Slate News

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss Trump’s brazen effort to smash Fed independence by wielding allegations of mortgage fraud against Fed governor Lisa Cook, the expanding law enforcement role of the National Guard in DC and other cities, and the inexplicable folly of Trump’s all-out assault on the renewable wind industry. For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emi...

Blood has a very short shelf life, even under the best of conditions—and you can picture the less-than-ideal conditions where blood is frequently needed—which is why scientists have been working on a blood alternative. The results are promising. Guest: Nicky Twilley , host of “ Gastropod ” podcast and author of Frostbite: How Refrigeration Changed Our Food, Our Planet and Ourselves . Want more Wha...

John Bolton isn’t exactly beloved by the right or the left. But sending the FBI to raid his house fits a pattern: Either tell the president what he wants to hear, or face the consequences.  Guest: Shane Harris , staff writer covering national security and intelligence for The Atlantic. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across...

Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte has led investigations into Senator Adam Schiff, New York Attorney General Leititia James, and the Federal Reserve’s Lisa Cook for mortgage fraud.  With a background a lot like Trump’s—and a little like Mr. Beast’s—who is Pulte? And what kind of damage could a vengeful FHFA director do? Guest:  Rachel Siegel , reporter covering the economics of re...

Katie Miller, whose husband Stephen Miller is Trump’s right-hand man, launched a new podcast to join the growing ranks of content made specifically for conservative women. But is there enough demand—in listeners and supplement sponsorship—to make the same impact that the conservative manosphere has? Guest:  Emma Goldberg , business features writer at The New York Times. Want more What Next? Subscr...

President Trump has proposed cutting $2.5 billion from the National Cancer Institute, which in addition to cuts to the National Institutes of Health and research universities almost makes you wonder: whose side is he on in the fight against cancer?  Guest: Angus Chen , cancer reporter for STAT news Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next...

Women were prosecuted for experiencing miscarriage or stillbirth even before the Supreme Court swept away the protections of Roe v. Wade . But these prosecutions have ramped up since, in both red and blue states. The stakes are ramping up too, with legislators introducing bills that would treat abortion as homicide, potentially subjecting patients to the death penalty. This week, Mark Joseph Stern...

This week: We got more details on the ATM scam that swept New York City thanks to a teen summer job program and an infinite money glitch last month.  Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck discuss the mechanics of the scam, the fallout for the many parties involved, and the tragic irony that a program meant to teach teen financial literacy led them straight into a harsh real world lesson...

Two weeks ago, a gunman fired over 500 bullets at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention building in Atlanta. Between the anti-public health rhetoric coming from Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at the top, personnel cuts and firings, and now a literal shooting, many employees are reaching their breaking point.     Guest: Lauren Weber , health science accountability reporter for the Washington Post....

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss Trump’s deepening takeover of Washington D.C. as National Guard troops from red states arrive, what if anything was accomplished in the whirlwind of Putin-Trump-Zelensky diplomacy, and this week’s launch of the new liberal publication The Argument with its Editor-in-Chief Jerusalem Demsas . For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode,...

Donald Trump was able to take over the Metropolitan Police Department and send in National Guard troops and federal agents to patrol the streets due to Washington D.C.’s strange, not-a-state status. One of the district’s (non-voting) Congressional representatives believes D.C. statehood could come in the backlash.  Guest: Ankit Jain , U.S. Senator for Washington, D.C. since 2024. Want more What Ne...

Donald Trump returned from his meeting with Vladimir Putin convinced that mail-in voting is how he was cheated from winning the 2020 election. Though he’s come to this conclusion without evidence, how much damage can he do to American democracy? Guest:  Rick Hasen, UCLA School of Law, Director , Safeguarding Democracy Project, Election Law blog Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more infor...

After visiting with Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelensky, and European leaders, where does Donald Trump stand on the Ukraine-Russia war—and where does that leave Ukraine? Guest:  Tim Mak , editor of the Kyiv-based publication The Counteroffensive . Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subsc...

In this Money Talks:  Elizabeth Spiers is joined by professors Matt Sekerke and Steve H. Hanke, coauthors of Making Money Work: How to Rewrite the Rules of Our Financial System . They’ll lay out how the money supply in the US is misunderstood and underweighted in monetary policy, how that flawed system contributed to the global financial crisis, and what policymakers can do to fix it all.  Want to...

Characteristic of this administration’s over-the-top but never-thought-out immigration enforcement, Trump traded more than 250 Venezuelans who had been deported to El Salvador’s notorious CECOT prison for 10 Americans who were being held prisoner in Venezuela—including a man convicted of a triple homicide.  Guest:  Jonathan Blitzer, staff writer at the New Yorker and author of Everyone Who Is Gone...

In this special episode of Slate Money Travels,  Felix Salmon ,  Emily Peck  and  Elizabeth Spiers  discuss what extras are really worth paying for when you travel. Airlines, especially want to nickel and dime for every little thing. But is the extra leg room worth it? What about getting off the plane sooner? Can you put a price on not waiting in line?    Want to hear that discussion and hear more...

The scam du jour arrives via a text message, offering you a job. What happens when you accept? Guest: Alex Sammon , Slate features writer.  Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/what...

The scam du jour arrives via a text message, offering you a job. What happens when you accept? Guest: Alex Sammon , Slate features writer.  Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/what...

Law firms, universities, and businesses are bending the knee to the Trump administration at the slightest threat. Amid this shocking cowardice, blue states have been a bastion of defiance against the president’s escalating power grabs—with attorneys general leading the way. Mark Joseph Stern talks with New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin, who has been on the frontlines of this battle since...

Political Gabfest host Emily Bazelon talks with Jonathan Mahler about his new book, The Gods of New York. They discuss the unraveling of Mayor Ed Koch’s New York City; how the city’s current mayoral race is mirroring the past; and more.   Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com. (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)   Podcast prod...

This week: Trump continues to involve himself in the operations of large US companies. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck discuss this slide toward state capitalism, which seemingly goes against the GOP’s usual stance on government involvement in business. Then, so called “ wrench attacks " are on the rise wherein wealthy crypto holders are being targeted with real life violence for...

A patron and perhaps foremost practitioner of “anti-woke comedy,” Tony Hinchcliffe sits atop his own thriving comedy kingdom in Austin. And when you’re on top, you’ve got nowhere to punch but down. Guest: Luke Winkie , staff writer at Slate , author of “ The Cult of Kill Tony ” This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exc...

Jensen Huang, cofounder of NVIDIA, finds himself president of a $4 trillion company, at the forefront of A.I. technology, and, consequently, something of an international diplomat, as he charms President Trump and negotiates to sell his powerful chips to China.  Guest: Amrith Ramkumar , reporter for The Wall Street Journal in Washington covering tech and crypto policy. Want more What Next TBD? Sub...

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and guest host Jamelle Bouie discuss the perils of this week’s Trump-plus-Putin (minus Zelensky) summit in Alaska, how Trump’s claimed crime “emergency” provided pretext for National Guard deployment and takeover of D.C. police, and a new presidential memorandum requiring colleges to share admissions data to “verify” that they are not considering race.  Fo...

On Sunday, Al-Jazeera’s entire team in Gaza City were killed by an airstrike. Almost immediately, Israel said it targeted one of them on purpose – Anas al-Sharif. The strike fits a pattern, growing both in Israel and across the world, of targeting journalists—and holding no one accountable afterwards. Guest: Jodie Ginsberg , head of the Committee to Protect Journalists, a nonprofit organization pr...