Transcript

Trump and MAGA FALL APART Over Devastating New Ad

From Pod Save America · Episode page · Watch on YouTube

· 21 min · 4,408 words · 73 timestamped sections

This is the full, timestamped transcript of "Trump and MAGA FALL APART Over Devastating New Ad", an episode of Pod Save America published February 4, 2026 (21 min, about 4,408 words). It mentions 9 people, works and ideas, including Alex Wagner, Dan Feifer, Ice King, Susan Collins, Janet Mills.

What this episode is about

The discussion focuses on a new ad campaign aimed at energizing Democratic voters to pressure Congress regarding ICE funding, highlighting the impact of ICE on communities, particularly in Maine. The hosts analyze the messaging strategies used in the ad and the broader implications for the Democratic Party as they navigate key political issues.

Key takeaways

  • Fundamentally reshaping immigration financing requires mobilizing Democrats, not just persuading fence-sitters.
  • The ad’s raw emotion highlights systemic injustices that, alarmingly, often go unchecked in marginalized communities.
  • ICE’s funding eclipses even military budgets, sparking debates about national priorities and moral expenditures.
  • Calling ICE 'murderers' may be shocking, but it illustrates a disturbing reality for communities under siege.
  • Transformative political messaging thrives by amplifying grassroots outrage, pushing limits of dialogue around reform.

Who speaks in this episode?

What is discussed, and when

  1. – 5:00: Ice King, Alex Wagner, Department of Homeland Security, Crooked Media
  2. – 10:00: Susan Collins, Ziotics, Crooked Media
  3. – 15:00: Susan Collins, Janet Mills, Alex Wagner
  4. – 20:00: Janet Mills
  5. – 21:16: Alex Wagner

Notable quotes from "Trump and MAGA FALL APART Over Devastating New Ad"

  • Per se. What I really want to talk about is messaging around ICE, how Democrats respond to it, how the party faithful is pressuring members of Congress to act on it. And it happens to be by coincidence that there is a lot of activity on the.
    about Ice King · at
  • Called Protecting Democracy. The context of this is that the Democrats in Congress are negotiating with the Trump administration around some reforms around ICE tied to funding of the Department of Homeland Security bill.
    about Department of Homeland Security · at
  • Ziotics pre-alcohol probiotic drink is the world's first genetically engineered probiotic. It was invented by PhD scientists to tackle rough mornings after drinking. Here's how it works.
    about Ziotics · at
  • Doesn't make her a fighter no in terms of reform. And the fact of the matter is Susan Collins tends to do the bare minimum to skate by as a moderate. I think it's great that it…
    about Susan Collins · at
  • In Minnesota, Maine, and elsewhere is unacceptable to actually get a real check on his power. And in my newsletter, the message box, we're going to be covering this midterm…
    about Dan Feifer · at
  • She's a fighter. Dan, was that the implication of this? It was subtle.
    about Alex Wagner · at

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

  • Alex Wagner — Person · Co-host / main discussant · 4 mentions · first at
    Co-leads the analysis of the ads, offers moral/political framing, and discusses primary dynamics and candidate positioning in Maine.
  • Dan Feifer — Person · Host · 1 mention · first at
    Introduces the show, frames the segment around ICE messaging and Maine ads, and guides analysis of strategy and electoral implications.
  • Susan Collins — Person · Referenced political figure / ad target · 8 mentions · first at
    Central subject of an attack ad and discussion about how to message her role in ICE funding and her 'moderate' brand versus Republican outcomes.
  • Janet Mills — Person · Referenced candidate / ad subject · 6 mentions · first at
    Discussed via her campaign ad positioning herself as a fighter against Trump/ICE actions; contrasted with her primary opponent’s more abolitionist stance.
    Special. If you like this show and you like POSI America, I'm confident you'll love the message box. The last ad we're going to watch is the first ad from Maine Governor Janet…

