Say what you will about President Donald Trump’s first administration, but at least some of the people given top jobs had a morsel of experience doing those jobs. Now, the Trump administration is chock full of the weirdest people the MAGA world has to offer, united by their personal allegiance to one man – Donald J. Trump. From Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, whose qualifications are “co-hosted the weekend edition of Fox and Friends” to Paul Ingrassia, the former podcaster nominated to run the Office of Special Counsel, who thinks the descendents of slaves should pay the descendants of slave-OWNERS reparations….to Laura Loomer, a Jewish, white nationalist, 9/11 truther, who made headlines in 2018 when she chained herself to the doors of Twitter’s office to protest getting banned from the platform.It’s a cavalcade of the worst people ever to be given a high-speed internet connection. Especially when they now have real power. So we spoke to Will Sommer, senior reporter at The Bulwark, to help us understand how the craziest people in America rose to the very top of the federal government.And in headlines: Trump goes to the Museum of the Bible to talk about how much he loves religion, Pete Hegseth hypes up the troops in Puerto Rico, and Democrats release a very NSFW birthday card to Jeffrey Epstein, allegedly signed by Trump himself.Show Notes:Check out Will's work – substack.com/@willsommerCall Congress – 202-224-3121Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday
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21:49
Georgia To Vote On Energy Costs
A crucial race for Georgia's Public Service Commission is coming up in November. And though the name sounds boring, it's a race that really matters. That's because the commission is in charge of regulating public utilities in the state, including electric, gas, and telecommunications. Right now, all five commissioners are Republicans…but two of them are up for election this fall. And the Democratic challengers are strong. To learn more about the importance of this race, we spoke with John Taylor, Executive Director of the Black Male Initiative, a nonprofit focused on civic engagement in Georgia.And in headlines, President Donald Trump continues to threaten Chicago…but this time with war, Russia attacks Ukraine in its latest aerial strike, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the U.S. might have to refund some money it's collected from Trump's infamous tariffs.Show Notes:Check out the Black Male Initiative – www.bmifund.org/Call Congress – 202-224-3121Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday
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23:38
How Trump's Hatred For Windmills Is Hurting All Of Us
President Donald Trump really, really, really hates wind and solar power. He made sure to make that point very clear during a Cabinet meeting last week, where he ranted about windmills for…way too long. At the end of August, the Trump team ordered construction be stopped on a 4-billion-dollar wind farm project off the coast of Rhode Island that was nearly finished. The administration alluded vaguely to national security threats, suggesting, among other things, that wind farms could be used to launch drone attacks on the U.S. None of this is good. Not just for, you know, preventing the very worst outcomes of climate change that could put billions of lives at risk and alter the very nature of human existence. But also for Americans dealing with spiraling energy bills. So we spoke to Bill McKibben, environmentalist and author of a new book, Here Comes The Sun: A Last Chance for the Climate and a Fresh Chance for Civilization, about climate change, to help us feel more optimistic about the future of the Earth.And in headlines, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. vs. the Senate Finance Committee, and former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has some thoughts on how we got here.Show Notes:Check out Bill's new book – wwnorton.com/books/Here-Comes-the-Sun/Call Congress – 202-224-3121Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday
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24:42
Senator Van Hollen On Epstein: Release The Damn Files!
Congress is back. It’s back and it has a lot of work to do. If Congress doesn’t fund the government by the end of September, the government will close up shop. And while Democrats have demanded meetings with President Donald Trump and his loyal GOP to drum up a bipartisan spending bill, Republicans don’t seem too inclined to work with their colleagues across the aisle. But preventing a shutdown is just one bullet point on Congress’ agenda. On Wednesday, survivors of convicted sexual abuser Jeffrey Epstein spoke on Capitol Hill in an effort to get answers and more information on his crimes. It came a day after the House Oversight Committee released more than 33,000 documents related to the Epstein investigation. So, for more on Epstein, and a potential government shutdown, we spoke with Maryland Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen.And in headlines: Florida’s Surgeon General tries to connect vaccine mandates to slavery, Democratic Congresswoman LaMonica McIver of New Jersey tells the Washington Post she's going to keep working after the House rejected a resolution to censure her, and rumors are floating around that the Trump administration might offer New York City Mayor Eric Adams a new gig.Show Notes:Call Congress – 202-224-3121Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday
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22:40
Putin Cozies Up To Modi And Xi
Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and held hands with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Beijing this weekend. Their talks came during the annual Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting, an event that marked the first time in seven years that Presidents Modi and Xi met in person. It also comes as the US navigates a rocky relationship with China, combats India’s frustration over President Donald Trump’s tariffs, and tries to broker peace between Russia and Ukraine. To discuss further what Putin’s latest bromance with Xi and Modi means for his on-again, off-again relationship with Trump, we spoke with Tommy Vietor. He’s the co-host of Crooked Media’s Pod Save the World.And in headlines: The Trump family amasses billions after launching a new cryptocurrency, Americans are losing faith in hard work, and a postwar plan to turn Gaza into an AI-powered smart city is floating around the Trump administration.Show Notes:Check out Pod Save The World – www.crooked.com/podcast-series/pod-save-the-world/Call Congress – 202-224-3121Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday
If you’re looking for hype, fake outrage, and groupthink, kindly keep moving. Our mission at What a Day is simple: to be your guide to what truly matters each morning (and the fun stuff you might have missed) in just 20 minutes. Host Jane Coaston brings you in-depth reporting and substantive analysis on the big stories shaping today and the creeping trends shaping tomorrow—and when she doesn’t know the answers, she asks someone even smarter to fill us all in. Radical, right? New episodes at 5:00 a.m. EST, Monday–Friday in your favorite podcast app and on YouTube. Being informed was never this easy.
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