Jen Psaki examines the hypocrisy of Elon Musk and Donald Trump's claim to be fighting corruption when they're actually perpetuating it, explaining why nothing encapsulates the administration's embrace of corruption better than the quid pro quo with New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Rep. Dan Goldman joins Jen to discuss the Justice Department's move to drop criminal charges against Mayor Adams, explaining why this can only be seen as a "politicization of the DOJ." Next, Jen explains why seven federal prosecutors resigned this week rather than file the motion to dismiss the Adams case, which was eventually signed under the threat of firing. She is joined by legal expert Andrew Weissmann to discuss how Trump's DOJ is undermining the rule of law. Then, Jen explains why the Trump administration's pandering to Vladimir Putin is a feature of his foreign policy, not a bug. She is joined by author Bill Browder to discuss the shift in relations between the U.S. and Russia, and what it means for the continued war in Ukraine. Later, Jen is joined by Rep. Greg Casar to discuss how Musk and Trump's ransacking of the federal government is negatively impacting communities across the country, including farmers and veterans. Finally, Jen shares a preview of her conversation with her former boss Rahm Emanuel from a new episode of her podcast "The Blueprint", which is out Monday.Check out our social pages below:https://twitter.com/InsideWithPsakihttps://www.instagram.com/InsideWithPsaki/https://www.tiktok.com/@insidewithpsakihttps://www.msnbc.com/jen-psaki
Full Episode
Okay, if you felt like you were losing your mind this week, you are not alone. Because it's hard to wrap your head around something as brazenly corrupt as the Trump administration's mafia-style deal with the mayor of New York. Congressman Dan Goldman was a prosecutor in the office where it all unfolded, and he's coming up first.
Plus, as the impacts of Elon Musk's mass layoffs come into view all across the country, I'll talk to someone who is speaking out as forcefully as anyone in Washington, the chair of the Progressive Caucus, Congressman Greg Kassar. And later, Donald Trump gives Vladimir Putin everything he wants before negotiations even begin. Putin critic Bill Browder joins me to talk about what happens next.
OK, you may have noticed this, but for the last few weeks, Donald Trump has tried really, really hard to get a certain message across about the thing he is apparently trying desperately to hunt down.
We want to weed out the corruption, tremendous fraud and corruption and waste, waste, corruption and radical left lunacy, corruption, very corrupt people, very corrupt, corrupt, corrupt, corrupt, a lot of corruption.
But here's the thing. I mean, just because you say something over and over and over doesn't make it true. And when Trump and Musk are pressed to provide any actual evidence that their grand plan is actually rooting out mass fraud and corruption in the government, they come up very short. What is becoming increasingly clear is that they're not really after corruption at all.
They're simply after stuff they just don't like for whatever reason. I mean, what is also clear is that when it comes to Donald Trump, every accusation is usually some form of a confession. I mean, let me put it this way. If they were actually hunting for the corruption, it might get a little bit uncomfortable in there because the call is kind of coming from inside the house here, guys.
I mean, I can even point you in many of the right directions. Like Trump freezing a U.S. law, banning the bribery of foreign officials, a law that has previously hit suppliers for Tesla, or Musk attacking the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a bureau that would have cracked down on his attempts to turn X into a digital payment platform.
Or the administration planning to lay off thousands of IRS employees, a move that stands to benefit the richest taxpayers. I wonder who falls into that category. Or Trump pardoning former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, who was convicted of trying to sell a U.S. Senate seat. Or Trump firing inspectors general whose literal job is to find corruption in the government.
You could also look at Musk's meeting with Indian Prime Minister Modi this week. You know, the one you can see there, where they sat in front of a U.S. and an Indian flag, just like a bilateral meeting. A meeting that even Trump doesn't seem to know the reason behind.
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