The DSR Network

Sarah Longwell of The Bulwark recently held a focus group with people who voted for Donald Trump in 2024 that took an extraordinary turn. After being shown Trump’s vile taxpayer-funded ad, in which he rages about expelling “globalists” and “Marxists” and the “fake news media,” they were revolted. They called Trump “despicable” and “power hungry” and a “narcissist” who spew...

There is a lot to question when it comes to the future of AI. But what does the AI boom mean for the future of our democracy? David Rothkopf and political scientist Dave Karp of George Washington University examine how AI, billionaire media ownership, and campaign finance are concentrating power and weakening democracy. They explore the collapse of shared information, the influence of algorithms a...

On the DSR Daily Live for Friday, we’re joined by special guest Wajahat Ali to break down the midterm debates, the protests in France, the blatant racism of the current administration, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are living through one of the most irrational chapters of US foreign policy in the Middle East. The recent uptick in the conflict between the United States and Iran is only abetted by the fast-approaching midterm elections next month. How did we get here in the first place? And what is the potential for future conflict between the US, Israel, Iran and its proxies? Middle East expert Kim Ghattas...

Donald Trump rages regularly at Fox News. But Axios now reports that there’s more behind this than meets the eye: White House and GOP operatives have privately pressured Fox for months to change how it’s covering Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed. The problem? By giving El-Sayed airtime and covering him in a somewhat factual way, it’s made it harder for Trump and the GOP to smear...

Republican crooks across the administration are now trying to distance themselves from Donald Trump ahead of November’s elections. Yet these Republicans like Mike Rogers and Thom Tillis are corrupt to the core themselves, leading to the question: how far will these politicians go to save their reputations despite their own histories of corruption? Norm Ornstein and David Rothkopf ponder the gather...

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we break down Trump’s pathetic Texas rally, Trump’s $273 million worth of securities transactions, the EPA’s plans to relax methane regulations, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today’s episode, nonpartisan political forecaster Kyle Kondik makes some critical points about Donald Trump’s approval rating. First, it may be so low that he’s even underwater in House districts that he carried by double digits. Second, unlike in 2018, his approval is underwater in red states with big Senate races. Indeed, the latest polling averages have him sinking below 35 percent...

On the DSR Daily for October 7th, we cover Republican nervousness ahead of the midterms, Trump officials ramping up scrutiny of voter registration groups, the Justice Department moving to strip citizenship of 40 naturalized citizens, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump unleashed a long, crazed tirade this week about Dr. Annie Andrews, the Democratic Senate candidate in South Carolina. He attacked her with the vicious slur “tranny” not once but twice. He smeared her with numerous lies about her positions, insisting she is for “Defunding the Police” and “Transgender for Everyone.” The source of Trump’s rage is obvious: He fears the race is u...

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we discuss Trump’s insane comments at a Nebraska rally, Trump conceding that his super PAC will now start paying for controversial ads, Disney taking the FCC to court, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump has been holding rallies in red states, and in a pair of articles, The New York Times reported that his crowd sizes have been diminishing. This triggered an epic tirade from Trump: He raged that his rallies are “PACKED” and claimed they are “HOTTER” than ever. He even accused the media of dishonestly ignoring their “thunderous applause” from “thousands an...

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we break down another aircraft carrier being sent to the Middle East, a critical Supreme Court case on state climate change lawsuits, Trump’s brand new “Super Intelligence Force”, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new Fox poll showing James Talarico ahead in the Texas Senate race unnerved Fox figures. One MAGA guest on Fox exclaimed: “Texans have to wake up!” The poll also has truly terrible news for Trump: His approval is upside down in this reliably red state, he’s cratering with Latinos, and he’s losing the working class, which is his base. He’s even underwater with non-MAGA&nb...

On the DSR Daily Live for October 2nd, Norm Ornstein joins us to discuss Pete Hegseth’s Pentagon Office of Religious Affairs, the fallout of Jack Smith’s Senate hearing, a bipartisan effort to block the demolition of the Kennedy Center, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s bad out there. Pete Hegseth’s efforts to conform the military to his shallow definition of masculinity are troubling enough, Trump seems to have his sights set on a more deadly nuclear arsenal at his disposal. Jon Wolfsthal and Joe Cirincione join David Rothkopf to dive into the shocking shortcomings of our defense leadership under the Trump regime and why you mig...

As AI systems become more autonomous and are delegated more and more power across industries, we have to ask ourselves: are we walking the dog, or is the dog walking us? Is voluntary self-regulation really enough, or is it high time for legislators to get serious about reigning things in before the problem becomes too big to solve? CEO of CAS Strategies Camille Stewart Gloster joins us to discuss...

This week, GOP Senate candidate Ken Paxton privately admitted that Donald Trump’s midterm convention in Texas was a serious problem for the state’s Republican candidates. Asked about this, Trump unleashed a long, tortured monologue, and it was revealing. He kept returning to the number of viewers that he got at the convention, and kept repeating that he won Texas...

There are reasons for optimism as we head into the 2026 midterms. Polling is showing that people are fed up with Trump and his policies, courts are holding firm against the president, and some Republicans are beginning to distance themselves to a greater degree than we have previously seen. Yet winning in November will not mend the cracks in our democracy alone, and real challenges in our politica...

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we break down the White House removing CNN from the press pool, new details from the terrifying FlyDubai flight, skyrocketing bond levels, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump has been running propaganda ads starring, well, himself as a way to help the GOP in the midterms. The ads are government-funded, and one official even suggested that the payment scheme is partly designed to get media attention to the ads, amplifying them further. It’s appallingly corrupt and potentially illegal. But, amusingly, they’re backfiring: A new Q...

Time is running out for Donald Trump and he, and the rest of the world, knows it. This is concerning - how much more damage will he wreak knowing the end is near? Will nations like China and Russia see these coming years as a window of opportunity, a way to take advantage of Trump’s imbecility on the global stage to further their own geopolitical agendas? Max Boot of the Council on Foreign Relatio...

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we cover Jack Smith’s Senate hearing, damning audio from Ken Paxton, $20 million taxpayer dollars going to Trump ads, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump’s ban on a range of Canadian imports just went into effect, and The New York Times calls this a sign that the trade war has grown “vicious.” In a rambling tirade this week, Trump upped the ante in a dark way, calling Canada “one of the worst countries in the entire world.” Trump also said almost in passing that we get along with China better than we get along...

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we discuss Pete Hegseth’s orders for the military to defend the midterms, US bans on Canadian imports taking effect, Alito backing out of a blockbuster Supreme Court case, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices