BONUS: Alex Wagner Tonight with Rachel Maddow and Lawrence O'Donnell

In a meticulous unraveling of a high-profile lawsuit, Michael Barbaro of The Daily podcast, alongside Jonah E. Bromwich, examines former President Donald Trump's legal entanglement in New York City. The detailed discussion cuts through the complexities of the civil case charging Trump with the inflation of assets to secure favorable financial deals. As they probe into the roots of the legal charges sparked by Michael Cohen's congressional bombshells, listeners get a gritty look at the groundwork of a lawsuit that could have sweeping ramifications for the Trump family.

The episode delves deep into the pre-trial escalations, including Judge Arthur Engoron's sharp critique of Trump's financial disclosures and the testimonies of Trump's sons—Donald Jr. and Eric—that seem to reveal a casual disdain for the severe nature of their situation. With Letitia James at the front of this legal pursuit, we witness Donald Trump's own tempestuous behavior in court, offering a glimpse into the potential cracks in his defense facade. As The Daily journeys through these stormy legal waters, it also casts an eye on the broader political landscape—observing shifts in U.S. domestic politics and international commentary by Benjamin Netanyahu on Israeli security, framing this epic saga within a much larger context of global relevance.

In the pulse-racing episode "Of Presidents & Kings" from Rachel Maddow Presents: Déjà News, law experts Andrew Weissman and Mary McCord, alongside Trevor Morrison, unpack the complex web of legal issues besetting former President Donald Trump. Their robust discussion traverses from the constitutional hurdles of his potential presidential run to intense civil fraud litigations related to his business dealings in New York, laying the groundwork for what could be a seismic shift in legal precedents concerning former presidents.

The episode dives deep into the esoteric waters of legal principles, the invocation of the Fifth Amendment in civil cases, and the intricate balance between witness credibility, defendant rights, and trial fairness. Each speaker brings their seasoned expertise to the fore, determining the credibility of implementing gag orders to preserve the sanctity of the court process and the convolution surrounding presidential immunity in the aftermath of the January 6th insurrection. With the Supreme Court's role looming large and the stakes running high, this discussion is a treasure trove for those engrossed in legal strategy and the resolute quest for accountability at the highest echelons of power.

According to Gen. H.R. McMaster, the United States views the world through a self-centered lens, assuming that its policy decisions are the main driving force behind global events. Because of this distorted perspective, the US has lost influence on the global stage at a time when authoritarian aggression is on the rise. In Battlegrounds, McMaster, who was US national security adviser in 2017-18, contends that American leaders must learn to see the world through the eyes of the US's adversaries in order to defend against foreign threats and compete in the modern global landscape.

In this guide, we’ll explore McMaster’s criticism of the assumptions driving US foreign policy, his assessment of the threats America faces, and the steps he believes the US must take. We’ll compare McMaster’s views with those of other experts on diplomacy, while placing his assessments in their larger context and updating some of his information based on events since the book’s publication.

In Blowout, journalist and MSNBC commentator Rachel Maddow aims to expose the corruption and exploitation underlying the oil and gas industry. Pointing the finger primarily at Russian politicians like Vladimir Putin and American energy magnates like former ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson, Maddow contends that over the past 40 years, the industry has wreaked havoc on the environment, developing economies in the third world, and international relations, especially in Eastern Europe. Ultimately, she argues that only full transparency and strict environmental regulation can protect the planet from devastating accidents and corporate greed.

In this guide, we’ll discuss her evidence for how a handful of companies and politicians have exploited oil and gas reserves worldwide, both for profit and to serve dangerous political ends. We’ll also elaborate on how oil and gas have damaged the environment (perhaps permanently), how American energy policy continued to evolve under the Trump and Biden presidencies, and how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 further destabilized the international energy market.