Modern-day Japan is often lauded as one of the safest countries on the planet -- but that doesn't make this nation immune to the danger of cults. In the first chapter of this special two-part series, Ben and Matt explore the bizarre, conspiratorial rise of the organization known as Aum Shinrikyo.
Consumer spending sputtered in May, likely thanks to tariffs and related uncertainty. Not only does that give us a clue as to where GDP is headed, it could also help us predict the labor market's next move. Later in this episode: Slowed hiring could have a silver lining (depending on your perspective), the U.S. dollar is down 10% so far this year, and we visit a pop-up brewery focused on racial equity.
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There's an economic fantasy you sometimes hear in D.C. It often gets trotted out when politicians are trying to add billions or trillions to the national debt. They claim that all the new spending will be worth it in the end because we will supercharge economic growth.
This fantasy recurs again and again, because economic growth is a potent force. Over the next few decades, tiny changes in how fast our economy grows could decide the fate of the federal government — whether we can bring the massive national debt under control or whether we spiral into a fiscal crisis.
Today on the show, we talk to three economists who have been sifting through the latest evidence. They're trying to figure out what the government could actually do to make the economy grow faster. Could we even grow fast enough to outrun our national debt?
For a list of citations, check out our episode page.
This episode of Planet Money was produced by Emma Peaslee with help from Sam Yellowhorse Kesler. It was edited by Jess Jiang. It was fact-checked by Sierra Juarez and engineered by Ko Takasugi-Czernowin. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money's executive producer.
The so-called 'big, beautiful bill' has squeaked by in the Senate and now moves back to the House.
The massive piece of legislation is the centerpiece of Trump's agenda, filled with tax breaks and spending cuts that would touch just about every American.
We discuss what's on the table now in the GOP mega bill. And how might it affect us if it passes.
The US rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs is awaiting a bail decision after being found guilty on prostitution charges relating to his sex parties. He was cleared of three more serious charges including sex trafficking and racketeering. The closely-followed trial in New York lasted almost two months, featuring sometimes emotional testimony from more than 30 witnesses including his ex-partners. The courtroom heard lurid details about Mr Combs' so-called "freak-off" hotel sex parties that involved women including his girlfriends, male escorts and copious drug taking.
Also in the programme: Ukraine wants answers from America over a scaling back of military aid, warning the move will embolden Russia; and the composer who has written a piece of music based on the movements of moths.
(File photo: Sean "Diddy" Combs arrives at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute Gala, New York City, 1 May, 2017. Credit: Reuters/Lucas Jackson/File Photo)
Join Federalist Editor-In-Chief Mollie Hemingway and RealClearInvestigations Senior Writer Mark Hemingway as they discuss declining patriotism in America, analyze Sen. Thom Tillis' retirement announcement, break down the Supreme Court majority's scathing rebuke of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, and review F1.
If you care about combating the corrupt media that continue to inflict devastating damage, please give a gift to help The Federalist do the real journalism America needs.
Plus: Centene shares tumble after the healthcare company says its earnings will fall short of expectations. Modelo brewer Constellation Brands expects President Trump’s new tariffs to increase its costs by $20 million this fiscal year. Ariana Aspuru hosts.
Trump’s policy bill includes various cuts to Medicaid, implementing stricter requirements that will affect if people with disabilities receive health care coverage. Reset learns more about how this legislation could affect local Chicagoans with disabilities with Access Living policy analyst Sebastian Nalls and disability right activist and Medicaid recipient David Gayes.
For a full archive of Reset interviews, head over to wbez.org/reset.
