Rachel Maddow

expert universe of American know-how on national security issues is off the table forever because of the way our government's behaving? Or do you think in future the United States can ever sort of regain any of our trusted position on issues like this?

Yes, that's exactly right. Nicole, I just have to ask you, congratulations on being number one podcast, not just in the country, number one podcast in the world with your new podcast. Is it fun? Have you been enjoying it? I mean, it's tons more work on top of, you know, you're doing two hours a day already. Have you been enjoying doing it?

Yes, that's exactly right. Nicole, I just have to ask you, congratulations on being number one podcast, not just in the country, number one podcast in the world with your new podcast. Is it fun? Have you been enjoying it? I mean, it's tons more work on top of, you know, you're doing two hours a day already. Have you been enjoying doing it?

I'm sure we can rig something up so that the voice you hear in your ears that is technically what you're saying is somebody else's voice that you like better. I'm sure that that can be rigged up. We can work on that for you. Nicole Wallace, congratulations again on The Best People. Again, Nicole's new podcast is called The Best People.

I'm sure we can rig something up so that the voice you hear in your ears that is technically what you're saying is somebody else's voice that you like better. I'm sure that that can be rigged up. We can work on that for you. Nicole Wallace, congratulations again on The Best People. Again, Nicole's new podcast is called The Best People.

It's number one, not just in the country, but in the whole world right now on Apple Podcasts. It's up right now. It's fantastic. Nicole, you're amazing. Thank you so much, my friend. Good to see you. Thank you. All right, stay with us. We'll be right back.

It's number one, not just in the country, but in the whole world right now on Apple Podcasts. It's up right now. It's fantastic. Nicole, you're amazing. Thank you so much, my friend. Good to see you. Thank you. All right, stay with us. We'll be right back.

So you've probably all seen the photos of President Trump's top campaign donor, Elon Musk, in the Oval Office on Friday with a big old shiner with his black eye. He claimed to have gotten that by being punched by his five-year-old son. OK, maybe.

So you've probably all seen the photos of President Trump's top campaign donor, Elon Musk, in the Oval Office on Friday with a big old shiner with his black eye. He claimed to have gotten that by being punched by his five-year-old son. OK, maybe.

But with this Oval Office appearance ostensibly being his farewell after several months in Washington gutting the American government, everybody sort of had the same idea at the same time, right? The metaphors practically wrote themselves. You know, Musk has literal black eye and figurative black eye as he leaves.

But with this Oval Office appearance ostensibly being his farewell after several months in Washington gutting the American government, everybody sort of had the same idea at the same time, right? The metaphors practically wrote themselves. You know, Musk has literal black eye and figurative black eye as he leaves.

May I suggest an even better metaphor for what Elon Musk did in these last few months in Washington? Starting in March, we pretty closely covered the story of one little agency, an independent nonprofit called the U.S. Institute of Peace. Elon Musk's operatives at Doge literally forced their way into the Institute of Peace in an operation that reportedly involved the FBI, the D.C.

May I suggest an even better metaphor for what Elon Musk did in these last few months in Washington? Starting in March, we pretty closely covered the story of one little agency, an independent nonprofit called the U.S. Institute of Peace. Elon Musk's operatives at Doge literally forced their way into the Institute of Peace in an operation that reportedly involved the FBI, the D.C.

Metropolitan Police, the D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office and a private security firm. Musk and Doge literally used armed force to get into the headquarters of this little institute. They then used that armed force to physically throw out the staff. They then purported to fire all the staff, even though they legally don't have the power to do that.

Metropolitan Police, the D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office and a private security firm. Musk and Doge literally used armed force to get into the headquarters of this little institute. They then used that armed force to physically throw out the staff. They then purported to fire all the staff, even though they legally don't have the power to do that.

The thing that has always made this story sort of weirder and wilder than you might expect is that this U.S. Institute of Peace, it doesn't belong to the executive branch. It's an independent nonprofit. It was created by Congress over 40 years ago. It's largely funded by its own private endowment. The Institute owns its own building, its headquarters. They control the land the building sits on.

The thing that has always made this story sort of weirder and wilder than you might expect is that this U.S. Institute of Peace, it doesn't belong to the executive branch. It's an independent nonprofit. It was created by Congress over 40 years ago. It's largely funded by its own private endowment. The Institute owns its own building, its headquarters. They control the land the building sits on.

And yet, Trump and his top campaign donor, Elon Musk, used force to not only take the building, but to also take the Institute's money, its endowment, which, again, was not the government's to take. Once Elon Musk's people had forced their way into the building and forced out the employees, one Institute of Peace official told us, quote, they were very thorough in how they decimated us.

And yet, Trump and his top campaign donor, Elon Musk, used force to not only take the building, but to also take the Institute's money, its endowment, which, again, was not the government's to take. Once Elon Musk's people had forced their way into the building and forced out the employees, one Institute of Peace official told us, quote, they were very thorough in how they decimated us.

They wiped our IT system, canceled contracts, shredded documents, took down our website, including all of our 40 years of research and work we had done. They seized not only our building, but also all of our funding, including our endowment funds.