The Briefing with Jen Psaki

Donald Trump appears to be distancing himself from his own Republican Party, perhaps hoping to avoid association with expected midterm losses, despite being responsible for the unpopularity Republicans are suffering for their association with him. Ben Wikler, former DNC chair, joins to discuss.

How did a long-standing plan by the Department of the Interior to refurbish the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool turn into the mess that would become Donald Trump's highest profile public humiliation (so far)? David Fahrenthold, investigative reporter for the New York Times, talks about his reporting on how the project spun out of control in the most Trumpian ways.

Donald Trump appears not to understand that the resources of the presidency are not his personal property, as his vanity projects are taking an ever-increasing amount of his attention. Now a federal appeals court has shut down construction on his White House ballroom with a reminder that he is not a king. Rep. Jamie Rasking joins to discuss.

Michigan Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II talks about how Michigan Democrats are uniting after their contentious primary in which Abul El-Sayed emerged victorious.

 

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Donald Trump and his former cable news weekend co-host defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, are reportedly fighting over who is to blame for wasting U.S. military resources and depleting the U.S. weapons stockpile on Trump's inexplicable war on Iran. Hegseth reportedly blamed his deputy. Rep. Pat Ryan, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, joins to discuss Trump's foolhardy prosecution of the war.

Donald Trump's brazen corruption is so much a part of his political identity that it has become an election issue unto itself. And when Senator Tim Scott tries to gaslight the American public into believing Trump is a model of ethics, or when JD Vance tries to pretend prosecuting fraud is an important priority of his, Trump's corruption only makes them look ridiculous. Rep. Ro Khanna joins to discuss.

Mitch Landrieu and Jennifer Palmieri discuss the shifting politics in the American South.

Stacey Abrams joins to talk about resurrecting the protections of the Voting Rights Act.

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Donald Trump's disastrous time in office has left campaigning Republicans with very little to boast about to constituents back home. What they are left with instead is their familiar playbook of culture war scare tactics and divisive distortions to try to scare voters into supporting them. Senator Ted Cruz wasted no time to resort to absurd smears when asked about Democratic Senate candidate from Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed.

One of Donald Trump's endorsed Republican candidates lost the primary election to a guy who was so disfavored to win that news organizations didn't even bother to prepare his photo. But at least that candidate didn't have to drop out of the race in disgrace, which is more than can be said for other Republicans.

Mother Jones has published body camera and interview footage from a child abuse investigation involving Rep. Max Miller. The footage was obtained via a public records request from the City of Bay Village in Ohio, where the investigation took place.

Miller continues to deny the abuse allegations made by his ex-wife, Emily Moreno. The investigation ended with the allegations "unsubstantiated" by police.

Michael Steele plays part of the clip obtained by Mother Jones, where a child protective specialist describes an injury his 2-year-old daughter sustained while in his care.

 

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Despite Donald Trump's endless talking about the vandalism he said was done to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Poll, U.S. attorney and former Fox News host Jeanine Pirro was forced to drop the Justice Department's case against former Olympian David Hearn and admit that the problem with the pool's liner was the fault of the contactor Donald Trump selected.  

The Wall Street Journal reports that after receiving a gift of a massive ring covered in diamonds and other jewels, Donald Trump made an exception from his tariffs for the diamond industry. Rep. Greg Casar discusses how Donld Trump's corruption and self-dealing, especially in contrast with the higher prices Americans are struggling with, has become a key issue for Democrats to campaign on as midterm elections approach.

Marc Elias, founder of Democracy Docket, joins to discuss Donald Trump's efforts to use voter data to undermine the upcoming midterm elections.

Donald Trump is so bitter about Minnesota Governor Tim Walz that he rejects the suggestion that his inexplicable war with Iran has led to a hacking attack on the water systems of several U.S. states and instead bizarrely insists that Minnesota somehow hacked its own water system. Rep. Seth Moulton joins to discuss Trump's apparent inability to take U.S. national security seriously.

Texas State Rep. Gina Hinojosa joins to talk about how Democrats are surging in Texas and the stakes of the Texas elections for national politics.

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Even as Americans are dealing with the fallout of Elon Musk's devastating cuts to the federal government when Donald Trump let him run amok, with new terrible consequences still coming to light on a regular basis, Musk is reportedly planning on trying to use his vast wealth to influence the midterm elections in favor of Republicans. Polls suggest his involvement may do Republicans more harm than good.

Alex Isenstadt, senior political reporter for Axios, Norm Eisen, founder of Democracy Defenders Action, and Democratic strategist Chuck Rocha discuss the many advantages Democrats are pursuing in the midterm elections.

Stacey Young, an 18-year Justice Department veteran, and Norm Eisen, founder of Democracy Defenders Action, discuss Donald Trump's effort to install his criminal defense attorney as U.S. attorney general.

A new report from Democrats on the Senate Homeland Security Committee shows how Donald Trump's deep cuts to counterterrorism agencies and repurposing of law enforcement resources to investigate his political enemies, his personal conspiracy theories and political pet projects has undermined important counterterrorism measures put in place after 9/11. Former CIA director John Brennan joins to discuss.

Whether because of bad advice, manipulation or foolhardiness, Donald Trump apparently thought his military adventure against Iran would be quick and easy, and now reports say he is in a frustrated rage over his own inability to escape the conflict as Americans grow increasingly bitter at the hardships Trump's folly has wrought. Admiral John Kirby, former White House national security communications advisor, joins to discuss the challenge Trump is facing.

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