As Trump rattles a saber at Afghanistan and Venezuela, leaving open the door to U.S. military deployments, I guess he’s no longer begging for a Nobel Peace Prize? www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

I’m glad Cruz said the right thing about the FCC’s Brendan Carr and his threats. But Cruz is in a unique position to actually do something — he chairs the Senate committee that oversees the FCC and media issues — beyond just delivering some notable lines on a podcast. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Trump’s directive to Pam Bondi should be seen for what it effectively was: a confession in which he acknowledged his guilt in a corrupt and authoritarian scheme. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

In case you missed it last night, Trump forced out a U.S. Attorney, not for being corrupt, but for *failing* to be corrupt. What transpired with Erik Siebert seems like the sort of thing one might expect to see in an impeachment resolution. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Speaker Johnson: Calling Trump a “fascist” contributes to political violence. Reality: Trump has called lots of people “fascists.” tinyurl.com/424rauru

Reading the judge’s brutal smackdown of Trump’s ridiculous New York Times lawsuit, I kept envisioning an exasperated teacher telling a lazy student to redo a botched homework assignment. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

As Trump talks about reclaiming a former U.S. base in Afghanistan, spare a thought for the voters who convinced themselves that Trump was the candidate of foreign policy restraint and isolationism. Those voters did not choose wisely. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Trump’s comments this afternoon about revoking the broadcast licenses of networks that displease him were, alas, familiar. But his comments about what “evening shows” are “allowed” to say was actually new — and ridiculous. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

In the spring, Barack Obama seemed to dip his toes into the political arena waters. This week, as he dives in headfirst, I can’t help but get the impression that this guy is fired up and ready to go. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Before anyone jokes about Trump categorizing a nonexistent organization as a “major terrorist organization,” remember: If he says that antifa members are terrorists, and he says his team will decide who and what qualifies as “antifa,” this can get scary in a hurry. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

New statement from the House Dem leadership on Kimmel: “Brendan Carr, the so-called Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, has engaged in the corrupt abuse of power. ... This will not be forgotten.”

Remember a few weeks ago, when Trump urged reporters to start digging into officials’ mortgage records? As a *fourth* member of his Cabinet faces allegations, I wonder if he regrets offering that advice. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Occasionally, Trump has a 24-hour period in which his authoritarian vision comes into sharp focus. Between Monday and Tuesday, he - vowed to target dissenters - threatened reporters - sued the NYT - extrajudicial military strikes - refused to enforce TikTok law www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

I’m a sucker for calendar symmetry: Sept. 15, 2024: Vance says he’s willing to “create stories” to advance his political agenda. Sept. 15, 2025: Vance falsely says it’s “a statistical fact” that most political violence comes from “the far left.” www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

The volume of cases might make it seem as if this is normal, but the circumstances remain bizarre: We’ve never seen a sitting American president who sued independent news organizations — several times — for publishing reports the White House disapproved of. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Bondi opened a dangerous door when she said she’d “go after” those who said things she considers “hate speech.” Trump swung that door wider when he said journalism he doesn’t like might meet the “hate speech” standard. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Resolved: JD Vance’s “statistical fact” on political violence is neither statistical nor a fact. Indeed, if the White House wants to have this debate, it probably won’t like the emerging evidence. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

The New York Times noted in March that Trump and his “allies are aggressively attacking the players and machinery that power the left,” through “a series of highly partisan official actions.” Six months later, that problem is spectacularly worse. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

In 2023, nearly a third of Trump voters endorsed having a president “willing to break some rules and laws to set things right.” In 2025, the number has gone up. David Souter’s 2012 comments on how democracies die remain relevant for a reason. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Kash Patel’s problem: He’s under fire from the left and right. Kash Patel’s bigger problem: Many of the criticisms are coming from within the Trump administration. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

After Charlie Kirk was murdered, there were fears Trump would exploit the shooting to go after his political opponents. Four days later, he boasted that a “major” investigation is “already” underway against unnamed targets on “the left.” www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Since Trump has spent years calling his perceived American foes “fascists” and “enemies of the state,” this should — it won’t, but it should — be seen as a dramatic example of Johnson implicitly condemning his own party’s president and his incendiary rhetoric.

I guess Lutnick doesn't remember that he said the exact opposite just six weeks ago?

For those keeping track: Remember the last time Trump said Putin only had “a couple of weeks” to resolve Russia’s war in Ukraine before the White House takes action? That was three weeks ago today. We’re still waiting for action (which will likely never come). www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

As Trump finds ridiculous new ways to rationalize far-right violence, the concern isn’t just that he’s poised to target his political opposition. It’s also the very real possibility that his administration will turn a blind eye to extremists on the right — again. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

I don’t mean to sound picky, but as Trump announces plans to deploy troops to Memphis, a key detail shouldn’t get lost in the shuffle: Tennessee already has a Republican governor capable of deploying Guard troops. He doesn’t need Trump or his “plan.” www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

If Republicans are still looking for evidence of a weaponized FBI, led by political operatives aligning the bureau with their partisan allies, I have some very good news for them. If only Jim Jordan and his cohorts would pretend to care... www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Ron Johnson hasn't just dipped his toes into the 9/11 “truther” waters. On the anniversary of the attacks, the Wisconsin Republican has actually jumped in headfirst. This included appearing last night at a conspiratorial event in DC. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

A lot of folks might not fully appreciate just how frequently Trump accuses Democrats and other Americans he doesn’t like of being, in his words, "evil people," whom he considers worthy of his "hatred" tinyurl.com/w82st8u2

In 2018, after one of his followers targeted several Democrats with mail bombs, Trump was asked whether this might lead to a shift in his tone. “Tone down?” he replied. “No. Could tone up.” This came to mind anew last night, as he flunked yet another leadership test. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Republican critics of renewable energy keep claiming that solar and wind are useless at night and during calm skies. That’s not even close to being true. #BatteryTechnologyExists www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

I don’t expect it to ever happen, but it’d be awfully funny if Joe Biden tweeted, “Russia didn’t dare do this when I was president, but Putin is now exploiting Trump’s weakness. #PeaceThroughStrength”

The sitting American president wants to deploy armed troops, acting at his direction, into “every” city in the United States run by members of the opposing political party. The White House admitted this, out loud, as if it were normal. It’s not. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

It was a real treat to be able to talk with @gregsargent.bsky.social on his terrific podcast, and I hope folks will check out this latest installment.

Speaker Mike Johnson says he has no idea why local Democratic officials would resist the deployment of armed troops, acting under Trump’s directions, to address civilian street crime. I think I can help him understand. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Trump recently said a key difference between his first and second terms is that members of his team “get along with each other” and “love each other.” With Bessent threatening to punch Bill Pulte “in the f---ing face,” the boast appears hilariously untrue. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

There’s an approach to reality that says a Trump-signed document isn’t actually a Trump-signed document. It’s the same approach that says job numbers are fake. And polls are fake. And election results are fake. And science is fake. And evidence of crimes is fake. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

In too many instances, Trump has sounded like a bystander who just wandered into the Oval Office, offering the public a lot of shrugged shoulders and blank stares. Take his “I don’t know” response to the failed 2019 operation he approved in North Korea, for example. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

The White House’s new line is that Trump’s economic agenda will *eventually* work, but: - this contradicts the WH’s other talking points - this contradicts Trump’s 2024 campaign promises - there’s no reason to assume sticking with failures will produce different results www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Trump’s line on “dictatorial” police-state tactics and Vance’s line on extrajudicial slayings of suspected drug smugglers is effectively the same: The ends justify the means, and the rule of law is an inconvenience worthy of indifference. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

blue = biden red = trump www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

On one hand, Trump desperately wants a Nobel Peace Prize. On the other hand, he also wants preemptive strikes against Iran, a militarized DC, strikes on a civilian boat in international waters, and a newly rebranded “Department of War.” www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Consumer protections aren’t exactly a hot-button political issue (though maybe they should be), but the differences between the Biden and Trump are dramatic and underappreciated. Take the efforts to make airlines compensate fliers for flight disruptions, for example. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Job growth over the first eight months of the year: 2015: 1.76 million 2016: 1.58 million 2017: 1.51 million 2018: 1.75 million 2019: 1.36 million 2020: [pandemic] 2021: 4.69 million 2022: 3.5 million 2023: 1.84 million 2024: 1.14 million 2025: 598,000 #trumpeffect www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

The question for the White House is simple: “If Trump has created a ‘hot’ economy, why has American job growth slowed to a 16-year low?” www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

Remember in 2006, when Stephen Colbert said at a White House Correspondents Dinner, “Reality has a well-known liberal bias”? The salience of the line lingers for a reason.

Republican leaders: We’re “looking forward” and leaving Jan. 6 in the rearview mirror. Same Republican leaders: We’re launching another Jan. 6 investigation, since our last one was a pitiful embarrassment. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

You’ve heard the expression “shoot first and ask questions later”? Trump's military strike on a civilian boat in international waters appears to be a rare literal example of the phenomenon. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...

The list of blue states (or at least states led by Dems) circumventing RFK Jr and Trump on vaccines and public health keeps growing: - California - Oregon - Washington - Massachusetts - Illinois - New Mexico - Pennsylvania This shouldn't be necessary, but here we are. www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddo...