the data that is collected from your Fitbit or high glucose monitor” all the way to “DNA harvesting.” “MAHA really came from medical freedom and medical sovereignty and the idea that we have to keep conflicts of interest out of the government,” says Nicole. “Our job is to continue to seek the best possible people for government that are truly putting the principles of this country first, the principles of American sovereignty first.” Glenn references the following tweet Nicole posted on Wednesday, May 7: https://x.com/NicoleShanahan/status/1920308773979353102 “Wow!” says Glenn. “When I talked to the twins during COVID, they seemed pretty clear on what was bad and what was good; they both seemed to be good on COVID and the vaccines.” “They talk a great talk, let me tell you. I will say I was once a fan of the Meanses as well,” says Nicole, adding that her opinions began shifting after “[receiving] many comments from individuals in and around the transition team” looking at “new research” and listening to strong concern expressed by the MAHA base. Nicole says she wants to see “truth, honesty, and dignity in our medical system once again.” If Dr. Casey Means is confirmed as U.S. surgeon general, will she be able to see that through? Time will tell, but what Nicole knows for sure is that “there are better candidates.” To hear more of the conversation, including why she believes RFK Jr. might be reporting to someone other than Trump, watch the clip above. Want more from Glenn Beck?To enjoy more of Glenn’s masterful storytelling, thought-provoking analysis, and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

Plenty of Teslas zip through the suburbs outside New York City, where I live. Every so often, one has a bumper sticker — less a decoration than a plea for mercy. These stickers aren’t aimed at political opponents, but at the car owner's own tribe. The one in front of me recently read: “I bought this before Elon went crazy.” When Americans can put victimhood and hurt feelings behind, maybe we can get back to lightening up and enjoying a joke or two. That’s the new defense. Tesla owners feel the need to distance themselves from Elon Musk — not for quality concerns, but to avoid vandalism from their fellow progressives. They fear having their cars keyed or torched by people who once admired Musk but now rage at his defiance. By slapping on that sticker, they signal allegiance to the very vandals who want to punish Musk for exposing government corruption and fighting to protect taxpayers from waste and fraud. For some reason, they don’t appreciate Musk’s sincere desire to save American taxpayers from being duped and overcharged by shysters. But for the rest of us common-sense Americans, what Musk is doing with the DOGE is a no-brainer: Cut wasteful spending, and everybody benefits — left, right, and center. Duh! This tongue-in-cheek defensive message and others I’ve seen, like “Fly to Mars, Elon, and take Trump with you,” and “Love the car, not the CEO,” remind me of some of my early years living in Manhattan. Decades ago, a spate of robberies plagued the streets of New York. Burglars would break car windows and pry the radios out of the dashboards. It reached epidemic proportions. You could walk down a city block in the morning and see two or three cars with smashed windows and missing radios. At one point, drivers got so fed up that they started removing their own radios, locking them in their trunks, and displaying handmade signs prominently on their dashboards, reading: “NO RADIO!” I did not own a car way back then, so I was fortunate enough never to need a parking space on the street. But I was doing stand-up comedy with lots of props. For one bit, I ordered a license plate from a novelty company that read: “NO RADIO.” It had the official-looking New York state insignia, like it came straight from one of the fine craftsmen at New York’s Auburn Correctional Facility. Well, the quick sight gag eked out only a few scattered titters from the audience, which made me think after a couple of shows that maybe I had just blown 20 bucks. However, my comedy-writer friend and collaborator Bob Pagani took the idea to another level after his own vehicle was broken into. From tragedy to comedy Driving back to his home in New Jersey the next morning with a smashed side window and missing radio naturally got Bob hot under the collar. However, Bob being Bob, by the time he got through the Lincoln Tunnel, he had come up with a wacky scheme to make light of — even profit from — the unfortunate event. Bob devised a faux charity that would benefit two problems in New York City at the time: the rampant homeless street population and the destructive car vandalism. He called his “charity” Asleep at the Wheel. The idea was that a homeless person, for a nominal fee, would sleep inside your car overnight. He (or she) would benefit by enjoying a nice, warm place to camp out. You, in turn, would get a “security guard,” assuring that your radio would still be there in the morning. It was a win-win all around. Bob made some impressive-looking flyers designed for media eyes only — he certainly didn't want anyone taking him up on the offer — and dropped them off at various Manhattan news outlets. Once he got a “bite,” Bob convinced an actor friend to pose as a homeless man and sleep in his recently restored car. Bob caught some nice press, even local television coverage. Of course, the TV crew never caught on to the joke, but Bob sure did have a great laugh. Lighten up, Tesla haters Maybe it’s time to bring back Asleep at the Wheel so nervous Tesla owners can rest easy, too. The days of the great pranksters, which perhaps began in earnest with the creation in the 1960s of Allen Funt’s “Candid Camera,” may have gone the way of the original Earth shoe and New Coke. Could it be that making someone look foolish by catching them in a silly prank might lead to claims of “victimization” — and perhaps be followed by a lawsuit? And has the goofy hoax now morphed into something sinister like Jussie Smollett and his MAGA-noose attack? At the moment, perhaps the best humor with some bite can be found at the Babylon Bee. In my mind, it is the conservative Christian version of the old National Lampoon. We need more “Bee,” certainly. One day, when Americans can put aside victimhood, hurt feelings, and an attitude of “me-me-me,” maybe we can get back to lightening up and enjoying a joke or two, even at our own expense. Wouldn’t that be funny? Editor’s note: A version of this article appeared originally at American Thinker.