Companies & orgs

  • Department of Homeland Security — Company · Key organization · 2 mentions · first at
    Discussed in relation to ICE funding and the broader context of immigration enforcement policies.
  • Protecting Democracy — Company · Political group · 1 mention · first at
    Mentioned as the sponsor of an ad pressuring Democrats on ICE funding.
    This is paid for a Democratic group called Protecting Democracy. The context of this is that the Democrats in Congress are negotiating with the Trump administration around some reforms around ICE tied to funding of the.
  • Crooked Media — Company · Host organization · 3 mentions · first at
    The media company producing the podcast, mentioned in passing.
    We'll let the viewers judge. So, over the course of the last many months in your time here at Crooked Media, we've had the opportunity to talk about many things, but we talked about nothing more than the main Senate race.

Concepts & topics

  • Ice King — Concept · Core topic · 3 mentions · first at
    Central theme of the episode, discussing the impact and funding of ICE in the context of immigration enforcement and political messaging.

Sponsors

  • Ziotics — Product · Sponsor · 2 mentions · first at
    Promoted as a probiotic drink designed to mitigate the effects of alcohol consumption, mentioned during a sponsor segment.

Full transcript with timestamps

The target audience here is not swing voters like a lot of ads we look at on this show. It is to rile up Democrats to call their members of Congress.

I like that they close on a close-up of her face because it's like own that. Own that, sister. Own your age. Own your experience. Own your wisdom. Own your scars issue.

Welcome to Political Experts React. I'm Dan Feifer. Joining me today, we should leave that in. Welcome to Political Experts React. I'm Dan Feifer.

And I'm Alex Wagner. Alex Wagner, how are you? You know, Dan, every time you say political experts react, I'm like, "Oo, I can't wait for the political expert to react." Who's that going to be?

We wait every week for that person to show up. We'll still be waiting this week. Dan,

we'll let the viewers judge. So, over the course of the last many months in your time here at Crooked Media, we've had the opportunity to talk about many things, but we talked about nothing more than the main Senate race.

I've never not been thinking about Susan Collins. We're not here to talk about the main Senate race, per se.

Per se. What I really want to talk about is messaging around ICE, how Democrats respond to it, how the party faithful is pressuring members of Congress to act on it. And it happens to be by coincidence that there is a lot of activity on the air and in digital and television ads on ICE stuff, mostly in Maine, because for all the attention that Minnesota is getting, ICE is also terrorizing the people of Maine as we speak. And it is playing into the Senate primary of which we will barely just glancingly discuss today.

We'll touch on it. We may not even hear the words gray planter in this podcast.

Well, I think we just Well, after that one. After that one. Okay. The first ad we're going to watch is pressuring Democrats on ICE funding. Let's take a look.

You read all these stories about ICE, you'll understand. They're they're doing a hell of a job. That's fine, dude.

I'm not mad, boy. Cuz we can't have those people in our country and we're getting them out. They're doing a hell of a job. This is paid for a Democratic group called Protecting Democracy. The context of this is that the Democrats in Congress are negotiating with the Trump administration around some reforms around ICE tied to funding of the Department of Homeland Security bill. There is a real pressure among some in the base to have Democrats go as far as they possibly can, even to try to defund ICE. We can talk about why that's not actually possible in this moment we're currently in, but what did you think of the ad and what do you think it says about our politics right now?

I thought the ad was brutal and totally effective. Trump's words are always disturbing to me, but then you overlay his rhetoric on the video of these people being executed on the street and it's just gutting. I think it's incredibly powerful. I think the idea of no money for murderers is tough tough stuff, right? Like tough stuff. We're talking about Department of Homeland Security funding. Obviously, there's a lot that goes into this funding that is not just ICE, but they have become and Border Patrol has become the flash point here. And to be calling them murderers is not incorrect. It is also a pretty stunning indictment of what this group of people has done to the the American public that that's now, you know, you can just say no money for murderers. I think he says the word ICE once.

