If you’re looking for hype, fake outrage, and groupthink, kindly keep moving. Our mission at What a Day is simple: to be your guide to what truly matters each m...
The Miseducation Of Donald Trump feat. Former Sec. Arne Duncan
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday to officially start shutting down the Department of Education. The thing is... he can't do that, at least not unilaterally. Shutting down the Education Department will require an act of Congress. But the Trump administration has already done a pretty thorough job of gutting the department from the inside, cutting the DOE's staff in half earlier this month. Arne Duncan, who served as education secretary under President Barack Obama, talks about the potential catastrophes on the horizon.And in headlines: Maryland Congressman Glenn Ivey became the first sitting Democrat to call on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to step down, a federal judge blocked the Department of Government Efficiency from accessing personal information on the Social Security Administration's data systems, and the United Kingdom and Germany issued travel warnings for the U.S.Show Notes:Check out Arne's work with gun violence –chicagocred.org/team/arne-duncan/Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8Support victims of the fire – votesaveamerica.com/reliefWhat A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday
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24:51
The Trump Administration's All-Out Assault On Judges
Are we in a constitutional crisis? That’s the big question on the minds of legal experts across the country right now, as President Donald Trump and his allies ramp up attacks on federal judges who rule against him. The president’s latest beef is with the federal judge who tried to block his administration from deporting more than 250 migrants, mostly from Venezuela. A swath of the American Right, including billionaire Elon Musk, has now decided that if federal judges won’t back Trump at every legal turn, they should be impeached and removed from the bench. Leah Litman, co-host of Crooked’s legal podcast ‘Strict Scrutiny,’ stops by to talk about this moment and its legal significance.Later in the show, Crooked Climate Correspondent Anya Zoledziowski breaks down the craziness happening at the Environmental Protection Agency.And in headlines: The Federal Reserve kept interest rates flat and warned Trump’s tariffs have thrown the economy's health into question, Trump said he had a ‘very good telephone call' with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about a ceasefire with Russia, and Attorney General Pam Bondi called a recent string of vandalism attacks on Tesla dealerships ‘nothing short of domestic terrorism.’Show Notes:Listen to the latest episode of Strict Scrutiny - https://crooked.com/podcast-series/strict-scrutiny/Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8Support victims of the fire – votesaveamerica.com/reliefWhat A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday
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25:24
Trump Sows Chaos Abroad
Tuesday was a big day in foreign policy news. Israel launched a barrage of airstrikes on Gaza Monday night, its first attack since a ceasefire with Hamas took hold in January. Officials in Gaza say more than 400 people were killed. And President Donald Trump held a 90-minute phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the war in Ukraine. Putin ostensibly agreed to a 30-day limited ceasefire on energy and infrastructure targets — far short of the unconditional ceasefire proposal Ukraine and the U.S. negotiated earlier this month. Oh, and Trump threatened ‘dire consequences’ for Iran over attacks from Houthi rebels in Yemen. Crooked’s own Tommy Vietor, co-host of ‘Pod Save the World,’ breaks down all the big international headlines and what they say about Trump’s approach to foreign policy.And in headlines: Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts rebuked Trump over his calls to impeach federal judges, the Pentagon continued its purge of website pages honoring minority groups, and two stranded U.S. astronauts returned to Earth.Show Notes:Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8Support victims of the fire – votesaveamerica.com/reliefWhat A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday
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23:35
Trump’s Law-Bending Attack on Migrants
In both court and in interviews Monday, the Trump administration doubled down on its decision over the weekend to deport more than 250 migrants, mostly Venezuelans. About half of them were removed under the Alien Enemies Act, a centuries-old war-time law President Donald Trump has invoked to deport suspected members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua with little to no due process. It's just one of a handful of really scary anti-immigration efforts the White House has undertaken recently, including the push to deport Columbia University grad student Mahmoud Kahlil over his involvement in campus protests against the war in Gaza. Nico Perrino, executive vice president of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, talks about how Kahlil's case sits at the intersection of the Trump administration's crackdown on immigration and free speech.And in headlines: Trump signed an executive order to dismantle the agency that runs Voice of America, the White House said it has expelled South Africa's ambassador to the U.S., and Harvard University announced plans to make attending the school more financially realistic for middle- and low-income families.Correction: During our interview with journalist Josh Barro on Monday's show, we said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is 80 years old. He's 74. We regret the error.Show Notes:Check out FIRE's letter – https://tinyurl.com/4ppmdsdnSubscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8Support victims of the fire – votesaveamerica.com/reliefWhat A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday
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21:27
Dems: Chuck's Not Like Us
While Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer may have kept the U.S. government from shutting down last week, his decision to help Republicans pass a spending plan has kicked off a civil war within the Democratic Party. Many on the left are desperate for a fight with President Donald Trump and seething mad at their own party, which they view as, at best, too complacent in the face of Trump's attacks. And Schumer is now the face of that white-hot rage, with questions swirling about his future as the party’s Senate leader. But Josh Barro, who writes the Substack newsletter ‘Very Serious,’ says Schumer did the right thing.And in headlines: The White House said it deported hundreds of migrants under the Alien Enemies Act despite a judge’s order, the U.S. launched a wave of airstrikes on Yemen targeting Houthi rebels, and those American astronauts who’ve been stranded up in space for months could return to earth this week.Show Notes:Check out Josh's newsletter 'Very Serious' – https://tinyurl.com/42x363hrSubscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8Support victims of the fire – votesaveamerica.com/reliefWhat A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday
If you’re looking for hype, fake outrage, and groupthink, kindly keep moving. Our mission at What a Day is simple: to be your guide to what truly matters each morning (and the fun stuff you might have missed) in just 20 minutes. Host Jane Coaston brings you in-depth reporting and substantive analysis on the big stories shaping today and the creeping trends shaping tomorrow—and when she doesn’t know the answers, she asks someone even smarter to fill us all in. Radical, right? New episodes at 5:00 a.m. EST, Monday–Friday in your favorite podcast app and on YouTube. Being informed was never this easy.
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