The Muckrake Political Podcast

4.6 (515)
POLITICS
UPDATED SEMIWEEKLY

The Muckrake Podcast is the political podcast that promises to dig deeper. Political analysts Jared Yates Sexton and Nick Hauselman tackle the news of the day but go beyond the stale and tired narratives to provide historical context and alternative perspectives, all to bring a little order to chaotic times.

9H AGO

Trump's Tariff Tantrum and LIVE SOTU Tonight

Support the show by signing up to our Patreon and get access to the full Weekender episode each Friday as well as special Live Shows and access to our community discord: patreon.com/muckrakepodcast Co-hosts Jared Yates Sexton and Nick Hauselman dig into the Supreme Court slapping down Trump's massive tariff scheme, only for him to lose his shit, call them disloyal, and crank it right back up to 15% global like nothing happened. That $133 billion that's supposedly been collected? Nobody's got a clue where it vanished to, and crickets from the media on asking the real questions. They move south of the border to break down how US intel helped snag a top Sinaloa cartel boss, he ends up dead in transport, the raid leaves 70+ bodies, and now Mexico's exploding with burning cars, kidnappings, tourists trapped in Puerto Vallarta, and the whole thing reeks of somebody upstairs quietly shopping for new cartel partners to cut deals with. From there they hit Bret Stephens basically begging Trump in the Times to drop bombs on Iran so we can all pretend to be liberators one more time (yeah, that'll end well). Part of the Dems' autopsy finally leaked, indicating that Gaza straight-up killed turnout for Harris but they're still finger-pointing at everybody but their own cowardly moves. We're going live tonight right after the State of the Union wraps up. Trump finishes his b******t, we jump in to dissect it deeper than the cable hacks ever would. So head over to Patreon, subscribe if you haven't yet, and join us - and have a drink handy.

1h 4m
4D AGO

Is A War With Iran A Distraction From The Epstein Files?

Support the show by signing up to our Patreon and get access to the full Weekender episode each Friday as well as special Live Shows and access to our community discord: ⁠http://patreon.com/muckrakepodcast⁠ Co-hosts Jared Yates Sexton and Nick Hauselman open this Weekender by asking the ugliest question out loud: Are we drifting toward a strike on Iran with no clear end game? They dig into why the silence feels like the point, how Russia and China fit onto the board, and why a wider conflict always seems to make a few very specific people rich. Then they pivot to the Epstein fallout and what it looks like when Europe actually treats the network like a crime, while the U.S. political class keeps trying to pretend it is somebody else’s problem. From there it gets bleakly funny as they talk about the AI chip rush, the coming squeeze on everyday electronics, and how tech oligarchs keep turning basic life into a scarcity game. Somehow, a treatise on Doritos emerges before ending with what they’re watching and reading, including a new crime caper that mostly works, Gravity’s Rainbow as a full-time job, and Nick trying to finish a Mick Cronin video before the weekend is over.

12 min
FEB 17

DMs! My Kingdom For DMs!

Co-hosts Nick Hauselman and Jared Yates Sexton open with a rare California Corner that’s more flood warning than sunshine report. Then they dig into the New York Times reporting on DHS and ICE subpoenas sent to Google, Meta, Discord, and Reddit, aimed at unmasking accounts tracking ICE and criticizing the crackdown. They talk through what that means in practice, why “anonymous” is a fantasy once the state wants names, and how pressure gets applied through watchlists, travel pain, and fear. From there they hit Wajahat Ali pressing Hakeem Jeffries on abolishing ICE and why Democratic leadership keeps dodging the simplest question because they helped build the machine. They also get into Russ Vought and the USAID money story, the right wing status theater of private security, and the East Wing fiasco as the perfect corruption tell. They close on climate, the EPA trying to yank the legal foundation for regulating greenhouse gases, and the ugly truth that leaders have known about this for decades and still refuse to act. Support the show by signing up to our Patreon and get access to the full Weekender episode each Friday as well as special Live Shows and access to our community discord: ⁠http://patreon.com/muckrakepodcast⁠.

46 min
FEB 13

Mailbag: Are Democrats Built For What’s Coming?

Support the show by signing up to our Patreon and get access to the full Weekender episode each Friday as well as special Live Shows and access to our community discord: http://patreon.com/muckrakepodcast. It’s a full mailbag Weekender and it starts with Jared Yates Sexton hitting the wall after another long day on the road and Nick Hauselman catching heat for being too friendly with the devil machines. A listener asks whether the Democratic Party can be rebuilt or if it has to be replaced and the answer is not comforting. Another wants to know what it looks like when elections stop being free and fair, and they talk through the warning signs and why the “somebody will step in” instinct isn't realistic. Then a higher ed administrator writes in about the AI push inside colleges and why the people selling efficiency are really selling layoffs and hollowed out institutions. The questions keep coming on surveillance tech, local wins that feel too small, and what happens when public pressure stops working. They get into burnout, dissociation, and which Star Wars prequel we’re living through right now. They also hit the California governor race and why Jared treats every billionaire like a crime scene. It wraps with a question about where their politics came from and why the neoliberal era is decaying into something meaner. Happy Valentine’s Day, to all you lovers out there.

