The Unknown Podcast 40’s Explosive Current Events Roundup with Richard Luthmann and Michael Volpe
By Richard Luthmann with Michael Volpe
Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill Promises Tax Cuts and Border Security
The most recent Unknown Podcast and 40th episode began with a deep dive into President Trump’s signature legislation: the “One, Big, Beautiful Bill.”
Michael Volpe described it as “a bill to make the 2017 tax cuts permanent,” while Richard Luthmann praised it as a “$10 billion boost for border security” and a lifeline for working Americans.
President Trump’s bill promises the largest tax cut in American history — a double-digit percent decrease for Americans earning $30,000 to $80,000. It also eliminates taxes on tips and overtime.
“It’s about giving back to the middle class,” Luthmann said, noting that it ends taxpayer-funded sex change surgeries for minors and protects Medicaid for Americans by kicking 1.4 million illegals off the benefits rolls.
The bill’s border security measures are sweeping: funding one million annual deportations and finishing the border wall with 701 miles of primary barriers and 900 miles of river barriers.
It also boosts Border Patrol and ICE with thousands of new hires and $10,000 bonuses for frontline agents.
Volpe pushed back, calling out the bill’s critics who say it will balloon the deficit.
“It’s not a spending bill,” he said. “Critics are wrong to call it a budget-buster.”
Still, he emphasized the real battle is over spending.
“This bill is just the beginning. Trump still has to get spending down,” Volpe said.
The Unknown Podcast 40: Court Blocks Trump’s Blanket Tariffs – Appeals Court Steps In
The conversation shifted to President Trump’s controversial tariffs, which a federal court struck down earlier in the week.
“It’s judicial tyranny,” Luthmann said, slamming the ruling from the Court of International Trade. “No one elected those a–holes to make defense or policy decisions, even if they did have enough political connections to get ‘made’ as a federal judge.”
A panel of three judges ruled Trump’s global tariffs were “unbounded” and “contrary to law” under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
The decision sparked immediate backlash from the Trump administration, which warned of a “foreign policy disaster scenario” if the tariffs were blocked.
“It’s not for unelected judges to decide how to protect the homeland,” White House spokesman Kush Desai declared.
The appeals court stepped in quickly, reinstating the tariffs — at least for now.
The Department of Justice argued the stay was essential to “avoid irreparable harm to U.S. foreign policy and national security.”
“The court order would strip the president of leverage in trade talks,” Luthmann noted. “And that’s what these activist and globalist judges want – to see America fail. It might finally be time for President Trump to go full ‘Old Hickory,’ and just start ignoring the courts wholesale.”
Volpe, however, called the tariffs a power grab.
“If he wants tariffs, he has to go through Congress,” he said. “We’re not a dictatorship.”
The Unknown Podcast 40: Larry Hoover Pardon Sparks Outrage
In a surprise move, Trump commuted the federal sentence of Larry Hoover, co-founder of the Gangster Disciples, who’s been in federal prison since 1997.
“He’s not walking free,” Volpe clarified, noting Hoover still faces a 200-year state sentence for murder in Illinois.
Hoover’s supporters, including Kanye West and Drake, have long pushed for his release.
“Hoover says he’s a changed man,” Volpe said. “But he’s still a convicted murderer who ran a drug empire from prison phones.”
Luthmann added: “ADX Florence is torturous. But this commutation just moves him from the Seventh Circle of Hell, maybe up to the Third. He’s still in prison.”
Reality TV Stars Todd and Julie Chrisley were also pardoned by President Donald Trump on May 28, 2025, after serving time for bank fraud and tax evasion.
President Trump also pardoned former Rep. Michael Grimm, convicted of tax fraud in 2014. Grimm served eight months in prison for underreporting wages and revenue at his Manhattan restaurant.
“He threatened to throw a reporter off a balcony. Why pardon him?” Volpe said.
Luthmann, who knows Grimm from his “bad old days” on Staten Island, argued that federal sentences are out of control and that Grimm, who originally was a “Never Trumper,” was victim of Lawfare.
“Grimm’s case was a civil penalty ‘frankensteined’ into a federal felony by Chuck Schumer and the New York Democrats-controlled, highly politicized EDNY Office. You fart the wrong way over there and you’re not an ass-kissing socialist, you’re doing three years in the Feds,” he said.
“Grimm’s prosecution was more about politics than justice, using the law to open up a congressional seat,” Luthmann said. “They wanted a Democrat in back in 2014 and 2015 and failed twice. And now, it’s not happening any time soon.”
The Unknown Podcast 40: Diddy Trial Testimony Turns Explosive
The Unknown Podcast hosts turned their attention to the ongoing trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, who faces charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy, and transporting women for prostitution.
Key witnesses have described a world of coercion and violence. Rapper Kid Cudi testified about a firebombed Porsche, while stylist Deonte Nash recounted threats to release sex tapes of Cassie Ventura, Diddy’s former partner.
Ventura herself testified about being forced into drug-fueled sex parties.
“It’s about force, fraud, and coercion,” Volpe said. “The prosecution has to connect the dots to the sex acts — and they’re close, but not there yet.”
Luthmann added: “They’ll probably get him on the racketeering conspiracy. That’s the easiest count. But sex trafficking? They need the smoking gun.”
Legal expert Lisa Bonner has said it’s unlikely Combs will testify.
“If he does, it could open him up to cross-examination on every crime,” she warned.
The hosts agreed: “Diddy’s lawyers only need to create reasonable doubt,” Volpe said. “They’re showing a pattern of threats, but no direct link to forced sex.”
Luthmann summed it up: “Jurors love compromise verdicts. My money’s on a guilty verdict for racketeering and an acquittal on everything else.”
The Unknown Podcast 40: Elon Musk Leaves Government, Focuses on Businesses
The final topic was the bombshell exit of Elon Musk from his role in the government. Musk had headed the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), promising to slash federal spending by $1 trillion.
“He’s leaving to focus on his businesses,” Volpe said. Musk has faced blowback from the far-right politics of DOGE, with Tesla sales down in Europe. “He was everywhere — in the British election, in Wisconsin,” Volpe said. “It hurt his brand.”
Luthmann argued Musk’s exit is for the best.
“He was spreading himself too thin,” he said. “It’s time for him to innovate, not play politics.”
Luthmann recounted that even X, formerly known as Twitter, has not been the same ‘free speech platform’ since Elon stopped being hands on. He alluded to a tweet by Zach Bonfilio, The Misfit Patriot.
This episode of The Unknown Podcast captured the explosive mix of politics, crime, and celebrity.
From Trump’s tariffs to Diddy’s trial, Luthmann and Volpe offered sharp insights and pointed opinions, promising more revelations in episodes to come.
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