The Playbook Podcast

One story continues to dominate the conversation in Washington: the possibility of a U.S. strike in Iran. But even as the commentariat focuses on its potential geopolitical implications, its potential implications for American politics are no less real. President Donald Trump’s MAGA base is split over what to do. Does Trump risk hemorrhaging support if he orders a strike? Or is the whole idea of a...

With the U.S. on the cusp of potentially joining Israel’s fight against Iran, foreign policy experts in Washington are scrambling to game out the various scenarios. And as POLITICO senior foreign affairs correspondent and Compass columnist Nahal Toosi tells Playbook author Jack Blanchard, the options available to Trump and the possible outcomes from them aren’t simply black and white; they exist a...

President Donald Trump is unexpectedly back in Washington today, cutting his G7 trip short amid a spiraling situation with Iran. Yesterday, Trump made an ominous Truth Social post suggesting “everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran” — words that immediately provoked a fiery response from some of his usual supporters, who see the threat of such foreign interventionism as a betrayal of his “Amer...

After a weekend of nationwide protests, a military parade and a political assassination, eyes in Washington are now aimed north at Canada, where President Donald Trump is attending the G7 summit. Today, he will meet with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney as well as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Chief Playbook correspondent Dasha Burns and author Jack Blanchard talk through what to exp...

Last night, Israel launched a major military campaign against Iran in what it billed as a “preemptive” strike on the nation’s nuclear capabilities. But this is only the beginning: Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said the operation will “continue for as many days as it takes to remove this threat.” And with the Trump administration already in talks with Iran over nuclearization — and emphasizing that...

California and the Trump administration face off in federal court today over President Donald Trump’s deployment of military troops to Los Angeles in a legal battle that could determine the limits of presidential power — and whether troops might be deployed to other cities, too. Chief Playbook correspondent Dasha Burns and author Jack Blanchard talk through what they’ll be watching and the angles...

As protests against ICE raids in Los Angeles continue, so does the standoff between California Gov. Gavin Newsom and President Donald Trump. In a dramatic eight-minute address last night, Newsom laid into Trump, touting the federal intervention and militarization of its response as a threat  to the rule of law. Meanwhile, Trump suggested yesterday that Newsom should be arrested — and that he’ll ha...

As protests against ICE raids continue in Los Angeles, President Donald Trump is flexing his power in a way the nation hasn’t seen in decades, deploying 4,000 National Guard troops and roughly 700 Marines in the city. California Gov. Gavin Newsom calls the moves a provocation, labeled Trump an “authoritarian” and called the mobilization of the Marines a “red line.” But sources close to the White H...

As anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles grow and, in some instances, turn violent, President Donald Trump has deployed the California National Guard — the first time in 60 years a president has activated a state’s National Guard domestically without the consent of that state’s governor. California Gov. Gavin Newsom says Trump is irresponsibly ratcheting up the pressure in a volatile situation, while t...

Listen to the latest episode of Politico’s new podcast, The Conversation with Dasha Burns. Rahm Emanuel has had just about every job in politics under the sun: congressman, White House chief of staff, U.S. ambassador, Chicago mayor, and more. “I’m pretty pragmatic about politics and almost cold to a point in my analysis,” he tells White House bureau chief Dasha Burns. Emanuel, who is widely believ...

The gloves are off between Donald Trump and Elon Musk, and Playbook’s Zack Stanton and Adam Wren have all the explosive details. Today, Trump White House officials are due to have a call with Musk in an attempt to lower the temperature. That comes after Musk went nuclear against Trump, making shocking allegations about the president and badmouthing some of his signature policies. But not everyone...

In a trio of announcements last night, President Donald Trump unveiled a new travel ban barring entry into the U.S. by residents from of 12 nations, a fresh attempt to block Harvard-enrolled international students from entering the country and an investigation into the so-called “auto pen” scandal, alleging that White House aides unconstitutionally exercised presidential authority during Joe Biden...

The moment has finally arrived: Elon Musk turned his chainsaw on the Trump White House yesterday in a blitz of X posts taking aim at the president’s reconciliation bill. Calling it an “abomination” and vowing retribution against those members of Congress who back it, Musk’s posture amounts to not only a stunning (but nascent) split between Trump’s movement and the man who financed a broad swath of...

President Donald Trump is calling. Will Senate Republicans answer? As the GOP homes in on the votes needed to pass the all-important reconciliation bill through the upper chamber, the president is escalating both his outreach to and pressure on holdouts. But what the White House is saying and what those last few Senate Republicans really want may be in conflict. Playbook managing editor and author...

Yesterday in Colorado, a man shouted “Free Palestine” as he attacked a group of elderly demonstrators who had gathered to peacefully advocate for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza. The episode is at once the nation’s latest paroxysm of antisemitic violence and the newest flashpoint in the debate about immigration: the alleged assailant was reportedly in the country illegally, having overstay...

Listen to the first episode of Politico’s new podcast, The Conversation with Dasha Burns. Dr. Mehmet Oz, former TV host and Pennsylvania Senate candidate, is one of America’s most famous physicians. Now he’s running the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which means he’s in charge of programs that provide health care for about half of all Americans. He sits down with White House Bureau Ch...

It’s a swing state with an open U.S. Senate seat, several competitive House races, an open gubernatorial seat — oh, and a potential leading 2028 candidate serving as governor. You may call it a political wonk’s dream; we call it Michigan. This week, as the battleground state’s political stars descended on idyllic Mackinac Island, the trends that will likely define 2026 across the nation came into...

President Donald Trump’s tariff agenda has largely relied on one central claim: that America faces a national emergency that justifies the president taking extraordinary measures. Yesterday, a federal court blew a hole in that rationale in a ruling striking down his tariffs on dozens of U.S. trading partners while teeing up yet another looming Supreme Court showdown. On issue after issue, the lega...

Even as President Donald Trump himself has a (relatively) quiet couple days, the gears of his administration continue to turn, and the pairing of his political and personal interests continues, brazenly and in the public. Today, Vice President JD Vance will deliver the keynote address at the Bitcoin 2025 Conference in Las Vegas. A few hours later, Eric and Donald Trump Jr. will speak at the same e...

The biggest story in Washington today isn’t really in Washington; it’s about how Washington is affecting pretty much every place else. With Congress out on Memorial Day recess, the focus in D.C. today is all international — from Iran nuclear talks to trade negotiations with the European Union to the war in Ukraine to Gaza to King Charles’ visit to Canada. And there is a fairly consistent through l...

Revenge, the saying goes, is a dish best served cold. And this week, the Trump administration is serving up a veritable buffet. Whether blocking Harvard University from enrolling international students, launching a Federal Trade Commission investigation into Media Matters, or using the long arm of the DOJ to prosecute Democratic elected officials, President Donald Trump’s government is mounting a...

Tonight, Donald Trump goes where no president has gone before: to an invite-only dinner for investors in a cryptocurrency bearing his name. The unprecedented event is the latest in a pile of entanglements that raise serious questions about palm-greasing and profiteering — from deals for Trump-branded golf courses to the $400 million jet Qatar gifted to the administration for use as Air Force One....

Former President Joe Biden is trying to lay low. But with the conversation in Washington dominated by the fallout from his cancer diagnosis and the continuing revelations from Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson’s book “Original Sin,” his every move is fodder for more discussion — welcome or not. Playbook contributing author Adam Wren joins managing editor and author Jack Blanchard to dig into it all. M...

The year’s most anticipated book in Washington has finally arrived: Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson’s “Original Sin” dropped overnight, just as Joe Biden’s physical and cognitive health as president is the topic dominating the D.C. discourse. And the din of that conversation is likely to only grow louder. Partly, that’s because the Biden story isn’t going away. But it’s also because Republicans are...

Former President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer. This news comes just days before the release of a hotly anticipated book that promises to reveal information about the former president’s alleged cognitive decline and the lengths that White House staffers and others in his inner circle went to conceal it. Also, President Donald Trump has a diplomatic double-...