Today, Explained

It’s official: Scott Pruitt will no longer lead the Environmental Protection Agency. Vox’s Umair Irfan explains why it doesn’t really matter who replaces him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When the clock strikes twelve tonight, the US government plans to hit Chinese goods with $34 billion in tariffs. China plans to lash back. Vox’s Matthew Yglesias explains who this trade war will hurt the most. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#AbolishICE has gone from an online murmur to a national movement, but a lot of Americans are confused about what exactly Immigration and Customs Enforcement does. Vox’s Dara Lind explains the short history of the controversial agency and what it might mean to see it dissolved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Meet Mexico’s next president: Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Call him AMLO. He’s a leftist, a populist, and wasn’t shy about calling Donald Trump a “neo-fascist”. Professor Carlos Bravo Regidor explains how AMLO went from losing the presidency twice to winning it in a landslide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Supreme Court upheld President Trump’s travel ban this week, making it all but impossible for the citizens of seven countries to enter the United States. One of those countries is Yemen, which the United Nations says is undergoing the worst humanitarian crisis on the planet. International Crisis Group’s Joost Hiltermann explains how things got so bad, and why they could get a lot worse. Learn...

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is set to become the youngest woman to ever serve in Congress this November. The 28-year-old Democratic Socialist defeated ten-term Representative Joe Crowley in a massive upset for the Democratic Party. Vox’s Kay Steiger explains whether socialism is the future of the left. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After 30 years on the Supreme Court, Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement today. Slate’s Dahlia Lithwick explains what the departure of the swing vote means for the Court and the country. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court upheld President Trump’s travel ban. Emily Bazelon from The New York Times Magazine explains the opinion, a fiery dissent, and how the justices used this case to undo one of the Court’s most racist decisions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A 32-year-old from Santa Monica, California, helped President Trump conceive of the most divisive immigration policy in decades. The Atlantic’s McKay Coppins explains how Stephen Miller went from high school troll to West Wing advisor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bill and Melinda Gates are messing with nature. But they’re doing it to save the world. This week, their foundation gave away millions to make malaria-carrying mosquitoes extinct before long. On the way, they’ll have to tweak some DNA. Vox’s Joss Fong explains. ****************************************************** Check out the Vox Video on the ethical debate over using genetically modified mosqu...

President Trump signed an executive order which aims to end his own policy of family separation at the border. Yeah... it's confusing. Martha Mendoza from the Associated Press tries to parse it out, and immigration lawyer Anne Chandler explains the chaos families are still experiencing at the border. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The United States has been threatening to withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council for some time, but President Trump and Ambassador Nikki Haley made it official last night. The announcement comes just one day after the council called the act of separating kids from their parents “unconscionable.” Foreign Policy’s Colum Lynch explains why the withdrawal is bad news for the world. Lear...

It's Juneteenth! What is this holiday that hardly anyone fully understands? UCLA's Brenda Stevenson explains the history, and argues that the celebration of emancipation is more important now than ever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

That’s how many kids have been separated from their parents at border crossings over a six-week span since the Trump administration’s new zero tolerance policy took effect in April. CBS’s David Begnaud tours a holding facility in Texas. Then Vox’s Dara Lind explains why some conservatives are denouncing Trump’s new policy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tiny blood-sucking Lyme-disease-carrying ticks are out to ruin your summer. Since 1991, Lyme disease has doubled in the United States due to a variety of factors, including global warming and suburbanization. Vox’s Julia Belluz explains how to avoid ticks and, if worse comes to worst, deal with Lyme disease. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The World Cup kicks off today. Looking for a country to cheer for? Consider Egypt. The team might not be the most storied or stacked, but it’s got Mohamed Salah. The New York Times’ chief soccer correspondent Rory Smith explains how the Muslim player who prays after every goal (and there are many) has the potential to transcend xenophobia, Islamophobia, and run-of-the-mill racism on the road to Ru...

On Monday, Attorney General Jeff Sessions made it harder for Central Americans fleeing gang violence or women escaping domestic violence to gain asylum in the United States. This comes after the Trump administration made a practice of separating families who have entered the country illegally. Vox’s Dara Lind explains how U.S. immigration policy is dramatically shifting. Learn more about your ad c...

Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un made history today. Or did they? NPR’s Elise Hu was there. She explains what happened and what didn’t. Plus, The New Yorker’s Robin Wright recounts United States summit history. She says there are two keys to a successful summit, and Singapore's meeting lacked both. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Good news for poor Americans: Medicaid is expanding in several states. Bad news for poor Americans: Medicaid is expanding in several states with work requirements. How do poor people who can’t find work prove that they’re working to qualify for Medicaid? Vox’s Sarah Kliff explains this is an experiment that’s never been tried before. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adcho...

This week, the Saudi government issued driver’s licenses to women for the first time in the country’s history. But London School of Economics professor Madawi al Rasheed says Saudi women are hardly even people under the law. She explains what life is like for women in Saudi Arabia, and Vox’s Jenn Williams tells Sean Rameswaram about the Saudi prince who says he wants reform. Learn more about your...

North America isn't getting along anymore. Canada's Prime Minister is having testy phone calls with President Trump about the War of 1812. Mexico has slapped the United States with a $3 billion dollar tax bill. It all comes down to steel. Today, U.S. senators from both aisles announced new attempts to curb the president's tariffs power. Vox’s Matthew Yglesias explains how steel sparked a trade war...

Sheriff Joe Arpaio. Scooter Libby. Dinesh D'Souza. So far, none of President Donald Trump’s pardons have had anything to do with his administration, but many believe he is flexing this particular muscle for an audience of one: Robert Mueller. Vox’s Andrew Prokop explains why the president is dropping hints about pardoning himself and how American democracy may soon be tested. Learn more about your...

Nicaragua is spiraling into a state of national catastrophe, as clashes between police and student protesters over the past two months have left more than 100 dead. Reuters' Delphine Schrank explains why much of that anger is aimed towards President Daniel Ortega, who critics say is acting more and more like the dictator he helped kick out. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.co...

Today the Supreme Court issued a decision in Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission, or as it’s colloquially known, the “gay cake” case. The 7-2 ruling sided with a Colorado baker who refused to bake a wedding cake for a gay couple. Most experts say the justices failed to make any rulings on same-sex rights versus religious freedoms, and The New York Times Magazine’s Emily...

Congress is rolling back the bank regulations implemented after the 2008 financial crisis. Vox’s Matthew Yglesias explains why, and what it means for the country’s financial future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices