The Political Scene | The New Yorker

• The A.C.L.U. v. Trump 2.0

  In Donald Trump’s first term in office, the American Civil Liberties Union filed four hundred and thirty-four lawsuits against the Administration. Since Trump’s second Inauguration, the A.C.L.U. has filed cases to block executive orders ending birthright citizenship, defunding gender-affirming health care, and more. If the Administration defies a judge’s order to fully reinstate government funds frozen by executive order, Anthony Romero, the A.C.L.U.’s executive director, says, we will have arrived at a constitutional crisis. “We’re at the Rubicon,” Romero says. “Whether we’ve crossed it remains to be seen.” Romero has held the job since 2001—he started just days before September 11, 2001—and has done the job under four Presidents. He tells David Remnick that it’s nothing new for Presidents to chafe at judicial obstacles to implement their agendas; Romero mentions Bill Clinton’s attempts to strip courts of certain powers as notably aggressive. But, “if Trump decides to flagrantly defy a judicial order, then I think . . .  we’ve got to take to the streets in a different way. We’ve got to shut down this country.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

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• What Does It Mean to Resist Trump in 2025?

  The essayist and cultural critic Brady Brickner-Wood talks with Tyler Foggatt about the opposition Donald Trump encountered in his first Presidential term, why many liberals are feeling a sense of resignation, and the Democratic Party’s struggle to present a unifying message. Plus, the political commentary embedded in Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show. This week’s reading: “What Happened to the Trump Resistance?,” by Brady Brickner-Wood “The War on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion,” by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor “The Fears of the Undocumented,” by Geraldo Cadava  “The Madness of Donald Trump,” by David Remnick “Elon Musk and Donald Trump Are Not Fixing U.S. Foreign Aid but Destroying It,” by John Cassidy “Elon Musk’s A.I.-Fuelled War on Human Agency,” by Kyle Chayka “What Happens if Trump Defies the Courts,” by Isaac Chotiner To discover more podcasts from The New Yorker, visit newyorker.com/podcasts. To send feedback on this episode, write to [email protected]. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

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• Trump’s Boogeyman: D.E.I.

  Many of the most draconian measures implemented in the first couple weeks of the new Trump Administration have been justified as emergency actions to root out D.E.I.—diversity, equity, and inclusion—including the freeze (currently rescinded) of trillions of dollars in federal grants. The tragic plane crash in Washington, the President baselessly suggested, might also be the result of D.E.I. Typically, D.E.I. describes policies at large companies or institutions to encourage more diverse workplaces. In the Administration’s rhetoric, D.E.I. is discrimination pure and simple, and the root of much of what ails the nation. “D.E.I. is the boogeyman for anything,” Jelani Cobb tells David Remnick. Cobb is a longtime staff writer, and the dean of Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. “If there’s a terrible tragedy . . . if there is something going wrong in any part of your life, if there are fires happening in California, then you can bet that, somehow, another D.E.I. is there.” Although affirmative-action policies in university admissions were found unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, D.E.I. describes a broad array of actions without a specific definition. “It’s that malleability,” Cobb reflects, that makes D.E.I. a useful target, “one source that you can use to blame every single failing or shortcoming or difficulty in life on.” Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

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• Why Trump Is Targeting Foreign Aid, with Atul Gawande

  The Washington Roundtable is joined by Atul Gawande, the former head of the U.S. Agency for International Development, to discuss Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s rapid-fire dismantling of the agency. They explore the life-and-death implications of the Trump Administration ending foreign aid, why the agency was targeted, and which federal agencies might be next.  This week’s reading: “Behind the Chaotic Attempt to Freeze Federal Assistance,” by Atul Gawande “Elon Musk’s Revolutionary Terror,” by Susan B. Glasser “Donald Trump’s Madness on Gaza,” by David Remnick “How Donald Trump Is Transforming Executive Power,” by Isaac Chotiner “What Happened to the Trump Resistance?” by Brady Brickner-Wood “Donald Trump’s Anti-Woke Wrecking Ball,” by Benjamin Wallace-Wells “Trump’s Trade War Is Only Getting Going,” by John Cassidy To discover more podcasts from The New Yorker, visit newyorker.com/podcasts. To send in feedback on this episode, write to [email protected] with “The Political Scene” in the subject line. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

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• Is Flying Actually Becoming Less Safe?

  Matthew L. Wald joins Tyler Foggatt to discuss the political aftermath of last week’s horrific collision between an American Airlines plane and a Black Hawk military helicopter. They look at the current state of airline safety, the changes afoot at the Federal Aviation Administration, and President Trump’s wild pronouncements that somehow diversity initiatives were to blame for the crash that claimed sixty-seven lives. “The culture warriors, with such a vengeance, are now turning to the F.A.A.—it’s something new and it’s not healthy,” Wald says. This week’s reading: “How to Understand the Reagan Airport Crash,” by Matthew L. Wald “How Donald Trump Is Transforming Executive Power,” by Isaac Chotiner “The U.S. Military’s Recruiting Crisis,” by Dexter Filkins  “Donald Trump’s Anti-Woke Wrecking Ball,” by Benjamin Wallace-Wells  “Kash Patel’s Political-Persecution Fantasies,” by Tess Owen To discover more podcasts from The New Yorker, visit newyorker.com/podcasts. To send feedback on this episode, write to [email protected]. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

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