TDS Time Machine | Secretaries of Defense

The U.S.-Venezuela conflict escalates as the Department of Homeland Security TikTok-ifies the seizing of an oil tanker, and Trump can't resist taking credit for the “Captain Phillips” moment. Plus, the State Department bans the font Calibri for being “too woke,” and Michael Kosta unpacks the new beef between conservatives and the font's creator. This Christmas, gather round from all sides of the political spectrum for the holiday rom-com “Oh, Trolly Night!” Watch online enemies and unlikely lovers come together to find out the answer to the question: Can love Trump hate? Paleoclimatologist at The Ohio State University Lonnie Thompson sits down with Michael to discuss his groundbreaking work collecting ice cores in tropical glaciers – the subject of the film “Canary,” which is available to stream for free on YouTube over the holidays. They talk about how ice can be used to study climate history and understand where we’re at today, the importance of following your dreams, and how his work drilling in 16 countries leaves him feeling optimistic about climate change solutions. Shop Mint Unlimited Plans at http://mintmobile.com/daily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Desi Lydic catches a Fox News closed caption writer's "minor" Freudian slip during Trump's economic rally, an event that focused less on affordability and more on Joe Biden. Plus, Michael Kosta explains why the president has been lashing out at female reporters so much lately: he's going through man-o-pause. TikTok’s biggest trends in 2025 had "6-7" becoming the word of the year, high school seniors cosplaying assassins, people damaging property Kool-Aid Man-style, and Lewis Black wondering what the f**k is wrong with our society. Legendary photographer Annie Leibovitz joins Desi Lydic to discuss her powerful new collection of career-spanning work titled "Women." They talk about breaking stereotypes of pregnant women with Demi Moore’s Vanity Fair cover, capturing Michelle Obama as she found her laid back self after eight years as first lady, her favorite unsmiling image of her mom where the camera "disappears," and Gloria Steinem’s message in the book about women “not going backward.” Shop Mint Unlimited Plans at http://mintmobile.com/daily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ronny Chieng covers the latest on the Trump administration’s petty changes to free-entry days at national parks, the president’s promise to bail out farmers after f**king up the economy, Melania’s attempt to spread some yuletide cheer, and Sean Duffy’s Department of Transportation press conference that turned into a d**k-measuring contest against RFK Jr. On another edition of Who Won It Best, Desi Lydic and Troy Iwata recap the FIFA World Cup Draw and Peace Prize Ceremony, the biggest award show you’ve never heard of, where the balls were mingled, the Village People performed the “YMCA,” and Trump received a trophy, medal, and certificate before jetting over to the Kennedy Center Honors to make KISS’s big night all about himself. Journalist, internet activist, and author Cory Doctorow talks to Ronny about the concept behind his latest book, “Enshittification,” which breaks down how tech giants like Facebook, Amazon, and Google have made the internet worse for everybody by locking in users only to turn on them. He also stresses how the blame for the “enshittification” of the internet shouldn’t be placed on consumers, but on policy makers, and points to anti-trust enforcement, tech worker unions, and interoperability as the keys to remaking an internet that benefits users instead of billionaires. Shop Mint Unlimited Plans at http://mintmobile.com/daily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Trump contradicts his phony FIFA peace prize by cranking up the heat on military action in Venezuela, a country Newsmax host Greg Kelly couldn’t find on a map, and Jon Stewart gets an assist from The Daily Show archives and a time-traveling Rob Corddry to show how MAGA’s drumbeat for war with Venezuela is Iraq all over again. Malala Yousafzai, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, education activist, and bestselling author, returns to The Daily Show to chat with Jon about her new memoir, “Finding My Way.” They talk about how much her life has changed since she first visited the show at 16, including graduating college and getting married, and how she came to realize she doesn’t have to be perfect. She also opens up about managing mental health and societal projections while pursuing activist work and the school for women she founded in Pakistan, which just graduated its first-ever class. Shop Mint Unlimited Plans at http://mintmobile.com/daily Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If you're feeling like you could use a dose of youthful optimism right now, we've got you. Check out these visits from inspiring young activists. Jon Stewart sits down with Malala Yousafzai, and Trevor Noah enjoys visits from Greta Thunberg, Parkland survivors X González & Matt Deitsch, and climate activist Xiuhtezcatl Martinez. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As the current Secretary of Defense finds himself in the hot seat, take a listen to a few of Pete Hegseth's predecessors' visits to The Daily Show. Jon Stewart sits down with Donald Rumsfeld, Robert Gates and Leon Panetta to dig into their decisions, their legacies and everything else that comes with heading up the most powerful military in the world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Images of Epstein’s island reveal a penchant for creepy decor and a commitment to oral hygiene, Pete Hegseth gets cagey about turning over his phone for the Signalgate investigation, the Pentagon’s press team is replaced by MAGA personalities, and Jordan Klepper investigates Trump’s commitment to being labeled a “president of peace,” signage and all. Afraid of the woke leftists’ war against Christmas? Keep the sanctity of the holiday season alive with the brand-new Trump Tinsel, made from recycled shreddings of the Epstein files. The president promised he was going to release them, but he never said how! Frontman of the band Dropkick Murphys, Ken Casey, sits down with Jordan Klepper to discuss their latest album, “For The People.” They talk about the roots of punk in political activism, getting inspiration from bands who sang about Reagan, Bush, and the Queen of England, encouraging other musicians to speak out for social justice in their music, and a viral bet with a fan that led to an open political dialogue. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josh Johnson tracks Trump's flimsy war on narco-terrorism, from threatening more war-crimey attacks on suspected Venezuelan drug traffickers to pardoning the Honduran ex-president who smuggled enough cocaine to get the whole world high, and Troy Iwata just wants a clear answer: drugs good or drugs bad? Is the AI bubble at risk of popping? Ronny Chieng sits down with Peter Wildeford of the Institute for AI Policy and Strategy to investigate the risks of AI taking our jobs and tanking our economy as the “circle jerk” of AI companies goes all-in on robots. Award-winning magician and mentalist Asi Wind talks to Josh Johnson about his “More Than Magic” U.S. and Australia tour, the trick that (literally) sparked his passion for the craft, and why he sees magic as a collaboration with his audience. Plus, Wind treats Josh Johnson to a few mind-blowing tricks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Desi Lydic covers Melania getting into the mandatory Christmas spirit by decorating the un-bulldozed parts of the White House, Kash Patel refusing to do his job without a big girl FBI jacket, and Pete Hegseth responding to possible war crimes charges by throwing his admiral and a cartoon turtle under the bus. Plus, Jordan Klepper wants YOU to join Hegseth's scapegoat army. Michael Kosta drops the hottest tips for a cash-tacular Christmas: Skip expensive Christmas gifts by converting religions, swap pasta for wringing sauce cloths, and gift an AI teddy bear that covers sex ed. Actor and philanthropist Nikki DeLoach sits down with her friend Desi Lydic to discuss starring in the latest Hallmark movie, “A Grand Ole Opry Christmas,” how working on the film was a healing experience for her after losing her father, and why Hallmark movies seem to resonate with viewers during hard times. She also discusses her impactful philanthropic work and encourages people to participate in Giving Tuesday by supporting two organizations close to her heart, Mind What Matters, which supports caregivers in families affected by dementia, and Children’s Hospital LA, a safety net hospital that turns no child away regardless of a family’s financial situation and saved the life of DeLoach’s own son. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Trump spent the weekend celebrating Thanksgiving the traditional way: abusing reporters, calling Tim Walz the R-word, and bragging about his "perfect" MRI score. Plus, while the president spins a National Guard shooting for his anti-immigrant agenda, Jon Stewart slams the double standard of criminal justice for immigrants and J6 insurrectionists. Pulitzer Prize-winning author and staff writer at The New Yorker, Elizabeth Kolbert, sits down with Jon Stewart to discuss her latest book, "Life on a Little-Known Planet: Dispatches from a Changing World." They talk about matching the awareness of climate problems with an effort for change, humans wasting 10,000 years of “climate stability” by inventing ways to disrupt it, the Trump administration's climate policy regression, and how developing countries are reaping both financial and environmental gains by leaning into clean energy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices