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.
Come see Planet Money live on stage in April! 12 cities. Details and tix here: https://tix.to/pm-book-tour.
Related episodes:
Can I get my tariff money back now?
Three ways companies are getting around tariffs
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
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Engines of Our Ingenuity - The Engines of Our Ingenuity 3360: Fender Rhodes
Episode: 3360 The incomparable sound of the legendary Fender Rhodes. Today we consider "The legendary Fender Rhodes".
Audio Poem of the Day - An Autopsy of an Era
By Mary Jo Bang
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The Ezra Klein Show - I Asked a Former Trump Official to Justify This War
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?
Mentioned:
“National Security Strategy of the United States of America”
War and the Art of Governance by Nadia Schadlow
“The Globalist Delusion” by Nadia Schadlow
“The Great Lie of War” with Ben Rhodes on “The Ezra Klein Show”
Book Recommendations:
America in the World by Robert B. Zoellick
The Mystery of Capital by Hernando De Soto
The Peacemaker by William Inboden
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.
You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast, and you can find Ezra on Twitter @ezraklein. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs.
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.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
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Pod Save America - Trump Says War Is Over, Vows to Keep Fighting
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.
The Indicator from Planet Money - Will Trump’s shipping insurance plan work?
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.
Related episodes:
How the 'shadow fleet' helps Russia skirt sanctions
Will Iran block the Strait of Hormuz?
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
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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.
Related episodes:
How the 'shadow fleet' helps Russia skirt sanctions
Will Iran block the Strait of Hormuz?
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:
See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.
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NPR's Book of the Day - In ‘Bad Asians,’ a friend group threatens its reputation with a viral video
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.
To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday
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To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday
To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below:
See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.
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Engines of Our Ingenuity - The Engines of Our Ingenuity 3359: Darwin-Wedgwood
Episode: 3359 An very special lineage: Charles Darwin: Grandson of Josiah Wedgwood and Erasmus Darwin. Today, Charles Darwin’s grandparents.
Read Me a Poem - “In Love You Rise” by Ibrahim Nasrallah
Amanda Holmes reads Ibrahim Nasrallah’s “In Love You Rise” from Palestinian, translated from the Arabic by Huda J. Fakhereddine. Have a suggestion for a poem by a (dead) writer? Email us: podcast@theamericanscholar.org. If we select your entry, you’ll win a copy of a poetry collection edited by David Lehman.
This episode was produced by Stephanie Bastek and features the song “Canvasback” by Chad Crouch.
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The Commentary Magazine Podcast - Whack-a-Mullah
Today we discuss conflicting statements regarding the end of the Iran war, the progress of the American and Israeli attacks, reports that the new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei has already been eliminated, fluctuating oil prices surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, and the debate around "boots on the ground." Plus, CNN's awful tweet on the attempted IED attack outside Gracie Mansion in NYC, and the Mamdanis hosting Mahmoud Khalil for Ramadan.
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