Author: LaMonica McIver, Dan Pfeiffer, Jon Favreau

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Pod Save America - Will Trump & Netanyahu Let Gaza Starve?

Donald Trump splits with Benjamin Netanyahu and acknowledges that Gaza is experiencing "real starvation"—but will he pressure Israel to end the war and allow more aid in? Lovett, Favreau, and Tommy react to the latest developments in Gaza, Trump's shifting and typically incoherent comments on the situation, and why it's time for Democrats to change their approach to Israel. Then, they dive into Trump's new story about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and check in on that "free" plane he received from the Qatari government. Later, Tommy sits down with Israeli journalist Amir Tibon to discuss how the aid shortages in Gaza got so bad, and how Israel's far right influences Netanyahu.


 

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Strict Scrutiny - Can Trump Sue His Way Out of the Epstein Mess?

Kate and Leah break down the week’s legal happenings, including Trump’s flailing efforts to manage the Epstein fallout, the latest abomination from the shadow docket, and the legal quagmire surrounding Trump lackey Alina Habba’s appointment as U.S. Attorney for New Jersey. Then, they speak with law professors—and former clerks for David Souter—Allison Orr Larsen and Erin Delaney about the late justice’s legacy.

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What A Day - New EPA To Argue Greenhouse Gases Are Totally Fine

Sometime this week, the Trump Administration is expected to launch an assault on one of the major cornerstones of U.S. climate policy, known as the 'endangerment finding.' It's the scientific conclusion that greenhouse gases are dangerous to people's health and safety, and should therefore be regulated by government agencies that are supposed to protect our interests. While the specifics of the administration's plans are still unknown, if successful, it could be one of the most devastating blows to the federal government's ability — and the world's ability — to mitigate the increasingly devastating effects of a warming planet. Zack Coleman, who covers climate change for Politico, tells us more about the 'endangerment finding' and the potential consequences of gutting it. Later in the show, Crooked Climate Correspondent Anya Zoledziowski debunks the latest right-wing weather conspiracies around this month's devastating floods in Texas.

And in headlines: President Donald Trump announced a new trade agreement with the European Union, the president called for Beyonce to be prosecuted for something that never happened, and Israel began airdrops of aid and daily pauses in fighting amid rising deaths from starvation in Gaza.

Show Notes:

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Pod Save America - Stephen Colbert, South Park, and Donald Trump’s War Against the Media

It's a scary time for political media. After decades of shifting business models and consumption habits, news outlets now have to navigate lawsuits from a president who uses the full weight of the government to punish his enemies. Was CBS's decision to axe "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" purely financial, as the network claims—or was it related to the merger they wanted Trump to approve? Brian Stelter, chief media analyst at CNN and author of the "Reliable Sources" newsletter, sits down with Tommy to discuss what exactly happened to Colbert, whether other networks are kowtowing to Trump, and the episode of South Park that no one can stop talking about.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

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What A Day - Immigration Lawyer Details Horrific Conditions at ICE Detention Centers

The Trump Administration is quickly ramping up its efforts to arrest and deport as many undocumented immigrants as possible, now that extra money is starting to roll in thanks to President Donald Trump’s new tax and spending law. It set aside more than $170 billion in new funding for immigration enforcement, including $45 billion to build and expand detention centers and $29 billion to help hire new immigration agents. The most notorious symbol of the administration's immigration crackdown is the pop up detention center in the Florida Everglades the administration calls ‘Alligator Alcatraz.’ But more facilities are popping up all over the country, as are allegations of horrific conditions. Katie Blankenship is an attorney and co-founder of Sanctuary of the South, which provides legal services and civil rights representation throughout the region. She’s currently representing clients in ICE detention centers, and joins us to talk about what she's hearing from them.

And in headlines: Trump and embattled Fed Chair Jerome Powell publicly bicker during a tour of the central bank headquarter’s ongoing renovations, French President Emmanuel Macron announced his country would recognize the state of Palestine, and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche met with Jeffrey Epstein’s former fixer Ghislaine Maxwell.

