All Summaries for Consider This from NPR

Since becoming Speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy has faced the constant threat that members of the right wing of his own Republican Party could move to oust him from power. And now, many view his launch of an impeachment inquiry into President Biden as a political move to protect his flank.Host Scott Detrow speaks with former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich about McCarthy's political dilemma and with NPR's Congressional Correspondent Deirdre Walsh.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

If you're over a certain age and you love movies, when you think "movie critic", you probably picture Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert and their popular TV shows. Their iconic "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" move made it clear what each of them thought about a film. In some ways, the movie review website Rotten Tomatoes is the opposite of Siskel and Ebert. Their viewers depended on the insights of two individuals that they trusted, and felt they knew.Rotten Tomatoes aggregates and averages reviews from lots of critics to assign a movie a number ranking, and declare it "fresh" or "rotten". Since its launch 25 years ago, it's become the the go to site for lots of potential movie goers, offering everything they need to decide whether or not a movie is worth seeing. But for a while now, there have been complaints about the way the site ranks films. And concerns that those rankings unfairly influence whether a movie succeeds or bombs.Host Scott Detrow talks to Lane Brown, who took the site to task in a recent article on Vulture, and film critic Jamie Broadnax, editor-in-chief of the culture site, Black Girl Nerds.

It can be hard to see how big government policies have a direct effect on an individual's experience. But it was easy to measure the difference made by the expanded child tax credit. Giving more money to low-income families with children had a big impact. After the expanded child tax credit took effect, child poverty hit a record low of 5.2% a year ago.But less than a year later, Congress let it expire. New census data shows that child poverty has more than doubled. Host Ari Shapiro speaks with pediatrician and researcher Megan Sandel, who has seen the health consequences for kids play out in real time.

The president of the United Auto Workers says the union is planning to carry out sudden, strategic and partial strikes at plants should contract talks with Detroit's Big Three automakers fail ahead of a contract deadline on Thursday night.UAW President Shawn Fain also held out the possibility of an all-out strike in the future of the nearly 150,000 union members.In addition to concerns over pay, workers are worried about what electric vehicles mean for their future. NPR's Camila Domonoske reports on how the transition to electric vehicles has many autoworkers concerned about their job security.And Senior White House Correspondent Tamara Keith reports on why the UAW hasn't endorsed President Biden for re-election in 2024.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Right now it seems like people all around us are testing positive for COVID. But for the most part, they are not getting seriously ill. The Food and Drug Administration just approved a new booster. And on Tuesday advisers to the CDC recommended it for everyone six months and older.With a new variant and a new booster, how should we think about the pandemic in this moment? Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

When North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2019, both countries were in a different position. Russia had yet to invade Ukraine.Four years later, Russia is trying to secure weapons from North Korea. The two leaders are expected to meet this month to discuss a deal. NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Jean Lee, the former Pyongyang bureau chief for the Associated Press, and Georgetown University's Angela Stent, about the upcoming meeting between Kim Jong Un and Putin — and what North Korea might get out of it.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The National Football League's regular season is finally underway. And for loyal fans who have been devouring all the news of their favorite teams, it couldn't have come soon enough.But even if you're just a casual viewer of football, or really any network television program, you've probably seen the star-studded ads for a related business: sports betting.The league's partnership with major sports betting sites continues to draw criticism. Ten NFL players have been suspended for gambling violations since April, leaving critics and fans wondering if the relationship between football and gambling will harm the integrity of the game.Host Nathan Rott speaks with David Purdum who covers the gambling industry for ESPN.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The Endangered Species Act turns 50 this year. The landmark law has been successful for decades at stopping extinctions of several plants and animals.Recovering endangered or threatened species to the point where they no longer need federal protection has been more difficult because of climate change.NPR's Nathan Rott speaks with Martha Williams, Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service about the agency's plans to mitigate threats of extinction caused by climate change.

The writers and actors strikes have been grinding on for months with no end in sight. Many on the picket lines are struggling to pay for basics.NPR's Ailsa Chang talks to Fran Drescher about what it's going to take to end the strikes. Drescher's the president of SAG-AFTRA, which represents the actors on strike. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Giant machines sucking carbon dioxide out of the air to fight climate change sounds like science fiction, but it's close to becoming a reality, with billions of dollars of support from the U.S. government. And a key player in this growing industry is a U.S. oil company, Occidental Petroleum.With a major petroleum company deploying this technology, it begs the question, is it meant to save the planet or the oil industry? NPR's Camila Domonoske reports.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Google was founded 25 years ago by two Stanford PhD students, Larry Page and Sergei Brin. The company went on to shape the internet and now, after a quarter century, finds itself at a turning point. With the rise of AI and social media platforms like TikTok, its continued dominance is not assured.NPR's Ari Shapiro talks to Nilay Patel, editor-in-chief of The Verge, about Google's legacy and what the future holds for the company.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

It's been over three years since the pandemic started and changed the way millions of Americans work. The possibilities of remote work gave a new kind of freedom to many workers. But as more and more companies demand employees return to the office, is the work from home era coming to an end?Host Scott Detrow speaks with Anne Helen Petersen, culture writer and the author of Out of Office, about the future of remote work.

After three and a half years, the pause on federal student loan payments is coming to an end. Getting more than 40 million borrowers back into repayment will be an enormous challenge, especially because many students who graduated when the pause was already in place have never made a payment.We put borrowers' questions to two experts: NPR Education correspondent Cory Turner, and Carolina Rodriguez, director of the Education Debt Consumer Assistance Program, a non-profit funded by New York State to help residents navigate repayment of their student loans.Read Cory's list of 12 things every student loan borrower should know.And if you're having an issue with your student loan servicer, Cory wants to know. Email him at dcturner@npr.org.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Hundreds of towns, cities and counties across the country impose curfews on young people. On September 1st a curfew went into effect in seven neighborhoods across the District of Columbia that will affect those aged 17 and under. Like many other cities, the nation's capital has seen an increase in violent crime. And some of the most shocking crimes have been committed by young people.Teens as young as thirteen as well as pre-teens have been suspected of, or charged with carjacking. In the past couple of months a 14 year-old and a 16 year-old have been charged with murder. And young people are also the victims of violent.Keeping kids inside at night may seem like a good strategy for cities facing a surge in youth violence. But experts say that research doesn't back up the effectiveness of curfews.Host Scott Detrow speaks with Kristin Henning, director of the Juvenile Justice Clinic at Georgetown University about what does and doesn't work.

For the second time this summer the top Republican in the Senate, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, abruptly went silent at a news conference. He was about to answer a question from a reporter when he suddenly froze up. He seemed unable to speak. An aide then stepped in, trying to keep things moving along.The senator's silences have raised concerns about his mental fitness – and larger questions about an aging Congress.NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Dr. Ann Murray, the Movement Disorders division chief at the Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute at West Virginia University.

When people find themselves in the path of a hurricane they are faced with the question: should they evacuate or not? Who makes that call and how? NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with former FEMA administrator Craig Fugate about the decision-making process behind evacuation orders and why people should heed them ahead of hurricanes making landfall.

On Tuesday, the Biden administration released a list of 10 medications that it's planning to negotiate prices for Medicare in an effort to bring down the costs of some of the most expensive drugs. It's part of a reform included in the Inflation Reduction Act. Many on the list are life-saving drugs that treat diabetes, cancer and other major health problems.|The new prices that the federal government will eventually negotiate for these prescription drugs won't actually go into effect until 2026, and that's only if it doesn't get tied up in court with drugmakers. Six pharmaceutical companies who have filed lawsuits against the administration are calling these provisions unconstitutional. Juana Summers speaks with NPR's pharmaceuticals correspondent Sydney Lupkin and Deepa Shivaram at the White House about the battle lines being drawn between the Biden Administration and pharmaceutical companies.

The latest mass shooting in Jacksonville, Florida left three people dead.All of the victims were Black and the white gunman left behind racist, hate-filled letters.The Justice Department is now investigating this shooting as a hate crime.A big part of the conversation now is what role state politics play in crimes like this. Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis has loosened gun laws in recent years and put restrictions on how race is taught in public schools.NPR's Juana Summers talks with Mutaqee Akbar, president of the Tallahassee branch of the NAACP, about how much responsibility lies with politicians. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

U.S. climate envoy John Kerry is preparing for the next major climate summit, in Dubai. He's calling for an end to permitting new, unabated coal-fired power anywhere in the world. We ask him about whether the U.S. has lived up to its climate commitments. We also talk to Vox climate reporter Rebecca Leber about Biden's signature climate legislation, which was passed a year ago this month. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The South Pole of the Moon is the coolest place to be. And nearly every country with a space program is vying for a spot there - for a chance to explore the shadowy, polar craters in hopes of finding usable quantities of water ice.On Wednesday, the Indian Space Research Organisation successfully landed its Chandrayaan-3 probe near the moon's south pole. It was the first time India had landed a spacecraft on the moon, and the first time any country had successfully landed at the coveted moon's south pole. Many have tried including, Japan, Israel, and most recently Russia, whose Luna-25 spacecraft crashed onto the surface just days before India's successful landing. NASA is preparing its ARTEMIS mission to return to the moon. Luxembourg and Saudi Arabia have also set their sites on moon missions. A new space race is underway. But why exactly are we racing to the moon again? NPR's Scott Detrow speaks to space lawyer Michelle Hanlon to find out. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

With the wildfires in Maui contained, the recovery process has begun.The focus has also turned to how the island can prepare for similar disasters in the futureOfficials and experts hope to address Hawaii's emergency alert system, as well as the construction of more fire-resistant homes. But what of the fires themselves? We often hear about forest fires, but the deadliest fire in the US in more than a century was a grass fire. Co-host Ailsa Chang talks to Jeva Lange, who wrote a story called "Most Wildfires Aren't Forest Fires," about how wildfires largely occur in grasslands. Also Rebecca Thiele with Indiana Public Broadcasting reports on how certain native plants can help combat the deadly effects of climate change.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Russia's state news agency Tass reported that the country's most famous mercenary, Yevgeny Prigozhin, was on the passenger list for a flight that crashed on its way from Moscow to St. Petersburg on Wednesday, killing all ten people on board. Despite being on the passenger list, it's not clear Prigozhin was on the flight.As head of the Wagner Group, Prigozhin led an unsuccessful mutiny against the Russian military in June. He quickly stood down and struck a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin that would see him exiled to neighboring Belarus. That exile never came and questions swirled about what punishment, if any, Prigozhin would face for crossing Putin. NPR's Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Nina Khrushcheva. She is a professor of international affairs at The New School in New York City, and she's also the great-granddaughter of former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Former president Donald Trump is the frontrunner in the Republican presidential primary. And with a healthy lead in the polls, he's skipping the first Republican presidential debate on Wednesday. So how do you prep for a big, televised debate when your biggest opponent decides not to show up?That's been the question facing the eight Republicans who will be on stage in Milwaukee on Wednesday night.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Puerto Rico has seen a string of natural disasters in the past few years – hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, and landslides. When COVID-19 hit in 2020, things got even worse.These disasters have taken a heavy toll on student mental health. They've disrupted everyday life - including school. That disruption has seriously impacted educational outcomes for kids and teens on the island.The Nation's Report Card shows that more than one-third of fourth graders overall in the U.S are considered proficient or better in math. In Puerto Rico, that number rounds out to zero. Children on the island have worse outcomes when it comes to graduation rates, and reading scores continue to decline.Reporter Kavitha Cardoza traveled to Puerto Rico to learn how students and teachers cope.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The last few elections have brought a wave of self-styled progressive prosecutors into office. They've won elections by campaigning on issues like bail reform and alternatives to incarceration for non-violent offenders. Now, Republican-controlled state legislatures and governors are taking steps to curtail their power, or strip them of it altogether.We talk to Monique Worrell, who was elected state attorney for Florida's ninth judicial circuit, which includes the city of Orlando, in 2020. This month, Republican Governor and presidential candidate Ron DeSantis suspended her and installed a replacement. He said her office had refused "to faithfully enforce the laws of Florida," in its charging decisions. Worrell called her suspension an attack on democracy.And we talk to Carissa Byrne Hessick, director of the Prosecutors and Politics Project at the University of North Carolina, explains how these sorts of battles are playing out across the country.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

