Biden Pardons His Son Hunter in U-Turn, and Syrian Rebels’ Surprise Advance

Plus, Oxford’s word of the year is …. Tune in every weekday morning. To get our full audio journalism and storytelling experience, download the New York Times Audio app — available to Times news subscribers on iOS — and sign up for our weekly newsletter. Tell us what you think at: theheadlines@nytimes.com. On Today’s Episode: Biden Issues a ‘Full and Unconditional Pardon’ of His Son Hunter Biden , by Michael D. Shear and Zolan Kanno-Youngs Trump Doubles Down on Defiance After the Collapse of the Matt Gaetz Selection , by Peter Baker Syria’s Rebels Struck When Assad’s Allies Were Weakened and Distracted , by Raja Abdulrahim Mexican Cartels Lure Chemistry Students to Make Fentanyl , by Natalie Kitroeff and Paulina Villegas Oxford’s 2024 Word of the Year Is… , by Jennifer Schuessler Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher . For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.