The Iran War Is Fueling Antisemitism

Summary

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What A Day — March 23, 2026

Episode: "The Iran War Is Fueling Antisemitism"

Host: Jane Coaston
Guest: Zach Beauchamp, Senior Correspondent at Vox

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Episode Overview

This episode of "What A Day" centers on the escalating U.S. war with Iran and the dangerous rise of antisemitism in American political discourse—especially as conversations about Israel's role in U.S. foreign policy become a flashpoint on both the political right and left. Host Jane Coaston and Vox’s Zach Beauchamp discuss recent far-right and anti-war narratives blaming "the Israel lobby" and American Jews for the war, why these conspiracies have taken hold, and how criticism of Israel frequently crosses into outright antisemitism.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Background: War Escalation and Infighting on the Right

• President Trump Threatens Further Escalation with Iran
  (00:18) Jane Coaston introduces the show’s focus: Trump’s threat to escalate the conflict with Iran and tangled rationales from the White House.
• MAGA Conservative In-Fighting
  • Conservatives like former Fox News hosts Megyn Kelly and Mark Levin are embroiled in petty public arguments—illustrating deeper rifts in MAGA circles over Israel’s influence on U.S. policy.
    (00:46) Jane: “But what they're fighting about... is at war over the role that Israel, the country, and more importantly... the concept has over American foreign policy and America more generally... the United States and Israel are at war with Iran, a war that is extremely unpopular with Americans.”

2. Conspiratorial Narratives: Who's to Blame for the War?

• The “Israel Lobby” Conspiracy
  (01:51) Tucker Carlson describes Joe Kent’s view on his podcast:

  "Last week, Israel got us into this war. Its lobby in the United States pressured the president... They led the way. That's Joe Kent's position.” — Tucker Carlson (01:51)

• Fact-Checking the Narrative
  (02:14) Jane and co-hosts point out that Trump has a history of hawkishness toward Iran, challenging claims that he was a "dupe" manipulated into the conflict.
• Antisemitic Undertones
  (02:26) Jane: “A host of people on the far right have decided that Trump was a victim of Israel and by default, American Jews. And that's a problem, because... how some on the American right and the American left are talking about Israel has edged... into outright antisemitism.”

3. Interview with Zach Beauchamp: The Rise of Anti-War Antisemitism

A. Joe Kent’s Conspiratorial Resignation

• Kent’s Letter as a Conspiracy Blueprint
  (03:21) Jane on Kent: “Laying the groundwork for an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory that could define the future of the GOP.”
• Beauchamp’s Analysis
  (03:39) Zach: “The letter... goes much more than [criticism of the war]. It's that Israel duped Donald Trump into a war he otherwise wouldn't have wanted, which is just, first of all, not at all true... But more importantly, it's that Kent posits Israeli influence... as a sort of catch-all cause for everything that's gone wrong in US foreign policy.”
  • Kent blames Israel for the 2003 Iraq War and even connects Israel to ISIS (04:36).

B. Dynamics within the Right: Philosemitism vs. Antisemitism

• MAGA’s ‘Good Czar, Bad Boyars’ Model
  (05:19) Zach: “Every Republican who wants to criticize one of [Trump’s] policies has to find someone else to blame for it... among people like Tucker Carlson or Candace Owens or Nick Fuentes, it's the Jews... or Israel, used as a very, very, very thin stand-in for American Jews.”
  • Trump’s approach blends stereotypical “positive” philo-Semitism with enabling white nationalist elements (08:07).
• Twin Factions Concealed by Trump’s Persona
  (08:07) Zach: “Trump in his person papers over these distinctions. He allows both of these groups to exist together in the same coalition... But... once he's gone, there will be a reckoning over what the true conservative... position on Israel and Jews is.”

C. Left-Wing Antisemitism and Anti-Israel Rhetoric

• Criticism of Israel vs. Antisemitism
  (10:02–11:00) Jane and co-host discuss left-wing reactions to Kent’s letter—many praised it for its antiwar stance while ignorant or dismissive of its conspiratorial blame on Israel for tragedies like the creation of ISIS.
• Conflating Israel and Jewish People
  • Zach: “There are clearly ways to criticize this war of choice while treating Israel as a country and not embracing antisemitism. Why do you think that has proven so hard for so many across the political spectrum?” (11:14)
• How Antisemitism Spreads on the Left

  • (11:16) Zach: “There is an anger at the American Jewish community for having pro-Israel politics, and... being critical of pro-Palestinian politics. This means that hardline anti-Israel politics will shade into an outright condemnation of many mainstream Jewish American institutions and blaming them for American policy... especially at the furthest left reaches, shades into outright antisemitism because antisemitism isn't an exclusively right wing phenomenon... there are just different species of antisemitism.”

  • The potential for even “gray area” rhetoric (like sharing the Kent letter) to be weaponized by actual antisemites in the future (13:29):

  “Kent's letter will be cited by antisemites in the future as proof that someone on the inside knew what the Jews are doing. And that will happen on both the right and the left.” — Zach Beauchamp (13:43)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "But blaming Donald Trump would give him too much agency, I guess. So a host of people on the far right have decided that Trump was a victim of Israel and by default, American Jews. And that's a problem, because... some on the American right and the American left... have edged... into outright antisemitism." — Jane Coaston (02:24)
• “So the letter takes this view... that Israel pushed the US into war. But it goes much more than that. It's that Israel duped Donald Trump into a war he otherwise wouldn't have wanted, which is just, first of all, not at all true... more importantly, Kent posits Israeli influence... as a sort of catch all cause for everything that's gone wrong in US foreign policy.” — Zach Beauchamp (03:39)
• "Trump has always positioned himself as a friend of Israel. But he talks about Jewish people in a very stereotypical way... He's always talked about how he wants Jewish people to be controlling his money. And he thinks that this is being very pro-Jewish when it's absolutely not." — Co-host (07:28)
• "Philo-Semitism... is always one hop away from anti-Semitism. It's not a distinct thing, but rather a prelude to disliking Jews or spreading negative stereotypes." — Zach Beauchamp (08:08)
• "The way that left wing antisemitism manifests today is as a conspiracy theory in which Israel is pulling the strings of American politics. Israel and its Jewish allies in the US to ruin things..." — Zach Beauchamp (12:05)
• "Kent's letter will be cited by anti-Semites in the future as proof that someone on the inside knew what the Jews are doing... on both the right and the left." — Zach Beauchamp (13:43)

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Segment Timestamps (MM:SS)

• 00:18 — Introduction of episode themes: Iran war, MAGA right infighting, Israel’s role
• 01:51 — Tucker Carlson on Joe Kent’s "Israel lobby" conspiracy theory
• 02:24 — Jane and co-host flag antisemitism surging in war discourse
• 03:07 — Interview with Zach Beauchamp begins
• 03:39 — Dissection of Joe Kent’s anti-Semitic conspiracy theorizing
• 05:19 — “Good czar, bad boyars” model of excusing Trump, blaming Israel/Jews
• 08:07 — MAGA’s internal contradiction: philo-Semitism and antisemitism coexist under Trump
• 10:02 — How anti-war left is echoing dangerous anti-Israel/anti-Semitic rhetoric
• 11:16 — Why both right and left trip into antisemitic tropes in criticizing Israel
• 13:43 — Kent letter’s dangerous legacy for both political extremes
• 13:55 — Wrap-up of interview and pointer to more resources

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Additional News Briefs (Post Main Segment)

• 19:00 — US military moves in Iran, the Straits of Hormuz standoff
• 19:28 — Lifting of sanctions on Iranian oil, US government shutdown effects
• 21:22 — Trump’s offensive social media response to Robert Mueller’s death
• 22:41 — ICE officers being sent to airports during TSA agent walkouts
• 23:28 — New Christopher Columbus statue at the White House

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Tone and Style Notes

• Critical and Analytical: Jane Coaston’s tone is sharp, skeptical, and pushes for honest, uncomfortable conversations.
• Nuanced and In-depth: The conversation with Zach Beauchamp unpacks not just explosive events but the broader cultural and historical context, refusing reductive sound bites.
• Dark Humor: Wry remarks (e.g., callouts of petty MAGA fights), but always anchored in concern about bigotry and the health of public discourse.

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Conclusion

This episode provides a focused, unsettling look at how rapidly antisemitic conspiracy theories can move from far-right “fringe” figures into political and social mainstreams, fueled by both MAGA denialism and poorly-dissected antiwar activism on the left. It warns listeners about the danger of conflating Israel as a state with Jewish people everywhere and the need for vigilance on how we talk about complex, fraught geopolitical crises.

Key Takeaways:

• Criticizing Israel’s policies does not require or excuse antisemitic tropes.
• Antisemitism is not limited to any one ideology; forms of it exist across the spectrum.
• Trump’s unique persona covers up significant cracks between pro-Israel and antisemitic factions within his coalition—but those cracks may widen after his influence wanes.
• Mainstreaming conspiracy theories—even inadvertently—emboldens bigots and erodes the quality of public debate.

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Transcript

[Jane Coaston]

Foreign. March 23rd. I'm Jane Costen and this is what

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

a Day, the show that has a

[Jane Coaston]

one second response to this two second statement from Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on ABC's this Week on Sunday.

[Zach Beauchamp]

But again, I think we have to offer the president grace.

[Jane Coaston]

No. On today's show, President Donald Trump threatens to escalate the war with Iran, but

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

the White House says he's only escalating

[Jane Coaston]

in order to de escalate. And with little to no plan in place, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers are being sent to airports to get those long lines under control. Our thoughts are with any travelers who have to interact with them. But let's start with the war in Iran and the fight over how to talk about it here at home. You probably don't spend a lot of time following MAGA podcast or infighting on the Internet. And that's for the best. Former Fox News host Megyn Kelly accusing current Fox News host Mark Levin of having a, quote, micro penis. And Levin getting President Trump to post in his defense, while ridiculous, is not really critical to your day to day life. But what they're fighting about is the maga, right, is at war over the role that Israel, the country, and more importantly for our episode today, the concept has over American foreign policy and America more generally because it's true that the United States and Israel are at war with Iran, a war that is extremely unpopular with Americans. And it's true that the two countries appear to have very different priorities when it comes to what success in Iran might look like. But if you listen to Tucker Carlson, another former Fox News host, or former counterterrorism chief Joe Kent, you would think that President Trump was bamboozled into this conflict, lured by the evil, quote, Israel lobby. Here's Tucker Carlson on his podcast explaining Joe Kent's view on the war.

[Tucker Carlson]

Last week, Israel got us into this war. Its lobby in the United States pressured the president and its prime minister in Israel told the president, we're going without you. Join us because if you don't, your troops in the region, your interest in the region, your citizens in the region will all be at risk. You have no choice. They led the way. That's Joe Kent's position.

[Jane Coaston]

There are a few problems with this. For one thing, Donald Trump has been an Iran hawk for a very long time. Also, as we've said in the show before, Donald Trump tends to not be 100% truthful.

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

But blaming Donald Trump would give him

[Jane Coaston]

too much agency, I guess. So a host of people on the far right have decided that Trump was a victim of Israel and by default, American Jews. And that's a problem, because the way some on the American right and the American left are talking about Israel has edged and in some cases burst through the damn wall like the Kool Aid man into outright anti Semitism. And with multiple violent attacks on synagogues around the world over the last few weeks, the lack of distinction between Israel, the country, and Jewish people is having

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

a very dangerous impact.

[Jane Coaston]

So to talk more about the war in Iran and rising anti Semitic attitudes, I spoke with Zach Beacham. He's senior correspondent at Vox, and he recently wrote about the rise of anti war antisemitism. Zach, welcome back to what a Day.

[Zach Beauchamp]

Hey, Jane, it's always a pleasure to talk to you.

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

The now former director of the National Counterterrorism Center, Joe Kent, resigned, citing concerns that Israel pressured the US into the war with Iran. You wrote that his resignation letter suggests

[Jane Coaston]

Kent is, quote, laying the groundwork for

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

an anti Semitic conspiracy theory that could

[Jane Coaston]

define the future of the gop.

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

I definitely noticed some, what I think struck you as thinly veiled anti Semitism in the letter that wasn't just criticism of the war or Israeli policy.

[Jane Coaston]

What struck you?

[Zach Beauchamp]

So the letter takes this view, right, that Israel pushed the US into war. But it goes much more than that. It's that Israel duped Donald Trump in a war that he was tricked into, a war he otherwise wouldn't have wanted, which is just, first of all, not at all true. Trump has decades and decades and decades of public statements talking about how hawkish he was in Iran. So it's not as if this guy was an unwilling warrior here. But I think more importantly, it's that Kent posits Israeli influence not just as you know, there's legitimate debate about how much Israel played a role in the decision to go to war, but as a sort of catch all cause for everything that's gone wrong in US Foreign policy. For instance, he says Israel was responsible for the 2003 invasion of Iraq, a claim that has absolutely no basis in reality. And he also claims that Israel was responsible for the war in which his wife died, which is a tragic event. I don't want to downplay that, but she died as part of the counter ISIS effort. Again, had nothing to do with Israel,

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

unless you believe the conspiracy theory, which is kind of out there, that Israel is responsible for isis. And I think that's something we keep seeing, is this level of, like, MAGA denialism that ties into this, where Trump is just this poor, sad dupe, as you put it who is not responsible for the war that is very unpopular. It's kind of that there's this old saying, good czar, bad boyars, which is that, you know, the czar is great, but everyone around him is just giving him this terrible advice and that's why bad things happen. And, and in this instance, it seems to be that Trump would be so great. But it's Israel. It's Israel that's responsible for everything that's bad that he's doing.

[Zach Beauchamp]

Yeah, that's, that's basically the way that this logic is going in the circles that Kent runs in. And to be clear, this wasn't actually that surprising from Joe Kent. In 2021, he had a phone call with Nick Fuentes about structuring his social media strategy. Like he comes from this milieu in the Pacific Northwest. He ran for Congress in Washington twice, unsuccessfully in 2022 and 2020. Very sort of extremist, fringy, militia adjacent, white nationalist adjacent world that brings him in contact with people like Fuentes. He even paid a proud boy at one point as a campaign consultant. Right. This is the world in which Kent comes from. And so for him to leap into an anti Semitic explanation for why the US has entered into a war that he and I both believe is ill considered, like we share that belief, but I can't at all be associated with his explanation as to why that's the case because it really is deeply conspiratorial and it's the way that people on that side of the GOP have been articulating this. Right. And careful to avoid blaming Trump. As you say, there's a good czar, bad boyars dynamic that exists because Trump is all powerful in the Maga movement. Right. It's, he can do no wrong in the eyes of the sort of core and base of the Republican Party right now. And going up against him is a losing fight. So every Republican who wants to criticize one of his policies has to find someone else to blame for it. Oftentimes that's, you know, one of his deputies. But in this case, among people like Tucker Carlson or Candace Owens or Nick Fuentes, it's the Jews, right? Or oftentimes Israel used in as a very, very, very thin stand in for American Jews. Right. And you see that in Kent's letter too, where he talks about the American lobby for Israel and then the media, which is like the real tell here, because that's what the hardcore anti Semites say when they want to blame the Jews. It's the Jewish media or the media in parentheses with it.

[Jane Coaston]

Right.

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

It's interesting also to hear the administration talk about Jo Kent as if this were not the person who was nominated by Donald Trump. But Kent is a Trump loyalist. He's had those ties to far right figures who've promoted anti Semitic ideas, as you've mentioned. But Trump has always positioned himself as a friend of Israel. But he talks about Jewish people in

[Jane Coaston]

a very stereotypical way.

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

And he always has. He's always talked about how he wants Jewish people to be controlling his money. And he thinks that this is being very pro Jewish when it's absolutely not. It's always been interesting to me that you have so many rabid anti Semites who have become such big supporters of Donald Trump, who is deeply philosemitic in a very strange way. What happens when these two strains collide inside the same administration? And does Kent's exit signal deeper fractures among US Officials who are supposed to be shaping a policy towards Iran?

[Zach Beauchamp]

So, you know, Trump is a very interesting figure and philo Semitism in general is very interesting because it's always anti Semitic adjacent because it basically just takes those negative stereotypes, as you just suggested, and turns them into something positive. It's like, oh, the Jews are good with money. Isn't it great to be good with money? Right. It's always one hop away from anti Semitism. It's not a distinct thing, but rather a prelude to disliking Jews or spreading negative stereotypes about Jews. And in that way, Trump's bluntness about using anti Semitic stereotypes, even if he does put a positive spin on them, has emboldened the entry of anti Semites into America, American public life. So that allows there to be in MAGA, sort of both of these things at once. There are strains of the sort of Trump following who are heartily just old school pro Israel Republicans. And at the same time, Trump has normalized white nationalist stereotype or white nationalism. And they exist. They coexist with each other and don't talk about each other except when they're mad about a particular policy issue. And then they fight online incessantly. And so you've seen huge fights between most notably Ben Shapiro and Tucker Carlson, who are just like bitter enemies, right? Because they represent these two different wings in the very online way and sort of fighting about it all the time. I think that what happens later is going to happen after Trump is off the scene. Right? Because Trump in his person papers over these distinctions. He allows both of these groups to exist together in the same coalition by picking up on different elements of Trumpism. But, but it's only Trump's magnetism, it's only his unique personality and role in the base that allows them to coexist comfortably. And so I think once he's gone, there will be a reckoning over what the true conservative or right wing position on Israel and Jews is.

[Jane Coaston]

I wanted to ask a bigger question

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

because something I noticed immediately was how many people who are liberal Democrats saw that letter and we're like reposting it and sharing it and talking about like, someone's finally standing up against this war. I'm like, okay, I totally understand that.

[Jane Coaston]

But I also, I'm like, you're not

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

seeing the part of how he's blaming Israel for ISIS murdering his wife. You're not seeing these little things about how it's treating Israel as if it is responsible for all of this. And I think that you and I have both seen how anti Israel rhetoric, which I completely understand, if we're talking about Israel as a country, if we're talking about Israel as a state with a government that is, I think, doing terrible things both internally and externally, I think we've seen people turn, you know, talking about Israel, the country into talking about Jewish people. And those are two different things. There are clearly ways to talk about

[Jane Coaston]

those goals and talk about the war.

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

And even as I have done repeatedly criticize this war of choice while treating Israel as a country and not embracing antisemitism. Why do you think that has proven so hard for so many people across

[Jane Coaston]

the political spectrum to do?

[Zach Beauchamp]

Yeah, I mean, it's, it's deeply and profoundly messed up and illustrates how badly our discourse on this particular issue is broken.

[Megan McCardell]

Right.

[Zach Beauchamp]

We've talked a lot about the political right and it's very obvious where people are getting the conflation of Jews in Israel from there on the left, the, the dynamic is a little bit different. I think it's that there is a, in an anger at the American Jewish community for having pro Israel politics, and there's an anger for being very, very critical of pro Palestinian politics. And this means that sort of hardline anti Israel politics will shade into an outright condemnation of many mainstream Jewish American institutions and blaming them for American policy, when in fact American Jews are not. The real reason why the US has adopted the various policies it has over the course of many, with respect to the Israel Palestine conflict, really isn't the reason, but there is an anger and a mistrust there. And a lot of that, especially at the furthest left reaches, shades into outright anti Semitism because Anti Semitism isn't an exclusively right wing phenomenon historically. It's something that spans all ideological tendencies, left, right and center. There are just different species of antisemitism. And the way that left wing antisemitism manifests today is as a conspiracy theory in which Israel is pulling the strings of American politics. Israel and its Jewish allies in the US to ruin things and to ensure that the country does not do the right thing when it comes to the conflict in the Middle East. And you know, sometimes there, there are gray areas here, right? Like you let in with people praising the Joe Kent letter on social media. Part of that may be that people didn't actually read the letter and they just saw Trump administration official breaks over this. And the other part is that American politics is highly polarized and so enemy of the my enemy is my friend logic leads people to say that, well, if someone in the Trump administration is breaking with him on the war, that's great, right? It shows splintering MAGA over the war. Maybe the war will end sooner. I don't think Kent portrays that. But what it does suggest is that they're not attuned to the way in which antisemitism can very easily become mainstream and anti Semitic myth making can become a really powerful force. Right. Kent's letter will be cited by anti Semites in the future as proof that someone on the inside knew what the Jews are doing. And that will happen on both the right and the left.

[Jane Coaston]

Zach, as always, thank you so much for joining me.

[Zach Beauchamp]

Thank you, Jane. It was a dark subject matter. Lovely conversation.

[Jane Coaston]

That was my conversation with Zach Beecham, senior correspondent at Vox. We'll link to his piece in the show Notes. Thanks for starting your week off right by listening to what a Day. If you like the show, make sure to subscribe. Leave a five star review on Spotify and Apple podcasts, watch us on YouTube and share with your friends. More to come after some ads.

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

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[Jane Coaston]

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Join me Wednesdays on YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Jane Coaston]

Here's what else we're following today.

[Zach Beauchamp]

Head of Lines

[Scott Baesel (Treasury Secretary)]

Every day we are taking out their missiles, their missile systems and the factories that build those missiles. And now the General Kane Secretary Hegseth are leading a campaign to destroy all the fortifications along the Straits of Hormuz.

[Christian Welker]

Just to put a fine point on this though, is the president in the process of winding down this war or escalating again?

[Scott Baesel (Treasury Secretary)]

They're not mutually exclusive. Sometimes you have to escalate to de escalate.

[Jane Coaston]

Treasury Secretary and great communicator Scott BESANT spoke with NBC's Christian Welker on Meet the Press Sunday. Welker asked Bessant to clarify whether the US Is escalating the war with Iran because over the weekend President Trump threatened to escalate the war with Iran. In a truth social post Saturday night, Trump wrote that if Iran does not open the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, the US quote, will hit and obliterate their various power plants, starting with the biggest one first. Iran's parliament speaker responded on Twitter by saying that if the US Attacks the country's power plants, Iran will start to target infrastructure across the Middle East. Gas prices in the US have gone up by almost a dollar over the past month, according to aaa. In response, on Friday, Secretary Besant announced that the US Is lifting sanctions on Iranian oil that is already at sea and claimed, quote, Iran will have difficulty accessing any revenue generated from the sale of this oil.

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

What?

[Jane Coaston]

It seems odd to lift sanctions on oil from the country we're currently at war with. And analysts who spoke with the Associated Press and the Guardian say the move won't have much of an impact on gas prices. Great work all around. Robert Mueller passed away on Friday at the age of 81. Mueller, a decorated Marine Corps officer who received a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart for his actions during the Vietnam War, served as director of the FBI under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Before serving as FBI director, he successfully prosecuted Mafia boss John Gotti and Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega. But he's probably best known for his work as special counsel during Trump's first term in office, when he investigated Russian interference in the 2016 election. And that's when he became the object of Trump's ire, which continued this weekend when Trump greeted news of Mueller's passing with what I'd argue was glee Treasury Secretary. And again, great communicator Scott Besant was forced to do cleanup duty of Trump's gross social media comments on Sunday, facing questioning during his interview with Kristen Welker.

[Christian Welker]

Is it appropriate for the president to celebrate the death of any American citizen?

[Scott Baesel (Treasury Secretary)]

Mr. Secretary, again, I think that given what has been done to President Trump and his family, it is impossible for either of us to understand what he has been through.

[Christian Welker]

So you don't think that there's anything wrong with the post saying good Robert Mueller's again?

[Scott Baesel (Treasury Secretary)]

I think that we should all have a little empathy for what has been done to him and his family.

[Jane Coaston]

Yes, empathy. A sentiment Donald Trump has never felt in his entire life. The Trump administration has a plan to make airport security lines even more unpleasant. Throw some ICE officers in there and see what happens. Transportation Security Administration agents are working without pay as the Department of Homeland Security shutdown continues to Hundreds of agents have quit and many more have called out from work, leading to long wait times at airports across the country. The GOP has resisted demands from Democrats to enforce new restrictions on Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. And over the weekend, President Trump announced that starting today, ICE officers will be deployed to airports to assist TSA. CNN's Dana Bash asked White House border czar Tom Homan about exactly how much planning went into this decision on Sunday. With respect, if you're doing this in 24 hours, how well thought out could it possibly be

[Tom Homan]

again? ICE has been at airports across the country for a long time. It's just expanding those things. Look, it does. How much of a plan does it mean to guard an exit, to make sure no one comes through that exit?

[Jane Coaston]

Because what could go wrong when Trump sends a bunch of poorly trained ICE officers somewhere they aren't supposed to be? The White House welcomed a new addition to its grounds on Sunday, a statue of Christopher Columbus. It's a replica of the Columbus Monument that was tossed into Baltimore's harbor in 2020amid protests against institutional racism. A White House spokesman told the New York Times, quote, in this White House, Christopher Columbus is a hero, and President Trump will ensure he's honored as such for generations to come. It's sure nice to know that during a war in Iran and a partial government shutdown here at home, President Trump is focused on the important things, honoring a man who has come to be recognized by many as a primary example of Western Europe's conquest of the New World, its pillaging of resources and native people, and, of course, of getting lost and getting arrested by the government that employed you. And that's the news. Before we go this year, Votes of America is pulling back the curtain on the places and races that matter most to decide the fate of the midterms. November will decide control of Congress, and if Trump maintains his Republican trifecta. And that's why Votes of America is here to offer takes and tips on how, when and where to donate to make sure your money goes the furthest how to confidently talk to the people in your life about midterms and key issues and opportunities to take action with your community in real life. Sign [e-mail] to make sure you're up to date with the latest. Then send the sign up link to Five Friends page four by VoteSave America. Learn more at votesaveamerica.com this ad has not been authorized by any candidate or candidates committee. That's all for today.

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

If you liked the show, make sure

[Jane Coaston]

you subscribe, Leave a review Please stop South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham from speaking on television and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading and not just about how Graham went on Fox News Sunday and said this about seizing an island in the Persian Gulf critical to Iranian oil exports.

[Lindsey Graham]

I trust DOD we got two Marine Expeditionary Units sailing to this island. We did Iwo Jima. We can do this. The Marines. My money is always on the Marines like me.

[Jane Coaston]

What a Day is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and [e-mail] subscribe I'm Jane Coston and Iwo Jima was one of the bloodiest battles at the Pacific theater with 30,000 allied casualties over a five week period. Lindsey Graham so it sure seems weird to sound this excited about anything coming even close unless you're signing up. What a Day is a production of Crooked Media. It's recorded and mixed by Desmond Taylor. Our associate producer is Emily Foer. Our producer is Kaitlyn Plummer. Our video editor is Joseph Dutra. Our video producer is Johanna Case. We had production help today from Greg Walters, Matt Berg, Sean Ali and Ethan Oberman. Our senior producer is Erika Morrison and

[Co-host or Guest Commentator]

our senior Vice President of News and

[Jane Coaston]

Politics is Adrienne Hill. Our theme music is by Kyle Murdoch and Jordan Cantor. We'd help today from the Associated Press Our production staff is proudly unionized with the Writers Guild of America East.

[Jon Favreau]

If you guys like Positive America, please consider subscribing to our Friends of the Pod program. So Friends of the POD get lots of stuff.

[Tommy Vietor]

You get more Pod Save America.

[Jon Favreau]

That includes our new show which is

[Tommy Vietor]

called Pod Save America.

[Jon Favreau]

Only Friends. It's where Dan gets naked, where Dan gets full frontal nudity. But mostly it's a bi weekly subscription

[Tommy Vietor]

exclusive podcast that is basically Pod Save

[Jon Favreau]

America but behind a paywall so it's a little bit looser and more fun. And it's love it and Favreau and me and Pfeiffer and then other crooked hosts, we go deeper on the news and cover more stories. You also get open tabs which so weekly behind the scenes newsletter from the show. Plus you get ad free episodes of your favorite crooked podcasts and all kinds of other stuff. Dan will come to your house and clean it once every quarter. Yeah, clothed. Dan is very busy. Clothed only. But along with just getting great content Becoming a Friend of the Pod Joining our subscription community is the number one thing you can do to help us grow to help independent progressive media. So if you're ever thought about doing it, if you ever wanted more pod save America, consider going to cricket.com friends and becoming a friend of the pod.

[Mayflower Mover Representative]

As America's most trusted movers, Mayflower has seen it all from big dreams and new beginnings.

[Zach Beauchamp]

All right, here we are.

[Jane Coaston]

Oh, it's perfect.

[Mayflower Mover Representative]

To first steps and fixer uppers from starter homes.

[Jane Coaston]

So guess what? We're having another.

[Zach Beauchamp]

Another. We definitely need more space to more practical homes.

[Mayflower Mover Representative]

Yes, Mayflower has been there for it all and will always have your back. Every moment, every move, every step of the way. Schedule your move now by going to mayflower.com has the news been getting you down?

[Megan McCardell]

I'm Megan McCardell and I'm here to help. I'm the host of a new show from Washington Post Opinion called Reasonably Optimistic. And it's an antidote to the pessimism that's riddling America right now. Every Wednesday I'm gonna talk to people who see a path forward.

[Guest on Reasonably Optimistic]

It does seem to me that there is some awakening of a desire to act together to solve problems where they are.

[Tommy Vietor]

No? I am a believer in America and that's worth fighting for.

[Megan McCardell]

Join me Wednesdays on YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.