We're telling you about Hurricane Idalia's impact as it pummeled parts of Florida and where it's headed now.
Also, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell seemed to freeze mid-news conference again, raising more concerns about his health.
Plus, a new rule could make millions more Americans eligible for overtime pay, there are plans to build a new city in California, and a bunch of late-night TV hosts are teaming up.
Sarah Coleman, an historian at Texas State University, is the author of an important and topical book about immigration policy in the United States. The Walls Within: The Politics of Immigration in Modern America(Princeton UP, 2023) focuses much less on the often-discussed physical border between the United States and other countries, and more so on the internal touchpoints where immigration federalism takes place. Coleman does a number of things in this book, including providing a fascinating overview of immigration policies and prohibitions throughout U.S. history, but not in a linear mode—instead, she integrates the historical record into the discussion of the domestic policies that were developed over the past 70 years. These policies are the central focus of the book, since it is the structure, execution, and implementation of these policies that constrain and impact citizens and non-citizens in the United States. The Walls Within examines education policy and court decisions, labor policy and the debate about employer sanctions, welfare policy and questions of immigrant contributions and benefits, and, finally, civil liberties and localized immigration enforcement regimes.
Given the current political debate around immigration, the complexity of the politics within and around that debate, and the constantly looming image of “the wall” at the southern border, Coleman’s book explains and clarifies so much of the history, political conversations, policies, and implementation of immigration inside the United States. Sifting through demographic changes, economic shifts, congressional legislation, and court challenges, Coleman weaves together the different policies and outcomes, and the different forms of enforcement. This is what contributes to immigration federalism, since restrictions, prohibitions, and denial of opportunities generally happen at a state or local level. Thus, where immigration policy is actually touching people—citizens and non-citizens alike—is not, per se, where a Border Control officer examines a passport or a document, but in implementing sanctions against employers or in denying a second-grader breakfast before school. The exploration of these touchpoints highlights the themes running through The Walls Within: political culture, electoral politics, and political economy. Coleman notes that there are approximately 24 million immigrants in the United States, and about half that number are unauthorized. Most of the unauthorized immigrants are not coming across either the northern or southern border of the United States but are overstaying visas. Thus, the imaginary that often wraps around these questions is disconnected from the reality of authorized and unauthorized immigration in the United States. The Walls Within: The Politics of Immigration in Modern America works to clarify our current situation and how we ended up where we are, while also explaining the policies and actions that were put into place along the way and how those policies and actions shape the actual immigration landscape in the U.S.
Hurricane Idalia made landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast yesterday morning and wreaked havoc in its wake. So far, it has left at least two people dead and caused major flooding and destruction.
A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that Rudy Giuliani is liable in a defamation lawsuit brought by two Georgia election workers. They say their lives were upended after being targeted by Giuliani and Donald Trump after the 2020 election.
And in headlines: Narcan will soon be available over the counter in the U.S., Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell appeared to freeze in front of reporters, and flight attendants at American Airlines voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike.
Crooked Coffee is officially here. Our first blend, What A Morning, is available in medium and dark roasts. Wake up with your own bag at crooked.com/coffee
Many Americans have seen a "Schoolhouse Rock" video explaining how Congress operates, or they may have taken political science classes in school. But neither paints the full picture of how Congress "actually works," Clint Brown says.
Take the introduction of bills in Congress as an example, says Brown, vice president of government relations at The Heritage Foundation. (The Daily Signal is Heritage's multimedia news organization.)
"Members of Congress introduce thousands of bills every year," Brown says, but many of them "are laying a marker for what they believe."
"We call them messaging bills," he adds, "because [lawmakers] want to talk about the issue, but they don't intend it to pass."
As in any office building, "there are conversations happening all the time," Brown says, and lawmakers have their own "congressional version of the water cooler" and "talk over what they're working on just like anybody else."
"Sometimes there are the smoke-filled back rooms where they hatch plans, and it seems very scandalous and salacious," he says. "But most of the time, it's just normal conversation. And that's how things get done, is you go talk to people about it."
As the What Next team catches its breath at the end of summer, we’re revisiting some of the biggest stories of the year. This story originally ran on April 27. What Next will resume regular programming next week.
A self-described activist had late-stage, fallopian tube cancer. She didn’t live in one of the 11 jurisdictions that allows terminally-ill patients the choice to medically end their own lives. But rather than relocating, she argued Vermont’s residency restrictions were unconstitutional.
Guest: Lynda Bluestein, a 75-year-old woman seeking to end her life on her terms, who successfully sued Vermont over their residency requirement in their “Patient Choice At End of Life” law.
India's successful moon landing has the Unexpected Elements team engaging in some serious lunacy. We look at where the moon even came from, how it helps us navigate, and whether it has a cultural and ecological heritage.
Also on the show, is Dr. TikTok leading to a raft of self-diagnoses, should we be eating banana peels and worms, and we go back to the moon to see if it has any effect on our sleep.
In her new book, Queer Career: Sexuality and Work in Modern America, historian Margot Canaday sets out to discover the experiences of LGBTQ people in the American workplace. From the Lavender Scare that sought to remove gay and lesbian employees from government jobs, through the abuse and exploitation that outed workers often faced when they didn't get fired, Canaday's book recounts how sexuality and gender shaped the careers of countless Americans. Canaday tells NPR's Stacey Vanek Smith that despite the adversity, queer people still found meaning and community through their jobs.
Congratulations to the Planet Money Summer School Class of 2023!
Today, you become masters of business administration... spelled with lower-case letters for legal purposes. Your diploma is waiting for you just across the stage.
But first, there's one final skill to impart: the pitch. We wouldn't be doing our job as a half-baked parody of a business school if we didn't leave you with the confidence and opportunity to stand in front of an investor and ask for money. We understand what you ambitious business school graduates really want is the chance to launch something and get rich.
So we're combining graduation with a little test of ideas, a showdown of startups, a competition of companies. We are going to put our own spin on a pitch competition like you see on Shark Tank. We hear from five listeners with real ideas for startups.
Can they make a successful pitch? What will investors be looking for in their presentation? Can they come prepared with persuasive total addressable market analyses? Who will have the sharpest customer pain points to solve? We shall see.
Our business expert will give us a rare glimpse into the mind of investors and what they're looking for. Only one graduate will be crowned the winner as this year's valedictorian.
Hurricane Idalia causes massive damage. Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell's health scare. CBS News Correspondent Jennifer Keiper has tonight's World News Roundup.
When people find themselves in the path of a hurricane they are faced with the question: should they evacuate or not? Who makes that call and how?
NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with former FEMA administrator Craig Fugate about the decision-making process behind evacuation orders and why people should heed them ahead of hurricanes making landfall.
