The 'Dark Fleet' Behind Venezuela's Oil Trade
The United States Coast Guard seized another oil tanker, the Olina, on Friday. It is the fifth Venezuela-linked tanker seized by US forces under President Trump, and the third since the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Earlier last week, the US seized a vessel near Iceland following a slow chase across the Atlantic Ocean. That ship, the Bella 1, was renamed the Marinera an...
21m Jan 12
21m
The White House Blames Victim In Minnesota ICE Shooting
On Thursday, protestors continued to gather in Minnesota’s largest city to stand up to Immigration and Customs Enforcement after an officer fatally shot a woman on Wednesday. The victim’s name was Renee Good. She was a US citizen, a parent, and a recent transplant to Minnesota. She is being remembered as a deeply loving person – her mother telling The Minnesota Star Tribune she was “one of the ...
25m Jan 09
25m
And Then The Majority Was 2
There are 435 members of the House of Representatives — and after the resignation of Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and the passing of California Representative Doug LaMalfa, the GOP’s majority is down to 218. It’s thin, even without discussing the number of Republicans that are going to leave office to retire, run for other positions, or just get away because being in Congress s...
26m Jan 08
26m
A Quack In Trump’s Presidency
It’s been a strange 12 months for Trump. He won the 2024 election on a wave of economic discontent, and responded by blowing up a wing of the White House, decimating foreign aid, and attempting to deport undocumented immigrants and political dissidents alike, before deciding that what his second term really needed was military adventurism in South America. But since last summer, his poll number...
23m Jan 07
23m
Did The J6ers Win?
Five years ago today, supporters of President Trump, emboldened by his false claims that the 2020 election was stolen, stormed the Capitol. Now, with Trump back in the Oval Office, it feels like the January 6th insurrectionists got everything they could have wanted – but did they? On his first day back in office, Trump pardoned more than 1,500 of the rioters. But dozens of those pardoned went o...
23m Jan 06
23m
Trump Extracts Oil -- And The Venezuelan President
Late Friday evening, President Donald Trump ordered the U.S. military operation that led to the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. After his capture, Maduro was taken by warship to the United States and then flown to New York, where he will face federal drug trafficking and weapons charges. There are a ton of questions around how this operation happened a...
24m Jan 05
24m
Donald Trump’s Pot Shot
On Thursday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing Attorney General Pam Bondi to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I substance to a Schedule III substance. Trump's order continues an effort begun by former President Joe Biden to change how the federal government views marijuana. Previously, under the U.S. Controlled Substances Act, marijuana had the same classification a...
22m Dec 19, 2025
22m
Why Is Trump So Obsessed With Rep. Ilhan Omar
President Trump has made multiple xenophobic comments about Somali immigrants over the past few weeks, following the findings of an investigation into social services fraud in Minnesota. Many of those arrested were of Somali origin or background — but since the President just pardoned a CEO convicted for fraud, it’s hard to believe he’s really concerned about the, you know, fraud. His remarks r...
20m Dec 18, 2025
20m
Quantifying Happiness In 2026
Unemployment is up. Two-thirds of Americans have recently struggled with the rising cost of groceries. And the President of the United States has occupied his time attempting to start a land war in Venezuela, posting on the internet, and blowing up the East Wing of the White House. Times are… tough. So what can we do, as individuals and as a society, to be happier? To find out, we spoke to Mich...
20m Dec 17, 2025
20m
Trump Can't Stop Saying Biden
Trump has been president for 11 months, and during that time, former President Joe Biden has basically left the public eye. Yet as Trump's own presidency has deflated like an old soufflé, he's gotten very focused on making sure we all know that Biden is still the problem. For more on Trump's increasing fixation on Joe Biden, as well as his horrifying comments on the murders of Rob Reiner and hi...
21m Dec 16, 2025
21m
If Tariffs Are So Great, Why Are There So Many Exemptions?
President Donald Trump loves tariffs. But according to a new analysis from Politico, more than half of US imports right now are not subjected to them. To find out why, we spoke to Paroma Soni. She's a data and graphics reporter at Politico, where she covers trade, immigration, agriculture and politics.And later in the show, two mass shootings occurred over the weekend — one in Sydney, Australia...
26m Dec 15, 2025
26m
ICE Polices The American Dream
The Trump Administration has put billions of dollars into building an immigration superstructure meant to punish those who have done nothing wrong and intimidate everyone else – including legal immigrants and US citizens. Weirdly enough, that’s proving not to be very popular. According to new polling from the Associated Press, Trump is now deeply underwater on the subject of immigration – with ...
22m Dec 12, 2025
22m
The GOP’s Plan For Your Healthcare
Monday is your deadline to pick an insurance plan on the Affordable Care Act marketplace – and there is still zero plan to ensure that the enhanced subsidies that make those premiums affordable – or, more affordable – will stay in place. But that won’t stop Congress from trying! The Senate is expected to vote today on two healthcare plans — one from Republicans, and one from Democrats. For deta...
