
'Bad, fast-talking infomercial': Psaki fact-checks Trump's address
12/18/2025 | 31 mins.
Jen Psaki shares her first reaction and offers some corrections and clarifications to Donald Trump's address to the nation. MS NOW's Catherine Rampell and senior White House correspondent Vaughn Hillyard join with further fact-checking an analysis.Senator Mark Kelly shares his reaction to Donald Trump's address to the nation, describing Trump as "angry and desperate and defensive," and mocking the ridiculous intersection of math and Trump's dishonest exaggerations. Kelly also discusses Trump's military escalation with Venezuela.And reporter Chris Whipple talks with Jen about his blockbuster piece in Vanity Fair based on 11 interviews with Donald Trump's chief of staff, Susie Wiles. To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Trump chief of staff makes disastrous miscalculation in talks with reporter
12/17/2025 | 41 mins.
Jen Psaki shares highlights and insights from a new Vanity Fair article based on interviews with Donald Trump's chief of staff, Susie Wiles. The article not only shows that there are no "adults in the room" at Trump's White House, but shows Wiles to be so incompetent that agreeing to interviews with a reporter looks like a really bad idea.Rep. Adam Smith, top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee talks with Jen Psaki about the lack of information and evasiveness by the Trump administration in explaining to Congress the reasoning behind Donald Trump's increasing belligerence toward Venezuela and the clear risk of plunging the United States into another forever war.With a new release of Epstein documents set for this Friday, Donald Trump and his supporting Republicans are getting anxious, but Rep. Robert Garcia isn't sure how much Friday's release will contain.Another looming deadline as the year comes to an end is the expiration of health care subsidies. Rep. Brendan Boyle explains that the best hope that Republicans will act to prevent millions of Americans from losing their healthcare is that enough angry voters make Republicans more afraid of them than they are of Donald Trump. To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Tish James, who nailed Trump for fraud, humiliates Trump's prosecutors with third indictment failure
12/12/2025 | 42 mins.
Donald Trump's prosecutors tried and failed a third time to indict New York Attorney General Letitia James, who has repeatedly humiliated Donald Trump by exposing fraud in his organizations. Abbe Lowell, attorney for James, talks with Jen Psaki about the egregiousness of the politically motivated case, and the possibility of a counter suit over the DOJ's abuse of power.Rep. Hakeem Jeffries talks with Jen about the upcoming midterms, Donald Trump's unpopularity, and Indiana Republicans rejecting Trump's push to boost the number of Republican districts to help him preserve power in Congress.Senator Rev. Raphael Warnock talks with Jen Psaki about the looming health care crisis if Republicans continue to be unable to produce a solution to extent Obamacare subsidies, and the factors that are contributing to the housing crisis in the U.S. that Republicans in charge of Congress are also unable to address.Senator Adam Schiff discusses the upcoming release of Epstein investigation documents.  To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Maddow: Trump's attacks on immigrants serve a more sinister purpose
12/11/2025 | 41 mins.
Jen Psaki introduces viewers to Rachel Maddow's new podcast, "Burn Order," about Japanese internment in the U.S. during World War II, and points out that unlike Americans of that era, Americans now are being much more outspoken in support of immigrants and in condemnation of Donald Trump's anti-immigrant policies. Rachel Maddow joins to discuss Trump's use of anti-immigrant scapegoating as a means of giving himself more power.Rachel Maddow talks with Jen Psaki about Donald Trump's cluelessness regarding U.S. aggression toward Venezuela while the administration's explanations change and don't make sense. Maddow notes that what appears to be happening is a regime-change war to get access to Venezuela's oil.Senator Jon Ossoff joins Jen to discuss the recent string of Democratic candidates outperforming expectations set in 2024.And Senator Ruben Gallego discusses another Democratic upset win, this time for mayor of Miami. To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Trump's old tricks fall flat from overuse in the face of hard realities
12/10/2025 | 41 mins.
Jen Psaki reviews the myriad scandals, disgraces, and bad news stories that are plaguing Donald Trump and his administration, and the familiar playbook of gaslighting, distraction, and lies that Trump is deploying with decreasing effectiveness. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear talks with Jen Psaki about the factual gap between Donald Trump's bizarre economic boasts and the reality that Americans are living with in an economy burdened and distorted by Trump's tariff policy.Even as Donald Trump tries to move on to fresher scandals, questions about the new U.S. practice of blowing up boats in the Caribbean Sea and Trump's threats to start a war with Venezuela remain pressing. Rep. Chris Deluzio discusses.And Ben Smith, editor-in-chief of Semafor, talks with Jen about Donald Trump's heavy hand in shaping a new media oligarchy with the help of his son-in-law Jared Kushner. To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.



The Briefing with Jen Psaki