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Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, has seemingly been waging a personal war on the federal government via his Department of Government Efficiency. In the last few weeks, he and his team have urged millions of federal workers to resign, fed the U.S. Agency for International Development 'into the wood chipper,' and gotten access the Treasury Department’s secure payment system. And on Wednesday, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Musk's DOGE team would soon ‘plug in’ to the air traffic control system. Charlie Warzel, a staff writer at The Atlantic covering tech and media, says Musk's actions amount to 'an administrative coup.'
Later in the show, Crooked Media’s news editor, Greg Walters, shares stories from federal workers dealing with the fallout.
And in headlines: The White House does damage control over Trump’s plans for the U.S. to ‘take over the Gaza Strip,’ the president signed yet another executive order targeting trans kids, and Scotland says it’s not banning cats.
Show Notes:
Last week, Donald Trump announced that Guantanamo Bay would be used to house the “worst criminal illegal aliens” and claimed that it would be drastically scaled up to hold as many as 30,000 people. In addition to its infamous role in the War on Terror, it’s the latest use of Gitmo as an immigration deterrent—and legal grey zone.
Guest: Andrea Pitzer, author of One Long Night: A Global History of Concentration Camps.
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Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme and Rob Gunther.
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We’re a little over two weeks into President Donald Trump’s second term, and already his foreign policy doctrine could be generously described as “all over the place.” From threatening to levy huge tariffs on our close allies only to delay them at the last minute to dismantling foreign aid efforts alongside the world’s richest man to now volunteering the U.S. to take control of Gaza, it’s all been a bit hard to keep up with. Ben Rhodes, former deputy national security advisor to President Obama and co-host of Crooked’s ‘Pod Save the World,’ stopped by the studio to talk about the ripple effects of Trump’s early foreign policy decisions.
And in headlines: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard inched closer to Senate confirmation, The Trump administration is preparing an executive order to dismantle the Department of Education, and a D.C. Superior Court judge handed over The Proud Boys’ trademark to a Black church that had been vandalized by members of the far-right group.
Show Notes:
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Why did the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which gives money to humanitarian causes around the world and accounts for roughly half of one percent of the federal budget, end up in DOGE’s crosshairs? And is its abrupt closure legal?
Guests: Franco Ordoñez, White House Correspondent for NPR. Fred Kaplan, Slate’s war stories correspondent.
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Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme and Rob Gunther.
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As of Monday evening, President Donald Trump’s promised tariffs on Canada and Mexico are on hold for at least 30 days. But that could all change as the Trump administration continues to negotiate with U.S. allies. Scott Lincicome, Vice President of General Economics and Trade Policy at the Cato Institute, tells us what a trade war is and how it affects all of us.
And in headlines: Democrats put out a 10-part plan to “push back against the far-right extremism,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he’s the acting director of USAID, and President Trump signed an executive order to create a sovereign wealth fund.
Show Notes:
Financial regulation comes in many forms, and freeing Americans from the most pernicious ones should be a high priority for Congress. Jennifer Schulp and Norbert Michel explain where to start.
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America hadn’t had a major commercial airline crash since 2009 until the mid-air collision over the Potomac. Is this a sign of a larger problem that will require government intervention—and will Congress prioritize safety over convenience for their constituents and themselves?
You can read Dan’s 2023 article, “Everyone Seems to Agree a Major Plane Crash is Coming. Why?” on Slate.
Guest: Dan Kois, writer at Slate and author of five books.
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Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme and Rob Gunther.
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Thousands of trans people serving in the armed forces are worried that their careers are in real peril after President Donald Trump signed an executive order that could ban them from the military. Army veteran Laila Ireland tells us about her experience as a trans service member and what she’s doing to fight back.
And in headlines: Trump signed an order imposing tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico, and China, The Department of Justice fired more than a dozen federal prosecutors, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Panama.
Show Notes: