Why Is This Happening? The Chris Hayes Podcast

Hi #WITHpod listeners! We have a special bonus episode for you. In the “National Day of Racial Healing: An MSNBC Town Hall,” MSNBC’s Chris Hayes, Joy Reid and Trymaine Lee talk with activists, journalists, artists and experts to explore the harm racism has caused in our society, and to consider how we might heal from it. The program initially aired on MSNBC and was streamed on Peacock the day after Dr. Martin Luther King Day. The programming was recorded in New Orleans and was sponsored by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation. You can click the link in the show notes to see the visuals mentioned in the episode.

The history of lotteries spans over four millennia. The modern version of them arose out of a need for a form of more state funding that wouldn’t raise taxes. Jackpots have reached record levels in the past few years. And "Americans now spend more on lottery tickets every year than on cigarettes, coffee or smartphones," writes historian and author Jonathan Cohen. Cohen is author of “For a Dollar and a Dream: State Lotteries in Modern America,” a comprehensive history of America’s lottery obsession. In the book, he points out that lotteries are much less profitable for states than some proponents say, but on the other hand, they are extremely lucrative for private companies that manufacture tickets. Cohen joins WITHpod to discuss the evolution of lotteries, changes he thinks should be made to the way they are run, public misconceptions about the revenue generated by games and why he says state run lotteries shouldn’t exist.

Join as you help us celebrate our 250th #WITHpod! In our recent Mailbag episode, we asked you all to send over clips sharing why you listen to WITHpod, where you listen and or what’s your favorite ep. We loved hearing all of your submissions. Here’s a compilation that we put together for our special milestone. Thank you and cheers!

The language that is used to talk about immigrants in America is something that really bothers Chris. A common and unproductive trope that’s heard in media is “a flood of immigrants to the border.” At the same time, there is a growing dependance at the foundational level on the labor of immigrants in the U.S. As natural disasters are happening with increasing frequency and intensity, communities are relying more and more on immigrant laborers. Saket Soni is director of Resilience Force, a national initiative that advocates on behalf of disaster recovery workers. He’s also author of the upcoming book, “The Great Escape: A True Story of Forced Labor and Immigrant Dreams In America.” The subject of the story starts when Soni, who was 28 years old at the time, received an anonymous phone call from an Indian migrant who told him about incredibly inhumane worker conditions at a labor camp in Mississippi. The extraordinary journey that follows is told in the fascinating read about how Soni and 500 workers devised a bold plan, after a series of clandestine meetings, to escape and bring attention to their cause in Washington, D.C. He joins WITHpod to discuss writing about one of the largest human trafficking cases in modern American history, his deeply personal story coming to the U.S. from India, the importance of a well-protected skilled resilient workforce, rebuilding social fabrics around this topic and more.

“My argument is because [right wing authoritarianism] is the central struggle of the day, we need the most effective, principled and impactful progressive organizations that are seeking to challenge that,” says Maurice Mitchell, national director of the Working Families Party. Mitchell is also an activist and co-founder of Blackbird, an organization that has provided infrastructure support for the Black Lives Matter movement and other groups around the country. The social movement strategist wrote a 6,000-word article for The Forge called “Building Resilient Organizations,” in which he described and shared potential solutions for overcoming some of the biggest problems within progressive spaces. He joins WITHpod to discuss the piece, roots of the longstanding political and social tensions within movements on the left and strategies for resetting.

The pandemic hasn’t raged within China the way it has in the rest of the world over the past few years. However, that’s beginning to change. Following a wave of protests, Chinese leadership officially rolled back some of the country’s most stringent Covid restrictions. The end of “zero Covid” policies, combined with an already strained medical system, along with low vaccination and immunity levels, could lead to disastrous public health and economic consequences. China could see over a million deaths in 2023, according to projections from the University of Washington Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation. Bill Bishop is a longtime expert on China, writer of his own Substack newsletter called “Sinocism,” co-founder of CBS Marketwatch and he worked in China for years. Bishop joins WITHpod to discuss how government control has been consolidated under president Xi Jinping, the timeline of events leading to this moment, why Covid case numbers in China are undercounted and what the latest developments portend for (what could be) a very sobering future.

We're thrilled to publish our second live WITHpod mailbag, which was originally hosted on Twitter Spaces earlier this month. Join as Chris and producer Doni Holloway go through your questions, discuss feedback you’ve sent and share pod updates. You’re also in for a special treat as Brendan O’Melia, who has been with WITHpod since it started, joins the conversation!

Gender norms, particularly related to child care, have shifted dramatically over the past few decades. Journalist Tim Lee, whose wife is a doctor and often has to work nights, weekends and unpredictable hours, made the decision to “lean out” of his career to focus more on child care. As their family grew, it became increasingly clear that Lee couldn’t spend off hours doing the in-depth research and reporting that he used to do. He now writes for “Full Stack Economics,” a Substack that allows him to work flexible hours. The at-home dad previously wrote for various outlets including The Washington Post and Vox. While leaning out has meant a big pay cut, he’s able to do the majority of child care in his household, while also supporting the demands of his wife’s better paying career. Lee joins WITHpod to discuss what he learned from other dads who’ve made the same decision, why he says creating an equal society will require more comfort with unequal marriages, the lack of social stigma he’s experienced and more.

It’s been 174 years since Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels wrote “The Communist Manifesto.” How is it still relevant today and what makes it such a vital guide to understanding present-day struggles? That’s the subject of China Mieville’s latest work, “A Spectre, Haunting: On the Communist Manifesto.” Miéville, a self-proclaimed Marxist and socialist, is a New York Times-bestselling author of fiction and non-fiction. His most recent book offers an analysis of what arguably remains the modern world’s most influential political document. He joins WITHpod to discuss criticisms of “The Manifesto,” the precipitating factors and peculiar nature of the text, how it still profoundly influences contemporary discourse and more.

Coming out of Thanksgiving week, we thought it was a good time to reshare our first WITHpod episode all about fitness. Fitness guru, writer and self-described “Swole Woman” Casey Johnston has written, “a lot of health content is focused on blowing smoke up you’re a-- about jade eggs and vitamins and toxin-dispersing cellulite-curing silver-thread leggings.” But why? What makes lifting and working out seem so complicated? We’re constantly bombarded with get-fit-quick marketing perpetuated by “bros” who got fit overnight, but achieving real gains often just requires an incremental, consistent and methodical approach. Casey joins for an enlightening conversation about building strength, maintaining form and to answer the age-old debate: are machines or weights better?

As the war intensifies in Ukraine, we thought it was time to revisit what’s going on there. Although the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson was recently liberated, the battle for freedom continues in other regions. Harry Rowe, known as Macer Gifford, is a British volunteer soldier fighting in Ukraine. Gifford assumed the pseudonym Macer Gifford after needing a new identify while fighting in Syria from 2015 to 2017. The former currency trader arrived on the ground in Ukraine 10 days before the war began. Gifford joins WITHpod to discuss the trajectory of the war since June, what he’s hearing from folks there versus what he’s heard from the West, his thoughts on how long the conflict could go on and more.

What in the heck is going on at Twitter since Elon Musk took over? From growing concerns about disinformation on the social network, to changes to how once coveted blue check marks are granted, there’s a lot to unpack. We couldn’t think of a better person to help make sense of it all than Kara Swisher, who has interviewed Musk numerous times and has covered tech for decades. Swisher is also host of the podcasts “On with Kara Swisher, “Pivot,” and is co-founder of the technology website Recode. Swisher points out that while Musk is very innovative, in her view, he’s been a “chaos monkey.” She joins Chris to discuss how the world’s richest man (as of this posting) is running Twitter, staff shakeups, growing competition in the social media space and more.

Lots of results continue coming in from the 2022 midterms. Control of the House and the Senate is still undecided and the outcome will come down to a handful of tight races. As we still await results, WITHpod is sharing a bonus behind the scenes episode as Chris Hayes and MSNBC political insiders break down the elections. Note that this special originally streamed on Peacock.

Thousands of people continue to rally on the streets of Iran following the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian woman, who was detained for not wearing her hijab “properly.” Sussan Tahmasebi is director of FEMENA, an organization that promotes gender equality and supports women human rights defenders, their organizations and feminist movements in the Middle East, North Africa and Asia regions. Tahmasebi has over 20 years of experience in promoting women's rights, peace and security at the regional, national and international levels. She joins Chris to discuss the precipitating factors for the sweeping protests in Iran, the structure of the Iranian political regime, fights for gender equality and more.

To understand the partisanship and bitterness of American politics today, we have to consider what happened in 1994, points out Steve Kornacki, National Political Correspondent for NBC News and MSNBC. That’s the story he tells in a new six-part original podcast series called “The Revolution,” all about how Georgia Congressman Newt Gingrich ushered in a wave of confrontation and conservatism. Lucky for us, Kornacki took some time away from the Big Board to walk through the history and distinct structural features of midterms, how we got to this moment and the numerous ways the elections this fall could parallel 1994.

The Reconstruction era is a pivotal point in our nation’s history and often misconstrued. What many hoped to be a time of promise and racial equality after the Civil war turned into a period marked by terror and violence against Black people and widespread efforts to undermine and stop Black progress. In her new book, “I Saw Death Coming: A History of Terror and Survival in the War Against Reconstruction,” Professor Kidada E. Williams of Wayne State University reexamines this period and shares the stories of those who fought against oppression. Williams joins WITHpod to discuss her new book and the impact of racial trauma on future generations.

Throughout history, the judicial system has employed many more men than women. “Lady Justice: Women, the Law, and the Battle to Save America” tells the story of heroic women in law who, in the face of Trumpism and MAGA movements, have stepped up to fight injustice. Part biography and part analysis, the book, written by author, journalist and podcast host Dahlia Lithwick, profiles a variety of women lawyers, judges, and activists who have stood up against racism, sexism, and xenophobia. She joins WITHpod to discuss the impetus for writing the book, the urgency of this moment and why the future of our democracy greatly depends on a more inclusive legal system.

What more can we say? Rachel Maddow is incredible. Luckily for us, her decision to dial back from the nightly cable news grind has allowed her to create a work in new media. One of her new projects is “Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra,” a podcast all about the history of pre-World-War-two American fascism, and those who worked to stop it. The historical, narrative style pod could hardly be more relevant, as the plot revolves around a sedition trial quite similar to the ongoing Oath Keepers one. As threats to American democracy abound, there’s more that has to be done to save it, said Maddow in our exclusive podcast interview. “I think there needs to be a bigger, broader, anti-fascist movement where people actually have work to do every day in trying to fight fascism and save the country,” she urged. Maddow joins WITHpod to discuss what she’s been up to, how she found the story that’s told in her new podcast, the editorial and creative process that has followed and more.

Seth Rich was a young DNC staffer in Washington, DC who was tragically murdered early one morning in 2016. Our WITHpod guest this week described him as smart, ambitious, telegenic and someone who might run a presidential campaign someday. In the absence of an arrest, questions remain about who killed Rich. Unfounded theories about the motives for his murder continue to circulate on social media, including ones that enmeshed the Clintons and other high-profile figures. The search for answers, and this age of widespread disinformation, is the subject of “A Death on W Street: The Murder of Seth Rich and the Age of Conspiracy,” written by ProPublica reporter Andy Kroll. The true-crime story unravels this saga of murder, deceptions about what happened, and the role of conspiracy mongers in disparaging Rich’s memory. Kroll, who actually knew Rich, joins WITHpod to discuss Rich’s life, death and what happened to his story once it got into the hands of numerous bad actors.

With less than two months to the midterms, a lot is at stake for the future of American democracy. Understanding the political mood of the country is something that’s been on Chris’ mind. The past few years have been filled with immense disruption, social reckoning and intense political debate. At the same time, conservative activists have gone out of their way to pass laws banning the teaching of critical race theory. There’s a lot going on. Unpacking everything that’s been happening, and how people, particularly young folks are feeling, is the focus of an HBCU tour hosted by “Into America” host, Emmy award and Pulitzer-prize winning journalist Trymaine Lee. Trymaine returns to WITHpod to talk about what he’s learned from college students during his team’s “Power of the Black Vote” tour, to share what he’s paying attention to in the midterm elections and more.

Over the past few years, we’ve seen enormous shifts in the ideological and intellectual foundations of government policy. Trillions of dollars have been allocated through programs including the Infrastructure Bill, the CHIPS Act, and the American Rescue Plan. At the same time, we’re seeing inflation at levels unseen since the late 70s. Have we arrived in a new economic era? For over three decades, the Roosevelt Institute has fought to “develop progressive ideas and bold leadership in the service of restoring America's promise of opportunity for all.” The president and CEO of the think tank, Felicia Wong, joins WITHpod to discuss how we got to this moment, the importance of economic freedom, the need to rethink public investment and more.

The United States hasn’t seen inflation like current levels since the late 1970s. The pandemic prompted unusually high levels of fiscal stimulus, including the rollout of relief through programs like the American Rescue Plan, which some have blamed for inflation. But our guest this week shares that increased economic relief isn’t really the biggest contributing factor leading to inflation. Author Matthew Klein points out that supply chain disruptions created by the COVID crisis, along with the war in Ukraine, actually explain the majority of the changes we’re experiencing. Klein has reported for numerous outlets including Bloomberg, the Financial Times and Barron’s. He joins WITHpod to provide a gut check on the economy and to discuss why he believes the Fed has raised interest rates, the role that supply and demand plays in global financial systems, the impact of monetary policy changes on economic recovery efforts and more.

Which school a child attends and with who has an enormous effect on their life trajectory. For decades, the question of which kids get access to which schools has been a central point of conflict in American democratic politics. The de-segregation efforts after Brown have, in the last few decades largely reversed and schools are growing more and more racially segregated. Making the intentional choice to swim against this tide is the subject of “Learning in Public: Lessons for a Racially Divided America from My Daughter's School.” Author Courtney Martin joins WITHpod to discuss writing the memoir and her journey moving from Brooklyn to enrolling her daughter in a local school down the street from her home in an Oakland co-housing community. She also talks about navigating school choice, why public schools are the “foundation of our fragile democracy,” and why these decisions provide a powerful starting point for creating social change and the kind of multi-racial democracy we deserve to have.

