The Daily Beast Podcast

David Rothkopf and Joanna Coles preview the midterm elections with a look at the races that could reshape the Democratic Party, from Abdul El-Sayed’s battle with Mike Rogers in Michigan to James Talarico’s challenge to Ken Paxton in Texas, while unpacking the fallout from Haley Stevens’ stunning decision to back a Republican. They also examine the issues breaking through with voters, including health care, corruption, immigration, affordability and the war, and what a Democratic surge could mean for the 2028 presidential race. Plus, they get into Elon Musk’s extraordinary influence on the election, the growing backlash against tech billionaires, Trump’s increasingly erratic behavior, his fixation on the White House renovation and the disturbing reports about his thinking on nuclear weapons. As election night approaches, Rothkopf and Coles weigh the final Senate polls and consider whether Trump is beginning to realize that his grip on power may be slipping.

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Ben Meiselas, co-founder of MeidasTouch, joins Joanna Coles to explain why he thinks Trump and MAGA are headed for a crushing midterm defeat. Watching Trump’s full rallies, Meiselas says, reveals an erratic closing message that short news clips fail to capture. He points to Democratic gains in special elections, then tells the story of how a family group chat with his brothers Brett and Jordi grew into an independent media network. Drawing on their new book, WTF America, Meiselas traces the rise of right-wing media from Roger Ailes to today’s online disinformation campaigns and argues that winning an election alone will not undo their influence. He lays out what he wants Americans to do after the votes are counted.

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Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles head into the midterms with a look at the fights gathering around Donald Trump. Wolff shares an update on his legal battle with Melania Trump, then the hosts turn to former Trump lawyer Alina Habba’s reported $50 million deal and her clash with Trump over money and influence. Wolff argues that the dispute could be an early sign of a wider scramble among people close to the president. They also size up vulnerable MAGA candidates, ask whether falling Fox News ratings signal trouble for Trump and consider what Tuesday’s results could mean for his grip on the Republican Party.

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Joanna Coles and Hugh Dougherty break down a chaotic final stretch of Donald Trump’s midterm campaign, as hecklers hijack his rallies and even some of his biggest supporters turn against him. From Democrats gaining ground in deep-red states to Trump losing Joe Rogan and JD Vance’s increasingly desperate attempts to dodge questions about the economy, the cracks in MAGA are becoming harder to ignore. With Election Night approaching, Joanna and Hugh examine whether Trump’s political machine is heading for a major reckoning.

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Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles look inside a White House bracing for the midterms, where losing the House may be expected but losing the Senate could put nearly everyone around Trump in danger. Wolff describes how election night could unfold inside the residence, why Susie Wiles and Attorney General Todd Blanche may be especially exposed and why Natalie Harp appears to be the one aide whose job is safe. Then he and Coles make their calls on eight Senate races, including the strange contest in Alaska where two men named Dan Sullivan are on the ballot. They also consider whom Trump would blame for a defeat and why his fixation on other people’s looks reveals so much about how he sees himself.

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Jennifer Welch, author of the new book Not Today, Fascists, returns to the Daily Beast Podcast to join Joanna Coles for a fiery look at the midterms. Fresh from a nationwide book tour, Welch says the voters she’s met are furious with politicians and corporations that have enabled Trump—and have no appetite for business as usual. She takes apart Trump’s increasingly bizarre rallies, calls out the Republicans who keep standing by him and makes a bold prediction about control of Congress. Welch also explains why a Texas Senate race could strike a blow against Christian nationalism, how the Epstein files add to voters’ anger over corruption, and why Elon Musk’s campaign spending may backfire. As election day approaches, she argues that voters have a chance to deliver a verdict on Trump and the billionaires who have thrown their weight behind him.

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Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles debate whether Democrats can take the Senate as the midterms approach, with Wolff predicting a sweeping defeat for Trump and Coles warning that Republican money could still make the difference. They turn to a new House Judiciary Democrats’ report on Trump’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, including allegations about their ties to the modeling industry, and ask whether the story will finally affect voters. Wolff also discusses Princes and Thieves, a new book about Jared Kushner’s dealings with Persian Gulf leaders, and says its author contacted him after Kushner threatened legal action. From Elon Musk’s election spending to the money flowing through Trump’s family, they trace what a Democratic Congress might investigate.

