A.M. Edition for April 3. Tehran is responding to the threat of possible U.S. military action on its soil by stepping up defenses around its biggest oil port and launching a mass recruitment drive reminiscent of its 1980s war with Iraq. Plus, WSJ reporter Hannah Erin Lang discusses how investing platform Public hopes to gain more users by offering AI agents that can help put their brokerage accounts on autopilot. And WSJ data reporter Inti Pacheco breaks down how tariffs, bad weather and commodities trading is making coffee more expensive. Luke Vargas hosts.
Attorney General Pam Bondi is out after facing backlash for the Justice Department's mishandling of the Epstein files and failing to deliver the prosecutions of President Trump's enemies. Iran is formalizing a toll system for ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, charging up to two million dollars per vessel, as the energy crisis deepens and critical goods remain stuck at sea. And more than 40 countries met to discuss reopening the strait, but neither Iran nor the U.S. were at the table.
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Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Dana Farrington, James Hider, Nick Spicer, Mohamad ElBardicy, and Alice Woelfle.
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(0:00) Introduction (02:18) Pam Bondi Out (05:59) Iran Charges Strait Tolls (09:45) International Meeting on Hormuz
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President Trump removes Pam Bondi as attorney general. Congressional Republicans say they have a plan in place to fund the Department of Homeland Security. And oil prices surge after Trump’s address on Iran.
China’s ambitious underwater mapping operation takes us on a voyage into the depths of ocean and map science.
We look at what a network of underwater microphones can tell us about underwater geography, noisy ships, and whale conversations, and how it took nearly 300 researchers working together to map 140 000 neurons in a fruit fly’s brain.
Then, we are joined by biogeochemist and author Karen Lloyd, who tells us about the long-lived microbes living deep in the crust below the sea floor, how they survive for 100 000 years, and what their mysterious existence tells us about life and evolution.
And forget sunken treasures – we will talk about the valuable, potato-sized mineral nodules that grow on the sea floor, and the pros, cons and current legality of mining them. Plus – how dolphins can help us track down abandoned undersea explosives.
All that and even more unexpected elements.
Presenter: Marnie Chesterton, with Katie Silver and Tristan Ahtone
Producers: Ella Hubber, with Lucy Davies and Georgia Christie
We have made it to April. We survived the snowstorms and the cold, and now that the days are getting longer, there’s more time to read. So this week, if you are looking for some books to tide you over until summer, our Book Review editors Gilbert Cruz and Joumana Khatib have got you covered.
Also on this week’s episode, the former United States poet laureate Ada Limón joins us to talk about her new book, “Against Breaking: On the Power of Poetry.” And she reads two of her poems.
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Credits
“The Book Review Podcast” is hosted by Gilbert Cruz and produced by Amy Pearl and Sarah Diamond. The show is edited by Larissa Anderson and mixed by Pedro Rosado.
Special thanks to MJ Franklin, Dahlia Haddad and Brooke Minters.
Illustration by The New York Times; Inset photos: Scribner; Viking; Spiegel & Grau
In a prime time address on Wednesday, President Trump proclaimed that America was “on the cusp of ending Iran’s sinister threat.” But he also kept open the option of boots on the ground. The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz is also about to start really biting – as countries get hit with shortages, which would spike prices across the globe.
So what are Trump’s options? What would happen if he just declared victory and walked away from the fight? What kinds of military operations are on the table? If Trump ended the war without achieving his strategic goals, what would that mean for the United States, for Iran and for the world?
“I don’t see a victory in real terms at the end of this crisis…,” Suzanne Maloney told me. “And that is a very dangerous outcome for the long term.”
Maloney is one of Washington’s leading Iran experts. She has advised several presidential administrations and has written or edited a number of books on Iran. She is the vice president and director of the Brookings Institution’s foreign policy program.
Note: This conversation was recorded on Wednesday morning, before Trump’s speech on the war. But the speech reflected Maloney’s analysis almost perfectly.
This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” was produced by Rollin Hu. Fact-checking by Michelle Harris with Kate Sinclair and Mary Marge Locker. 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, Annie Galvin, 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.
1008. Thinking about raiding your retirement to fund a down payment? In this episode of Money Girl, Laura answers a question from Wendy, who’s considering taking a 401(k) loan to buy a home with 20% down. Learn the rules for using a retirement plan loan, its pros and cons, and alternatives for buying a home without borrowing from your retirement.
Attorney General Pam Bondi is out of a job. After multiplemediareports stating she was headed to the green pastures of… somewhere else, President Trump officially announced her departure Thursday on Truth Social. So why is Bondi getting pushed out of her position? Was it the Epstein files debacle? Or her inability to successfully prosecute Trump’s enemies? To find out, we spoke with Ryan Barber. He’s a reporter covering the Justice Department for The Wall Street Journal.
