There’s fumbling the ball, and then there’s what Daily Beast's Chief Global Affairs Columnist describes as “one of the biggest f--k-ups ever by a president.” In the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, David and I unpack Donald Trump’s China trip: a high-stakes scramble to escape the Iran wreckage and his plunging polls.

We’re looking at a global “inflection point” where the adults have left the room, the goalposts have been moved to a different zip code, and the “leader of the free world” is seemingly auditioning to be China’s most valuable—if accidental—player. Let’s get into it:

• Great man delusion: This is likely the first time a U.S. president will enter a room with a Chinese leader and not be the most powerful person there, David explains. He expects Trump to perform the “Great Kowtow,” offering “nonbinding promises” and “a wink and a nod” on critical issues like Taiwan. As David puts it, “nobody knows [what will happen] because everybody knows Trump doesn't actually believe in anything that doesn't put money in his bank account or make him look better.” He suggests those are the only two metrics worth watching for “coming out of any trip of Trump anywhere.” It’s a play to get a headline that makes him look like a “great man” by association.

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There’s nothing quite like a “war of whim” to clear the front page. Author and journalist joins me on the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast to unpack why Donald Trump seems so intent on trading the Epstein files for a geopolitical firestorm.

It turns out, when you’re part of a social network this protected, “changing the subject” is a survival strategy. The “Epstein Class” has built a high-altitude protective shield that makes them effectively untouchable, and today, we’re looking at why the very people who should be stopping him are instead holding their noses and enjoying the view. Let’s get into it:

• Subject-changer: Anand argues that for someone like Donald Trump, “enmeshed in this Epstein story,” a geopolitical crisis is the ultimate escape. He characterizes Trump’s escalation with Iran as a “tragic war of whim,” a maneuver designed to “change the subject away from the Epstein files.” These files aren’t just tabloid fodder; they “cut to the heart of the corruption and impunity” of which Trump is “one of our greatest living embodiments.” By shifting the focus to Tehran, the narrative moves from systemic rot to “flag-waving distractions,” masking revelations that Anand notes have begun to alienate Trump's base and cause his political “coalition to start cracking.”

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Apparently, in the current administration, hard deadlines are treated a lot more like suggested openings. In the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, I sat down with , a former federal prosecutor and host of “Justice Matters,” to unpack the “lawless” maneuvers of a president obsessed with distraction and a circle of policymakers who treat constitutional rights like optional accessories. It’s a lot to wrap our arms around—but as Glenn says, we don't really have a choice. Let’s get into it:

• “Lawless” conflict: We’re currently embroiled in a “completely unconstitutional” conflict, defined by a disregard for established legal guardrails. While the law mandates a 60-day window for Congress to authorize emergency military action, the current leadership has “blown through the 60 days,” treating these statutory requirements more like optional suggestions than binding law. How did we get here? Glenn suggests we’re witnessing the maneuvers of a president desperate to manufacture a distraction from a potentially career-ending scandal: the Epstein files. Beyond that, “malignant narcissist” Trump appears convinced that he alone possesses the unique capability to “solve” this crisis.

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Donald Trump is becoming an increasing threat to our troops, our country, and the economy. In the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, I sat down with Massachusetts Rep. Seth Moulton to discuss everything from why the Strait of Hormuz is currently a disaster zone and how “personal retribution” became our primary foreign policy. But we also look at the man in the middle of it all—Seth’s take on the president’s “cognitive tell” is as insightful as it is alarming. Let’s get into it:

• Iran is running the show: I asked Seth to give us the reality on the ground because, honestly, does anyone actually know what’s happening in the Strait of Hormuz? For the first time in 50 years, the U.S. has allowed Iran to actually close the strait. Seth points out that even under George W. Bush’s wars or Jimmy Carter’s failed raids, this has never happened. Now, the Islamic regime is effectively “winning this war” while we’re stuck in a “pickle” of Donald Trump’s making. Seth places the blame squarely on the president and “the most incompetent” Secretary of Defense in American history, Pete Hegseth.

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We’ve all seen enough reality TV to know when a show is past its prime, but Donald Trump isn't just losing the plot—he’s losing the room. joins me on The Daily Beast Podcast to discuss why the “business of government” has officially been swallowed by a psychotic version of “The Apprentice.”

We’re no longer looking at a cabinet of policymakers; we’re looking at a casting call of performers playing to the cameras while the country deals with a $6.39-a-gallon reality. It’s performance art in plain sight, and as David explains, the ratings are finally starting to tank. Let’s get into it:

• A visible decline: Trump is “dissolving before our very eyes,” according to David. As onlookers begin to “hedge their bets” on a future led by JD Vance or Marco Rubio, David describes a man “coming to grips with his own mortality,” desperately shouting at a clock that is “running out of time.” With only six months to the election, the stakes are existential. If Trump loses, he becomes the “lamest of lame ducks,” leaving his grandest visions—from unbuilt arches to a paved White House garden—unfinished. In this scenario, the “end of MAGA” shifts from a threat to a legal and political reality the president can no longer ignore.

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It seems like these days, the quiet hours of the morning are being used to dismantle political norms. While the rest of the world is getting their beauty sleep, the president is apparently treating Truth Social like a 3 a.m. burner phone. In the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, Executive Editor of the Daily Beast joins me to unpack the data behind Donald Trump’s sleepless nights.

How long can anyone—let alone a 79-year-old with the nuclear codes—maintain this level of late-night “quixotic” frenzy before the wheels completely come off? Let’s get into it:

• Policy by insomnia: We all know “nothing good happens” at 2:45 a.m., yet that’s exactly when the president is firing off rants. Hugh shares the “extraordinary” data from Daily Beast reporter Josh Fiallo of Donald Trump’s Truth Social habits: Throughout April, there were “only five days” when the president did not post between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. The numbers suggest that 80% of the time he should be resting, he is instead awake—“agitated and panicked and fearful.” While Trump has famously claimed to “thrive on very little sleep,” you don’t need a medical degree to realize it’s “bad for your brain” if you’re not getting enough.

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Secretary of War Pete Hegseth seems to be achieving the impossible: he’s making the Pentagon look less like a command center and more like a vengeful soap opera. But as Representative Jason Crow (D-CO) tells me in the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, the real issue isn’t just the optics—it’s the “corruption of heart” driving a strategy that leaves our troops vulnerable while the leadership cashes in. If Donald Trump really wants a military that wins, his first move is simple: fire the man who is currently “painting over reality” to keep his job. Let’s get into it:

• Character on the line: We appear to be “stuck in a quagmire” in the Strait of Hormuz, yet Pete Hegseth is demanding a $1.5 trillion budget for the Pentagon. Given Jason’s own decorated military service, I had to ask: what does he really think of Hegseth as Secretary of Defense? Jason describes him as a “vengeful individual” who lacks basic qualifications. But it’s deeper than just being bad at the job; Jason sees a “meanness to him” and a “corruption of his heart” that allows for the mistreatment of people and entire organizations.

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Timing always seems to clash with big royal moments, doesn’t it? joins me in the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast to break down King Charles’s historic and well-received visit to the U.S.—including his speech to Congress and that lighthearted “Batman” moment at the state dinner—only to have the momentum interrupted by the younger royals.

Just as King Charles was heading to a somber visit to the 9/11 Memorial, his sons and daughters-in-law seemed to launch separate strikes on the news cycle. The King may be playing the long game of diplomacy, but the rest of the family is playing for clicks. Let’s get into it:

• The Trump Whisperer: King Charles didn't just show up; he delivered a speech that was “perfectly judged” and “truly impressive.” The King managed to remind Congress of its duties to democracy and the separation of powers without sounding like he was “lecturing.” In a stroke of genius, he allowed himself to be “flattered by Trump,” Tom explains. The King used his unique “celebrity and power” to bring the president—who is famously “in awe of the brand” of the monarchy—somewhat “to heel.” Even the most MAGA-aligned members were “leaping to their feet” for a man Tom calls the “essence of the special relationship.”

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There’s a specific kind of exhaustion that comes with living through a “bandwidth hog” presidency. This week, the absurdity hit a new high: a security failure turned into a political photo-op, and a royal visit that may just be used as a gilded band-aid for a fractured administration.

Daily Beast’s chief global affairs columnist joins me once again in the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast to break down the theater of it all. We explore why Trump is “more illegal” than the violence he decries, whether we’re witnessing the final days of a political “dead man walking,” and more. Let’s get into it:

• The ultimate “lone wolf”: While the media focuses on the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner attacker, Cole Allen, David points out that the president is also a danger. A lone gunman is a local tragedy, but a “lone wolf whack job that controls the world’s most powerful military” is a global catastrophe. Cole Allen had a manifesto—a “reason,” however twisted, for his actions. Trump, on the other hand, is operating with “no reason” and “no excuse,” making his actions not just reckless, but “more illegal” than the very violence he’s now using as a political prop.

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Donald Trump is beginning to sense his own irrelevance. In my latest conversation with Political Analyst on The Daily Beast Podcast, we discuss the unadulterated chaos currently masquerading as a “strategy.” The president is “allergic” to anyone who doesn't bow to him, his inner circle seems more interested in playing dress-up than governing, and desperate moves are being made as the midterms loom. All this, and the Iranians might just have the last laugh. Let’s get into it:

• Handling the heat: We’re living in a reality where the Commander-in-Chief is being sidelined by his own military leadership during sensitive operations. Rothkopf points out how Trump is so erratic that generals would not let him in the situation room at the most sensitive moments because “they know he’s nuts.” It’s becoming clear that this White House is a “clown car” where expertise is treated like a virus. David observes that Trump is effectively “allergic to people who do not immediately fall to their knees in front of him” and that he gets visibly uncomfortable in the presence of anyone who knows more than he does.

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There are weeks when the news feels like a reasonably well-plotted drama, and then there are weeks like this—where the plot involves celestial doctors in the clouds and the Pope calling out Truth Social for its lack of irony. Journalist and author, , is back on The Daily Beast Podcast to reveal why Donald Trump’s “Mad King” act is crumbling. What—or who—will be left standing when the curtain falls? Let’s get into it:

• “Mad King” Venn diagram: Kurt revives a brilliant Venn diagram he created a decade ago to explain the president in the simplest terms possible: three overlapping circles of “lying, stupidity, and mental illness.” We’ve seen a lot from this administration, but are we reaching a new, darker peak? Kurt notes that although people have spent years debating Trump's mental state with "diagnostic precision," this particular week feels different—especially after that surreal AI image of him as a “celestial doctor” in the clouds. While people may ask, “Where’s the bottom?” recently, it feels like the “Mad King” caricature is finally becoming the reality.

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There’s a fine line between a grandiose personality and a psychotic break, and according to Psychologist Dr. John Gartner, it seems Donald Trump has sprinted past it. John joins me once again on The Daily Beast Podcast, where we not only discuss a certain politician with a big ego, but we also talk about how that same man has traded reality for a messiah complex. From AI-generated “Jesus” imagery to a visible decline in executive function, John argues we’re witnessing a full-blown "medical" state of delusion in real time. Let’s get into it:

• Messiah complex: We’re moving far beyond standard political theatre and into the realm of a genuine “psychological emergency.” This week reached a fever pitch when we saw Donald Trump “portraying himself through AI as Jesus Christ,” a move that reveals that the president is “psychotic.” John uses this term in the “medical sense,” referencing the Psychoanalyst who originated the diagnosis of malignant narcissism himself, Erich Fromm. According to Fromm, a malignant narcissist becomes "so grandiose that it's psychotic, that they have delusions of grandeur," and John believes Trump has gotten to that point.

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Is it possible to be both a prisoner of your past and a predator of your own reputation? Author Isabel Vincent joins me on The Daily Beast Podcast to dissect her biography of the U.S. health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The book titled “RFK Jr.: The Fall and Rise” draws from his own secret diaries. Isabel walks me through a digital paper trail of trysts, ego, and a man quite literally at war with his own legacy. It’s a portrait of a dynasty in freefall, and the details are as clinical as they are chaotic. So put down your green juice, and let’s get into it:

• “Lust” logs: Isabel and I unpack the staggering level of detail that RFK Jr. kept in his secret diaries—journals his late wife, Mary Richardson Kennedy, found during their brutal divorce. "In his own words, [there is] proof that he was at one point documenting trysts with 37 women... in a very short space of time, seeing up to three women on one day," Isabel says. It’s like RFK Jr. recorded his affairs with the cold efficiency of a spreadsheet, making this not just unfaithfulness, but a “clinical, almost compulsive accounting” of his own appetites that he seemingly couldn’t—or wouldn’t—control.

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There’s “uninformed,” and then there’s what foreign policy expert, , calls “history’s most powerful idiot.” David joins me on the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, where we strip away the 4D chess myth to look at the raw incoherence behind the curtain. From Melania’s curious timing on the Epstein files to Marco Rubio’s new career as a ringside prop, we discuss a week where the vanity was high, the stakes were higher, and the sanity was... well, nowhere to be found. Let’s get into it:

• The “Worst Idiot in History”: David lays out a rather convincing—and terrifying—case for why Trump earns the title of history’s “most powerful idiot.” David explains that "it’s not that he’s playing 4D chess; it’s that he’s eating the pieces." His point is simple: the danger lies in the power he wields despite a total lack of intellectual or moral depth. From fumbling the Iran deal to his bizarre rants about the Pope, Trump is a man who’s constantly tripping over his own ego. He seems to have a unique “talent” of destroying everything he touches while convinced he’s winning a Nobel Prize for it.

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It’s time to face the family business—and by that, I mean the psychology behind the Trump dynasty. Psychologist and author, , joins me on the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, and she isn’t just bringing receipts; she’s bringing a clinical diagnostic lens to a house that feels like it’s finally starting to tilt.

We dig into Melania’s bizarrely timed Epstein defense—which Mary calls "despicable"—and why her uncle Donald’s recent behavior feels like a terrifying echo of his own father’s descent into dementia. It’s a look at a man losing his grip, a wife trying to save her brand, and a movement that might be rotting from the inside out. Let’s get into it:

• Melania’s Epstein defense: I was struck by the First Lady’s sudden demand for “transparency” regarding the Epstein files, especially given she’s spent years pretending she didn’t know the man. Mary calls the statement “cruel and insulting” to the victims, noting the sheer “unearned confidence” Melania displayed in trying to rewrite history. “She claims to have nothing, had nothing to do with Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein,” Mary says, “but there is so much documentary evidence to the contrary.” It’s a calculated move to “claim transparency while denying reality”—and a dangerous one. It seems Melania is “obviously getting ahead of something,” attempting to burnish her own brand even if it means gaslighting the public.

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• The ghost of Fred Trump: Mary sees “frightening echoes” of her grandfather’s decline in Donald. She points out that he’s now the same age Fred Trump was when his Alzheimer’s became apparent. Watching him in the Oval Office, Mary observes a man who’s “not oriented to time and place,” describing his current state as “creeping tree rot” or a “Dorian Gray portrait” rotting from the inside out. She warns that his “loss of impulse control” is a hereditary hallmark that could accelerate as the pressure of the presidency—and his various legal entanglements—mounts.

• Mission impossible: Donald’s decision to send JD Vance to negotiate with the Iranians is, in Mary’s view, a classic Trumpian setup. She believes he’s “throwing his vice president under the bus” because the idea of anyone succeeding him is “unthinkable.” It’s pure nihilism: if he can’t have the power, he’ll pull the whole house down. “He wants to undercut whoever is likely to succeed him,” Mary says. By handing Vance a mission designed to fail, Donald ensures that no one else in the MAGA orbit can build the kind of political capital that might eventually challenge his own shadow.

• Regressing to the maternal: I had to ask about Susie Wiles, who seems to be the only woman in the MAGA orbit without the “inflated faces and extended hair.” Someone pointed out to me that she looks remarkably like Donald’s mother, Mary Anne MacLeod Trump. Mary found this “really interesting,” noting that while Donald had “nothing but contempt for his mother,” he might be regressing into a state where he “wants this maternal figure in his life telling him what to do.” It’s a fascinating psychological pivot: a man who spent his life fleeing his mother’s shadow may now be subconsciously seeking her discipline to keep his chaotic world from spinning entirely off its axis.

Buckle up, because the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast is no gentle briefing. I thought we’d seen it all, but then Melania Trump dropped a pre-weekend address that felt less like a political statement and more like a tactical strike. Is it self-preservation, or is she finally checking out of the Epstein-adjacent chaos?

In my conversation with , co-host of the hit “I’ve Had It” podcast, we break down the survival instincts of a First Lady under fire, the slow-motion defection of the “Triple Trumpers,” the spectacular hypocrisy of the MAGA faithful, and more. Let’s get into it:

• First Lady’s “F-you”: We simply have to talk about the address Melania dropped like a bomb right before the weekend. Was it a rogue move or a “huge F-you to her husband,” who’s a frequent presence in the Epstein files? Jennifer is convinced it was pure self-preservation. Her immediate thought was: What’s about to drop? What are they getting in front of? Jen notes that when people move like this, the first instinct is always survival. Melania is out there decrying “lies,” yet we’ve seen the photographic evidence and the emails suggesting she and Ghislaine Maxwell were far more than mere acquaintances—they were actually quite friendly.

• “Triple Trumpers” jump ship: Jen introduces me to a new species: the “Triple Trumper”—those who voted for him not once, not twice, but tripled down. There’s probably a “core 30% of MAGA voters” that will “rearrange the deckchairs on the Titanic” even as Trump’s ship goes under, but the country is facing a reality check at the pumps. As Jen says, “you cannot spin gas prices,” and she’s convinced this is the tipping point. Perhaps even the iceberg.

• Holy hypocrisy: We also discuss the “sanctimonious MAGA Christians” who appear obsessed with others’ private lives while ignoring scandals within their own circles. While these figures preach about “traditional families” (which they use as an “exclusionary term” to seem superior over single parents, same-sex couples, or mixed-race families), they’re caught up in scandals that would make a tabloid editor blush. It’s the “epicenter of the MAGA movement,” Jen notes—they’ve “baked in signaling superiority when in fact they’re all messed up.”

• The 25th pivot: Perhaps most shocking of all is that even the court jesters—like Alex Jones, Tucker Carlson, and Candace Owens—are suddenly calling for the 25th Amendment. It’s a surreal pivot that begs the question: Why now? Are they just manufacturing noise and chasing attention, or do they actually believe it? Given this crowd is about as “cynical as they come,” it’s probably not out of the goodness of their hearts. According to Jen, it’s “economic Darwinism.” They know that if Trump “nukes Iran, the economic calamity from that is beyond comprehension.”

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On the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, journalist and I dive into the network of “kept scholars”—the academic elite who provided Jeffrey Epstein with the intellectual cover he needed to move through the world’s most powerful circles.

We’re talking about the “mind concierges” of MIT, the transactional nature of brilliance, and a PR strategy so cynical it’ll make your skin crawl. It’s a story of money, access, and a quiet moral compromise that should make us all look a little closer at the machinery of the elite. Let’s get into it:

• Performance of smartness: We always hear about Epstein’s horrific abuse of young women, but Anand points out a less-discussed side: his “mental harem” of “academic bros.” These weren’t just scholars; they were “kept scholars” used to facilitate a facade. Epstein would send them “dyslexic queries”—one-line emails asking for thoughts on linguistics or philosophy—and they’d fire back rigorous, personal papers. As Anand so brilliantly puts it, they were his “mind concierges,” providing him with intellectual currency. This allowed him to “perform smartness” at dinner tables with people like Bill Clinton or Ehud Barak, using these stolen insights to signal that he belonged in the room.

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Has the president lost his mind? Renowned psychologist and former Johns Hopkins University professor Dr. John Gartner joined me recently me on The Daily Beast Podcast to discuss the president’s symptoms. We’re not talking about “Trump being Trump” or the usual theatrical bluster.

John breaks down the intersection of malignant narcissism and what he identifies as accelerating frontotemporal dementia. From the “raging id” running the West Wing to the surreal, “honest lying” of the gold Sharpie story, we’re looking at a president who may no longer have the biological capacity for guardrails. Let’s get into it:

• “Raging id”: John is incredibly blunt about what he identifies as Trump’s accelerating frontotemporal dementia. He describes the current state of the president as “a raging ID with no frontal lobes and no guardrails.” Without those internal controls, the aggression isn’t just a political strategy anymore; it’s a lack of biological capacity to stop. He fears Donald Trump is “getting sadistic pleasure” from scaring the world and blowing things up.

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When it comes to politics, timing is everything. And right now, Donald Trump’s timing couldn't be worse. On the latest episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, I sat down with foreign policy expert to discuss a series of seismic shifts that should have everyone—from the Pentagon to the C-suite—deeply concerned.

We’re looking at all the recent chaos: an ideological ‘hostile takeover’ of the military, a self-inflicted energy nightmare in the Strait of Hormuz, a Supreme Court that’s finally stopping the bleeding, and more. Is this the beginning of a strategic endgame, or simply a leader with nothing left to lose? Let’s get into it:

• Loud voices lose faith: In a delicious twist of historical irony, it’s the “fools”—like Alex Jones, the “appalling denier” of the Sandy Hook tragedy, and Marjorie Taylor Greene, the egregiously formerly-MAGA former congresswoman—who are acting as the canaries in the MAGA coal mine. They’re finally saying what many have been whispering: Trump has lost his mind. As David notes, they’re “feathers in the wind,” realizing the breeze is no longer blowing in Trump’s direction.

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I’ve spent much of my career in the orbit of “peak model” glamour, but as my recent conversation with activists and former models Carré Otis and Stacey Williams for The Daily Beast Podcast revealed, the view from the runway was often a mask for a much darker reality.

We aren’t just talking about a few “bad apples”; we’re talking about a vertically integrated supply chain designed to serve up vulnerable girls to rapacious men. The glamour was the bait, but the reality was an "ugly" objectification that many have normalized for far too long. Let’s get into it:

• Pipeline for trafficking: The modeling industry didn’t just have “creeps”; it was structurally designed to funnel girls into the hands of predators. Carré explains how agencies often took passports for “safekeeping” and kept models in a state of perpetual debt, basically ensuring they had no autonomy. “There was a lot more organization than I think any of us could comprehend... the modeling industry was and is a pipeline for trafficking vulnerable people to powerful predators,” Carré reveals. It’s a business model built on the erasure of the word “No.”

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