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Read the House Judiciary Democrats' staff report here: https://democrats-judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/democrats-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2026-10.hjc-dems-staff-report-epstein-and-trump.pdf

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David Rothkopf joins Joanna Coles to expose Trump’s growing political crisis as corruption scandals, a disastrous war with Iran and a wave of global anti-authoritarian backlash threaten to blow up in his face. With the midterms looming, explosive allegations about Jared Kushner’s foreign money, a Trump family cash grab and a crumbling circle of international allies could spell trouble for the president. Plus, Melania’s latest controversy, Netanyahu’s uncertain future and why Trump’s election troubles could trigger a new wave of chaos in Washington.

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Anthony Scaramucci returns to the Daily Beast Podcast to tell Joanna Coles why he thinks Trump’s handling of Putin could finally turn Republicans against him. The former White House communications director says impeachment and removal are on the table if Democrats win the House, and explains why he believes Trump’s own party may be closer to breaking with him than it appears. Scaramucci also discusses his new book, All the Wrong Moves, tracing the economic decisions he says helped propel Trump to power and warning that the next president could follow Trump’s example of profiting from the office. When Joanna presses him on whether he might run himself, Scaramucci names the only Democrat he believes could beat Trump’s would-be successors.

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Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles look at the Republicans’ desperate final stretch before the midterms, starting with a campaign ad so cruel that even members of their own party are recoiling. Why are Donald Trump and JD Vance standing by Vivek Ramaswamy as his attack on Ohio rival Amy Acton backfires? Wolff explains what the uproar reveals about Trump’s faith in a tactic that has worked for him before, while a ballot fight in Alaska raises fresh questions about how far his administration will go to contest a loss. They also turn to Melania Trump’s claim of a humanitarian breakthrough in Ukraine as her husband moves closer to Vladimir Putin, the Republicans beginning to break with Trump over Russia and new allegations involving his former lawyer Alina Habba. #ad Ready to reach your goals? Visit https://hims.com/ith

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Joanna Coles and Hugh Dougherty expose the latest chaos swirling around Donald Trump’s White House, from Melania Trump’s stunning claim that she brokered a Ukraine ceasefire—and the potential Nobel ambitions and reality-TV motives behind it—to growing questions about the president’s health as his rallies shrink and protests grow. They also examine Elon Musk’s extraordinary power over Ukraine’s military communications, the millions he’s pouring into Republican midterm races, and a potentially explosive Justice Department investigation into Trump ally Corey Lewandowski. But the biggest bombshell may involve Jared Kushner: a new book alleges Russian hackers accessed his phone and uncovered a secret billion-dollar bank account tied to powerful Middle Eastern figures. Kushner vehemently denies the claims, but with fresh questions about money, foreign influence, and Trump’s inner circle, this scandal may only be getting started.

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In this special live show edition of Inside Trump's Head, Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles take the stage in Los Angeles to ask what Trump wants from the presidency and what he might do if Democrats win the midterms. Wolff shares what a source close to Trump told him about the president’s staggering financial ambitions, then explains why he believes money drives Trump’s fixation on Vladimir Putin. He and Coles consider how Trump could react to an election defeat, whether he might return to bombing Iran and why Wolff doubts JD Vance can inherit the MAGA movement. The audience brings questions of its own, prompting Wolff to discuss his legal fight with Melania Trump and the unusual place Natalie Harp holds in the president’s inner circle.

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Chrystia Freeland, former Deputy Prime Minister of Canada, speaks to Joanna Coles about what she learned negotiating face to face with Donald Trump and why she believes world leaders make a costly mistake when they give in to him. Trump called her “the killer,” then attacked her when Canada retaliated against his tariffs. Freeland explains how his personal charm can disarm an opponent, why Canada answered his tariffs dollar for dollar and how allies could use the same playbook now. She also weighs in on Mark Carney’s leadership, warns that Trump is siding with Vladimir Putin against Ukraine and argues that Elon Musk’s power over critical technology should alarm every democracy. Drawing on her years reporting from the Soviet Union and dealing with Trump from inside government, Freeland offers a blunt assessment of what America’s allies have learned about depending on the United States.

