Consider This from NPR

20h ago

Rob Reiner spent his life trying to fix what he saw as America’s shortcomings. In an interview shortly before his death he explained why he was optimistic America could be better. The actor and director was found dead on Sunday along with his wife Michelle Singer Reiner. Their son has been charged with their murders. And those tributes – they’ve centered on Reiner's acting, the movies he’s directed, but also on his political activism. It’s something he talked to the journalist Todd Purdum about shortly before he died. Purdum wrote about that interview in the New York Times this week, and joins Scott Detrow to discuss what he learned about Reiner's work and view of America's future. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Email us at considerthis@npr.org . This episode was produced by Elena Burnett. It was edited by Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

1d ago

The Trump administration is ramping up pressure on Venezuela and its leader. What is the ultimate goal? President Trump says he’s imposing a ban on all ‘sanctioned’ oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela. Venezuela’s government is calling this an ‘outrageous threat’ intended to rob the country of its oil wealth. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Email us at considerthis@npr.org . This episode was produced by Tyler Bartlam, with audio engineering from Ted Mebane. It was edited by Courtney Dorning and Christopher Intagliata. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

2d ago

Tensions between Venezuela and the U.S. have been growing over the past few months. And last Wednesday, the pressure point was oil. The U.S. government seized a tanker it says was filled with illegal oil headed to the black market, in violation of sanctions. The seizure was an unprecedented move. And it represents an escalation in the standoff between the two countries. In recent months, the U.S. has struck nearly two dozen suspected drug boats in nearby waters, issued new sanctions targeting Venezuela, and increased its naval presence in the Caribbean. The U.S. has long had economic and political interests in Venezuela. And the oil industry there has been a key part of that relationship. Francisco Monaldi, director of the Latin American Energy Program at the Baker Institute at Rice University, explains how the two nations got to this point. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Email us at considerthis@npr.org . This episode was produced by Ava Berger and Alejandra Marquez Janse, with audio engineering by Tiffany Vera Castro. It was edited by Sarah Handel. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

3d ago

On Sunday, during a celebration for the first day of Hanukkah, a father and son opened fire on Bondi Beach near Sydney. Killing or wounding dozens of people. Officials are calling it a terrorist incident. Even though the Jewish community in Australia is small, with just over 115,000 people in a country of more than 25 million, antisemitism is a persistent and rising threat. The spike in Australia comes amidst a rise in antisemitic attacks globally. What do we know about this trend and what does it mean for the Jewish community around the world? For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Email us at considerthis@npr.org . This episode was produced by Michael Levitt and Karen Zamora, with audio engineering by Ted Mebane. It was edited by Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

4d ago

Venezuelan leader and activist Maria Corina Machado’s perilous journey to Oslo made headlines this week, but that was just the start of a new phase of international campaign to bring pressure on the Nicolas Maduro regime in her home country. NPR’s Miles Parks speaks with Ana Corina Sosa, Machado’s daughter, who accepted the Nobel Peace prize on her mother’s behalf, and talked about the future of Venezuela. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Email us at considerthis@npr.org . This episode was produced by Avery Keatley and Daniel Ofman. It was edited by Sarah Robbins. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

5d ago

Trump’s SAVE tool is looking for noncitizen voters. But it’s flagging U.S. citizens too. Host Miles Parks speaks with NPR reporter Jude Joffe-Block about tracking down citizens who are now having to prove they have a right to vote. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Email us at considerthis@npr.org . This episode was produced by Linah Mohammed and Avery Keatley. It was edited by Brett Neely, Ben Swasey and Adam Raney. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

6d ago

They survived some of the Afghanistan war's most grueling and treacherous missions. But once they evacuated to the U.S., many Afghan fighters who served in "Zero Units" found themselves spiraling. Among their ranks was Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the man charged with killing one National Guard member and seriously injuring a second after opening fire on them in Washington, D.C., on Thanksgiving Eve. NPR's Brian Mann spoke to people involved in Zero Units and learned some have struggled with mental health since coming to the U.S. At least four soldiers have died by suicide. A previous version of this episode incorrectly says that more than 100,000 Afghan civilians died in a 2021 attack at a checkpoint outside the Kabul airport. More than 100 Afghan civilians died. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Email us at considerthis@npr.org . This episode was produced by Erika Ryan and Karen Zamora. It was edited by Alina Hartounian and Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

Dec 11

The Trump administration is leaning into the once fringe idea of "reverse migration." For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Email us at considerthis@npr.org . This episode was produced by Kathryn Fink and Brianna Scott. It was edited by Andrew Sussman, Justine Kenin and Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy