Pod Save America

Trump campaigns in South Carolina as the polls show Democrat Annie Andrews tied with Senator Darline Graham. Jon and Dan react to the president's incoherent case for the nepo senator, and the White House's "grim" mood heading into the midterms, before discussing the latest batch of Senate polls, Trump's decision to cancel his upcoming rally in Kansas, and Barack Obama's response to the administration's freakout over his Cheesecake Factory joke. 

Then, the guys discuss the situation with the Peltola campaign’s “ballot-stacking” in Alaska and whether the right might use it justify meddling in the election, before answeri...

Campaigning in Michigan, Barack Obama says Donald Trump's White House renovations look like "Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory" — touching off many rounds of fake conservative outrage. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett discuss Trump's reaction to the comparison and other news from the campaign trail, including Trump's public praise for Nicki Minaj's ass, Obama's response the anti-Muslim rhetoric targeting Abdul El-Sayed, and Mike Rogers's evasive performance on Meet the Press. Then the guys turn to the Department of Justice's preemptive attempt to invalidate the results of the Alaska Senate race, Democrats making the midterm election a referendum on the administration's ha...

Former Attorney General Eric Holder joins Alex Wagner to game out the ways Trump might try to steal the midterms, from weaponizing the Department of Justice, to sending Homeland Security after suspected noncitizen voters, to straight-up misinformation and intimidation. They talk about how Democrats are preparing to fight back, what Holder has learned running election war games with Hillary Clinton, and why listeners need to lock in their voting plan. Then, Holder, chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, explains why GOP gerrymandering efforts ahead of the midterms have—hopefully—fallen flat, and why the battle against partisan maps will...

Polling's gold standard, the New York Times/Siena poll, releases new data showing Democrats surging far ahead of Republicans with an 11-point lead on the generic ballot, while another popular pollster is exposed for falsifying its data. Jon and Dan react to the polls, both good and fake, and then turn to Donald Trump's campaign stop in South Carolina, where the president expanded on his love of men. They discuss Vivek Ramaswamy's disgusting ad in the Ohio gubernatorial race, JD Vance getting a cold welcome from his hometown NFL franchise, this week's Senate debates in Michigan and Kansas, and...

Vice President JD Vance tries and fails to act normal during a CBS town hall in Michigan — but struggles even harder to explain away his boss's policies. Donald Trump sells out Ukraine to Vladimir Putin, a complex scandal involving two Trump advisors engulfs the White House, new details emerge about the firing of Katie Zacharia, and Republicans try to make an issue out of the riots in France. 

Jon, Lovett, and Tommy react to all the latest, including new lines of attack in the Senate races in Michigan and Maine, and Trump telling his followers not watch Fox...

With two weeks until the midterms, Amy Walter, publisher and editor-in-chief of the Cook Political Report, sits down with Dan to break down what she calls the most brutal political environment Republicans have faced in twenty years. 

They discuss whether the numbers indicate a "blue wave" or a "red undertow," whether the polls can be trusted, and why massive Republican spending can't outrun Trump's cost-of-living crisis and his war in Iran. They also dig into the strategy—or lack thereof—behind Trump's rally blitz, whether gerrymandering has backfired on the GOP, and why Democrats may actually perform bette...

Trump makes the case for Jon Husted in Ohio, praising the Republican senator's greatest asset: his athletic behind. Jon and Dan react to Trump's Ohio rally and his other messages to voters on the campaign trail, Politico reporting that Trump is considering replacing White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles with an MLB executive, and new press secretary Katie Zacharia's brutal debut briefing. 

They discuss the president canceling the Department of Defense's plans to livestream the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan, the administration's deeply troubling attempt to strip Congresswoman Ilhan Omar of her citizenship, a...

A right-wing conspiracy theory claiming that James Talarico, who has been off the campaign trail with the flu, was actually at a mental institution in Ohio is immediately debunked in humiliating fashion. Jon, Lovett, and Tommy react to the idiocy and all the other developments in the race to flip the Senate, including Trump calling Abdul El-Sayed a "jihadist," Darline Graham insisting the war with Iran must go on, and Trump's super PAC announcing that it's "trimming the map" to focus on fewer races. Then they react to federal agents raiding Rep. Ilhan Omar's DC home, Pete Hegseth's announcement...

