The Briefing with Jen Psaki

Jen Psaki looks at press conferences by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, as well as media appearances by Donald Trump and finds that the former TV show hosts are not living up to the seriousness of the positions they hold and are more fixated on creating a successful image for their war on Iran than they are on the details and strategy that would help secure actual success.

Barbara Starr, former CNN Pentagon correspondent, and Brig. Gen. Steven M. Anderson (Ret.) join to discuss how Donald Trump's and Pete Hegseth's attitudes about using the U.S. military is reshaping American military culture.

Fiona Hill, a former senior director on the National Security Council, talks with Jen Psaki about the many challenges associated with an attack on Iran that experts in the foreign policy community knew and understood well before Donald Trump decided to jump in with both feet and struggle with those very same, known challenges, and how Trump's one-at-a-time style of dealing with other countries leaves him ill equipped to deal with a complex world with overlapping interests.

Bobby Pulido, Democratic congressional candidate and acclaimed Tejano music star, talks with Jen Psaki about the political atmosphere in Texas and using political judo moves on his opponent's attacks.

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Donald Trump has trained his acolytes in politics and media to echo his reassuring buzz phrases about weathering the short term effects of his war on Iran on the energy markets and global economy, but catchy slogans aren't changing the facts of the situation in the Strait of Hormuz and the sudden energy crisis that everyone in the world can see happening in front of their own eyes.

James Talarico is already running against one of two very flawed Republican opponents to represent Texas in the U.S. Senate, in a race that could determine control of the Senate. But Donald Trump's steadily sinking popularity and politically disastrous policies from his anti-immigrant cruelty to his senseless war on Iran and the economic fallout that Americans are already feeling, have given voters even more reason to consider making this the election that turns Texas blue. Talarico talks with Jen Psaki about the unnecessary challenges Americans are dealing with as a result of Donald Trump's mismanagement of the White House.

After two attacks in one day that appear to be related to Donald Trump's war on Iran, former CIA director John Brennan talks with Jen Psaki about the domestic national security threats that come with picking a fight with Iran.

And with Donald Trump pushing for the passage of an election bill, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries talks with Jen about Democratic plans to push back on Trump's effort to manipulate elections, as well as his war on Iran.

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As Donald Trump continues to offer contradictory answers and explanations, his war on Iran is running into some foreseeable problems that were among the reasons attacking Iran was ill-advised in the first place. Ben Rhodes, former deputy national security advisor, and Michael McFaul, former U.S. ambassador to Russia, talk with Jen Psaki about the deadly, expensive mess Donald Trump and his defense secretary, former weekend cable news host Pete Hegseth, are making.

Jen Psaki points out Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's dismaying preoccupation with his personal image while signs of the mismanagement of Donald Trump's war on Iran multiply, including new reporting that the U.S. was likely responsible for hitting an Iranian school full of children with a missile.

Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, a member of the House Oversight Committee, talks with Jen about hearing the testimony of Jeffrey Epstein's accountant, which somehow produced more questions than answers.

And Rep. Chris Deluzio joins the show to discuss how U.S. military veterans are reacting to Donald Trump's second term military adventurism and the degree to which his actions contradict what he campaigned on.

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Jen Psaki points out the weird and wild inconsistencies in the messaging and explanations from the Trump administration about the war of choice Donald Trump started with Iran, why they did it, what they call it, what they're trying to accomplish and how they're going to keep the world economy from crashing while they do it.

Jen Psaki pins down the various excuses and evasions from the Trump administration as new reporting points to evidence that suggests the United States is responsible for bombing a school in Iran, killing 175.

Senator Adam Schiff talks with Jen about holding the Trump administration accountable.

Donald Trump's endorsement of Republican Clay Fuller in a special election to replace Marjorie Taylor Greene in Congress was not meaningful enough to voters in Georgia to clinch the win for Fuller. Instead, Democratic candidate Shawn Harris, a retired Army brigadier general and cattle rancher, not only forced a runoff but got a higher proportion of the overall vote in a crowded field. Harris talked with Jen Psaki about how he interprets his success so far and his strategy heading to the April 7 runoff.

 

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Jen Psaki looks at Donald Trump's oddly casual answers to questions about the hardships his war on Iran is imposing on Americans, as well as Defense secretary Pete Hegseth's embarrassing chest pounding and the juvenile propaganda being released on government social media accounts, and questions whether Trump understands or is even capable of being a wartime president.

Barbara Starr, former CNN Pentagon correspondent, and Maj. Gen. Paul Eaton (Ret.), talk with Jen about the Trump administration's bizarre treatment of war.

Kristi Noem's job as secretary of homeland security may be over, but accountability for her time in office did not simply going away when she was fired. Not only is she facing investigations in states where ICE ran amok on her watch, but massive, taxpayer-funded promotional media contracts she arranged are still the subject of intense inquiry on both sides of the aisle. Rep. Joe Neguse, whose tenacious questioning of Kristi Noem in a House Judiciary Committee hearing almost certainly contributed to her eventually being fired by Donald Trump, talks with Jen Psaki about what comes next in holding Noem accountable for her transgressions while in office.

And Senator Sheldon Whitehouse joins to talk with Jen about the release of yet more Jeffrey Epstein documents, including ones that mention Donald Trump, and the bigger picture of what Epstein was involved in.

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