Author: LaMonica McIver, Dan Pfeiffer, Jon Favreau

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What A Day - What Happens When We Can’t Rely On Federal Data

Because of the government shutdown, the Bureau of Labor Statistics will not release its monthly unemployment and jobs survey today. But that’s probably not a big deal to President Donald Trump, who has apparently decided that the best statistics are the ones that either say what he wants to hear, or are simply never heard at all.  The most expensive extreme weather events, which facilities are creating the most pollution, quarterly reports, incidents of domestic terrorism, the number of people who need food assistance…these are all statistics Americans need to know. And these are all forms of data under attack by the Trump administration. And this started long before the shutdown. America has been a world leader at collecting data on everything from the number of bison living in Plains states to the divorce rate – but our data supremacy might be coming to an end. And that’s really, really bad, for reasons we might not even know yet. So to find out more about the stats we’re losing, and what else we’re losing in the process, we spoke to Denice Ross. She’s a senior fellow at the Federation of American Scientists and former U.S. Chief Data Scientist for the Biden administration.

And in headlines, President Donald Trump determines the US is in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels, the Trump administration punishes a slew of blue states by cancelling nearly $8-billion in grants for their clean energy projects, and the lastest update in the Kilmar Abrego Garcia case.

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Pod Save America - Affordable Healthcare is Worth Fighting For

After Republicans refuse to negotiate with Democrats on extending Affordable Care Act subsidies, the government shuts down. Dan and Alex Wagner, Pod Save America's newest contributor, discuss what Democrats will need to do to hold the line; Project 2025 architect Russ Vought's attacks on blue states and federal employees; and the Democratic-Republican messaging fight that's devolved into an AI-fueled meme war. Then, the two break down Trump's threats — and Hegseth's grievances — at an unprecedented meeting of the military's top brass, Trump's new political demands for universities, and some much-needed good news about free speech, Fed Chair Lisa Cook, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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What A Day - Trump’s Shutdown, Your Problem

It's Day 2 of the government shutdown. And we'd like to note that despite the government closing shop, House Republicans have been on vacation since last week, while House Democrats have been showing up to work. Vice President JD Vance told members of the press Wednesday that the real bad guys in the shutdown fight are Democrats, specifically Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. Because, according to Vance, it's Schumer standing in the way of low-income Americans getting much-needed health care assistance, assistance that Republicans cut in President Donald Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill." Both Democrats and Republicans have dug in their heels on this shutdown. Democrats want Affordable Care Act subsidies extended and Medicaid cuts reversed. And Republicans are fine with the government being closed – and want to fire thousands of federal employees. So to talk more about the shutdown, its impact on everyday Americans, and what comes next, we spoke to New Jersey Democratic Sen. Andy Kim.

And in headlines, federal officials say they plan to reopen an Obama-era immigration program, Israel tries to intercept yet another flotilla attempting to carry humanitarian aid to Gaza, and the Supreme Court ruled that Trump can't just fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook… because he doesn't like her.

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What A Day - How Trump Wants To Wield The Shutdown

Well, the Government has shut down and, as of Tuesday afternoon, President Donald Trump didn’t sound to worried about it. “A lot of good can come down from shutdowns," he said. "We can get rid of a lot of things that we didn't want, and they'd be Democrat things, but they want open borders. They want men playing in women's sports. They want transgender for everybody.” That statement is a lot of nonsense, as always. But the way Trump views forcing the government to close up shop is telling. Since Trump retook the Oval Office, he has assumed a mantle of overwhelming authority over what TV show hosts are allowed to say and which protesters get to have First Amendment protections, while refusing to take any responsibility for absolutely anything. It feels authoritarian, but it also feels incredibly, unbelievably stupid. So what can people who have studied authoritarianism and know what such movements do to other countries, teach us about what Trump is doing, what Trump wants to do, and how to fight back? To find out, we spoke to Zack Beauchamp. He’s a Senior Correspondent at Vox, where he covers the crisis of global democracy and right-wing populism.

And in headlines, President Trump announces his latest business venture – TrumpRX, FBI Director Kash Patel smuggles guns into New Zealand, and Trump posts an extremely racist deepfake AI video of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.

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What A Day - Dems Throw Down For Health Care

Is the government about to shut down? Congressional leaders and the White House appear to be at an impasse, even after President Donald Trump gave in and scheduled a meeting for Monday to try and get a deal done (though that meeting did not go well). The core of the issue is subsidies connected with the Affordable Care Act, financial assistance that is due to expire at the end of the year. Without it, millions of Americans could see their healthcare premiums skyrocket, with costs rising by hundreds of dollars a month. But the GOP hasn’t been very interested in talking about these funds, despite the fact that millions of Republican voters benefit from them. To understand what the healthcare fight is really about and what happens next, we spoke to Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for KFF and host of the healthcare podcast, “What the Health.”

And in headlines, Democratic Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer tries to turn down the temperature on rhetoric after a deadly attack at a Latter-Day Saints church, Jared Kushner is a gamer (or at least he’s going to buy a video game company along with Saudi Arabia), and MAGA world reacts to the news that Bad Bunny will play the Super Bowl halftime show.

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Pod Save America - Can Democrats Win a Shutdown Fight?

A government shutdown appears inevitable after Democratic leaders and President Trump fail to reach a deal to extend soon-to-expire Affordable Care Act subsidies. Jon, Lovett, and Tommy discuss what Democrats will need to do to win this shutdown fight and then check in on the latest from Trump's authoritarian takeover, including the political prosecution of James Comey, Trump's deployment of troops to Portland, and a terrifying new national security directive that targets left-wing organizations, funders, and beliefs. Then, the guys discuss Trump's 20-point peace plan to end the war in Gaza and the peculiar AI-generated video about "medbeds" the President posted on Truth Social over the weekend.

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Strict Scrutiny - The Trump Administration’s SCOTUS Winning Streak

Leah and Kate dive into the week’s legal news, explaining how SCOTUS continues to carry water for the Trump administration. They also cover an epic slapdown of the Roberts Court out of Hawaii, Sam Alito’s Italian sojourn, and the DOJ’s refusal to investigate the wads of cash lining border czar Tom Homan’s pockets. Then all three hosts are joined by special guests Sherrilyn Ifill, founding director of the 14th Amendment Center for Law & Democracy at Howard University, and New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie to discuss the Supreme Court in the years after the Civil War and Reconstruction and why that era, known as the Redemption Court, resonates with today’s legal landscape.

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What A Day - How To Survive Online Speech Wars Without Self-Censorship

Following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, a wave of everyday people have been punished, getting doxxed and even losing their jobs because of statements they made online regarding Kirk and his death. Even the Vice President of the United States, JD Vance, encouraged Americans to call the employers of anyone they feel is “celebrating Charlie’s murder.” Free speech matters now, more than ever. But what can we say without fear of retribution? To find out what the rules around speech in America really are, and why this is no time to self-censor, we spoke to Ari Cohn. He’s lead counsel at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, with a focus on tech policy.

And in the news: Oregon sues the Trump administration to stop the deployment of the state’s National Guard to protect federal buildings, current New York City Mayor Eric Adams pulls out of the upcoming mayoral race, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu changes his story on what happened with those bunker busters in Iran.

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What A Day - Dems Are Primed For Shutdown Fight

We’ve been on quite the journey with our First Amendment-guaranteed right to free speech, haven’t we? This week, we had the reinstatement of ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” after Kimmel was suspended – thanks to the FCC threatening to take action against networks that chose to carry his show. And President Trump is still threatening to sue ABC in response to Kimmel’s return. You know, the President of the United States sure does have a lot of time on his hands to threaten talk-show hosts, get his political opponents indicted by the state, and rant about… escalators, for some reason. Which is odd, given that we’re staring down the barrel of a government shutdown if Congress can’t find a path to get the government funded in the next four days. So to talk more about the shutdown, our crisis of free speech, lawfare, and whether he’s worried he could become Trump’s next target, we spoke to Maryland Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin.

And in headlines, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly summons top military officers to Virginia for a surprise meeting next week. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said in front of the United Nations that Palestinians will not leave their homeland, and President Donald Trump reminisces on when he was in …exile?

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Pod Save America - Trump Has James Comey Indicted

Just days after the President demanded the Justice Department prosecute his political enemies and ousted a career prosecutor who refused to comply, Trump's handpicked replacement indicts former FBI Director James Comey. Jon and Dan react to Trump's weaponization of the Justice Department and then discuss Jimmy Kimmel's powerful pro-free speech monologue, a government shutdown that now seems inevitable, and why Vice President JD Vance called Jon a "dipshit" on Twitter earlier this week. Then, Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff stops by the studio to talk to Tommy about his office's investigations into ICE and the defining feature of the Trump administration: corruption.

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