The DSR Network

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we cover the latest bizarre story about RFK Jr., the Trump admin moving to erase convictions for January 6 rioters, Hegseth’s threats to restart combat operations in Iran, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump’s war on Pope Leo is worsening. JD Vance warned that the Pope, who condemned Trump’s war on religious grounds, should “be careful” in his theology. Mike Johnson dismissed the Pope’s criticisms by bizarrely invoking Just War Doctrine, which Trump and Pete Hegseth are serially violating. All this reveals Trump to be demanding that his leading sycophants (even devoutly religious ones) place him above the Pope—and indeed that they recognize no higher allegiance than to the president. Meanwhile, The New York Times has an epic piece on his mental decline, which reports that many ex-allies are sounding the alarm, from Marjorie Taylor Greene to numerous top first-term advisers. We talked to former national security official Olivia Troye, who just announced a run for Congress. She recounts what she witnessed first-hand about Trump’s unfitness, why his enablers are much worse this time around, and how his madness is now impacting Americans’ everyday lives.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump has run out of tricks in Iran. The war has not gone the way he had planned, nobody supports it, and now we are basically waiting for him to accept a bad deal and say it’s a good deal. To make a long story short, this war is a catastrophe and nothing is certain. But after Orbán’s defeat in Hungary and Trump’s ever-increasing popularity ahead of the 2026 midterms, could there be hope? Tom Nichols joins Ed Luce, Rosa Brooks, and David Rothkopf to discuss what this war means for our geopolitical future. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily, we discuss the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, the many failures of JD Vance, the dynamics of the California governor’s race, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump is now raging at a staunch ally, Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni. After she sided with the Pope’s criticism of the Iran war, which had infuriated Trump, he unloaded again, ripping her as “unacceptable” and seething that she “doesn’t care if Iran has a nuclear weapon.” Trump also called Meloni a coward for refusing to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, an analysis by CNN’s Harry Enten finds that Trump’s net approval among noncollege whites—a key part of his base—has nosedived by a shocking 34 points. Trump is also deeply underwater with these voters on something you’d think they would stick with him through: The war and his handling of Iran. It all looks like a new kind of low among this once-loyal constituency. We talked to New Republic senior editor Alex Shephard, who’s been writing well about the politics of this war. We discuss why noncollege whites are abandoning Trump, how Iran is splintering MAGA at home and abroad, and the challenges JD Vance will face as heir to this fracturing movement.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we break down Trump’s continuing feud with the Pope, the resignations of Tony Gonzales and Eric Swalwell, a potential resumption of Iran peace talks, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump is furious at Pope Leo. After the Pope sharply criticized the war on Iran, Trump exploded in a wild Truth Social rant, slamming the Pope as “WEAK on crime” and clueless about the Iranian nuclear threat. Trump then posted an image of himself as Jesus, which he took down after MAGA figures lashed out at him. Trump then angrily insisted he had no idea that image was religious, and seethed some more over the Pope’s criticism. In today’s episode, Robert Jones, the president of the Public Religion Research Institute, makes a fascinating point: The Pope’s criticism of his war appears calibrated in a way that could stir concern about his war in local churches at a grassroots level. That’s a hidden problem for Trump, says Jones, author of several books about religion and the American right. He explains why Trump’s spin will make this worse among religious voters, why all this will resonate more deeply with Catholics than with Trump’s Evangelical base, and why Catholics are a point of real vulnerability for him.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The ceasefire with Iran and subsequent peace talks have taken a predictably disastrous turn. JD Vance has utterly failed as a negotiator. Trump has returned to his maximalist aggression and threatens to blockade the Strait of Hormuz. It’s clear that America, and the world, are in danger. Joe Cirincione and Jon Wolfsthal join David Rothkopf to take a look at what makes the President’s latest moves so perilous and why a fundamental change in the way we perceive our democracy is needed to right the ship.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we discuss the promised blockade of Iran beginning today, Trump’s bizarre beef with Pope Leo, a massive defeat for Viktor Orban, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump’s Truth Social feed can get awfully revealing. He just unleashed numerous posts that open a new window on the man and his presidency: the transactionalism; the amorality; and the utter, buffoonish incompetence. In one, he attacked his MAGA allies in a way that displayed his utter lack of any principles. In several others, he revealed that he simply has no grasp whatsoever of the situation he faces with Iran’s Strait of Hormuz. All of which raises a question: How do we make sense of the fact that this man is president? We talked to political theorist Alan Elrod, who has a good piece arguing that the election of Trump—twice—should prompt deep introspection about what our country has become. We discuss Elrod’s argument that America needs a dose of hard truths about this man and this moment, dissect Trump’s “personalist” presidency, consider whether civic malaise produced our current national crisis, and discuss how to pull out of it. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for April 10th, we cover Melania’s extremely odd Epstein statements, Vance heading to Islamabad for Iran war negotiations, Trump lashing out at MAGA influencers, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AI should serve us, yet that’s not always the approach that experts take. There’s been a lot of talk about AI fueling economic displacement, but what about AI that’s a partner instead of a replacement for us? Dr. Angela Aristidou joins David Rothkopf to cut through the theoretical explore why real-world deployment of AI can improve workflow and augment human relationships rather than eliminating them.  This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump has been raging at Marjorie Taylor Greene a lot lately. Why? Because improbably, Greene has emerged as a very effective critic of the president. In a striking CNN interview, Greene unloaded, declaring bluntly that Trump is mentally unfit for the presidency, that the people around Trump should rein him in, and that he’s catastrophically failing. This is a watershed moment: Trump’s disastrous Iran war, and his threat to obliterate Iranian civilization, are pushing some in MAGA to look past him. We talked to Salon’s Amanda Marcotte, author of a good piece arguing that the Iran debacle is a new kind of problem for Trump. We discuss why JD Vance won’t be able to escape its taint, why Trump’s threat of genocide is a breaking point for so many Americans, and why Greene’s criticism of Trump breaks surprising new ground. (After we recorded, Trump exploded in fury yet again at Greene and other critics.)  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Corruption, dark money, and dangerous leadership - three elements that have characterized the Trump administration. We are governed by a maniac and his corrupt cronies, such as Howard Lutnick. Norm Ornstein and David Rothkopf are back to discuss the rampant corruption within the current administration, the degradation of integrity within our public institutions, and the mess of Trump’s war in Iran. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we break down the already tenuous ceasefire with Iran, Trump’s increasingly harsh words for NATO, Pam Bondi’s lack of testimony at an upcoming Epstein Files committee hearing, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The fragile ceasefire with Iran is not silencing the mounting questions about Donald Trump’s threat to wipe out Iranian civilization. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt lost her temper under hard questioning on the topic. One reporter sharply grilled her, causing her to dissemble and snap angrily. She then kept ranting, suggesting absurdly that it was “insulting” to be even asked about this matter. This comes as some Trump’s allies are sharply questioning his Iran deal: Laura Loomer lamented that “we didn’t really get anything.” Mark Levin fretted that Iran is “still surviving,” and said: “I don’t trust the enemy...what’s going to be different this time?” Senator Lindsey Graham made his skepticism of the deal very clear. Many other MAGA figures attacked his threat. We talked to Georgetown national security expert Rosa Brooks. She explains why Leavitt’s spin is so vile, why MAGA is right that the deal is a disaster for Trump (but for the wrong reasons), and why we should still fear worse horrors to come. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump’s two-week ceasefire with Iran, reached Tuesday evening after his threats to destroy the entire country over the Strait of Hormuz, has already begun to unravel. Does anybody truly know what Trump’s goals actually are? What does his erratic behavior mean for the US’s geopolitical standing? Lieutenant General Mark Hertling joins David Rothkopf to discuss the ceasefire, America’s actions in the Middle East, and his new book, If I Don't Return: A Father's Wartime Journal, about his experiences during Operation Desert Storm. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we discuss the two-week ceasefire with Iran, Democratic victories in Wisconsin and Georgia, Israel continuing to hammer Lebanon, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump’s deranged threat to obliterate Iranian civilization entirely has prompted powerful pushback from some former MAGA allies. Some are suggesting it’s time to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove him, including Alex Jones, Anthony Scaramucci, and Marjorie Taylor Greene, who tweeted that “he has gone insane.” Tucker Carlson called on military officials not to follow illegal orders to attack civilian infrastructure. After we recorded, Trump temporarily postponed the assault. But the conversation about his unfitness has been reopened. We talked to Jennifer Rubin, editor-in-chief of The Contrarian and author of a good piece on Trump’s vow of genocide. We discuss the gravity of Trump’s war-crime threats, the cowardice of Republicans who keep enabling this madman, and how we can keep the removal talk alive. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The President grows more reckless in Iran with each day. With the threats to end the “whole civilization” of Iran, Trump’s impulse to commit heinous war crimes seems to be growing. California Representative Ted Lieu, who has been leading the charge to rein in our renegade president, joins David Rothkopf to share what Congress can do to stop the conflict, why more MAGA republicans need to step up, and why what Trump is doing is simply batshit crazy.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There is a rot in our national security agencies. The Department of Defense, Intelligence, State Department, DHS, and DoJ have been either hollowed out or weaponized to serve the interests of this fanatical administration. The disastrous war with Iran is only the first crisis of many that will come as a result. Intelligence veterans Marc Polymeropoulos and John Sipher join David Rothkopf to analyze the existential threats to these critical agencies and why more trouble is on the horizon.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we break down Trump’s horrifying threat to Iran, JD Vance traveling to Budapest to campaign for Viktor Orban, the Supreme Court bailing out Steve Bannon, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump is now facing tough questions about his threats to bomb Iranian power plants and bridges, which are growing more and more unhinged. On Monday he seethed at a reporter who asked pointed questions about this, attacking his news outlet and ranting that his colleagues seem to want Iran to have a nuclear weapon. Meanwhile, Punchbowl News reports that Republicans may be at a “breaking point” with Trump over the war. All of which raises a question: If Trump seems ready to go through with massive war crimes, will Republicans be willing to rein him in at that point? We talked to Columbia political scientist Elizabeth Saunders, who had a hair-raising thread on Bluesky about where we are. She explains why Trump’s lashing out at the media should be taken seriously and why she sees this moment as uniquely dangerous. She also discusses how Trump boxed himself into a position of maximum destructiveness, what to expect from Republicans in response, and how to think about what’s next.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we cover Trump’s Easter threats against Iran, the US mission to rescue an airman in Iran, California ringing the alarm over rejected ballots, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A frustrated Donald Trump is mulling more personnel changes, Politico reports, potentially targeting his Commerce and Labor secretaries. As one official confides: “He’s very angry and he’s going to be moving people.” The Politico piece depicts unnerved aides parsing his fury like tea leaves and disconcertedly leaking to reporters about who’s on “thin ice.” Crucially, Trump is mulling changes that would make him look better on the economy—where a new poll is absolutely brutal—and in hopes of getting them through before a midterm loss makes them harder. Indeed, Time reports that his advisers delivered bad news about internal polling showing that his midterm problems have taken a worse turn due to the war. We talked to New Republic staff writer Kate Aronoff, who writes well about the crises Trump is losing control over. We discuss why real-world complexities are so elusive to Trump and the real meaning of his ongoing collision with the limits of his magical thinking.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Corruption and madness have hit a new high-watermark with the Trump administration. From the firing of Pam Bondi to blatant war crimes, it’s a good thing we have a robust free press to report on it all. Right? Dan Froomkin and Jeff Jarvis join David Rothkopf to explore why traditional media is failing miserably during this fraught moment and why high quality journalism is needed now more than ever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for April 3rd, we break down the firing of Pam Bondi, Pete Hegseth firing the Army Chief of Staff, Trump announcing more tariffs on drug companies, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nobody wants to get scammed, yet everyone has a story about it happening to them or someone they know. In the age of AI, scams are more elaborate and devious than ever. So what can you do about it? Anya Schiffrin and Alice Marwick join David Rothkopf to discuss their recent policy brief about the scourge of AI scams, what governments can do to stem the growing tide of scams, and how individuals can protect themselves.  This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

During Donald Trump’s speech on Iran this week, he revealed too much. In a line that sounded partly ad-libbed, he declared that the Strait of Hormuz “will open up naturally. It will just open up naturally.” This should be read as a straight-up admission that Trump has no idea how to fix the colossal mess he’s made, and that he’s just washing his hands of it entirely. That’s utterly damning. Meanwhile, Politico reports that Republicans privately fear the speech did nothing to help them politically; as one put it: “What the hell did he just say?” Those things are related: The worse this war gets, the more it will hurt Republicans in the midterms. We talked to foreign policy writer and podcaster David Rothkopf, author of a good piece about the speech. We discuss Trump’s implicit admission of failure, the deeper reasons this is developing into such a fiasco, why it’s a trap for Republicans, and what the post-Trump Democratic Party should look like.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pam Bondi is out as attorney general. Todd Blanche is set to replace her, at least according to Trump. Why did Bondi’s firing come now? Was it the result of her mismanagement of the DOJ, or did this decision have more to do with Donald Trump and the Epstein Files? And what does her supposed processor Todd Blanche have in store for our justice system? Norm Ornstein and David Rothkopf are back to discuss the state of the DOJ, Bondi’s firing, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What impact is the war in Iran having on nuclear security? If President Trump ever follows through on his threat to "obliterate" Iran's largest power plants, what risks would that create at the Iranian nuclear power plant at Bushehr? What impact does AI have on nuclear security, as well as on energy innovation more broadly? Join host David Sandalow as he discusses these issues and more with former U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz, in a special episode of the AI, Energy and Climate Podcast recorded at CERAWeek.  This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we discuss Trump’s disastrous televised address, Republicans announcing a plan to end the DHS shutdown, the US lifting sanctions on Venezuela’s acting president, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump seems really mad. He exploded over birthright citizenship after his arguments on it fell flat in the Supreme Court. That came despite his decision to show up at the proceedings, another display of anger designed to bully the justices. He also raged at them over this earlier in the week. Meanwhile, Trump is angrily threatening our NATO allies for failing to bail him out by helping reopen the Strait of Hormuz. On top of all that, Trump just suffered a string of losses in the lower courts. And a new CNN poll finds his economic approval at a crushing 31 percent, with 27 approving of his handling of inflation. We talked to Corey Brettschneider, an expert on the presidency. He explains how all these failures are rooted in delusions of omnipotence, how Trump is coming face-to-face with the limits on his powers, why it matters that lower courts are performing heroically, and why the ultimate check on Trump is really the people.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump’s war against Iran is rearing its ugly head across the world - it is ruining the US relationship with NATO, causing global economic instability, and seems to only benefit our adversaries. Former Ambassador to NATO and Lieutenant General Doug Lute joins Rosa Brooks and David Rothkopf to discuss the terrifying geopolitical situation our president has put us in and more. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we cover Trump’s mixed signals on an end to the war in Iran, an executive order to create a nationwide list of eligible voters, the first mission to the Moon since 1972, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The other day your faithful podcast host argued that Donald Trump’s presidency is in free fall in terms of public opinion. Now the signs are even clearer: His approval ratings have dropped below 40 percent in The New York Times’s polling averages and in two other sets of averages as well. That’s a critical milestone. Meanwhile, CNN’s Harry Enten powerfully points out that Trump has been on a steady, inexorable decline for months, and is now a net 45 points under water with independents. That’s worse than Richard Nixon during Watergate. And the millions who showed up to protest Trump and No Kings marches last weekend constituted perhaps the largest single-day protest in U.S. history. We talked to Leah Greenberg, co-founder of Indivisible, which organized the protests. She explains what surprised her about No Kings turnout in red areas, explores the deeper reasons that Trump is cratering on unlikely issues like immigration and war, and digs into what Democrats must do to sustain this energy through Election Day.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we break down skyrocketing gas prices, the US organizing a summit to counter Antifa, a draconian new Israeli law targeting Palestinians, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump erupted in angry threats against Iran over the still-closed Strait of Hormuz, vowing to potentially bomb electric and desalination plants. In effect, Trump is threatening war crimes due to his own failure to anticipate closure of the strait. This comes after Pete Hegseth issued a widely-criticized prayer seeking God’s assistance in “overwhelming” violence against Iran, which Pope Leo has now sharply rebuked. That's telling: As scholar-of-religion Sarah Posner explains in today’s episode, the bloodlust drenching this war effort is in many ways the product of extreme theology: In particular, Hegseth’s Christian Reconstructionism. Posner, who hosts the excellent Reign of Error podcast, takes us through those radical theological ideas, explains the deeper roots of Hegseth-Trump-MAGA sadism toward perceived “enemies,” and details the hidden reasons the Pope’s criticism really matters. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we discuss the huge turnout of the latest “No Kings” protests, Iran-launched missile strikes across the Middle East, the growing presence of ICE at airports, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A recent Wall Street Journal report reveals that Donald Trump now sees his mass deportations as a big political problem for him. He’s siding internally with advisers who worry that they’ve become a liability in the midterms. In this, Trump is clearly rebuking Miller and his agenda. New reporting from Politico further illuminates this dynamic, revealing fresh levels of infighting prompted largely by Miller’s unhinged demands. As Politico notes, this turmoil has already gotten Kristi Noem fired from the Department of Homeland Security, and all this leaking plainly reveals deep internal dissatisfaction over Miller’s tenure. We talked to Chris Newman, counsel at the National Day Laborer Organizing Network and a shrewd observer of Miller. He explains persuasively how we can divine Trump is souring on Miller and now sees his agenda as a potential liability, why Miller’s grand ideological project may be in trouble, and what it means that millions of Americans have taken to the streets to protest it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-Up for March 27 we discuss the Senate passing a bill to end the partial government shutdown, Trump adding his signature to paper currency, an extended pause on striking Iranian energy facilities, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump’s war in Iran is turning into quicksand. With every decision he makes, we sink deeper into this conflict, and our President is nowhere close to achieving his goals. So what will the next phase of the war look like? Representative Adam Smith, ranking Democrat of the House Armed Services Committee, joins David Rothkopf and Norm Ornstein to share his perspective from Congress on this war and more. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump is panicking about the midterm elections, leading him to unleash a series of rants on Truth Social. He raged at Republicans for failing to pass voter suppression legislation, urging them to “TERMINATE THE FILIBUSTER” to do so. He followed with a second all-caps tweet reiterating the demand. And he seethed a third time over the GOP failure. Remarkably, Trump doesn’t hide the fact that he sees this as the only way to save the midterms. You can see why: A Fox News poll finds Trump’s disapproval numbers at their highest ever, including a whopping 75 percent of independents, and a large majority opposing the Iran war. We talked to Ryan O’Donnell, executive director of Data for Progress, which has its own polling on all this. We discuss how the war is dovetailing with costs to create a double-whammy, why Trump’s tanking with independents is critical, what could still go wrong for Democrats, and why the high quality of Democratic candidates this cycle is an important tell.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Trump careening from disaster to disaster in his horrific second term, the Democrats still aren’t doing enough to resist. It’s time to fight back for real. Jennifer Welch from I’ve Had It joins David Rothkopf to discuss why it’s high time that that Dems stop trying to be MAGA-lite and embrace becoming ‘dark woke’ before Trump and his miserable band of misfits take over permanently. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we break down the gulf between Iranian leadership and Trump over a ceasefire, the DOJ paying a $1.25 million settlement to Michael Flynn, huge verdicts against Meta and YouTube, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Officials are leaking to NBC News that Donald Trump gets updates on the Iran war in video compilations of successful strikes. One official describes these sanitized montages as “stuff blowing up,” and Trump allies fear he’s being misled. That’s humiliating. By contrast, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt is portraying him as a world-historical statesman: She just laughably claimed that he’s brilliant at uniting our allies behind him (the opposite of reality in this war). She asserted that the truth is whatever Trump says it is. And she obsequiously threatened that Trump will unleash “hell” on Iran, a juvenile and despicable way to inflate him into an imposing figure. We talked to Emily Horne, a veteran of the National Security Council and State Department who writes the Spin Class Substack. She explains why this isn’t how a president and White House should conduct themselves, reminds us what basic leadership should look like, and details why the Trump hagiography has boxed in the White House, making it harder to end the war by declaring victory.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump is looking for a way out of this war, right? It seems as though the President is starting to realize that this war is an unmitigated disaster and is searching for the perfect offramp. But a clean exit might not be possible anymore. Rosa Brooks and Ed Luce join David Rothkopf to examine the possible next steps for this administration and why Iran might not be interested in what Trump’s selling.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we discuss a US proposal to end the war with Iran, Democrats flipping a Florida House seat, Senate Dems rejecting a proposal to fund DHS, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump’s tirades about Iran are getting uglier. He let out one rant that positively relished U.S. military domination of Iran and seethed about the media’s refusal to acknowledge his greatness. He unleashed a second tirade that dripped with bizarre triumphalism, angrily declaring the war “won,” which raises questions about why it’s continuing. And Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth delivered a rant that was drenched in bloodlust. This comes as a new Strength in Numbers/Verasight poll finds Trump’s approval at 37 percent and underwater on every issue, with majorities questioning the war’s most basic premises. That mirrors other new polls from CBS, Reuters, and NBC showing him in trouble and a recent Quinnipiac poll finding his coalition fracturing over the war. We talked to G. Elliott Morris, who runs the Strength in Numbers Substack. He explains why all the bloodlust is working against Trump, why public support for this war is so historically low, and why Democrats are leading comfortably in the battle for the House.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The political allegiances of Silicon Valley have shifted. Tech bros are becoming more and more aligned with Republicans. So how can Democrats balance the needs of the public interest without alienating the tech industry? Policy expert and White House veteran Rohini Kosoglu joins David Rothkopf to explore how Democrats can address the anxieties over job displacement, the concentration of wealth among tech leaders, and how to build a successful political platform for the future.  This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we cover Israel’s announcement that they will occupy southern Lebanon, the confirmation of Markwayne Mullin as the next DHS Secretary, the lack of disaster funding for blue states under Trump, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump’s war on Iran appears to be a fiasco, and speaking to reporters, he made a surprising claim: He insisted no one anticipated that Iran would attack other countries in an effort to widen the war. But this was widely expected, and amusingly, in saying that, Trump revealed that he didn’t anticipate it. That’s a striking admission about his own lack of foresight. Which captures something broader: On many fronts, Trump didn’t prepare for eventualities that most experts fully did anticipate. Now Trump is lurching in all directions: First he threatened to bomb Iranian electric plants, then backtracked while claiming that “very strong talks” were underway, but Iran then flatly denied that. We talked to foreign policy expert Matt Duss, author of a piece on the intellectual failings behind this debacle. He explains why the latest developments are unnerving, how Trump’s personal and ideological shortcomings are working against America, and what he really revealed with that odd admission of failure. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we break down conflicting claims of negotiations to end the Iran war, a deadly collision at LaGuardia airport, ICE agents being sent to airports to assist the TSA, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump is furious over coverage of his Iran war. During a speech, he let out a rambling tirade at the media, and in a revealing turn, he talked about Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr’s latest threats to revoke network licenses. Trump went off script, spewing unhinged falsehoods about the press’s 2024 coverage and strangely declaring Carr’s campaign a great success while urging him to keep it up. This essentially confirmed that Trump does expect Carr to ramp up the use of government power to punish news organizations whose war coverage displeases him—something the MAGA movement fully wants. We talked to New Republic staff writer Matt Ford, author of a great piece on the need for post-Trump accountability. He explains the flimsy legal basis for Carr’s efforts, why they’re mostly failing, what all this shows about Trump-MAGA contempt for the Constitutional order, and the prospects for post-Trump accountability for his subordinates. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The war in Iran is off to a terrible start — and it looks like it’s going to get even worse. The only person that really seems to be happy about all this is Benjamin Netanyahu, who was finally achieved the regional conflagration he’s been dreaming of. Alon Pinkas joins David Rothkopf to examine what got us to this point, why Netanyahu has wanted this for so long, and what could be coming next.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for March 20th, we discuss Trump’s disastrous meeting with the Japanese prime minister, the Pentagon considering sending more troops to the Middle East, reports that Trump is breaking with Netanyahu on Iranian energy strikes, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fake news has been turbocharged by AI — and it’s getting worse every day. Now with a massive conflict in the Middle East, there is a flood of fake content designed to misinform. So how do we cut through the b******t and separate the truth from lies? Open-Source Intelligence Analyst Tal Hagin joins David Rothkopf to explore why ai-generated disinformation has exploded in recent months and the tools you can use to verify the content you consume.  This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Everything we’re learning now strongly suggests that Donald Trump’s war is about to get worse. First, officials leaked word to The Washington Post that the Pentagon and the White House are likely to demand $200 billion more from Congress. Trump sort of confirmed this in remarks to reporters while adding some unsettling additional threats of unspecified military action. Second, sources told Reuters that Trump is considering the deployment of thousands of troops on the ground. All this means that when Trump asks Congress for more money, the pressure on lawmakers to do something about this madness will intensify. We interviewed Congressman Adam Smith, the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee. He illuminatingly explains why Trump’s war is going very badly and why these newly leaked plans are “frightening.” Smith also flatly declares that no Democrats should agree to fund another dime for Trump’s war, and vows that if Democrats win the majority, Trump's handling of the war will face vigorous investigations.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump cannot avert a national embarrassment even if he tried. From alienating our closest European allies, to destabilizing the global economy with his attack on Iran, and now to joking about Pearl Harbor to the face of Japan’s Prime Minister - things are only getting worse. Tune in as Norm Ornstein and David Rothkopf reflect on our current state of global affairs and Trump’s domestic and foreign policy agenda. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we break down the skyrocketing prices of oil, a strange and contentious confirmation hearing for Markwayne Mullin, an upcoming meeting between Trump and Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If war truly is politics by other means, Donald Trump is failing miserably. His attacks against Iran have alienated our allies even further and destabilized the entire global geopolitical landscape. What is our path out of this nightmare? What is Trump’s endgame? David Sanger of the New York Times joins David Rothkopf, Ed Luce, and Rosa Brooks to discuss the global effects of Trump’s war in Iran Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we discuss Iranian strikes on Tel Aviv, TSA officials warning some airports could close in DHS shutdown continues, the first confirmation hearing for Sen. Markwayne Mullin, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump’s case for invading Iran took a big blow Tuesday when top counterterrorism official Joe Kent resigned. Though Kent is a crazed extremist with vile views, his letter directly undermined the core rationale Trump has offered for his war and made big news in doing so. This comes as MAGA figures are splitting badly over the conflict. Some (Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson) are raging that the United States is doing Israel’s bidding, and others (Ben Shapiro) are denouncing them for blaming Israel for the war, and their battle has grown truly vicious. We talked to Emily Horne, a former National Security Council official under Joe Biden who also worked at the State Department and writes the Spin Class Substack. She explains what Kent might know about the weaknesses of Trump’s case for war, why that case is collapsing, and how the deepening MAGA fractures suggest the bottom is falling out under Trump’s adventure. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we discuss the assassination of Ali Larijani, the resignation of a top counterterrorism official, the retirement of Gregory Bovino, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over the weekend, Donald Trump unleashed two crazed tirades at the media over Iran. In one, he angrily accused news organizations of rooting for the United States to “lose the war.” In another, he openly urged his Federal Communications Commission chair to employ state power against media outlets that displease him. And in a weird rant to reporters, he angrily rebuked other countries for refusing to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz. All this comes as a New York Times expose reveals shocking details about Trump’s failings: In internal conversations, he appeared disconnected from basic realities about the strait and unable to grasp why his alienating of our allies is working against him. He also apparently got badly played by Benjamin Netanyahu. We talked to international relations expert Molly McKew, author of a good piece on the stakes of the moment. She explains how Trump’s treatment of allies is backfiring on him, why Trump might attempt a domestic press crackdown, and what to expect next in the war. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we cover the administration’s attempts to build a coalition to address skyrocketing energy prices, the FCC chair threatening broadcast stations covering the Iran war, a lengthy and political Academy Awards ceremony, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Republicans are reportedly “incensed” at Donald Trump for pushing them to pass voter suppression measures when they don’t have the votes for it. Yet he’s raging at them over this almost daily, openly declaring that making voting harder is the only way to salvage the midterms. Republicans want to focus on the economy, but Trump won’t let them, and Politico now reports that worsening GOP losses in state-level races has them very worried about the elections. One operatives says: “I’m ringing the alarm.” We talked to Tara McGowan, a former Democratic strategist and publisher of the progressive news site Courier. She explains why Trump’s demand for voter suppression has the GOP in a trap, why his bad economy, widely hated deportations and war-of-choice in Iran are worsening GOP chances, and why Democratic energy on the ground will likely remain supercharged through the fall.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for March 13, we discuss the administration’s attempts to contain the fallout from the conflict with Iran, the Senate passing a housing affordability bill, two potential terror attacks in the US, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Trump administration is a shining example of every terrible -ocracy you can imagine. As global oil prices skyrocket and conflict with Iran rages on, it’s clear that this administration continues to succumb to its worst impulses. Norm Ornstein and David Rothkopf breakdown the uniquely corrupt dealings of Trump and how the battle for American democracy is about to reach new heights. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The war with Iran has resulted in a lot of chaos and not much good. Civilian casualties are rising, Trump doesn’t seem sure if the war is almost over or just getting started, and Iran has selected a new supreme leader. It looks like more chaos is on the menu. Steven Cook joins David Rothkopf to asses the current state of the conflict and where we go from here.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump has been all over the place on the global oil shock created by his war amid Iran’s closing of the Strait of Hormuz. Earlier this week he angrily claimed that the price hikes are a small price to pay for world peace, adding: “ONLY FOOLS WOULD DISAGREE!” But on Thursday he offered some bizarre new spin, claiming that the U.S. “is the largest Oil Producer in the World, by far, so when oil prices go up, we make a lot of money.” The idea that “we” all benefit prompted intense criticism and underscores his chaotic approach to this fiasco. Meanwhile, CNN reports that Trump officials have started to “panic” and are in a state of “alarm” about the situation, even as its global impact is rapidly worsening. We talked to international relations expert Nicholas Grossman, who’s been arguing that the Iran saga is catching Trump off guard. We discuss why the oil shock’s consequences are so dramatic, how this all reveals the limits to Trump’s bullying powers, and what it all says about MAGA’s tendency to underestimate resistance to its designs. Listen to this episode here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Conversations on AI typically deal with impacts in the US, Asia, and Europe. Yet the impact of AI on Africa, and Africa on AI, is immense. Professor and Director of the MIND Institute at the University of the Witwatersrand Benjamin Rosman joins David Rothkopf to explore the unique perspectives coming from Africa in the tech space, why grassroots movements drive innovation, and how unique resource constraints are forcing a creative departure from the “bigger is better” obsession in Silicon Valley. This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we break down the soaring oil prices as a result of the Iran war, House Republicans’ attempt to pace a second major spending package, investigations into claims of DOGE misuse of Social Security data, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For Donald Trump, the news is getting worse on his war against Iran. The New York Times reports that the Trump team badly miscalculated Iran’s response to the American invasion, leading to a developing energy fiasco. The Times also reports that some officials are pessimistic about the lack of any real strategy to end the war, adding this: “They have been careful not to express that directly to the president, who has repeatedly declared that the military operation is a complete success.” Their fear of telling Trump the truth about our fix is highly unnerving. We’re also learning that the United States was likely responsible for bombing the Iranian elementary school. We talked to Columbia political scientist Elizabeth Saunders, author of a new piece on this whole mess. We discuss Iran’s closing of the Strait of Hormuz, why Trump can’t easily end the war even if he wants to, what it means that officials are leaking dismay about the war’s direction, and what likely lies ahead.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump’s war against Iran is shifting the geopolitical landscape in the Middle East - but how much has really changed in US foreign policy? What is different about this conflict compared to previous decades? What does this mean for our allies, and what role does Israel play in Trump’s decision-making? Max Boot, Aaron David Miller, and Holly Dagres join David Rothkopf to take stock of America’s war in Iran. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we cover the US military destroying 16 Iranian vessels, the results of a Georgia special election to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene, a shockingly high death toll for immigration detention, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump claims Iran is responsible for the bombing of an elementary school that killed scores of children, even though the evidence continues to mount that the United States is responsible. In a striking exchange with a reporter, Trump was asked point blank why no other government official will confirm what he’s saying. He said straight out: “Because I don’t know enough about it.” But in saying this, Trump admitted that he'd made an incendiary factual claim about an extraordinarily serious matter without having the foggiest idea what the facts actually are. Trump’s assertions about the school bombing also forced White House Karoline Leavitt to undertake a clumsy clean-up effort. We talked to Paul Waldman, author of a piece at his Substack, The Cross Section, discussing a new analysis showing that Trump’s war is the most unpopular U.S. war in modern history. We discuss why that exchange was so humiliating to Trump, what it revealed about the White House’s indefensible war and his inability to sell it, and the deeper reasons why Americans are not reflexively rallying behind the “commander in chief.