Pod Save America

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...

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 K...

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 tha...

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 electabi...

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 vacc...

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...

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...

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,...

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 CN...

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...

Progressive candidates have serious momentum going into the upcoming primaries in Michigan and Wisconsin — but they'll have to figure out how to explain away some problematic old tweets. Meanwhile, Democrats land on a novel strategy for competing in deep red states (hint: it doesn't involve Democrats). Jon and Dan discuss the latest in all the key races, as well as Todd Blanche's failing nominatio...

A slew of new reporting details big problems at the DNC, from deepening financial woes to leaks, paranoia, and an allegation that Chairman Ken Martin threw his phone at a staffer. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett react to the disarray inside the Democratic Party, debate whether it's possible  to replace Martin before the midterms, and discuss how the DNC's new 2028 primary calendar, which starts with  South...

What does a positive vision for the center-left look like? Can moderation still excite the Democratic base? Matt Yglesias, who writes the Slow Boring newsletter and hosts The Argument podcast, talks to Jon about his vision for the Democratic Party and why he believes more Democrats need to embrace heterodoxy. The two discuss how the policy debate could play out in the upcoming presidential primary...

The White House doubles down on both of Trump's wars — the war against Iran and his trade war — sending Pete Hegseth to the Hill to request a $70 billion cash infusion for the Pentagon and imposing new tariffs on Canadian imports and prescription drugs. Jon and Dan discuss how Democrats should approach the administration's funding request, how voters — especially MAGA Republicans — are reacting to...

Troy Jackson locks down the nomination to replace Graham Platner in Maine, Wisconsin's gubornatorial primary devolves into chaos as the governor wades in with an unexpected endorsement, and Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez rally in Michigan with Abdul El-Sayed, who's locked in a heated race with Haley Stevens. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett discuss all the latest from this summer's wild Democra...

Amanda Litman, president and co-founder of Run for Something, joins Dan to talk about what the spate of divisive of primaries means for Democrats and how progressives should be feeling heading into the midterms. They dive into the recruitment and vetting crisis that led to Graham Platner dropping out of the Maine Senate race, what comes next in the fight to unseat Susan Collins, and the increasing...

Trump delivers an incomprehensible prime-time address to push election interference conspiracy theories, both old and new. Dan and Jon attempt to make sense of the speech and discuss what Trump's focus on election interference could spell for the midterms. They check in on three major corrupdates from the last 48 hours — Kalshi teleprompter bets, early access to Trump's Truths for Wall Street, and...

Sen. Lindsey Graham unexpectedly dies and President Trump notifies Congress that the military has resumed strikes against Iran. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett discuss Trump's announcement that the United States will become "THE GUARDIAN OF THE HORMUZ STRAIT" and begin charging a 20% toll. Then, they discuss the legacy of Lindsey Graham, Mitch McConnell's unexpected and unconvincing proof-of-life photo aft...

How is the world reacting to America's World Cup? Did Trump's red card interference ruin all the fun? And will the U.S. men's national team ever be good? Gary Lineker, host of The Rest Is Football and English soccer legend, joins Tommy to talk about the excitement, anxiety, and geopolitics surrounding the 2026 World Cup. Gary offers some advice to America on how to become a true soccer nation, dis...

Graham Platner announces he's ending his Senate campaign, and Maine Democrats scramble to replace him. Dan and Alex Wagner discuss the state of the race, what it'll take to get a new name on the ballot, and why so many (but not Alex) were wrong about Platner. Then, they discuss Trump restarting the war with Iran, the administration's socialist plan to lower gas prices for a select few in Philadelp...

After FIFA unexpectedly overturns the red card handed to U.S. star Folarin Balogun, Donald Trump confirms that he personally called FIFA's president and asked him to "review" the penalty. Tommy and Lovett react to Trump's meddling and discuss how it mirrors his relationship with European powers as the president heads to Turkey for a NATO summit. Then, they check in on Democrats' attempts to take b...

Trump kicks off his Fourth of July celebration at the Theodore Roosevelt Library, where he muses about giving his two sons and himself the Medal of Honor — describing doing so as a "threesome." Jon and Dan react to Trump's plans for Independence Day, including a Guinness World Records fireworks display, a marathon speech in 107-degree heat, and a plan for "250 pardons for 250 years." Then, the guy...

Trump's "Great American State Fair" draws almost no visitors — except for a MAGA live-streamer who gets arrested for public masturbation. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett react to Fox News's cope-heavy coverage of the fair and then discuss Monday's Supreme Court rulings on independent agencies and mail-in ballots, Trump losing interest in Congress's housing bill, and the momentum Democratic Socialists are f...

Dan is joined by Strict Scrutiny's Leah Litman to talk about this week's big Supreme Court decisions giving Trump the right to kick out Haitian immigrants and deny asylum claims for people stopped just shy of the American border, as well as a ruling — with some surprising ideological crossover — tossing out claims against Monsanto for how it labels Roundup, its popular weedkiller. Then Dan and Lea...

Donald Trump cancels the signing of a landmark bipartisan housing bill at the last minute, saying he won't approve it until Congress passes the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and photo ID to cast a ballot. Jon and Dan react to the President's decision and the Republican caucus's angry reaction to it, then turn to Tuesday's primary elections, where th...