A growing body of research makes it clear that noise pollution can have severely harmful impacts on our health. It has been tied to heart disease and thousands of premature deaths around the world.Still, our communities seem to get louder and louder. Some people are fighting back - pushing for more regulation and quieter cities.NPR's Pien Huang takes a sonic tour of Providence, Rhode Island with researcher Erica Walker and talks about noise pollution solutions with Jamie Banks the founder and president of Quiet Communities, and New York City Council member Gale Brewer.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The Biden administration is under intense political pressure from Republicans over immigration, who accuse the president of being too lenient toward migrants. Now, the administration is locking up more unauthorized immigrants and asylum-seekers in detention facilities, and NPR has exclusively obtained more than 1,600 pages of confidential inspection reports examining conditions inside those facilities. They describe barbaric practices, negligent medical care, racist abuse and filthy conditions. NPR's Tom Dreisbach reports on the abysmal conditions detainees are forced to endure. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The CDC says that a new omicron variant called EG.5 is causing a summer wave of COVID cases.Yet, COVID is nowhere near the threat that it was more than three years ago at the beginning of the pandemic. And that might be one of the reasons that people are cruising again on big ships following a COVID-19 decline.WLRN reporter Tom Hudson tells us how one of the hardest hit industries during the peak of the pandemic is trying to make a comeback.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

A grand jury in Georgia has indicted Donald Trump for his role in failed efforts to overturn the state's 2020 presidential election results, implicating the former president as the head of a sweeping conspiracy to subvert his defeat. The indictment also includes charges against former Trump attorneys Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell, John Eastman and Jenna Ellis, and former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, along with a number of so-called fake electors.In charging former President Donald Trump and his allies, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is relying on Georgia's broad set of RICO anti-racketeering lawsIn participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

It's been two years since the Taliban entered Kabul, throwing the final days of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan into chaos. Crowds of people desperate to leave the country surrounded the airport. Tens of thousands of Afghans were airlifted out before American troops pulled out. Many more are still trying to reach the U.S. Some are risking their lives to cross the border from Mexico.NPR's Tom Bowman has the story of one family who traveled from Afghanistan to Virginia, by way of Pakistan and Mexico, to get medical care for their young daughter.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

For the past few months, President Biden's top foreign policy advisors have been working as intermediaries between Saudi Arabia and Israel. Eventually they want to get the two countries to agree on a deal to finally establish formal diplomatic relations.It would be a breakthrough for Israel to get that recognition, after decades of Arab hostility stemming from the Israeli Palestinian conflict. Saudi Arabia is home to two of Islam's holiest sites, and it's an oil giant in the region.But it seems like an almost impossible three-way agreement. So, what's standing in the way?NPR's Daniel Estrin, who covers Israel, speaks with Felicia Schwartz from the Financial Times, Bader Al Saif, an assistant professor of history at the University of Kuwait, and fellow NPR correspondent Aya Batrawy, who covers Saudi Arabia, to understand what challenges remain for the two countries to normalize relations.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

As the battle over book bans in schools and libraries continues to play out in various states across the U.S., the toll it's taking on librarians is coming at a great cost — personally and financially.Many librarians are speaking up about fearing for their jobs and safety.Yet some conservative activists see the current fight playing out as necessary to protect children. NPR's Tovia Smith traveled to Louisiana where tensions have been flaring up — pitting librarians against book ban advocates in the local community.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Hawaii may be a tourist attraction to many Americans, but for over a million people, it's their home. And like any state in the US, it is not immune to the effects of climate change. This week brought a devastating reminder, as wildfires stoked by Hurricane Dora spread across the island of Maui. Dozens have been killed in the fires and thousands have been evacuated. Much of the historical town of Lahaina lies in ruins. Hawaii, like many other places on the planet, has experienced less rainfall in recent years, making it more prone to devastating wildfires that seemed unimaginable a generation ago. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The number of overdoses from fentanyl continues to soar, as do concerns from those in Washington. Immigration authorities say illicit fentanyl is flowing into the U.S. from Mexico through official ports of entry.Not everyone believes that's the full story.NPR's Joel Rose traveled to the border to find out what's really happening.Fentanyl is largely smuggled by U.S. citizens and other authorized border crossers. We hear the story of one of the smugglers. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

In past wars, updates have trickled out slowly — often tightly controlled by the militaries involved. In the war in Ukraine, every day is a firehose of nearly real-time information, in the form of cell phone footage captured by civilians, updates from satellite intelligence companies and embedded military bloggers.NPR national security correspondent Greg Myre explains how that's shaping perceptions of the war in Russia, in Ukraine and around the world.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