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lord Nicholas Stern, author of the landmark Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change, recently released his new book The Growth Story of the 21st Century: The Economics and Opportunity of Climate Action. Along with Dr. Mattia Romani and other colleagues, he also published a paper in Nature last year on the role of AI in the climate transition. Join host David Sandalow as he talks with Stern and Romani about economic growth, climate change, AI and the energy transition. This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we break down Trump’s conflicting messaging on the Iran war, a special election in Georgia, Democrats vowing to shut down the Senate over Iran, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In recent days, President Trump has angrily demanded that Republicans pass the SAVE Act, a massive voter suppression measure that already passed the House but almost certainly can’t pass the Senate. In one tirade on Truth Social, he threatened not to sign anything else until Senate Republicans get it done. That echoed a second rant demanding the same. After we recorded this episode, Trump gave a speech doubling down on this demand. But a funny thing is happening: This is trampling all over the midterm messaging of Republicans, who badly want to appear focused on the economy. We talked to veteran Congressional scholar Norman Ornstein. He explains why the SAVE ACT is such a heinous piece of voter suppression, why it’s probably doomed in the Senate despite Trump's pressure, and how his demand has trapped Republicans, given their cultlike thrall to him. Ornstein also walks us through the nightmare scenarios in which Trump and/or Republicans could conceivably steal the midterms.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we discuss the naming of Mojtaba Khamenei as the new supreme leader of Iran, Trump warning of imminent action against Cuba, Trump claiming he won’t sign any new bills until the SAVE America Act passes, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’ve noticed that whenever the news is bad for Donald Trump, Karoline Leavitt dials up the cultlike obsequiousness to 11. She just let out a strange rant basically declaring that Iran will have entered into “unconditional surrender,” as Trump wants, whenever he says it has. In another odd moment, she dismissed widespread MAGA criticism of Trump’s war by essentially declaring that MAGA is whatever Trump says it is. The two displays really went full North Korea in other ways, too. And that’s no accident:  an average of high quality surveys now shows that support for his Iran war is at an abysmal 38 percent, perhaps the lowest initial support for a war ever. Another analysis finds that Trump’s net approval on immigration has dropped by 20 points since last year. And his economic numbers are awful. We talked to Salon’s Amanda Marcotte, a skilled decoder of MAGA. We discuss how this presidency is in trouble on multiple fronts and the role of cultlike praise in managing the base at such difficult moments. We also ponder how his physical decline, and the prospect of a world without Trump, is hovering in the background of all of it.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for March 6, we cover the firing of Kristi Noem from DHS, an investigation pointing to US responsibility for a horrific strike in Iran, a troubling jobs report for February, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump is clearly declining - mentally, physically, and at the polls - and he knows it. What does this mean for the rest of Trump 2.0? What does the dismissal of Kristi Noem and appointment of Markwayne Mullin tell us about loyalty and competence within the administration? Mary Trump joins David Rothkopf and Norm Ornstein to discuss our sunsetting president’s personal and political downfall. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt lashed out at a reporter and accused the media of trying to make Donald Trump “look bad.” The occasion was a question about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who had previously accused the media of the same. What’s truly strange is how Leavitt flatly denied Hegseth had said what everyone heard him say, followed by an unhinged, extended tirade at reporters. Why the rage? Well, Republicans are growing anxious: Punchbowl News reports that they expressly don’t want to vote on the war to keep their distance from it, and many of them are straining to avoid even using the word “war.” We talked to New Republic deputy editor Tori Otten, who co-wrote a good piece with TNR’s Grace Segers dissecting White House social media strategy. We discuss the real sources of Leavitt’s anger, the importance of fantasy and unreality to MAGA politics, and why it's all actually working against Republicans.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we discuss the Senate rejecting a measure to require congressional authorization for the war in Iran, Trump considering firing Kristi Noem, Minnesota suing the administration over Medicaid funding, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this week’s Texas Senate primaries, Democrat James Talarico triumphed, while GOP Senator John Cornyn and MAGA extremist Ken Paxton are headed for a runoff. Talarico, who speaks openly about his religious commitments and about the need to win over MAGA voters, might have a shot, especially against Paxton. That caused Donald Trump to explode in an agitated, panicky tirade on Truth Social, where he warned that the GOP primary could cost Republicans the seat and “MUST STOP NOW!” He vowed to endorse soon and insisted that the other candidate will have to “DROP OUT OF THE RACE!” This comes as other Republicans are publicly airing their fears of a Talarico-Paxton matchup. We talked to Democratic operative Sawyer Hackett, a veteran of Texas races. He explains Talarico’s unique appeal, why Texas is so hard for Democrats, what has to happen for them to win, and why they could fall short of this dream yet again.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In case you haven’t heard, Trump decided we need to go to war with Iran. What is the strategy here? Does our President even have one, or are we at the mercy of an idiot guided solely by ridiculous impulses? Joe Cirincione, Jon Wolfsthal and Ed Luce join David Rothkopf to discuss the current situation in Iran, what this means for the US, and why we’re even there in the first place. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we break down the state of the war with Iran, results from the first primaries of the 2026 midterms, the US launching military operations in Ecuador, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Speaking Tuesday about his war on Iran, Donald Trump got too candid. He declared that the worst-case scenario could involve people running Iran who are just as bad as those he’s deposing. He also admitted that most of the people the United States hoped will take over are now “dead,” and visibly had no idea what will happen next. All this accidentally reveals just how little thought he’s given to what will happen as this continues to unfold. It comes as MAGA is turning against Trump over the war: Personalities like Megyn Kelly, Tucker Carlson, Matt Walsh and many more are sharply questioning Trump’s stated rationales and Israel’s role in dictating our war policy. We talked to Zeteo’s Asawin Suebsaeng, who closely covers Trumpworld. We discuss how Trump is recklessly miring us in a horrifying quagmire, the real reasons MAGA is turning on Trump, whether MAGA angst could cause Trump to rethink, and what it means that MAGA opposes war in Iran while thrilling to savage brutality at home. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the Trump regime wages war on Iran and geopolitical crises are dominating tabloid headlines, the Pentagon’s relationship with artificial intelligence is slipping under the radar. Alondra Nelson joins David Rothkopf to discuss the DoD’s partnerships with private-sector AI companies, the Pentagon’s push for unrestricted AI, and what this all means for our future.This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

More than 35,000 people attended the recent India AI Impact Summit in Delhi, which featured speeches from more than 20 heads of state and dozens of technology company leaders including Sam Altman of OpenAI, Dario Amodei of Anthropic and Demis Hassabis of Google DeepMind. In this episode, host David Sandalow offers his reflections on the Summit and speaks with Arunabha Ghosh, President of CEEW, a leading Delhi-based public policy think tank. Ghosh offers his views on the Summit, data center construction in India and around the world and the role of AI in sustainable development, among other topics.   This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we break down the deaths of 6 US soldiers in Kuwait, an impending testimony by Kristi Noem, videos of the depositions of Hillary and Bill Clinton, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With Donald Trump’s war on Iran getting worse, a new report in The New York Times reveals damning details about the runup to the decision. We learn that Trump’s case rests on lies about the “imminent threat” Iran poses, and that he publicly misrepresented his own top general’s misgivings about the invasion. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arguably misled congressional leaders, and JD Vance privately called for going big, undercutting his “noninterventionist” cred. This comes as a new CNN poll finds a whopping 59 percent of Americans disapprove of Trump’s war, and a Reuters poll finds support at an abysmal 27 percent. We talked to Mark Jacob, who has a good piece for his “Stop the Presses” Substack on Trump’s lawbreaking. We discuss why public impressions of his violent lawlessness are turning voters against the war, what will happen in the midterms if things get worse, and how Trump is assuming the powers of a mad dictator.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After the supposed “success” of Venezuela, President Trump has set his sights on eliminating the nuclear threat of Iran once and for all. What could possibly go wrong? Christine Wormuth, Frank Kendall, and Rosa Brooks join David Rothkopf to break down the illegality and difficulty of the US and Israel’s strikes on Iran, why regime change might be a double edged sword, and just how likely this conflict is to spin out of control. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we break down the war with Iran spilling over into neighboring countries, a congressional attempt to restrain Trump’s military operations, FBI probing a possible terrorism link to a Texas shooting, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump’s state of the union speech was the culmination of many months of lies about his economy and his tariffs. Yet in recent days, even Fox News has been admitting to how bad the news is getting. Fox figures have gently tried to tell Trump the truth about tariffs: One hinted Trump should use the Supreme Court ruling against them as an offramp. Another said Republicans are privately celebrating the decision. A third warned the tariffs badly threaten the GOP’s midterm hopes. On Fox Business, one anchor was surprisingly blunt about Friday’s bad inflation data. And a reporter called the recent 1.4 percent growth numbers a “bad miss.” Yet Trump needs his media allies to sugarcoat his economy through the midterms. We talked to Media Matters senior fellow Matthew Gertz. He explains how Trump’s economy is creating serious dissonance for Fox propagandists and viewers alike, how this reveals Trump’s deepening problems with his base, and why all this spells trouble for the GOP this fall. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for February 27th, we discuss Hillary Clinton’s testimony before the House oversight committee, Paramount’s victory over Netflix in the Warner Bros. acquisition, Anthropic resisting the Pentagon’s demands, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, The New York Times confirmed the latest revelations in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, reporting on the missing files that appear to involve charges against Donald Trump himself. The Times is treating this as a blockbuster story, digging in hard on the details in a way that will surely cause media scrutiny to intensify further. MAGA is all over the place on this. Fox News has mostly ignored the revelations, as Media Matters shows. One big MAGA influencer is hyping Hillary Clinton’s supposed role in the scandal, but that’s backfiring. Other MAGA types remain split. We talked to New Republic contributing editor Ana Marie Cox, who writes really well about Epstein and right wing elites. We discuss why the Times coverage is so brutal for Trump, why the saga is driving MAGA toward crackup, what all this says about right wing elites, and why the sun may soon set on Trumpism as a movement.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The SAVE Act is the next assault on democracy by this administration — and it might just be the biggest yet. Trump and his cronies are focusing on pulling out all the stops to get this voter suppression bill passed including calls to end the filibuster. Norm Ornstein and David Rothkopf are back to break down the cataclysmic effects this bill would have on our democracy and the mounting danger that threatens to pass the point of no return.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we discuss a shootout off the coast of Cuba, the White House pausing Medicaid payments to Minnesota, missing Epstein files directly related to Trump, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Wednesday, Donald Trump exploded wildly on Truth Social, ripping into Democrats Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, who attacked him during his speech. He called them “Low IQ,” “mentally deranged,” and “LUNATICS,” and even savaged Robert De Niro, who also criticized the speech, as “sick and demented.” Trump hoped appeal to the middle, but he couldn’t help sliding back into full racism at his first opportunity. Meanwhile, even some Republicans found the speech wanting: One strategist said it wouldn’t help the party politically this fall, a second said it didn’t give enough to people who are “hurting,” and a conservative writer opined that it “wasn’t much of a game changer.” We talked to Democratic strategist Simon Rosenberg, who had a mixed reaction. We discuss how Trump’s tirade exposes a deep tension in his approach to 2026, why he can’t let go of his tariffs and deportations, and how smarter GOP strategists really view that problem. We also discuss hidden reasons why this could still go badly for Democrats.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Pentagon wants less restricted, more dangerous AI—and it seems like they’re getting it. Pete Hegseths’s showdown with Anthropic is just the latest instance of this administration’s pursuit of radical deregulation of artificial intelligence that shows no signs of slowing. The Brennan Center’s Amos Toh joins David Rothkopf to explore the ramifications of deregulation for defense, public safety, and the future of the industry.  This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

War with Iran is looming. After Trump’s incendiary and lie-fueled State of the Union address, it’s clear that our President, the founder of the Board of Peace, might just be bored of peace. Kim Ghattas, Steven Cook, and Ed Luce join David Rothkopf to forecast what the President might do in Iran, what could possibly be going on in Trump’s head, and why conflict might just be inevitable.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we break down the lie-a-palooza that was the State of the Union, the House failing to pass an aviation safety bill, a judge blocking the DOJ from reviewing a reporter’s data, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Jeffrey Epstein scandal has just taken another bad turn for Donald Trump. NPR reports that the Justice Department has withheld key documents from the publicly-released Epstein files. Guess what: They apparently relate to charges that Trump potentially abused a minor. And Congressman Robert Garcia, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, also dropped a bombshell, claiming he’s reviewed DOJ materials personally and confirmed that DOJ does appear to have withheld critical FBI interviews. Is this really as bad as it sounds? As University of Michigan law professor Leah Litman explains in this episode, the answer is: Yes, it is. Litman—the author of Lawless, a book about the Supreme Court—demystifies the legal ins and outs of these new revelations, lays out a roadmap to what will happen now, and explains the prospects for achieving genuine accountability.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s time to face the facts: Donald Trump’s goose just might be cooked. After the violence of Minneapolis and the shocking revelations of the Epstein Files, it’s clear that a major political shake-up is coming. The Contrarian’s Jennifer Rubin joins David Rothkopf to explore the fall of legacy media, the rise of independent voices, and the tectonic generational shifts happening in American politics.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we discuss reactions to the implementation of Trump’s new tariff, Democrats tapping Abigail Spanberger and Alex Padilla for the SOTU response, shocking texts from Rep. Tony Gonzalez, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new CNN poll finds Donald Trump’s approval at an abysmal 36 percent. And a Washington Post survey finds him absolutely tanking on just about all major issues. But to Trump, this cannot be real: He just issued an angry, rambling tirade about how such polls are "fake." He even declared that his support is “silent,” while insisting he got many millions more votes in 2024 than he actually got. Amusingly, this came even as Fox News aired a striking graphic showing Trump’s approval on tariffs at an abysmal 34-64. This isn’t the first time Fox has admitted how badly things are going: The network’s own recent poll found him deeply underwater on the economy, tariffs, and even immigration. We talked to Marquette University political scientist Julia Azari, author of a good new piece explaining how Trump operates outside the Constitution. We discuss how this extra-Constitutional governing is itself rendering him deeply unpopular, why Trump’s poll denial reflects a refusal to acknowledge legitimate opposition, and what it all tells us about the current state of the American experiment. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we break down President Trump ignoring the Supreme Court ruling on tariffs, Mexico killing a powerful cartel boss, Kash Patel’s embarrassing celebration with US hockey players, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After the Supreme Court struck down Donald Trump’s tariffs, he detonated. He targeted justices Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett, fuming that the ruling was an “embarrassment to their families.” He doubled down on the idea that he has unilateral tariff power. He tacitly threatened to investigate the high court for foreign influences. He called the ruling a “disgrace to our nation.” Yet this is backfiring: It prompted GOP Representative Don Bacon to declare that this might prompt more GOP votes to constrain him, remarking that Trump “didn’t do himself any favors.” Indeed, after we recorded this episode, Senator Mitch McConnell pointedly noted that Congress is “not an inconvenience to avoid,” suggesting more Congressional action ahead, and other Republicans celebrated the ruling.  We talked to legal scholar Matthew Seligman, a lawyer for some of the businesses looking for tariff refunds. He explains why the ruling was such a major rebuke, why Trump's efforts to revive the tariffs might encounter turbulence, and how his impotent fury—and the GOP response to it—undermine his political mystique in a deeper sense.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for February 20th, we cover the arrest of the former Prince Andrew, President Trump issuing a 10 day timeline on negotiations with Iran, massive new Trump branding on the DOJ headquarters, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Supreme Court has ruled against Donald Trump’s tariff agenda in a major blow to his economic policy. Are we finally seeing real pushback against this administration? What does this decision mean for our democracy? Norm Ornstein and David Rothkopf react to this evolving story, discussing the SCOTUS decision, the SAVE Act, and the corruption within the Trump administration. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After British police arrested the former Prince Andrew in connection with revelations involving Jeffrey Epstein, a reporter asked Donald Trump directly if anyone will face accountability in the United States. Trump rambled and rambled, insisting he had been “totally exonerated.” That’s not true, but regardless, Trump could not explain why accountability is happening in other countries, but not in ours. He also had nothing whatsoever to say about whether his Justice Department will ever seek accountability for any elites implicated in the scandal. Meanwhile, MAGA figures are raging over the latest Epstein-file revelations and demanding exactly the accountability that is not forthcoming from DOJ. We talked to Nicole Hemmer, author of good books about the conservative movement and about the right wing media. She explains why Trump has not been exonerated, how the latest in this scandal is causing MAGA to crack up, what all this reveals about supposed Trump-MAGA hatred of “elites,” and what the prospects are for genuine accountability. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Democratic Party is at a flashpoint. With the naked fascism on the Republican Party under Trump, the time is ripe for the Democrats to become more popular than ever. Yet the leadership has stumbled time and time again. The New Republic Editor Michael Tomasky joins David Rothkopf to outline exactly to the Dems need to do right now to trounce Trump and win back the favor of the American people.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we cover Prince Andrew's arrest, Trump's Board of Peace's first meeting, Pete Hegseth inviting Christian nationalist pastor Doug Wilson to speak at the Pentagon’s monthly worship service, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump has the midterms on his mind. A few days ago he erupted in a wild tirade on Truth Social, raging about voter fraud and voter ID while urging Republicans to make them central in the elections. He’s now pinned this rant to the top of his feed. Over the last 24 hours, he’s been on a tear, elevating half a dozen other tweets on these topics. By “warning” that Republicans must centralize voter fraud, he’s actually telling them to engage in mass voter suppression or perish. He has good reason to panic: One new poll has his approval at 38 percent. Another survey puts Democrats ahead in the House ballot matchup by six points. And polling averages find Trump’s approval on immigration, his “good” issue, at abysmal lows. We talked to Lakshya Jain, head of political data for The Argument. He explains why the numbers are even worse for Trump if you dig into the details, particularly on the economy; why it’s so unusual that Trump is tanking on two GOP issues, the economy and immigration; and why that is creating unexpected opportunities for Democrats. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

⁠“Rubio goes to Munich, then goes out for a cup of tea…”⁠ The Munich Security Conference highlighted the unpredictability of US foreign policy. Europe is coming to terms with US unreliability, and the Democratic party is beginning to see its primary candidates emerge. What should we make of the Munich Security Conference? What - or who - is the future of the Democratic party? Max Boot of the Council on Foreign Relations joins David Rothkopf, Rosa Brooks, and Ed Luce to discuss all this and more. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we cover politicized sewage spill in Maryland,Kristi Noem's clash with the Coast Guard, the FDA agreeing to review a new mRNA vaccine, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today’s episode, we talk to Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey about the latest developments in his city. Donald Trump and border czar Tom Homan have said they’re winding down ICE’s occupation, and Frey tells us there are some positive signs in this regard. But Frey also discusses how ICE violence has been directed from the very top, shares new details about the enormous and lasting damage it did to the city, and explains how the extraordinary solidarity between ordinary people there is enabling Minneapolis to emerge from this dark period unbroken and unbowed. “The people here are tough as hell,” Frey tells us, adding that the city feels “pride” at “what we are overcoming.” Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we break down the death of Rev. Jesse Jackson, ongoing negotiations between Iran and the US, right-wing rage over AOC’s appearance at the Munich Security Conference, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt went full North Korea cult propagandist on Fox News, gushing that the ICE crackdown in Minneapolis has been a “resounding success.” Never mind that two Americans were murdered, violent civil conflict has reigned, and Trump’s approval has cratered. Leavitt also undercut her own spin by describing all arrested by ICE as “criminals” and insisting the operation is “targeted”—revealing she can’t tell the truth about its targeting of noncriminals because it’s so widely hated. She was further undermined by the shocking news that two ICE agents lied about an incident leading to the shooting of an immigrant, a reminder that this entire fiasco has been perpetually awash in lawless horror. We talked to Democratic messaging strategist Anat Shenker-Osorio, who explains how that shooting wrecks White House spin, why Trump’s propaganda narratives are collapsing at a deep level, why he’s in an unusually weak position, and what Democrats can do with their own narratives to seize the moment.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we discuss the DOJ’s ludicrous claims regarding the Epstein Files Transparency Act, DHS attempting to have tech companies unmask anti-ICE accounts, the vacuum of leadership at the NIH, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for February 13th, we discuss the administration reversing a major ruling on greenhouse gases, continued escalating tensions in the Middle East, the impending partial government shutdown, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Concerns about an impending government shutdown are growing, and it is critical that the Democratic Party can adopt strong messaging to voters. There is no oversight for the Republican cult in Washington - Bondi, Bovino, Blanche, the list is endless. If we can still save our democracy, we need to do so now. Tune in as David Rothkopf and Norm Ornstein discuss the looming government shutdown, the threats to voting rights, and the hideousness of Pam Bondi.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday we discuss Pam Bondi’s aggravating House Judiciary Committee hearing, the end of the immigration enforcement surge in Minnesota, the House passing the SAVE America Act, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump is tacitly threatening to interfere in the 2026 elections. He’s urged Republicans to “nationalize” them and recently said he regrets not seizing voting machines in 2020. Last month the FBI seized ballot boxes in Fulton County, Georgia as part of some sort of criminal investigation that remains murky. Now it’s being reported that this FBI move originated with claims from a well-known election denier that have been widely debunked. This raises serious worries that Trump could direct the FBI to seize 2026 midterm ballot boxes based on a similarly spurious rationale. We talked to Lauren Groh-Wargo, head of the voting rights group Fair Fight Action. She explains who this election denier is, decodes the latest revelations about the FBI’s action in Georgia, walks through how Trump could attempt to disrupt the 2026 midterm vote count, and lays out ways that local officials—and the rest of us—can start preparing to fight back. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump is weak. From the Epstein Files to nationwide outrage over ICE, it’s safe to say it sucks to be MAGA right now. Now the question is how Democrats can capitalize. Tara McGowan and Simon Rosenberg join David Rothkopf to discuss just how precarious of a moment this is for Republicans, why Trump is more desperate than ever, and how Democrats can build momentum towards total victory in the midterms.