The following is an edited transcript from The Michael Knowles Show. * * * Lego has just announced its largest Lego set ever. And in our culture, what would you expect that Lego set to be? The pride progress flag? What would you expect it to be — some big lib thing? Maybe even the “Kamala Sitting Under a Coconut Tree” set? Do you know what it is? It’s a Catholic church. The largest Lego set ever — some 12,060 bricks priced around $600 — is The Sagrada Familia Basilica in Barcelona, Spain. This is good news for the culture. We’re not done yet. The hottest toy that’s coming out this year is of a Catholic church that has been under construction for — what — 140 years now? They started building this thing in March of 1882. It’s not even completed yet. It’s expected to be completed in 2034. This is such good news, in the abstract, that I’m willing to overlook the fact that this church is one of the ugliest buildings ever constructed. It is so bad. I had the privilege of visiting Spain once and got to see The Sagrada Familia Basilica in Barcelona — and it’s pretty ugly. It looks like a melted anthill or some kind of weird distorted honeycomb. It’s supposed to be kind of like a neo-Gothic church, like all those great Gothic churches of Europe. But it’s weird because it’s modern. Construction started in the late 19th century, and then continued for a long time — these cathedrals can take centuries — and as other people took over, it somehow got even worse. Paco Freire/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images Now, when you go inside, however, it’s quite stunning. It’s still a little too weird for me to say it’s beautiful, but it is stunning — the way the glass reflects the light. Really stunning. But it’s just ugly to look at. It’s not as ugly as sin, but it’s ugly. And yet — we’ll take the “W”. We’ll take the win. I am confident I will be pilloried from all sides for this — the people who say I’m a Philistine for not appreciating the modern basilica, the people who say I’m too religious not to be focused on a toy church — I don’t care. I’m going to take the win. But let’s not lie to ourselves. Let’s use our our taste, our real intelligence — not artificial intelligence — and say it’s not ugly. Listen, Lego could have done the Cathedral of Chartres. They could have done Notre-Dame de Paris. They could have — But no matter. I’ll take the win.

OpenAI announced on Tuesday that it plans to shut down the video creation platform Sora, which launched in 2024. The company did not give a reason for their decision. “We’re saying goodbye to Sora. To everyone who created with Sora, shared it, and built community around it: thank you. What you made with Sora mattered, and we know this news is disappointing,” OpenAI’s Sora team said in a statement shared on social media. “We’ll share more soon, including timelines for the app and API and details on preserving your work.” This news comes on the heels of Disney announcing a major $1 billion partnership agreement with the tech company, which would have allowed OpenAI to use characters from Star Wars, Pixar, and Marvel franchises in its Sora video generator. Much ado was made about users having the opportunity to create “fan-inspired” videos with Disney’s licensed characters, like Mickey Mouse, with Disney+ adding some of those Sora-generated videos as part of the exclusive deal. But that’s all reportedly off the table now as Disney ends its partnership with OpenAI. “As the nascent AI field advances rapidly, we respect OpenAI’s decision to exit the video generation business and to shift its priorities elsewhere,” Disney said in a statement, per Variety. “We appreciate the constructive collaboration between our teams and what we learned from it, and we will continue to engage with AI platforms to find new ways to meet fans where they are while responsibly embracing new technologies that respect IP and the rights of creators.” Hollywood was up in arms over the newest release of the second-generation Sora model in September, with many critics saying the realistic videos posed a threat to human talent and opened the floodgates for massive copyright infringement and deepfakes. Now social media users are weighing in on the abrupt closure, speculating that Sora could be facing a massive lawsuit. That rumor has not been confirmed by the company. OpenAI, led by CEO Sam Altman, will not give up AI video generation completely. They are just abandoning the standalone Sora app for reasons that are yet to be revealed.

“Reacher” star Alan Ritchson will not face any charges after bloody brawl with neighbor Ronnie Taylor, Brentwood cops say. The Brentwood Police Department told entertainment site TMZ that they had determined Ritchson acted in self-defense, and would not be charged — and implied that Ritchson was given the option to pursue reckless endangerment charges against Taylor. “After reviewing available evidence, including video footage and witness statements, authorities determined that no criminal charges will be pursued. Mr. Ritchson’s actions were found to be in self-defense. Although a potential reckless endangerment charge was considered, Mr. Ritchson declined to pursue charges,” they said. “With the agreement of the District Attorney’s Office, the case is now closed, and no further action will be taken,” the statement concluded. Ritchson made headlines when video of the bloody altercation circulated online, and TMZ published a story that included comments from Taylor explaining what happened.Taylor put the onus on Ritchson, saying that he had confronted the “Reacher” actor over his loud motorcycle. He stated that he had not known prior to the interaction that Ritchson was an actor, and he had only confronted him because he and his kids had been riding their motorcycles on residential streets.”It escalated quite quickly from there,” Taylor said. “I did push [Ritchson] because he was coming towards me on his bike.”Taylor then got in Ritchson’s face, as two kids watched, and the actor shoved Taylor to the ground. Taylor got up and pushed Ritchson off his motorcycle, prompting Ritchson to start swinging. He kept punching until Taylor stopped coming after him. The whole interaction was recorded by a body camera the actor was wearing — and police said that because Taylor had clearly instigated the physical fight, Ritchson’s subsequent actions were considered to be self-defense. Ritchson appeared to comment on the situation later, posting to Instagram, “Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.”

