Your new iPhone goes through a lot before you peel the plastic off and finally boot it up. Further Apple purchases might have to go through more thanks to the Trump administration's tariffs. From its assembly, to its packaging, to its shipping, to stocking, to purchase, it's a long process. So, what does it actually look like? Why is this the way we do it? And what could be done to make things better? This is our new series,"How Did This Get Here." We explore how goods make their way to us from ...
Apr 02, 2025•37 min
Some of the best songs you can hear this spring aren't on the radio. Hundreds of millions of birds make their annual migration back into North America in early March. Despite their return to our neighborhoods and backyards to wake us up bright and early, a new report reveals they're numbering fewer and fewer. The 2025 State of the Birds report is a joint effort spearheaded by a coalition of science and conservation organizations. It found widespread population decline across nearly all habitats ...
Apr 01, 2025•30 min
President Donald Trump's "Liberation Day" of reciprocal tariffs is almost here. On April 2, Trump is rolling out a plan that would charge a blanket dollar for dollar tax on goods coming into the U.S. Trump clarified Sunday that this policy would apply to all countries instead of a more focused list. The uncertainty around and scope of these tariffs (and a potential trade war) has spooked Wall Street and raised fears of inflation. We discuss America's financial future. Want to support 1A? Give to...
Apr 01, 2025•12 min
President Trump is known for going after his political opponents. And for the past month or so, one target has been certain powerful lawyers and law firms. But why is he going after these lawyers and firms? Will courts let him get away with intimidating law firms he doesn't like with threats and executive orders? And how does it all fit into Trump's broader efforts to tilt the legal system to his advantage? Today we hear from one of the lawyers named in the recent flurry of White House orders an...
Mar 31, 2025•33 min
Florida holds a special election tomorrow for a House seat that has long been solidly red. Now? Maybe a bit less so. Former Congressman Mike Waltz gave up his seat in the 6th Congressional District – the area around Daytona Beach – to accept the post of President Donald Trump's national security advisor. In line to win his vacant seat tomorrow is Trump-backed Randy Fine, a state senator. But in recent days polls have been too close for comfort for many Republicans. Fine's Democratic opponent, ma...
Mar 31, 2025•12 min
We've spent a lot of time in 2025 talking about the president. The executive orders. The court challenges. The cabinet appointments. Now, the Signal group chats. It's a challenge to report on the administration, full stop. But what if you're not reporting on the administration for an audience directly affected by the U.S. federal government? What kinds of challenges does that present? In a 1A first, we sit down in front of an audience at our home base at WAMU in Washington, DC, to talk to three ...
Mar 30, 2025•42 min
This week the Atlantic published messages shared between national security officials on a Signal group chat laying out plans for U.S airstrikes in Yemen. It appears that National Security Advisor Mike Waltz added The Atlantic Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg to the message thread. European leaders have been cautious in their comments on the scandal. President Trump is threatening to suspend security clearances and access to federal buildings of lawyers he does not like. Meanwhile, Israel continu...
Mar 28, 2025•1 hr 27 min
The acting assistant administrator for global health at USAID, Nicholas Enrich, was placed on administrative leave in early March. Before his departure, he had made a series of chilling predictions in memos concerning the consequences of the Trump administration's gutting of the agency. These include some 18 million additional cases of malaria and 166,000 resulting deaths. One million children who will remain malnourished. And 200,000 additional children paralyzed by polio. And he placed the bla...
Mar 28, 2025•16 min
As the earth continues to heat up unsustainably due to society's love of fossil fuels, scientists say natural disasters are only going to become more frequent and more destructive. That's something California knows all too well. Wildfires burned more than 58,000 acres this year and destroyed more than 16,000 structures, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. For many towns, a disaster like a wildfire or hurricane can completely destroy the town and its history, l...
Mar 27, 2025•36 min
If you've been following the news lately — including with 1A — it can be a lot to take in. We've heard from many of you about how the news makes you feel. But what can we do in chaotic moments of history to build a sense of control in our lives? Maybe it's organizing in your community, starting a new hobby, or picking up that TV show from 10 years ago that you promised you'd get around to watching. We talk about what finding agency in the chaos can look like, and why we should actively focus on ...
