Category: 3-DailySometimeCommentary

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What A Day - Let The Senate Confirmation Hearings Begin

Around a dozen of President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet picks are headed to Capitol Hill this week to appear for their Senate confirmation hearings. The big one to watch today is the hearing for Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Defense, military veteran and former Fox News host Pete Hegseth, who’s facing allegations of excessive drinking, financial mismanagement, and sexual assault. Hegseth’s confirmation hearings could be a litmus test for some of Trump’s other problematic picks. Burgess Everett, Congressional bureau chief for Semafor, talks about what we can expect from the coming confirmation hearings.

And in headlines: House Speaker Mike Johnson said federal aid for wildfire recovery in Southern California could be tied to a debt limit increase, the Supreme Court ruled the city of Honolulu can move forward with a major lawsuit to hold oil companies accountable for climate change, and President Joe Biden said negotiators are “on the brink” of a ceasefire agreement to end the war between Israel and Hamas.

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What Next | Daily News and Analysis - Can Trump End Birthright Citizenship?

How could Donald Trump make good on his vow to end birthright citizenship, currently a constitutional right? It starts with a willing judiciary.


Guest: Isabela Dias, immigration reporter for Mother Jones.


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Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme and Rob Gunther.

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What A Day - TikTok Is Still On The Chopping Block

After months of delays, New York State Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan finally sentenced president-elect Donald Trump in his criminal hush money case Friday. Merchan ruled Trump’s conviction must be upheld, but he did not order the president-elect to serve any jail time. In D.C., the U.S. Supreme Court seemed inclined to side with the federal government over a law to ban TikTok or force its sale, something Trump once supported but now opposes. Jay Willis, editor-in-chief of the legal website Balls and Strikes, breaks down the latest legal goings on.

And in headlines: California lawmakers sought to ease fears that Trump could block federal aid to help the state recover from the deadly L.A. fires, Special Counsel Jack Smith resigned from his post, and Vice President-elect JD Vance says he’s pro-pardon for some Jan. 6 rioters.

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What Next | Daily News and Analysis - Who’s to Blame for the LA Fires?

The fires in Los Angeles may end up being one of—if not the most—expensive natural disasters in American history. Everyone is trying to find the party responsible. It isn’t that simple.


Guest: Gabrielle Canon, climate reporter and extreme weather correspondent for The Guardian US.


Want more What Next? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to What Next and all your other favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.


Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme and Rob Gunther.

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What Next | Daily News and Analysis - TBD | Why Tech Is Bending the Knee

How the FCC and its incoming head, Brenden Carr, could enact Trump’s top policy goal: punishing anyone who says mean stuff about Trump.


Guest: Drew FitzGerald, telecom reporter for the Wall Street Journal.


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More or Less: Behind the Stats - Do 79% of Swedish asylum seekers go on holiday to the country they fled from?

The claim that 79% of asylum seekers in Sweden go on holiday in their home country has been repeated regularly on social media. It?s used to argue that recent refugees are being disingenuous about the danger they face in the country they have fled from. But when you look at the survey the claim is based on, you see the stat in a very different way. We speak to Hjalmar Strid, who ran the survey for polling company Novus, and Tino Sanandaji from Bulletin, the online news site which published it.

Presenter: Charlotte McDonald Producer: Tom Colls Production co-ordinator: Katie Morrison Sound Mix: Neil Churchill Editor: Richard Vadon