The indelible Chris Stirewalt joins us to discuss the overwhelming power disparity in the Iran war in contrast to its negative coverage in the media, and how the perverse incentives for partisan nastiness prevent progress on broadly popular policy measures. Plus, what Zohran Mamdani hosting Mahmoud Khalil says about the real intentions of those claiming to merely be "pro-Palestine," and the modern relevance of the 1933 novel The Oppermanns.
While researching a previous book, a mushroom trip in Michael Pollan’s garden left him curious about the boundaries of consciousness. His latest project A World Appears explores the mystery of human consciousness through scientific, philosophical and psychedelic frameworks. In today’s episode, Pollan talks with Here & Now’s Indira Lakshmanan about the sentience of plants and animals vs. our own. They also discuss “lantern” vs. “spotlight” consciousness, AI and why Pollan sees the computer as a faulty metaphor for the human brain.
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During the pandemic, mostly unregulated lenders went after struggling restaurants and music venues, charging at times sky high rates. Now, they’ve found a new market: small businesses that desperately need cash to pay tariffs.
Today on the show, the story of a financial lifeline that can turn into a financial choke hold.
I’m opposed to this war. The Trump administration did not consult the American public or try to persuade Congress before authorizing the strikes on Iran. I don’t think the administration is prepared for what the strikes might unleash.
But I wanted to try to understand President Trump’s decisions from the perspective of somebody much friendlier to his foreign policy. Nadia Schadlow is a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and served as a deputy national security adviser during Trump’s first term. She led the drafting and publication of the 2017 National Security Strategy of the United States.
In this conversation, Schadlow gives the conservative case for war with Iran, and for attacking without first building support in Congress or with the public. And I ask her how she squares Trump the candidate, who ran on a promise of not starting new wars, with the Trump of today, who’s deposed two heads of state since the start of 2026, and now says he won’t rule out boots on the ground in Iran. Is there a consistent worldview here? Or did Trump change?
This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” was produced by Annie Galvin. Fact-checking by Michelle Harris with Mary Marge Locker and Kate Sinclair. Our senior engineer is Jeff Geld, with additional mixing by Aman Sahota. Our executive producer is Claire Gordon. The show’s production team also includes Marie Cascione, Rollin Hu, Kristin Lin, Emma Kehlbeck, Jack McCordick, Marina King and Jan Kobal. Original music by Pat McCusker. Audience strategy by Kristina Samulewski and Shannon Busta. The director of New York Times Opinion Audio is Annie-Rose Strasser.
The war in Iran enters its second week and Donald Trump declares that it's about to end — and also that it's going to last a very long time. Jon, Tommy, and Lovett react to the president's conflicting statements, the cascading global energy crisis he created, and the way Republicans — especially warmonger Lindsey Graham — are reacting to the war. Then, they discuss why some Democrats are hesitant to cut off funding for the strikes, the administration's arrests of American citizens protesting its deportation campaign, and the Trump sons' new business venture: drone warfare. Then, Tommy talks to Congressman Pat Ryan, an Iraq War veteran, about our new war and what Democrats can do to oppose it.
For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.
More than a thousand ships are stranded outside the Strait of Hormuz, bobbing in the water. A big reason? Insurance. War insurance premiums have skyrocketed since the war with Iran began. It’s an add-on that covers things regular insurance doesn’t, like missile strikes. And shippers don’t want to foot the bill or put their crews at risk. Cue the traffic jam.
On today’s show, how a critical trade chokepoint became the parking lot of the sea. And taking stock of President Trump’s plan to offer reinsurance to get these ships sailing again.
Lillian Li says Bad Asians was drawn from her upbringing in a hypercompetitive Chinese-American community. In the novel, four 20-somethings, who grew up in a similar environment, confront the challenges of the 2008 financial crisis and begin to let loose. Their former classmate documents their frustrations in what becomes one of the first viral YouTube videos. In today’s episode, Li speaks with Here & Now’s Scott Tong about the initial privacy of the early internet, exploding Asian American stereotypes, and why she wanted to write about friendship.
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