The Darrell McClain show
Independent media that won't reinforce tribalism. We have one Planet; nobody's leaving so let’s reason together!! Darrell McClain is a Military veteran with an abnormal interest in politics, economics, religion, philosophy, science, and literature. He's the author of Faith and the Ballot: A Christian's Guide to Voting, Unity, and Witness in Divided Times. He was born and raised in Jacksonville FL, and went to Edward H white High School,l where he wrestled under Coach Jermy Smith and The Late Brian Gilbert. He was a team wrestling captain, District champion, and an NHSCA All-American in freestyle Wrestling. He received a wrestling scholarship from Waldorf University in Forest City, Iowa. After a short period, he decided he no longer wanted to cut weight, effectively ending his college wrestling journey. Darrell McClain is an Ordained Pastor under the Universal Life Church and is still in good standing as well as a Minister for the American Marrige Ministries . He's a Believer in The Doctrines of Grace, Also Known as Calvinism. He joined the United States Navy in 2008 and was A Master at Arms (military police officer) He was awarded several awards while on active duty, including an expeditionary combat medal, a Global War on Terror medal, a National Defense Medal, a Korean Defense Medal, and multiple Navy achievement medals. While In the Navy, he was also the assistant wrestling coach at Robert E Lee High School. He's a Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under 6th-degree black belt Gustavo Machado, Darrell Trains At Gustavo Machado Norfolk under the 4th-degree black belt, and Former Marine Professor Mark Sausser. He went to school for psychology at American Military University and for criminal justice at ECPI University.
The Darrell McClain show
Trump Burger's Ironic Twist
Have you ever witnessed irony so perfect it seems scripted? The co-owner of "Trump Burger" in Houston—a restaurant shrine to Donald Trump complete with MAGA colors and themed menu items—now faces deportation for overstaying his visa.
Roman Merez Baini, a 28-year-old Lebanese national, entered the US in 2019 on a visitor visa but didn't leave when it expired in February 2024. According to ICE, he attempted to secure residency through a fraudulent marriage that immigration officials investigated and voided. With an assault charge also on his record, Baini now awaits an immigration hearing scheduled for November 2025 that will determine his fate in America.
The case perfectly illustrates America's contradictory relationship with immigration. We celebrate immigrants as essential workers building our infrastructure and staffing our service industry, yet political rhetoric often turns hostile toward these same individuals. What's particularly striking is how some immigrants embrace anti-immigration politics as a shield, hoping alignment will protect them—but as Baini's situation demonstrates, the law cuts without favoritism.
This story transcends one man's immigration troubles. It's about the dangerous intersection of personal identity, political branding, and immigration policy. When you tie your livelihood to a political figure whose policies directly target people in your demographic, you're playing a risky game where the house usually wins. Whether you find this news satisfying or troubling says more about your politics than about Baini himself.
Listen to this episode for a thought-provoking exploration of political contradiction, immigration policy, and the sometimes uncomfortable ironies of American life. Share your thoughts on social media—we'd love to hear your perspective on this uniquely American story.
Welcome back to the DeRama Clayton Show. Now here's a headline that I actually could not make up if I tried. Trump burger co-owner in Houston facing deportation. And no, this isn't satire, this is not the Onion. It is not one of those Facebook memes that your uncle posts at 2 am. This is straight from the World War File, where I already packed a punch and comes to work overtime.
Speaker 1:The man's name is Roman Merez Baini, 28 years old, a national Lebanese I'm sorry, I guess I should say a Lebanese national and he came to the United States in 2019 on a non-American visitor visa. Now, that type of visa is one of those where you're supposed to enjoy some sightseeing, check out the Grand Canyon, and then here's the big one You're supposed to leave when the visa expires. The only problem is his visa expired in February of 2024. And instead of going home, ice says he decided Texas was too good to give up. Even better, they allege he attempted to secure his stay through a fake marriage, which immigration officials investigated, saw as fraudulent and then voided. Now that's a hard legal strike one. And just to spice things up, there was also an assault charge in the mix. Hard legal strike number two. Now let's just add a twist.
Speaker 1:The man co-owns a restaurant called Trump Burger. Yes, a burger joint decked out in a full shrine to Donald John. Trump. Maga colors pro-Trump posters everywhere, even menu items itself named after the president. You walk in to this Trump Burger restaurant and it is basically a campaign rally with fries. The irony is so thick you could spread it like ketchup, and here is where it gets fascinating, but also uncomfortable.
Speaker 1:The politics around immigration in the Trump era and in the post-Trump era have been laser focused on a tone of nothing but tough exceptions for no one. No-transcript, no sympathy. The political culture birthed places like Trump Burger is built on the idea that the illegal alien is public enemy number one. And yet here we are. The corner of a brand is, according to ICE, exactly what the brand's political icon warned us about. If this was a movie script and I pitched this to Hollywood, if I pitched this to Netflix, a producer would have thrown it out. They would have told me you need to go write something else.
Speaker 1:Narelle, look, that is too on the nose, but reality has no shame about writing plot twists that make everybody squirm. I want to be careful here, because real life is not a meme. Real life is not a gotcha. Immigration law is complicated, people are complicated and people's reasons for staying in a country, especially the United States of America, illegally can range from the desperate to the selfish. And I don't want to paint everybody under the same brush. Some people come here because they have legitimate humanitarian needs and other people come out of sheer stubbornness.
Speaker 1:But the optics for this case, a Trump-themed business in a state like Texas, run in part by someone now fighting deportation well, that theme the jokes, everything it writes itself. So this is also a teaching moment about politics and the politics of belonging. I would say specifically, america has a very strange relationship when it comes to immigrants. We love the idea of immigration, we love the idea of the Statue of Liberty. Give us your tired, your hungry, your poor, your huddled masses. We love the idea of immigrants, especially when they're building our roads. We love the idea of immigrants when they're staffing our kitchens and cleaning our hotel rooms. But we have a habit of turning on immigrants when it comes to political rhetoric. It's a we like you when you serve us, but not when you stay kind of attitude. And too often even immigrants who buy into hard right immigration politics think that they have to do that as a shield for themselves, and they do it to shield themselves from the system's blade. But the blade has no favorites. It cuts whatever the law says it can cut.
Speaker 1:Ronald Beeney, who was arrested by ICE in May of this year, bomb was granted in June. His immigration hearing is scheduled for November, the 18th 2025. Until then, he's a free man, but his future in the United States is very much in question. I would say this Whether you cheer for this news or lament on, the facts of this news says more about your politics than it does about Ronald Bonini. At the end of the day, this story isn't about a guy running a novelty burger shop. It's about the coalition between personal identity, political branding and the coal machinery of an immigration system. When you attach your business, your image and your livelihood to a political figure who policies directly target the demographic you belong to, you, my friend, are playing a very dangerous game and sometimes and I even dare say most of the time the House wins. So Ronald Beeney now waits for the gavel to fall in November. Trump Burger will keep serving the patties with a side of politics, and for the rest of us, we get a reminder that American irony isn't dead. It just may be overcooked.
