🎧 intro Good morning, good afternoon, good evening. It’s Saturday, September 27th, my name is Marlena and this is The Record🗞️.Today’s show is about political power plays, economic blackmail, and military theatre.From Congress blocking transparency on Epstein files, to the White House using a shutdown as a weapon, to generals summoned for a show of loyalty, to hospitals collapsing under bombardment in Gaza—This isn’t chaos. This is the news.And I’m tired of it being filtered through corporate neutrality.
🗞️ 1: Speaker blocks swearing-in to stop Epstein files petition What’s happening:House Speaker Mike Johnson is refusing to swear in Rep.-Elect Adelita Grijalva, who won Arizona’s 7th District in a landslide. Her seat has already been certified, but Johnson is holding it hostage because her signature would push a bipartisan discharge petition—forcing a vote on releasing the Epstein files—over the finish line.
What to know:Johnson claimed he was waiting for “official results,” even though he swore in Democrat James Walkinshaw of Virginia just weeks ago with only unofficial numbers. Both Walkinshaw and Grijalva pledged to sign Rep. Thomas Massie’s petition. Massie himself has warned that obstructing the petition amounts to a coverup.
My take:When Congress starts manipulating seating just to stop signatures, it’s not procedure—it’s obstruction. If transparency on Epstein files terrifies leaders this much, you have to ask what they’re hiding.
🗞️ 2: Shutdown threat used for mass layoffsWhat’s happening:The government faces a shutdown on October 1 if Congress doesn’t pass a funding deal. But this time, it’s different. The Trump White House has directed agencies to prepare for permanent layoffs in programs that lose funding—something past shutdowns have never included.
What to know:Federal workers are terrified, unsure if furlough means temporary leave or permanent termination. Unions warn this will gut agencies like the IRS, FAA, and VA. The administration’s instructions are clear: use the shutdown to cut programs not aligned with Trump’s priorities.
My take:Weaponizing a shutdown to purge the government isn’t fiscal policy, it’s authoritarian control. Fear and uncertainty aren’t side effects—they’re the point.
🗞️ 3: Hegseth summons 800 generals to QuanticoWhat’s happening:Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered nearly 800 generals and admirals to Washington for an unprecedented gathering at Quantico. The Pentagon says it’s to showcase “accomplishments” and lay out a new homeland-security-first strategy.
What to know:The move has alarmed lawmakers and military officials, who warn about cost, security risks, and stripping top commanders from their posts all at once. Critics believe it’s as much about Hegseth’s image as policy—and worry it could be used to justify mass firings of senior officers amid defense cuts.
My take:Pulling the military’s top brass into one room isn’t strategy—it’s spectacle. And history shows us: when strongmen stage spectacles with generals, it’s rarely about unity. It’s about control.
🗞️ 4: Gaza under fire as hospitals collapseWhat’s happening:Israeli strikes and gunfire killed dozens across Gaza on Saturday, according to health officials. Entire families were buried in their homes, tents sheltering the displaced were hit, and hospitals reported being surrounded by tanks. Doctors warn they cannot access facilities where premature babies and critically ill patients remain trapped.
What to know:Prime Minister Netanyahu told the U.N. that Israel “must finish the job,” even as dozens of delegates walked out of his speech in protest. International pressure is mounting, with more countries recognizing Palestinian statehood, but Israel is pressing ahead with another ground assault in Gaza City—where famine is spreading, hospitals are collapsing, and over 300,000 people have fled while hundreds of thousands remain trapped.
My take:The scale of suffering in Gaza is staggering, but the violence is so politically and socially charged that many people, especially in the West, are pushed away from fully seeing it. Antisemitism, anti-Palestinian bias, and the fear of taking a side in a decades-long conflict make it easier for the world to turn away.
Hospitals aren’t just collateral damage—they are lifelines. And when they collapse, the silence of the global conversation becomes part of the catastrophe. Every bomb, every family trapped, every child in danger deserves to be seen, even when politics makes it hard to look.Bring the hostages home. All of these people, whether they’re hostages or people who are displaced from their home, are pawns in this bigger, gruesome global game of weaponization of power and control.
Let’s wrap this up and I have a gut check for you. Effectively, I really want to bring attention to power and how that is the lifeline that is so clear between not just American politics, Gaza and Israel politics, but also politics on a world stage.
Because it’s power and accountability that keeps this gruesome game of war, death, and control a part of life. It shows that power is being wielded to control, punish, and manipulate. And the takeaway? Authority, fear, and spectacle are tools of control.
Seeing them clearly is the first step towards accountability, whether it’s here at home in Congress, or abroad in a war zone. D.o.n.t. let the politics, the bias, and the discomfort stop you from seeing the human cost of what’s happening. Okay, that is it from the record today.
It is Saturday, September 27th. My name is Marlena. I’m looking for partners of people who want to join what I’m building. I’m looking for brands. I’m looking for community organizations. And I’m looking for people who are looking to do things differently. This is Media Without Permission. I’ll see you tomorrow. Bye.
Substack | Podcast | Daily News📲 IG: @marlenabeautydotcom | @redefiningtherecord✍️ Substack: Redefining the Record
Fueling independent media that refuses to look away.✨ Tip Jar ✨Venmo: marlenageller | Buy Me a Coffee
🎙 Hosted by Marlena📍 Recorded in California—with one dog, zero filters, and no coffee (yet)
⛓️‍💥 Untangling broken systems, social media, and tech stacks.→ Now taking a few social media + strategy clients.
