Touting Biden's recent legislative achievements and decrying the Supreme Court's abortion decision, Democratic Senate candidates see opportunity just as the general election season kicks into high-gear. Another reason they are feeling optimistic? Many are running against Trump-backed nominees that even Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell appeared to acknowledge were risky picks for a general election. This episode: political correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben, congressional correspondent Deird...
Aug 22, 2022•15 min
Pinellas County, on Florida's west coast, is unique: it backed the winning presidential tickets in 2012, 2016 and 2020, throwing support to Barack Obama, Donald Trump and Joe Biden, respectively. How are voters from different political sides thinking about the elections in a place where inflation is among the highest in the country? Read more reporting from Florida. This episode: political correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben, White House correspondent Asma Khalid, and economic correspondent Scott ...
Aug 19, 2022•26 min
November's midterms will be the first general election to use the new set of congressional maps drawn after the 2020 census. In Florida and Tennessee, some Black voters have voiced concerns that the new maps make it harder to elect someone who will advocate for their interests. This episode: White House correspondent Asma Khalid, senior political editor and correspondent Domenico Montanaro, political reporter Ashley Lopez and WPLN reporter Blaise Gainey. Learn more about upcoming live shows of T...
Aug 18, 2022•15 min
This episode is available to everyone, though on some platforms there may be a short delay in availability between the version for subscribers (which is sponsor-free) and non-subscribers (which includes sponsor messages). Thank you for your patience! Liz Cheney is the Republican party's most prominent Trump opponent. Now, she's lost out on the chance to return to Congress next year after a decisive primary loss to a MAGA-backed rival. But she's not planning on going away quietly: she'll feature ...
Aug 17, 2022•15 min
This episode is available to everyone, though on some platforms there may be a short delay in availability between the version for subscribers (which is sponsor-free) and non-subscribers (which includes sponsor messages). Thank you for your patience! Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Ak.), one of seven Republican senators to vote to convict Donald Trump in his second impeachment trial, faces primary voters who can choose between her and several other candidates, including a candidate backed by the state Re...
Aug 16, 2022•13 min
This episode is available to everyone, though on some platforms there may be a short delay in availability between the version for subscribers (which is sponsor-free) and non-subscribers (which includes sponsor interruptions). Thank you for your patience! In an interview with NPR, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said he stood by his characterization earlier this summer that his colleague Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) sabotaged President Biden's agenda. "I don't think it's debatable," he said, adding th...
Aug 15, 2022•15 min
This episode is available to everyone, though on some platforms there may be a short delay in availability between the version for subscribers (which is sponsor-free) and non-subscribers (which includes sponsor interruptions). Thank you for your patience! The warrant allowing the FBI to search the Florida home of former president Donald Trump, Mar-a-Lago, was unsealed Friday, providing some detail into what items and documents were taken by law enforcement. Among the documents seized include one...
Aug 12, 2022•24 min
This episode is available to everyone, though on some platforms there may be a short delay in availability between the version for subscribers (which is sponsor-free) and non-subscribers (which includes sponsor interruptions). Thank you for your patience! "The public's clear and powerful interest in understanding what occurred under these circumstances weighs heavily in favor of unsealing," said a filing from the Department of Justice related to the search of former president Donald Trump's Mar-...
Aug 11, 2022•9 min
This episode is available to everyone, though on some platforms there may be a short delay in availability between the version for subscribers (which is sponsor-free) and non-subscribers (which includes sponsor interruptions). Thank you for your patience! Both major parties were surprised, for different reasons, by the results in this month's referendum in Kansas that could have ended the right to an abortion by amending the state constitution. What can Democrats and Republicans take away from t...
Aug 10, 2022•14 min
This episode is available to everyone, though on some platforms there may be a short delay in availability between the version for subscribers (which is sponsor-free) and non-subscribers (which includes sponsor interruptions). Thank you for your patience! FBI agents executed a search warrant on the Florida home of former president Donald Trump Monday, though it remains unclear what they were looking for. We explore and contextualize the implications of the search, both politically and historical...
