The NPR Politics Podcast

The U.S. is evacuating thousands of people a day from Kabul, prioritizing Americans and citizens of NATO allies. The Taliban insist that all troops must be out of the country by the end of the month. That has left Americans who were deployed to the country worried about the fate of their Afghan allies — particularly those outside of the capitol city. This episode: demographics and culture correspo...

President Biden spoke about the situation in Afghanistan again Friday, emphasizing his commitment to evacuating all Americans and Afghan allies after the Taliban's swift takeover. NPR's Scott Detrow asked him why these evacuations didn't begin months ago when the U.S. still had more control in the country. And as COVID cases continue to rise, many school administrators are implementing mask mandat...

Frantic evacuations continue in Afghanistan as President Biden publicly defends the way in which the withdrawal of U.S. troops was conducted. And in an interview with ABC on Wednesday, Biden said that using military force to deal with human rights issues was "not rational." This episode: congressional correspondent Kelsey Snell, White House correspondent Asma Khalid, international correspondent Ja...

The nation's top election officials met in Iowa last weekend. They discussed the ongoing challenge presented by false conspiracy theories pushed by Republicans about the presidential election. This episode: White House correspondent Ayesha Rascoe, voting and misinformation reporter Miles Parks, and senior political editor and correspondent Domenico Montanaro. Connect: Subscribe to the NPR Politics...

Hospitals across the country are nearing capacity as they struggle to treat unvaccinated Americans. Children represent eighteen percent of all new cases, as parents and pediatricians push to get those under twelve access to the vaccine as schools begin to reopen. This episode: White House correspondent Scott Detrow, congressional correspondent Kelsey Snell, and health correspondent Allison Aubrey....

In a speech at the White House Monday, President Biden forcefully defended his decision to withdrawal from Afghanistan — rebuking the Afghan government for being unwilling to fight the Taliban and emphasizing that spending more time and money in the country would not, in his view, have changed the outcome. The president devoted very little of the speech to criticism he has faced over how the withd...

The unexpected announcement from the Pentagon comes as the Taliban is rapidly increasing their control over the country. And new census data out this week shows that the share of Americans who identify as multiracial is up nearly 300 percent since 2010. This episode: White House correspondent Asma Khalid, congressional correspondent Susan Davis, White House correspondent Franco Ordoñez, and nation...

In the latest installment of the Docket, our series on legal issues, NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben and Carrie Johnson talk about vaccine mandates with Lindsay F. Wiley, a law professor at American University. Connect: Subscribe to the NPR Politics Podcast here . Email the show at nprpolitics@npr.org Join the NPR Politics Podcast Facebook Group . Listen to our playlist The NPR Politics Daily Workout ....

Once talked about as a future presidential candidate, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-N.Y.) will leave politics in disgrace after the release of a report detailing multiple allegations of sexual harassment. Some allegations he denies, others encounters he says are being mischaracterized. Now, there are big questions about the future of politics in the state. This episode: White House correspondent Asma Khali...

President Biden's infrastructure deal passed the Senate with 19 Republican votes, bolstering his claim that he can secure deals in today's Washington. But now he has to contend with competing priorities within his own party. Also: Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D-N.Y.) has said he will resign. This episode: political correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben, congressional correspondent Kelsey Snell, and senior polit...

President Biden said that the United States will cut its greenhouse gas emissions to half of 2005 levels by the end of this decade. The Senate is on track to approve billions for climate resiliency programs this week and Democrats have made climate policy a central piece of their forthcoming $3.5 trillion economic package. The proposals are all unprecedented — but are they enough to meet the scale...

The unemployment rate dropped to 5.4% in July — a low for the pandemic. Nearly a million new jobs were added to the economy — although restaurants and factories are still hurting for workers. Covid cases continued to rise, too. We take a look at the two ends of the response spectrum: New York City's vaccine mandate and Florida's free-for-all. This episode: White House correspondent Scott Detrow, W...

