The Daily

With an unpopular president and soaring inflation, Democrats knew they had an uphill battle in the midterms. But the fall of Roe v. Wade seemed to offer the party a way of energizing voters and holding ground. And one place where that hope could live or die is Michigan. Guest: Lisa Lerer , a national political correspondent for The New York Times. Background reading:  Some top Democrats say that t...

For decades, many universities have used race as a factor when deciding which students to admit. In the past, the Supreme Court has backed that practice, called affirmative action, in the interest of creating a diverse student body. This week, however, the majority-conservative court is considering a case that may change affirmative action forever. Guest: Adam Liptak , a correspondent covering the...

Early on Friday, an intruder broke into the San Francisco home of Nancy Pelosi and bludgeoned Ms. Pelosi’s husband, Paul, with a hammer. The shocking attack underlined fears about the growing number of threats against members of Congress and the woeful lack of security around those lawmakers. Guest: Catie Edmondson , a congressional correspondent for The New York Times. Background reading:  A trai...

It was long awaited, and some doubted that it would ever come to pass, but last week, the tech billionaire Elon Musk officially took over Twitter. The platform was once the place of underdogs, a public square that allowed users to challenge the moneyed and powerful. Is that about to change? Guest: Kevin Roose , a technology columnist for The New York Times, and co-host of the Times podcast “ Hard...

Four years ago, Xi Jinping set himself up to become China’s leader indefinitely. At last week’s Communist Party congress in Beijing, he stepped into that role, making a notable sweep of the country’s other top leaders and placing even greater focus on national security. Guest: Chris Buckley , chief China correspondent for The New York Times. Background reading:  At the congress, Mr. Xi didn’t ment...

For Sam Anderson, a staff writer, traveling with animals can lead to enlightening experience. In this essay for The New York Times Magazine, Mr. Anderson explores what he has learned from a lifetime of voyaging with animals, and what it means to connect with another creature: bridging spiritual, physical and even temporal distances, and reaching into “something like evolutionary time.” “An animal...

This moment in politics will be defined by shifts at the grass-roots level. Today, we talk to conservative voters about the forces animating the midterm elections for them — and what Washington can learn from the people.  What do you think of “The Run-Up” so far? Please take our listener survey at nytimes.com/therunupsurvey.  “ The Run-Up ” is a new politics podcast from The New York Times. Leadin...

Voters in Brazil on Sunday will choose between two larger-than-life, populist candidates in a presidential race that is widely seen as the nation’s — and Latin America’s — most important election in decades. Who are the candidates, and why is the future of Brazilian democracy also on the ballot? Guest: Jack Nicas , the Brazil bureau chief for The New York Times. Background reading:  The contest —...

As Democratic Party leaders assessed their vulnerabilities in this year’s midterm elections, the one state they did not worry about was New York. That — it turns out — was a mistake. Despite being a blue state through and through, and a place President Donald J. Trump lost by 23 points two years ago, the red tide of this moment is lapping at New York’s shores. Why is New York up for grabs? Guest:...

A few days ago, when the House committee investigating Jan. 6 issued a subpoena to former President Donald J. Trump, it raised a legal question: Can Congress compel a former president to testify? The committee’s move, while dramatic, is not without precedent. What do presidential subpoenas of the past teach us about the moment we’re in, and about what the former president might do next? Guest: Luk...

In the early days of its war on Ukraine, Russia cut off gas supplied to most of Europe, plunging the continent into the most severe energy crisis in decades. Soaring prices have put some European leaders on the defensive over their support of Ukraine in the war as they navigate economic crises and bubbling unrest at home. Guest: Matina Stevis-Gridneff , the Brussels bureau chief for The New York T...

This episode contains strong language.  Hundreds of candidates on the ballot in November still deny that President Biden won in 2020 — a level of denialism that is fueling harassment and threats toward election workers.  Few have experienced those attacks as viscerally as election workers in Arizona. Today, we speak with the top election official in the state’s largest county.  Guest: Stephen Rich...

Yiyun Li has garnered legions of fans with her unsparing prose, writing extensively about her own struggles with depression and suicidality. Her latest novel, “The Book of Goose,” is no different, sharing the same quality that has made Ms. Li something of a beacon to those suffering beneath unbearable emotional weight. Alexandra Kleeman, also a novelist, meets Ms. Li to discover the secrets of her...

How a 12-year project to lock in political power in Wisconsin could culminate in this year’s midterms – and provide a glimpse into where the rest of the country is headed.  “ The Run-Up ” is a new politics podcast from The New York Times. Leading up to the 2022 midterms, we’ll be sharing the latest episode here every Saturday. If you want to hear episodes when they first drop on Thursdays, follow...

Prime Minister Liz Truss of Britain has resigned after only 44 days in office. Hers is the shortest premiership in the country’s history. What led to her downfall, and why has Britain entered a period of such profound political dysfunction? Guest: Mark Landler , the London bureau chief for The New York Times. Background reading:  Prime Minister Liz Truss’s resignation, yet another episode of polit...

After a summer of news that favored Democrats and with just two weeks until the midterms, a major new poll from The Times has found that swing voters are suddenly turning to the Republicans. The Times’s Nate Cohn explains what is behind the trend and what it could mean for Election Day. Guest: Nate Cohn , the chief political analyst for The New York Times. Background reading:  According to the Tim...

This episode contains strong language. A leaked audio recording of Latino lawmakers in Los Angeles making racist comments has created a political firestorm and brought demands for resignations. But not only has the uproar forced the authorities to reckon with what officials say behind closed doors, it has also raised a sharp issue: Why is a city with so many Latino constituents represented by so f...

Since Hurricane Ian devastated southwestern Florida last month, residents have filed a record number of insurance claims for the damage caused by the storm. Today, Chris Flavelle, a climate reporter for The Times, discusses whether the insurance companies can survive. And if they can’t, what will the effect be on Florida’s housing market, the cornerstone of its economy? Guest: Christopher Flavelle...

Herschel Walker, the former football star who is running for the Senate, is, according to the Times political reporter Maya King, a “demigod in Georgia sports and in Georgia culture.” The midterm election in that state is crucial — it could determine whether Democrats keep control of the Senate. Mr. Walker’s candidacy, however, has been tainted by a slew of stories about his character, including c...

In July 2020, Stephanie Long, the school superintendent in Leland, Mich., wrote a heartfelt letter to her students and their families after George Floyd’s murder by Minneapolis police officers. Haunted by the images she’d seen in the media, she wrote: “Why be in a position of leadership,” she asked herself, “and not lead?” “All people of color,” Ms. Long typed, “need us to stand with them to clear...

When Georgia flipped blue in the 2020 election, it gave Democrats new hope for the future. Credit for that success goes to Stacey Abrams and the playbook she developed for the state. It cemented her role as a national celebrity, in politics and pop culture. But, unsurprisingly, that celebrity has also made her a target of Republicans, who say she’s a losing candidate. On today’s episode: the Stace...

In 2019, Julia Longoria, then a Daily producer, traveled to Nashville to speak with Ella Maners and her mother, Katie Maners. Ella, 8 going on 9, was terrified of tornadoes and getting sick. So she did something that was even scarier than her fears: confront them at Fear Facers camp. We revisit her story and catch up with Ella, now 12 and in the fifth grade, who has since returned to the camp. Bac...

This episode contains mention of suicide. A year ago, Lynsea Garrison, a senior producer on The Daily, started telling the story of N, a teenager in Afghanistan. N’s family tried to force her to marry a member of the Taliban, but she resisted. When she tried to escape to the U.S., however, her case was rejected, so she had to remain in Kabul, fearful and in hiding. Here’s what happened next. If yo...

Just before the sun came up on Saturday on the Kerch Strait Bridge, a strategically and symbolically important link between Russia and the Crimean Peninsula, a bomb detonated, creating a giant fireball. But Ukrainian elation about the explosion quickly turned into concern about how Russia would respond. And in the days since, Moscow’s retaliation has been to pound Ukrainian cities with missiles in...

To tackle its critical shortage of affordable housing, California has taken aim at a central tenet of the American dream: the single-family home. Telling the story of one such property, in San Diego, can teach us about the larger housing crisis and how we might solve it. Guest: Conor Dougherty , an economics reporter at The New York Times and author of “Golden Gates: Fighting for Housing in Americ...