Audio and context around some of the interviews and stories on ݮý ݮý. This blog is curated ݮý’s Dimitri Sotis.
For previous blog posts in this series, please click here.
Pardon Power: How the Pardon System Works and Why
ABC ݮý Legal Analyst Kim Wehle joins ݮý’s Dimitri Sotis to discuss her new book on U-S presidents’ king-like power.
Will U.S. airstrikes deter iran?
U.S. fighter jets launched airstrikes early Friday on two locations in eastern Syria linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps. The strikes were in retaliation for recent drone and missile attacks against American servicemembers. tells ݮý he doubts this will be enough to cause Iran to back down
Beyonce and Taylor Swift tours are generating billions of dollars
When Beyoncé and Taylor Swift come to your town, they’re bringing a massive economic boost! of the New York Times shares her with ݮý.
Richard Haas worries about American democracy
The Council on Foreign Relations president focuses on his own country in the new book and tells ݮý we must all do our part to save the nation.
Tennessee abortion rights opponents eye contraception and IVF
ProPublica’s Kavitha Surana shares her reporting on Tennessee’s strict abortion ban – and where it could lead in a few years.
Digging out from credit card debt
Inflation is causing many of us to rack up credit card debt. Consumerman Herb Weisbaum, with , tells ݮý you shouldn’t be afraid to get some help paying down your bills.
Time to find a credit card with 0% interest
‘s Matt Schulz tells ݮý how to handle your credit cards in this high-interest environment
Isn’t August way too early for pumpkin spice products?
Dunkin Donuts, Krispy Kreme, 7-11 and others are rolling out their pumpkin spice drinks and food long before there will be any frost on the pumpkin. joined ݮý to explain the madness. (which she supports)
As Congress remembers a million Americans dying from COVID – how do you protect yourself going forward?
tells ݮý precautions are a smart way to go during the rest of 2022 – in dealing with COVID
Could President Biden give student loan borrowers at least $10,000 off?
Is a labor union wave sweeping across Apple, Starbucks and Amazon?
Georgetown Business Professor joins ݮý to discuss why workers – at some of the nation’s biggest companies – are scrambling to and join unions right now
Critics say Alabama’s new law will hurt trans kids
Trans children fear a new Alabama law that targets their medicine and which bathrooms they can use. We discuss the effect of such laws with Boston University’s
The People’s Convoy has left DC – for now
The Daily Beast’s summarizes the demonstrators’ three weeks in – and around – the nation’s capital
Discussing ‘the slap’ with a man who’s been part of the Hollywood system for decades
talks to ݮý about the cloud hanging over the Oscars and his many decades doing all kinds of jobs in the entertainment industry
Former WH pandemic adviser on the next COVID wave
Andy Slavitt, former senior adviser to President Biden’s COVID-19 pandemic response team, talks to ݮý about the rising BA.2 subvariant and being sensitive to those most vulnerable to the disease. (Check out his podcast and – and listen to the full ݮý interview below)
Black people say they face discrimination as they try to leave Ukraine
China is Russia’s economic lifeline
Between the sanctions, and hundreds of companies leaving, who can Russia rely on economically? tells ݮý the answer appears to be China
Ukrainians can win if they prepare Kyiv for urban warfare
Retired Army Major tells ݮý the Ukranians will have to practically destroy Kyiv in order to save it (here’s the latest on the war)
Black women, working in healthcare, face the most danger for the least money
l tells ݮý about her research into Black women as the backbone of healthcare, and how they deserve a lot more pay for what they do
Waiting for the Biden Administration to act on student loans
Will there be another COVID-related pause on student loan payments? Could there even be major loan forgiveness? tells ݮý we should know by May 1st, 2022
Meta says Apple will cause it to lose $10 billion in sales
Georgetown Law & Supreme Court controversy
discusses Ilya Shapiro’s criticism of President Biden’s vow to nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court
The latest Trump rally and election deniers
Vice ݮý Chief Political Correspondent Liz Landers talks about former President Trump’s rally near Houston, where he promised to pardon January 6th rioters if he wins office again. We also looked at election deniers who are across the country.
