Pod Save America

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...

Donald Trump says the Reflecting Pool will need to be drained for repairs to the coating he said would "last for at least 50 years" — blaming vandals for the peeling and algae blooms that have turned his pet project into an instant mess, and ordering federal agents to start making arrests. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett react to the administration's scapegoating then turn to the rest of the news, includin...

Historian Heather Cox Richardson joins Alex Wagner to discuss Trump's plans for America's semiquincentennial, put his fight on the White House lawn into historical context, and make sense of his mission to remake our nation's capital in his image. The two talk about what it means to be patriotic in this moment, the flaws in JD Vance's vision of blood and soil nationalism, and Heather's new series...

Jon, Lovett, Tommy, and Dan record from Chicago after the dedication ceremony of the Obama Presidential Center, reacting to Barack and Michelle Obama's speeches, what it felt like to walk through the museum for the first time, and what lessons Democrats in the Trump era can take from Obama. Then, they react to the emerging details of Donald Trump's MOU with Iran, which he signed at the Palace of V...

Trump ends his war against Iran without accomplishing any of the goals he set at the war's onset. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett discuss how real the deal to end the war actually is, how it's playing out in MAGA world, and its implications for the economy and the midterms. Then, they react to the corruption at the UFC fight at the White House and Gov. Gavin Newsom's announcement that he and his wife are b...

Legendary humorist David Sedaris stops by the studio to talk to Lovett about his new book of essays, "The Land and Its People," his father's support for Trump, and what he learned about liberals when he was bitten by a dog. They also unpack Sedaris's frustration with being labeled "queer," his nonnegotiable rule about what not to discuss in a relationship, and his unique approach to growing older....

As Trump prepares for his UFC match on the White House lawn, Politico reports that "knives are out" inside the White House, with staffers reeling from a president "increasingly frustrated with everyone, from his own team to the Senate." Jon and Alex discuss the toxic workplace and then break down the rest of the news, including Trump's on-again, off-again relationship with Iranian negotiators, inc...

President Trump, days after storming out of a Meet the Press interview, returns to New York City to attend Game 3 of the NBA Finals. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett discuss how New Yorkers are reacting to the president's visit, discuss the latest from Trump's wars, including the outbreak of more violence between Iran, Israel, and Lebanon, and debunk MAGA's new, unfounded claims about voter fraud in Califor...

Will Sommers, author of The Bulwark's "False Flag" newsletter, sits down with Tommy to talk about the MAGA media world — including the right-wing personalities who may be considering a political future (Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens), those whose influence is crumbling (Ben Shapiro), and some of the most troubling — and strangest — rising voices. Tommy and Will then break down the ways some of...

President Trump announces yet another D.C. construction project — a renovation to the Lincoln Memorial dubbed "The Trump Promenade" — as well as the nominations of his former personal lawyer Todd Blanche for Attorney General and shitposter-turned-FHA Administrator Bill Pulte for acting Director of National Intelligence. Alex Wagner joins Jon Favreau to discuss the latest, including California's to...

Donald Trump thinks JD Vance is a bit of a loser and he's worried he may not be presidential enough to be the 2028 Republican nominee, according to The New York Times. After a series of court losses, the White House signals that it's about to ditch its $1.8 billion "Anti-Weaponization Fund." Trump is reportedly "getting very bored" with the Iran negotiations. Democratic voters head to the polls to...

Jon sits down with our own Ben Rhodes to talk about how American leaders tell the story of who we are — and who they think we should be — through the speeches they give. The two go through the seminal speeches Ben selected for his new book "All We Say," discussing their power for good (Frederic Douglass on human rights) and evil (Alexander Stephenson on the "moral truth" of white supremacy), and t...

After Ken Paxton's victory in the Texas Senate Republican primary runoff, the MAGA faithful set their sights on James Talarico, attempting to disqualify him for being too much of a beta male for Texas. Will it stick? The White House is on the verge of getting Iran to the table to negotiate, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent dismisses concerns that the U.S. economy is heading toward stagflation, and...

Norm Eisen, President Obama's "ethics czar" and founder of Democracy Defenders, talks to Alex Wagner about Trump's latest avalanche of corruption: the $1.8 billion slush fund to pay off Jan. 6 rioters, the IRS immunity announcement, the ballroom, the reflecting pool renovation, the 3,000-plus stock trades placed while in office, and, unfortunately, much more. Together, they unpack how Democrats in...

So much for Trump's iron grip on the party. Just days after Thomas Massie's defeat, Republicans in the Senate and House begin to buck Trump on his top priorities: ballroom funding, the taxpayer-funded slush fund for his allies, and the war in Iran. Could it be that his surprise endorsement of Ken Paxton over John Cornyn in the Texas Senate primary didn't help matters? Faced with mounting leaks, th...

Trump's DOJ launches a $1.7 billion fund to make payments to his allies, as Democrats revive the debate about whether to make Trump's declining fitness—even his increasingly discolored hands—a campaign issue. Jon, Lovett, and Tommy weigh the pros and cons and react the rest of the news, including Trump taking revenge on Bill Cassidy and Thomas Massie, his new plotting against Cuba and Greenland, a...

David Axelrod joins Dan to discuss the Democratic Party's best messengers and its likely 2028 contenders. Together, they break down standout moments from some of the party's rising voices, examine what it'll take for Democrats to win the House despite new gerrymandered maps, and walk through some of this year's most important Senate races. For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here...

Republicans attempt to defend President Trump's admission that he does not "think about Americans' financial situations," while his Department of Justice is on the verge of giving him billions of taxpayer dollars to settle the lawsuit he brought against his own IRS. Jon and Dan react to the president's financial priorities and then turn to Democratic strategy, including how they should be talking...

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez delivers a blistering response to Jeff Bezos's Washington Post after the editorial board attacks her for criticizing billionaires. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett mull what an AOC 2028 campaign could look like and discuss the latest news, including President Trump rejecting an Iranian counterproposal that could end the war, his proposal to make Venezuela the 51st state, and hi...

Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock stops by the studio to talk to Jon about the Supreme Court's dismantling of the Voting Rights Act, his visit to an ICE detention facility, and whether the Democratic Party is doing enough to fight back against Trump. Then Jon and the senator, who serves as senior pastor at the congregation Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once led, discuss JD Vance lecturing Pope Leo on t...