The pandemic has transformed the way work is done. For many, gone are the days of dressing up, commuting to an office, and working in-person five days a week. But with the broad availability of vaccines and boosters, as well as relaxed COVID guidelines, employers are increasingly encouraging employees to return to the office. Yet, not everyone wants to go back to the way things were. 87% of workers who have the chance to work flexibly take it, according to the American Opportunity Survey, conducted by McKinsey. Anne Helen Petersen is the author of four books including “Out of Office: The Big Problem and Bigger Promise of Working from Home,” which she co-wrote with Charlie Warzel. Petersen joins WITHpod to discuss why the future isn’t just about where we will work, but how. She also discusses the history of working from home, people returning to “ghost offices,” why reverting to pre-pandemic workplace norms could be problematic and more.

The COVID pandemic has been going on for more than two years. Will it ever end? It’s a question that doesn’t have a straightforward answer, as much as we all desperately want one. Dr. Ellie Murray is an epidemiology assistant professor at the Boston University School of Public Health. She also runs the Murray Causal Decision Lab and co-hosts the “Casual Inference” podcast in partnership with the American Journal of Epidemiology. Murray joins WITHpod to discuss the importance of smart public health messaging, ethical and sociological concerns regarding the determination of “acceptable” virus case numbers and misconceptions of what endemicity means. She also talks about strategies for protecting those most at risk and why it’s possible that COVID could mutate into something much more dangerous if too much complacency continues.

We’re thrilled to publish our first live WITHpod mailbag, which was hosted on Twitter Spaces. Join as Chris and producer Doni Holloway go through your questions, discuss feedback you’ve sent, and share pod updates. You’re in for a special treat as Chris also serves as a podcast “board operator” for the first time!

Chris is wrapping up vacation this week, so WITHpod is sharing another favorite recent episode. From the original description: Seven-foot-tall Dirk Nowitzki is one of the greatest NBA players in history. Throughout his illustrious and landmark career, he’s redefined the sport through his signature moves, unique mindset and approach. His extraordinary story is the subject of a book published in March of 2022, “The Great Nowitzki: Basketball and The Meaning of Life,” a culmination of seven years of writing by award-winning novelist and sportswriter Thomas Pletzinger. Basketball is Chris’ favorite sport, so it really was a special treat to have the Dallas Mavericks superstar on WITHpod. Nowitzki joins to talk about the role of mentorship, going from the German suburbs to being one of the Top 75 Greatest Players of All-time, the mental toll and expectations of stardom, staying grounded and more.

Chris is on vacation this week, so WITHpod is republishing another favorite episode. From the original description: Grammy award-winning musician Ani DiFranco joins for an enlightening conversation about her creative process, how she’s pivoted during the pandemic, and what’s enabled her to keep making music after so many years.

Chris is on vacation this week, so WITHpod is sharing a favorite recent episode from our inaugural “Future Of” series. From the original description: The ways we consume media have changed tremendously over the last decade. Shows with live audiences, perhaps more than any other type of program, had to pivot virtually almost overnight when the pandemic started. That certainly was the case with “Late Night with Seth Meyers.” As viewers have more sources for entertainment now than ever before, the show had to find creative ways to keep fans engaged and entertained. Lucky for us, Seth Meyers, the affable host of the show bearing his name, joins to discuss what he thinks about the future of entertainment and comedy, why he felt closer to the audience while hosting from home and more.

Chris is on vacation this week, so we're sharing a favorite recent episode. Please note that this conversation was originally recorded in May of 2022 before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. From the original description: “Forced labor is already unconstitutional and what is forced birth other than forcing a woman to labor against her will?” remarked Elie Mystal, a justice correspondent at The Nation, following the leak of a Supreme Court draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade. Mystal is also author of the New York Times bestselling book, “Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy’s Guide to the Constitution,” in which he points out problems with-and solutions for- reversing systemic issues created by America’s founding document. He joins WITHpod to discuss his objections to conservative interpretations of rights, abortion rights law, changes he’d make to the Constitution, and revisions he’d make to the structure of the Supreme Court and more.

From GPS systems, to weather forecasts, to the food we consume, the U.S. government plays a role in virtually every facet of our lives. What happens behind the scenes and how do these background actions impact our lives, good and bad? Seeking the answers to those questions is the project of “The G Word,” a Netflix miniseries executive produced by former President Barack Obama and hosted by Adam Conover. Loosely based off of “The Fifth Risk: Undoing Democracy” by Michael Lewis, the six-part documentary explores the triumphs and failures of the government and how we might be able to change it. Conover joins WITHpod to discuss his creative process, maintaining editorial independence while working with Obama, his experiences getting rarely granted insider access of federal agencies and more.

It’s been a little over two years since the tragic murder of George Floyd, and what was arguably the largest civil rights protests in United States history. Since May of 2020, hashtags and icons have been used to commemorate him, but he was so much more than a face on a mural. He was a father, partner, athlete, and friend who constantly strove for a better life, as chronicled in “His Name Is George Floyd: One Man’s Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice.” The book builds off of a series in The Washington Post in October 2020 called “George Floyd's America.” Robert Samuels, a national enterprise reporter at The Washington Post, co-wrote the book with colleague Toluse Olorunnipa, a political enterprise and investigations reporter. Samuels joins WITHpod for a personal look at how systemic racism impacted Floyd’s life, his family’s social mobility, his legacy and more. Samuels also discusses how even despite all of the seemingly endless challenges Floyd faced, he still held on to his vision for a better world.

The Supreme Court currently has a majority of conservative judges, and it’s the most conservative court since the New Deal Era. The Court made more conservative decisions this term than at any time since 1931, according to statistics compiled by professors Lee Epstein of Washington University in St. Louis and Keven Quinn of the University of Michigan. The recent decision to overturn Roe v. Wade has caused some to speculate that this may be the beginning of a movement to overturn other landmark liberal decisions like Obergfell v. Hodges. Jamal Greene is the Dwight Professor of Law at Columbia Law School and author of “How Rights Went Wrong: Why Our Obsession with Rights Is Tearing America Apart.” He joins WITHpod to discuss what methodology Supreme Court justices use to arrive at their decisions, whether there is political motivation, and just how strictly they interpret the Constitution.

While mental illness and substance abuse can be contributing factors for homelessness, lack of affordable housing is actually the number one culprit, according to California YIMBY (YIMBY stands for Yes In My Back Yard), a pro-housing community advocacy movement. Amid opposition from groups like Not In My Back Yard (NIMBY), what can be done to reverse this growing shortage? Ned Resnikoff, a veteran journalist and former policy manager, recently joined California YIMBY as policy director. Based in Berkeley, he focuses on expanding YIMBY’s long-range advocacy goals and operations. Resnikoff joins WITHpod to discuss the homelessness crisis in California and beyond, the interconnectedness between housing and climate change, why he says equitably and sustainably expanding access to affordable homes is key, and more.

More incidents of road rage. People are now smoking on the subway. Early 2021 saw the highest number of “unruly passenger” incidents in airline history, according to the FAA. It seems people are acting stranger than ever. But what’s behind all of this? Olga Khazan, a staff writer at The Atlantic, wrote about this very topic. She joins WITHpod to discuss the role that the pandemic has played in increased disruptive behavior, why mental health issues aren’t the only factor to blame, and more.