Aug 09, 2022•14 min
This episode is available to everyone, though on some platforms there may be a short delay in availability between the version for subscribers (which is sponsor-free) and non-subscribers (which includes sponsor interruptions). Thank you for your patience! The Department of Health and Human Services' declaration Thursday means the federal government can use additional resources in trying to combat the spread of monkeypox, of which there are more than 7,500 cases in the United States. But, what ex...
Aug 08, 2022•13 min
This week, the president all but secured the passage of his major policy priorities, oversaw a strike that took out a top terrorist, and got a strong economic report as gas prices fell. But tensions with China continue to rise after Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan. And Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán headlined a conservative political conference in Dallas. The authoritarian-minded leader has become a darling of the American right, echoing many of the same social priorities — while o...
Aug 05, 2022•23 min
"We are taking the lessons we learned in 2020, and we are going forward to make sure they never happen again, ever," said Cleta Mitchell, a Republican election lawyer, during a meeting concerning "election integrity" efforts. Groups on the right who buy into the "big lie" concerning the 2020 election are trying to refocus and reform efforts ahead of upcoming elections, according to audio of these meetings obtained by NPR. Guy Reffitt, a person who went to the Capitol on Jan. 6, was sentenced to ...
Aug 04, 2022•15 min
Kansas voters overwhelmingly rejected a measure that would have opened the door to abortion restrictions in the state. Election turnout was incredibly high, signaling the issue may spur increased Democratic turnout in November. And in Arizona, Mark Finchem, a state representative and election conspiracy theorist who was endorsed by former President Donald Trump, has secured the GOP's nomination for Secretary of State, according to the Associated Press. Should Finchem win in the general, he would...
Aug 03, 2022•14 min
A key 9/11 plotter, Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed on July 30, according to President Joe Biden. The president said that no one else was hurt in the strike, including al-Zawahiri's family. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visits Taiwan today, She is the highest-ranking elected American official to visit Taiwan since then-Speaker Newt Gingrich in 1997. The island democracy governs itself, but China claims it as its territory and the speaker's visit has heightened tensions with the Chinese government in B...
Aug 02, 2022•12 min
While voters and pundits alike wait to see which candidates will declare presidential runs, potential candidates on the Republican side are trying to distance themselves from former president Donald Trump. Many Democrats, meanwhile, remain skeptical of President Biden's chances in 2024 & wonder if he should not seek a second term. Support the show and unlock sponsor-free listening with a subscription to The NPR Politics Podcast Plus. Learn more at plus.npr.org/politics Connect: Email the show at...
Aug 01, 2022•14 min
President Biden scored a major legislative victory this week as West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin agreed to back the administration's Inflation Reduction Act in the Senate. But, what could the bill do if passed, and will it help an economy some argue is either close to — or already in — a recession? This episode: political correspondent Susan Davis, congressional correspondent Deirdre Walsh, White House correspondent Franco Ordoñez, and business correspondent David Gura. Support the show and un...
Jul 29, 2022•24 min
The Department of Justice's investigation into the events of January 6 has expanded to include testimony from more members of then-President Trump and then-Vice President Pence's inner circles, like former Pence chief of staff Marc Short. But does this investigation have any impact on how Republican voters say they plan to vote in the 2024 presidential primaries? Listen to our special report on the January 6th attacks. This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, justice correspondent R...
Jul 28, 2022•14 min
After Roe v. Wade was overturned in June, the issue of reproductive rights was returned to states to decide. In a special session currently taking place in the Indiana legislature, Republican lawmakers are pushing to ban most abortions in the state, with a few exceptions. But, not all Republicans are on board with the proposal, saying it goes too far, and the White House is also lobbying against the measure. This episode: political correspondent Susan Davis, White House correspondent Asma Khalid...
Jul 27, 2022•12 min
After June's ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization overturned the constitutional right to an abortion established in Roe v. Wade, Democrats in Congress are trying to enshrine other protections into federal law in case they are subject to similar Supreme Court action. A bill seeking to protect the right to same-sex marriage has passed the House with bipartisan support, but faces a challenge in the evenly divided Senate. This episode: political correspondent Susan Davis, congressi...
Jul 26, 2022•13 min
The former president and vice president held separate rallies for candidates in Arizona's August Republican gubernatorial primary election, drawing a contrast in how each wants to guide the direction of the party. Mike Pence's preferred candidate, Karrin Taylor Robson, is supported by the state's outgoing governor, Doug Ducey, while Donald Trump's pick, Kari Lake, is running a campaign that mirrors many of his policies and, his falsehoods about the 2020 presidential election. This episode: polit...
Jul 25, 2022•14 min
How did the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol come together? Who was involved in planning it? What did President Trump know and why did he take so long to respond? How much danger were lawmakers in? And, finally, who will be held accountable? In this hourlong special, the NPR Politics team breaks down the key insights from the public hearings. This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, congressional correspondent Claudia Grisales, national justice correspondent Carrie Johnson, na...
Jul 22, 2022•48 min
President Biden has tested positive for the coronavirus and is experiencing mild symptoms. Our coverage: https://n.pr/3zoCtkb Is there such a thing as "the Hispanic vote"? Is Latino a more suitable term? And who is Ben Fernandez, the first person of Hispanic origin to run for president? In our latest installment of the NPR Politics Book Club, Danielle Kurtzleben talks to Geraldo Cadava about his book The Hispanic Republican: The Shaping of an American Political Identity, from Nixon to Trump . Ou...
Jul 21, 2022•18 min
The president's support among young voters — who generally trend Democratic — is anemic, with their level of support comparable with his numbers among whites without college degrees and white evangelical Christians. Part of the problem for Biden may be his big promises: then-candidate Biden promised transformational change, but his narrow control of the Senate and intraparty opposition has constrained his progress on key goals like climate. Despite the president's posture as a deal-maker, he has...
Jul 20, 2022•12 min
The effort has further taxed local election officials, who have fielded worried calls from voters who believed that the canvassers were affiliated with the government. This episode: White House correspondent Scott Detrow, voting reporter Miles Parks, and Colorado Public Radio reporter Bente Birkeland. Support the show and unlock sponsor-free listening with a subscription to The NPR Politics Podcast Plus. Learn more at plus.npr.org/politics Connect: Email the show at [email protected] Join the ...
Jul 19, 2022•12 min
Black gun owners told NPR that they largely own guns for protection; many feel the government does not do enough to protect their safety. Unlike most white gun owners, most Black gun owners feel that it is more important to control gun violence than it is to protect gun rights. Read more: https://n.pr/3ze01rW This episode: White House correspondent Scott Detrow, race and identity reporter Alana Wise, and senior political editor and correspondent Domenico Montanaro. Support the show and unlock sp...
Jul 18, 2022•14 min
The young candidates say they hope to fix broken institutions that they feel have let their generation down. And a quirk in how a half-century old voting rights provision is written means many Americans have trouble getting ballots in languages like Arabic and Haitian Creole. This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, congressional reporter Claudia Grisales, political reporter Elena Moore, political correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben, and voting correspondent Hansi Lo Wang. Support the...
Jul 15, 2022•28 min
Inflation hit a new, 40-year high in June, with consumer prices up 9.1% from a year ago. Gas prices were a big part of this, but the cost of essentials like food and shelter are also rising rapidly. It is a real problem for Americans trying to make ends meet — and one that lawmakers, including Joe Biden, have few tools to address. That is likely to leave Democrats in a lurch come November's midterm elections. This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, White House correspondent Scott D...
Jul 14, 2022•14 min
The Biden administration says Americans now have access to the tools they need to protect themselves from COVID, as a new spike in cases begins. Deaths have remained low so far and the administration — recognizing the political realities — has not pushed for new restrictions. Meanwhile, the Food and Drug Administration is moving ahead on a suite of initiatives aimed at reducing smoking and vaping — the latest, surprisingly apolitical chapter in a public health crusade that's notched hard-fought ...
Jul 13, 2022•13 min
The committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack held its seventh public hearing Tuesday, focusing on the role right-wing extremist groups – such as the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers – played in planning the deadly siege. It also featured testimony from Stephen Ayres, a former Ohio factory worker, who said he stormed the Capitol after President Trump suggested it because he believed Trump's claims that the election had been stolen. And: President Trump attempted to call a witness in the J...
Jul 13, 2022•18 min