As Democrats in competitive races across the country try to thread the needle on a closing argument, Jon and legendary political consultant David Axelrod discuss the most memorable exchanges from this week's Senate debates, the best messages of the cycle, and what candidates in frontline races should do to finish strong. Then they look ahead to 2028 and whether promising candidates like AOC and Jon Ossoff will run, and why Axelrod thinks the exact traits that Trump lacks will be in high demand.

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The Wall Street Journal reveals brazen corruption by Kimberly Guilfoyle, the former Fox News host (and Don Jr. fiancée) now serving as ambassador to Greece — and the Daily Mail piles on with eye-popping reports about misbehavior on the job. Jon and Dan react to the brewing scandal and take a look at Trump's closing message: medals for himself and his tech billionaire friends, an empty promise to hand out $5,000 checks and pretending that James Talarico has meat poisoning. 

Then they turn to the latest in the key Senate races: Mike Rogers's attempt to break with Trump on C...

With less than 30 days until the midterms, Trump hits the campaign trail, promising Republican voters that they're going to "win big" and "shove it up their ass." (Whose? He didn't specify.) Meanwhile, the polls tell a different story, showing Democratic Senate candidates leading in five Republican states: Texas, Alaska, Ohio, Iowa, and Kansas. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett discuss whether the Democratic momentum is too big to be true, Republican super PACs reallocating money to typically red states, and Trump doxxing Sen. Tom Cotton over daylight saving time dispute. Then the guys check in on the latest in the Michigan...

Michael Lewis, the New York Times bestselling author of "Moneyball" and "The Big Short," stops by the studio to talk to Lovett about "Blockers: Rebels in the Deep State," his latest book on the government employees who stood up to Elon Musk and Donald Trump during the heyday of DOGE. 

Lovett and Lewis revisit the story of Colin O'Brien, the security chief who locked DOGE out of the U.S. Institute of Peace, and break down how Howard Lutnick's takeover of the Commerce Department reveals the inner workings of Trump's government. 

Then, Lewis shares what es...

Pete Hegseth, in an unconventional speech, announces that beardos, weirdos, and wimps are no longer welcome at the Department of War as his boss officially hit the road to campaign for Senate Republicans — whether they want him to or not. Jon and Dan react to Trump's event with Ken Paxton in Texas, Trump proclaiming his love for data centers in a wide-ranging interview with TIME, and Missouri Senator Eric Schmitt's embarrassing mix-up in a Judiciary Committee hearing with former Special Counsel Jack Smith. 

Then, Rev. Adam Hamilton, the Democratic nominee for Senate in Kansas, talks to Dan abo...

Senate Democrats signal they may be open to impeaching Pete Hegseth after the election if the House has the votes for it. 

Jon, Tommy, and Lovett discuss why that trial would be a great use of a new Democratic Senate majority, Trump saying that the American economy is "the best in the world" despite record-setting diesel prices and stunningly low consumer sentiment, and Mike Johnson's new claim that opposition to new data centers is "a Chinese psy-op." 

Plus, AI labs pause development of their most advanced models (over the president's objections), Ambassador to China David Pe...

Live from the Texas Tribune Festival, Jon, Tommy, Lovett, and Dan discuss the dream of a blue Texas and how the campaigns there are doing, from James Talarico's debate challenge to Ken Paxton, to Gina Hinojosa's momentum in the governor's race, to Donald Trump's decision to stay away entirely. 

Then they discuss Trump's special welcome — and ballroom tour — for Chinese President Xi Jinping and an assorted cast of tech oligarchs, and the Republican Party's growing frustration with their underperformance in typically purple states like North Carolina and Georgia. 

Then, award-winning Tejano artist Bobby Pulido, the Democr...

The news is full of encouraging signs for Democrats. Is it all too good to be true? 