Trigger warning: This episode contains mentions of sexual and physical abuse. For nearly the past year, Canadian journalist Connie Walker has been working on an investigation into her father's experience at St. Michael's Indian Residential School in Canada. The story is told as part of “Stolen: Surviving St. Michael’s,” a series available exclusively on Spotify. Her investigation began when she heard a story about her late father who was a police officer in the 70s. He pulled over a car that was swerving, and when he got to the window, he recognized the driver as a priest who he believed had abused him at residential school. He pulled the priest out of the car and beat him up on the side of the road. Over the years, thousands of students have come forward about their experiences at residential schools. Walker joins WITHpod to discuss the process of telling this deeply personal story of intergenerational trauma, her motivation for bringing issues affecting indigenous people to light and how this dark part of Canada’s past hasn’t been completely reconciled. The Canadian government has apologized and set aside millions in reparations, along with a new child education and welfare system in response to abuse.

“Identity politics” polarizes discourse about virtually every aspect of contemporary political life. But what exactly is it, and what role does “elite capture” play in how it has come to be understood? Olúfẹ́mi Táíwò is a philosopher, assistant professor at Georgetown University and author of several books, including “Elite Capture: How the Powerful Took Over Identity Politics (And Everything Else)” and “Reconsidering Reparations,” both of which were published in 2022. He joins WITHpod to discuss the origins of identity politics, the problems with what he calls deference politics, and how elites have co-opted the language of social justice to their own ends.

There are more guns than cars in the United States. And studies show that gun sales go up following mass shootings. We had a different episode planned for this week, but given the marked rise in gun violence, we pivoted. This week’s guest spent 30 years as a leader at one of America’s most popular gun companies. Ryan Busse is a former firearms executive at Kimber America and is author of “Gunfight: My Battle Against the Industry that Radicalized America,” in which he talks about how America’s multibillion-dollar gun industry has profited from and fueled cultural divisions. Busse joins WITHpod to discuss how we got to this point, why he chose to leave the industry, what he observed behind closed doors at NRA meetings, how political division fuels extremism and what the failure to enact stricter legislation means for the future of our democracy.

Freedom House’s annual Freedom in the World survey notes that liberalism has rapidly declined each year for the last 16 years. And its precipitous downturn is more evident now than ever amid waning respect for individual rights, increased growth of autocracies and most recently in the seismic Russian invasion of Ukraine. Decades ago, political scientist and professor Francis Fukuyama was one of the preeminent scholars to predict the marked impending fall of liberal societies. He serves as a senior fellow at Stanford’s Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and is a bestselling author of numerous books, including one published in March 2022 aptly titled, “Liberalism and Its Discontents.” He joins WITHpod to discuss why liberalism doesn’t always live up to its own principles, challenges from the right and the left and why our democracy will be under continued threat without a revitalized approach to its core tenets.

Who were the first people to migrate to the Americas? When did they arrive, and how? For centuries, those questions have been shrouded in mystery. No written records and very little archaeological evidence exists to provide clarity. In recent years, however, the examination of genetic data has revolutionized researchers’ ability to find answers. A recent family trip to the Grand Canyon furthered Chris’ interest in talking with one of the most celebrated scholars in the field. Dr. Jennifer Raff is an anthropological geneticist and associate professor at the University of Kansas. She’s also author of the New York Times best-selling book, “Origin: A Genetic History of the Americas.” Raff joins to discuss how the first people migrated to the Americas nearly 20,000 years ago, how genomes showcase the very close relatedness of humans across the globe and the impact of genetic discoveries on narratives.

Title 42, a decades old and rarely used public health order used to bar people with medical conditions from entering the country, revived by the Trump administration, enables immigration authorities to swiftly expel migrants to Mexico or their home countries. The enforcement of the policy, which also bars individuals from seeking asylum, continues to be met with skepticism by immigration advocates and public health officials. The Biden administration and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently announced plans to end Title 42 by May 23rd, now that vaccines are widely available. But the fate of the policy remains in limbo because of Republican-backed lawsuits and opposition to its cessation. Thomas Saenz is president and General Counsel for the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund (MALDEF). Saenz joins WITHpod to discuss the role of misinformation in the characterization of migrants, immigration and refugee policy reform and the implications of a potential continuation (or end) of Title 42.

“Forced labor is already unconstitutional and what is forced birth other than forcing a woman to labor against her will?” remarked Elie Mystal, a justice correspondent at The Nation, following the leak of a Supreme Court draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade. Mystal is also author of the New York Times bestselling book, “Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy’s Guide to the Constitution,” in which he points out problems with-and solutions for- reversing systemic issues created by America’s founding document. He joins WITHpod to discuss his objections to conservative interpretations of rights, abortion rights law, changes he’d make to the Constitution, and revisions he’d make to the structure of the Supreme Court and more.

Recovery from trauma and its emanations is a defining theme of this moment. Dr. Thomas Fisher has certainly seen his share of the effects of mass disruption as an emergency medical physician. He typically has about three minutes to spend with patients who come into the South Side of Chicago ward where he works. Throughout his storied career, he’s also served as a White House fellow in the Obama administration and as a healthcare executive. He writes about his experiences in “The Emergency: A Year of Healing and Heartbreak in a Chicago ER.” Fisher joins us to talk about how our country’s healthcare system often treats the poor as expendable, how the pandemic has exacerbated longstanding- and increasingly fraught- inequities in access to good healthcare and discusses the privilege of serving in the same community that he grew up in. This conversation is presented as part of NBC and MSNBC’s cross-platform “Inspiring America” series, which highlights stories of people who’ve made an extraordinary impact on their communities and industries over the past year. You can follow updates on Twitter by searching for #InspiringAmericaNBC.

Since Chris was on vacation last week, we’re revisiting one of our favorite WITHpod episodes. The conversation is also timely given the recent U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, which cites that time is running out to reverse damage done to the planet. From the original episode description: Y'all - this is a good one. Trust us. It'll make you laugh, it'll make you reflect, it'll inspire...it might even give you that special WITHpod brand of existential crisis. Our second stop of the fall tour brought Chris Hayes to the stunning Theatre at the Ace Hotel with screenwriter and director Adam McKay along with debut novelist Omar El Akkad. The question at hand - how can we use art and pop culture to properly convey the urgency of the climate crisis? How can storytelling break through the noise and get to the beating heart of the collective struggle our planet is in? And how will future generations think about the way we are meeting this moment? Like we said, maybe a teensy existential crisis. But we promise, you'll laugh a lot too.

The Crown Heights Riot took place thirty years ago following a car accident that killed a Black child in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Crown Heights. Over the course of four days, rioters, whose slogan was “no justice, no peace,” pointed to rumors of discrimination by a Jewish ambulance service and the escape of the driver responsible for the child’s death. Subsequently, one Orthodox Jew was killed and dozens of others were beaten. The unrest is told in a new podcast aptly titled “Love Thy Neighbor: Four Days in Crown Heights That Changed New York.” The episodes tell the story of immigration, New York City’s first Black mayor, the rise of Rudy Giuliani and the Lubavitch Jews and Caribbean-Americans at the center of it all. Creator, writer and narrator Collier Meyerson joins to discuss exploring her own Black and Jewish identities, how the stories told in her podcast can help us understand modern dilemmas and more.

Seven-foot-tall Dirk Nowitzki is one of the greatest NBA players in history. Throughout his illustrious and landmark career, he’s redefined the sport through his signature moves, unique mindset and approach. His extraordinary story is the subject of a book published in March of 2022, “The Great Nowitzki: Basketball and The Meaning of Life,” a culmination of seven years of writing by award-winning novelist and sportswriter Thomas Pletzinger. Basketball is Chris’ favorite sport, so it really was a special treat to have the Dallas Mavericks superstar on WITHpod. Nowitzki joins to talk about the role of mentorship, going from the German suburbs to being one of the Top 75 Greatest Players of All-time, the mental toll and expectations of stardom, staying grounded and more.

This week, we’re bringing you a vital history lesson that might not have made it into your high school textbooks. With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in its second month, Yale historian Timothy Snyder joins to share much-needed context that often gets overlooked in coverage of the war. Hear the complicated legacy of the Nazi charges from Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, how Ukrainians came to think of themselves as a nation, and whether Timothy Snyder thinks this is a war that can be won.

Time is running out to reverse the damage done by climate change, according to a report released by the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in February 2022. Preventing further destruction will be the biggest undertaking in the history of human civilization. Can it be done? Jonah Goldman joined Gates Ventures, Bill Gates’s private office, in September 2014, where he is responsible for the organization’s relationships with policymakers around the world. In 2020, he helped Bill establish Breakthrough Energy (BE). BE is a network of entities and initiatives, including investment funds, nonprofit and philanthropic programs, and policy efforts linked by a common commitment to scale the technologies we need to achieve a path to net zero emissions by 2050. Goldman joins to provide a gut check on where we stand on the timeline for change as it relates to the future of energy.

BFF connections have transformed rapidly during the COVID-19 pandemic. FaceTime calls, Zoom happy hours, voice memos, group chats and virtual game nights, in many cases, have reworked our in-person interactions of the past. What does the future of friendship look like? Ann Friedman and Aminatou Sow have been friends for over a decade, twelve years to be exact. Living on opposite coasts for years now, they had a head start on managing a long-distance friendship. Ann, a journalist, essayist and media entrepreneur and Aminatou, a writer, interviewer and cultural commentator, co-wrote “Big Friendship,” a book all about maintaining their close bond. They join for an inspiring conversation about the future of friendship and what it takes to stay connected for the long haul.

What will be the next big thing? We've watched generations of technologies heralded only to then flop, while others were slept on and quietly took over the world. As always there are investors betting big on those innovations that hold the most promise: from DNA sequencing, to AI and blockchain technology. As these technologies penetrate further into our lives, what can we expect? How will the world adapt and navigate these seismic changes? Cathie Wood, founder, CEO and CIO of ARK Invest, who is no stranger to big calls and predictions, joins to discuss her outlook ahead for the metaverse, autonomous vehicles, finance and more.

The ways we consume media have changed tremendously over the last decade. Shows with live audiences, perhaps more than any other type of program, had to pivot virtually almost overnight when the pandemic started. That certainly was the case with “Late Night with Seth Meyers.” As viewers have more sources for entertainment now than ever before, the show had to find creative ways to keep fans engaged and entertained. Lucky for us, Seth Meyers, the affable host of the show bearing his name, joins to discuss what he thinks about the future of entertainment and comedy, why he felt closer to the audience while hosting from home and more.

So what comes next? We've just gone through a once-in-a-century pandemic that disrupted nearly every aspect of our lives. We're in the beginning of an energy transition unlike anything the industrialized world has ever attempted. And it can be very difficult, amidst, war, plague, insurrection and climate disaster to conceive of what a flourishing future might even look like. What’s in store for rapidly evolving areas like entertainment, finance and energy? What impact has the social media revolution and COVID crisis had on our personal relationships, and how might this time be instructive for our friendships in the future? Will the next few years look remotely like the present? Chris Hayes asks these big questions and more in the inaugural “Why Is This Happening?” “Future of” miniseries. Join for conversations with an eclectic lineup of guests including Seth Meyers, host of “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” Cathie Wood, CEO of ARK Invest, Jonah Goldman, managing director of Breakthrough Energy, and Ann Friedman and Aminatou Sow, authors of “Big Friendship.”

Residential segregation and unequal allocation of resources continues to play a profound role in areas of concentrated poverty, and conversely, high opportunity. Georgetown law professor Sheryll Cashin has spent decades studying housing and how geography is central to American inequality. In “White Space, Black Hood: Opportunity Hoarding and Segregation in the Age of Inequality,” Cashin traces the history of anti-Black residential caste, which she says manifests in three forms: boundary maintenance, opportunity hoarding and stereotype-driven surveillance. She joins to unpack her findings and to share strategies for abolishing state-sanctioned practices that further perpetuate inequities.

Since Chris is on vacation this week, we’re revisiting and providing an update on our episode with Dr. Izzy Lowell, who runs Queer Med, a private clinic that specializes in providing accessible health care to trans patients ranging from kids to adults. From the original description: What is gender-affirming health care? Around the country, there’s a Republican campaign to legislate and regulate the lives of trans youth. The most destructive of these efforts would bar trans youth in certain states from accessing gender-affirming treatment. Lowell’s practice covers 10 states across the South – and half of those have anti-trans health care bills on the docket. If they pass, it would become criminal for her to provide this care to many of her patients. Dr. Lowell joins this week to break down what exactly we mean when we talk about gender-affirming care, how the decision is made for kids and teens ready to transition, and the potentially devastating impact this legislation would have on their lives.

Sweeping public health acts for everything from clean water to the control of cholera have revolutionized modern life as we know it. The Clean Air Act, which sets standards for outdoor air, has been around for decades. But as we spend more time inside amid the pandemic, scientists are now recognizing the need for a new form of quality control: regulating indoor air. How do we design and reconfigure spaces to have cleaner air capable of combating airborne viruses? This week, Chris talks with a leading expert on the topic. Dr. Linsey Marr is a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech and has spent over a decade researching the transmission of airborne viruses. She joins to discuss the science behind how COVID is transmitted within structures, the short- and long-term effects of regulated indoor air and why an Indoor Clean Air Act could be transformative in homes, schools and businesses.

Join as you help us celebrate our 200th #WITHpod! In our recent Mailbag episode, we asked you all to send over clips sharing why you listen to WITHpod, where you listen and or what’s your favorite ep. We’re so overwhelmed with joy after hearing from so many of you across the country and world. Here’s a compilation our team put together for our special milestone. Cheers!

Since the U.S. withdrew its final troop from Afghanistan last summer, U.S. coverage of the country has also precipitously declined, even as the country faces a dire humanitarian emergency. So we thought it was time to do a gut check with one of the most prolific reporters on the topic. Award-winning journalist and author of “No Good Men Among The Living,” Anand Gopal, has covered global conflict and the Middle East for more than a decade. In 2021, his reporting took him to Helmand Province, the epicenter of conflict in the war-torn country. His experience there led him to write “The Other Afghan Women,” one of the most comprehensive reports about the plight of women in the countryside. Gopal’s work has appeared in outlets including The New York Times, The Atlantic, Harpers and in The New Yorker, where he currently covers war, revolution and democracy. He joins to discuss his latest experience on the ground, the Taliban’s rapid rise to power, how and where the war on terror continues to be waged and the long-term prospects for the Afghan people under Taliban rule.

Smedley Butler was one of the most decorated warfighters in history. From an early age, “The Fighting Quaker” played a pivotal role in America’s path to global power. Yet in retirement, Butler turned into a warrior against war, imperialism and big business, declaring that he was a “racketeer for capitalism." Award-winning author Jonathan Katz writes about his life in a new book, “Gangsters of Capitalism: Smedley Butler, the Marines, and the Making and Breaking of America's Empire.” Katz joins to discuss efforts throughout history to establish a fascist dictatorship, parallels between the January 6th insurrection and an attempted coup in 1934 and the role of globalism in capitalism.

Time for our mailbag! Join as Chris and producers Tiffany Champion and Doni Holloway answer your questions and talk about what’s new on the pod. Chris also discusses which interview in 2021 stuck with him the most. And we share an exciting WITHpod milestone that we need your help to celebrate!

Late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg once said, “it’s hard not to have a big year at the Supreme Court.” With that in mind, we thought it would be good to do a gut check as 2022 promises to be one of the most important years in the Court’s history. We like doing new things here at WITHpod, so we’re excited to share our first crossover episode with the hosts of The Strict Scrutiny podcast, Chris’ wife Kate Shaw, and her co-hosts Melissa Murray, and Leah Litman. Between the possibility of Roe v. Wade being overturned, historic potential rulings on voting and gun rights, and more contentious political battles, the year ahead will certainly be one for the books.

Congressman Jamie Raskin’s life was forever changed on Dec. 31, 2020 when his 25-year-old son Tommy died by suicide. Raskin writes about the loss of his beloved middle child in “Unthinkable: Trauma, Truth, and the Trials of American Democracy,” a deeply personal memoir out January 2022. Nearly a week after losing his son, another tragedy occurred: the Jan. 6th insurrection at the Capitol. Shortly after, he writes, Speaker Pelosi “threw [him] a lifeline” when she asked him to lead the second impeachment of former president Donald Trump. Raskin joins to discuss navigating the unimaginable convergence of personal and public trauma, finding the strength to lead following double blows and what’s ahead in the aftermath of modern democracy’s darkest day. Note: This episode contains mentions of suicide. Anyone in suicidal crisis or emotional distress can contact The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 24/7 at 1-800-273-8255.

It’s a special edition of our podcast: our first crossover episode with All In with Chris Hayes, which airs at 8pm weekdays on MSNBC. We’re sharing two full conversations, portions of which aired on All In, with two people at the forefront of one of the most important stories of the moment: the fight to save our democracy. Lucky for us, Bart Gellman, a correspondent for The Atlantic, and Sherrilyn Ifill, head of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, joined to walk through this very pivotal moment in our nation’s history and how we can move forward amidst immense distrust, uncertainty and dwindling morale.

Fitness guru, writer and self-described “Swole Woman” Casey Johnston has written, “a lot of health content is focused on blowing smoke up you’re a** about jade eggs and vitamins and toxin-dispersing cellulite-curing silver-thread leggings.” But why? What makes lifting and working out seem so complicated? We’re constantly bombarded with get-fit-quick marketing perpetuated by “bros” who got fit overnight, but achieving real gains often just requires an incremental, consistent and methodical approach. Casey joins for an enlightening conversation about building strength, maintaining form and to answer the age-old debate: are machines or weights better?

Non Fungible Tokens, known as NFTs, are the hottest craze in the cryptocurrency world. But what are they? With a multibillion-dollar market cap, why do people pay hundreds of thousands of dollars, and in some cases, millions for digitally stored avatars, pictures, art, GIFs, tokens (and the list goes on)? Kevin Roose covers NFTs, crypto, AI and social media as a columnist for The New York Times. In 2021, a PNG of his NYT column sold for over $500,000. He joins to discuss the value proposition of blockchain-based assets, the role of scarcity and speculation in determining value and the future of cryptographic assets in a metaverse focused future.

Statistics plays a role in virtually every facet of our lives. And throughout the pandemic, we’ve heard more stats than ever before, whether through headlines about Covid infection rates or vaccine effectiveness. But how are these figures calculated? How do we know when data is manipulated for nefarious reasons, and when it represents some true thing out there in the world? Lucky for us, Harvard Phd student Kareem Carr joined WITHpod for a heady conversation to break that and more down. Earlier in 2021, he shook up Twitter with a post about 2+2 equaling five, a thread aimed at provoking some meditations on the nature of mathematical truth. He joins to discuss that, the importance of neutral AI algorithms, why statistics are anti-racist and why it’s essential to have a healthy level of skepticism of numbers. Sidenote: we’re approaching our holiday WITHpod Mailbag. Email us at withpod@gmail.com to share what you love about the podcast and what’s on your mind.

Hank Green has been on the leading edge of online content creation for more than a decade. He and his brother John created VidCon, the world’s largest video conference and have steadily built a wildly popular online community. You may know Hank as the host of science Crash Course videos, for his Vlogbrothers series, or his numerous other YouTube channels. We couldn’t think of a better person to help us understand where we’ve been, where we are, and where the future of online content is going. He joined to discuss the growing popularity of platforms like TikTok, using the internet to do good and how monetization has evolved in an increasingly more competitive space. He also answers questions from WITHpod listeners Casey, Jake and Dan. And Chris has a special shoutout at the end for Asher, who has listened to 45 WITHpod episodes, totaling 2,495 minutes, this year.

Lawrence Bartley was just 17-years-old when he was charged and sentenced to 27 years to life following a movie theater shoot-out. Gunfire erupted after the group that he was with exchanged insults with another crew of moviegoers. According to the prosecutor, Lawrence’s bullet was the one that hit and killed an innocent 15-year-old boy. Filled with remorse and guilt, Lawrence used his time in prison to reckon with his past, while also finding his place in a rapidly changing society. His incarceration experience ultimately led him to create “News Inside,” a Pulitzer Prize-winning Marshall Project criminal-justice-focused magazine that’s distributed in prisons around the U.S. He joins to discuss how his experience led him to create the publication, changes to the prison system and life as a (now free) suburban dad.

Oscar-winning filmmaker Alex Gibney has more than 100 credits as a producer, director and writer. Throughout his storied career, he’s been the driving force behind titles like “Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room” and “Dirty Money,” a Netflix docuseries about corruption. Most recently, he ventured outside of the visual realm to direct Meltdown, a new series on Audible, about how we ended up with this version of America. The prolific director joined to talk about that, his creative process, why it’s so important to give young filmmakers a chance, how production has evolved and more.

Representative Ilhan Omar was just eight years old when her life turned upside down. After an armed compound attack, her family fled Mogadishu, and ultimately ended up in a refugee camp in Kenya. It was there that she experienced the reality that hundreds of millions of refugees worldwide endure. After an intense vetting and interview process, her family was eventually granted asylum in the U.S. and emigrated to Arlington, Virginia. In 2016, she was elected as a Minnesota House Representative, making her the highest-elected Somali-American public official in the United States and the first Somali-American State legislator. She joins to discuss her new book, “This Is What America Looks Like: My Journey from Refugee to Congresswoman,” how she got into politics, her response to accusations of anti-Semitism and what’s needed to ensure more productivity and less combativeness among members of Congress.

The Hart-Celler Immigration Act of 1965 lifted a century of restrictions against Asian immigration to the United States. And while not necessarily appreciated at the time, it inaugurated a sea change in American society, setting the nation on the course towards multicultural democracy. Asian Americans now represent the fastest growing demographic group in the country, and yet the category itself feels insufficient for the sheer scope of experiences, backgrounds and cultures it encompasses. What exactly does it mean to be Asian American at this moment? What does it mean for an America whose central axis of political conflict seems to hover over the color line? New York Times opinion writer Jay Caspian Kang probes these questions in his new book, “The Loneliest Americans.” The podcaster and son of Korean immigrants joins to talk about assimilation amidst a wave anti-Asian violence, increasing wealth gaps, limited representation and the need for more solidarity in pursuit of upward mobility.

