The Daily Beast Podcast

Ready to reach your goals? Visit https://hims.com/DAILYBEAST to get a personalized, affordable plan that gets you. #ad Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles summarize a confounding week in Trumpworld with a blunt reality: no one, not even Donald Trump, seems to know what’s happening as a volatile war disrupts global markets and threatens the Strait of Hormuz. Wolff describes Trump ricocheting between declaring victory and hinting at escalation, while figures like JD Vance, Marco Rubio, and Jared Kushner struggle to keep up with a shifting, unclear strategy. As midterms approach, Trump leans on rising markets even as his coalition fractures, clashing with the Pope and drawing pushback from voices like Tucker Carlson. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ready to reach your goals? Visit https://hims.com/BEAST to get a personalized, affordable plan that gets you. #ad Joanna Coles welcomes back psychologist Dr. John Gartner as the conversation takes a chilling turn, with Dr. Gartner arguing that Donald Trump has crossed from grandiosity into full-blown psychosis, pointing to a barrage of erratic late-night posts—including AI images portraying himself as Jesus—as evidence of a manic, delusional spiral unfolding in real time. Dr. Gartner lays out a stark clinical case, connecting sleep disruption, cognitive decline, and escalating “messianic” fantasies to dangerous decision-making on the global stage, from impulsive foreign policy moves to a growing appetite for conflict. What emerges is a portrait of a leader increasingly detached from reality, alienating his own base while doubling down on grandiose claims, as insiders scramble, critics demand cognitive testing, and the stakes climb toward something far more consequential than political controversy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In their 100th episode Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles mark the milestone by diving into a presidency they describe as veering into chaos—where a muddled, potentially deepening war meets wildly inconsistent messaging, and figures like Pete Hegseth are pushed out front to sell narratives that don’t match reality. They unpack how Donald Trump’s solo decision-making has led to a costly, open-ended conflict now entangled in the Strait of Hormuz, while back in Washington RFK Jr.’s anti-vax messaging threatens to weigh Republicans down even further. Layered on top: a surreal showdown with the Pope, allies quietly breaking ranks, and Trump fixating on legacy projects as pressure mounts from every direction. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Get 15% off OneSkin with the code BEAST at https://www.oneskin.co/BEAST #oneskinpod Isabel Vincent joins Joanna Coles to unpack her new book on Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a portrait drawn from his own secret diaries, which were acquired by his late wife Mary Richardson Kennedy during their brutal divorce. What emerges is a man at war with himself: driven by legacy, consumed by guilt, and propelled by appetites—for power, for women, for redemption—that he can’t seem to control. Vincent traces the arc from grief-stricken Kennedy heir to anti-vaccine crusader and unlikely political force, revealing the family trauma, addiction, and relentless ambition that shaped him. Along the way, they unpack the myth and machinery of the Kennedy dynasty and the unsettling question at its heart: How is it that a man who once wrote of humility, service, and God now finds himself wielding influence over the health of millions? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan at https://incogni.com/beast Michael Wolff joins Joanna Coles to confront the question Washington, and now even the New York Times, is no longer avoiding: What happens when the president’s behavior crosses from chaotic into something far more alarming? As Trump’s erratic outbursts accelerate, from late-night social media rants to bizarre public encounters and escalating threats tied to a war he can’t control, Wolff argues the guardrails may already be gone. Against the backdrop of a faltering economy, a dangerous crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, and mounting pressure ahead of the midterms, Wolff frames what he sees as the defining story right now: The slow eclipse of Trump, and a far more urgent question, whether anyone has the power to act before it’s too late. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Go to https://zbiotics.com/DAILYBEAST and use DAILYBEAST at checkout for 15% off any first time orders of ZBiotics probiotics. David Rothkopf, the Daily Beast's Chief Global Affairs Correspondent, joins Joanna Coles to explain why he is convinced history will judge Donald Trump as its most powerful, and biggest, idiot. In a wide-ranging and high-energy conversation, Rothkopf and Coles unpack Trump’s escalating clashes—from the Vatican to Iran—alongside the surreal spectacle of his self-styled “deity” posts and the global consequences of his decision-making. They also dive into the political fallout at home and abroad, including Viktor Orbán’s stunning defeat and what it signals for the future of right-wing populism. It’s a sharp, provocative look at power, instability, and the increasingly bizarre reality shaping global politics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

INCOGNI Deal: To get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan, go to https://incogni.com/beast #ad Mary Trump returns to the podcast to deliver a blistering psychological and political analysis of her Uncle Donald as fresh controversies swirl around Melania Trump’s eyebrow-raising Epstein statement, deepening fractures within the MAGA movement, and escalating global tensions. Drawing on her expertise as a clinical psychologist and her firsthand knowledge of the Trump family, Mary dissects Melania’s calculated messaging, questions Donald Trump’s cognitive fitness amid echoes of familial dementia, and warns of the dangers posed by a president under mounting pressure and losing control. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles dive deep into the mystery behind Melania Trump’s stunning public statement and the explosive theories it has unleashed. From a high-stakes anti-SLAPP lawsuit and whispers of Epstein-era connections to a branding blitz, geopolitical intrigue, and speculation of a calculated move against her own husband, Wolff dissects the legal battles, power plays, and personal tensions driving the drama. As conspiracies swirl the episode exposes the fragile intersection of politics, marriage, and media, revealing how one unexpected speech has reignited scandal, shaken the White House narrative, and forced the world to scrutinize what may lie beneath the carefully constructed Melania mystique. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jennifer Welch, co-host of the hit I’ve Had It podcast, joins Joanna Coles to dissect Melania Trump’s bombshell Epstein statement, sparking a blistering conversation that spirals from political hypocrisy and MAGA infighting to war tensions with Iran and the perilous stakes surrounding the Strait of Hormuz. With unfiltered candor, Welch unpacks conspiracy theories, culture wars, and the power struggles roiling Trumpworld, while exposing the strange alliances, simmering scandals, and high-stakes maneuvering shaping America’s future. From explosive revelations and eyebrow-raising rumors to sharp insights into the forces driving today’s chaos, this electrifying episode pulls back the curtain on a political drama that grows more shocking by the minute. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at https://shopify.com/dailybeast with promo code dailybeast #ad Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles unpack how Trump’s bluster toward Iran—threatening to “destroy a civilization”—collapsed into a rushed two-week ceasefire that insiders say effectively handed leverage to Tehran, especially over the Strait of Hormuz. As tankers stall and global markets wobble, the episode reveals a White House in panic mode: JD Vance, Marco Rubio, and others are scrambling to distance themselves from a war gone wrong, leaking, positioning, and “plotting” to protect their own futures as the political fallout accelerates. With Iran tightening its grip on global shipping, Trump boxed into a corner he can’t escalate out of, and his inner circle quietly preparing escape routes, Wolff and Coles map the infighting, blame-shifting, and raw survival instincts driving a presidency at what they argue is its most dangerous breaking point. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Joanna Coles welcomes back journalist Anand Giridharadas as they dissect Donald Trump’s incendiary rhetoric on Iran and what it reveals about power, language, and intent, before diving into what Giridharadas calls the most overlooked thread in the Jeffrey Epstein files: a disturbing email exchange that lays bare how elite institutions like Harvard and MIT enabled a system of influence built on money, access, and intellectual flattery, exposing a hidden network of “kept scholars,” transactional relationships, and quiet moral compromise where Epstein’s behavior was widely understood, carefully rationalized, and ultimately absorbed into the machinery of power. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Go to https://zbiotics.com/BEAST and use BEAST at checkout for 15% off any first time orders of ZBiotics probiotics. ZBiotics is backed with a 100% money back guarantee. Michael Wolff joins Joanna Coles as Donald Trump escalates his most dangerous bluff yet, threatening destruction on a scale not seen since World War II while cornered by a war he promised never to start. The threats grow louder as the options shrink: Iran tightens its grip on the Strait of Hormuz, global oil jitters mount, and the “no forever wars” president finds himself trapped by the war he started. Wolff argues the chaos is compounded by a shrinking circle of loyalists stripped of agency, a jittery JD Vance being quietly positioned to absorb blame, and a MAGA world already bracing for the political fallout. Wolff suggests this is most likely the beginning of his end: A president escalating because he’s cornered and a split base calling for mutiny. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Try QUO for free and get 20% off your first 6 months at https://www.quo.com/BEAST In this explosive episode of The Daily Beast Podcast, host Joanna Coles sits down with David Rothkopf to unpack the mounting chaos surrounding Donald Trump—from inflammatory Easter posts and escalating tensions with Iran to growing fractures within the Republican Party and fears of institutional breakdown in Washington. As Trump lashes out at the Supreme Court, faces sinking poll numbers, and contends with internal dissent from Capitol Hill to the Pentagon, the conversation explores whether his leadership is entering a dangerous endgame. With sharp analysis on global ripple effects, military unrest, and the legal threats closing in, Coles and Rothkopf deliver a gripping, high-stakes look at a presidency under pressure and a political moment that feels increasingly unpredictable—and unprecedented. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Joanna Coles speaks with models and activists Carré Otis and Stacey Williams as they rip the glamour off the fashion industry and expose a system they say functioned as a pipeline for exploitation, coercion, and trafficking—targeting teenage girls with promises of fame while trapping them in debt, silence, and fear. From midnight “fittings” and retaliatory blacklisting to alleged links with powerful figures like Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump, the conversation traces how agencies, photographers, and insiders allegedly operated with impunity for decades. Otis details being trafficked and abused as a minor, while Williams recounts the career cost of refusing advances—and the industry-wide normalization that kept it all hidden in plain sight. Now, with legislative momentum, the Model Alliance pushing reforms, and lawmakers like Ro Khanna demanding oversight, the episode zeroes in on a single question: what happens when one of fashion’s most protected systems is finally forced into the light. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

To get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan, go tohttps://incogni.com/beast #ad Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles take you inside Trump’s White House where humiliation isn’t the exception but the operating system, as cabinet officials are discarded in real time and loyalty becomes a one-way transaction that always ends the same way. From Pam Bondi’s abrupt public takedown to Kristi Noem’s surreal orbit and Pete Hegseth’s escalating turmoil at the Pentagon, the episode tracks a pattern Wolff insists is inevitable: everyone gets used, exposed, and ultimately blamed. As the chaos spills into global stakes with the Strait of Hormuz emerging as the true battleground of a widening conflict, and even the Supreme Court becomes another pressure point in Trump’s world, Wolff and Coles connect the personal, political, and psychological threads driving it all—laying out a system where power, fear, and desperation collide, and where the next downfall is always just one decision away. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Joanna Coles and Daily Beast executive editor Hugh Dougherty dissect what they call the most chaotic and politically damaging week yet for Donald Trump’s second administration—an unraveling marked by a humiliating Supreme Court showdown over birthright citizenship and a presidency increasingly defined by spectacle over strategy. From a stunned courtroom exit and a judge halting Trump’s vanity White House ballroom, to the abrupt firing of Pam Bondi, Coles and Dougherty trace a pattern of erratic decision-making and institutional strain. Layered on top: a bizarre Homeland Security scandal with national security implications, allies behaving like caricatures, and a White House struggling to project control as oil prices spike and global tensions rise. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles react to the shock firing of Pam Bondi, signaling a new purge cycle inside Donald Trump’s unraveling inner circle—with one high-profile name already on the chopping block next. As Trump endures a brutal week marked by a faltering Iran narrative, a visibly strained Oval Office address, and a humiliating Supreme Court appearance that ended in a storm-out, the hosts trace a presidency slipping into chaos mode. Behind the scenes, weakened guardrails and rising paranoia are fueling a familiar pattern: blame, purge, repeat. Layered on top is the surreal and damaging Byron Noem scandal, adding fresh questions about judgment, vulnerability, and dysfunction at the highest levels. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Joanna Coles sits down with leadership expert Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and co-author Steven Tian as their book, Trump’s Ten Commandments, dissects Donald Trump not as a politician, but as a pattern—revealing the repeatable tactics behind his rise, survival, and power plays. From a jaw-dropping personal story that begins with a brutal critique of The Apprentice and ends with Trump offering Sonnenfeld the presidency of Trump University, to a breakdown of how he flips enemies into loyalists, weaponizes lawsuits, and thrives on chaos, this conversation pulls back the curtain on the mechanics of influence. The authors map out Trump’s central tenets of leadership—from divide-and-conquer tactics to relentless distraction campaigns—arguing that his real power lies in instinct, not ideology. As tensions escalate globally and questions swirl around strategy, alliances, and control, the episode delivers a blunt, insider blueprint for understanding—and countering—the most unconventional leadership style in modern politics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles dissect the glossy Trump Presidential Library video that looks more like a luxury theme park than a legacy project. Wolff recounts a revealing private dinner with Trump, where even mentioning a “library” triggered visible discomfort—until Wolff floated the idea of a Trump theme park, a moment he now suspects helped shape the spectacle Eric Trump is promoting. They then zero in on a single, volatile question: what happens when Donald Trump declares victory in Iran while leaving a critical global oil chokepoint effectively in enemy hands. As the war drags into uncertainty, Wolff argues Trump is cornered between escalation and retreat, with neither offering a clean outcome, while Coles tracks the ripple effects inside a MAGA movement beginning to fracture under pressure. The episode exposes a White House operating in bursts of instinct rather than strategy, with key figures disappearing from view and others maneuvering for what comes next. It then pivots to Wolff’s latest Jeffrey Epstein installment, revealing a ruthless competition between Epstein and Trump for proximity to power involving Bill Clinton, and a deeper look at how media, money, and ego fueled Epstein’s rise. The result is a portrait of influence colliding with consequence at a moment when the stakes are no longer abstract. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

David Rothkopf and Joanna Coles unpack a week of escalating global tension and political chaos, from mass protests at home to the very real prospect of U.S. troops on the ground in Iran, as insiders warn the situation could spiral fast. Rothkopf delivers a blistering assessment of Trump’s leadership style—driven by perception over strategy—while Coles presses on the risks of surrounding power with inexperience and ego. Together, they connect the dots between history, military reality, and the dangerous decisions unfolding in real time, exposing why threats alone rarely work and how this moment could reshape America’s role on the world stage. It’s a sharp, darkly funny, and deeply sobering conversation that builds toward a chilling conclusion about what may come next. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices