PETER SAGAL, HOST:
Now onto our final game, Lightning Fill In The Blank. Each of our players will have 60 seconds in which to answer as many fill-in-the-blank questions as they can, each correct answer now worth two points. Bill, please, can you give us the scores?
BILL KURTIS: Negin has four. Josh has three. And Jessi has one.
SAGAL: All right. That means, Jessi, you are, in fact, in third place. You're up first. The clock will start when I begin your first question. Fill in the blank. On Wednesday, a former judge called the DOJ's attempt to dismiss the charges against former national security adviser blank a gross abuse of power.
JESSI KLEIN: Michael Flynn.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Monday, House Democrats unveiled a sweeping blank reform bill.
KLEIN: Police reform?
SAGAL: Yes.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, blank cases in the U.S. passed the 2 million mark.
KLEIN: Coronavirus.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Tuesday, primary elections in blank were hampered by malfunctioning voting machines and closed precincts.
KLEIN: Georgia.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, animal experts in Australia say that the reason the country's nocturnal parrot population is declining may be blank.
KLEIN: The parrots are sick.
SAGAL: Because they have trouble seeing in the dark and keep running into things. According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, online shopping giant blank will soon face anti-trust charges from the EU.
KLEIN: Amazon.
SAGAL: Yes.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: Following her series of anti-trans tweets, actors from the "Harry Potter" movie franchise spoke out against blank.
KLEIN: J.K. Rowling.
SAGAL: Yes, true.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, two inmates who escaped from their cell in Italy...
(SOUNDBITE OF GONG)
SAGAL: ...Left behind a note that said blank.
KLEIN: Sorry, y'all. But we escaped.
SAGAL: The note said, we'll be back in two weeks. We promise. The two inmates, who used a garden hose to scale one of the prison's walls, were thoughtful enough to leave a note behind, promising they'd be back in two weeks. The men said they had family matters that only they could solve because - and this is all true - both of their wives were also in prison. The wardens say they're already taking serious steps to ensure this doesn't happen again by making all inmates pinky swear never to escape. Bill, how did Jessi do on our quiz?
KURTIS: Coming back strong, Jessi has six right for 12 more points. She now has 13 points and the lead.
SAGAL: All right, Josh. You're up next. Fill in the blank. On Tuesday, Reverend Al Sharpton and Joe Biden both spoke at the funeral for blank.
JOSH GONDELMAN: George Floyd?
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Wednesday, Trump rejected a call to rename military bases that are named after blanks.
GONDELMAN: Confederate soldiers.
SAGAL: Yeah, Confederate generals.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, the Federal Reserve predicted that the blank rate will fall to 9% by the end of 2020.
GONDELMAN: Unemployment?
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Monday, economists confirmed that the U.S. had, in fact, entered a blank this year.
GONDELMAN: Recession?
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: In solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, a blank in Rhode Island announced it would no longer offer a discount to police.
GONDELMAN: A restaurant?
SAGAL: A doughnut shop. On Thursday, Moderna announced phase three testing of their new blank vaccine.
GONDELMAN: Coronavirus?
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Tuesday, the White House rolled back hunting restrictions on bears and wolves in blank.
GONDELMAN: Maine?
SAGAL: Alaska. After having problems with his Mercedes-Benz...
(SOUNDBITE OF GONG)
SAGAL: ...A man in Canada blanked.
GONDELMAN: Pushed it into a river.
SAGAL: No, he flew to Germany to speak to the automaker's manager. According to the man, he bought the $150,000 automobile because it was supposedly one of the safest luxury cars. But after the steering locked up, nearly causing an accident, he didn't just demand to speak to his local dealership's manager - no, he flew 5,000 miles to Mercedes-Benz headquarters to complain in person. While arduous and expensive, it was easier than dealing with the automated customer service help line.
GONDELMAN: Press nine for, we will give you nothing.
SAGAL: (Laughter) All right. How did Josh do on our quiz?
KURTIS: He's making it a tight race. He had five right for 10 more points. He now has 13 points and is tied with Jessi for the lead.
SAGAL: All right. So how many, then, does Negin Farsad need to win it all?
KURTIS: Five - count them - five - to win.
SAGAL: Oh, you can do this, Negin. This is for the game, Negin. Here we go. Fill in the blank. On Tuesday, President Trump claimed without evidence that the 75-year-old man injured by police in blank may have faked his fall.
NEGIN FARSAD: Injured in Buffalo?
SAGAL: Yes.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Thursday, General Milley, the chairman of the blanks, said it was wrong that he accompanied Trump to his church photo op.
FARSAD: Oh, Joint Chiefs?
SAGAL: Yes.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, the White House demanded CNN apologize for a poll showing blank leading Trump by over 10 percentage points.
FARSAD: Biden.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, police in Vermont asked for the public's help to identify a man who walked into a Dunkin' Donuts with no mask and no blank.
FARSAD: Pants.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Tuesday, IBM announced that it would no longer create blank recognition technology.
FARSAD: Facial.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, police in Pakistan...
(SOUNDBITE OF GONG)
SAGAL: ...Arrested blank on suspicion of illegal gambling.
FARSAD: Elon Musk.
SAGAL: They arrested a donkey. The donkey, whose name hasn't been released, was rounded up by Pakistani police along with eight other gamblers. The group has been charged with running an illegal gambling operation. But police say they expect all the humans to flip on the donkey because he was apparently on a hot streak and acting like a bit of an ass. Bill, did Negin do well enough to win?
KURTIS: So close. And I mean in a good way. Five right for 10 more points. Fourteen gives her the championship this week.
(SOUNDBITE OF APPLAUSE SOUND EFFECT)
SAGAL: Congratulations, Negin. Yay. So some good thing comes out of this week. And it's you.
FARSAD: It's me. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.