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Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles look ahead to the morning after the midterms and ask what happens if Donald Trump loses control of Congress. Wolff, who watched Trump’s inner circle confront him with the 2020 results, explains why he believes the president cannot accept a loss and how a defeat could become an excuse to blame Susie Wiles, Mike Johnson and Republicans who kept their distance from him. Coles presses Wolff on a closer, messier result: Could recounts and challenges leave the country in weeks of chaos? They also imagine who will be at Trump’s side as the returns come in, whether he could still surprise his opponents at the ballot box and why Wolff expects him to fight for the spotlight even if Democrats win.

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David Rothkopf joins Joanna Coles to sound the alarm on Donald Trump’s stunning betrayal of Ukraine and America’s decades-long fight against Russia. As Trump cozies up to Vladimir Putin, lifts sanctions and blames Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Rothkopf warns that the president is actively undermining U.S. security to advance Moscow’s interests. With the midterms looming, Trump’s poll numbers tanking and Democrats eyeing a historic wave, the pair examine the growing desperation inside the White House, the Russian ties surrounding Don Jr.’s lavish wedding and the alarming implications of Trump’s foreign policy. Plus, the Democrats mounting a serious challenge to Republican power, JD Vance’s brutal encounter with a grieving military widower, and why Putin’s global network of far-right allies poses a threat to democracy far beyond America’s borders.

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Terry Moran returns to the Daily Beast Podcast to tell Joanna Coles what he found on the ground in Maine and Iowa, where voters’ frustration could upend the midterms without giving Democrats an easy path to victory. He sizes up Susan Collins’ fight to keep her Senate seat, then explains why Trump’s increasingly coarse language may reveal more than a change in campaign style. The former ABC White House correspondent also delivers a blunt assessment of new press secretary Katie Zacharia’s first briefing and what her sudden appointment says about the operation around Trump. As questions swirl around chief of staff Susie Wiles, Moran draws on years of covering the White House to describe how the president’s habits shape everyone working for him. Finally, he turns to Ukraine and the decision he fears could change America’s place in the world.

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Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles go inside the chaos of Trump’s White House, where a disastrous press secretary debut, a sudden firing, and Susie Wiles’ uncertain future expose a West Wing running on ego, loyalty, and dysfunction. As Trump’s revolving door of female aides keeps spinning, Wolff explains why even his own chief of staff may be on borrowed time. Plus, Elon Musk is pouring another $300 million into the midterms, raising the stakes in a series of nail-biting Senate races and giving one billionaire extraordinary power over American democracy. With control of Congress hanging in the balance, Wolff and Coles examine the money, the power plays, and the political consequences that could reshape Trump’s presidency.

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Joanna Coles and Hugh Dougherty reveal the backstabbing, bruising rivalries and spectacular missteps tearing through Trump’s inner circle. As Susie Wiles fights to keep her footing and press secretary Katie Zacharia faces the music, Kristi Noem and Kimberly Guilfoyle bring fresh drama to an already chaotic Washington. With egos colliding and loyalty wearing thin, nobody in Trump’s orbit looks safe.

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Michael Wolff and Joanna Coles ask whether Susie Wiles is running out of time as Trump reportedly calls around to ask what people think of his chief of staff. Wolff explains why that question can be the kiss of death inside Trump’s White House and predicts what could happen after the midterms. They also take on new press secretary Katie Zacharia’s rocky debut and the questions surrounding her claims to be a lawyer. Then Wolff offers a theory about Kimberly Guilfoyle’s abrupt exit as ambassador, her split from Don Jr. and what she might do next. The conversation turns to Elon Musk, Ukraine’s access to Starlink and Trump’s pursuit of a deal with Putin, before Wolff makes his case for what Trump wants from the world’s richest and most powerful men.

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Eric Deters reveals to Joanna Coles how his friendship with Kimberly Guilfoyle unraveled after, he says, she asked him for $100,000 to pay an American Express bill while awaiting confirmation as ambassador to Greece. The longtime Trump supporter describes the texts he released, the moment Guilfoyle warned that the dispute could cost her the job and an awkward day he spent with her and Don Jr. as their relationship was falling apart. Deters also explains why he turned to Trump’s inner circle for help on behalf of hundreds of former patients who allege they received unnecessary spine surgeries. Now he says he plans to sue Guilfoyle, seek Don Jr.’s testimony and take his account to Congress.

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