TODAY'S TAKE

Zohran Mamdani officially became the 112th mayor of New York City on January 1, 2026, marking several historic milestones for the city. A 34-year-old Democratic Socialist and former state assemblyman, Mamdani is the city's first Muslim mayor and the first person of South Asian descent to hold the office.  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/today-s-take--6662936/su...

the Trump administration escalated its opposition to the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA), claiming it facilitates "extraterritorial censorship" of American viewpoints and unfairly targets U.S. tech companies.  U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, argue the DSA forces American platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and Meta to apply strict EU content standards globally. They claim...

The investigation, reported by veteran correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi, detailed the "brutal and torturous conditions" inside El Salvador’s CECOT mega-prison. The report featured interviews with Venezuelan migrants whom the Trump administration had deported to the facility earlier in 2025 under claims of gang affiliation.  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/today-s-t...

In December 2025, Jeffrey Epstein survivors Annie Farmer, Haley Robson, and Jess Michaels reported they had not been contacted by anyone from President Donald Trump's Department of Justice regarding the release of investigative files.  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/today-s-take--6662936/support .

Rep. Ted Lieu has publicly called for a war crimes investigation by the Department of Justice into the U.S. military's second strike on an alleged drug-smuggling boat in the Caribbean on September 2. He asserts that "killing shipwreck survivors is a war crime". On September 2, U.S. forces conducted a strike on a suspected drug-trafficking vessel. After an initial strike, two survivors were reporte...

Sixty-two Indigenous cultural belongings from First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities in Canada have been returned by the Vatican in a significant step for reconciliation. The items arrived in Montreal on Saturday, December 6, 2025, a century after many were originally sent to Rome for a 1925 Vatican exhibition. The collection includes a rare, century-old Inuvialuit kayak used for beluga and w...

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is considering a proposal that would require oil and gas companies to pay a deposit before drilling new wells. The idea is a response to the growing cost of cleaning up inactive and abandoned wells, which has left the provincial government with a large bill.  Speaking at an industry event in early December 2025, Premier Smith suggested that companies could be require...

At a Special Chiefs Assembly held in Ottawa from December 2-4, 2025, the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) unanimously adopted an emergency resolution to uphold the existing oil tanker ban on the northern coast of British Columbia. The resolution also demands that the federal government withdraw from a recent pipeline deal signed with Alberta.  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreake...

In a December 2, 2025, appearance, Pompeo discussed the administration's ongoing efforts to oust Maduro and combat alleged narco-terrorists, emphasizing that the U.S. needs to continue a serious, sustained campaign. The U.S. under the second Trump administration has significantly increased its military presence and operations in the Caribbean, including strikes on alleged drug trafficking vessels...

Several Republican figures and strategists have issued "dire warnings" to their own party in late 2025, primarily concerning a recent special election result in Tennessee, internal divisions, and the overall strategy for the 2026 midterm elections.  Tennessee Republican Congressman Tim Burchett highlighted the party's razor-thin majority in the House, stating, "We're literally three people away fr...

GOP lawmakers, in a bipartisan effort with Democrats, are questioning the legality of a second U.S. military strike on an alleged drug-smuggling boat in the Caribbean Sea on September 2, 2025, which reportedly killed two survivors of the initial attack.  The U.S. military conducted an initial strike on a vessel suspected of smuggling drugs. According to news reports, two survivors were left clingi...

P.E.I.'s oyster industry is currently battling outbreaks of two diseases, MSX (Multinucleate sphere unknown) and Dermo (Perkinsosis), which are causing high mortality rates in oyster populations. While these diseases are not a risk to human health, they are devastating the industry, and local fishers feel recent government supports do not adequately address their immediate needs. Become a supporte...

In response to a recent wave of mass abductions, several state governments in Nigeria have ordered the closure of schools, especially boarding facilities, to protect students from armed gangs. This follows multiple kidnapping incidents in November 2025. The national education ministry also ordered the closure of all 47 federal government colleges (unity schools) nationwide as a precautionary measu...

The son of the British couple held in Iran, Joe Bennett, is receiving support from Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's husband, Richard Ratcliffe, in his campaign for his parents' release.  Bennett's parents, Craig and Lindsay Foreman, were arrested in January 2025 during a round-the-world motorbike trip and subsequently charged with espionage, allegations their family vehemently denies. They are currentl...

The recent wave of mass layoffs is driven by a complex mix of factors, with Artificial Intelligence (AI) serving more as a convenient justification than the primary cause. Companies are leveraging the "AI transformation" narrative to mask decisions related to economic pressures, post-pandemic overhiring, and strategic re-prioritization. Many tech companies significantly overhired during the pandem...

Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) slammed a recent video by congressional Democrats urging military service members to refuse "illegal orders," calling their actions part of the "politics of pain" and a dangerous message to the troops. While Barrasso himself did not use the term "seditious behavior," he aligned with the Trump administration's broader criticism, which included President Trump calling th...

The statement, "The killing has to STOP!", regarding the war in Ukraine has been used by President Donald Trump and his administration officials, and echoed by some Republican senators who support his peace plan, but it is not attributed to a single GOP senator in recent news reports as a unique quote for an urgent call to end the war. The sentiment, however, reflects the views of a number of cons...

The expert defending the Trump administration's drug boat strikes is likely referring to arguments that the U.S. was in a legitimate "armed conflict" with designated "terrorist organizations," making the boat crews "combatants" and thus legitimate military targets. The primary defense rests on the Trump administration's assertion that it had "determined" the U.S. was in a "non-international armed...

The White House has officially pushed back on claims that President Trump threatened to execute Democratic lawmakers, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt denying the interpretation of his social media posts. Six Democratic members of Congress, all veterans or intelligence officers, released a video on Tuesday, November 18, 2025, reminding U.S. service members of their duty to "refuse illegal ord...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that the U.S.-backed peace proposal to end the war with Russia presents Ukraine with an "impossible choice": either lose its dignity by accepting Russian demands or risk losing the United States as a key ally.  In a national address on Friday, November 21, 2025, Zelenskyy stated that "Now is one of the most difficult moments in our history. Now, t...

President Donald Trump has stated he is "not threatening death" for the six Democratic lawmakers who created a video urging troops to disobey illegal orders, but maintains they are in "serious trouble" for what he called "seditious behavior". A group of six Democratic members of Congress, all military or intelligence veterans (including Sens. Elissa Slotkin and Mark Kelly, and Reps. Jason Crow, Ma...

Roblox is implementing new child safety measures that use AI-powered facial age estimation to restrict communication between adults and minors. The new system will require all users who want to access chat features to verify their age, with a global rollout planned for early January 2026.  The process involves taking a video selfie via the Roblox app. A third-party vendor, Persona, uses AI to esti...

The proposal, a 28-point document, reportedly calls for Ukraine to formally cede control of the Donbas (Donetsk and Luhansk regions) and Crimea to Russia. Some parts of the Donbas currently under Ukrainian control would also be handed over. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/today-s-take--6662936/support .

During a court hearing on November 20, 2025, the prosecutor, interim U.S. attorney Lindsey Halligan, a Trump appointee, admitted in court that the full grand jury did not review or vote on the final indictment against Comey. Instead, only the foreperson and one other grand juror were present when the amended indictment was signed.  Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podca...

The phrase "Russian doll of blunders" was used by former Trump official Miles Taylor, who served as Chief of Staff at the Department of Homeland Security, to describe the U.S. Department of Justice's prosecution of former FBI Director James Comey.  During a court hearing on November 20, 2025, it was revealed by the prosecutor, Trump loyalist and interim U.S. attorney Lindsey Halligan, that the ful...