Seasons & episodes
S30 · E49April 14, 2025 - Ramy Youssef 2025-04-14 · 37 min
Jon Stewart measures Trump's weight on the authoritarian scale. Between the president's refusal to correct the wrongful deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to his incompetence on a variety of issues, Donald's dictatorship isn't looking very healthy. Award-winning actor and comedian, Ramy Youssef joins Jon Stewart to talk about the new animated series he co-created called "#1 Happy Family USA" and how the series, which follows a Muslim family trying to navigate post-9/11 America, resonates in Trump's second term. They also discuss his favorite parts about making an animated show, the family members who inspire some of the characters, and how the word "Islamaphobia" kind of lets Islamaphobes off the hook.
S30 · E50April 15, 2025 - Nimesh Patel 2025-04-15 · 28 min
Ronny Chieng tackles the Trump administration shirking responsibility for a Maryland father's mistaken deportation to El Salvador, their aggressive media tirade invoking Osama Bin Laden, and Harvard's defiance of Donald Trump. Also, Josh Johnson explains how Trump's power changes from Harvard to El Salvador. Trump promised that under his presidency, the rest of the world would fear and respect America "like never before". Desi Lydic takes a look at how other countries are responding to his massive trade war with a little less "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" and a little more "F-U". Emmy-nominated writer and comedian Nimesh Patel sits down with Ronny Chieng to discuss his upcoming stand-up tour. They chat about the first time they met in the New York comedy scene, the importance of crashing out on stage, why his daughter is "the biggest tariff" he's encountered thus far, and the well-known Indians of MAGA.
S30 · E51April 16, 2025 - Sen. Tammy Duckworth 2025-04-16 · 36 min
Ronny Chieng breaks down how JD Vance's comments calling Chinese people "peasants" have escalated both the shade war and the trade war with China, impacting American industries from automakers to Hollywood. Plus, Troy Iwata chimes in on the one thriving business of the trade war: TikTok luxury knockoffs. Michael Kosta checks in with Canadians to see how they feel about Donald Trump's aims to make them America's 51st state, including one ex-pat who immigrated to Canada when Trump first became president and a gun-loving member of Canada's silent MAGA minority. Iraq War veteran and Democratic Senator from Illinois Tammy Duckworth sits down with Ronny Chieng to discuss the work she is doing in Congress to improve care for veterans and how the Trump administration is setting back that progress by taking jobs away from thousands of veterans and making DOGE cuts to life-saving Veterans' Affairs programs.
S30 · E52April 17, 2025 - Nancy Kwan 2025-04-17 · 34 min
Ronny Chieng covers Elon Musk's mission to have babies over DM, Pete Hegseth's Air Force diversity purge, RFK Jr.'s anti-vaccine coded attack on autism, and proof he has never seen "Love on the Spectrum." Michael Kosta & Ronny Chieng go head to head over Rory McIlroy's Masters Tournament takeover, brand-new Barbie Lebron James, Bryce Harper's on-field gender reveal, and Baltimore's oyster rebrand. "There will always be political clashes, that's what makes the world interesting." Hollywood icon Nancy Kwan sits down with Ronny Chieng to discuss her trailblazing career and new book, "The World of Nancy Kwan: A Memoir by Hollywood's Asian Superstar." They talk about an accidental screen test that brought her to Hollywood, a friendship with Bruce Lee that began in Hong Kong, and Kwan offers her perspective on what the West can learn from the East.
S30 · E53April 28, 2025 - Chris Hughes 2025-04-28 · 41 min
Jon Stewart takes a look at Trump's first 100 days: from plummeting approval ratings to unfulfilled promises on immigration, health, and the economy, to destroying his reputation as a shrewd negotiator with China and Ukraine. Chris Hughes, an economist and the author of "Marketcrafters," sits down with Jon Stewart to unpack the economy's fall under Trump and how understanding how politicians have shaped markets to work better could be its solution. They discuss how both parties have used marketcrafting to benefit Americans, whether the current economy requires an intervention, the need for institutions to help marketcrafting directly affect people over corporations, and his belief in a positive agenda for the future. Plus, as a co-founder of Facebook, Hughes weighs in on the company's involvement with the Trump administration.
S30 · E54April 29, 2025 - Katherine Maher 2025-04-29 · 27 min
On Trump's official second 100th day in office, Jordan Klepper delves into his lack of follow-through, including the division he's sown, his back-and-forth on tariffs and firings, and taunting Canada until they elected a liberal prime minister. Trump let Elon Musk take a chainsaw to the federal workforce in order to save taxpayers money, but after hearing from some of the government employees who lost their jobs, Desi Lydic is starting to think the real waste, fraud, and abuse was living inside DOGE this whole time. "We know that the existence of local news, and public radio in particular, contributes to lower rates of polarization, higher rates of civic engagement, and higher rates of civic trust." NPR CEO Katherine Maher joins Jordan Klepper to stress the important functions of public media that are under threat from the Trump administration, especially educational children's programming and local reporting in rural areas where public radio is often the only source for local news.
S30 · E55April 30, 2025 - Jon Meacham 2025-04-30 · 37 min
Desi Lydic covers Trump's 100th day celebrations: inviting ABC News into the White House to misunderstand the Declaration of Independence, grooving to his famous "YMCA" dance, and putting the economy on financial Ozempic. From the dark halls of Santa Monica to the caves of the Trump administration, Stephen Miller has been working in the shadows as the White House Chief of Staff. From influencing election denial to mass deportations, can Stephen Miller's vampiric bite kill American democracy? "If we get things right just enough of the time… that's what democracy is, because it's the fullest expression of all of us." Pulitzer Prize-winning presidential biographer Jon Meacham joins Desi Lydic to discuss the impact of Trump's presidency on democracy.
S30 · E56May 1, 2025 - Elissa Slotkin 2025-05-01 · 29 min
Michael Kosta continues TDS coverage of Trump's 100th day in office with reports from NewsNation's town hall, where the president racially slighted Stephen A. Smith, as well as details on Mike Waltz's exit and subsequent United Nations promotion, and Pam Bondi's ridiculous claims about fentanyl deaths. With anxiety-inducing news cycles and Trump Derangement Syndrome on the rise, it's easy to feel helpless with the current administration. But in these times of despair and uncertainty, the Hang In There poster will take all your Trump-related anxieties away! The perfect comforting distraction in these disturbing political times. "We don't have the right to tune out when previous generations fought and fought and fought." Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin, the youngest Democratic female serving in the U.S. Senate, joins Michael Kosta to share her perspective on the current state of national security and the Democratic agenda moving forward.
S30 · E57May 5, 2025 - Rutger Bregman 2025-05-05 · 41 min
Jon Stewart sorts Trump's latest barrage of bullshit into the "OK" and "NOT OK" piles, including telling kids to cut down on dolls and pencils, calling for Alcatraz to reopen, posting AI-generated images of himself as the Pope, and shrugging off the Constitution. Historian and best-selling author Rutger Bregman joins Jon Stewart to unpack his latest book, "Moral Ambition", which is a call to action for people, especially those with education and privilege, to devote their talent and resources to careers and causes that make the world a better place. He describes how the political left has often made the mistake of placing moral purity above political relevance, and what they can learn from conservatives about building small movements into a larger, results-oriented coalition.
S30 · E58May 6, 2025 - Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach & Amanda Doyle 2025-05-06 · 33 min
Desi Lydic recaps Trump's oblivious reaction to getting friend-zoned by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and prepares for a summer of shitty air travel as the Real ID deadline approaches and Newark Airport spirals into more chaos. Ronny Chieng breaks down how AI chatbot romances aren't as stupid as you might guess; they're stupid in some surprising ways, too. "This is not a time for self-help but for collective wisdom, where we learn from each other". "We Can Do Hard Things" podcast hosts Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach, and Amanda Doyle sit down with Desi Lydic to discuss their new guidebook "We Can Do Hard Things: Answers to Life's 20 Questions". They share the experience of living life "off the menu" by deviating from regulated paths, cultivating an ordinary life at home to make room for extraordinary moments, sharing a breast cancer diagnosis to stop gatekeeping information on women's bodies, and finding a lane of activism to shift our perspective in grim political times.
S30 · E59May 7, 2025 - John Green 2025-05-07 · 27 min
Desi Lydic dives into Trump's ominous "big announcement," the president renames the Persian Gulf, another US fighter jet falls off an aircraft carrier, and kids swap tariff-priced Barbies for the promise of economic freedom. In honor of the conclave, Lewis Black sounds off on the Vatican's mysterious process to select a new pope, including this year's parlay options, the surprising number of cardinals taking lessons from the Oscar-nominated "Conclave" film, and the merch being sold to incompetent tourists. "This is the middle of the story, not the end of the story, and it falls on us to write a better end." John Green, an award-winning author and global healthcare reform advocate, sits down with Desi Lydic to discuss his No. 1 New York Times bestseller, "Everything Is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection."
S30 · E60May 8, 2025 - Michelle Buteau 2025-05-08 · 29 min
Desi Lydic has the latest from the Vatican after the announcement of the first American pope, Leo XIV, including the world's reaction to a Chicago-style pope and Fox News immediately yelling at him to speak English. Plus, Michael Kosta celebrates America's conclave win. Following Trump's ban on transgender people in the military, Jordan Klepper met with a panel of esteemed service members to discuss the president's rejection of their qualifications, which stand in stark contrast to Trump's own bone spur excuses. "It is not only the New York that I live in, but it's also the America that I want to live in." Comedian, writer, and actor Michelle Buteau sits down with Desi Lydic to share how the Netflix series that she created and stars in, "Survival of the Thickest," began as a book of essays written just after her twins were born.
S30 · E61May 12, 2025 - Gen. Stanley McChrystal 2025-05-12 · 39 min
After Trump teased an upcoming "big announcement" last week, Jon Stewart contemplates what news Americans are supposed to be so psyched for: the possible suspension of due process, Trump's appointment of Fox News host Jeanine Pirro as D.C. district attorney, Qatar's $400 million luxury jet "gift" for Trump, or lower prices on the "fat shot drug"? "Our character is the essential identity of us as people and us as a nation, and we've let it erode." Retired four-star general who served 34 years in the U.S. Army, General Stanley McChrystal, sits down with Jon Stewart to discuss his book "On Character: Choices that Define a Life." They talk about leading a national conversation on character, employing empathy in war to negotiate with ideological warriors and mercenaries, what upset him most about Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth's Signal chat leak, and how his wife taught him to live "with no use for the rear view mirror."
S30 · E62May 13, 2025 - Matt Wolf 2025-05-13 · 27 min
Jordan Klepper breaks down day one of Saudi Arabia's effort to buy Trump's affection: Arabian horses, a McDonald's food truck, some business deals, and a mid-meeting nap. Plus, Michael Kosta is so taken by the Saudis' lavish welcome he almost forgets about their oppression and orchestration of 9/11. Trump's 2024 campaign blitz through right-wing podcasters and influencers bought him a big win among young male voters, so Jordan Klepper sat down with liberal darling and Twitch streamer Hasan Piker to better understand how the Left can find a bridge into bro culture, and how easily men are sucked into the manosphere by social media algorithms. Award-winning filmmaker Matt Wolf sits down with Jordan Klepper to discuss his new two-part HBO documentary, "Pee-Wee as Himself," which tells the story of the late comedian Paul Reubens in his own words.
S30 · E63May 14, 2025 - Colum McCann 2025-05-14 · 28 min
Jordan Klepper covers Trump's lavish welcome in Qatar and lifting of Syrian sanctions, while RFK Jr. lands himself in muddy waters over swimming in a contaminated creek. Plus, Grace Kuhlenschmidt and Troy Iwata fight over investigating Trump's $400 million jet vs. the sewage-tainted Rock Creek. The Trump administration is full of corruption, bigotry, and incompetence, but there's one thing about them that Leslie Jones hates the most: They're fucking GOOFY! She breaks down how Elon's dad jokes, RFK Jr.'s sewage-swimming, and everything about JD Vance are only Making America Goofy Asses. Colum McCann, National Book Award-winning author, sits down with Jordan Klepper to discuss his latest novel, "Twist", which follows the people who fix the underwater cables that carry the world's digital information at the extreme depths of the ocean.
S30 · E64May 15, 2025 - Rep. Jake Auchincloss 2025-05-15 · 30 min
Jordan Klepper recaps Trump's visit to the United Arab Emirates, where he was greeted by a lackluster hair dance ceremony, serenaded a Qatari military base with Lee Greenwood, and twisted discussions about drones into a ramble about Sean Duffy and Pete Buttigieg's bicycle. Plus, as his Middle Eastern tour comes to an end, Josh Johnson analyzes whether the president accomplished anything. Ronny Chieng tests out effective altruism by joining the Shrimp Welfare Project to ascertain if sparing shrimp from anxiety and painful death is a productive way to be philanthropic. "If we're going to govern from a place of trust with the American people, we have to show people what we are for, not just what we are against". Massachusetts Democratic Congressman Jake Auchincloss joins Jordan Klepper to unpack his recent 27-hour markup session of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
S30 · E65May 19, 2025 - Patrick McGee 2025-05-19 · 44 min
Jon Stewart critiques the media spin on Joe Biden's cancer diagnosis, from CNN's shameless promotion of Jake Tapper's book to Fox News's "but"-tainted sympathies. ward-winning journalist Patrick McGee joins Jon Stewart to discuss how Apple built China in his new book "Apple in China: The Capture of the World's Greatest Company". They talk about Apple "sleepwalking" into this crisis, building a competitive market in Xi Jinping's authoritarian state, the vocational training that boosted rivals, how Trump's attempted Apple boycott backfired, and whether investments may be facilitating the annexation of Taiwan.
S30 · E66May 20, 2025 - Prabal Gurung 2025-05-20 · 41 min
Ronny Chieng covers Trump's cabinet cracking under pressure, from Kristi Noem drawing a blank on habeas corpus, immigration getting the Bravo treatment, Kash Patel and Dan Bongino flip-flopping on Jeffrey Epstein's "suicide", and Sean Duffy finding an air travel solution in a Jesus painting. In the latest edition of Sports War, Ronny Chieng and Michael Kosta go head to head over NYC's street-wide Knicks celebration, the Dodgers' new Japanese pitcher's bathroom requests, and Bill Belichick spending the rest of his life with 24-year-old Jordon Hudson. Prabal Gurung, award-winning fashion designer and author of the new memoir "Walk Like a Girl", describes to Ronny Chieng how his rise through the fashion world of New York began with the support of his family in Nepal, especially his mother.
S30 · E67May 21, 2025 - Simon Pegg 2025-05-21 · 34 min
Ronny Chieng tackles the president of South Africa's uncomfortable White House visit and a MAGA couple shortchanged by a "RUMP" watch. Plus, Trump sets his heart on a $542 billion "golden dome" to protect America from hypothetical attacks, including those provoked by international roast comic Grace Kuhlenschmidt. Lenard McKelvey (aka "Charlamagne Tha God") looks at Republicans' obsession with Trump as a father figure and reminds them that not only is Trump a bad dad to his own kids, he's an abusive dad to Americans. Screenwriter, comedian, and actor Simon Pegg joins Ronny Chieng to promote the final installment of the franchise, "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning". They talk about Pegg's humble beginnings doing standup with his goldfish, how the director Christopher McQuarrie weaved earlier films into the franchise's ending, the power of movie theaters to unite people in experiences, and Tom Cruise's comedic timing while performing epic live-action stunts.
S30 · E68May 22, 2025 - Dawn Staley 2025-05-22 · 30 min
Ronny Chieng covers the House passing Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill", trading Medicaid, food stamps, and the national debt for a waiver on silencer registration fees. Plus, the Big Beautiful Bill (Troy Iwata) can't handle the Democrats' poetic attack on his looks. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is asking undocumented migrants to self-deport for a $1000 stipend, and Al Madrigal is taking her up on the offer. He tells Ronny Chieng how he's living large in South Sudan, the DHS's new favorite war-torn dumping ground. Dawn Staley, basketball legend and head coach of the University of South Carolina women's basketball team, talks to Ronny Chieng about her new memoir, "Uncommon Favor", and how she's built a championship program by valuing individuals over analytics and meeting her players where they are.
S30 · E69June 2, 2025 - Carole Cadwalladr 2025-06-02 · 42 min
Jon Stewart tracks Elon Musk's White House crash, from the high of being Trump's "first buddy" to the low of his black-eyed DOGE send-off. Now that the 100-day honeymoon is over, Jon also checks in on Trump's other struggling cabinet members, like the FBI's burned-out deputy director, Dan Bongino. "I think what is happening in America is they are building a techno-authoritarian surveillance state." Carole Cadwalladr, the award-winning journalist behind the Substack newsletter "How to Survive the Broligarchy," talks to Jon Stewart about how the U.S. government ignored the huge wake-up call that was the Cambridge Analytica-Facebook data breach scandal – a story Cadwalladr broke and which resulted in no legislative protections for citizens' private data. She warns about the unregulated dangers that data-mining and AI pose to individual privacy and freedom, and what people and institutions can do to push back on big tech's authoritarian agenda.
S30 · E70June 3, 2025 - Candace Parker 2025-06-03 · 30 min
Michael Kosta unpacks Elon Musk calling Trump's Big Beautiful Bill a "disgusting abomination"; the head of FEMA learning there's a hurricane season; Social Security chief Frank Bisignano googling "social security"; and Tulsi Gabbard's Fox News-style intelligence briefing makeover. For those airline customers nervous that diverse pilots aren't qualified for their jobs, White Flight's racial support pilots can put their minds at ease. Let a white male stand-in reassure passengers that their plane won't crash from DEI, while the actual pilots do all the work behind the scenes. "I would challenge anyone to love the game of basketball more than me". Candace Parker, three-time WNBA champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist, joins Michael Kosta to discuss her new book, "The Can-Do Mindset".
S30 · E71June 4, 2025 - Leah Litman 2025-06-04 · 35 min
Michael Kosta dives into the fallout of Trump's Big Beautiful Bill: Elon slamming the "sprawling spending bill" and turning on Trump, Democrats backing Elon's criticisms, and Marjorie Taylor Greene revealing she never read it in the first place. Plus, the Big Beautiful Bill (Troy Iwata) claps back at all the new haters. The Trump administration has pushed out legacy media outlets from the White House press room in favor of more conspiratorial right-wing "new media" figures like Tim Pool: a conservative YouTuber and podcaster passionate about stroking Trump's ego and delivering truthful reporting sponsored by Russian interests. "The next several decades might look like a ‘Hunger Games' for liberal constitutional democracy." University of Michigan Law professor and "Strict Scrutiny" co-host Leah Litman joins Michael Kosta to discuss her New York Times bestseller, "Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes."
S30 · E72June 5, 2025 - Jonathan D. Cohen 2025-06-05 · 32 min
Michael Kosta unpacks the latest in Musk and Trump's messy bromance breakup: Elon doubling down on critiques against the Big Beautiful Bill, Trump's parent-level guilt, Kanye West calling for a ceasefire, and threats of an Epstein files leak. Plus, Grace Kuhlenschmidt explains that the president is merely playing a game of 7D chess. Students and teachers alike are outsourcing all their work to AI, but Lewis Black thinks kids should stop experimenting with AI in college and go back to experimenting with fun things, like LSD. Jonathan D. Cohen, historian and author of the new book, "Losing Big: America's Bet on Sports Gambling," joins Michael Kosta to break down how legalized sports betting has become such a huge part of American sports culture, industry, and has created a public health gambling addiction crisis, especially among young men.