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.
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Latest episodes
Showing 20 · updated from the feed
France Descends Into Chaos
#32 trending · Politics
Trump rigs the war in Russia’s favor, France descends into chaos, and we witness another episode of the Trump administration soap opera drama, As the World Burns.
Tommy
Oct 21 1 h 38 min
Trump’s Dirty Diesel Deal
Trump cuts a diesel deal with Putin, the Houthis hit Saudi Arabia’s main airport, and Kimberly Guilfoyle resigns after demanding ice at 4am in Mykonos.
Tommy and Ben dig
Oct 14 1 h 21 min
Russian Plague and Putin's Prisons
Tommy and Ben dig into Brazil's election results, where right-wing candidate Flavio Bolsonaro surged past expectations and is now favored to win the October 25th runoff.
Oct 7 1 h 25 min
Soccer Scandal & Idiot Ambassadors
The Trump/Xi summit produces two pandas and not much else, violence in Ethiopia could have massive regional consequences, and Manchester City is found guilty of nearly a
Sep 30 1 h 39 min
Xi’s Just Not That Into You
Xi Jinping comes to Washington, the UN struggles for relevancy, and the Russian parliamentary elections turn out exactly as expected.
Tommy and Ben break down Chinese Pr
Sep 23 1 h 30 min
Don Jr.’s Big Fat Russian Wedding
The Houthis seize control of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, Trump rolls a grenade into Northern Ireland's politics, and a Russian oligarch funds Don Jr.'s wedding.
Tommy and
Sep 16 1 h 33 min
Can Germany’s Far Right Be Stopped?
The far right gets a huge win in Germany, Serbia celebrates a war criminal, and Nigel Farage gets caught on camera breaking the law.
Tommy and Ben dig into the ultra-rig
Sep 9 1 h 36 min
The Art of the Venezuela Oil Deal
The war with Iran reaches six months, Trump’s Pentagon cuts a corrupt oil deal with Venezuela, and Russia makes an (unwelcome) surprise appearance at a G20 meeting.
Tomm
Sep 2 1 h 23 min
Trump & Carney’s Heated Rivalry
Trump starts a trade war with Canada, announces “Economic D-Day” against Iran, while Russia deploys AI killer drones in Ukraine.
Tommy and Ben break down the collapse of
Aug 26 1 h 40 min
Trump’s Unrequited Love for Kim Jong Un
Tommy and Ben walk through a week of leaders making bad decisions. President Trump kneecaps military exercises with South Korea, Vladimir Putin’s paranoia reaches new hei
Aug 19 1 h 22 min
Mission: Impossible - Catering Truck (Starring Donald J. Trump)
Trump evades Iran via catering truck, Pete Hegseth's Pentagon is a disaster, and Jared pays off a gangster and drug trafficker as part of his Albanian island takeover.
T
Aug 12 1 h 30 min
Far Right Freaks Freak Over Migrants in Spain
Over 70,000 migrants try crossing into Spain, the US is running out of precision missiles, and Jared Kushner's brother almost bought FIFA.
Tommy and Ben break down the m
Aug 5 1 h 30 min
Lindsey Graham's Bloody Legacy
Trump welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu to the White House on the same day as Lindsey Graham’s funeral, a MAGA nut
Jul 29 1 h 52 min
Pentagon Covers Up Iran War Casualties
More US casualties in the war with Iran, the State Department's new neo-McCarthy Cuba blacklist, and the UK gets a new Prime Minister while CPAC Great Britain flops.
Tom
Jul 22 1 h 31 min
Trump's Delusional Election Rant
In this special episode of Pod Save the World, Tommy and Ben speak in front of a live audience at the Aspen Security Forum.
First, Trump delivers a rambling speech on el
Jul 18 1 h 08 min
Forever War (Trump's Version)
Tommy and Ben are back with a week of war, drama over an international bridge, and an angry Norwegian World Cup fan.
First up, the guys say farewell to the ceasefire bet
Jul 15 1 h 34 min
Trump Bullies FIFA, NATO
Tommy is joined by guest host Mehdi Hasan to walk through a packed week of World Cup controversy, a NATO summit, and Ayatollah Khamenei’s funeral in Iran.
First, they di
Jul 8 1 h 04 min
Keeping Up With the Korruption in Kazakhstan
Tommy and Ben talk through a week that includes US and Iranian airstrikes, a peace agreement, a Supreme Court double-header, and the French debate about air conditioning.
Jul 1 1 h 31 min
Starmer Brexits
This week Tommy and Ben catch up on the latest in Iran negotiations, react to Keir Starmer’s resignation, and continue to celebrate World Cup fandom.
First they walk thr
Jun 24 1 h 28 min
How Bad Is Trump’s Iran Deal?
Tommy and Ben are back with a week of bad deals, high-stakes elections, and World Cup joy.
The US and Iran have agreed to a deal to end the war, but the Trump administra
Jun 17 1 h 32 min
Chart trend
Position in the Politics chart (US), last 90 days.
#1#19#36JulAugSepOct
#2
all-time peak
6
days in the top 3 since Nov 2024
Chart positions
Where Pod Save the World ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Oct 25, 2026).
A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.
This is a great podcast with thoughtful commentary. My only critique is that they open almost every episodes with several minutes of sports talk. Guys, I don’t know why you do this. If you’re so eager to talk about sports, can’t you just do it before starting the podcast?There have been some episodes where it feels like forever for them to start talking about world events!
Mac5371 · Oct 2026
Ben and Tommy have a real gift of being able to translate complicated global events into something human and understandable and to connect the dots for listeners who feel the horror of what’s happening in the world but don’t necessarily have the expertise to articulate it themselves. Ben’s unfiltered response to the human cost of this asinine war of choice in Iran in the latest episode (“Trump Begs Allies to Clean Up Iran Mess”) brought me to tears. This moment deserves that kind of rage and as ever I appreciate his ability to lend an intelligent voice to what so many of us are feeling but struggle to put into words. Keep fighting the good fight. You are a loud voice on the right side of history.
CarolAWilliams · Apr 2026
Great hosts that really know what they’re talking about. Helps me gain a better understanding of international affairs. Ben and Tommy are the best, and this show has the best intro music around!
RegaWaugus · Mar 2026
I don’t necessarily agree with every opinion, but the news stories are presented so I know what is happening in the world from a US perspective. The humor is an added bonus when it feels like everything is just imploding.
Jlh137 · Mar 2026
As a hearing impaired individual, the transcription is incredibly important. It has been unavailable for the past couple of weeks and is negatively impacting my experience. I love the show, but find it hard to follow along, and don’t want to miss a word of Ben’s rants.
dissatisfiedwinelover · Aug 2026
This Pod regularly uploads wrong episodes or broken streams. It’s a shame because the content is good, but it is so so frustrating to wait for an episode that drops in late, wrong, or with streaming problems. It isn’t Apple Podcasts fault, follow the links to audioboom and the problem is there, too. It’s the Pods fault, and they should do better if they want to reach a large and growing audience.
Loose right now · Jul 2026
We strive to present a balanced view by showing a diverse range of reviews from Apple Podcasts.
Here you find the Apple Podcasts chart positions of Pod Save the World, its latest episodes to listen to directly, and reviews from listeners. Rankings are updated daily for the United States.