One Republican senator from Alabama is single-handedly holding up over 300 senior-level military promotions and appointments. Senator Tommy Tuberville says he's doing it to take a stand against a Defense Department policy that reimburses travel expenses for military personnel who have to leave their states to get an abortion or other reproductive care. Tonya Murphy is a military spouse who went to Capitol Hill to hand deliver a petition signed by hundreds calling on lawmakers to stop the impasse. She explains how this political standoff is impacting military families. And NPR Pentagon correspondent Tom Bowman gives us the big picture overview of how all of this is affecting the Pentagon and, potentially, national security.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

July was almost certainly the hottest month, globally, on record. It was also a month in which many lives were upended by weather related-disasters — the sort of disasters that are increasingly likely as climate change continues. So what do the people who lived through those disasters make of all this? We asked Dr. Frank LoVecchio, an emergency room doctor at Valleywise Health Medical Center in Phoenix, Ariz., about trying to keep people alive who spent too much time out in the deadly heat.And Michelle Eddleman McCormick, general manager at the Marshfield Village Store in Vermont, about living through extreme flooding.And Will Nicholls, of the Cree Nation of Mistissini, editor-in-chief of The Nation magazine, about how historic wildfires in northern Quebec have affected his community.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

For years, Russell Moore was one of the top officials in the Southern Baptist Convention. But after he criticized Donald Trump, Moore found himself ostracized from many other Evangelical leaders who embraced Trump and Trumpism.Moore eventually resigned from his post, and found himself on the outside of a denomination that had, up until that point, defined his life.Today, Moore argues that Christianity is in crisis in America, and he explores a way forward for the faith he loves in his book, "Losing Our Religion: An Altar Call For Evangelical America."

Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty to criminal charges related to efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election. And a member of his legal team told NPR that Trump plans to invoke the right to freedom of speech as part of his defense.To learn how a free speech defense would work for the former president in court, we hear from Ciara Torres-Spelliscy, a professor at Stetson University's College of Law in Florida. And former acting solicitor general of the United States, Neal Katyal, tells us about Tanya Chutkan, the U.S. district judge assigned to Trump's case.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The unions representing actors and writers in Hollywood have some differences in what they want from the big film studios. But one thing they agree on is the threat posed by artificial intelligence to their members' livelihoods.The threat of AI is something Hollywood was imagining long before it was real. NPR arts critic Bob Mondello tells the story of how AI became a movie villain.The threat of AI is something Hollywood was imagining long before it was real. NPR arts critic Bob Mondello tells the story of how AI became a movie villain.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Former President Donald Trump was indicted Tuesday by a federal grand jury on four counts related to the efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, according to court documents.Trump was charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, witness tampering, conspiracy against the rights of citizens and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding. Special counsel Jack Smith has been leading the investigation into Trump's conduct after the 2020 election and his role in the insurrection that played out at the U.S. Capitol on January 6th.We hear from presidential historian Tim Naftali about the significance of the new charges against the former president.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Two years ago, Mohamed Bazoum was elected as president in Niger's first peaceful democratic transfer of power. He enjoyed the backing of Western governments, including the United States. Then, last week, members of his own presidential guard detained him and seized power. The coup in Niger is part of a wave of attempted, and successful, power grabs in West and Central Africa, a region gripped by political instability. Now, a group of West African nations imposed sanctions on Niger, and threatened military action if the coup leaders don't reinstate the president within the week. NPR's Emmanuel Akinwotu reports from neighboring country Nigeria, and he brings us the latest developments. We discuss what this means for the Sahel, and for democracies around the world. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

There's a labor shortage on farms in the U.S., and that has implications for all of us who enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables.For farmers across America, finding enough labor has become a top concern. Decades ago, whole families of migrant farmworkers, the majority of them from Mexico, would travel around the U.S. in search of seasonal work. But over time, farmworkers began to settle. Now, many of them are aging out. And their children and grandchildren are finding opportunities in other sectors.Who will replace them? And what is Congress doing to solve this issue? This summer, two NPR reporters visited some farms to see how this is playing out: NPR's Ximena Bustillo who reports on food and farm policy, and NPR's Andrea Hsu who covers labor.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Editor's note: This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence.The U.S. military has consistently maintained that its troops didn't harm civilians during the 2019 raid on the Syrian hideout of ISIS founder Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, which lead to Baghdadi blowing himself up.It stuck to that version of events even after NPR reported on claims from Syrians that civilians were killed and maimed by U.S. helicopter fire during the raid. The Pentagon claimed the men were enemy combatants.NPR sued the Pentagon under the Freedom of Information Act to release documentation of the airstrikes, and obtained a redacted copy of the Defense Department's confidential 2020 report on the incident.NPR's Daniel Estrin digs into the document, and finds that it reveals flaws in the Pentagon's conclusion.His investigation, in English and Arabic, includes declassified Pentagon documents, photos, maps and videos. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The Supreme Court may have ended race-conscious admissions in higher education. But the end of affirmative action seems to have added fuel to another contentious debate around college admissions policies. For decades, many elite, private institutions have given prospective college students preference if a relative attended the school or, in some cases, when a major donor was involved. While the practice of affirmative action is dead, legacy admissions continue. But more and more critics of the practice are calling on schools to do away with them, including President Biden. Host Juana Summers speaks with economist John Friedman, a professor and chair of economics at Brown University. He co-authored a study that quantifies the lasting socio-economic disparities between legacy students and their less affluent peers.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

When Utah passed a ban on gender-affirming care for people younger than 18, Kat and their family had to make a tough choice. Should they uproot their lives and leave the state?Kat is 14 and transgender. The Utah law banned the medical care that Kat was considering.Around 20 states have passed similar laws — meaning many families could face the same tough decision: whether to leave their homes and where to go. Often it's to a state like Minnesota, where elected officials have protected trans health care for patients and providers. We speak with reporters Saige Miller from KUER in Salt Lake City and Dana Ferguson, a political reporter with Minnesota Public Radio to hear how this patchwork of laws in both states affects trans patients and their doctors.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

When a fiery, toxic train wreck forced residents of East Palestine, Ohio to evacuate last February, the crash and its aftermath became a national flashpoint and a hot button issue on both sides of the political aisle. Alan Shaw, the CEO of Norfolk Southern - the freight railroad responsible - found himself in front of Congress, grilled by bipartisan lawmakers. Shaw insists the company is continuing its commitment to help East Palestine recover, and that they are at the forefront of improving safety in the rail industry. Host Scott Detrow speaks with Shaw about how the company hopes to become "the gold standard" in rail safety.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

On Monday, Israel's parliament voted into law a key measure to overhaul the country's judiciary. The measure prevents judges from striking down government decisions on the basis that they are "unreasonable." The law strips Israel's Supreme Court of a key check on the power of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government. This marks the first big move in a broader effort to weaken court oversight of senior officials. It comes after six months of protests from Israelis concerned that their government will have unchecked power. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is defending it, saying this law is the essence of democracy and will allow the elected government – his government – to carry out its agenda. We hear from concerned protestors outside Israeli parliament — many citizens are afraid that their way of life is in danger. Dahlia Scheindlin is a political analyst from Tel Aviv, she explains what this new Israeli law says about the state of democracy there.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The United States' preeminent professional soccer league, Major League Soccer, has long lagged behind top European leagues.However, international soccer superstar Lionel Messi joining the Inter Miami might be the boost the league needs.NPR's Scott Detrow reports on the impact of Messi coming to the MLS and what the league's future could be.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

A punishing heat wave has left more than a dozen people dead across Texas. In recent days temperatures have climbed above 100 degrees in many parts of the state. Now the extreme heat is heading east, putting people's health at risk across the Mississippi Valley and the Central Gulf Coast. NPR's Lauren Sommer reports on how climate change and the El Niño climate pattern are increasing the intensity and frequency of heat waves. And Monica Samayoa from Oregon Public Broadcasting reports on how one county is suing oil and gas companies for damages caused by a heat wave. This episode also features reporting from KERA's Toluwani Osibamowo in Dallas.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

When it comes to American politics, Florida regularly finds its way to the center of the conversation. Often important, if not pivotal in presidential elections, Florida is home to former President Trump and his strongest opponent in the Republican presidential primary for 2024, Governor Ron DeSantis. As he campaigns for the nomination Gov. DeSantis has taken center stage in some of the most contentious battles of the culture war, those around trans rights, book censorship and immigration. But just how did the Sunshine State end up the center of the political universe? NPR's Political Correspondent Kelsey Snell and National Correspondent Greg Allen explain.

Russian President Vladimir Putin faced a direct challenge to his authority over the weekend. Mercenary fighters with the Wagner group took over a military headquarters and launched a march toward Moscow.The group's leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, eventually called off the uprising. He's apparently accepted a deal to live in exile, and claims the weekend's events were a protest, not an attempt to overthrow the government.NPR's Charles Maynes in Moscow, and Greg Myre in Kyiv, explain what the turmoil could mean for the future of Putin's rule and the course of the war in Ukraine.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Act is a $1.2 trillion law meant to spur a massive infrastructure renewal and rebuilding program complete with new bridges, railroads and highways.It also allocates $65 million to expand internet access to all.Mitch Landrieu, the former mayor of New Orleans, is the man Biden tapped to make sure the massive job gets done. We speak with Landrieu about the Affordable Connectivity Program – which provides monthly $30 subsidies for lower-income individuals to buy Internet access.Then we speak with Kathryn de Wit, project director for the Pew Charitable Trust's Broadband Access Initiative, about why accessing the internet is no longer a luxury, but a necessity. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Last June, when the Supreme Court reversed the Roe v. Wade decision, which had stood for nearly 50 years, the constitutional right to abortion ceased to exist. While reproductive health providers had been fearing, and preparing for the possible reversal for years, it still left millions of people seeking reproductive health care in flux. A year on, state controlled access to abortion continues to shift in many locations across the country.We hear from people who have been forced to make decisions that they never imagined. And, we learn how lawmakers plan to defend reproductive rights. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

There has been no shortage of confrontations between the U.S. and China this year. This week, shortly after a trip by Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Beijing, intended to thaw relations with China, President Biden likened Chinese President Xi Jinping to a "dictator" in off the cuff remarks. A spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry called that "an open political provocation." Before that there were dust ups over TikTok and a Chinese spy balloon.But one of the most intractable and volatile issues continues to be the fate of Taiwan. And a new report sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations says that the U.S. and China are 'drifting toward a war' over the island. Two of the report's authors, former Deputy Director of National Intelligence Sue Gordon and Admiral Mike Mullen, formerly the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, argue the U.S. should take action now to prevent that outcome.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

As climate change gets worse, California is seeing larger and more dangerous wildfires. And in response some insurers are leaving the state behind, finding the growing risk too high to pay.Host Ailsa Chang talks with Michael Wara, who directs a climate and energy policy program at Stanford, about the financial calculus insurers are making as the threat of climate-fueled disasters grows.

Time is running out to locate the submersible vessel that went missing Sunday, on a voyage to visit the wreckage of the Titanic. The U.S. Coast Guard estimates the five people aboard the vessel, known as the Titan, could run out of air by Thursday morning.CBS Sunday Morning correspondent David Pogue was aboard the same vessel to take the same voyage last year. He says its interior is the size of a minivan, it's built with a combination of off-the-rack and highly technical components and it has a hatch that's bolted shut from the outside.In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community.Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

While Black people in this country have been celebrating Juneteenth for decades, what is sometimes referred to as Emancipation Day or America's "second Independence Day" is only being celebrated as a national holiday this year for the third time.June 19th marks the date in 1865 when the last enslaved people in the U.S. learned they were free. on that day, Major General Gordon Granger of the Union Army delivered the news to enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas.But for African Americans, the fight for freedom began long before the Civil War. And it didn't end with the Emancipation Proclamation. So to mark the day we're looking at a turning point in the fight for civil rights — The Children's Crusade. NPR's Debbie Elliot traveled to Birmingham, Alabama, which is marking the 60th anniversary of the movement, when leaders like Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. looked to children to join the struggle for equal rights. The vicious response from white segregationists shocked the world and galvanized support for the Civil Rights Act.

Made in America. It may be a catchy political slogan, but it's a lot more complicated than it sounds. So many things we use everyday come from China. In 2018 - former President Donald Trump launched a trade war with the country, eventually slapping tariffs on more than 300 billion dollars worth of Chinese imports. Two and half years into the Biden presidency – those taxes are still here.To understand why, NPR's White House correspondent Asma Khalid spoke with policy makers, economists and even went out to a factory floor in Minnesota.