Skimm This

About a dozen lawmakers took a field trip to Texas yesterday. To visit two border facilities where migrants are being held. And some lawmakers did not like what they saw. Now there are protests being held around the country to close some migrant detention centers. We’ll break down what’s been happening on the border. Meanwhile, protesters in Hong Kong stormed the city’s Legislative Council and occ...

This weekend, President Trump became the first sitting US president to set foot in North Korea. This was Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s first meeting since February, when a summit about nuclear weapons and sanctions fell apart. But now the two say: talks are back on. What next? We’ll get into it. Meanwhile, members of OPEC are at the table in Vienna. To talk oil production. And tensio...

Senator Kamala Harris is getting a lot of attention today after last night’s democratic primary debate. She called out former VP Joe Biden over his record on race. And: busing. There’s a lot of history here -- and for Harris, it’s personal. We’ll break it down. Meanwhile, President Trump is talking trade with world leaders at the G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan. We’ll tell you how those chats are going...

Today, the Supremes dropped the mic on two big issues: partisan gerrymandering and a citizenship question on the census. These rulings really came down to the wire. But they weren’t a simple “yea” or “nay.” We’ll break down what they mean. Meanwhile, we’re halfway through the first 2020 Democratic primary debate. Last night’s candidates covered a lot issues (think: health care and immigration) and...

The first 2020 Democratic primary debate begins tonight in Miami. But don’t forget: this is a two-night event. Featuring a total of 20 candidates. Some you may have already heard of. Others could be trying to make a good first impression. We’ll tell you what to look out for. Meanwhile, former special counsel Robert Mueller is making a comeback. Because Congress. Mueller dropped the mic a few weeks...

The Trump administration is sanctioning top Iranian officials, including Iran’s Supreme Leader. The US has been sanctioning Iran for a while already, to get them to change course on nukes – but do sanctions ever actually work? We’ll get into it. Meanwhile, writer E. Jean Carroll has accused President Donald Trump of sexually assaulting her back in the mid ‘90s. Her allegation is getting a lot of a...

Immigration and Customs Enforcement was scheduled to target 2,000 families in raids across the country this weekend. But with hours to spare before the raids: President Trump called them off. For now. This is all happening amid renewed focus on conditions for migrants - especially kids - being housed at the border. We’ll break it down. Meanwhile, the US is giving peace in the Middle East another g...

President Trump says he approved military strikes on Iran planned for last night – but that he called them off with ten minutes to spare. This is the latest move in the rocky relationship between the US and Iran, and it has the world’s attention. We’ll explain the complexities here. Meanwhile, dozens of police officers in Philadelphia have been put on desk duty after a group uncovered public socia...

Today, China’s President Xi Jinping and North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un kicked off a two-day summit with the red-carpet treatment. This is the first time in almost 15 years that a Chinese leader has visited North Korea. And some are saying this is China playing mediator between North Korea and the US. We’ll explain why that’s a big deal. Meanwhile, it’s off to the races for the next UK prime mini...

Hundreds of people showed up to a House subcommittee hearing today on Capitol Hill. The topic? A bill that would create a commission to study slavery and whether reparations for African Americans are in order. We’ll explain the conversation happening around reparations. Meanwhile, a UN investigator has released a new report about the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The report says there’s ev...

It’s only June, but Facebook’s ready for Libra season. The social media giant is about to roll out a new global cryptocurrency called Libra. We’ll explain why Facebook thinks you should turn your $ into ≋. Meanwhile, President Trump will officially announce his re-election campaign tonight at a rally in Orlando. Technically he’s been running ever since he took office in 2017. But there are some ni...

The Iran Nuclear Deal is on the rocks. This is the deal Iran, the US and a bunch of major EU and other powers signed back in 2015 to prevent Iran from making a nuclear weapon. Now, Iran’s says it’s about to break one of the promises it made in that deal. We’ll tell you why this is important. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court laid down the law today. We’re breaking down two of the big decisions: double...

There were explosions on two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman this week. The US is pointing the finger at Iran, who’s saying ‘not us.’ These two countries have been going at it for a while – but the implications of this latest fight are global. We’ll break it down. Meanwhile, Michigan prosecutors are dropping criminal charges against officials accused of contributing to the Flint water crisis. But...