23m Dec 11, 2025
23m
Billionaires Brawl Over Warner Bros.
We’ve been talking about the Paramount Skydance/Warner Brothers Discovery/Netflix Billionaire Boys Club Spectacular for a few days now. But it’s really worth digging into the details to understand how all of this could reshape our media diets – and our politics. If Netflix buys Warner Bros. Discovery, that could be very bad news for Hollywood. But if Paramount buys Warner Bros. Discovery, the T...
20m Dec 10, 2025
20m
The Vax Wars Are Here
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is likely to reverse its long-standing recommendation that all newborns be immunized against Hepatitis B. We spoke with Demetre Daskalakis, the former director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, about the long-term impact of the proposed changes, how parents should respond, and whether we should all worry about ...
23m Dec 09, 2025
23m
Why Trump’s Got A Big AI Problem
The Trump Administration has gone all in on artificial intelligence. It doesn’t hurt that AI’s biggest backers also happen to run the biggest companies on earth. Oh, and they also happen to have donated millions of dollars to Trump’s presidential campaign, inaugural committee, and even his fancy new ballroom. But it turns out that while Trump and his billionaire friends love AI, a lot of Republ...
21m Dec 08, 2025
21m
Rep. Jim Clyburn Offers A Historical Warning
The Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank, released a new survey this week in an attempt to figure out who, exactly, is a Republican these days. The takeaways? Newer Republican voters are more conspiratorial, more likely to be racist and antisemitic, and more likely to support the use of political violence. And they are pulling the GOP in their direction. This trend worries South Carol...
25m Dec 05, 2025
25m
Hegseth Takes His “Secretary of War” Title Too Seriously
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been under fire for his continually evolving explanations and blame-shifting regarding a September attack on an alleged “drug boat” in the Caribbean. Following a report from the Washington Post, the Associated Press found that the Pentagon was indeed aware that there were two survivors after the initial attack on the boat — and still carried out a follow-up st...
22m Dec 04, 2025
22m
President Trump Is Disconnected From His Beloved Base
President Trump is old, and it shows. But in his second term in the White House, he's not just old – he's cloistered. After building his political career on massive rallies, he's spent significantly more time this year on international travel and hanging out with billionaires, and significantly less time with the Americans who actually voted for him. Could that be why he's spent way more energy...
22m Dec 03, 2025
22m
With Next Phase Of Ceasefire Unclear, Gazans Brace For Winter
It's been nearly two months since the fragile ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas went into effect. The ceasefire is intended to be the first phase of an overarching plan to bring peace to the region after two years of war. But the next steps in the plan seem murky at best. Over the weekend, the Washington Post reported that countries that had planned to deploy troops to Gaza to keep t...
18m Dec 02, 2025
18m
Trump Capitalizes On The National Guard Shooting
Two members of the West Virginia National Guard were shot just a few blocks away from the White House, on Wednesday. One of the two shooting victims, 20-year-old Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, died of her injuries on Thursday. The alleged shooter is a 29-year-old man from Afghanistan who served in a “Zero Unit,” an Afghan military force that helped the US military. He moved to the United Stat...
26m Dec 01, 2025
26m
Protecting The Franchise: How Can We Secure Our Elections?
Fear is mounting about the integrity of next year’s elections and all the tricks MAGA World might be able to pull. How valid are those concerns? What are the reasons for confidence? Jane Coaston convenes a discussion with some of the elected officials and experts who know best: Democracy Docket founder Marc Elias, North Carolina Supreme Court Justice Allison Riggs, and Nevada Secretary of State...
1hr 3m Nov 26, 2025
1hr 3m
The Tennessee Democrat Fighting The MAGA Machine
Congress is not exactly a barrel of fun at the best of times. Still, after the unexpected exit of Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene last week, the vibes have reportedly never been worse. According to the Congressional Record, the 119th Congress has spent fewer days in session, held fewer votes, and done less procedurally than any Congress in years. And in the meantime, many Represe...
22m Nov 25, 2025
22m
MAGA Threats Made Him Leave The Country
A lot happened while we were off this weekend, from President Donald Trump's overly friendly meeting with New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani to Georgia Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene's resignation announcement. That was a doozy. In a 10-minute-long video on Friday, Greene announced that she's leaving Congress, and explained that she felt betrayed by the party – and the Pr...
25m Nov 24, 2025
25m
Trump's Grift Goes Global
From $400 million planes to $300 million ballrooms, from cryptocurrency to just plain… currency, President Donald Trump and his family have profited massively from his return to the White House. According to the Center for American Progress, the Trump family has received nearly $2 billion in cash and gifts since President Trump won the 2024 presidential election. This week, during Saudi Crown P...
