Each week, “Pod Save America” cohost Tommy Vietor and Obama’s former Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes break down the biggest developments in foreign policy, national security and global politics. They try to explain which stories matter and why, and what we can all do to understand and shape the world around us. Subscribe to Friends of the Pod! Your subscription makes Crooked’s work possible and gives you access to ad-free episodes of Pod Save America and Pod Save the World, plus exclusive content and a lively Discord community. Learn more and subscribe at crooked.com/friends or on Apple Podcasts.
527 episodes transcribedTommy and Ben discuss the breaking news that Russia’s most prominent opposition figure, Alexei Navalny, has died while in prison. The only information...
Tommy and Max Fisher talk about the disastrous humanitarian implications of Israel’s impending offensive in Rafah, the Biden administration’s shifting...
Almost one year after arriving in the US, the New York Post publishes a story suggesting NYU is trying to sever ties with Guangcheng. Guangcheng alleg...
Tommy and Ben talk about US strikes against facilities in Iraq and Syria used by Iran-backed militia groups, White House denials that the conflict in...
Following a tense negotiation between the US and China, Guangcheng arrives in the United States. He is greeted with a hero’s welcome. He gives speeche...
Tommy and Ben talk about the drone strike by an Iranian-backed group on a US base in Jordan that killed three US service members, the pressure on Bide...
Guangcheng escapes house arrest, but he’s not free yet. Without a real plan or a place to hide, he turns to the US embassy in Beijing. His moves set i...
Tommy and Ben discuss the latest news out of Gaza, including a potential ceasefire deal that would include a two month stop in fighting in exchange fo...
Guangcheng is kidnapped by Chinese authorities and thrown in jail. By keeping him under lock and key, the government hopes to take away his power. But...
Ben and Tommy discuss US airstrikes on the Houthi rebels in Yemen and why they are unlikely to deter them, and provide background and context on the H...
Guangcheng fights his biggest case in China – exposing the brutality of the One Child Policy. This, and a series of public and legal victories in the...
It’s 2011. Hollywood A-lister Christian Bale is in China and gets punched in the face by security guards for trying to visit Chen Guangcheng, a local...
Ben and Tommy cover the major developments in the war between Israel and Hamas, including the widening difference between Netanyahu and Biden on post-...
What happens when someone becomes a human-rights icon – but then turns out to stand for something else entirely? Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng was...
Tommy and Ben discuss the dire humanitarian situation on the ground in Gaza and the disconnect between the Biden administration’s words and deeds when...
Tommy and Ben discuss the latest news from Gaza, including Israeli forces moving into southern Gaza, the Biden administration’s shift from a “hug Bibi...
Ben and Tommy discuss the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas and how the US and Qatar helped broker it, Qatar’s unique role in international dipl...
In a special episode, Tommy and Ben discuss the upcoming COP28 conference in the United Arab Emirates. They speak about the climate summit’s importanc...
Tommy and Ben discuss the latest news out of Israel and Gaza, including the legality of targeting hospitals, French President Emmanuel Macron’s call f...
Tommy and Ben talk about where the world stands one month after Hamas’ attack on Israel, including the declaration from Gaza’s health ministry that 10...
