The NPR Politics Podcast

Prominent candidates in two Republican Senate primaries, Missouri's Eric Greitens and Georgia's Herschel Walker, face domestic violence allegations. On today's podcast, how the candidates — and the Republican party — have responded. This episode: White House correspondent Scott Detrow, demographics and culture correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben, and congressional correspondent Susan Davis. Support...

The Biden administration has repeatedly tried to end the policy, which requires migrants making an asylum claim in the U.S. to reside in Mexico until their immigration court date, only to be forced to reinstate it by the courts. Now, the Supreme Court will consider the president's powers on the issue. Also before the court: a public high school football coach in Washington was not rehired to his j...

A judge said the rule exceeded the Centers for Disease Control's power, raising questions about how the agency can enforce public health rules in future crises. The Biden administration, so far, has not committed to an appeal of the ruling. This episode: White House correspondent Scott Detrow, White House correspondent Tamara Keith, and transportation correspondent David Schaper. Connect: Email th...

And you might not have to go to Iowa in order to be the Democrats' presidential nominee anymore: the party is looking to reshape its primary calendar so the earliest states better represent the racial makeup of its voters. This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, political reporter Barbara Sprunt, and senior political editor and correspondent Domenico Montanaro. Support the show and u...

Sarah Palin, whose 2008 turn as John McCain's running mate presaged the Republican Party's evolution, is reentering the political arena with a bid to represent her home state of Alaska in the House of Representatives. And in the contentous race to serve as the Republican Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, TV personality Mehmet Oz secured Donald Trump's coveted endorsement against Dave McCormick, a...

In Borodyanka, northwest of Kyiv, Natasha Romanenko lived in her root cellar for a month to avoid Russian soldiers. In the final days of the occupation, Natasha says she ventured out to milk her cow when she was briefly held at gunpoint by a Russian soldier who accused her of scouting Russian troop locations. When Russian forces invaded and occupied her town, according to Ukrainian officials, Russ...

There are 35 Senate elections happening this November and although Republicans are defending 21 incumbents to Democrats' 14, they still appear poised to take control as Biden's sagging approval rating jeopardizes his party's narrow control of the chamber. This episode: congressional correspondent Susan Davis, congressional correspondent Kelsey Snell, and senior political editor and correspondent D...

The White House continues to insist the country has the tools to return to life-as-usual, even as COVID spreads through establishment Washington. Low booster uptake among seniors and the lack of vaccines for children under five continues to cause public health experts concern. This episode: congressional correspondent Susan Davis, White House correspondent Asma Khalid, and health policy correspond...

Far-right activists and a militia figure are a major force in the state's Republican politics, where even orthodox conservatives like Gov. Brad Little are described by opponents as "too liberal." Lieutenant Governor Janice McGeachin, who has cozied up to white nationalists, is running to unseat him. Now, a group called Take Back Idaho is raising money in an uphill fight to push far-right Republica...

Ivanka Trump, daughter and adviser to the former president, voluntarily testified before House investigators for more than eight hours this week about the insurrectionist riot in the Capitol. And Congress debated how the government would survive if half its members died or were incapacitated in an attack or natural disaster. Right now, the Constitution requires House members be to replaced by spec...

The vote was 53 to 47, with three Republicans joining the Democratic caucus in support of Jackson's nomination. When sworn in this summer, she will be the first Black woman on the Supreme Court. This episode: demographics and culture correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben, legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg, and national justice correspondent Carrie Johnson. Connect: Email the show at nprpoliti...

As the Senate prepares to leave town for a two-week break, a bipartisan deal for $10 billion in new COVID money is on hold thanks to a fight over immigration. The BIden administration announced plans to lift a Trump-era restriction called Title 42. It allowed the U.S. to block migrants from entering the country before they have the chance to make an asylum claim. Republicans and some conservative...

Unemployment in the United States is near record lows, wages are growing quickly, and spending in the service sector is increasing as the pandemic lulls. But there's also some worrying news: more job openings than people who want to fill them, global economic uncertainty stemming from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and so much demand for consumer goods that the supply chain is struggling to keep up...

President Joe Biden again referred to Russian leader Vladimir Putin as a war criminal after mass graves were discovered in territory recaptured by Ukrainian forces. And in conversations with NPR, many Ukrainians have expressed a deep sense of grief — and a desire for more military support from Europe and the United States. This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, national political co...

The Federal Communications Commission has few regulations over what candidates can say in their advertisements, though private broadcasters and internet platforms can impose more stringent rules. The result is thousands of the political advertising voters see can include lies and outlandish claims. And some election watchers say the private money was key to a smooth general election process in 202...

Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and a former White House staffer, was interviewed by the committee investigating the January 6th attacks on Thursday. The investigators are now hoping to have public hearings in May to lay out what they have discovered, though any criminal chargers would have to come from the Justice Department. This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, congressional r...

In Florida, a law limiting discussion of sexual orientation will take effect this summer. In Indiana, Republican lawmakers debated how to constrain discussion of sensitive topics, including race and ethnicity. Similar efforts are ongoing in statehouses across the country, a manifestation of the right's new focus on what and how kids are taught ⁠— something they hope will motivate parents ahead of...

Russia pushed a conspiracy theory that the United States is helping Ukraine develop biological weapons. There's no evidence for that, but the idea did end up on Tucker Carlson Tonight — a Fox News show that reaches, on average, more than 3.5 million viewers with each episode. How did the conspiracy theory find its way from the Kremlin to American conservative media? This episode: White House corre...

COVID cases, hospitalizations, and deaths are down in the United States, but health experts say it's too early to declare victory over the virus. Lawmakers are trying to reach a deal to continue funding the federal response, as a contagious subvariant is fueling surges in Europe and Asia. This episode: White House correspondent Tamara Keith, acting congressional correspondent Deirdre Walsh, and he...

On a four-day trip through Europe, President Biden is sending the message that the US and allies are united in their response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But a month after the invasion began, it's not clear that diplomatic pressures are working to deter Russia's aggression. Also, Clarence Thomas's wife Ginni Thomas repeatedly urged then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows to overturn t...

Tepublicans in the Ohio Senate primary are vying for Trump's endorsement to gain an edge in a crowded field. But Trump's approval doesn't mean an automatic victory: the former president just rescinded an endorsement in the Alabama Senate race, and his candidate was lagging in the polls. This episode: Congressional correspondent Susan Davis, acting congressional correspondent Deirdre Walsh, and nat...

Wednesday was the third day of Ketanji Brown Jackson's Supreme Court confirmation hearings, but senators spent much of their time rehashing familiar lines of questioning. Republicans doubled down on charges Jackson is "soft on crime." And Jackson, like most nominees since Ruth Bader Ginsburg, did not comment on any potential issues that could come before the court. In an era of deep polarization,...

Ketanji Brown Jackson, President Biden's Supreme Court pick, faced questions from the Senate Judiciary Committee Tuesday. In a marathon hearing, Jackson said she decides cases "from a position of neutrality" and follows the text of the Constitution. Republican senators questioned her record sentencing criminal defendants and representing detainees and Guantanamo Bay. This episode: Congressional co...

On her first day of Supreme Court confirmation hearings, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson told senators that she "stands on the shoulders" of those who came before her and that she decides cases "from a neutral posture." While she has broad support from Democratic senators, Republicans are likely to press her on her record as a public defender when questioning begins Tuesday. This episode: Congressiona...

On top of aid to Ukraine and a trillion-dollar budget, Congress reauthorized the Violence Against Women Act and passed legislation which makes lynching a federal hate crime. They also voted to make Daylight Saving Time permanent, but only because some senators who were opposed reportedly didn't know the vote was happening. And Black Americans are mobilizing in support of Ketanji Brown Jackson's Su...