He does. Yep. I was in Minneapolis for my podcast on Crooked Runaway Country and I saw Alex Freddy's memorial. You really feel the weight of it. Not that you wouldn't if you just saw it on videotape, but the the humanity is so present even in as he's dead. You know, there's so much it's so emotionally weighted and then you see the video and it never for me it never doesn't have an impact. So, I think it's really powerful. I will say and I think this for some reason this video really brought it home to me. There are people of color who are killed in brutal ways on streets and behind closed doors. Terrible things are happening to people of color. And it is a painful reminder that when white folks and admittedly like wonderful principled white folks are murdered in broad daylight, it impacts the country differently than when people of color are. And that makes me very sad. And that shouldn't sure change the brutality

of Alex Prey and Renee Good's deaths. But it is true that, you know, like there are videos of horrible things happening to people of color and there isn't the same grassroots movement to reform the the systems that allow them to be murdered like that. So, I just want to say that because the act

brought that home for me. So, just some context here in the sense that Congress in the vote they're going to take in the coming weeks cannot defund ICE. ICE gets most of its money from the quoteunquote big beautiful big ugly bill, whatever you want to call it, that passed last year. Because of the funding in that bill, ICE is the most highly funded law enforcement agency in the country. Because of that bill, overall immigration enforcement is better funded than every military in the world other than the than the American and the Chinese, which I think is a fact that people should know as they think about uh how money is spent. We're in a world in which we don't have money for cancer research or education or to keep rural hospitals open, but we can have this massive mass deportation forces doing these things

and and massive defense spending that is like bonkers. Just full bonkers. I think this ad is obviously incredibly effective. The goal, the target audience here is not swing voters like a lot of ads we look at on this show. It is to rile up Democrats to call their members of Congress and to essentially move the Overton window on immigration funding, not just for this fight, I think, but broadly to something in the neighborhood of abolish ICE,

right? And I think when you watch this and you see that how powerful that video is, you see the videos when it is overlay with Trump's Trump's words, the horror of both what happened and their response is bared right there. And it does make me think that how like challenging and emotional the politics of this are going to be in the Democratic primaries happening this year, but particularly in the 2028 primary because look, people can take a position they want to take in the 2026 Senate and House primaries, but Trump's still president. He's still going to be able to would be able to veto any bill that abolish ICE. There's not going to be a veto proof majority. But when someone's running for president and they're the ones who are going to be making the decisions about what goes in the budget, how to allocate resources, how to open a department or close the department, you know, I can't imagine

it's not going to be a huge part of the conversation in sort of a very very emotional and understandably heated ways.

Yeah. And that's, you know, we got a couple more years of this guy in office. Yeah.

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Our next ad is an attack ad against Susan Collins. In Minneapolis, innocent citizens gunned down. Here in Maine, ICE agents detaining local law enforcement. And Susan Collins is giving ICE even more power. As head of the committee that controls spending, Collins wrote the bill to increase ICE funding with no restrictions, no restraints, letting mass agents enter homes without warrants, raid churches and classrooms, tell Susan Collins to stop towing the party line, and start holding ICE accountable. What do you think of this one?

Substantively, I think it's important to get on the record about how Susan Collins is involved in ICE funding. She negotiated that spending deal before Alex Freddy was murdered, but after Alex Freddy was murdered, it's not like she was like, "Hold up, we got to reform ICE." You know, she has gone to RDHS Secretary Christy Gnome, and she personally made a plea to get ICE out of Maine, her state, and I think that's after the feds arrested 200 people in Maine. she's, you know, I I wouldn't say gone to the map, but I think she understands that she's vulnerable on the topic of ice and maybe she actually, you know, ethically doesn't agree what they're what they're doing to Mayors.

It's such a low bar for Senate Republicans, but she did call for an independent investigation into Alex Freddy's PR's death in Minneapolis, which is more than well, I don't know, the president of the United States was willing to do. She she took issue with Christine Gnome describing Alex Prey as a domestic terrorist, right? Like this doesn't make her a fighter no in terms of reform. And the fact of the matter is Susan Collins tends to do the bare minimum to skate by as a moderate. You know, I think it's great that it puts pressure on her as a piece of cinema, a television cinema. They're not breaking the mold, but I like the

Definitely not breaking the mold. I guess I like the single issue focus. And I think look, if you're looking for a reason to not like Susan Collins and if you're on the fence, holding ICE accountable is like not abolishing ICE. It's an appeal to, you know, people who are do not think of them aselves necessarily as partisans, but are disturbed by this chapter in American politics, but it does tow the line of like, you know, outrage directed on a specific issue towards someone who I think is, you know, going to be vulnerable. So, as a piece of political theater, I think it's effective.

Yeah. Like once again, it is a very typical ad. They probably did find and replace scripts, you know, in the script from other, you know, it's just it's not there's no creative genius happening here. Um, I think from a strategic point of view, there are a couple things that are interesting. One is you you went you listed all the things Susan Collins has done to appear like she is different than Trump and the Republicans on ICE. She also voted against the big beautiful bill. Therefore, she did not she can say she did not vote for the massive increase of voting, although she has written the bills that fund ICE on its yearly appropriations level. Like there is this challenge of running against Susan Collins, which is, as you point out, she does the bare minimum. And so she does all these symbolic things that suggest that she is different than a typical Republican. She's not as proTrump as others, but the end result

is the is the same. Brett Kavanagh, right? Bre where she actually did vote for him. But these cases where she is voting against people, but she's allowed to do that because her vote is not needed.

Oh yes. Oh yes. And so you you have to make the case that by being a Republican in that seat,

Susan Collins is facilitating what is happening. Even if she has a symbolic vote that suggests she disagrees, her disagreement is doing no good for the people of Mate.

The reason she's allowed to even be the no vote is because she knows it's safely going to pass.

Yes. When it ever whenever it matters, like Brett Kavanagh Exactly. She'll side with the Trump administration.

That this is one of the things that was one of the real problems of getting the Republicans getting to 53 Senate votes was it allowed Collins to have a free pass every single time. So she can vote against all the bad cap members. and vote against this bill and the bill still passes. And then the other thing is interesting is the tow the party line. Like one of the things Susan Collins has this nonpartisan reputation, it's always worth noting she won a 19 point swing, I think it was in 2020 when she was reelected by double digits when Biden was winning the state by nine. So she's hard to beat. So you have to make her be a Republican. This is how you always beat those last few remaining senators who are in states that vote for the other party for president by large numbers, right? It's how it's what they did to Sherid Brown, John Tester, what would have happened to Joe Mansion if he hadn't left. And it's what we have to do

to Susan Collins. They have to see her as a Republican and as a Republican. She is therefore complicit in what is Trump Trump is doing. No matter what she says or how she votes, the reality is the same.

Smok and mirrors. Susan Collins. Smoking mirrors. That's right. Stands for smoking mirrors.

The election year is here. And I'm not going to tell you this is the most important election in history. You've heard that before. But I will tell you it is a damn important election. This November is our best chance to send a message to Trump that what is happening in Minnesota, Maine, and elsewhere is unacceptable to actually get a real check on his power. And in my newsletter, the message box, we're going to be covering this midterm election on a near daily basis. I'm going to dig into the races that matter, help you understand the political trends are going to decide the election, and perhaps most importantly, give you real advice about how you can make a difference, which campaigns to support, which candidates have the best chance of winning, and how you can make an impact.

So, if you go to the link in the show description to sign up for Message Box, if you sign up now, you get your first 30 days free. It's an election year special. If you like this show and you like POSI America, I'm confident you'll love the message box. The last ad we're going to watch is the first ad from Maine Governor Janet Mills, who is running in the primary against a guy who was an oyster farmer.

What is his name? I'm not going to say it. It's Graham Platner. Either way, so let's check out this ad.

Governor Janet Mills, she blasted ICE. A federal government that has deployed mass law enforcement onto the streets, including here in Maine, stoking fear in our communities and killing American citizens in Minnesota. It's ridiculous and outrageous and unconstitutional.

We will not be intimidated. We will not be silenced. I will defend you with everything I have. If you seek to harm me, people, you will have to go through me first.

I'm Janet Mills and I approve this message. All right. What do you think? She's a fighter. Dan,

was that the implication of this? It was subtle. Yeah, super subtle. I didn't realize they were called main people. I thought they were called mayors.

I think it's I I've always heard maners, too. Yeah. can't get over Maine people. It makes them sound like aliens. I am not going to say bad things about Janet Mills, Dan. Even though you

I'm not going to ask I'm not either in this me into saying I'm not I'm not I am not doing that.

I think she had to do this ad. She's up against someone who's calling I think outright for the abolishment of ICE and saying it can't be reformed.

Yeah. I don't know if he's used the term he may have, but that's essentially been his argument.

He said I think it should absolutely be abolished. Yeah. There's the slogan and then there's the policy. Uh there are a lot of people out there who are using the policy but not the slogan right now.

Right. I get that and I get that it's fraud. It's very fraud. But he's but but he is being very clear that he wants ICE to be abolished or go away or never exist or whatever the words you want.

Yes. Some part of me doesn't even want to like put my foot in this bear trap because I just think it's this is a 2028 discussion. But for now, I mean, having said that, I I I guess in a primary, Graham Platner is better positioned because he is more strident and he is more clear and he is very outspoken and he is a better perhaps interlocutor. Having said that, Janet Mills is actually running the state. She's engaged in all of this stuff and yes, she is older, but I do think that there, you know, there it's good. I thought it was her launch video was great when you see her in the White House castigating or saying, "See you in court, Donald Trump." And I do think it's good to see her in this mode of, you know, battle ready and to some degree battle tested.

She looks like she's been through it, right? And I think that that is I like that they close on a a close-up of her face because it's like, own that. Own that, sister. Own that. Own your age. Own your experience. Own your wisdom. Own your scar tissue.

Yeah. So, I think this is a is this is a good spot. I think it's smart to run it now. I think more candidates should run spots tied to the things that are dominating the conversation because it's so hard to get your message out. And so if you are just like watching TV and you just see a generic ad about something you're not already talking about, it is you're on your phone, you're going to the bathroom, you're not paying attention,

hopefully not at the same time, but anyway, but if it's something that you're thinking about that's dominating the conversation that you're also seeing online, you're seeing you're talking to your friends about, and then you see an ad, that ad has a greater chance of being recalled than having an impact. So, I think that that is smart. I mean, it's obvious what her strategy is here. Her brand is fighting Trump. That's certainly her national brand because of that that viral moment you mentioned from the governor's meeting back in 2025.

She I think being a fighter has been her brand in Maine. Um I think that is her natural personality. This is not something she's adopting for the purpose of the campaign. One of the things that an older candidate has to do is show strength, right? Biden failed to do that. I don't know where she was the other day, but she said, "I'm not Joe Biden." very explicitly when asked a question about her age u which is very I mean everyone ages differently so

women tend to do better than men in their old age in literally every field uh but she said uh someone who's close to her who advised her campaign told me months ago that made very clear that he spent someone they spent time with Biden they spent time with her not the same and I I believe that so I think I think it's a good spot like she's she is under heat in Maine because this is happening while she's the governor and she is it's not her fault but it's feel so people there un she's unable to stop it

right she has no power to stop it but just ask two walls it's hard right exactly you're the mayor you're the governor you people are mad because you're in charge right or the president right like and so like getting out there showing that she is trying to stop it is the smart thing to do

yeah for both the people she's governing now and those she would like to represent later

yes exactly I will be curious to see how she talks about ICE not in the context of this like invasion of her state right now, but like ICE going forward. And you know, I don't can imagine she would be as strident or as aggressive as Platner has been. U because part of this is she is a DSC endorsed candidate. She is Chuck Schumer's candidate.

Okay, here we go. No, no, it's not even attack. It's not an attack. I'm not attacking Janet Mills. You were under this impression.

Oh, no. You're But you're right. It's important to point out her ties to the establishment that very much wants her. My point I'm going to make here, but the point I'm going to make is is the DSC usually gives people advice on how to handle issues like these.

Usually that advice is to sand the edges down on polarizing issues. So I'm just be curious how she will approach that. She is not a moderate or a centrist in the typical form. She's just more moderate than Graham Platner. So, I'm just I'm just like I think it's very interesting to see how she will handle we handle we have a lot of primaries where you have multiple candidates, you know, like in Michigan or you have a primary in Texas where you have two candidates, neither of whom is the DSC candidate, per se, although I imagine they might have a preference. Um, and here's one where you clearly have a candidate preferred by the establishment in Washington. Uh and because look and this is not to say that her opponent who I won't name

you. You just said it just so it's the third time. God damn it. It's so hard. Call him Hammer.

Graham Graham G or G Platner. Either one. Um Graham P. Graham P. Dan Flatner. Dan Flatner. The contours of the conversations we have about this is that I am vehemently anti-Jet Mills and vehemently pro Graham Platner. And that is not I just said his name, but that is actually not my position. Don't dumb it down.

My position is I don't think the DSC should have endorsed a candidate. Fair enough.

And I have concerns about the political judgment that would lead someone to be so sure of what voters want that you would put your after 2024 that you would endorse a establishment governor, establishment politician who is older.

I'm just here to defend old women of which I am one. Older women as being hail and hearty in a way that men are not. And she is a I 100 believe I I believe she's tough as nails. I believe she is

grandfather compelling interesting has a lot of baggage. They both The point is they both have baggage. They both they both have very real baggage and the voters we're going to have to of going to have to figure it out.

But not before we have 17 more podcasts on the main. Don't worry, it's not it's not till is it in August? I can't remember. I think it's a very then probably 20. I mean, I think it's a very long time from now. Twice a month we should go.

What if we just did a pod safe main show, you and I, once a week? Pod safe. Yeah,

I'm in. I'm all safe. Pod safe the main people. Pod. All right, that's that's all the main

nailed it. You we any of us could take. Okay, Alex Wagner, thank you for joining us. Everyone, go listen to Runway Country. Subscribe to Alex's Substack. How the hell bless you. Thank you, Dan. and I will talk to you guys soon.

You're the best.

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "Trump and MAGA FALL APART Over Devastating New Ad"?

Dan Feifer (Host), Alex Wagner (Host).

What is "Trump and MAGA FALL APART Over Devastating New Ad" about?

The discussion focuses on a new ad campaign aimed at energizing Democratic voters to pressure Congress regarding ICE funding, highlighting the impact of ICE on communities, particularly in Maine. The hosts analyze the messaging strategies used in the ad and the broader implications for the Democratic Party as they navigate key political issues.

What is mentioned in this Pod Save America episode?

9 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Alex Wagner, Dan Feifer, Ice King, Susan Collins, Janet Mills, Department of Homeland Security. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Trump and MAGA FALL APART Over Devastating New Ad"?

The episode runs 21 min; the transcript is about 4,408 words in 73 timestamped sections.

More from Pod Save America

About this transcript: the episode's spoken words as captioned on YouTube, split into timestamped sections. Reclip.Me locates every person, work and idea in the text, keeps the time it is first named, and quotes the words around it verbatim. Last updated February 5, 2026.