TV weathermen often show up as among the most trusted members of the media and almost no one on earth is as good at it or as well-known as Al Roker. Born to a working-class family in Queens, Roker found his way into TV and then meteorology and has become one of the more prominent voices in the country on the totalizing effects of climate change. In addition to being on the Today Show, he’s also the author of more than ten books, including his latest one, “You Look So Much Better in Person,” and has a new limited series podcast out called "Cooking Up a Storm", out now wherever you get your podcasts. He joins to talk about that, shares what goes into producing forecasts, discusses why climate change is an “existential threat” to our world, and more. And in a first for our podcast, we asked what you wanted to know. Join as Al also answers questions from WITHpod listeners Keith, Rebecca, and Donna.

39-year-old India Walton found herself thrust into the national spotlight when she defeated four-term incumbent Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown in the June primary. It was an unusual win: Walton had never held elected office, and Brown isn’t letting go of his seat without a fight. Following the stunning upset, the current mayor launched a write-in campaign, and many of the state Democratic establishment have refused to endorse Walton, who describes herself as a democratic socialist. Recently, New York State Democratic Leader Jay Jacobs even compared her to KKK Leader David Duke, a characterization that he has since apologized for using. Walton has now received the endorsement of New York's Democratic senators and she joins to discuss her journey from registered nurse and local activist to politician, why she feels the work of policing is “fundamentally wrong,” and proposed changes to Buffalo under her administration.

Life has been anything but easy for 20-year-old Dasani Coates. Named after the bottled water that signaled Brooklyn’s gentrification, her story has been featured in five front pages of the New York Times. Together with her siblings, Dasani has had to persevere in an environment riddled with stark inequality, hunger, violence, drug addiction and homelessness. She’s not alone. There’s nearly 1.38 million homeless schoolchildren in the United States. About one in 12 live in New York City. We often focus on the stories of children who “make it out” of tumultuous environments. But what about the ones who don’t? New York Times Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Andrea Elliot spent nearly a decade following Dasani and her family. Andrea joins to talk about her expanded coverage of the Coates’ family story, which is told in her new book, “Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival & Hope In An American City.”

Since 2017, a high-tech form of colonization has been rapidly growing in Xinjiang, China. As many as 1.5 million Muslim Uyghurs have vanished into high-security camps and factories. The Chinese regime describes these sites as “vocational education and training centers” that are utilized to counter terrorism. But what actually goes on inside of these internment camps? That’s the subject of Darren Byler’s new book, “In The Camps: China’s High-Tech Penal Colony.” In it, Byler draws on a decade of research on the region. He joins to discuss his findings and the role of various forms of technology including facial recognition, smartphones and apps like WeChat, in government surveillance.

Time for a fun one, America's favorite fighting Frenchman. You may have seen streets, parks, and subway stations that include the name Lafayette, but may not know much about the man other than the show-stopping performance of Daveed Diggs, who played Lafayette in Hamilton. The actual Marquis de Lafayette was born in France to immense wealth and privilege, allowing him to mingle in the most elite circles of the time. He shipped off to the US colonies to find his fortune and endeared himself to George Washington, fought for US independence and then returned to France to play a crucial role in *their* revolution as well. Mike Duncan, a fish monger turned wildly popular history podcaster, wrote about Lafayette’s story in his new book, “Hero of Two Worlds: The Marquis de Lafayette in the Age of Revolution.” He joins to discuss Lafayette's fascinating life, his research and life in Paris during Covid and whether the US is on the precipice of revolution and democratic decline.

Note: Some listeners may find the sensitive content discussed in this episode disturbing. Who is complicit in some of society’s dirtiest work? If you grill a steak, someone somewhere had to butcher the cow under brutal working conditions. Our twenty year war on terror has been fought much the same way, with a relatively small group of our fellow Americans doing difficult, morally fraught work that allows huge majorities of Americans to live in blissful ignorance. In “Dirty Work: Essential Jobs and the Hidden Toll of Inequality in America,” Eyal Press explores the nature of our implicit social contract around dirty work: Who does the work itself and what story does it allow society to tell about itself?

In “The Ten Year War: Obamacare and the Unfinished Crusade for Universal Coverage,” journalist Jonathan Cohn writes about the battle over healthcare and takes readers into the impetus for, history of, and current state of the Affordable Care Act. He joins to discuss what’s missing, inflection points, the role of bipartisanship, and what the ACA means for Americans trying to navigate an increasingly complex system.

In President Biden's vision of a greener future, half of all new cars sold in 2030 will be electric. As fossil fuel usage continues to take a toll on the environment, the need for cleaner transportation is more important now than ever. Bloomberg Auto & Tech reporter Dana Hull has spent more than a decade covering EVs. The California-based journalist remembers when skeptics believed that Tesla wouldn’t survive. Now, other major automakers are trying to play catch up. She joins to talk about progress, what’s needed on the infrastructure front, battery supply chain concerns, and how Chris can fulfill his dream of getting an EV minivan

Civil rights attorney and author Alexandra Brodsky has spent her entire career focusing closely on ways institutions can best address sexual harms. Her work is the subject of “Sexual Justice: Supporting Victims, Ensuring Due Process, and Resisting the Conservative Backlash,” a book published in August 2021. She joins to talk about the importance of treating both victims and the accused fairly, the Biden administration’s response to Title IX, and what’s ahead as institutions seek to address sexual misconduct claims more equitably.

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Spencer Ackerman joins to discuss catalysts for the War on Terror, inflection points, recent developments in Kabul, and the role of U.S. hegemony in continued global combat. Ackerman also talks about his new book, “Reign of Terror: How the 9/11 Era Destabilized America and Produced Trump,” which tells the story of how the weaponized bigotry that fueled the war on terror after 9/11 created the conditions for Trumpism and increased threats to American democracy.

Grammy award-winning musician Ani DiFranco joins for an enlightening conversation about her creative process, how she’s pivoted during the pandemic, and what’s enabled her to keep making music after so many years.

Note: This conversation was recorded on July 27th, 2021, before the latest news in Kabul. Recognized around the globe for her research on corruption, Sarah Chayes has seen her fair share of corruption at play. She also had frontline experience in Afghanistan during the events leading up to the country’s collapse. The anti-corruption activist witnessed incidents that ultimately contributed to the United States’ recent withdrawal. Chayes’ career has led her from reporting in Paris for NPR and covering the fall of the Taliban in 2001, to examining developing countries that are considered corrupt during a stint at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. The prolific author has said that kleptocratic actions are an “existential threat facing our generation” and her book “On Corruption In America - And What Is At Stake” examines the myriad reasons why unscrupulous practices are prevalent across global networks, and why crisis results.

Retired Army Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman has seen (and heard) a great deal in his experiences in public service. He became a household name as a key witness in Donald Trump’s impeachment hearings in 2019. His memoir out August 2021, "Here, Right Matters: An American Story," shares insight into the lead up and events following the infamous call at the center of the trial between former U.S. President Trump and Ukrainian president Zelensky. Vindman joins to discuss that, immigrating to the US, serving in the military, his take on global relations, and what’s next for him.