27m Nov 21, 2025
27m
US Absent From Global Climate Conference
For the last two weeks, a critically important climate conference has been taking place in Belem, Brazil. For the first time in 30 years, the United States did not send a delegation to the conference. Outside of the event, massive groups of Indigenous people have gathered to demand that world leaders do something to curtail the effects of climate change, which their communities are already feel...
22m Nov 20, 2025
22m
"Things Happen": Trump Goes All In On MBS
President Donald Trump joyously welcomed Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, also known as MBS, to the White House on Tuesday. That's despite the fact that, according to US intelligence, MBS allegedly ordered the 2018 murder of Saudi dissident and journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The meeting was supposed to center on Saudi investments in the United States in exchange for military equipm...
25m Nov 19, 2025
25m
The U.S. Takes Aim At Venezuela
This week, President Donald Trump told reporters that he would be willing to hold talks with Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro. His statements came as the Navy’s largest aircraft carrier arrived in the Caribbean Sea. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has conducted weeks of attacks on alleged drug boats off the coast of the South American country. But these drug trafficking allegations migh...
25m Nov 18, 2025
25m
Were There Any Winners In The Government Shutdown?
The longest government shutdown in American history ended last week, thanks to 8 Senate Democrats giving up the fight to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies. The infighting between Democrats hasn't stopped since. But what if Democrats' caving was actually a good thing? Tim Miller of the Bulwark joins the show to discuss how the Democrats may be in a prime strategic position as Republicans deal...
22m Nov 17, 2025
22m
Make America What Again? Policy Priorities For A Progressive Future
Good policy is good politics, or so the saying goes. So, uh, how do we agree on what that is? Jane Coaston talks with three of the left’s most prominent policy thinkers: Democratic strategist Waleed Shahid, Neera Tanden of the Center for American Progress, and writer Matthew Yglesias of Slow Boring.
34m Nov 15, 2025
34m
Scam Calls Are Getting Worse: Here's Why
This week, a court filing showed that the Trump Administration has declared the current funding structure for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to be illegal. The agency was created in the wake of the global financial crisis to protect consumers and collect consumer complaints. Project 2025 architect Russell Vought is currently acting director of the CFPB. He has said repeatedly that he ...
22m Nov 14, 2025
22m
The Government Reopens — To More Epstein Chaos
The House returned on Wednesday and ended the longest shutdown in government history. House Republicans were joined by six democrats to fund the government through January 30th. Two Republicans voted against the bill. The final vote was 222-209. Earlier in the day, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released three emails from and to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that appear to ...
23m Nov 13, 2025
23m
Misread the Moment: Rep. McBride On Senate Democrats
The government shutdown is inching closer to an end as members of the House of Representatives return to Washington today. They are expected to vote on a bill to end the shutdown this week, after eight Senate Democrats voted with Republicans to advance a budget package on Monday night. The package includes funding for the government until January and would also reinstate federal employees who w...
25m Nov 12, 2025
25m
Sen. Sanders Slams The Surrender Dems
Monday night, the Senate passed legislation to reopen the government, sending it to the House. The eight Senate Democrats who reached a deal with Republicans over the weekend defended their compromise ahead of the vote Monday. But many Democrats publicly criticized them for caving to the GOP without guaranteeing an extension to Affordable Care Act subsidies. Vermont Independent Senator Bernie S...
24m Nov 11, 2025
24m
Inside the Deal to End the Shutdown
On Sunday evening, senators from both parties reached a deal that could bring an end to the government shutdown, which has lasted well over a month. The deal would include a new stopgap measure that would fund the government through January, plus three different spending measures. Democrats are also negotiating the rehiring of the more than 4,000 federal employees who were laid off during the s...
20m Nov 10, 2025
20m
If Not A Recession, Why Does It Feel Like One?
After Tuesday’s election results, everyone seems to have gotten the message that affordability is king. Democrats, Republicans, and even President Donald Trump have been talking about the costs of various things, like healthcare, groceries, and Thanksgiving dinner ever since. But for a lot of Americans, making ends meet has been hard for a while. To talk more about the disconnect between what t...
25m Nov 07, 2025
25m
Is Trump About To Lose His Trade War?
It was a big day for President Donald Trump as the Supreme Court heard arguments on his power to impose tariffs unilaterally. And the justices seemed… skeptical. Even Trump-friendly Justice Neil Gorsuch questioned Trump Administration lawyers on their claim that tariffs are foreign policy, so the President can do what he wants. Oregon is one of the states suing the Trump administration over tar...
23m Nov 06, 2025
23m
Dems Win Big: A Midterm Preview?
Tuesday was Election Day and Democrats won big! Voters in New York City elected Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani as their next mayor. In Georgia, Democrats won their first statewide elections in 20 years, flipping two seats on the board that controls electricity costs in the state – a direct response to rising power prices. And in New Jersey, Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill won a tough race to ...
25m Nov 05, 2025
25m
Chicago Fights Back
A federal judge once again blocked the Trump Administration from sending the National Guard to Portland over the weekend — but if Trump is successful in the courts, Portlanders can look to the great city of Chicago for a preview of what may be in store. Since ICE began operations in September, there have been violent raids on apartment buildings and near-constant activity from aggressive federa...
25m Nov 04, 2025
25m
The GOP's Anti-Semitic Turn
Last week, former Fox News host and conservative pundit Tucker Carlson invited white supremacist and antisemite Nick Fuentes onto his highly-ranked podcast for a friendly conversation about Israel and conservatism. The podcast episode has garnered millions of views – and highlighted a dangerous schism on the American Right. Because while many conservatives condemned Fuentes for his racism and a...
26m Nov 03, 2025
26m
Will Trump's Trade Truce With China Last?
President Donald Trump announced a trade truce with Chinese President Xi Jinping after a 90-minute meeting in Busan, South Korea, on Thursday. But what actually came out of the truce seems… less than meets the eye. According to Axios, Trump reduced tariffs against China in exchange for promises from the Chinese president to buy American soybeans and oil. However, the deal appears to be largely ...
23m Oct 31, 2025
23m
The Redistricting Game
A Virginia judge allowed the state’s Democrats to pursue a redistricting plan on Wednesday that would permit them to amend the state’s constitution and redraw its congressional districts before next year’s midterm elections – despite a lawsuit from Virginia Republicans. Those Democrats are following a national trend, kicked off by President Trump. Back in August, Trump called on Texas to redraw...
26m Oct 30, 2025
26m
Is This Mamdani's Moment
Highly anticipated elections are happening across the country on Tuesday. In states from California to Virginia, Americans will head to the polls in big numbers on November 4th. In New York City, voters are set to pick a new mayor – choosing between former New York governor Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an independent, Republican Curtis Sliwa, and the frontrunner, Democratic Socialist Zohran ...
21m Oct 29, 2025
21m
The Price of Care: Fixing The ACA
The main issue keeping the government closed is healthcare — specifically, the enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies that have been in place since 2021 and further lowered premium costs for Americans. Democrats want the enhanced subsidies extended, Republicans don’t. Without them, folks who rely on healthcare plans they bought on the exchange will see their premiums skyrocket. But there are ot...
22m Oct 28, 2025
22m
The Reality of Being An American Farmer Right Now
Chinese and American negotiators announced on Sunday that they had agreed to a “framework of a deal” on tariffs ahead of President Donald Trump’s expected meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. But in the meantime, farmers are getting walloped by Trump’s trade war with China. During Trump’s first term in office, his tariffs led to steep price drops in American soybeans, prompting massive ba...
25m Oct 27, 2025
25m
FBI Takes Down NBA-Mafia Gambling Ring
On Thursday, FBI Director Kash Patel announced over 30 indictments as part of a massive investigation into a criminal gambling ring. Those indicted included prominent NBA players and coaches. Oh, and also the Mafia. The announcement comes just as the NBA begins its season and at a time when sports betting has never been more prominent. Bookmakers have deals with major sporting leagues and celeb...
21m Oct 24, 2025
21m
The Key to Unlocking the Epstein Files
With the government shutdown in its third week, the House of Representatives is still out of session – and votes aren’t getting scheduled. That includes a vote on legislation that would force the Department of Justice to release files centered on financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. At the same time, House Speaker Mike Johnson has delayed the swearing in of Arizona Democrat Ade...
21m Oct 23, 2025
21m
Trump’s Deadly Attacks in the Caribbean Sea
Since the start of September, President Donald Trump has ordered a series of lethal strikes on boats in the Caribbean Sea, killing dozens of people. His administration has justified the attacks by accusing the boats of carrying drugs. But, we’re more than two months in, and we still haven’t seen any substantial evidence that the people killed were involved in trafficking narcotics. Meanwhile, T...
23m Oct 22, 2025
23m
This Supreme Court Could Change The Future of Elections
In two weeks, millions of Americans will be voting — but a Supreme Court case could change elections as we know them. Last week, the court heard arguments in Louisiana vs. Callais, a case that centers on Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Basically, the court is deciding whether or not states can use race to draw voting maps — and depending on what it decides, it could give Republicans the abi...
24m Oct 21, 2025
24m
Over 7 Million Americans Protested Against Trump
Millions of Americans were in the streets over the weekend, rallying against President Donald Trump and his administration's latest authoritarian escalations. Organizers for the 'No Kings' protests said more than 7 million people turned out to more than 2,700 pro-democracy rallies across the country. Republicans tried their best to demonize the protesters saying the "hate America" demonstration...
27m Oct 20, 2025
27m