The University of Southern California canceled a high-profile gubernatorial primary debate just hours before it was set to take place following backlash over the event’s lack of racial diversity among invited candidates. The debate, scheduled for March 24 and hosted by USC’s Dornsife Center for the Political Future, was scrapped after criticism that the selection criteria excluded several candidates of color. The original lineup featured six candidates: Republicans Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco, and Democrats Tom Steyer, Katie Porter, Eric Swalwell, and Matt Mahan. Absent were several established Democratic candidates of color, including former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, former State Controller Betty Yee, and State Superintendent Tony Thurmond. USC had initially defended its selection process, saying invitations were based on a “data-driven” formula developed by a university professor that weighed polling and fundraising. But critics argued the methodology produced a skewed outcome in a crowded race with no clear frontrunner. The controversy escalated after California legislative leaders demanded the university expand the debate field. “Every excluded leading candidate—Xavier Becerra, Betty Yee, Tony Thurmond, and Antonio Villaraigosa—is a person of color,” lawmakers wrote in a letter to USC President Beong-Soo Kim. “When a methodology produces this outcome … the burden falls on USC to explain itself, not on everyone else to accept it.” The letter went further, calling on voters to boycott the event if the university refused to revise its criteria. “If USC does not do the right thing, we call on California voters to boycott this debate,” the lawmakers wrote. “If the university will not give voters a fair shot at evaluating everyone running for governor, voters should find other ways to learn about the candidates.” Despite standing by the formula’s academic backing, USC ultimately reversed course late Monday, announcing the debate would be canceled after organizers failed to reach an agreement on expanding the stage. “We recognize that concerns about the selection criteria … have created a significant distraction from the issues that matter to voters,” the university said in a statement. The decision comes amid an unusually crowded and fluid race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom, with no candidate polling above 20% in the last month and multiple contenders clustered within single digits of one another. That lack of a clear frontrunner has heightened the stakes around debate access, with candidates arguing that exclusion from major forums could significantly impact voter awareness in a low-information primary. California’s primary system adds another layer of complexity. Under the state’s “top-two” format, all candidates, regardless of party, appear on the same ballot, and only the two candidates who receive the most votes advance to the general election. That structure has raised concerns among Democrats that a fragmented field could allow two Republicans to advance if the vote is split. San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, whose inclusion drew particular scrutiny due to his late entry into the race and strong fundraising from wealthy donors, said canceling the debate was the wrong approach. “The answer isn’t to cancel debates, it’s to hear all voices,” he wrote on X. Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, one of the excluded candidates, praised the decision. “USC made the right call, even if it came late and under pressure,” he wrote in a post after the decision. The tension surrounding how institutions balance data-driven decision-making with political and social considerations is not unfamiliar in California, a state where diversity is treated as a central benchmark of legitimacy. In this case, sadly, a formula designed to measure candidate viability ended up triggering the very kind of equity concerns it was meant to avoid, ultimately leaving voters with no debate at all. The California gubernatorial primary election will be held on June 2, 2026.

