Hi everyone,

Welcome back, and a happy Friday to you all.  What's the plan for this weekend?  There's no football, and the weather looks like it could be a mixed bag, according to BDH and Little Buddha.  Hmm, well, they would always be happy watching some more Chicago Fire reruns, and they've also gotten into The Good Place, so those are some options.  We could also listen to the new Doctor Who audio adventure that just came in the mail as a prize for writing the "Letter of the Month" for a recent issue of Doctor Who Magazine.  That would be fun.  We'll figure it out, but for now, let's check out the headlines.  The guys put a fresh pot of coffee on the table, so grab yourself a nice medium DD, because it's time to clear out some Clutter.

A new poll says 72% of Americans want to hear from witnesses in Donald Trump's impeachment trial, including 69% of Republicans.  Mitch McConnell and the Senate Republicans have no interest in protecting the country, but every vulnerable senator who is up for re-election this fall should be looking at the math again.  Their current plan is to blatantly ignore this demand from their voters, so is it worth protecting Trump if it costs them their majority in the fall?  This all comes down to self-preservation.

Trump lapdog Lindsey Graham has been yapping for months that Donald Trump's actions were about investigating alleged Biden family corruption in Ukraine.  So, why doesn't Graham want Hunter and Joe Biden to testify at the impeachment trial?  (Narrator:  It wasn't about investigating alleged Biden family corruption.)

When he's not busy admitting to the charges in his impeachment trial, Donald Trump is making it clear he's getting ready to cut programs like Social Security and Medicare.  He's got to find a way to pay for his tax giveaways to the top 1% after all.  We'll point out that this means he was lying when he said he would never go after these programs, but at this point, it's more unusual when he doesn't break a promise.  Trump's already trying to walk back his comments, but you should expect to see these comments in a lot of campaign ads this fall.  If you're not rich, the GOP sees you as a nuisance.

If you're not rich, he doesn't care.  (pic via wistv.com)

Climate activist Greta Thunberg couldn't care less that Donald Trump and his administration attack her at every chance they get.  (Remember that the next time a Republican pretends to be "outraged" by Democrats mentioning a kid.)  Thunberg was unfazed by U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin's recent condescending comments telling the 17-year-old to go to college before she speaks out about climate change.  It eats Trump alive that Thunberg was named Time's Person of the Year for 2019.  He knows she's smarter and more respected than he is, and that drives the Great Pumpkin crazy.  Meanwhile, Thunberg continues her mission to force leaders to take action to save the planet.

We're sorry to hear that longtime news anchor Jim Lehrer died yesterday.  Our first exposure to Lehrer came in the early 1980's, because the MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour was the lead-in to Doctor Who on PBS, so we would occasionally hear him if we tuned in a few minutes early.  He and former partner Robert MacNeil presented the news in a thoughtful way that feels largely like a thing of the past these days.  Lehr also moderated 11 presidential debates, and people from both parties felt like they were getting a fair shake when he was asking the questions.  Our condolences go out to his family, friends, and fans.  Jim Lehrer was 85 years old.

Comcast is preparing to raise prices again in order to counterbalance how many people have dropped their cable packages for streaming channels.  Bugger.  We really need to sit down and do the math for what services we need, because at this rate our monthly Comcast bill is going to equal about half a mortgage payment on Clutter Headquarters, and that's ridiculous.  Red Sox games and Doctor Who are must-haves, and everything needs to be in HD.  Any recommendations?  Drop us a note at [email protected].

Samuel Adams is opening a new taproom in Faneuil Hall on Thursday, January 30.  We've been hoping for something like this for years, and of course it comes as we're on a hiatus from beer.  They'll have 20 beers on tap, and most will be ones you can only get at that location. 

The latest Mookie Betts trade rumor has the Boston Red Sox looking at sending Betts to the San Diego Padres for prospects and outfielder Wil Meyers.  Hopefully this is just a way to pass some time before spring training, because nothing about it sounds interesting.  Meyers is older than Betts, not nearly as good as Betts, and unless the Padres provide the Sox with a new pitching rotation of prospects, there's nothing here for Sox fans to be excited about.

Troubled former wide receiver Antonio Brown turned himself into Florida police yesterday after being charged, along with his personal trainer, of assaulting a moving truck driver on Tuesday.

The Mean Girls musical will be turned into a movie...even though it's a musical adaptation of a movie...

Okay kids, that's going to do it for now.  How should we close out the week?  Let's have DeBarge do it with the 80's classic, "Rhythm of the Night," for today's, "Song of the Day."

Thanks for stopping by, everyone.  It was great to see you, as always.  Enjoy the rest of your day, be good, and we'll catch up with you again soon.  Until next time, that's today's Clearing out the Clutter, and we are outta here.