Producer Tiffany Champion is back with a post-quarantine vibe check on the WITHpod inbox! In this backstage glimpse of the podcast, hear how Chris Hayes prepares for interviews, which recent episode got the biggest response from listeners, and find out about the exciting changes happening on the show!

Why is the housing market so hot right now? From the pandemic-induced influx of people working remotely to our collective obsession with cruising Zillow (it’s not just us, right?), Bloomberg Opinion columnist Justin Fox discusses why some parts of the country are seeing housing prices sky rocket.

From her experience as a single mom trying to figure out how to pay her bills, to her time as a nurse working tirelessly for her patients, to her dedication as an activist marching for accountability in the streets of Ferguson, Congresswoman Bush can tell you exactly why her district voted for her in 2020. She knows she didn’t take the road well-travelled on her path to Congress, and her defeat of 10-term incumbent Lacy Clay was one of the biggest upsets of the election, but it’s her relatability that sets her apart. It also helps that she’s a natural born storyteller – and if you don’t believe us, then you need only listen to this episode.

What happens when the bombing stops? The unfortunate reality of American news coverage of Israel and Palestine is that it centers almost entirely on times of extreme violence, broadcasting dramatic images of explosions and destruction. But as soon as some sort of ceasefire is reached, any future coverage of the area instead turns to the state of Israeli politics. The result is not only an asymmetry between our knowledge of Israeli and Palestinian politics, but also an ignorance around what life is actually like for Palestinians in the region. To understand the grinding struggle of life under occupation, the state of Palestinian politics, and the role the United States plays, we’re lucky to hear from one of the most celebrated Palestinian-American intellectuals in the world, Rashid Khalidi.

Dan Taberski is an expert at pulling on threads. His tireless curiosity and impeccable reporting resulted in a run of acclaimed investigative podcasts, including "Missing Richard Simmons", "Running From COPS", and "Surviving Y2K". He's back with an Apple original podcast "The Line", which uses the case of Eddie Gallagher, a former Navy SEAL charged with war crimes, as a lens to understand the blurred moral boundaries soldiers are asked to operate within when sent to battle.

Alright, tell it to us straight - what's the deal with UFOs? In recent years, there's been a steady drip of reporting about UFOs that has penetrated mainstream culture, moving beyond The X-Files and straight into the Pentagon. A series of reports not only confirmed the existence of a government program dedicated to understanding UFOs, but also showed eye-grabbing footage of military encounters. So what do we know about them? And what exactly is the government up to? Gideon Lewis-Kraus set out to answer these questions in his phenomenal new piece in The New Yorker, "How the Pentagon Started Taking U.F.O.s Seriously", and he joins to tell us what he learned.

You might think that nothing good happens on the Internet anymore. It's just an algorithmically driven continuous feed of rage, disinformation, and subterfuge. Natalie Wynn, known for her YouTube channel ContraPoints, proves that good things are still happening on the Internet. Part philosopher, part performance artist, and wholly genre-defying, Wynn crafts gorgeous and ethereal video essays on everything from TERFS and J.K Rowling to the rise of incels. There’s no one on the Internet quite like Natalie Wynn, and she joins to tell us how she does it.

Here in the United States, things are closer to normal than they have been in a long time. Businesses have reopened, gatherings have started to resume, and COVID cases and deaths continue to fall to levels that we have not seen since the very beginning of the pandemic. But even three months ago, it was not clear that this would be the point we are at. So how did the government ramp up its vaccine campaign to get us to a closer normal?

How does the human body take in and use energy? It is a simple question, but one that we still do not have a definitive answer to. This week Associate Professor of Evolutionary Anthropology, Herman Pontzer, joins to shed light on these evolutionary mysteries.

What we call history isn't a fixed thing; it's a narrative, contested and fought over, changing over time. Right now, the United States is in the midst of a massive historical battle over its own narrative, specifically the legacy of slavery and race in America. The backlash to that fight is spilling into public policy as Republican state legislatures push to regulate the way students are taught about the founding of our country. In Clint Smith's new book "How The Word is Passed", Smith studies our understanding of slavery through the stories we tell of it. He travelled to the cemeteries and plantations and prisons home to these stories to see up close how they reckon with - or fail to reckon with - their own relationship to our country's legacy.

What is gender-affirming health care? Around the country, there’s a Republican campaign to legislate and regulate the lives of trans youth. The most destructive of these efforts would bar trans youth in certain states from accessing gender-affirming treatment. Dr. Izzy Lowell runs Queer Med, a private clinic that specializes in providing accessible health care to trans patients ranging from kids to adults. Her practice covers 10 states across the South – and half of those have anti-trans health care bills on the docket. If they pass, it would become criminal for her to provide this care to many of her patients. Dr. Lowell joins this week to break down what exactly we mean when we talk about gender-affirming care, how the decision is made for kids and teens ready to transition, and the potentially devastating impact this legislation would have on their lives.

What causes violent crime rates to rise? It probably won’t surprise you to learn that 2020 was the deadliest year in American history but what you may not know is that 2020 also saw a staggering rise in homicides and violent crime. It’s impossible to separate the two – the indefinite closure of crucial community spaces and abrupt economic upheaval were felt nationwide but hit hardest in areas most vulnerable to increased interpersonal violence. To understand what happened last year, it’s worth looking back at the last major wave of violence in the United States – what caused the spike then and what caused it to go down? Sociologist Patrick Sharkey’s book, “Uneasy Peace”, lays out the most successful strategies cities used to decrease violent crime and joins to lend his expertise on what we got right – and what we’re getting wrong.

We largely hear about China in the news through the lens of what the Chinese government is doing, but it is a country with over a billion people and a history thousands of years old. For as large and influential as it is, Americans do not consume Chinese cultural exports in the same way that China does in the reverse. Chinese made movies are not screened in most theaters across the United States. We do not watch Chinese sitcoms dubbed. While China and other countries regularly consume American culture that show peeks of what life is like in United States, we don’t have the same regular access to those windows of everyday China. So, what is life like in China? This week journalist and author Te-Ping Chen joins to talk about her time as a student and journalist in China and her new book of short stories In the “Land of Big Numbers”.

Back in 2019, a panel of health experts declared that of every country in the whole world, the United States was the most prepared for handling a pandemic. So what went wrong? Acclaimed author Michael Lewis is unparalleled in unearthing the most compelling characters to tell an unexpected story – it’s no wonder he’s had multiple books turned into movies (The Blind Side, Moneyball, The Big Short). Now, Lewis has done it again with his latest book, “The Premonition”, following the people who spent years preparing for a pandemic only to be ignored at the most crucial juncture – to devastating results.

How does bitcoin work? Where did it come from, why does it exist, and will it ever be used for everyday purchases? Far from some passing fad, bitcoin has been around for more than a decade now and shows no signs of going anywhere. We figured it was long overdue to understand the most well-known cryptocurrency and the problem it is trying to solve. Lucky for us, Bloomberg editor Joe Weisenthal came prepared.

Racial hierarchy in America is deeply embedded in big structural institutions. From housing to criminal justice to education, there’s decades of scholarly work and research dissecting the lasting legacies of policies that disproportionately disenfranchise people of color. Now, tax law scholar Dorothy A. Brown has a mind-blowing new book about race and tax, uncovering the ways the tax code is constructed to build white wealth while impoverishing black Americans. In a conversation that is engaging, enlightening, and even laugh out loud funny (seriously), Brown lays out the culmination of her life’s work and explains why now could be the time to fix the system.