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U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth salutes as he inspect a guard of honor during a welcoming ceremony prior to the 57rd Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) on Nov. 4 in Seoul, South Korea. Jeon Heon-Kyun/Pool/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Jeon Heon-Kyun/Pool/Getty Images Recent operations under the Trump administration have raised eyebrows and drawn criticism, not only because of their missions but also because of their names and the intent behind them. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday announced Operation Southern Spear, aimed at what he calls “narco-terrorists” who are allegedly bringing illegal drugs into the country. The Department of Homeland…

Politics / November 10, 2025 The Democratic leader’s cave-in makes it all too clear: It’s time to clean house in the Senate. Ad Policy Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer leaves a Senate Democratic caucus meeting at the US Capitol on November 9, 2025.(Nathan Posner / Anadolu via Getty Images) Last Tuesday, voters all over the United States sent a resounding message: They were sick of Donald Trump, sick of the Republican Party’s attacks on what remains of the American welfare state (seen most clearly in the ongoing government shutdown as well as threats to gut Medicaid), and wanted their elected…

President Trump arrives after being greeted by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., to address a joint session of Congress at the Capitol in Washington on March 4. Alex Brandon/AP hide caption toggle caption Alex Brandon/AP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., once one of President Trump’s strongest supporters in Congress, called his foreign policies “not America first positions” and said his recent attacks against her can “put my life in danger.” Greene and Trump have traded barbs in last few days over the future of the Make America Great Again movement, raising new questions about the president’s firm grip on the…

Ad Policy A bronze-painted statue titled “Best Friends Forever”, depicting Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein holding hands on October 2, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Andrew Harnik / Getty Images) The scandal around Jeffrey Epstein, who trafficked and abused children and died in a prison cell in 2019, has never gone away. It continues to explode now that House Democrats have released thousands of e-mails from Epstein and his cronies. But while the political class and mainstream media are understandably focused on the sex scandal, another dimension of the scandal goes uncovered except by independent media outlets such as Drop Site:…

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, center, attends a conference titled “International Law Under Assault: Aggression and Self-Defense,” in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025. Vahid Salemi/AP hide caption toggle caption Vahid Salemi/AP TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s foreign minister on Sunday said that Tehran is no longer enriching uranium at any site in the country. Answering a question from an Associated Press journalist visiting Iran, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi offered the most direct response yet from the Iranian government regarding its nuclear program following Israel and the United States’ bombing its enrichment sites in June. “There is no undeclared nuclear enrichment…

Jon Wiener: From The Nation magazine, this is Start Making Sense. I’m Jon Wiener. Later in the show: How a band of visionaries and a million dollars upended America – in the 1920s, which had some remarkable similarities to our own era.  Historian John Fabian Witt will explain; his new book is ‘The Radical Fund.”  But first: the tasks facing Zohran Mamdani. Bhaskar Sunkara will comment – in a minute.[BREAK]Starting January 1st, New York City will have a socialist mayor — for the first time ever. For comment, we turn to Bhaskar Sunkara. He’s president of The Nation Magazine, founding…

Violent insurrections loyal to President Donald Trump break through a police barrier at the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. Julio Cortez/AP hide caption toggle caption Julio Cortez/AP WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has issued two pardons related to the investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021 riot, including for a woman convicted of threatening to shoot FBI agents who were investigating a tip that she may have been at the Capitol, officials said Saturday. In a separate case, Trump issued a second pardon for a Jan. 6 defendant who had remained behind bars despite the sweeping grant of clemency…

Politics / November 12, 2025 What Zohran Mamdani’s win signifies—and what it doesn’t. Ad Policy Muslim New Yorkers gather in Astoria, Queens, to celebrate Zohran Mamdani’s election victory on Tuesday, November 4, 2025.(Lokman Vural Elibol / Anadolu via Getty Images) In the early afternoon of November 4, Jackson Heights was no more abuzz than it is on any other day. The wind whipped Arepa Lady’s awning, two butchers pushed skinned goat carcasses across 73rd Street in grocery carts, and couples stopped at fuchka stands.  There was an election underway. New York City was seemingly poised to elect its first Muslim,…

With the government shutdown over, we take a look at what’s next in Congress in the coming weeks. SCOTT SIMON, HOST: U.S. government reopened this week after a 43-day shutdown. But Congress did not address the expiring health care subsidies that were the central issue in the fight. What comes next for a Congress that has become so dysfunctional? NPR congressional correspondent Deirdre Walsh joins us. Deirdre, thanks for being with us.DEIRDRE WALSH, BYLINE: Hey, Scott.SIMON: House came in and voted for one day after they’d been gone for more than 50, but Speaker Mike Johnson says they’re coming back…

Politics / Column / November 14, 2025 The Republican Party has deliberately attempted to render healthcare unaffordable and deprive families of the ability to put food on the table. Ad Policy President Donald Trump delivers remarks in the Oval Office at the White House on November 6, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Andrew Harnik / Getty Images) Last week, in a little-noticed executive order, Donald Trump declared November 2 to 8 to be “anti-communism week.” Given Trump’s propensity for malicious, dangerous actions, there are, I guess, many worse things MAGAman could be doing than wasting his political energies on meaningless McCarthy-era…