Author: Matt

The auto industry, along with the Biden administration, has bet billions on the electric vehicle industry, but as 2023 comes to a close the auto industry is scaling back on its investment in EVs, prices are higher than many consumers can afford and charging stations can be hard to find.

NPR’s Scott Detrow digs into the state of EVs in the United States with Biden administration Infrastructure Czar Mitch Landrieu and Keith Barry senior writer with Consumer Reports.

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Protests by students supportive of Israeli and Jewish communities, and protests by students supportive of Palestinian communities, have reignited the debate over free speech on college campuses.

That debate only intensified when the Presidents of Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania and MIT testified before a Congressional committee last week about antisemitism.

NPR’s Scott Detrow talks with NPR education correspondent Elissa Nadworny and first amendment lawyer Greg Lukianoff about the climate on college campuses and the tension between protecting students and supporting free speech.

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Hanukkah’s origin story has been a moving target since the beginning says Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie, but throughout its evolution, it’s been associated with bringing and sustaining light.

NPR’s Ari Shapiro talks to Lau-Lavie about the how the lights of Hanukkah can be a tool for those trying to find peace amidst the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spent Tuesday in Washington pressing American lawmakers to approve a new funding package for his country’s war with Russia.

Zelenskyy’s lobbying effort comes as the current U.S. aid package is rapidly dwindling, and the fight between Ukraine and Russia has all but stalled.

NPR’s Mary Louise Kelly talks to NPR Pentagon Correspondent Tom Bowman about the state of the war, what new funding would be used for, and what the country can – and can’t – do without more money.

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Anyone who spends time on social media has seen it — the post from someone about a current event, or issue that’s dividing people — abortions, mask wearing, the election. But do those posts change minds?

Researchers have been gathering data on this question for years. They’ve found that social media affects opinions on these issues, but probably not the way you think.

NPR’s Ari Shapiro speaks with researchers, who’ve studied the relationship between social media posts and opinions, and outlines their findings.

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If Donald Trump is elected next November, he’s promising to use the power of the presidency to go after political enemies and perceived rivals.

In a recent interview with Fox’s Sean Hannity, the former President said he’d only be a dictator on “day one.” At other moments, he’s pledged to “root out the communists,” and said he’d have his Attorney General go after people who run against him.

Consider This host Scott Detrow and NPR Justice Correspondent Carrie Johnson breakdown what a second Trump term would mean for the Justice Department.

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Today we’re sharing an episode of NPR’s podcast Trump’s Trials, hosted by Scott Detrow with regular analysis from Domenico Montanaro. This week they’re joined by NPR Justice Correspondent Carrie Johnson. Each week they’ll break down the latest courtroom drama, testimony, and legal maneuverings in the criminal and civil cases facing former President Trump — and talk about what it all means for American democracy.

This week we focus on the January 6th federal election interference case led by special counsel Jack Smith. The case is scheduled to go to trial in March in Washington, D.C., and it might be coming to a TV near you.

Yes, Trump and some media outlets are requesting cameras in the courtroom. We’ll talk about how likely that is, how it could impact the case and the campaign, plus some news from a couple of key swing states.

Topics include:
– How televising the trial could help and hurt Trump
– Prosecution and defense strategies for the federal election interference case
– Pro-Trump electors from Wisconsin admit President Biden won the 2020 election
– Pro-Trump electors criminally indicted in Nevada over attempts to overturn Biden’s 2020 win

Follow the show on Apple Podcasts or Spotify for new episodes each Saturday.

Sign up for sponsor-free episodes and support NPR’s political journalism at plus.npr.org/trumpstrials.

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Brenda Lee was just 13 years old when she recorded “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” in 1958. It’s a true Christmas classic, a bouncy earworm — and pretty much everyone knows the lyrics. But it’s never made it to number one on Billboard’s Hot 100 — until now.

NPR’s Scott Detrow spoke with the 78-year-old about her long career and how she feels now that her iconic holiday tune is finally at the top of the charts.

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A woman has never been president. Hillary Clinton has come the closest, but that highest, hardest glass ceiling is still intact. Now Republican Nikki Haley wants to succeed where her predecessors have not.

The list of reasons a woman hasn’t won is long — sexism, lack of representation in circles of power, and lack of representation in circles of money. But Nikki Haley has just scored an endorsement from the Koch Network that could change that.

NPR’s Mary Louise Kelly talks to Political Scientist Kira Sonbonmatsu about the inequities between men and women when it comes to fundraising and what the Koch Network endorsement could mean for Haley.

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Diplomat and former US Ambassador Manuel Rocha is facing charges related to secretly serving as an agent of Cuba’s government.

Rocha is the latest in a long line of spies, who have worked for the federal government while spying for other countries. Some for decades at a time.

NPR’s Mary Louise Kelly talks to former CIA officer Robert Baer about the charges against Rocha and how he might have managed to go undetected for four decades.

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