Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff | Podcast Guru

Details

Independent Americans is a daily news show hosted by Paul Rieckhoff. He’s a fighter, a patriot, and an independent political and media force to be reckoned with. After serving as a soldier in Iraq in 2004, Rieckhoff emerged as one of the most dynamic political and social leaders in America. In every episode, he breaks down the most important issues facing our country. And he interviews the most influential and compelling people. He’s taking on Republicans, Democrats—and everyone in between. If you’re in the angry middle, Independent Americans reminds you that you’re not alone. We’re all in this together. Join the Independent Americans movement and subscribe now. Produced by Righteous Media.

Recent Episodes

Veterans Sue New York Over Closed Primaries. Hegseth Purges 20% of Generals. Iraq Ends After 20 Years — Iran Just Beginning. Media Blitz Pod

The rigged two-party system just picked a fight with the wrong people. Paul Rieckhoff and Independent Voter Project attorney Chad Peace are taking New York State to court over closed primaries that force 270,000 New York veterans — and 2.7 million nationwide — to surrender their independence just to cast a meaningful vote. It's a First Amendment fight, a constitutional fight, and a fight that starts in New York but is built to go national. If you've ever walked your kid past a public school on primary day and had to explain why dad can't vote, this episode is for you.

14 MIN

Friday Football: Connell McShane. How to fairly cover Trump’s America on TV.

Pete Hegseth just labeled the press treasonous. The White House calls reporters the enemy of the state. And somewhere between the hot takes and the hate mail, working journalists still have to show up every day and tell Americans the truth. On this Friday Football edition, Paul sits down with News Nation anchor Connell McShane — one of the most fair, prepared, and genuinely decent people in cable news — to pull back the curtain on how a centrist newsroom actually operates in Trump's America. McShane breaks down his daily discipline, the independent media bias ratings he uses as a north star, and why he believes a free press is both a privilege and a right.

35 MIN

Let vets vote. 3.1 million New Yorkers locked out of primaries. Rieckhoff & IVA files landmark lawsuit to blow up closed primaries.

Paul Rieckhoff is on the courthouse steps in Foley Square, filing suit against the state of New York. The question in front of the court is as old as the republic and as urgent as this news cycle: does the right to vote derive from citizenship, or from joining a political party? In New York, 25.4% of the electorate — 3.1 million voters — is shut out of the primaries that actually decide most elections. Public schools. Public workers. Public machines. Private party gatekeeping. It is unfair, un-American, and the plaintiffs argue, unconstitutional.

17 MIN

Trump’s Iran quagmire meets the Midterms. Independent vets lead the charge while Democrats play catch up. Latino Voters in Texas Turning on the GOP. Media Blitz Pod

Paul Rieckhoff joins the MSNBC table with Nikki McCann Ramirez of Rolling Stone and former Harris senior advisor Mike Nellis to break down the political sucking chest wound of Trump's Iran war — and how it is bleeding into every corner of the 2026 midterms. From Texas, where Republicans are burning nine figures to defend a state that was never supposed to be competitive, to Nebraska, Kansas, South Dakota, and Alaska, where independent veterans are running as kryptonite to GOP incumbents, this is the clearest read yet on why Trump is now more unpopular with true independents than Nixon at the height of Watergate.

19 MIN

“Why I’m Suing the State of NY.” The #1 threat to America isn’t Trump — it’s AI. OpenAI meddles with three federal sites. Iran War sucking chest wound hits GOP at the pump.

The number one threat to America isn't Donald Trump — it's AI. That's Paul Rieckhoff's argument on episode 635, and the New York Times just handed him fresh evidence: OpenAI's own technology went rogue this summer and meddled with three US government websites without the lab's knowledge. NATO, the UN, Congress, the World Bank — the institutions built to hold the line — can't keep up. Congress isn't even in session. This is a failure of imagination on par with the run-up to 9/11, and it demands bipartisan regulation and international cooperation before AI touches the grid, the military, or the vote.

23 MIN