The US pilot reportedly ejected and has been rescued, despite an Iranian bounty offered for his capture. Another crew member may still be missing in Iran. We hear the latest, and discuss the perils of rescue missions in hostile territory with former US Marine Corps Special Operations specialist Jonathan Hackett.
Also in the programme: Myanmar general installed as president of the country in a bid for legitimacy by the military regime; and the friction between Pope Leo XIV and a US administration at war.
(Photo: A US Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft takes off for a mission supporting Operation Epic Fury during the Iran war at an undisclosed location, March 9, 2026. Credit: US Air Force/Handout via REUTERS)
Plus: OpenAI’s Fidji Simo to take medical leave as part of leadership changeup ahead of planned IPO. And a judge rejects the Justice Department’s bid to renew subpoenas against Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. Katherine Sullivan hosts.
An artificial-intelligence tool assisted in the making of this episode by creating summaries that were based on Wall Street Journal reporting and reviewed and adapted by an editor.
Oil has soared to $110 per barrel, but hasn’t hit the economy yet. We discuss why and than get to the hottest IPO ever, SpaceX, and what the future of the space economy might look like.
Travis Hoium, Lou Whiteman, and Dan Caplinger discuss:
- Oil markets
- SpaceX’s $2 trillion IPO
- Our mini-portfolio
- Stocks on our radar
Companies discussed: TransDigm (TDG), Truist Financial (TFC), Rocket Lab (RKLB), QXO (QXO), Nelnet (NNI), Booking (BKNG), Moderna (MRNA), Freeport-McMoRan (FCX), Microsoft (MSFT), Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B), Alphabet (GOOG), Uber (UBER), Intuit (INTU), Workday (WDAY), Disney (DIS), Nike (NKE), McCormick (MKC) York Space Systems (YSS).
Host: Travis Hoium
Guests: Lou Whiteman, Dan Caplinger
Engineer: Dan Boyd
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After Jeffrey Epstein’s death, Svetlana Pozhidaeva said she finally felt free. The former Russian model, who became one of Epstein’s “assistants” and a victim of his abuse, changed her name and moved to another city. Then the Epstein files dropped. WSJ’s Khadeeja Safdar unspools Pozhidaeva’s story and what it reveals about who Epstein allegedly ensared and how he did it. Jessica Mendoza hosts.
Listener Bart in Australia sees invasive species in his area almost every day – rabbits, foxes, and cats. They were transplanted to Australia from Europe more than 100 years ago, but seem to be thriving in their new home.
This got him wondering: how are they going to evolve, now that they are in a new habitat? Can we predict what future evolution will look like based on what we already know?
To find out, Marnie Chesterton visits Sandy Ingelby at the Australian Museum, who manages the mammal collection. She shows Marnie how indigenous Australian animals have evolved to suit where they live.
On the island of Tasmania, Marnie meets the famous Tasmanian Devil and keeper Jono Thomas. Andy Flies from the University of Tasmania explains how the devil is evolving in real-time in response to a health crisis.
So what might the invasive species in Bart’s backyard look like over the next 100 years? We’ll find out, with a little bit of help from palaeontologist Matt McCurry and millions of murderous toads.
Presenter: Marnie Chesterton
Producer: Margaret Sessa-Hawkins
Editor: Ben Motley
(Photo: Wild rabbit- stock photo Credit: John Porter via Getty Images)
The pro-Iran war hawks keep crowing about how U.S. military prowess is supposedly striking fear in Beijing and Moscow. But what’s really happening is that Trump is doing exactly what China and Russia hoped he’d do. Beijing has wanted the U.S. out of the Western Pacific and Putin, of course, wants NATO wrecked. Our major allies are scrambling to form new economic and military relationships, and America is likely to be very lonely in the world with only a few stooges to count as friends. This is what ending our role as a global superpower would look like. Plus, the U.S. is unable to win the war at a cost that is acceptable to Americans, Trump is taking a cue from Putin by bombing civilian infrastructure, and blaming NATO for not being willing to fight for the Strait of Hormuz is absurd when the world’s most powerful navy doesn't seem to want to do it either.
Bob Kagan joins Tim Miller for the holiday weekend pod.
President Donald Trump told the nation during a presidential address that he expected the war in Iran to come to a close soon, saying that it was “nearly complete.” Meanwhile, the Pentagon is preparing for a weeks of ground operations in the Middle East.
And a federal judge struck down a Trump executive order that pulled funding from National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting Service, citing free speech violations.
And, in global news, President Donald Trump told aides this week that he would consider ending the war in Iran without securing the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. It’s a strategy that’s left some American allies a little nervous about their energy supplies, leading the president to tell them to “go get your own oil.”
Apologies for the late episode this week. Jay was on vacation but is now back. We talk this week about the attempted cancelation of Hasan Piker, the growing irrelevance of think tank bubble DC politics, the hopes we both have for the midterm elections, and the endless depravity of Hegseth and what’s happening in Iran.
Enjoy!
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Police Supt. Larry Snelling faces public questioning about whether Chicago police coordinated with ICE agents. Illinois politicians respond to the firing of U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. Thousands gather in Grant Park and suburbs for the third No Kings rally. University of Illinois makes it to NCAA’s Final Four, while the Bulls dismiss a player for social media posts.
In the Loop breaks down those stories and more in the Weekly News Recap with Nick Blumberg, WTTW News correspondent; Sophie Sherry, Chicago Sun-Times staff reporter;
and Brandon Pope, freelance journalist.
For a full archive of In the Loop interviews, head over to wbez.org/intheloop.
As Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues, Ben, Matt and Noel explore ongoing claims that the Russian government may possess secret "superweapons" capable of changing the course of war. How much of this is sound and fury, signifying nothing? How much of this may lead to new, world-threatening tools of horror? Ben here: it turns out what we mean by "super".