11 min
FEB 10

Ring's Lost Pet Ad: Fetching a Surveillance State

Jared Yates Sexton and Nick Hauselman rip into Ring's Super Bowl ad, which manipulates the raw emotion of reuniting with a lost dog to sell a feature that quietly turns neighborhood doorbell cameras into a shared surveillance network. They move on to the Super Bowl's cultural divide: Bad Bunny's triumphant halftime show that sparked racist outrage, contrasted with the joyless Turning Point USA alternative that exposed the right's inability to create real energy or fun. The discussion hits Epstein file revelations linking back to Trump, Massie's bold public feud with him, the slim prospects for meaningful unredacted leaks through Congress, and the building tension around possible strikes on Iran as oligarchs push their agenda forward. Support the show on Patreon for the full episode, the Weekender every Friday, Live Shows, and our Discord community: http://patreon.com/muckrakepodcast Submit your questions for Friday's mailbag at muckrakepodcast@gmail.com

53 min
FEB 6

Bezos Eats The Washington Post

It is Super Bowl weekend and neither the co-hosts Jared Yates Sexton or Nick Hauselman can pretend to care about the game. Jared is in full "They Live" mode and he is not being polite about it. The conversation quickly turns to the Washington Post gutting itself under Jeff Bezos, and what it means when a billionaire can buy a load bearing newsroom with pocket change. They argue that this is not a business mistake, it is the point, and they connect it to the bigger pattern of institutions being neutralized on purpose. Then they jump to the bitcoin slide, and how gambling keeps getting sold as hope in a collapsing economy. From there they hit Kamala’s new “Headquarters” relaunch and why it reads like brand management in the middle of an emergency. They close with France raiding X’s offices over sexual abuse material and deepfakes, and why Europe still has levers the US refuses to pull. The Weekender ends with what they’re watching and what they’re reading, including a rough movie recommendation and a couple books that actually land. Support the show by signing up to our Patreon and get access to the full Weekender episode each Friday as well as special Live Shows and access to our community discord: http://patreon.com/muckrakepodcast

11 min
FEB 3

The Most Shocking Revelations About The Epstein Files

Co-hosts Jared Yates Sexton and Nick Hauselman kick off by diving into the latest drop of Epstein Files. They break down how Trump's name is mentioned 38,000+ times, with some really nasty tips the feds posted for a hot second before redacting everything and pulling it once screenshots started circulating. Epstein appears to be a straight-up intelligence asset as he received obvious legal protection due to his ties to the CIA, Mossad, and Russian money. They hit the crazy new angle of Epstein linking up with 4chan founder Christopher Poole right around the time the site became a launchpad for extreme online movements. Jared and Nick explain how that ecosystem fed the alt-right surge into 2016 and created QAnon, which flipped the script and pinned the same crimes these files keep exposing on everyone else. Blackmail to get in the door, rituals to keep people tied, elite power running on straight abuse. They close out on the bigger mess: Democrats folding on the budget again, just delaying the funding of ICE, who is continues to spend on concentration camps with basically no real resistance to the fascism building. The corruption cuts across both parties. Trust in the whole system is dead. Something's going to snap. Support the show by signing up for our Patreon to unlock our Weekender Show every Friday, plus access to the Discord discussion and special live shows.

41 min
FEB 1

Fake Shakeups, Same Crackdowns

The Weekender, our weekly show for Patreon members, opens with fallout from Alex Pretti’s murder and the sudden sidelining of Bovino, with Tom Homan stepping in and the administration pretending this is accountability instead of damage control. Co-hosts Jared Yates Sexton and Nick Hauselman break down why this shakeup changes nothing, why ICE is still operating like a lawless occupying force, and why Democrats are offering cosmetic fixes while people are being abducted in the streets. They dig into the broader picture, from Kristi Noem’s political trouble to the FBI raid on Georgia election offices, and why the renewed obsession with 2020 looks a lot like groundwork for controlling future elections. The conversation circles back to the same question: if institutions won’t stop this, where does real resistance come from. They cool things down at the end with what they’re reading and watching, including Oscar contenders, a brutal takedown of The Rip, and why some messy, ambitious movies stick in your head long after the credits roll. Support the show by signing up to our Patreon and get access to the full Weekender episode each Friday as well as special Live Shows and access to our community discord: http://patreon.com/muckrakepodcast

11 min

See All (649)

4.6

out of 5

515 Ratings

We need more muckrakers!

Jan 18

lgavs

Never miss an episode. Need these pov’s.
A Podcast for wonks and deep divers and I love it!

12/10/2025

Awake at night always

This is a podcast for people who are paying attention, and have some political science background. You’ll eat it up like me!
Love This

10/23/2025

DrDK2

I love this podcast because you both are intelligent and bring up great points. But you were off in terms of No Kings. It’s called “No Kings” for a reason. We are against a dictator, as you know. And there is lots going on. We are boycotting Avela Airlines. We had post rally virtual meetings to organize next steps. You have to be a part of Indivisible or MoveOn or whatever organizing group you are with. This is a movement. We know it takes more than protests. We are mobilizing. Local groups are creating crisis response, mutual aid, local elections & lobbying. The Tea Party WAS funded by the Koch Bros. We aren’t funded by George Soros. Today you two seem confused. It’s a PEOPLE’S MOVEMENT, not the Democrats’ movement.
<3

06/17/2025

Rich guy for the rich

This is the best podcast ever. I’ve been listening to Jared & Nick for years. If you want to understand the truth & history of what is going on today, this is the podcast for you. I look forward to every episode, knowing it helps me be informed and understand the implications behind the surface level reporting that never seems to give all the facts.

The Muckrake Podcast is the political podcast that promises to dig deeper. Political analysts Jared Yates Sexton and Nick Hauselman tackle the news of the day but go beyond the stale and tired narratives to provide historical context and alternative perspectives, all to bring a little order to chaotic times.