Democrats and Republicans are leaving the US House – but it’s mostly Dems
FiveThirtyEight’s tells ݮý why so many Democratic House members have decided not to run again
Not willing to pay a subscription fee? Your car may not fully operate
Consumerman Herb Weisbaum, with , tells ݮý car makers are looking for new revenue streams through these subscription services. If you don’t pay the fees – you could be without features behind the wheel
Republicans and Democrats are strongly divided over Jan. 6th 2020
The Washington Post’s joins ݮý to discuss the new that shows major divides over January 6th
Vladimir Putin may not really want to invade Ukraine
American Enterprise Institute’s tells ݮý the tactical analysts she works with believe invading Ukraine – – is too expensive for Putin
President Biden’s 2021 foreign policy triumphs and blunders
joins ݮý to review President Biden’s geopolitical efforts (Listen below and check out Schanzer’s )
Remembering John Madden
Prolific sportswriter & author John Feinstein – his latest book – shares his thoughts and memories on the late NFL great
Muriel Bowser vs. Robert White for DC Mayor 2022
Matt Santoro has worked for both the incumbent and the challenger and tells ݮý will likely be quite competitive
Trust in the military drops
tells ݮý she believes deadly drone strikes have helped and support for the U-S Armed Forces
Where did President Biden go wrong on COVID?
Politico’s tells ݮý about former President Trump promoting COVID boosters and current President Biden’s messaging on the pandemic
Advocates for kids say millions are about to fall back into poverty
Alessandra Lezama with on-demand child care platform tells ݮý the expiration of the will be disastrous
Football biopic makes the best holiday movie
You probably don’t have to rush to return those gifts
Consumerman Herb Weisbaum, with , talks to ݮý about this year’s gift return policies (Listen below and read)
Unanswered questions about the tornado that ravaged Kentucky
talks to ݮý about whether the recent deadly and destructive Quad-State tornado is the on record and whether it was caused by climate change
‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ fills movie theaters again
The new Spider-Man movie has a huge opening weekend – as Christian Toto offers a review on ݮý and we offer AP’s ٲ
Female doctors make less than their male counterparts
Kentucky factory workers say they were told not to leave before the tornado hit
NBC ݮý Reporter Deon Hampton tells ݮý he spoke with who said they were threatened with being fired if they left the facility to take cover
Abortion rights supporters and opponents prepare for a ‘post-Roe’ world
Politico’s tells ݮý how people on both sides of the abortion issue will likely if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade
Are store credit cards worth it?
Consumerman Herb Weisbaum, with , discusses the pros and cons of store credit cards, that can sometimes give you 10 to 15% discounts on the spot
Some high-profile Jan. 6th defendants may try to reverse their convictions
NBC-4’s Scott MacFarlane tells ݮý about – and others – regretting their guilty pleas and possibly trying to appeal them
Avoiding holiday crowds at the airport and the stores
Google Tech Expert Marley McAliley shares travel tips with ݮý even as the TSA warns our local airports will be crowded this holiday week
Potentially revolutionary weight loss drug now to be tested in pill form
is currently injected into patients – now Arlington, Virginia’s is about to launch a clinical trial to test the drug in pill form & she shares details with ݮý (Listen below and sign up for the trial)
Preparing for a 5th COVID wave
JHU’s tells ݮý about coronavirus infection rates as Thanksgiving approaches (Listen below and )
New book details the race for a COVID vaccine
The Wall Street Journal’s Gregory Zuckerman introduces you to some of the pandemic’s vaccine heroes in
New book pulls back the curtain on the National Rifle Association
‘Buy Now Pay Later’ offers are everywhere
Consumerman Herb Weisbaum, with , gives ݮý the pros and cons of ‘buy now, pay later‘ over the holidays
Democrats and Republicans have plenty of divisions/disagreements among themselves
Washington Post Polling Analyst Emily Guskin takes us through a bit of the and its 9 categories of the electorate
Election Day in Virginia
Manchin is not ‘all in’ on President Biden’s plan
Vice ݮý Chief Political Correspondent explains the wrench newly thrown by moderate West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin (Listen below and read)
Could Trump upend the race for Virginia governor?