Dan and Jon react to Republican candidates running away from Trump on Iran, then break down the latest polls — including a surprising Times/Siena result from Maine — to take a sober look at the range of outcomes (all of them good!) that are reasonable to expect. 

Plus, a big win for freedom of the press and an eye-opening new warning about furries in the cockpit. Then, Tommy talks to activist and athlete Colin Kaepernick about life after the NFL, a...

Major television networks halt White House pool coverage after Trump announces that he's banning journalists from CNN, MS NOW, and Politico. 

Jon and Tommy react to Trump and JD Vance's justifications for the decision, before breaking down the details of the Ellisons' deal with the California attorney general that will allow the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger to proceed. 

They then discuss the Iran war expanding to other countries, the president's call for an "AI Force" as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent negotiates with China, the Republican Party's growing cash advantage in the midterms, and Trump's announcement that hi...

Fox News host Jessica Tarlov, the lone liberal voice on "The Five," stops by the studio to talk to Tommy about her new book "I Disagree: Winning Arguments without Losing Friends." Tarlov offers Tommy a behind the scenes look into the making of Fox's most combative show and her relationships off-screen with her conservative colleagues. 

She also talks about how she handles criticism from Fox News's most infamous viewer, what it's like watching her former colleagues serve in the President's cabinet, and why she thinks Democrats need to spend more time on Fox News in 2028.

H...

JD Vance begs voters to give the White House "another chance" as a series of new polls show a political environment even more favorable to Democrats than the one that propelled the blue wave in 2018. 

Jon, Dan, and Alex break down how much "hopium" we should be huffing, a new ad from a Florida Republican breaking with Trump on immigration, and whether unexpectedly close Senate races in Minnesota and New Hampshire should have Democrats worried. They dive into JD Vance's advice to AI companies to simply stop "building Frankenstein" and unpack Trump's fixation on demolishing the Kennedy C...

Trump dismisses the AI CEOs at Anthropic, OpenAI, and xAI who are calling for a "global slowdown" of AI development, saying the only government regulation the industry needs is a "high IQ" president. 

Jon, Tommy, and Lovett break down the "sick conspiracy" claim the administration and tech investors have leveled at AI makers, the recent developments that united Dario Amodei, Sam Altman, and Elon Musk, and the chances that meaningful AI regulation could pass before the election or in a lame-duck Congress. 

Then they turn to AI's impact on the 2028 presidential election, a Russian oligarch's un...

Tommy flies out to Detroit to talk to Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, asking him about his masculinity-forward campaign, the electorate's appetite for candidates who fight back, and how to restore trust in the American healthcare system. But first, Tommy sits down with Jon to talk about the energy he saw on the ground in Michigan, what he heard from voters, and what it'll take for Abdul to win come November.

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At the GOP midterm convention in Dallas, Donald Trump promises that he'll give every American adult a $5,000 check if — and only if — Republicans retain control of the Senate and House, a plan so absurd that even his own defenders can't explain it. 

Jon and Dan process the most ridiculous moments from the 18 hours of speeches, including JD Vance previewing his presidential campaign, Mike Rogers and Ted Cruz using the 25th anniversary of 9/11 to paint Democrats as terrorist sympathizers, and Democratic Senator John Fetterman's surprise video appearance. 

Then, to cap off a Republican-filled episode, Lovett talks to Ste...

Jon, Tommy, Lovett, and Dan answer listener questions, diving into what they’re most hoping to learn from the 2026 midterms, their favorite political ads of all time, and the groyper takeover of the Republican Party. Then, Vote Save America’s Shaniqua McClendon returns to the pod to talk to Tommy about the Crooked Dozen — VSA’s 12 most flippable and most annoying Republican targets — and the best ways you can get involved to help take back the House and flip the Senate.

Nate Silver, Clare Malone, and Galen Druke — the hosts of Crooked Media's new show Still Counting — join Lovett to talk about the Senate races they find most interesting and Trump doing everything in his power to help Republicans lose the midterms. The crew, who you may remember from the FiveThirtyEight podcast, dives deep into the numbers, breaking down what polling errors we should expect this November, what kind of candidates overperform versus underperform the national average, and the science behind Nate's midterm election forecast model, FLIPR.