Special Counsel Robert Mueller dropped the mic a couple weeks ago, but Washington still has some unfinished business with the Russia investigation. The Attorney General has launched an investigation into the original investigation. Pre-Mueller. We’ll tell you more about it – and what it has to do with comments President Trump made on TV last night. Meanwhile, the House Intelligence Committee met t...

There were massive protests in Hong Kong today over a bill that would allow fugitives to be extradited to mainland China. Hong Kong is technically a semi-autonomous part of China. And protesters say this bill is really about China exerting more control over them. We’ll explain. Meanwhile, President Trump dusted off his executive privilege card over documents related to a new question on the 2020 c...

The US and Mexico struck a deal on immigration before President Trump could impose tariffs on all Mexican imports. But now, Trump is saying ‘more to come.’ That could have to do with Mexico being named a ‘safe third country’ – something Mexico doesn’t really want. We’ll explain why. Meanwhile, 2020 presidential candidates are practically tripping over each other in Iowa. The reason: it’s the first...

This week, lawmakers in Congress are nose-deep in a page-turner: the Mueller Report. Mueller’s not talking … but Dems are hearing from some old school political junkies - like President Nixon’s former White House counsel John Dean - and trying to force other people to show up. We'll explain why. Meanwhile, California lawmakers say it’s time for a check-up. Their new budget plan would give some und...

Major automakers wrote a letter to two of their pen pals: President Trump and CA Gov. Gavin Newsom. They’re asking them to, pretty please, compromise on emissions standards. Before it’s too late. We’ll tell you why the auto industry wants to pump the brakes. Meanwhile, the FCC passed new rules that could make your hotline bling a little less. Because robocallers. Also on today’s episode: the Women...

World leaders gathered today to mark the 75th anniversary of D-Day, and remember those who fought and those who lost their lives. But the alliances in place since D-Day between the US and Europe are now being tested. We’ll explain how we got here. Meanwhile, 2020 presidential candidate Joe Biden is singling himself out from the rest of the democratic pack in supporting the Hyde Amendment. Which ba...

The Trump administration wants to sell $8 billion worth of weapons to Saudi Arabia and some other Middle East countries. But many US lawmakers are saying: ‘bad idea.’ We’ll explain why they don’t want this sale to go through, and how they plan to stop it. Meanwhile, Mexico’s foreign minister Marcelo Ebrard is in DC trying to talk the Trump administration down from raising tariffs. We’ll tell you w...

It’s been 30 years since Beijing's Tiananmen Square massacre, in which the Chinese government turned the military on its own people. China doesn’t want to talk about it – but some survivors do. And the US has a lot to say. We’ll explain the complex dynamics here. Meanwhile, if you haven’t booked your summer trip to Cuba yet: you may be too late. The Trump administration is restricting some travel...

Two major government agencies reportedly have their eyes on Google and Amazon. Because they’ve got antitrust issues. We’ll explain why. Meanwhile, President Trump and the First Lady are across the pond visiting the Royals and UK politicians - but British politics are in a bit of a shambles at the moment. We’ll tell you what you should know. Also on today’s episode: Taylor Swift’s petition for equa...

President Trump is threatening Mexico with tariffs. Because of immigration. While the US, Mexico and Canada are trying to seal the deal on a new trade agreement. We’ll explain what it all means. Meanwhile, some Hollywood studios are threatening to boycott the state of Georgia after its governor signed one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the US. The film industry has brought 90k new jobs t...

Israel’s parliament has dissolved. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu couldn’t get enough support to form a government, and now the country has to vote all over again. This has never happened before in Israel’s history -- we’ll explain what might be coming next. Meanwhile, 16 women filed a lawsuit alleging that they were discriminated against at Quantico, the FBI’s training ground. Some say they fa...

Special Counsel Robert Mueller turned off his “do not disturb” mode today to give a brief statement. The message: his Russia investigation is officially over and he’s clocking out. He said some words about whether President Trump committed a crime. And went back on silent. We’ll explain. Meanwhile, the last clinic that provides abortions in Missouri might have to stop doing so on Friday. This woul...