For a few hours, Wednesday night, it looked like Donald Trump might be coming to Virginia before election day – reports aides say it won’t happen but National Journal’s Jeff Dufour joined ݮý to ask ‘what if…’
Going to college next year? Now is the time to fill out your financial aid form
Consumerman Herb Weisbaum, with , tells ݮý you don’t even need to know which school you’re attending yet (Listen below & read)
If used wisely store credit cards can help you save a lot
Lending Tree’s Matt Schulz tells ݮý about the benefits and risks of signing up for store credit cards
The January 6th panel sets a criminal contempt vote for Steve Bannon
The latest controversy surrounding the Washington Football Team
Former employees are asking NFL sponsors to help release the full report on sexual harassment allegations regarding the WFT – meantime the reports the team offered financial settlements to former employees. WaPo Columnist offers her thoughts on the team – and Jon Gruden’s resignation on ݮý
‘No Time to Die’ not the best Bond film but hardly the worst
Critic Christian Toto reviews Daniel Craig’s last Bond movie and discusses three aging actors who keep getting better (Listen below and read about Craig saying goodbye to Bond)
Zuckerberg’s response to the whistleblower
Journalist Bob Sullivan responds to Mark Zuckerberg’s to Facebook’s recent controversies (Listen below)
How to fix Facebook
CNET’s Ian Sherr gives ݮý his reaction to the testimony of Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen (Listen below & read)
Facebook and its platforms come back to life after a multi-hour worldwide outage
“The Many Saints of Newark” might’ve been better as a series
Critic tells ݮý the Sopranos prequel is not as good as even the worst season of the groundbreaking HBO series (Listen below and read AP’s take)
Improving mental health through photography
Health Affairs’ Jessica Bylander tells ݮý about a Denver program in which people take pictures and write narratives to help in their mental health recovery. (Listen below and )
‘The Problem With Jon Stewart’ may suffer from the host’s previous groundbreaking success
Washington Post TV Critic Inkoo Kang tells ݮý she isn’t too impressed with Stewart’s new Apple TV+ series (Listen below and )
Instagram under the microscope in Congress
On Thursday senators pressured Facebook/Instagram to do better by young people, especially those suffering with body image issues
ݮý recently spoke to the Wall Street Journal’s Jeff Horwitz about his paper’s reporting-series on Facebook that shows the company knows its platforms are full of flaws that hurt people
The McAuliffe campaign causes concern at the White House
The race for Virginia governor is tight. That has the Biden White House worrying about a domino effect of Democratic losses if Terry McAuliffe falls to Glenn Youngkin. Politico’s Maya King shares the with ݮý
Colin Kaepernick gave athletes of all kinds the language of social justice
Dave Zirin, author of talks to ݮý about how the former NFL starting QB changed the world
Russia’s latest parliamentary elections are disputed
Amid videos of ballot-stuffing in the Russian parliamentary elections – we offer a recent chat with New York Times Moscow Reporter Andrew Kramer who interviewed opposition leader Alexei Navalny who remains in a prison near Moscow (Listen below and read )
Women should stop worrying about being ‘too loud’
Some QR codes could take you to bad places
Consumerman Herb Weisbaum, with , warns scammers are now using QR codes to try to steal from you (Listen below and read)
President Trump set the template for vaccine resistance and distrust of science
talks to ݮý about her new book – with – and about why some people are turning to potentially harmful medications like ivermectin instead of getting vaccinated for COVID (Listen below)
“What Do You Say?” authors say they can help you better communicate with your kids
Neuropsychologist Bill Stixrud and test prep tutor Ned Johnson say it’s imperative you talk to your kids and really get through to them (Listen below and )
Former Army Ranger says the Biden Administration made a mistake at almost every turn in Afghanistan
Former Army Ranger and author tells ݮý the military performed admirably during the Afghanistan airlift but the White House did not (Listen below and read about how the president defends his actions and decisions)
The 20-year Afghanistan War is over
Soon after the final military flight left Kabul Politico’s Lara Seligman joined ݮý with her analysis – including her on why Thursday’s deadly terrorist attack wasn’t stopped (Listen below)
Afghanistan may be headed toward civil war
International Security Expert talks to ݮý soon after the Kabul terrorist attack (Listen below and read about some of the servicemembers who were killed)
Former Army Special Operations Ranger laments the situation in Kabul
Author and former Army Ranger tells ݮý keeping Bagram Air Base open – and much greater communication – may have spared much death and grief in Afghanistan (Listen below and read)
How the Biden Administration handled Afghanistan this week
ABC ݮý Political Director Rick Klein tells ݮý relying on the Taliban is dangerous business (Listen below and read)
It’s almost time to start repaying your student loans again
Herb Weisbaum, with , tells ݮý the pause on paying federal student loans ends January 31st (Listen below and read)
The US may have leverage over the Taliban
The Brookings Institution’s tells ݮý the Taliban wants to be part of the international community and that could benefit the United States (Listen below and read)
COVID has changed so many things – could DC traffic be next?
