The NPR Politics Podcast

Latest episodes

Showing 20 · updated from the feed

Trump vs. the media

Angered by what he perceived as negative coverage, President Trump barred journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House grounds. Those outlets have since

Sep 23
19 min

Money, money, money

#21 trending · News

Advertising in this fall's midterms is increasing, and so too is the money being spent to get those ads on the air. We look at how the parties are raising & spending mone

Sep 22
20 min

Trump takes the world stage

President Trump heads to the United Nations General Assembly this week as the organization welcomes world leaders to discuss their work. We preview what he will discuss,

Sep 21
15 min

Campaign messaging, concerts & Can't Let It Go

Some Republican candidates are using inflammatory and anti-Muslim rhetoric in their campaign ads and public statements. We look at what they're saying, and why they're sa

Sep 18
29 min

How to watch the midterms like we do

Ever wondered how we pick some of the key races we watch during elections? Here's your chance. In this special edition of The NPR Politics Podcast, which was recorded bef

Sep 17
20 min

How do you solve a problem like AI?

Evangelists say AI saves time and increases productivity. Doomsayers argue AI will destroy humanity. While the truth may be somewhere in between, lawmakers and businesses

Sep 16
18 min

Voters say the American Dream is dead. Why?

Voters tell us they're frustrated with the economy, that costs are too high, and that neither Democrats nor Republicans seem able to solve their problems. We listen to sw

Sep 15
18 min

Missouri's map mayhem

Like other Republican-led states, Missouri heeded President Trump's call to redraw congressional maps to try and create new, safe seats for Republicans in the U.S. House

Sep 14
18 min

How 9/11 reshaped U.S. intelligence | Sources & Methods

September 11th presented a new kind of national security threat, so a new national security architecture was built to confront it. Has it worked? Are we safer? This spe

Sep 12
59 min

The legacy of 9/11

We reflect on how U.S. domestic and foreign policy have changed since, and continue to be influenced by, the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. This episode: voting corre

Sep 11
36 min

The young conservative movement post-Charlie Kirk

The activist is credited for increasing support of conservative causes among young voters, but nobody has had a similar influence since Kirk was killed last year. Who may

Sep 10
15 min

How Trump's immigration policy has evolved

After campaigning on a platform to curtail illegal immigration to the United States, President Trump has shifted federal immigration policy to severely limit all forms of

Sep 9
22 min

What is the GOP convention happening this week?

Republicans are trying to win back skeptical voters by holding a midterm convention in Dallas this week. What will they do there, will the rally work, and how are their p

Sep 8
18 min

Trump's oil "deal" and gunboat diplomacy | Sources & Methods

The U.S. military is now in the oil business and once again targeting what it says are "narco terrorist" drug boats. What is the Trump administration trying to achieve in

Sep 4
27 min

A tale of two Senate candidates

Sen. Jon Ossoff is the only incumbent Democratic senator running in a state Donald Trump won in 2024. Abdul El-Sayed is running to try and hold on to Democrats' Senate se

Sep 3
18 min

What is democratic socialism?

Democratic socialists have done well in some Democratic Party primaries ahead of November's midterm elections. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Sen. Bernie Sanders

Sep 2
20 min

Answering your questions on the midterms & more

You had questions about the upcoming midterm elections, and other political topics. In this podcast, we try our best to answer some of them. This episode: senior politic

Sep 1
19 min

The big deal with a big debt

The federal debt is up to $40 trillion and counting. The budget deficit is increasing, too. What does that mean for American taxpayers? We explain. This episode: senior

Aug 31
17 min

What happens if Trump tries to mess with the midterms?

President Trump routinely sows doubt in the credibility of elections in the United States — especially if he, or his allies, lose those votes. But with voting in this fal

Aug 28
31 min

What's going on with vote-by-mail?

President Trump has long railed against voting by mail, falsely claiming it is rampant with fraud. He signed an executive order earlier this year seeking to severely rest

Aug 27
15 min

Chart trend

Position in the overall Apple Podcasts chart (US), last 90 days.

#1#98#195JunJulAugSep

#60

all-time peak

days in the top 100 since Nov 2024

Chart positions

Where The NPR Politics Podcast ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Sep 23, 2026).

#151 ▲ 40 All Podcasts US

#23 ▲ 4 News US

#6 ▲ 2 Politics US

What listeners say

A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.

Great, straight forward information that you can’t find in many other places. Love hearing from journalists that have followed their areas for a long time and can speak to patterns and history.

lorin1717171 · Apr 2026

Excellent, unpretentious coverage from hosts who are both charismatic and insightful.

yeknom29 · Apr 2026

A lot of these reviewers clearly indicate that they are stuck in 8th grade emotionally and never grew up to understand that when a person receives professional, constructive criticism, it is not a personal attack or a bias against them. Adults learn that criticism is a tool to help make you better. Criticism and critical thinking work to point out flaws in arguments and helps to understand differing and opposing points of view. Criticism is not an opinion bias or an attack but rather a tool for growth, learning, and collaboration. It challenges us to examine our assumptions, refine our skills, and engage with the perspectives of others. When embraced with an open mind and delivered constructively, criticism becomes a powerful catalyst for both individual and collective progress. NPR Politics podcast does a fantastic job analyzing and critiquing everyone in Washington politics and demonstrate unbiased analysis. Thank you!

t3dga · Dec 2024

I enjoy the NPR Politics podcast and I think you all are doing a fantastic job at giving us political junkies some extra air time to talk about salient topics. The reviews under this podcast are so varied that there are many people who think the podcast is too left-wing, and many who think it’s too right-wing. Biased, sensational media has flooded our eyes and ears and we latch on to the smallest things and lash out when pundits don’t verify our personal beliefs and it shows in these reviews. The fact of the matter is that reporting on the news and calling things what they are, whether with some light humor or not, is always going to ignite someone’s frustration that the podcast isn’t being hard enough on one side or the other. Keep up the good work — the fact that the reviews can’t agree on the bias shows you’re doing this right.

iMaxExperience · Dec 2024

This podcast does its best, but it’s not equipped for the current political environment. Case in point, on the most recent episode, they quoted a Republican operative claiming that the GOP and President Trump have “secured the border” since they took power in Jan. 2025. Immediately after that sound bite, the commentators restated that talking point as if it were fact, never stopping to consider if that is in fact true or what it would mean for it to be true. What does it mean to “secure the border”? No evidence was offered or facts used to corroborate that claim. These panelists just accepted it as true and passed it along to their audience like it’s a fact (which it clearly is not). A journalist’s job isn’t to simply restate what sources tell them. If someone tells a journalist it’s raining and someone else says it isn’t, it’s not the journalist’s job to report both sides. It’s their job to open a window or go outside. Do better.

Journalism Junky · Aug 2026

I have found myself listening to this podcast less and less over the years, as it became increasingly evident that the hosts and producers treat American politics like a game or a sport. No good outcomes or bad outcomes, no sense of right or wrong, no real world impact on actual people, ever. Just cheerful horse race conjecture, utterly unconcerned that democracy itself could ever reach a breaking point. Tthis show is emblematic of media's betrayal of their public duty. No podcast with episode titles like "2028 fantasy Republican draft" can possibly be taken seriously.

ZestyItalian2 · Jul 2026

We strive to present a balanced view by showing a diverse range of reviews from Apple Podcasts.