The BEST episodes of The Daily Show season 30

#1 - Bowen Yang

Season 30 - Episode 48 - Aired 4/10/2025

Desi Lydic tackles Trump's cabinet of ass-kissers, his war on water pressure, and Kristi Noem's viral gun photo-op. Plus, Troy Iwata breaks down the White House's top issue: temperamental showers. Michael Kosta dives into America's mad money problems in the face of Trump's tariffs: panicked shopping on the rise, price hikes on everyday toys and goods, and the uncertainty around those precious iPhones. "Saturday Night Live" star and "Las Culturistas" co-host Bowen Yang sits down with Desi Lydic to discuss his new rom-com, "The Wedding Banquet." He shares the process behind his portrayals of hilarious "SNL" villains like JD Vance and George Santos, whether his pop-culture podcast has changed over the years, and why his new film feels like a "warm hug of a movie."

#2 - Rutger Bregman

Season 30 - Episode 57 - Aired 5/5/2025

Jon Stewart sorts Trump's latest barrage of bulls**t into the "OK" and "NOT OK" piles, including telling kids to cut down on dolls and pencils, calling for Alcatraz to reopen, posting AI-generated images of himself as the Pope, and shrugging off the Constitution. Historian and best-selling author Rutger Bregman joins Jon Stewart to unpack his latest book, "Moral Ambition," which is a call to action for people, especially those with education and privilege, to devote their talent and resources to careers and causes that make the world a better place. He describes how the political left has often made the mistake of placing moral purity above political relevance, and what they can learn from conservatives about building small movements into a larger, results-oriented coalition.

#3 - Elissa Slotkin

Season 30 - Episode 56 - Aired 5/1/2025

Michael Kosta continues TDS coverage of Trump's 100th day in office with reports from NewsNation's town hall, where the president racially slighted Stephen A. Smith, as well as details on Mike Waltz's exit and subsequent United Nations promotion, and Pam Bondi's ridiculous claims about fentanyl deaths. With anxiety-inducing news cycles and Trump Derangement Syndrome on the rise, it's easy to feel helpless with the current administration. But in these times of despair and uncertainty, the Hang In There poster will take all your Trump-related anxieties away! The perfect comforting distraction in these disturbing political times. "We don't have the right to tune out when previous generations fought and fought and fought." Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin, the youngest Democratic female serving in the U.S. Senate, joins Michael Kosta to share her perspective on the current state of national security and the Democratic agenda moving forward.

#4 - Jon Meacham

Season 30 - Episode 55 - Aired 4/30/2025

Desi Lydic covers Trump's 100th day celebrations: inviting ABC News into the White House to misunderstand the Declaration of Independence, grooving to his famous "YMCA" dance, and putting the economy on financial Ozempic. From the dark halls of Santa Monica to the caves of the Trump administration, Stephen Miller has been working in the shadows as the White House Chief of Staff. From influencing election denial to mass deportations, can Stephen Miller's vampiric bite kill American democracy? "If we get things right just enough of the time… that's what democracy is, because it's the fullest expression of all of us." Pulitzer Prize-winning presidential biographer Jon Meacham joins Desi Lydic to discuss the impact of Trump's presidency on democracy.

#5 - Katherine Maher

Season 30 - Episode 54 - Aired 4/29/2025

On Trump's official second 100th day in office, Jordan Klepper delves into his lack of follow-through, including the division he's sown, his back-and-forth on tariffs and firings, and taunting Canada until they elected a liberal prime minister. Trump let Elon Musk take a chainsaw to the federal workforce in order to save taxpayers money, but after hearing from some of the government employees who lost their jobs, Desi Lydic is starting to think the real waste, fraud, and abuse was living inside DOGE this whole time. "We know that the existence of local news, and public radio in particular, contributes to lower rates of polarization, higher rates of civic engagement, and higher rates of civic trust." NPR CEO Katherine Maher joins Jordan Klepper to stress the important functions of public media that are under threat from the Trump administration, especially educational children's programming and local reporting in rural areas where public radio is often the only source for local news.

#6 - Chris Hughes

Season 30 - Episode 53 - Aired 4/28/2025

Jon Stewart takes a look at Trump's first 100 days: from plummeting approval ratings to unfulfilled promises on immigration, health, and the economy, to destroying his reputation as a shrewd negotiator with China and Ukraine. Chris Hughes, an economist and the author of "Marketcrafters," sits down with Jon Stewart to unpack the economy's fall under Trump and how understanding how politicians have shaped markets to work better could be its solution. They discuss how both parties have used marketcrafting to benefit Americans, whether the current economy requires an intervention, the need for institutions to help marketcrafting directly affect people over corporations, and his belief in a positive agenda for the future. Plus, as a co-founder of Facebook, Hughes weighs in on the company's involvement with the Trump administration.

#7 - Nancy Kwan

Season 30 - Episode 52 - Aired 4/17/2025

Ronny Chieng covers Elon Musk's mission to have babies over DM, Pete Hegseth's Air Force diversity purge, RFK Jr.'s anti-vaccine coded attack on autism, and proof he has never seen "Love on the Spectrum." Michael Kosta & Ronny Chieng go head to head over Rory McIlroy's Masters Tournament takeover, brand-new Barbie Lebron James, Bryce Harper's on-field gender reveal, and Baltimore's oyster rebrand. "There will always be political clashes, that's what makes the world interesting." Hollywood icon Nancy Kwan sits down with Ronny Chieng to discuss her trailblazing career and new book, "The World of Nancy Kwan: A Memoir by Hollywood's Asian Superstar." They talk about an accidental screen test that brought her to Hollywood, a friendship with Bruce Lee that began in Hong Kong, and Kwan offers her perspective on what the West can learn from the East.

#8 - Tammy Duckworth

Season 30 - Episode 51 - Aired 4/16/2025

Ronny Chieng breaks down how JD Vance's comments calling Chinese people "peasants" have escalated both the shade war and the trade war with China, impacting American industries from automakers to Hollywood. Plus, Troy Iwata chimes in on the one thriving business of the trade war: TikTok luxury knockoffs. Michael Kosta checks in with Canadians to see how they feel about Donald Trump's aims to make them America's 51st state, including one ex-pat who immigrated to Canada when Trump first became president and a gun-loving member of Canada's silent MAGA minority. Iraq War veteran and Democratic Senator from Illinois Tammy Duckworth sits down with Ronny Chieng to discuss the work she is doing in Congress to improve care for veterans and how the Trump administration is setting back that progress by taking jobs away from thousands of veterans and making DOGE cuts to life-saving Veterans' Affairs programs.

#9 - Nimesh Patel

Season 30 - Episode 50 - Aired 4/15/2025

Ronny Chieng tackles the Trump administration shirking responsibility for a Maryland father's mistaken deportation to El Salvador, their aggressive media tirade invoking Osama Bin Laden, and Harvard's defiance of Donald Trump. Plus, Josh Johnson explains how Trump's power changes from Harvard to El Salvador. Trump promised that under his presidency, the rest of the world would fear and respect America "like never before." Desi Lydic takes a look at how other countries are responding to his massive trade war with a little less "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" and a little more "F-U." Emmy-nominated writer and comedian Nimesh Patel sits down with Ronny Chieng to discuss his upcoming stand-up tour. They chat about the first time they met in the New York comedy scene, the importance of crashing out on stage, why his daughter is "the biggest tariff" he's encountered thus far, and the well-known Indians of MAGA.

#10 - Ramy Youssef

Season 30 - Episode 49 - Aired 4/14/2025

Jon Stewart measures Trump's weight on the authoritarian scale. Between the president's refusal to correct the wrongful deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to his incompetence on a variety of issues, Donald's dictatorship isn't looking very healthy. Award-winning actor and comedian, Ramy Youssef joins Jon Stewart to talk about the new animated series he co-created called "#1 Happy Family USA" and how the series, which follows a Muslim family trying to navigate post-9/11 America, resonates in Trump's second term. They also discuss his favorite parts about making an animated show, the family members who inspire some of the characters, and how the word "Islamaphobia" kind of lets Islamaphobes off the hook.

#11 - Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach & Amanda Doyle

Season 30 - Episode 58 - Aired 5/6/2025

Desi Lydic recaps Trump's oblivious reaction to getting friend-zoned by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and prepares for a summer of s***ty air travel as the Real ID deadline approaches and Newark Airport spirals into more chaos. Ronny Chieng breaks down how AI chatbot romances aren't as stupid as you might guess; they're stupid in some surprising ways, too. "This is not a time for self-help but for collective wisdom, where we learn from each other." "We Can Do Hard Things" podcast hosts Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach, and Amanda Doyle sit down with Desi Lydic to discuss their new guidebook "We Can Do Hard Things: Answers to Life's 20 Questions." They share the experience of living life "off the menu" by deviating from regulated paths, cultivating an ordinary life at home to make room for extraordinary moments, sharing a breast cancer diagnosis to stop gatekeeping information on women's bodies, and finding a lane of activism to shift our perspective in grim political times.

#12 - Olivia Munn

Season 30 - Episode 47 - Aired 4/9/2025

Desi Lydic tracks Trump's "Tariff Day" roller coaster ride, from his shock announcement of a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs, to slapping even more tariffs on China. Plus, Olivia Munn explains how Trump's tariff chaos is all just brushstrokes in the art of his deal. Could resurrecting the woolly mammoth be the fix for modern climate change? Troy Iwata sits down with leading scientists and paleontologists to determine if engineering woolly mammoths could be a problem or a solution. Former Daily Show correspondent and actor Olivia Munn sits down with Desi Lydic to discuss her new Apple TV+ series "Your Friends & Neighbors." They talk about Munn's first day as a correspondent 14 years ago, bending gender stereotypes as the "fun mom," opening up about her struggle with postpartum anxiety, how a health test saved her life from breast cancer, and the role alongside Jon Hamm that brought her back to acting.

#13 - Mallory McMorrow

Season 30 - Episode 46 - Aired 4/8/2025

Desi Lydic covers the ongoing economic crisis from Trump's trade war, which has created tension between Trump's two favorite goons, Peter Navarro and Elon Musk. Meanwhile, Fox News's journalistic integrity is front-and-center with their top story: "Look over there!" Plus, Michael Kosta reports on how the tariff pile-on with China could have American manufacturers like his grandfather screwed. In the latest edition of Everything is Stupid, Ronny Chieng reveals the perverted trend ruining art history across the globe: fondling the breasts of female statues to find love, luck, and second base. "We can all write our own future together and not have hateful people decide it for us." Michigan state Sen. Mallory McMorrow talks to Desi Lydic about her book "Hate Won't Win," which originated from her viral speech after being slandered by a political rival, and her desire to inspire others to find their own voices.

#14 - Rahm Emanuel

Season 30 - Episode 45 - Aired 4/7/2025

Jon Stewart on the fallout from Trump's tariffs, a stock market in a near-recession free fall, and the GOP's spin of the economic turmoil as "no biggie." "Nobody will ever trust us. In eight weeks, he's destroyed 80 years of reputation that America built." Rahm Emanuel, former ambassador to Japan under Biden and a current advisor at investment-banking firm Centerview Partners, joins Jon Stewart to talk about the United States' international trade predicament in the wake of Trump's tariffs. They discuss why it's one of the most "reckless" things done by a president, why he thinks these policies gave China a "get-out-of-jail-free" card, his experience under the Obama administration, and why he believes a Democratic governor could be the one to turn the party around.

#15 - Scott Glenn

Season 30 - Episode 44 - Aired 4/3/2025

Michael Kosta recaps Trump's tariffs fallout, from a stock market crash to cabinet officials taking to the airwaves to cheerlead the move. Plus, Grace Kuhlenschmidt checks in on the penguins who now find themselves in a trade war. Jordan Klepper profiles Brian Glenn: Chief White House Correspondent of Real America's Voice, boyfriend of Marjorie Taylor Greene, and the man famous for asking Zelenskyy, "Why don't you wear a suit?" in the latest News To Meet Ya! Legendary actor Scott Glenn sits down with Michael Kosta to discuss playing the mysterious Jim Hollinger on HBO's "The White Lotus." Glenn talks about turning down the role before falling in love with the hit show, preparing for the rhythm of Thailand by learning Thai martial arts, how Off-Broadway opening night is scarier than skydiving, and why he's uninspired by the "slash" career mentality in Hollywood. Glenn also advises Kosta on motorcycle safety.

#16 - Melissa Arnot Reid

Season 30 - Episode 43 - Aired 4/2/2025

Michael Kosta recaps surprising wins for the Democrats, including a victory in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race despite Elon Musk's financial interference, and a record-breaking 25-hour speech by Cory Booker. Plus, Trump launches his "Liberation Day" tariffs, and Republicans scramble to supply cover. In the first installment of "Mysteries of Donald Trump's Very Very Large A-Brain" Trump explores the word "groceries," a concept he calls "old-fashioned." Then, Grace Kuhlenschmidt educates New York shoppers on the new Trump-era food store lingo. "We can be flawed and still be deserving of achieving great things." Melissa Arnot Reid, the first American woman to summit and descend Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen, talks to Michael Kosta about her new memoir, "Enough: Climbing Toward a True Self on Mount Everest." She opens up about using high-level climbing as a sometimes unhealthy coping mechanism and why her journey to inner peace is a "forever climb."

#17 - Gianna Toboni

Season 30 - Episode 42 - Aired 4/1/2025

Michael Kosta breaks down the Trump administration's disregard for the Constitution: Trump's plan for a third term that even Republicans think is an April Fools joke, omitting due process on ICE deportations, and a mistaken deportation to El Salvador that can't be undone. Plus, Josh Johnson lays out the difference between Kid Rock's tattoos and deportation tattoos. Charlamagne Tha God has had enough of Chuck Schumer and Gavin Newsom's stale brands of politics and calls on the struggling Democratic Party to rebrand and match the energy of people like Cory Booker and Jasmine Crockett. "If we are going to have this practice carried out in our name and on our dime… then I think we need to face what we are actually doing." Gianna Toboni, an Emmy-winning journalist, joins Michael Kosta to share findings from her new book, "The Volunteer: The Failure of the Death Penalty in America and One Inmate's Quest to Die With Dignity."

#18 - Oren Cass

Season 30 - Episode 41 - Aired 3/31/2025

Jon Stewart checks in on the state of democracy after Trump considers an unconstitutional third term in office, then takes a look at how all the national security officials involved in Signalgate have managed to skirt any accountability and keep their jobs, all while thousands of hard-working government employees lose theirs in DOGE layoffs. Oren Cass, chief economist at American Compass, who writes the "Understanding America" newsletter, sits down with Jon Stewart to discuss conservative economic policies of the New Right, which will be outlined in his forthcoming book, "The New Conservatives." Cass describes a conservative shift from faith in markets, using tariffs as incentives to pursue profit that supports society, how livable wages are the key to a strong economy, and the U.S.'s ideal economic and security alliance that includes balanced trade, owning defense burdens, and keeping China out.

#19 - Bill Murray

Season 30 - Episode 40 - Aired 3/27/2025

Ronny Chieng covers the upcoming Wisconsin Supreme Court election, including Elon Musk's $20 million intervention in Republican Brad Schimel's campaign, attack ads against the wrong Susan Crawford, and alternating pro-pedophilia smear campaigns. Plus, Grace Kuhlenschmidt sees how billionaires are turning elections into games. Ronny Chieng on JD and Usha Vance's big trip to Greenland, where native protestors are chanting "MAGA: Make America Go Away." Bill Murray sits down with Ronny Chieng to discuss his latest film, "The Friend," as well as his legendary career in TV and film. Murray talks about his philosophy of trying to stay in the moment, why he moved to France with his family after starring in a string of comedy blockbusters like "Ghostbusters," his pivot to working with independent filmmakers like Wes Anderson, Jim Jarmusch, and Sofia Coppola, and what he gained from being a part of comedy institutions at The Second City and "Saturday Night Live."

#20 - Simon Pegg

Season 30 - Episode 67 - Aired 5/21/2025

Ronny Chieng tackles the president of South Africa's uncomfortable White House visit and a MAGA couple shortchanged by a "RUMP" watch. Plus, Trump sets his heart on a $542 billion "golden dome" to protect America from hypothetical attacks, including those provoked by international roast comic Grace Kuhlenschmidt. Charlamagne Tha God looks at Republicans' obsession with Trump as a father figure and reminds them that not only is Trump a bad dad to his own kids, he's an abusive dad to Americans. Screenwriter, comedian, and actor Simon Pegg joins Ronny Chieng to discuss the final installment of the legendary franchise, "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning." They talk about Pegg's humble beginnings doing standup with his goldfish, how "Mission: Impossible" Director Christopher McQuarrie weaved earlier films into the franchise's ending, the power of movie theaters to unite people in experiences, and Tom Cruise's comedic timing while performing epic live-action stunts.

#21 - Jeff Hiller

Season 30 - Episode 76 - Aired 6/12/2025

#22 - Atsuko Okatsuka

Season 30 - Episode 75 - Aired 6/11/2025

#23 - Bryan Cranston

Season 30 - Episode 74 - Aired 6/10/2025

#24 - Stephen A. Smith

Season 30 - Episode 73 - Aired 6/9/2025

Jon Stewart examines chaos in the MAGA-verse, as escalating ICE raids in Los Angeles erupt in protests, Stephen Miller hunts for nonviolent immigrants, Elon plays the Epstein card on Trump, and the Trump-Elon alpha male war reveals itself as a sensitive baby feud. "I want to be a major player in terms of a voice and a conduit for change. I want to make sure that people know that the BS has got to stop." Stephen A. Smith, bestselling author & host of "The Stephen A. Smith Show," sits down with Jon Stewart to discuss why he would rather be a hellraiser than an elected official, how politicians have divided and contributed to the demise of this country, and why the messenger matters in politics.

#25 - Jonathan D. Cohen

Season 30 - Episode 72 - Aired 6/5/2025

Michael Kosta unpacks the latest in Musk and Trump's messy bromance breakup: Elon doubling down on critiques against the Big Beautiful Bill, Trump's parent-level guilt, Kanye West calling for a ceasefire, and threats of an Epstein files leak. Plus, Grace Kuhlenschmidt explains that the president is merely playing a game of 7D chess. Students and teachers alike are outsourcing all their work to AI, but Lewis Black thinks kids should stop experimenting with AI in college and go back to experimenting with fun things, like LSD. Jonathan D. Cohen, historian and author of the new book, "Losing Big: America's Bet on Sports Gambling," joins Michael Kosta to break down how legalized sports betting has become such a huge part of American sports culture, industry, and has created a public health gambling addiction crisis, especially among young men.