Mar 26, 2025•31 min
It's safe to say the Trump administration has shaken up the federal government. That includes environmental policy and the Environmental Protection Agency. The Trump administration is making deep cuts to the department. The agency's top official, Lee Zeldin, says he wants to cut 65 percent of its budget. The EPA has already slashed jobs at the environmental justice office, which addresses disproportionate environmental and health effects on minority and low-income populations. The agency is now ...
Mar 25, 2025•35 min
The story of TikTok in the U.S. is one that's had many chapters, to say the least. First, then-President Donald Trump called for its ban in 2020. Then, President Joe Biden signed a bipartisan law in 2024 requiring the company in charge of the video-sharing platform to sell the app or face a ban. Then, the app went dark this January after failing to sell, only to come back hours later, thanking newly-inaugurated President Donald Trump for his support in keeping the app operational. The president ...
Mar 24, 2025•39 min
Republican Rep. Brandon Gill of Texas filed resolution to impeach the judge who ordered the Trump administration to stop deportations of Venezuelans. Two federal judges have ordered tens of thousands of fired federal workers to be rehired in recent weeks, but the White House is moving to appeal the decision leading to more questions for and about the fates of federal workers. Meanwhile, the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas collapsed this week as Israel began airstrikes once again on the blocka...
Mar 21, 2025•1 hr 26 min
More than forty percent of American families are struggling to find affordable childcare. A new report from the Economic Policy Institute shows that childcare for one infant now costs more than rent in 17 states and more than in-state college tuition in 38 states. These increasing costs mean more parents of young children are at a crossroads: Drop out of the workforce to save on childcare, or have their salaries eaten up by high childcare costs? We discuss the cost of childcare and the effect hi...
Mar 20, 2025•36 min
On Tuesday Israel broke the ceasefire deal with Hamas that brought relative peace to the Gaza Strip for about two months. In just two minutes, Tuesday became one of the deadliest days in the war between Israel and Hamas. Israeli air strikes and a ground offensive killed more than 400 people and injured 500 more. According to Al Jazeera, most of the airstrikes this week have hit "heavily built-up neighborhoods, makeshift schools, and residential buildings where people are taking shelter." Israel ...
Mar 20, 2025•12 min
We recently spoke with personal finance columnist Michelle Singletary about how to manage money during times of uncertainty. Dozens of our listeners wrote it in with worries about the future of social security. It's perhaps one of the most popular government programs in the country. Around 87 percent of Americans say social security should be a priority no matter what the state of the federal budget is. That's according to the National Institute on Retirement Security. President Donald Trump has...
Mar 19, 2025•41 min
President Donald Trump has taken sweeping action to implement his agenda since beginning his second term. That includes the laying off of thousands of federal workers from the nation's largest employer — the federal government, moving to overhaul the student loan repayment system by limiting access to certain repayment plans, and placing 25 percent tariffs on goods imported from Mexico and Canada — which he just as quickly suspended (though not before the stock market fell). All of this has crea...
Mar 18, 2025•31 min
Donald Trump has not been shy about his disdain for the press. In his second term, the president is turning those fiery feelings into action. Since assuming office, Trump has stepped up his litigious rampage against the media, suing ABC News, The Des Moines Register, CBS News, and pollster J. Ann Selzer. And at the Federal Communications Commission, Trump-appointed chair Brendan Carr has promised to roll back regulations. In January, the FCC announced it would be investigating NPR and PBS over t...
Mar 17, 2025•37 min
Congressional Democrats were split over whether to support the bill that would avert a government shutdown . In the end Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer voted for the bill. A federal judge ordered several federal agencies to rehire tens of thousands of probationary employees who were fired. President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff discussed Washington's ceasefire proposal to end the war in Ukraine with Moscow officials. Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was "in favor" and ...
Mar 14, 2025•1 hr 23 min
Since taking office, Donald Trump has made transforming federal policy on cryptocurrency a priority for his administration. The Securities and Exchange Commission dropped lawsuits against two of the biggest crypto companies in the U.S. and dismissed investigations into others. Last week, Trump announced the creation of a reserve of Bitcoin and other digital currencies — an estimated $17 million stockpile made up of Bitcoin that the U.S. has seized in legal cases over the years. It's a far cry fr...
Mar 13, 2025•36 min
You'll know when you're watching a Julio Torres project. The comedian, filmmaker, and comedy writer's work is surreal, aesthetic, and delightfully absurd. His most recent works include "Problemista," a film about a young man looking for work in New York City. And it has something to say about the nightmarish aspects of the American visa system. "Fantasmas," a six-part HBO series, finds Torres in search of a lost golden oyster earing, navigating through otherworldly vignettes. His "Saturday Night...
Mar 12, 2025•34 min
About 55 million people in the world have dementia. That's according to the World Health Organization. It's also the seventh leading cause of death among the global population. The most common form of dementia is Alzheimer's disease. It makes up 60 to 70 percent of cases. But it's well behind other chronic illnesses on the journey to an effective treatment. The reason may be attributed to years of research based on doctored images. Investigative reporter Charles Piller uncovered that and much mo...
Mar 11, 2025•33 min
Our neighbors to the north have a new leader. On Sunday, the Liberal Party of Canada held a leadership election to replace its outgoing party leader and prime minister, Justin Trudeau. Its members chose Mark Carney, a former bank governor who has never held elected office. The change in leadership comes in the wake of the United States launching a trade war against Canada. We discuss how the country's next prime minister might navigate such frosty relations. Want to support 1A? Give to your loca...
Mar 10, 2025•12 min
Much of the first two months of the Trump administration come down to two things: refusal to spend money appropriated by Congress and the decimation of the federal workforce, both which are being challenged in court. Trump and his team have also let rules about the supervision of U.S. companies fall by the wayside. What changes has the Trump administration made when it comes to anti-corruption measures, financial disclosures, and the agencies that supervise corporate America? What does it mean f...
Mar 10, 2025•28 min
As President Donald Trump's trade war heats up, the stock market is going down. And his address to the joint session of Congress this week was the longest speech of its kind in the history of the presidency. Following a turbulent meeting in the Oval Office, Trump says that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is ready to make a deal. At a summit in Cairo, Arab leaders endorsed Egypt's plan to rebuild Gaza, allowing over 2 million Palestinians to return to the Strip. Want to support 1A? Give t...
Mar 07, 2025•1 hr 25 min
What is the centerpiece of your home? Maybe a couch, but it's more likely a table. That's where we gather for our meals and recap our days. And that table is likely made of wood – oak, mahogany, maple, or perhaps pine. If it's built to last, wood provides the sturdy material for our most crucial furniture and it can last generations. But a masterfully-built piece of furniture requires a master builder. That's where our guest comes in. Callum Robinson is a woodworker, furniture maker, and the aut...
Mar 06, 2025•32 min
Nnedi Okorafor is back on 1A . And this time, the award-winning speculative fiction author is turning her eyes and her pen from the stars to a story a little closer to reality. But not by much. "Death of the Author" is her latest novel. It's a book within a book that follows the story of a Nigerian author who publishes a work of science fiction that ends up affecting things far beyond her lifetime. Okorafor's book grapples with the relationship between art and artificial intelligence and the que...
Mar 06, 2025•33 min
Unless you're a physicist, you've probably only encountered quantum mechanics on TV. And even when it was explained, you might've still been a little confused. The field of quantum mechanics was created a century ago. Today, scientists are using it to create methods of communication that can't be hacked, higher quality digital images, and to develop medications. But many of us don't even understand what quantum mechanics is — or how it's deepening our understanding of the universe. For today's i...
Mar 05, 2025•34 min
He's the CEO of one of the nation's most successful electric car brands. He owns a legacy social media company. By some estimates, he's the world's richest man. But how much influence does he have over the federal government? We discuss Elon Musk — the things he's done while working with the Department of Government Efficiency, the mistakes he and his team have made, and the place he'll have working with the administration going forward. Want to support 1A? Give to your local public radio statio...
Mar 03, 2025•31 min
The so-called Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, posted a list of "receipts," of government misspending on federal contracts. After reporters found multiple inaccuracies, the department quietly deleted five of its biggest examples of savings. Several House Republicans are cancelling constituent town halls following backlash at previous events across the country. Meanwhile, overseas, this week marked three years since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. European leaders and Canadi...
Mar 01, 2025•1 hr 24 min