Even for those who profess no particular interest in clothing, its practical value is relatively uncontroversial. It covers our bodies, ensuring we aren’t completely naked, standing embarrassed in the middle of the road. It keeps us warm, preventing us from dying in the middle of a snowbank in January. And most people will concede that clothing reflects our culture and history. No, there isn’t much history in the pair of sweatpants, but there is in the Oxford shirt or the necktie. A peach OCBD is one of the most peculiar shirts. It is, indeed, very close to pink. But it isn’t pink. It just isn’t at all. But clothing has another function that is worth considering: helping us reflect the season. Clothes help us feel time. I know that sounds strange, esoteric, or overblown, but it isn’t. Christmas in July? Think about red and green. What comes to mind when you think about those distinct colors together? Is it the Fourth of July? Is it the beach? Is it St. Patrick's Day? No, of course not. You think of Christmas. Red and green make you think of falling snow and Christmas trees. Would you feel comfortable wearing this combination in any other month? Probably not. But in December it feels just right. It elevates the season. These two wintery colors help you feel time in an acute way. With red and green in December, you embody the season in sartorial form. Spring incarnate We experience the same thing in spring, too. It’s not red and green, trees and snow, of course. It’s pastels. It’s light greens and violets. It’s peaches, sunny yellows, and the lightest blues imaginable on poplin button-downs. It’s these colors that feel like spring incarnate. They are the colors of the blooming flowers and waking world. They remind us of new life. They are the colors of the living earth brought forward by the blessed sun. These colors are colors for finally coming outside and breathing easy without chattering teeth for the first time in half a year. A light green OCBD. Can this be worn in October? No. It’s way too fresh for the rotting leaves and darkening days. What about violet? Can it be worn in November? No. Never. Purple is a year-round color, that’s true. A deep purple is regal and works quite well in the darkness of winter. It's practically like a royal navy. But a violet OCBD? That effervescent shade that reminds us of a young tulip growing from the ground? No. Peach power Peach? Isn’t that like red or pink? Can’t that be worn year-round? Again, no. It cannot. A peach OCBD is one of the most peculiar shirts. It is, indeed, very close to pink. But it isn’t pink. It just isn’t at all. It is peach and nothing else. And peach just cannot be worn when it’s cold. Can you imagine a peach sitting in the snow? No. You can’t imagine a peach OCBD under a red and black Mackinaw jacket, either. It’s wrong. These things are so delicate and nuanced. I realize that for the uninitiated, this can sound too detailed or blown out of proportion. But once you think for just a few minutes about these shades and their intimate relationship with time and season, you realize that they can only be — truly be — in spring. Yes, they can be worn in summer too, but it is spring when they come rushing out of our closets for the first time. It is spring when we realize just what they mean. Feeling time Is this just about color and shade? Is this just aesthetics without any other meaning? Is there a bigger takeaway? Of course there is. Aesthetics, when properly understood, always hold something deeper. What does it mean to feel the season? How do we feel time? Has our modern world lessened our perception of time and season? These days we have incredible climate control. AC and heat keep our houses at the perfect temperature all year long. This, while deeply appreciated, has eroded some feeling of time and season. Reliable heat has lessened the need for the wool sweater or tweed sport coat. Wonderful AC has lessened the need for madras or linen. As we have moved away from an agrarian society and toward a world where we can get any fruit we want from anywhere in the world any day of the week no matter the season, we have also moved away from the land and feeling time in the land. Unless we are farmers, we no longer feel the harvest seasons in the same way. We no longer realize — deeply realize — that food doesn’t grow all year. Modern society, for better or worse, has led to us feeling the seasons (and time) less than our ancestors did. Intimate knowledge Clothes are wonderful because they allow us a return to time. They give us the chance to reflect, embody, and feel time in an intimate way. Clothes are, after all, one of the most intimate items we own. They are on our bodies, against our skin. To be able to feel time and season in such an intimate way is a gift in our era of disorienting time suspension. Spring is about new life. Thawing after the cold. Sun after the snow. Lightness after darkness. We shouldn’t resist that. It’s our gift after surviving winter. We should wear peach, violet, and light green. We should embrace spring and all its meaning. When we embrace this sunny joy in our clothing, it radiates out into other aspects of our lives as well. Spring is about joy, so let us feel joy.