u/Phatbrew

Malcolm Nance tells Steven Beschloss that Trump’s threat to America is not just about Putin, loyalty, or another coup attempt. Nance argues that all of those dangers connect through one force: Trump’s ego.

In this sharp breakdown, Nance explains why Trump’s worldview revolves around money, power, and his own self-image — and why that psychology makes him uniquely dangerous on the global stage.

Malcolm Nance tells Steven Beschloss that America is in “mortal danger” as Trump accelerates his attacks on the CIA, FBI, DNI, NATO, and the professional security structure of the United States. Nance explains why he believes Trump wants control of the intelligence apparatus not to protect America, but to target political and personal enemies.

Featuring Malcolm Nance and Steven Beschloss on Six Questions from Lincoln Square.

00:00 How Unsafe Is America Right Now?
00:35 “Mortal Danger”
01:18 The Declaration of Independence Warning
03:45 “Full-Blown Dictator”
05:45 Project 2025 and Maximum Power
06:25 Stop Calling It “Unitary Executive”
08:25 Trump’s Intelligence Purge
09:50 Why Dictators Want the Intel Apparatus
12:40 Can Career Intelligence Officials Resist?

Liz Oyer joins Bobby R. Jones on Anchor Watch to break down the Supreme Court’s birthright citizenship and mail-in ballot decisions — and why Trump’s pressure on state election rules could create chaos before the midterms. Oyer warns that Trump is trying to build the groundwork to challenge election results if they don’t go his way.

The Joes both know that the Dems have to win, but they disagree (somewhat) and just how that's supposed to happen. Should the wave of socialist candidate victories make us feel hope...or not so much?

Watch Two Joes and let us know what you think.

America is 250 years old, and the fix is in — the DOJ bent to serve whoever's holding the whip, the rule of law treated like a suggestion, the guardrails quietly sawed through while everyone's distracted by the fireworks. This week Rick Wilson sits down with two people who've seen the rot up close and refuse to shut up about it: Congressman Jamie Raskin, the constitutional scholar who's spent his career defending democracy on the House floor, and Liz Oyer, the DOJ pardon attorney who got fired for one unforgivable sin — saying no. What she saw inside the building should scare the hell out of you, and what Raskin knows about how this ends should light a fire under you.
Here's what they won't tell you at the birthday party: the republic doesn't save itself, and nobody's riding in to do it for us. Rick, Jamie, and Liz get into what's already broken, what we can do right now before the next crisis lands, and the longer fight to reclaim, rebuild, and reinforce a country worth keeping. At 250, the tools are still in our hands and the door's still open — but not for long. They stole it in broad daylight. This is the conversation about taking it back.

Congressman Jamie Raskin (MD-08), constitutional scholar and author, is at @RepRaskin.
Liz Oyer, former U.S. Pardon Attorney at the Department of Justice, is at @lawyeroyer.

Special guest Ira Shapiro joins Joe and Alex for a podcast timed perfectly for America's 250th. Joe and Ira chart the path forward, not just for Democrats but for America. Trump has betrayed not just America but his own voters - how can Democrats turn that into a winning message? And how do we get past "burn it all down" and towards "reform and revitalization"? What can citizens do besides just go vote every two or four years to fix this? if you're looking for a way for America to last another 250 years as a true democracy, this is one episode you'll want to check out. Check out Ira and the Common Sense Coalition's "Betrayed: America didn't vote for this" here: https://www.amazon.com/Betrayed-America-Didnt-Vote-This/dp/B0H2RXHLG2

For years, the media debated whether Donald Trump and the MAGA movement should be described with the “F-word”: fascist. On First Draft, Susan J. Demas and journalist Chris Matthias argue that debate now feels painfully outdated.

Matthias explains why institutions spent years manufacturing excuses for explicit racism and extremism, how MAGA’s far-right ideas have moved from the fringe into government power, and why ICE figures like Greg Bovino represent a dangerous blend of spectacle, brutality, and authoritarian politics.

Featuring Susan J. Demas and Chris Matthias on First Draft from Lincoln Square.

00:00 Trump’s Far-Right Agenda
00:47 Was Trump’s Racism Ever Really in Doubt?
01:35 Why the Media Manufactured Excuses
02:24 The Myth That “It Can’t Happen Here”
02:54 The Fascism Debate Is Pretty Resolved
03:52 ICE Run Like an Influencer Show
04:25 Performance and Brutality
05:25 Bovino’s Escalation of ICE Tactics
06:26 Influencers Helped Create the Pretext
07:26 Trump Realized Bovino Went Too Far

Senator Richard Blumenthal explains how a Republican veterans bill could strip benefits from disabled veterans while hiding behind a patriotic-sounding name. Frank Figliuzzi calls out the cruelty of forcing disabled veterans to “eat the cost of their own benefits.”

Frank asks Senator Blumenthal whether Trump’s war with Iran was justified by an imminent nuclear threat. Blumenthal’s answer is blunt: “No.” He says the war achieved none of Trump’s goals and left America weaker.

Susan J. Demas and Edwin Eisendrath discuss what Americans should actually celebrate on July 4th: not Trump’s vanity, but the long, difficult fight to make the country live up to its promise of equality. Edwin argues that America’s greatest story is the generations of people who fought for labor rights, civil rights, women’s rights, voting rights, and LGBTQ freedom.

Michael Fanone and Maya May break down why Trump’s America 250 celebration already feels like a symbol of national decline — from empty crowds in Washington, D.C. to a presidency that has made life harder, crueler, and more expensive for ordinary Americans.

They also hit Trump’s callous response to struggling Americans, the administration’s failure on housing and health care, the GOP’s obsession with culture-war “wins,” and why Democrats need a clear message heading into the midterms. Plus: JD Vance’s extremist double act, civic engagement, Love Island politics, and World Cup weekend chaos

00:00 America’s Birthday Starts on a Tiny Thread
00:31 Empty Crowds at Trump’s America 250
02:57 Trump’s Washington, D.C. Problem
04:17 Fanone Gives Trump’s Presidency a New Failing Grade
05:22 Democrats, Socialism Panic, and the Midterms
08:25 Americans Just Want to Afford Life
09:36 Trump’s Callous Answer on Struggling Americans
10:48 The 50-Year Mortgage Scam
12:02 Trump Does Not Care About Working People
13:34 Health Care Costs Are Crushing Families
15:00 What Other Countries Get Right About Health Care
16:43 Trump Delivered Culture War, Not Cheaper Groceries
18:25 Bad Faith Arguments About Trans Athletes
20:33 JD Vance and the “Outbreed the Left” Crowd
22:03 JD Vance’s Two-Faced Media Strategy
24:23 Fanone Goes Off on Vance’s Hypocrisy
25:32 Love Island Enters the Chat
27:24 America Needs a Political Reality Show
29:14 Civic Engagement, But Make It Reality TV
31:21 The Empire State Building Protest Sign
33:57 Fourth of July Plans and Surviving Trump
35:13 No Beer for the Civically Disengaged
36:54 Drinking Away the Trump Years
37:58 World Cup Weekend Talk
40:29 Rooting for Paraguay Over France
41:41 Hydrate and Survive the Heat Dome

America is 250 years old and the guardrails are cracking in real time — the courts, the rule of law, the FBI, the DOJ — and the people doing the cracking are counting on you not to notice. This week Rick Wilson pulls up two of the sharpest legal minds in the country: Jeffrey Toobin, who's spent a career dissecting the Supreme Court, and Asha Rangappa, a former FBI special agent who knows exactly how democracies get gutted from the inside. No hand-wringing, no doomscrolling — just a straight, unsparing conversation about what's already broken, what's still worth saving, and how we reclaim, revise, and reinforce the whole rickety machine before the next crisis finishes the job.
Here's what the fireworks won't tell you: the republic doesn't defend itself. Every generation either fights for it or hands it to whoever's willing to burn it down — and at 250, that generation is us. This is the last clean shot we get to take it back. Sit down, buckle up, and let's talk about saving the country.

Jeffrey Toobin — lawyer, legal analyst, and bestselling author @JeffreyToobin

Asha Rangappa — former FBI special agent, attorney, and Yale lecturer @AshaRangappa_ or asharangappa.substack.com

America turns 250—and the nation’s capital is a mess. Rick and Maya break down the chaos in DC, from the White House spectacle to the state of Trump’s “celebration.” Plus, the latest Supreme Court rulings, and the outrageous sentencing of ICE protesters in Texas. What does it all mean for the future of free speech?

The Lincoln Project is a leading pro-democracy organization in the United States — dedicated to the preservation, protection, and defense of democracy. Our fight against Trumpism is only beginning. We must combat these forces everywhere and at all times — our democracy depends on it.

If MAGA is so dominant, why is no one showing up for Trump's party in DC?

LINCOLN SQUARE, APRIL AJOY, TIM WHITAKER, AND THE NEW EVANGELICALS
JUL 03, 2026

The right, and especially the Christian right, has coopted words like patriotism, patriot, and even America. As we head into the Fourth of July weekend — our 250th — it’s important not to forget that words actually matter. Fundamentalists and MAGA don’t get to own these words or these concepts.

Tim and April break down why that matters and look at Trump’s Fair flop. It’s an embarrassing event and easy to poke fun at, but it’s also indicative of the grift, corruption, and failures of this administration.
They talk through all that and, of course, throw in some Weird Christian Shit at the end.

Seen any weird Christian shit in your own community? Let’s hear about it.

Liz Oyer joins Bobby R. Jones on Anchor Watch to explain why Trump’s SAVE Act could create major barriers to voting, especially for women and anyone whose current ID does not match their birth certificate. Oyer also answers the question many Americans are asking right now: what can we actually do? Her answer is to take one small action every day, including contacting key senators about Todd Blanche’s Attorney General confirmation.