It’s time to ask some serious questions. When you get to the airport next week, a record 171 million of us will get on a plane this spring. Will you be safe? When you look at the southern border or when you read about Sheridan Gorman, 18 years old, shot in the head while going out for a walk with friends to see the Northern Lights, do you feel safe? You may even be reading this in line at an airport right now, probably waiting for hours if you are. That is because Democrats decided to shut down funding for the Department of Homeland Security in order to punish Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) — which is a part of DHS — for enforcing the law. It doesn’t matter that ICE’s legal authority has not changed for decades.  It doesn’t matter that under President Trump, they’re simply doing their job for the first time in decades. DHS must be closed down because ICE is doing their job. Democrats don’t want to enforce the border. If they get the chance, they’ll return to Biden-era open borders as soon as possible. Sheridan Gorman, an 18-year-old student at Loyola University in Chicago, was murdered by a masked man while she was walking in Rogers Park last Thursday. According to CBS News: The shooting happened early last Thursday as Gorman, 18, was walking with her friends near the pier at Tobey Prinz Beach at Pratt Boulevard to take in the Chicago skyline. Prosecutors said, as Gorman and her friends were walking toward the lighthouse at the end of the pier shortly after 1 a.m., Gorman told her friends she saw someone hiding behind the lighthouse. When Medina came out from behind the lighthouse, Gorman and her friends ran away, and Medina shot Gorman in the back. The bullet exited her neck. The alleged murderer was a Venezuelan national in the United States illegally, according to the New York Times. Medina was released into the United States by the Biden administration in May 2023 after he had contact with Border Patrol agents. According to federal officials, Medina was arrested on suspicion of shoplifting in Chicago in June 2023, and then released.  Gigantic shock. You might ask yourself: If someone is arrested for shoplifting and they are an illegal immigrant, why are they still here? The answer, of course, is that Chicago is a sanctuary city. That means that the city and state of Illinois, a Democratic state, prevent local officials from cooperating with federal law enforcement. That is why Medina was free to allegedly commit a cold-blooded murder. If local law enforcement had notified ICE that they’d arrested an illegal immigrant and then held him until ICE arrived, Gorman would probably still be alive. Republicans up to and including President Trump have pointed out that simple fact. Senator Ted Cruz correctly pointed out, “Gorman’s killer was an illegal alien who should never have been in our country. Joe Biden’s open border policies and Governor Pritzker’s refusal to accept President Trump’s help are the reasons why she is not with us today.” Correct.  President Trump said, “It’s devastating. These people were let in by Biden. We’re getting them out. We’re getting them out fast. That’s why ICE is so important. They’re doing such a good job. This … this animal — I saw the whole thing last night, they gave me a briefing — came in through Joe Biden with his open door policy and his border czar Kamala, who never saw the border.” Democrats, however, are still making excuses. A Chicago alderman named Maria Hadden actually speculated it might have been Gorman’s fault. You see, when you get shot in the back of the head by an illegal immigrant who was hiding while you were out seeing the Northern Lights, it’s possible that it’s your fault for startling that illegal immigrant. It’s like walking into an endangered species arena at the zoo or something. It’s your fault if something bad happens to you. She said: “Then they go out on the pier, they walk around. So the kids were out doing normal, normal things people do in the neighborhood. And it sounds like this might have been a wrong place, wrong time, running into a person who had a gun. They might have startled this person at the end of the pier, unintentionally.” Other Democrats, of course, are claiming that this is all happening because we incarcerate too many criminals. This is the big Democratic move: It’s been true for decades. The idea is that criminality happens because too many criminals are in jail. It’s sort of like the argument that if you kill too many terrorists, you’re just creating new terrorists. Which is weird because when you kill terrorists, then they’re dead. The same thing is true of people who are in jail: When they’re in jail, you know what they’re not doing? They’re not on the streets shooting people. And yet, this is the typical Democratic take. It is idiotic. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said back in November 2025, “We cannot incarcerate our way out of violence. We’ve already tried that, and we’ve ended up with the largest prison population in the world without solving the problems of crime and violence, the addiction on jails and incarceration in this country. We have moved past that. It is racist. It is immoral. It is unholy, and it is not the way to drive violence down.” I beg to differ. I think it’s a great way to drive violence down. Keeping criminals in jail is a great way for them not to commit crimes against people on the streets, because they’re in jail. Governor J.B. Pritzker’s office issued this statement: “Our thoughts are with the family, friends and Loyola University community grieving the senseless murder of Sheridan Gorman. Violent crime has no place in our streets. We expect the alleged perpetrator to be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law. The Trump administration needs to stop politicizing heinous tragedies and instead focus on real solutions, like reinstating federal funds to prevent violence that support our public safety efforts.” That’s crazy. Politicizing heinous tragedies instead of focusing on real solutions? It is not politicization to point to the specific policy that could have stopped this murder in the first place. In fact, it is playing politics to ignore that policy for political reasons. But Democrats are addicted to playing politics on illegal immigration. They’ve decided that illegal immigrants are the finest among us and deserve our undying sympathy, and that we ought to defund the agency that houses ICE in order to facilitate illegal immigration. Meanwhile, the partial DHS shutdown has had the effect not just of defunding ICE, but defunding the TSA — in the middle of a war. This initially led to gigantic lines around the country at airports. In response, the administration said that it will deploy ICE officers to man the TSA lines because ICE actually has some leftover funding from the last round of funding. Now, even CNN is saying ICE is helping with wait times. If safety is your number one issue, I don’t see how you can vote Democrat.