People agree: prices are up on everything from gasoline to used cars. But both experts and voters disagree on the cause and whether inflation is here to stay. That uncertainty makes the economy a potent messaging tool ahead of the 2022 race for control of Congress. This episode: White House correspondent Scott Detrow and White House correspondent Asma Khalid. Connect: Subscribe to the NPR Politics...

Gene Sperling oversees the White House's rollout of COVID relief. On Monday, he told reporters that President Biden had "quadruple-checked" whether he had the legal grounds to extend the eviction moratorium unilaterally but said ultimately the president's hands were tied by a Supreme Court ruling that blocked the administration from extending its past moratorium beyond the end of July. Yesterday,...

An investigation found that Gov. Andrew Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women in and out of state government and worked to retaliate against one of his accusers, New York's attorney general announced Tuesday. The findings quickly renewed calls for the Democrat's resignation or impeachment. Cuomo smacked down the allegations, citing generational differences, and calling the investigation political...

A vote on the t rillion-dollar proposal is expected as soon as Thursday. Also, President Biden has been denying tens of thousands of migrants asylum proceedings, citing public health fears. After months of stagnant negotiations, immigration and civil rights groups are taking the White House to court. This episode: White House correspondent Scott Detrow, congressional reporter Claudia Grisales, nat...

President Biden gave a speech Thursday afternoon begging folks to get vaccinated. A CDC document warns that the very contagious delta variant means "the war has changed" against COVID. The bipartisan infrastructure deal which passed its first vote in the Senate this week is evidence that President Biden may be able to foster cooperative lawmaking in modern Washington, as he promised during the cam...

The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was born from the civil rights movement of the '50s and '60s, but in recent years the Supreme Court has effectively nullified its key provisions. We explore why the law was first passed and what it means for voters of color now that its powers have been gutted. This episode: congressional correspondent Susan Davis and national justice correspondent Carrie Johnson. Con...

The White House says it is "following the science" on masks after the CDC issued new guidance, but some experts say they're falling short on the social science: how to convince the remaining 40 percent of American adults to get vaccinated. Alabama has the lowest vaccination rate in the nation and residents there aren't likely to listen to President Biden. Can football coach-turned-Senator Tommy Tu...

The officers — Pfc. Harry Dunn and Sgt. Aquilino Gonell of the U.S. Capitol Police, and Michael Fanone and Daniel Hodges of the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department — testified before a congressional committee investigating the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol by Donald Trump's supporters. The officers each detailed brutal violence and abuse at the hand of protestors that left th...

Customs and Border Protection reported encounters with 188,829 migrants and asylum-seekers at the U.S. southern border last month, the highest level in a generation. The Biden administration has struggled with how to respond. This episode: White House correspondent Scott Detrow, White House correspondent Franco Ordoñez, and national political correspondent Mara Liasson. Connect: Subscribe to the N...

A hearing next week featuring testimony by Capitol Police officers will be held without any members nominated by Republicans. Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is boycotting the process after the House's top Democrat Nancy Pelosi vetoed some of the members he selected to serve. And the rate of violent crime is sharply up in some cities across the United States. There are no simple answers about what'...

A group of 21 senators from both parties but out a statement that they're close to a deal and another vote is expected as soon as Monday. And an Ohio Democratic primary race to replace Biden official Marica Fudge in the House of Representatives is getting a lot of national attention, including from this podcast. This episode: White House correspondent Scott Detrow, congressional correspondent Susa...

Coronavirus cases are on the rise in parts of the United States and there have been new cases among fully-vaccinated lawmakers and government staff. The country as a whole saw a nearly 150% increase in the seven-day case average compared with two weeks prior. The vaccines, though, are still preventing serious infections and mostly keeping people out of the hospital. Now, President Biden and the Wh...

Ben Shapiro's conservative commentary and news aggregation site The Daily Wire is a dominant force on Facebook, where sharp headlines drive massive engagement. The upstart The Georgia Star News has pushed outright disinformation about the 2020 presidential election and subsequently scored an exclusive interview with Donald Trump. The two sites illustrate a number of distinct ways in which outrage,...