Consider This from NPR

July has brought a lot of changes to how the federal government handles student loans. They include how much students are able to borrow. And now, the government is assessing loans through a test: Based on how much money students make after graduating. Could this change what students plan to study and the professions they enter? For sponsor-free episodes of  Consider This,  sign up for C onsider T...

What a difference three weeks makes. It’s been about that long since the US and Iran agreed on a framework to end their war, but this week that changed. President Trump said on Wednesday that the ceasefire is 'over' - and both sides have expressed deep mistrust in one another.  Is diplomacy still possible? For sponsor-free episodes of  Consider This,  sign up for C onsider This+  via Apple Podcast...

Heading into this week's NATO summit, the big agenda item was the future of the defense alliance and how President Trump would engage with it. But on Tuesday, the US struck Iran dozens of times, with President Trump saying that the ceasefire between the US and Iran is "over." At a meeting that was supposed to be about the unity of the transatlantic alliance, a conflict that’s further strained US-E...

US Senate candidate Graham Platner's campaign has been thrown into chaos. On Monday, Politico reported an allegation of sexual assault from Platner's former girlfriend. Platner has denied the claim. The accusations have led to cratering support from prominent Democrats for his candidacy, in a race that is important for Democrats' ambitions to take back the Senate in November. What's next for Platn...

FIFA's Disciplinary Committee suspended US striker Folarin Balogun's one-game red card ban in exchange for a probationary period of one year. The decision was announced after President Donald Trump called FIFA President Gianni Infantino and asked him to review the red card. The suspended red card means Balogun can play in Monday night's win-or-go-home match in Seattle versus Belgium. But the decis...

An historic and dramatic shift is underway for NATO. As it tries to adapt to increasingly complex global threats and as the U.S. changes its priorities, there’s a push to create a more European NATO. David M. Cattler of the Center for European Policy Analysis talks about what to expect at this week's NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for C onsider T...

The town of Primm, Nevada was once a thriving tourist destination. Located on the Nevada-California border, the town has seen a sharp decline in tourism and has become like a ghost town, due in part to the proliferation of casinos across the country. Now, one family wants to revive Primm's glory days. But how? For sponsor-free episodes of  Consider This,  sign up for C onsider This+  via Apple Pod...

It's been more than one week since twin earthquakes devastated northern Venezuela. As of Wednesday, the death toll from the earthquakes had soared to nearly 2,300 people, with more than 11,000 people injured, according to Venezuela's government. But behind the staggering numbers are the stories of people trying to pick up the pieces of their lives after a devastating event. NPR follows people as t...

According to recent financial disclosures, President Trump made more than $1 billion from his crypto ventures in 2025. That means President Trump earned more money in 2025 from crypto than he did from his real estate investments that took decades to build.  How did he pull this off? This episode was produced by Michelle Aslam and Tyler Bartlam.  It was edited by Christopher Intagliata and Tinbete...

The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the Constitution guarantees automatic birthright citizenship to virtually all children born in the United States. It was one of the most closely watched cases of this Supreme Court term -- and is considered a rebuke of President Trump's goal to end birthright citizenship. But the Court is divided. We break down the ruling and how the justices are thinking about...

Today, the Supreme Court ruled on two cases that deal with major political battles.  The first deals with mail-in voting, which President Trump has criticized for years.  The Supreme Court upheld a Mississippi law that allows election officials to count mail-in ballots postmarked by Election Day but received up to five days later. In another ruling, the High Court ruled that Lisa Cook, a member of...

The Gordie Howe International Bridge spans the most important border crossing between the U.S. and Canada. President Donald Trump has said he doesn’t want it open yet.  For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Henry Larson. Our director is Elena Burnett.  It was edite...

NPR often relies on reporters going into dangerous places to get the story. It can mean covering a war, natural catastrophes, or highly contagious, deadly diseases — like the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo that has killed hundreds of people so far. For this week’s Reporter’s Notebook, we hear from Emmet Livingstone about how he balances the risk of reporting in an a...

Tommy Pigott, the State Department's spokesperson, has just returned from a trip to the Middle East.  He was there with Secretary of State Marco Rubio to meet with Gulf leaders about the administration's ongoing negotiations with Iran. While there, Secretary Rubio pledged the administrations commitment to helping Venezuela recover from this week's deadly earthquakes.  Pigott joins us to discuss hi...

Today, the Supreme Court sided with the Trump administration in two major immigration rulings. One allows the administration to move forward with revoking temporary legal status for hundreds of thousands of people. The other puts limits on how people can claim asylum. How could these rulings shape U.S. immigration policy? For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via A...

On Tuesday, Congressional candidates backed by New York City Mayor Zorhan Mamdani performed well in the New York primaries. The electoral victories were a major win for Mamdani, who put his political reputation on the line by endorsing the slate of leftist candidates. But about a year ago, centrist Democrats seemed skeptical of Mamdani's politics and approach. Do they have something to learn? For...

Every day since the beginning of June, Albanians have protested the development of a proposed luxury resort along the country's Adriatic coast. The real estate development is linked to two people with close ties to President Trump: Ivanka Trump, his daughter, and her husband Jared Kushner. Albanians are protesting government corruption -- and calling for the country's president to resign. How did...

Alan Greenspan, who led the Federal Reserve for nearly two decades, died Monday at his home in Washington. He was 100. Greenspan was the rare celebrity among central bankers, lionized for his economic stewardship in the 1990s — and a reputation tarnished by the global financial crisis of 2008. With a career that spanned decades and four presidents, what legacy does he leave behind? For sponsor-fre...

High-stakes negotiations at the Lake Lucerne summit in Switzerland between the U.S. and Iran have been strained from the start. Former Ambassador Ryan Crocker says Iran is settling in for the long haul, so the U.S. needs “strategic patience” if it wants long-term stability in the Middle East. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for C onsider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr....

It's Juneteenth – the holiday that commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S.  The team at NPR's Code Switch team has been looking at a question tied to this day: Who actually gets compensated when the government wrongs them? NPR's Gene Demby joins host Ailsa Chang to discuss that question -- and how the Trump administration's 'anti-weaponization fund' is connected to it. For sponsor-free episode...

A small number of people have made billions from AI and control the future of this groundbreaking technology. Independent US Senator Bernie Sanders wants to spread that wealth and power among the American public.  His idea idea? Create a sovereign wealth fund that can also regulate AI.  But how will it work -- and is there political will to make it happen? For sponsor-free episodes of  Consider Th...

According to the latest government data, nearly 750,000 people are homeless in the United States – including more than 30,000 military veterans. President Trump issued an executive order that aggressively targets homeless people - and advocates fear that includes veterans. NPR's Quil Lawrence spent time with   street-outreach workers in Long Beach, California to learn more about their concerns. Fo...

President Trump and Iran say an agreement has been reached to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The waterway is critical to global trade, especially oil -- and the blockades imposed on it have shocked energy markets, exacerbating inflation in the US. But even if the Strait of Hormuz is reopened, will shipping companies feel safe to pass through it, given that sea mines could make their...

After months of war and deadlocked negotiations, President Donald Trump announced Sunday on social media that he’d struck a deal with Iran. According to Trump and Iranian officials, the deal would open the Strait of Hormuz and end fighting on all fronts, including between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon. But Israel, the US partner in this war, isn't a party to this a...

A federal judge has temporarily blocked President Trump’s order to remove some exhibits at national parks. In Philadelphia, just ahead of the start of commemorations for America's 250th birthday, activists fight to restore a memorial about enslaved people who lived and worked in George Washington's executive mansion.  For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for C onsider This+ via Appl...