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump shows no signs of slowing down his assault on our basic rights in this country. It’s high time we do something about it. DEFIANCE.org’s Miles Taylor and Philadelphia’s District Attorney Lawrence Krasner join David Rothkopf to discuss the Fight Against Federal Overreach project (FAFO) and how this new coalition of district attorneys and prosecutors is fighting back against federal officers who violate the law and disregard our constitutional rights.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump has not “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear arms program as his administration would like you to believe, and now he is threatening to send another carrier battle group into the Persian Gulf. As tensions continue to rise in the Middle East, it is clear that the dialogue around nuclear arms control is not just a relic of the Cold War. Joe Cirincione and Jon Wolfsthal join David Rothkopf to discuss the current state of arms control. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we discuss the Congressional hearing on immigration oversight, the FDA rejecting a Moderna flu vaccine, growing calls for the resignation of Howard Lutnick, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump’s top trade adviser, Peter Navarro, just offered an extraordinary statement on Fox News. He admitted that we should lower our expectations for job creation because of Trump’s success in removing immigrants from the country. In essence, Navarro suggested it was a good thing to have lower jobs numbers provided the (supposed) cause is higher deportations, and confirmed that removing immigrants isn’t creating jobs for Americans. We think this provides an opening to explore what MAGA economics is really trying to accomplish. So we talked to economist Paul Krugman, author of an illuminating piece on his excellent Substack that takes apart Trump’s immigration agenda. He explains how Navarro wrecked a core scam that Trump has long peddled about immigrants, how this undermines the most basic story MAGA tells about the economy, and how Democrats can seize on the failure of that story to tell a better one of their own.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we discuss Democrats rejecting a White House proposal for a DHS deal, lawmakers accusing the DOJ of inappropriately redacting the Epstein files, top immigration officials set to testify before the House, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump was initially angry over the decision to feature Bad Bunny in the Super Bowl halftime show. But then, as he performed, Trump’s rage worsened: In a furious rant, he claimed the show was a “slap in the face” to our country, that Bad Bunny’s use of Spanish means “nobody understands a word this guy is saying,” and that the show was “absolutely terrible.” Other MAGA figures fumed that the show was a betrayal of America. Meanwhile, CNN polling guru Harry Enten details in a new analysis that Trump is hemorrhaging support from his working class base. What if those two developments—Trump-MAGA fury at the show and Trump bleeding his base—are related? We talked to Adrian Carrasquillo, author of The Bulwark’s excellent newsletter “Huddled Masses.” We discuss how Trump-MAGA are in a bubble about Bad Bunny’s show, how most Americans likely viewed it, why Trump’s ICE raids and hostility to immigrants are costing him working class support, and how that wrecks various myths about 2024.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The explosion of artificial intelligence has been a huge boon for leaders in the tech space. But many of us outside of Silicon Valley aren’t fans. So where does this hate for AI moguls come from. MIT Technology Review editor in chief Mat Honan joins David Rothkopf to discuss his recent coverage of Davos, reasons to be optimistic and skeptical about developing trends in AI, and what comes next.  This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we break down MAGA outrage over Bad Bunny’s halftime show, Trump keeping Democrat governors out of a White House meeting, the Pentagon cutting ties with ‘woke’ Harvard, and more Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After Donald Trump posted a viciously racist meme depicting the Obamas as apes, a self-identified three-time Trump voter called in to C-Span and unloaded. He described the meme as an “embarrassment to our country,” apologized for backing Trump, called out his lying and bribe-taking, and ripped him as “rotten” and “pathetic.” This comes after many Republicans condemned the post, leading the White House to take it down and blame an unnamed staffer for it. We think all this captures a newfound Trump-MAGA weakness in the culture. So we talked to New Republic senior editor Alex Shephard, author of a great new piece on the waning of Trump-MAGA’s cultural dominance. We discuss how formidable Trump-MAGA’s cultural relevance looked in 2024, why it has waned, how ICE has turned the culture against MAGA on a deep level, and what it all says about the future of MAGA and our country.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for February 6th, we discuss Iran/US talks in Oman, Senate negotiations over funding DHS, an impending fight over the SAVE America Act, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The release of the Epstein files is the story of the year. Or at least it would be if this administration wasn’t responsible for a new story of the year every week. So how has our intrepid American media responded to each successive crisis? Not well. Dan Froomkin and Jeff Jarvis join David Rothkopf to explore why our media and journalists haven’t risen to the occasion and why they’re letting the First Amendment down.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt lost her temper with a reporter who asked if Donald Trump intends to flood polling places with ICE agents during the midterms. She called the question “silly” and “hypothetical” and “disingenuous,” even though Steve Bannon, who’s influential in the White House, explicitly said this week that this will happen. This comes as Trump himself called for Republicans to “nationalize the voting.” Leavitt also struggled to spin this threat from Trump, suggesting that’s not what he meant, only to have Trump undercut her by reiterating his demand soon after. The White House is all over the place on this. So we talked to legal expert Rick Hasen, author of the excellent Election Law Blog. He separates the real from the fake in Trump’s threats, outlines the nightmare scenarios that Trump actually could attempt to pull off, and explains how we can gear up right now to fight back. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to another week in Trump’s America. The President is “renovating” the Kennedy Center a la the East Wing of the White House, the Washington Post continues it’s descent into darkness, and MAGA cronies are looking for any way to undermine democratic elections this November. What is going on in America? David Rothkopf and Norm Ornstein discuss all this and more. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we break down Trump’s growing campaign funds ahead of the 2026 midterms, ICE facing a setback from a federal judge in Oregon, the Supreme Court unanimously rejecting a GOP challenge to California’s election map, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump just claimed in an interview that the events in Minnesota suggest that ICE needs to use a “softer touch.” He also struggled to create the impression that he’s been working constructively with local officials there. While all this is just spin, it reveals an awareness that these events have put him in a politically weak position. Indeed, this comes as Trump’s plans for vast migrant prison camps are hitting angry opposition in unlikely places: In a deep red, partly rural county in Virginia; among Republican officials in other states; and even in Mississippi, where a GOP Senator has come out against a planned camp there. We talked to Brian Beutler, who’s been arguing on his excellent “Off Message” Substack that Dems need to take charge of debates like these. We dig into the surprisingly robust backlash against Trump on immigration, why the prison camps present a big opportunity for Democrats, and why they must abandon the idea that Trump’s 2024 win showed a big cultural shift against immigrants.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Epstein files aren’t just about one man - they are a mirror reflecting the culture of shamelessness among the elite. Why are the wealthy elites above the law? Will this be the signature scandal of our times? Rosa Brooks, Ed Luce and David Rothkopf discuss the two-tiered justice system that persists in America, the implications of the Epstein files, and more. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a high-profile speech, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney recently declared "We are in the midst of a rupture, not a transition." US government officials and many others interpreted the comment to refer at least in part to the dramatic developments in US-Canada relations in the past year. Meanwhile, the US and Canadian energy systems are deeply interconnected. Join host David Sandalow as he talks with AJ Goulding, a leading power market expert based in Toronto, to discuss power prices, data centers, the future of coal and solar power, and the implications of US-Canadian tensions on the energy systems in both countries.  This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we cover a reduction of ICE officers in Minneapolis, Trump signing a bill to end the government shutdown, Israeli strikes killing 20 in Gaza, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After The New York Times reported that President Trump has backtracked on a major demand he’d made on Harvard University, he spiraled out of control in three wild tirades. He angrily insisted on a correction from the Times, and levied unhinged new threats against Harvard, demanding a new billion-dollar extortion payment while calling for the university’s criminal prosecution. Harvard officials clearly leaked word of Trump’s backtracking to humiliate him at a moment of political weakness. It worked: Trump appeared panicked and weak as he fired off half-cocked threats. Which raises a question: Why don’t more institutions grasp that standing firm against Trump is the only way? We talked to Ryan Enos, a Harvard political scientist who has long argued for a strong stand. He explains the internal politics at Harvard leading to its current posture, why this fight’s outcome has broader significance amid our slide into authoritarianism, and what the prospects are for Harvard holding firm. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we discuss an impending House vote to end the partial government shutdown, Trump urging Republicans to nationalize elections, the requirement for federal agents in Minneapolis to wear body cams, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump is making it explicit. In an angry diatribe to a right-wing podcaster, Trump told his usual lies about vote-cheating by undocumented immigrants, but this time he explicitly called on Republicans to “take over the voting.” He also darkly promised something new out of Georgia, where his FBI is investigating an election center. He singled out supposed fraud in Minnesota, lying that he won it three times. And he said he’s not backing down in the state. Taken all together, the threat is clear: Trump may try to use federal forces to interfere in the midterms, in part by using ICE to intimidate voters and foment crisis. Notably, this comes as MAGA media figures are loudly calling on Trump to escalate the ICE crackdowns, as Media Matters documents. We talked to reporter Gillian Brockell, who regularly scrutinizes ICE and has a new piece detailing how ICE is getting more cruel. We discuss what Trump can do to interfere in the elections, how far his threats can really get, and how MAGA conceives of ICE as an instrument of authoritarian state terror.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we break down Trump ordering DHS to cease federal intervention in protests, the Kennedy Center closing for two years, reports of Iran and the US moving towards high-level talks in Turkey, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump appears in deep denial about how widely hated his ICE raids have become. He let out a strange, rambling tirade to reporters about how the “silent majority” is still behind what ICE is doing, bizarrely citing approval of the raids among his own White House employees to make the case. In another rant, he lied uncontrollably about the protesters, about crime in Minneapolis, and more. Interestingly, this comes as a poll from none other than Fox News finds Trump deeply under water on immigration. It also finds that very large majorities of independents think ICE is being too aggressive. Incredibly, even majorities of rural whites and non-college whites—loyal base voter groups—think the same. We talked to pro-immigrant organizer Lia Parada, who represents groups losing lawful status under Trump. She recounts what she’s seeing out there, shares details about surprising new signs of opposition to ICE, and explains how Democrats can seize this moment to effect a more durable shift in public opinion.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump and the GOP are in a growing panic over ICE. Trump’s advisers are sinking into recriminations. Republican officials are publicly admitting that his immigration agenda “seems to be not working” and that the GOP is “losing” the political battle over it. Others are suggesting that Alex Pretti’s killing was “murder” and that it’s time to “recalibrate.” Yet MAGA figures are pulling in the other direction. Media Matters has a good roundup: Many are urging Trump to escalate, with white supremacist Nick Fuentes labeling Pretti a “race traitor.” MAGA doesn’t want to let the GOP even appear to moderate. We talked to Jennifer Rubin, editor-in-chief of The Contrarian, who has a new piece urging Democrats to seize this moment. We discuss how MAGA’s white nationalism has landed “moderate” Republicans in a trap, why this provides an opening to divide the Trump coalition, and what Democrats can do to demonstrate that they side with the American people against Trump-MAGA’s violent lawlessness.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Public outcry against Trump’s authoritarian takeover of US cities is growing. As it turns out, Americans oppose a police state. Even a significant number of Republicans are growing discontent with ICE as their thuggish violence increases. What happens now? Can we make this a turning point for safeguarding our democracy? David Corn joins Rosa Brooks and David Rothkopf to discuss the importance of public pushback, local governance, and grassroots organizing in challenging Trump’s authoritarianism. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is the U.S.-China AI rivalry a zero-sum game? While the race for technical dominance heats up, both nations are taking radically different paths to the finish line. MIT Technology Review’s Caiwei Chen and the FT’s John Thornhill join host David Rothkopf to explore where China currently holds the edge—and why the "us versus them" framework fails to capture the true complexity of the AI landscape. This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we cover President Trump considering military strikes on Iran, Democrats threatening to block DHS funding, an attack on Rep. Ilhan Omar, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

GOP Senators Thom Tillis and Lisa Murkowski have now called for the resignation of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. This angered Donald Trump, who lashed out at them as “losers” and “terrible Senators” and belittled them in other ways. But Noem’s tenure does look shaky. A new government review of the killing of Alex Pretti undercuts Noem’s initial account. Senate Majority Leader John Thune is declining to back Noem. And Stephen Miller undercut her, blaming DHS for a potential breach in protocol by the officers and even suggesting the initial smearing of Pretti was rooted in info supplied by the agency. This whole thing has gotten away from Trump. So we talked to New Republic contributor and Substack author Virginia Heffernan, who’s been documenting the popular backlash against ICE. We discuss why Noem’s standing will likely keep declining, what that tells us about Trump’s own miscalculations, and how ordinary people have taken charge of this story in a manner Trumpworld cannot fathom.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alex Pretti was murdered by ICE agents in Minneapolis. Where is the accountability? The Republican Party appears more concerned with public relations than addressing the violence and intimidation of MAGA. What path forward do we have? Norm Ornstein and David Rothkopf discuss all this and more. Tune in here. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Electric utilities are not generally known as hotbeds of innovation. What would it take for electric utilities to become more innovative? What impact would that have on the adoption of AI technologies in the power sector? Can AI tools help control power price increases for households, instead of creating pressures for increased power prices due to data center demand? Join host David Sandalow as he discusses these topics and others with Sandy Grace, Vice President of US Policy and Regulatory Strategy at National Grid. This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we break down Trump’s statement that he will ‘de-escalate’ in Minnesota, Rubio’s warning of potential future military action in Venezuela, a wrongful death lawsuit over US boat strikes, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After we recorded this episode, we noticed that Axios is reporting that anger is rising at Stephen Miller inside Donald Trump’s inner circle. Some White House officials blame Miller for smearing ICE murder victim Alex Pretti. This comes as reports in The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times suggest that other top advisers want ICE to change course in a way that is running afoul of Miller’s designs. That all this is leaking out shows internal dissatisfaction with Miller is growing. Meanwhile, a new YouGov poll finds 55 percent of Americans and 67 percent of independents have very little confidence in ICE. Both reflect large recent spikes. We think all this reflects a deeper Miller-MAGA miscalculation. So we’re talking about all this with The Atlantic’s Adam Serwer, who spent time in Minneapolis and wrote a good piece on the outpouring of popular energy there. We discuss what he saw on the ground among ordinary people, why it badly undermines the Miller-MAGA theory of American politics, and how MAGA poses a far bigger threat to social cohesion than immigrants do. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Minnesotans have shown the entire country how to stand up to this administration.  In the wake of two killings by ICE thugs, protesters have exemplified the values that all Americans should embody. Dahlia Lithwick joins David Rothkopf to break down the stunning events in Minnesota, why the administration is on the back foot, how the courts will play a pivotal role in the fight ahead, and why it’s time for all of us to stand up for what’s right.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we discuss leadership changes to ICE in Minneapolis, the DOJ and Congress ‘looking into’ Ilhan Omar, Trump lashing out at South Korea through tariffs, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the country absorbs the shock of Alex Pretti’s murder by federal agents in Minneapolis, President Trump is politically on the defensive. He sent his border czar there and sort of made nice with Minnesota’s Democratic governor. Meanwhile, Republicans and senior ICE officials are panicking about the situation. Democratic Senators are vowing to oppose funding for the Department of Homeland Security absent major restrictions on ICE. Will they hold the line? We talked to Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut. He offers a bracing indictment of Trump-ICE lawlessness, saying bluntly that we’re at a “breaking point” that will decide whether “we condone the federal government murdering our own citizens.” Murphy also lays out how Trump is losing the argument over immigration, what Democrats should demand to restrict ICE and explains why it would be disastrous—for his party and the country—if Democrats cave at such a critical moment.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we break down the outrage over ICE killings in Minnesota, the remains of the last Israeli hostage being returned, Trump’s new threats against Canada, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Supreme Court is about to rule on Donald Trump’s tariffs, which lower courts deem illegal. But guess what: Trump himself has badly undermined his own case for them. He’s claimed broad tariff powers by absurdly declaring trade deficits an economic emergency. But he keeps admitting to other rationales for them. In a crazed tirade in Davos, he said he threatened Switzerland with tariffs partly because a female leader’s voice annoyed him. He unleashed a long rant in a letter threatening Brazil with higher tariffs over its treatment of ally Jair Bolsonaro. And in another tirade, he threatened to impose tariffs on European countries opposing his quest to seize Greenland. We talked to MS NOW’s Steve Benen, who identified this pattern in a good piece. We discuss all these threats, the GOP’s complicity with the Mad King’s whims, and what it’ll mean for our country if the high court greenlights such obviously absurd abuses of power.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for January 23, we discuss Trump revoking Canada’s invitation to the Board of Peace, the House passing DHS funding despite ICE controversy, an American ‘armada’ heading to Iran, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump exploded in fury on Thursday at polling and media companies. He raged over “Fake and Fraudulent Polling,” said this should be a “criminal offense,” lashed out at numerous news organizations, and vowed to put a stop to the “Polling SCAM.” He’s plainly talking about The New York Times’s new poll, which finds Trump absolutely flailing on most major issues. He’s 18 points underwater on immigration, a majority of working class voters disapproves of his handling of it, and public opposition to ICE is overwhelming. These are the worst numbers on the issue he’s ever gotten. Trump’s rage is a reminder that he thinks he’s immune to the laws of normal politics. But is he really? We think not. We talked to political theorist Alan Elrod, author of a good piece for Liberal Currents on the extent of Trump’s power. We discuss the meaning of the pro-immigration public backlash, whether normal politics can ever constrain Trump, and how Democrats should prepare for the post-Trump era. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If Donald Trump is right about one thing, it’s that “we’ve never seen anything like this.” From the disastrous alienation of our NATO allies over Greenland, to his actions in Venezuela and Jack Smith’s congressional testimony against Trump, our political situation is at an all-time low. How do we save our country? How do we fight back against the evils of the Trump regime? Tune in as Norm Ornstein and David Rothkopf address the current political situation and our future. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we break down Trump reaching a deal on Greenland, Trump’s new “Board of Peace”, an internal ICE memo on entering homes without a warrant, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is anybody keeping score of Trump’s foreign policy? Are we tired of winning yet? The administration has unleashed a blitz of colossal news in recent weeks from Greenland to Iran that has been trick to make heads or tails of. Thankfully, our friend Stephen Walt from Harvard University joins David Rothkopf to make sense of what’s been going on and determine whether Trump has a winning or losing record abroad.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

By now you’ve seen President Trump’s big speech at Davos. The slurring, the confusing of Greenland and Iceland, the nonsense about wind power, and the racist smearing of Somalis before the whole world—it was an unmitigated disaster.  But things got worse when Trump’s propagandists spun it all as a world-historical triumph: White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt unleashed an extraordinary stream of obsequious praise, absurdly declaring that “America is back” and that Trump played “leader of the free world.” When reporters savagely noted the Greenland-Iceland confusion, she offered a true knee-slapper of buffoonish damage control. We think it all exposed the scam at the core of MAGA in a fresh way. We talked to Mona Charen, a podcast host at The Bulwark and penetrating critic of Trump’s lawless unfitness. We discuss the brutal criticism of the speech, how this may have killed NATO, why other countries can never trust the U.S. to refrain from electing another Trump, and how it all revealed MAGA’s anti-globalism as a sick scam.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Unsurprisingly, Donald Trump’s speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos left everyone questioning the future of U.S. foreign policy. Trump’s insane rhetoric on Greenland might finally be driving Europe off a cliff in an almost Wile E. Coyote fashion. How do global leaders respond to Trump’s bullying and threats? Is the U.S.-Europe relationship irreversibly damaged? Rosa Brooks, Ed Luce and David Rothkopf breakdown Trump’s lunacy in Davos and the horrifying implications of his foreign policy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Increasing power prices are a hot topic in the United States. Last week the Trump administration, eight Democratic governors and five Republican governors announced a plan to protect households in mid-Atlantic and Midwestern states from paying more for electricity because of electricity demand from data centers. Join host David Sandalow as he talks with Peter Fox-Penner, a leading expert on electricity markets, to discuss the causes of power price increases, the role of data centers, the recent bipartisan agreement in the PJM region, and more.   This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we cover Trump’s unhinged speech at Davos, the DOJ’s subpoenas of Jacob Frey and Tim Walz, the Supreme Court weighing Trump’s efforts to fire Lisa Cook, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over the weekend, President Trump sent a deranged text to Norway’s prime minister linking his failure to win the Nobel Peace prize to the possibility of taking Greenland by military force. That wasn’t a one-off: Trump said something similar in rambling remarks on Tuesday. Trump’s lunacy is prompting a medical expert to sound the alarm: He notes that Trump’s conduct should “trigger a bipartisan congressional inquiry into presidential fitness.” That was amplified by a Danish politician, who called Trump “mad and erratic.” So how is all this madness perceived by the rest of the world right now? We talked to international relations expert Elizabeth Saunders, who has a great new piece for Foreign Affairs magazine about the future of “primitive anarchy” that Trump is leading us into. She explains the deeper reasons Trump is so unconstrained, how his conduct is seen by other foreign leaders, and why there’s reason to fear that Trump’s designs on Greenland are deadly serious. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Elon’s Neuralink isn’t the only game in town when it comes to neurotechnology. With a rapidly expanding AI industry, more and more companies are finding ways to analyze data straight from your brain. So what can we do in an age where our thoughts have become commodities and privacy is an increasing rare luxury? Nita Farahany, a leading expert on the ethical and legal implications of emerging technologies, joins David Rothkopf to explore these fascinating questions and more.  This material is distributed by TRG Advisory Services, LLC on behalf of the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the U.S.. Additional information is available at the Department of Justice, Washington, DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we break down the Justice Department’s probe in to protests in Minnesota, President Sheinbaum’s response to concerns over US military movements, the EU bracing for a potential showdown over Greenland, and more.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last week, President Trump unleashed an angry tirade over anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis, threatening to invoke the “INSURRECTION ACT” against “professional agitators and insurrectionists,” i.e., ordinary people. On Friday, Trump seemed to suggest he might not, but he also left the threat very much dangling out there. Indeed, after we recorded this episode, Trump kept raging, seething about jailing Minnesota Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, sharing tweets about “anti-ICE anarchists,” and exploding about Minnesota politicians supposedly wanting criminals in their state, showing his fury is on full boil. This comes as a devastating New York Times frame-by-frame analysis of Renee Good’s shooting shows very clearly that the shooting was not remotely justified. Making all this still worse, troops are now reportedly mobilizing for possible deployment to Minnesota. We talked to Mother Jones writer Mark Follman, author of a new piece on Trump’s exploitation of crises. We discuss how the Trump-ICE cover story is collapsing, how dangerous invoking the Insurrection Act would be, and what Trump hopes to accomplish by stoking social antagonisms at moments of national trauma. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for January 16th, we discuss Trump threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act and deploy the military to Minneapolis, the Pentagon taking over Stars and Stripes, María Corina Machado giving Trump her Nobel Peace Prize medal, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After fielding a perfectly legitimate question about ICE abuses on Thursday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt lost her temper. She smeared the reporter as a “left-wing hack.” She then broadened her indictment to the whole “fake” media. She also angrily ridiculed another journalist for asking why Trump recently “joked” that we shouldn’t have midterm elections. That Leavitt was triggered by questions about ICE again shows the White House is refusing to admit error of any kind. This comes as one new poll has Trump’s disapproval on immigration soaring to 61 percent, and another one finds a majority thinks ICE is making our cities less safe. We talked to Aaron Reichlin Melnick of the American Immigration Council, which has a great new report on Trump’s migrant detention system. We discuss the heartening public rejection of Trump, ICE’s coming explosion in recruitment, and why the refusal to change course means ICE is set to wage a Forever War on the American people.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump is now threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act to send federal troops to Minneapolis. The public outrage and protests over the killing of Renee Good is testing the limits of Trump’s authoritarianism, yet he continues to double down against his growing negative public perception on both sides of the political spectrum. Would Trump try to suspend elections or declare martial law to maintain power? How do we fight back against this administration’s authoritarian thuggery? Norm Ornstein and David Rothkopf discuss the events in Minneapolis and what we must do to stop this violence. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Thursday, we discuss the failure of a war powers resolution in the Senate, Trump threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act to deploy military forces in Minnesota, reports of AI errors in ICE recruitment, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

House Speaker Mike Johnson’s response to growing ICE violence is really something to behold. In one long, rambling answer, he blamed shooting victim Renee Good in every which way, absurdly claiming she’d been “taunting” ICE officers and “impeded” them, while insisting they’d been “very patient.” In another one, he played sleazy little games, claiming the violence represents the “tragic consequences” of ICE facing “too much resistance”—again blaming the victims for violence against them, without a hint of concern about ICE’s conduct. We talked to Sarah Posner, author of several good books on the religious right, who is launching a new podcast next week called “Reign of Error.” We discuss Johnson’s strain of Christianity, how Trump and MAGA fuse religious and secular authoritarianism, and why some leading Evangelicals are now calling on people to pray—not for the victims of Trump-MAGA violence, but rather for Kristi Noem and ICE. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump’s calamitous foreign policy decisions are causing significant ripple effects amongst both the United States’ rivals and allies. It’s not just China anymore - countries everywhere are reevaluating their relationships with the US. Tune in as Rosa Brooks, Ed Luce, and David Rothkopf discuss the rise of global de-risking from the US, the economic implications of Trump’s foreign policy, and America’s status as an international leader. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we cover Trump’s latests demands on Greenland, an impending post-war plan reveal for Gaza, surging demonstrations in Minneapolis against ICE, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Donald Trump is going all in on the lunacy that the Minneapolis shooting should prompt a crackdown on the left. He unleashed ugly tirades on this, claiming the protests are “fake” and that officials are investigating their financial backers. He also lied uncontrollably about crime in Minnesota while hinting darkly that the crackdown there will get worse. This comes as a new Quinnpiac poll finds majorities of voters say the ICE shooting is not justified (53-35) and disapprove of ICE enforcement (57-40). Those numbers are even worse for Trump among independents (59-28 and 64-33). And new YouGov poll finds 53 percent say the ICE officer should face charges. We talked to New Republic staff writer Melissa Gira Grant, author of a new piece on the smearing of victim Renee Good. We discuss how Trump has lost the middle of the country over ICE, why his crackdown on the left will fail, and and why new Justice Department resignations over the shooting are so incriminating to Trump and his top advisers.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we discuss a lawsuit trying to block the surge of ICE officers, they Supreme Court hearing statements regarding anti-trans athlete laws, Trump announcing tariffs on Iranian trade partners, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There have been some ugly developments around the horrific killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis by an ICE agent. Donald Trump offered a vile new excuse for the shooting, claiming the victim was “disrespectful” to law enforcement. Meanwhile, a damning Wall Street Journal report finds that since July, there have been 13 examples of federal agents firing into civilian vehicles, with eight people shot and two confirmed dead. What’s more, the report suggests much of this was avoidable. All of that is quite simply a shocking indictment. Yet despite massive anti-ICE protests over the weekend, Trump officials are only being more contemptuous of those angered by the killing. We talked to Tim Dickinson, senior writer at The Contrarian, who attended a protest in Portland. We discuss the utter lack of oversight on law enforcement right now, how Trumpworld sees this as an opening to further antagonize blue America, and why protesters are determined to make something good out of Renee Good’s death.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we break down the DOJ’s subpoena of Jerome Powell, Trump’s threats against GOP senators who voted for war powers resolution, the latest from the mass protests in Iran, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The other day, five Senate Republicans helped pass a measure blocking President Trump’s authority to wage war in Venezuela without Congress. That caused Trump to erupt in a crazed fury. He attacked those Republicans by name, fumed that they had weakened his authority, and raged that “they should never be elected to office again.” He even seethed at their “stupidity.” This comes amid other signs of GOP defiance:  A number of House Republicans backed extending Affordable Care Act subsidies and other measures Trump opposed. Several GOP Senators openly criticized the administration’s handling of the ICE killing in Minneapolis. One slammed Stephen Miller’s comments on Greenland as “stupid.” We talked to Salon’s Amanda Marcotte, who writes well about Trump’s psychoses. We discuss how all this shows Trump’s power isn’t absolute, why he’s so desperate to keep you from realizing that, and why we shouldn’t get psyched out every time he plays tyrant on TV. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Weekly Wrap-up for January 9th, we discuss the showdown between Minnesota officials and the Trump administration, the House passing a 3-year extension of ObamaCare subsidies, the administration considering a plan to pay Greenlanders, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Wednesday, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer brutally murdered Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis. Meanwhile, Donald Trump and other MAGA officials have defended the agent’s action, marking another step in the growing militarization of the agency and disregard for civil rights. Where is the damn accountability when Trump loyalists are out on the streets committing such brutal acts of violence? David Rothkopf and Norm Ornstein discuss these tragedies and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our President opened up the new year with some brand new imperialism. But is it really new, or just a rehash of the greatest hits of America’s expansionist past? With the capture of Maduro and threats against Mexico, Columbia, and Greenland, we're in a dangerous new era. Max Boot and Ed Luce join David Rothkopf to break down what recent developments reveal about Trump’s foreign policy, why MAGA may have to exchange isolationism for imperialism, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the scandal around ICE’s killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis gets worse, two leading Democrats—Representatives Eric Swalwell and Daniel Goldman—are set to introduce a new bill reining in ICE. It would end qualified immunity for civil enforcement officers like ICE agents, making it easier for victims of their abuses to sue them or pursue criminal charges against them in court. All this comes as top MAGA figures and leading Republicans have flatly defended the killing in some truly ghoulish displays. This, even as powerful new video analyses from The New York Times and The Washington Post show unequivocally that the shooting was at minimum absolutely unjustified. We talked to Swalwell and Goodman about their new proposal, the need for the state of Minnesota to prosecute the shooter, the folly of expecting the FBI to investigate the killing, and the need to functionally end ICE’s existence over the long term. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Wednesday, an ICE agent killed a woman in her vehicle on the streets of Minneapolis. She was reportedly a U.S. citizen. But then President Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem made their own conduct even more damning by blaming the victim and insisting the officer acted out of legitimate self-defense. The video Trump posted didn’t come close to supporting his claims. Other videos strongly suggested the officer wasn’t at all in a life-threatening situation and that lethal force was in no way justified, and Minnesota officials vehemently backed that up. DHS officials then leaked that the agent had violated use-of-force protocol. We talked to New Republic contributing editor Felipe De La Hoz, who writes well about ICE accountability. We discuss the government’s collapsing cover story, how this saga sheds light on ICE’s larger rogue-agency lawlessness, and what needs to happen to rein in this rogue agency. Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Wednesday, we cover European allies preparing for potential US military action in Greenland, child care funds being frozen in five Democratic-led states, the Wyoming Supreme Court striking down the state’s abortion bans, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last year, Senator Mark Kelly and five other Democrats posted a video with a stark message: Military service members and officials are not obliged to carry out illegal orders. This infuriated Donald Trump, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is reprehensibly bringing disciplinary action against him as a retired Navy man. But this is backfiring: Kelly has now offered a striking new response in a second video, and it’s powerful stuff. Kelly speaks emotionally about his family’s commitment to the military and to the country, and absolutely humiliates Trump over his disregard for military service and disdain free speech. Indeed, the attack on Kelly is likely to fail and will continue making Trump look worse. We talked to legal expert Leah Litman, author of the book Lawless, about the Supreme Court. She walks us through the legal ins-and-outs of this dispute, explains why the case against Kelly represents its own abuse of the process, and reflects on how this saga captures Trumpworld’s deeper contempt for public service.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Tuesday, we break down Maduro’s not guilty plea in New York, draft agreements for security guarantees for Ukraine, Tim Walz not seeking reelection for Minnesota governor, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Trump just unleashed a wild rant on Truth Social, accusing media figures of deliberately ignoring good news about his worsening tariff disaster because they “hate and disrespect our country.” He added that the tariffs have made us “FAR STRONGER AND MORE RESPECTED THAN EVER BEFORE.” What caught our eye is how this shows Trump running everything, no matter how trivial, through a “strong” versus “weak” frame. He’s vowing to seize Venezuela’s oil after his invasion; he’s threatening many other countries with military action; and he’s even menacing Greenland, a NATO ally. Yet a new poll finds surprisingly low support for his action against Venezuela on multiple fronts. We talked to international relations expert Nicholas Grossman, who argues that Trump has it all backwards: All these blustering fits and threats are a sign of Trump’s personal and political weakness and also are weakening our country’s international standing. We discuss whether that bad poll suggests an opening for Democrats to seize the strong/weak frame from him.  Looking for More from the DSR Network? Click Here: https://linktr.ee/deepstateradio Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the DSR Daily for Monday, we discuss the arrival of Nicolas Maduro in New York, Trump’s threats against Greenland, the impending construction of the ‘Triumphal Arch’ in DC, and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices