For Michael Flynn, the corrupt pardon he received wasn’t enough. He wanted a payout, too, claiming federal law enforcement subjected him to malicious prosecution when they charged him with crimes he’d twice pleaded guilty to. Thanks to Trump’s DOJ, he’ll now get a taxpayer-financed check.

Quick follow-up question for the congressman (or anyone in Republican politics, really): Is there literally anyone in a position of influence in the administration who's "skilled" in "policy aspects"?

The fact that Dems flipped the Mar-a-Lago district is amazing, the broader pattern is even more important: The more Democrats win closely watched races, and flip seats from red to blue, the more Republicans should be terrified about the 2026 midterms. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

In his first term, Trump was asked why he voted by mail after condemning mail-in balloting as “horrible” and “corrupt.” “I can vote by mail — because I’m allowed to,” he replied. Six years later, the hypocrisy isn’t just back, it’s actually much worse. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

On the heels of the FBI seizing ballots in Georgia in response to conspiracy theories, a Republican sheriff in California decided to seize ballots in California — also in response to conspiracy theories. The fear is that a template is taking shape. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

"Are ICE agents trained for this? ICE agents increasingly lack the necessary training **to be ICE agents,** and they definitely aren’t trained to work as TSA officials..." www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Confronted with polls showing broad opposition to the war in Iran, the White House has some options. Team Trump is apparently going with a “only Republican voters count” response. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Remember in 2019, when Trump falsely told the public that Mueller “exonerated” him, and the special counsel’s findings “could not have been better”? Trump’s celebration of Mueller’s passing suggests he’s forgotten his own lazy lies. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

If Trump wanted to apologize for having made the spectacularly wrong call on the JCPOA, that would be a welcome development. But the idea that he prevented a “nuclear holocaust” by rejecting an international agreement that was working as intended is utterly insane. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

The DOJ lowered its standards for prosecutors, which followed the FBI lowering its standards for agents, which followed ICE lowering its standards. Trumpism is a grand experiment in what happens when an administration embraces amateurism and de-professionalization. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

The truth is, Joe Kent never should’ve been confirmed as the director of the National Counterterrorism Center in the first place. But his decision to resign in protest — first such resignation since the offensive in Iran began — creates a notable counterterrorism vacancy during a war.

An unidentified former president told Trump how right he was to launch the war in Iran. Unidentified foreign officials also told him they’re enthusiastic about Strait of Hormuz assistance. It’s amazing how Trump enjoys the support of his many secret friends, isn’t it? www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Trump thought it’d be great idea to make a Fox News personality the top federal prosecutor in the nation’s capital. It really wasn’t.

As Trump blurts out Rep. Neal Dunn’s terminal diagnosis, what obviously matters most is the congressman, his treatment, and his future. But a related thought for those who interact with Trump: Don’t trust this guy with information you’d prefer to remain private. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Trump knows he’s been accused of being Putin’s puppet for years. He has an incentive to show he hasn’t been compromised by the Kremlin. But as Moscow helps Iran target Americans, Trump is giving Russia a pass anyway, reinforcing his critics’ worst fears. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

So to sum up: 1. Trump alienates/insults allies 2. he launches an unnecessary war with no international legitimacy 3. he declares war “over,” dismisses need for allies’ help 4. he sees the war go sideways 5. he “demands” allies help us solve a problem he said doesn’t exist www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

When wars are going well, administrations tend not to whine incessantly about media coverage and threaten independent news organizations. Someone ought to let Trump, Hegseth, and Carr know. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Wednesday afternoon: Trump says companies should send ships through the Strait of Hormuz tinyurl.com/7ybcwt4h Wednesday night: Trump says the Strait of Hormuz is “in great shape” tinyurl.com/3w5ewska Sunday morning: Trump’s Energy secretary says the Strait of Hormuz is not safe

Trump insisted this week that Republicans should make health care a key part of the GOP’s strategy in the midterms: www.ms.now/rachel-maddo... Democrats should be so lucky:

He's been peddling this delusional trash for years, and it's been thoroughly discredited: www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Economic growth in the first year of Trump’s second term was already disappointing, but new data paints an even uglier picture. Remember when Scott Bessent insisted that economy is “really going to pick up in the fourth quarter” of 2025? Yeah, about that... www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Senate Democrats have presented some credible proposals to reopen and fully fund TSA while the broader fight over Homeland Security funding continues. It’s tough to defend Republicans rejecting these plans. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

The more the war becomes a regional conflict, with even broader economic consequences for much of the world, the more Pete Hegseth struggles with the meaning of the word “widening”: www.ms.now/rachel-maddo... Relatedly, there's nothing "patriotic" about pretending reality doesn't exist.

Team Trump thinks the way to make the war popular is through meme videos apparently made by over-caffeinated children. Perhaps the best thing you can say for this PR campaign is that it accurately embodies the pointless, slapdash amorality of the military offensive it’s meant to bolster.

Asked about rising prices, Republicans argue that we're going to have to accept wartime sacrifices — because as Roger Marshall put it, “Freedom isn’t free.” But they’re missing the point: There was no binary choice between a war that increased the cost of living or the collapse of American liberty.

Trump, in late October: “With the Democrats, you’ll be paying $4, $5, and $6 a Gallon.” Trump, today, as gas prices approach the levels he warned about five months ago: “When oil prices go up, we make a lot of money.” If Dems are lucky, the White House will keep pushing this line.

Whether Hegseth realizes this or not, it’s not photographers who are making him look bad. He’s managing to do that all on his own. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

The word "we" is doing a lot of work in that sentence. The number of Americans who benefit from oil industry profits is ... not large.

"Witkoff’s on-air comments came a day after Trump said that he had a 'positive call' with Putin and that the Russian leader 'wants to be helpful' and 'very constructive.' The American president didn’t specify for whom Putin wants to be helpful and constructive."

The broader pattern is brutal: Republicans are tied to an unpopular president; a growing number of GOP members are retiring; key elements of the the party's agenda are facing an intensifying public backlash; *and* they keep losing special elections, including in contests they expected to win.

Confronted with evidence of Russia aiding Iran during the war, Team Trump decided to: - shrug - then boost Russia’s economy - then vouch for Moscow’s trustworthiness Subtle it is not. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Pete Hegseth keeps insisting that the war isn’t “spreading” to other countries and is “actually quite contained.” Perhaps he’s confused about what “spreading” and “contained” mean. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Asked about House GOP members’ overt anti-Muslim bigotry, it would’ve been easy for Speaker Mike Johnson to say, “The Republican Party does not support religious bigotry of any kind.” He instead made an ugly story worse with ridiculous “Sharia law” nonsense. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

As Jeremy Carl’s indefensible State Department nomination collapses, questions hang overhead: Why did Trump nominate this guy, and why did Trump continue to support Carl’s doomed nomination after his white-supremacist worldview was exposed? www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

After an upset red-to-blue win in New Hampshire, a revised tally: Number of state legislative seats Dems have flipped since Trump's second term began: 10 Number of state legislative seats Republicans have flipped over the same period: 0 www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Last month, Ed Martin was demoted and sidelined within the administration. But if he thought that was the worst of his troubles, he’s now learning otherwise.

As a growing number of Republican officials push anti-Muslim messages, it’d be easy for a GOP leader to issue a perfunctory statement saying the party is against religious bigotry. But that hasn’t happened — which speaks volumes. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

When 2026 got underway, there were 220 House Republicans. Then MTG resigned. Then Doug LaMalfa died unexpectedly. Now Kevin Kiley has left the GOP to become an independent, creating a 217-214-1 chamber. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Problem: Team Trump shrugging with indifference as Russia provides Iran with intelligence that could put Americans at risk. Bigger problem: Team Trump providing Russia with sanctions relief as it provides Iran with intelligence that could put Americans at risk.

My favorite part of the Republican response to the worst job market since the Great Recession: Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer tried to subtract 92,000 from 126,000 and somehow ended up with 60,000. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

As oil prices soar, remember: It was four days ago when Trump said he helped “stabilize” gas prices, touting the “decisive action” his administration took “to help keep down the oil prices.” Yeah, about that... www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

As a rule, members of Trump’s team echo whatever he says, without regard for evidence, facts, or propriety. But on the deadly strike on a girls’ school in Iran, that didn’t happen. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Last 14 months of Biden's term: +1.74m jobs First 14 months of Trump's term: 150,000 jobs (total! for the whole 14 months!) www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Trump and the conservative media ecosystem have done a ton of work to recast the Biden years as a Hoover/Carter disaster that Trump rescued us from. I do think that gets harder every month

Trump vowed to turn the economy around, and in a way, he kept his promise. Unfortunately, as the woeful job numbers prove, that meant turning around a healthy economy and delivering an unhealthy one. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Trump’s “I guess” answer about possible Iranian reprisals on U.S. soil and the White House’s action-movie montage are pieces of the same puzzle: These guys want to have some fun with the war, without being bothered by killjoys with concerns about consequences. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Remember last week, when Trump emphasized gas prices in his State of the Union address and suggested Americans should judge him on this issue? That wasn’t smart. Yesterday, however, he managed to make things worse with false claims about “stabilizing” prices. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Job growth over 14 months of Trump’s second term: 150,000 jobs The previous 14 months: 1.74 million jobs Under Biden: 0 months of job losses Trump’s second term: losses in two of the last three months, three of the last five months, and five of the last nine months. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

As Kristi Noem exits DHS, many of her critics see this as the first step, not the last. The list of Democrats eyeing post-DHS “accountability” for the hapless secretary is not short. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

In the recent past, Republican leaders believed members who had extramarital affairs with staffers needed to resign. As the Tony Gonzales scandal intensifies, the question for Speaker Mike Johnson is simple: Why does the GOP embrace lower and weaker standards now? www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...