Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff

The Most Dangerous Summer. Iran, Ukraine, Ebola, And The World Cup. 

Rubio Says The War Is Over - Who Won? Bessent’s “Short-Term Blip” Is Bs.

The lid is blown off. Secretary of State Marco Rubio went up to Capitol Hill to declare victory over Iran — defense industrial base destroyed, missile launchers gutted, conventional navy wiped out — and within 24 hours Tehran hit the Kuwaiti airport. That's the summer we're walking into. Paul Rieckhoff breaks it all down from the MSNBC desk: the war that supposedly isn't a war, the war powers vote that may or may not matter, and a White House that has stopped pretending Congress exists. This is exactly the moment the rigged two-party system was built to obscure — and exactly the moment the Angry Middle needs the no-BS briefing.

From there the conversation widens into the full threat picture: Putin slamming Ukraine, an Ebola outbreak in Africa, the World Cup and America 250 about to flood the homeland with soft targets, and a Treasury Secretary telling working families that grocery prices are a "short-term blip." Paul names the Republicans who are finally breaking from Trump now that the $1.8 billion insurrectionist slush fund got killed, the independent veterans like Dan Osborn making real ground in Nebraska and Montana, and the LA mayor's race where running against the entire system is suddenly the winning play. If you've been waiting for someone to connect Iran, gas prices, and a lame-duck presidency in one rigorous briefing — this is it.

-WATCH full video of this episode here.

-Join IVA and stand up to Trump’s Forever Wars.

-Learn more about Paul’s work to elect a new generation of independent leaders with Independent Veterans of America.

-Learn more about American Veterans for Ukraine here.

-Remember Independent is an Attitude.

-Learn more about The Headstrong Project for Veterans, Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), and Department of Veterans Affairs resources in your area. Seeking support is not a sign of weakness. It’s a show of strength. If you or a loved one are in immediate crisis, dial 988 and press 1, or text 838255.

Connect with Independent Americans:

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Connect: Instagram  • X/Twitter • BlueSky • Facebook 

Follow on social: @PaulRieckhoff on X, Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky
-Join the movement. Hook into our exclusive Patreon community of Independent Americans. Get extra content, connect with guests, meet other Independent Americans, attend events, get merch discounts, and support this show that speaks truth to power. 

-And get cool IA and Righteous hats, t-shirts and other merch now in time for the new year. 

Independent Americans is powered by veteran-owned and led Righteous Media. 

And now part of the BLEAV network! 

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Pentagon Hires Jan 6 Insurrectionist. A Soldier Died in Iraq and Nobody Noticed. CBS Fires Scott Pelley. Trump’s UFC Event is Off The Rails. Knicks Win!!

The House finally did its job. By a 215-208 vote on the War Powers Act and a 218-204 vote authorizing $8 billion in military financing for Ukraine, Congress this week told Trump no on Iran and yes on Kyiv. It's shamefully overdue, it's mostly symbolic on Iran, and it took a handful of Republicans with actual integrity — Fitzpatrick, Massie, Barrett, Davidson, and Don Bacon among them — to make it happen. But on day 1559 of Russia's full-scale invasion, with more than 700 Ukrainian children dead and an American sergeant just killed in a training accident in Iraq that almost nobody noticed, this is the closest thing to good news Washington has produced in months.

In this solo briefing, Paul walks through the votes, the cost, and the rot underneath them: a convicted January 6th rioter now assigned to the Pentagon's irregular warfare and counterterrorism section, the firing of Scott Pelley and the slow death of 60 Minutes, the disappearance of Tulsi Gabbard, the UFC turning into a political circus, and the Maine Senate race where Graham Platner's Totenkopf tattoo and a damning New York Times report have Democrats doing their best Biden 2.0 impression. He closes with Karen Lee Matthews' honorable independent run in California's 23rd, a reminder of where TAPS and the 988 crisis line fit in, and why the Knicks winning Game One actually matters for a country that desperately needs something to root for together.

-WATCH full video of this episode here.

-Join IVA and stand up to Trump’s Forever Wars.

-Learn more about Paul’s work to elect a new generation of independent leaders with Independent Veterans of America.

-Learn more about American Veterans for Ukraine here.

-Remember Independent is an Attitude.

-Learn more about The Headstrong Project for Veterans, Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), and Department of Veterans Affairs resources in your area. Seeking support is not a sign of weakness. It’s a show of strength. If you or a loved one are in immediate crisis, dial 988 and press 1, or text 838255.

Connect with Independent Americans:

Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all podcast platforms

Read more at Substack

Support ad-free episodes at Patreon 

Connect: Instagram  • X/Twitter • BlueSky • Facebook 

Follow on social: @PaulRieckhoff on X, Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky
-Join the movement. Hook into our exclusive Patreon community of Independent Americans. Get extra content, connect with guests, meet other Independent Americans, attend events, get merch discounts, and support this show that speaks truth to power. 

-And get cool IA and Righteous hats, t-shirts and other merch now in time for the new year. 

Independent Americans is powered by veteran-owned and led Righteous Media. 

And now part of the BLEAV network! 

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

90 Days In - Is The Iran War Illegal? RFK & Hegseth Unfit for Office? Elk Camps & the Rural Health Care Crisis. 

The day after Montana's 2026 primary, Paul sits down with Colonel Mike Eisenhauer — a 25-year Army veteran, Bronze Star recipient, and practicing interventional cardiologist who is now running as an independent for Congress (https://eisenhauerforcongress.com/) in Montana's massive 2nd District. While the Republican incumbent ran unopposed and three Democrats fought over a primary their party hasn't won statewide in decades, Eisenhauer was outside the rigged two-party system entirely, gathering nearly 13,000 verified signatures to earn his spot on the November ballot. This is what it actually takes to break through when the machine is designed to keep you out.

The conversation covers the affordability crisis crushing Montana families, the gutting of rural healthcare under the so-called big beautiful bill, the illegal and unauthorized war in Iran, congressional abdication under the War Powers Act, and why Eisenhauer — alongside Green Beret Seth Bodnar's Senate run — may be proof that Montana is ground zero for the independent movement. Paul and Mike also get into RFK Jr., right-to-repair, Trump accountability, the day after a huge primary day, the NBA Finals and why a doctor's diagnostic framework might be exactly what a broken Congress needs. 

-WATCH full video of this episode here.

-Join IVA and stand up to Trump’s Forever Wars.

-Learn more about Paul’s work to elect a new generation of independent leaders with Independent Veterans of America.

-Learn more about American Veterans for Ukraine here.

-Remember Independent is an Attitude.

-Learn more about The Headstrong Project for Veterans, Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), and Department of Veterans Affairs resources in your area. Seeking support is not a sign of weakness. It’s a show of strength. If you or a loved one are in immediate crisis, dial 988 and press 1, or text 838255.

Connect with Independent Americans:

Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all podcast platforms

Read more at Substack

Support ad-free episodes at Patreon 

Connect: Instagram  • X/Twitter • BlueSky • Facebook 

Follow on social: @PaulRieckhoff on X, Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky
-Join the movement. Hook into our exclusive Patreon community of Independent Americans. Get extra content, connect with guests, meet other Independent Americans, attend events, get merch discounts, and support this show that speaks truth to power. 

-And get cool IA and Righteous hats, t-shirts and other merch now in time for the new year. 

Independent Americans is powered by veteran-owned and led Righteous Media. 

And now part of the BLEAV network! 

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Brutal Russian Attack Hits Kyiv. Tulsi Gabbard’s Replacement Has No Experience. Mamdani Cancels Bedtime. 

It's primary day in California, Iowa, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, and South Dakota — and depending on your zip code, you either get a real vote or you get told to sit down and shut up. Paul Rieckhoff cuts through the noise on the biggest primary day of the cycle so far, breaking down why California's open primary is what real democracy looks like, why closed primaries in places like New Jersey and New York are a rigged scam dressed up in public money, and why 17 million independents across 16 states are once again being locked out of the elections their taxes fund. He names names: Karen Matthews in CA-23, Seth Bodnar going independent in Montana, Rebecca Bennett taking on the missing-in-action Tom Kean Jr., Deb Haaland in New Mexico, and the partisan hacks — Brad Lander chief among them — who say they love democracy but fight open primaries every step of the way.

Then the briefing goes wider. Trump just lost a Senate fight over an outrageous $1.8 billion slush fund to pay out January 6th insurrectionists and Oath Keepers — proof that pressure works when even moderate Republicans break ranks. But he's already nominated Bill Pulte, a home-building heir with zero intelligence experience, to replace Tulsi Gabbard at DNI. Overnight, Russia killed a three-year-old boy in Dnipro after the U.S. delayed air defense missiles to Ukraine. Paul closes with the culture beat — Mamdani, the NBA Finals, a Cruz-Gillibrand bet — and a reminder that the independent movement isn't moving the needle, it is the needle. Country over party. People over politics. Light over heat.

-WATCH full video of this episode here.

-Join IVA and stand up to Trump’s Forever Wars.

-Learn more about Paul’s work to elect a new generation of independent leaders with Independent Veterans of America.

-Learn more about American Veterans for Ukraine here.

-Remember Independent is an Attitude.

-Learn more about The Headstrong Project for Veterans, Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), and Department of Veterans Affairs resources in your area. Seeking support is not a sign of weakness. It’s a show of strength. If you or a loved one are in immediate crisis, dial 988 and press 1, or text 838255.

Connect with Independent Americans:

Subscribe on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all podcast platforms

Read more at Substack

Support ad-free episodes at Patreon 

Connect: Instagram  • X/Twitter • BlueSky • Facebook 

Follow on social: @PaulRieckhoff on X, Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky
-Join the movement. Hook into our exclusive Patreon community of Independent Americans. Get extra content, connect with guests, meet other Independent Americans, attend events, get merch discounts, and support this show that speaks truth to power. 

-And get cool IA and Righteous hats, t-shirts and other merch now in time for the new year. 

Independent Americans is powered by veteran-owned and led Righteous Media. 

And now part of the BLEAV network! 

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Trump news fatigue is real. That's not an accident — it's the playbook. Exhaust the public, contaminate every institution, and the most radical agenda in modern American history slides through while we're too tired to notice. On episode 538, Paul Rieckhoff delivers a solo Manosphere Monday briefing for the angry middle: the people who are done with the rigged two-party system but refuse to check out of the fight.

Paul breaks down acting Secretary of Culture War Pete Hegseth blocking the promotions of at least seven Navy women and minority officers, leaving a one-star admiral slate with zero women. He unpacks Graham Platner's escalating problems in Maine and what the Democrats' all-in posture says about a party that keeps doing Democrat things. He gets into Jaxon Dart introducing Trump at a partisan campaign event and why Trump contaminates everything he touches — including the New York Giants. Plus Scott Pelley calling out the murder of 60 Minutes, Iran suspending talks, the Bab al-Mandab threat, and a mailbag from a DoD civilian combat vet getting the shaft on pay. There's a war going on outside. Stay vigilant.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.