The Briefing with Jen Psaki

October 13, 2026 - Jen Psaki reacts to Katie Zacharia's first day as Donald Trump's press secretary, the mockery she made of the press briefing, and Donald Trump's efforts to normalize a compliant press.
Amb. Norm Eisen, executive chair of Democracy Defenders Fund, and Terry Moran, former senior national correspondent for ABC News discuss Zacharia's first day and Trump's war on the press.
Speaker Mike Johnson has a reason to gaslight his supporters about terrible polling data, but many Americans don't need a political bias to be skeptical of poll numbers. Could the consistent good news Democrats are seeing from the polls be true, or is there something poll watchers are overlooking? David Plouffe, former Obama campaign manager, joins to discuss.
Bill Hill, independent candidate for Congress from Alaska, talks with Jen about his race and the political climate that has Donald Trump stumping desperately in a state he won just two years ago.



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Everything is bigger in Texas, including the politics. With a few weeks left until the midterms, MS NOW anchors and fans gathered in Texas for a day of conversation and community. Now, we’re bringing the fun to you directly. Listen to a compilation special from Together In Texas: We the People 2026, featuring talks with top newsmakers and some of your favorite hosts, such as Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O’Donnell, Jen Psaki, and Chris Hayes. This is part two of the special.

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Everything is bigger in Texas, including the politics. With a few weeks left until the midterms, MS NOW anchors and fans gathered in Texas for a day of conversation and community. Now, we’re bringing the fun to you directly. Listen to a compilation special from Together In Texas: We the People 2026, featuring talks with top newsmakers and some of your favorite hosts, such as Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O’Donnell, Jen Psaki, and Chris Hayes. This is part one of the special.

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October 9, 2026 - Jen Psaki reports on Donald Trump giving Russian President Vladimir Putin another big boost by dropping sanctions to allow Russia to move more diesel fuel to market and suggested the U.S. would be among the buyers. Trump even thanked Putin even though the diesel release is not expected to be enough to change global diesel prices, but will yield billions for Russia to spend on its war against ostensible U.S. ally, Ukraine. Brett McGurk, former White House coordinator for the Middle East, joins to discuss.
Jen Psaki looks at newly obtained video of an ICE shooting in New York City and compares the information we can see so far to the official explanation of the shooting from the Department of Homeland Security. John Sandweg, former acting director of ICE under President Barack Obama joins to discuss.
Democratic candidate for governor of Ohio, Amy Acton, talks with Jen Psaki about J.D. Vance's weird offer to meet her at a bar.
DNC Chair Ken Martin talks with Jen about the lawsuit to make Donald Trump pay for his own propaganda ads instead of using taxpayer money.

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October 8, 2026 - Jen Psaki explains that while a popular president may be able to carry a lackluster candidate with the help of local partisanship, the combination of Donald Trump's abysmal public approval and deeply flawed Republican candidates appears to not only be tipping races toward Democrats, but also changing the minds of voters who might have previously voted Republican by reflex.
Democratic candidate for Senate from Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed, fresh from his debate with Mike Rogers, talks with Jen Psaki about how little Republicans have to run on when they are complicit and compliant with Donald Trump's failures and unpopular policies.
Senator Jon Ossoff, having also just finished a debate, talks with Jen Psaki about the character of his opponent, Mike Collins, and the urgent stakes of this year's midterm elections.



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