Show Notes:

 

 

 


 

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Pod Save America - CTRL-F ‘Trump’ in the Epstein Files

Your suspicions were correct: according to The Wall Street Journal, Trump’s name is in the Epstein files—and the Attorney General told him so all the way back in May. Trump responds with more lies, obfuscations, and distractions, accusing Barack Obama of treason, and sending Tulsi Gabbard out to try to prove the case without the benefit of facts or specifics. Dan and Jon discuss all the latest, including DOJ’s overtures to Ghislaine Maxwell, Trump's awkward stunt at the Fed building, and two federal judges ordering the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia as he awaits trial. Then, Tommy sits down with Senator Mark Warner to discuss Trump’s treason accusations and what the intelligence community actually concluded about Russian election-meddling in 2016.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

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What A Day - Trump Targets Obama, Deflects From Epstein

While pressure mounts on the White House to release documents related to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, President Donald Trump is doing his damndest to turn the public’s attention to his latest conspiracy (which is really just a remix of an old one). The president is alleging, despite zero evidence, that former President Barack Obama and members of his administration lied about Russian efforts to swing the 2016 election for Trump and made up intelligence to support those claims. This time, though, Trump’s wild allegations are being fueled by his own Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard. She’s been releasing documents she says contradict the intelligence community’s well-established conclusions about Russia’s interference in the 2016 election, claiming they’re proof of a ‘coup’ to undermine Trump during his first term in office. Atlantic Staff Writer David Frum, host of the new podcast ‘The David Frum Show,’ joins us to talk about the return of ‘Russia, Russia, Russia,’ and what Trump’s willingness to go after his political opponents– including a former president – says about where his second term is headed.

And in headlines: The Justice Department reportedly informed Trump his name appears in the so-called Epstein files, a federal judge ruled a Maryland man who was wrongly deported to El Salvador should be freed from custody at the Tennessee jail where he’s currently being held, and President Trump announced a new tariff deal with Japan.

Show Notes:

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What A Day - Mike Johnson Staves Off Epstein Vote

House lawmakers will start their Summer break a few days early today, vacating the capital until September. They’re leaving early because Republican Speaker Mike Johnson is trying desperately – desperately – to avoid holding any votes on releasing materials related to the Jeffrey Epstein case. Over at the White House Tuesday, President Donald Trump did his best to turn attention away from Epstein and toward his latest conspiracy de jour, which is really just a remix of his favorite first-term conspiracy surrounding Russia’s interference in the 2016 election (A.K.A. Russia, Russia, Russia). But House Democrats say no dice. California Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia, ranking member on the House Oversight Committee, talks about what Democrats are doing to keep the Trump administration in check.

And in headlines: Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Alina Habba is out of a job…maybe, Trump announced a new trade deal with the Philippians, and the United Nations delivered a stark warning about mass starvation in Gaza.

Show Notes:

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What A Day - A Look At Trump And Epstein’s History

Despite President Donald Trump's best efforts, his administration can't escape the conspiracies swirling around convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — conspiracies Trump and his allies helped stoke before he returned to the White House.On Monday, House Speaker Mike Johnson said he would not permit a vote this summer on a non-binding resolution calling for the release of documents and records related to Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 before his federal sex-trafficking trial. And on Friday, Trump sued The Wall Street Journal for billions of dollars over a story alleging he sent Epstein a lewd birthday card in the early 2000s, when the two were known to be friends. Trump has always denied any knowledge that the disgraced financier was abusing underage girls and young women, but there's no denying the two men frequently hung out together, often in the presence of young, attractive women.Matthew Goldstein, a New York Times business reporter who covers white collar crime, joins us to talk about the backstory of Trump and Epstein's friendship, and why the administration can't make this story go away.

And in headlines: Some foreign travelers will have to pay a new $250 fee to enter the U.S. thanks to a provision in Trump's new Big Beautiful Law, a new Human Rights Watch report alleges 'dehumanizing' conditions across immigration detention centers in Florida, and Texas Republicans kicked off a special legislative session to potentially redraw the state's congressional map to help Trump in next year's midterm elections.

Show Notes:

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Pod Save America - An Obama Arrest a Day Keeps the Epstein Files Away

Desperate to distract from the Epstein scandal, Donald Trump posts an AI-generated video of the FBI arresting Barack Obama—as DNI Tulsi Gabbard unveils a new MAGA conspiracy theory about Obama and Russiagate. Favreau, Lovett, and Tommy unpack the insanity behind Gabbard's new allegations, get Lovett up to speed on the latest Epstein developments, and discuss CBS's cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Then, Lovett sits down with Lindsay Toczylowski, head of the Immigrant Defenders Law Center, to talk about Andry Hernandez Romero's release in Venezuela after 125 days in an El Salvadoran megaprison.