The Washington Post’s Emily Guskin tells ݮý about a new on whether you’re willing to ride Metro and drive to work as you did before COVID (Listen below)
Is the Biden Administration handling its business on COVID?
National Journal’s Josh Kraushaar tells ݮý – while the chaotic Trump COVID briefings may be over – the Biden Administration is having its own major struggles with coronavirus (Listen below and )
Seven months after the Capitol riot, DC Police Officer Michael Fanone still has a long battle
Time Magazine’s Molly Ball talks to ݮý about her cover-story-profile of Fanone – who almost died defending the Capitol from the pro-Trump mob on January 6th (Listen below and )
‘The Suicide Squad’ is far superior to 2016’s ‘Suicide Squad’
Critic Christian Toto tells ݮý some of the same actors are here but this ‘Suicide Squad’ reboot is nothing like the failure of 5 years ago (Listen below and read the AP’s take)
The eviction ban and other Biden Administration challenges
Politico’s Anita Kumar joins ݮý to discuss part of President Biden’s week – including COVID vaccination efforts, an extension of the eviction ban and the damning report on Governor Andrew Cuomo (Listen below and read more about the )
The ‘cleverness’ of COVID
Health Affairs Editor-in-Chief Alan Weil tells ݮý we are not on the way to eradicating COVID, we an only hope to control it (Listen below and read)
President Biden copes with COVID vaccination resistance, evictions and Governor Andrew Cuomo’s controversy
ABC ݮý Political Director Rick Klein talks to ݮý about President Biden’s rotating list of challenges (Listen below and read what we know so far about the Andrew Cuomo investigation)
Calls for NY’s Governor Cuomo to step down / Will Youngkin and McAuliffe ever debate in Virginia?
We discuss the Andrew Cuomo controversy…and the Virginia governor’s race…with on ݮý (Listen below and read about the )
The best advice is to get vaccinated for COVD
We talk about the spreading COVID Delta variant – and a 70 percent vaccination rate (at least the first shot) for Americans – with of UCSF on ݮý (Listen below and read)
South Carolina’s Lindsey Graham becomes the first vaccinated senator to test positive for COVID
Axios Politics Reporter talks to ݮý about Graham’s new diagnosis and Kevin McCarthy’s latest comments regarding Nancy Pelosi (Listen below)
What surging COVID cases mean for the economy during the summer and autumn
President Jane Oates expects an economic slowdown as many of us mask up again (Listen below and read)
‘They’re not going to f**king succeed’: Top generals feared a Donald Trump coup
The Washington Post’s Phil Rucker joins ݮý to discuss the book he co-wrote with WaPo colleague Carol Leonnig “I Alone Can Fix It” (Listen below and read)
As the Tokyo Olympics rolls on how is the COVID situation in Tokyo?
New York Times Tokyo Bureau Chief Motoko Rich updates ݮý on coronavirus in the Japanese capital during the Games (Listen below and )
The Delta variant forces us to mask up again
UCSF’s says masking and a new vaccine-push are needed – in some parts of the country – to put down COVID (Listen below and read)
Officers feared for their lives on January 6th
NBC-4’s Scott MacFarlane gives ݮý his impressions of the first public hearing from the congressional panel investigating the Capitol riot (Listen below and read)
COVID causes chaos across the world’s borders
Migration Policy Institute’s tells ݮý there’s an opportunity to create harmony out of chaos if countries work together to reopen after COVID (Listen below and read about the current EU travel mess)
Veterans Affairs requires COVID shots for most healthcare workers
Nearly 60 medical groups say those who interact with patients must get vaccinated for COVID – The Washington Post’s Dan Diamond reports the voluntary approach seems to have run dry (Listen below and read)
Republican leaders start promoting COVID vaccines in greater numbers
ABC ݮý Political Director Rick Klein tells ݮý vaccine resistance is hardening even as many GOP leaders say it’s now time to get your shots (Listen below and read)
A new book takes you deep into Trumpworld
COVID’s Delta variant spreads like wildfire
UCSF’s tells ݮý Delta means some of us may have to mask up again and everyone must redouble their efforts to get as many people vaccinated as possible (Listen below and read)
Derek Chauvin’s sentencing is just the beginning
Michigan State University’s Jennifer Cobbina tells ݮý about the racial justice starting point of Chauvin’s sentencing (Listen below and read about money devoted to racial equity efforts…trouble is we don’t know how much)