Former NASA astronauts Jim Bagian and Dr. Mae Carol Jemison are joined by Ali Velshi, Moses Small and Josh Einiger to talk with Jen Psaki about the concusion of the Artemis II mission as the astronauts emerge from their Orion spacecraft. With the global economy in upheaval and his domestic approval dropping like a rock, Donald Trump is sending his number 2, JD Vance to Pakistan to try to make a deal with the Iranians that allows Trump to get out of the war he started with Iran with as few embarr...
Apr 11, 2026•51 min•Ep. 202604109
Jen Psaki wonders at the motivation of First Lady Melania Trump to make a sudden, surprise speech denying any past relationship with notorious sex trafficking pedophile and Donald Trump's long-time friend, Jeffrey Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell. The first lady even went so far as to make denials that are directly contradicted by evidence in the public domain. Why? And why now? Rep. Robert Garcia joins to discuss the strangeness of Melania Trump's sudden interest in the plight of Ep...
Apr 10, 2026•42 min•Ep. 202604099
Jen Psaki looks at the discrepancy between Iran's view of the ceasefire agreement with the U.S. and Israel, and the Trump administration's boasts, as well as how much the agreement illustrates that many of Trump's goals for the war remain unfulfilled. Journalist Bob Woodward shares his insights about Donald Trump and his administration Jen Psaki helps Donald Trump's press secretary Karoline Leavitt answer some of the tough questions about the Iran ceasefire deal from today's White House briefing...
Apr 09, 2026•41 min•Ep. 202604089
Donald Trump managed to avoid having to follow through on his ghastly threat to commit genocide in the war he started with Iran by agreeing to a tentative deal that opens the Strait of Hormuz, albeit with costs and conditions. Senator Mark Kelly joins Jen Psaki to discuss how profoundly Trump has messed up with his war of choice against Iran. Donald Trump was able to head off his own foolhardy threat of apocalypse with a temporary deal that leaves the United States worse off than when he started...
Apr 08, 2026•41 min•Ep. 202604079
Donald Trump has put a lot of energy into boasting about U.S. military dominance over Iran, including eliminating Iran's ability to shoot down planes. As is the case with so much of Trump's talk, reality has shown him to be ill-informed, lying, or both. Donald Trump's fixation on the sensational aspects of warfare and his shallow understanding of setting goals are keeping his mission in Iran directionless and confusing. Veteran Pentagon journalist Barbara Starr, David Noriega, MS NOW national re...
Apr 04, 2026•42 min•Ep. 202604039
Even though she was unfailingly loyal to Donald Trump, a quality that would be thought to keep her job secure, Pam Bondi reportedly did not sufficiently protect Donald Trump from public awareness of his involvement with notorious pedophile and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, so Trump has fired her. So despite disgracing herself by shielding Trump and other Epstein associates and turning her back on Epstein's victims, it was Bondi who suffered public disgrace and lost her job because of her own r...
Apr 03, 2026•42 min•Ep. 202604029
Donald Trump is so enamored of his White House ballroom pet project that he talks about it every chance he gets, regardless of the setting. Sometimes it seems like he wishes Americans would be as distracted by it as he is. But now a judge has put a halt to the project, reminding Trump that he is a steward of the White House, not the owner, and requiring him to get approval from Congress first. Donald Trump has no idea how to fix the mess he has made with his attack on Iran, and now it seems he m...
Apr 01, 2026•42 min•Ep. 202603319
Despite Donald Trump expressing shock and surprise at how Iran has responded to being attacked by the United States and Israel, Jen Psaki shares reporting that Trump was warned about everything from attacks on regional U.S. allies to the closing of the Strait of Hormuz, and Trump's struggle with these challenges is due to a lack of preparation, not a lack of prediction. Former CIA director John Brennan and former Pentagon press secretary John Kirby talk with Jen about the realities Donald Trump ...
Mar 28, 2026•43 min•Ep. 202603279
Even as the war in Iran tests Donald Trump's attention span and the patience of American voters, it's not like other problems that Trump has created that he can reverse by changing his mind and making an announcement. Jen Psaki looks at the sticking points of Trump's war in Iran. Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of the Atlantic, talks with Jen about how decisions are being made behind closed doors in the Trump administration. Jen Psaki shares news that Donald Trump says he will sign an executiv...
Mar 27, 2026•42 min•Ep. 202603269
Jen Psaki shares new reporting from NBC News about Donald Trump being fed a daily sizzle reel of Iran war explosions, and growing concerns that even the most basic information about the war in Iran is eluding Trump's understanding regardless of the briefing format. And a classified Pentagon briefing of lawmakers on the plan for Iran was apparently so unacceptable that even Republicans were willing to risk Trump's ire to speak out against how the war is being run. Rep. Pat Ryan and Rep. Chris Del...
Mar 26, 2026•41 min•Ep. 202603259
Emily Gregory talks with Jen Psaki after being projected the winner to represent Florida's state House District 87, which covers part of Palm Beach County, including Mar-a-Lago, making Donald Trump one of her new constituents. Jen Psaki tries to make sense of the latest round of answers and explanations from Donald Trump and his Cabinet on how the war in Iran is progressing and what the end of the conflict might look like, even as those answers and explanations only seem to show that the Trump a...
Mar 25, 2026•42 min•Ep. 202603249
Jen Psaki shares breaking news that a judge has ruled against Pete Hegseth's effort to restrict the press at the Pentagon from trying to obtain information that isn't explicitly authorized, even if it isn't classified, and talks about the importance of an free news media, particularly in a time of war and with a president who is "lying every time he speaks or is completely out of touch with reality." As Donald Trump keeps the U.S. military engaged in Iran without a clear goal, new crises, like t...
Mar 21, 2026•43 min•Ep. 202603209
Jen Psaki looks at some of the happy talk the Trump administration is offering about Donald Trump's war on Iran while outward signs suggest things are not going as well as they would have hoped. Senator Jon Ossoff talks with Jen about Donald Trump's handling of the war and how constituents are reacting to the economic fallout. Rep. Robert Garcia talks with Jen Psaki about questions Democrats in Congress want answered about Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner's role representing the United States in n...
Mar 20, 2026•41 min•Ep. 202603190
Jen Psaki reports on the confirmation hearing for Donald Trump's pick to replace Kristi Noem to lead the Department of Homeland Security, Markwayne Mullin. Mullin is already a dubious choice to lead DHS, but a long-running feud between Mullin and committee chair, Rand Paul added a whole new dimension to why he might not be a good choice. Jen Psaki reports on director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard's testimony at the Senate Intelligence Committee's worldwide threats hearing, Gabbard was ...
Mar 19, 2026•41 min•Ep. 202603189
Jen Psaki shares a remarkable litany of instances in which Donald Trump's confident assertions on his war against Iran are directly contradicted by news reports, many of which are sourced to members of Trump's own administration. Rep. Jim Himes, member of the House Intelligence Committee, joins Jen to discuss the resignation of a top Trump counterintelligence official who objected to Trump's mischaracterization of Iran's threat to the United States. With less than glowing news coming out of Dona...
Mar 18, 2026•41 min•Ep. 202603179
Jen Psaki looks at press conferences by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, as well as media appearances by Donald Trump and finds that the former TV show hosts are not living up to the seriousness of the positions they hold and are more fixated on creating a successful image for their war on Iran than they are on the details and strategy that would help secure actual success. Barbara Starr, former CNN Pentagon correspondent, and Brig. Gen. Steven M. Anderson (Ret.) join to discuss how Donald Trump'...
Mar 14, 2026•42 min•Ep. 202603130
Donald Trump has trained his acolytes in politics and media to echo his reassuring buzz phrases about weathering the short term effects of his war on Iran on the energy markets and global economy, but catchy slogans aren't changing the facts of the situation in the Strait of Hormuz and the sudden energy crisis that everyone in the world can see happening in front of their own eyes. James Talarico is already running against one of two very flawed Republican opponents to represent Texas in the U.S...
Mar 13, 2026•41 min•Ep. 202603129
As Donald Trump continues to offer contradictory answers and explanations, his war on Iran is running into some foreseeable problems that were among the reasons attacking Iran was ill-advised in the first place. Ben Rhodes, former deputy national security advisor, and Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia, talk with Jen Psaki about the deadly, expensive mess Donald Trump and his defense secretary, former weekend cable news host Pete Hegseth, are making. Jen Psaki points out Defense Se...
Mar 12, 2026•42 min•Ep. 202603119
Jen Psaki points out the weird and wild inconsistencies in the messaging and explanations from the Trump administration about the war of choice Donald Trump started with Iran, why they did it, what they call it, what they're trying to accomplish and how they're going to keep the world economy from crashing while they do it. Jen Psaki pins down the various excuses and evasions from the Trump administration as new reporting points to evidence that suggests the United States is responsible for bomb...
Mar 11, 2026•41 min•Ep. 202603109
Jen Psaki looks at Donald Trump's oddly casual answers to questions about the hardships his war on Iran is imposing on Americans, as well as Defense secretary Pete Hegseth's embarrassing chest pounding and the juvenile propaganda being released on government social media accounts, and questions whether Trump understands or is even capable of being a wartime president. Barbara Starr, former CNN Pentagon correspondent, and Maj. Gen. Paul Eaton (Ret.), talk with Jen about the Trump administration's...
Mar 07, 2026•43 min•Ep. 202603069
Now-former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem managed to keep her job despite a constant stream of scandals and outrages, but as soon as she suggested that Donald Trump, as president of the United States, and therefore her boss, knew about the corruption highlighted in Congressional hearings, that was too much for Trump to tolerate. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz talks with Jen Psaki about all of the reasons former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem should have been fired from her job before Donald Trump finally rea...
Mar 06, 2026•43 min•Ep. 202603059
Jen Psaki shares a dizzying collection of contradictions and nonsense from the Trump administration and its allies trying to explain the reason for attacking Iran, the goals of doing so, or even whether it's ok to call it a war. Senator Mark Kelly joins to discuss the incompetence of the Trump administration's handling of Iran and other national security issues compromised by Trump's poor choices. James Talarico won the Democratic nomination for Senate in Texas in a primary with remarkable turno...
Mar 05, 2026•41 min•Ep. 202603049
Rachel Maddow and her MS NOW colleagues track the primary election returns in Texas and North Carolina, with Ali Velshi offering special statistical insights from the big board as one of the most closely watched elections, the Democratic Senate primary between Jasmine Crockett and James Talarico mired in legal complications after polling place confusion in Dallas. The panel and special guests offer analysis of what the early voting patterns suggest about Donald Trump's political strength, the to...
Mar 04, 2026•1 hr 39 min•Ep. 202603039
Ali Velshi reviews the dubious dealings and questionable relationships of Donald Trump's commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, not the least of which is his association with Jeffrey Epstein, which he was caught lying about. Just as depositions given by Hillary and Bill Clinton to the House Oversight Committee on the matter of Jeffrey Epstein have raised questions about why Donald Trump or Howard Lutnick shouldn't be next to be deposed, the revelation of missing documents in the Epstein files have ...
Feb 28, 2026•42 min•Ep. 202602279
Republicans on the House Oversight Committee apparently thought that calling Hillary Clinton to testify about Jeffrey Epstein would score them some political points with their base. Instead they looked like fools, wasting everyone's time and only managed to learn that Clinton was possibly the least useful witness they could have called. Rep. James Walkinshaw and Rep. Yassamin Ansari, who serve on the Oversight Committee, join to discuss. It has been clear for months that Donald Trump is very muc...
Feb 27, 2026•42 min•Ep. 202602269
California Governor Gavin Newsom talks with Jen Psaki in an extended interview about the damage Donald Trump has done to democracy in the United States, the threat of his potential successors like JD Vance and Marco Rubio, fighting with the right-wing media machine and what American voters are looking for in a president. Jen Psaki points out that in Donald Trump's first term, Cabinet members who wasted taxpayer money on personal luxuries like planes were cast out of the administration. Donald Tr...
Feb 26, 2026•42 min•Ep. 202602210
Listen to MS NOW’s Special Coverage of President Trump’s 2026 State of the Union Address. During his speech, Trump touted the ending of DEI policies nationwide, railed against the Supreme Court’s tariff ruling, and attacked the Somali community of Minnesota. Hear Rachel Maddow, Nicolle Wallace, Chris Hayes, and more react to Trump’s remarks, along with the Democratic response from Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger. Visit ms.now for more coverage. To listen to this show and other MS podcasts w...
Feb 25, 2026•2 hr 30 min
Jen Psaki points to examples of Donald Trump manipulating tariffs against other countries for reasons that have nothing to do with economics and everything to do with his own personal enrichment or petty grievances. And while Trump abuses his power in order to serve himself, American taxpayers foot the bill by paying for the consequences of Trump's tariffs. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker discusses how Americans can get their money back after footing the bill for Donald Trump's unconstitutional ta...
Feb 21, 2026•41 min•Ep. 202602209
Sky and Amanda Roberts, brother and sister-in-law of Virginia Roberts Giuffre, react to the news of the arrest of former Prince Andrew. Virginia Roberts Giuffre's photo with Andrew, the man she accused of participating in her abuse at the hands of Jeffrey Epstein, became one of the most recognizable pieces of evidence in her advocacy for justice for her fellow survivors of Epstein's abuse. Rep. Ro Khanna joins to discuss a new deposition given by Les Wexner, a close associate of Jeffrey Epstein,...
Feb 20, 2026•41 min•Ep. 202602199
The Trump administration is rolling out a strategy to send Cabinet members to electorally competitive districts ahead of next year's midterms. Jen Psaki considers the political damage this strategy will cause for Republicans as everyone in Trump's Cabinet is somewhere on the scale from weird and tone deaf to personally repellant. Maryland Governor Wes Moore talks with Jen Psaki about dealing with unwanted attention from Donald Trump, who seems to have not enough to do as President of the United ...
Feb 19, 2026•40 min•Ep. 202602189