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Dozens of Republican lawmakers tell the press that they won't be attending Trump's midterm convention next week, citing a variety of unconvincing excuses, but the president seems unfazed by his party's lack of enthusiasm for more Trump, announcing Trump midterm ads, Trump coins, and the possibility he may rename the Strait of Hormuz to the Trump Strait. 

Dan and Jon preview the pity party and then react to Ed Markey's primary win over Seth Moulton, Kamala Harris brushing off red-state Democrats refusing her support, and the Democrats' new line of attack against the GOP — tying the construction of...

Weeks after a Republican campaign committee called AI data centers the "anchor hanging around" GOP candidates' necks, Trump weighs in to say that all Americans who oppose data center construction are "backwards and poor" — while he digs in on the trade war with Canada and the hot war with Iran. 

No wonder a leading Republican senator tells Politico that Trump — and the whole party — are "in serious trouble." Jon, Lovett, and Tommy try to make sense of Trump's choices at home and abroad, process the latest from the courts on mail-in voting and the White House ballroom, discuss...

Jon sits down with legendary Democratic strategist David Plouffe to assess the race for the Senate and House and — why not? — look forward to 2028. The two talk through the new roster of early primary states and the political dynamics at play in each, and then do some (very) early handicapping of the rumored '28 contenders, from Kamala Harris to AOC and Jon Ossoff.

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With his approval rating 20 points underwater, Donald Trump previews his new midterm strategy: telling voters to pretend he’s on the ballot. Jon and Dan break down how that will play, react to the president renaming Lake Ontario to “Lake America,” and preview the Republican Party’s midterm convention. 

They also discuss Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s handling of a measles outbreak in Pennsylvania, new polling that has James Talarico up on Ken Paxton in Texas, and the unnerving number of Nazi-related scandals surrounding Mike Collins’s Senate campaign in Georgia. 

Then, Annie Andrews, the D...

As the Trump administration launches economic wars against Iran and Canada, the Washington Post reports on Trump's war with a third adversary: his weight. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett calculate Trump's BMI and then break down Scott Bessent invoking World War II when announcing new Iranian sanctions and Trump's new 50% tariffs on Canadian imports. They then turn to the midterms to discuss Susan Collins skipping out on a campaign event with JD Vance, Mike Rogers' attempt to distance himself from AIPAC, and Democrats' growing chances to flip Ohio blue. Then, Congressman Seth Moulton talks to Jon about the Massachusetts Senate primary...

How can Democrats reach the elusive swing voter? Danielle Butterfield, executive director of Priorities USA, one of the most important PACs in Democratic politics, joins Dan to talk about Priorities' attempts to reshape how Democratic campaigns think about targeting voters on the internet. S

he breaks down their research into how voters are looking for information on search engines, why campaigns need to rethink how they talk to voters on YouTube, and how Priorities USA is getting out ahead of 2028 by trying to frame JD Vance and Marco Rubio in swing voters' minds before the presidential election...

MAGA world continues to express outrage over Jon Ossoff's "travel with Natalie" remarks, including an over-the-top rant from Scott Jennings that is being seen as the pundit's shameless audition for the open White House press secretary job. 

Dan and Jon react to Harp-gate, an MS NOW report that says Harp declined to seek a security clearance, and the New York Times reporting that Pete Hegseth brings his wife to highly sensitive meetings to "keep him out of trouble." 

They then turn to the midterms to unpack Angie Nixon's surprising defeat of Alexander Vindman in the Fl...

Jon Ossoff attacks Trump for sidestepping his duties to "travel with Natalie," the White House aide known as Trump's "Human Printer," who has a suspiciously close relationship to the president.

Jon, Tommy, and Lovett discuss the new line of attack and the president's response, the end of the 60-day cease-fire agreement with Iran, Trump's decision to scale back joint military exercises with South Korea, and his reaction to the horrible conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln.

Then, they check in on the fight to take back the Senate, Ken Paxton stealing a $1,000 pen, Mary Peltola...

Is AI set to destroy the world, or could it all just be a bubble? Why does Sam Altman want ChatGPT to monitor everything you do on your computer? Who is set to win the AI Game of Thrones? 

Casey Newton, editor of the tech newsletter Platformer and co-host of Hard Fork, joins Tommy to talk about the hype and doom surrounding the world-changing technology and to unpack what could happen to us now that AI models are learning to outsmart their creators. 

The two discuss the eccentric billionaires recklessly promoting the industry, how far be...

Donald Trump hides in a catering truck and boards a secret plane to evade an Iranian security threat, leaving reporters, White House officials, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio alone aboard Air Force One to fend for themselves. 

Dan and Jon discuss the President's profile in courage and the rest of the latest, including a series of shocking new developments with ICE, the discourse around electability after David Crowley's unexpected primary win in Wisconsin, and Nate Silver's new midterm model, which is uncharacteristically optimistic about Democrats' chances of taking back both the House and Senate. 

Th...

Republicans amp up the fear-mongering on "communism" as Democrats try to move past some of their nominees' most controversial past statements. In the words of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: "Woke 1 was crazy." Jon and Lovett discuss how Democrats can pivot, today's Democratic primaries in Wisconsin and Minnesota, Trump's desperation to end the war he started, and his newest executive order on vaccines. 

They also react to the Senate Republicans' YOLO caucus surrendering on Todd Blanche's confirmation, Jesse Watters's disdain for the WNBA, and Hunter Biden's appearance on Tucker Carlson's show. Then, Lovett is joined by Montana congressional candidate a...

MS NOW's Chris Hayes joins Alex Wagner to talk about what Democrats should take away from the progressive movement's big primary win in Michigan and how the party's reaction may predict what's ahead in the 2028 presidential election. 

They debate whether Abdul El-Sayed should continue to campaign with leftist Twitch streamer Hasan Piker, discuss how AIPAC's media strategy is backfiring with voters and how ideals of masculinity continue to influence our politics.

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Tucker Carlson, with the help of Marjorie Taylor Greene and Thomas Massie, explores launching a third-party bid for president. 

Jon and Dan discuss how his candidacy could upend the 2028 election and the latest from the 2026 midterm elections, including Trump debuting the Republican strategy against Abdul El-Sayed, a centrist think tank's $15 million war against the Democratic Socialists of America, and the disgusting allegations against two Republican representatives — Max Miller and Chuck Edwards — that could put their seats in play for Democrats.

Then, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley talks to Dan about why he decided to jump back...

Abdul El-Sayed wins Michigan's democratic Senate nomination, defeating Rep. Haley Stevens by one point after a heated campaign about the future of the Democratic party. 

Jon and Dan sit down for a bonus pod to talk about how El-Sayed overcame $60+ million in outside spending against him, make sense of the closer-than-expected results, and to preview the general election message against Mike Rogers, the Trump-endorsed Republican nominee. 

Then, Senator Bernie Sanders, who endorsed El-Sayd's campaign on the day of its launch, talks to Jon about the future of the progressive movement. 

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Trump trashes Jeanine Pirro — and may be on the brink of firing her — for admitting in court that his narrative about "vandalism" in the Reflecting Pool is a lie. Todd Blanche secures his path to confirmation after  offering holdout Senators a meaningless written assurance on the weaponization slush fund. 

Trump backs down from yet another threat to completely destroy Iran, RFK Jr. lashes out at CNN's Dana Bash, and DNC Chairman Ken Martin faces new allegations of mishandling the infamous 2024 autopsy. 

Plus, the launch of Vote Save America's Crooked Dozen, updates on the disgusting Max Miller...

Jonathan V. Last, editor of The Bulwark, stops by the show to talk to Lovett about his "Grand Unified Theory of Trumpism" — that Trump's opponent "will always choose surrender over discomfort." Together, they try to make sense of America's rotting political culture, breaking down when and where it all went wrong, and debate what it'll take for the nation to heal from this moment, be it a reckoning of virtue, kindness, or democratic will. 

Jonathan also walks Lovett through the echoes of Goebbels recently displayed by Secretary Marco Rubio and Stephen Miller and why he believes the des...