The Daily

A series of blockbuster hearings from the Jan. 6 committee has put growing pressure on Attorney General Merrick B. Garland to bring criminal charges against former President Donald J. Trump over the efforts to overturn the 2020 election.Before today’s committee hearing, we speak with Andrew D. Goldstein, one of the prosecutors who led the last major investigation into Mr. Trump, about why winning a case against the former president is such a challenge.Guest: Andrew Goldstein, a federal prosecutor who was part of the Mueller inquiry into Mr. Trump. Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Mr. Trump has issued a rambling 12-page statement containing his usual mix of outlandish claims, hyperbole and outright falsehoods, but also, apparently, with something different: the beginnings of a legal defense.Robert S. Mueller III was often portrayed as the omnipotent fact-gatherer for his inquiry, but it was Mr. Goldstein who had a m

Across the United States, Republicans emboldened by the overturning of Roe v. Wade are passing laws intended to stop medical staff from providing an abortion.But those same laws may also be scaring health workers out of providing basic care for miscarriages.Guest: Pam Belluck, a health and science writer for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Although post-Roe laws are technically intended to apply only to abortions, some patients have reported hurdles receiving standard surgical procedures or medication for the loss of desired pregnancies.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

A record-breaking heat wave is currently washing over Europe. In parts of Britain, the mercury has hit a freakishly high 100 degrees Fahrenheit or more.While that is happening, both Europe and the United States — two of the world’s largest contributors to global warming — are abandoning key commitments to limit emissions.Guest: Somini Sengupta, the international climate reporter for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, an ardent champion of the fossil fuel industry, has almost single-handedly doused any hopes of immediate climate action in Washington.The European Parliament recently endorsed labeling some gas and nuclear energy projects “green.” Critics said it would prolong the reliance on fossil fuels.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access t

In the past, President Biden has called Saudi Arabia a “pariah” for its human rights abuses and said that he would never meet with its de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.But Mr. Biden’s first trip as president to the Middle East included talks with the prince. What prompted the change in course?Guest: Ben Hubbard, the Beirut bureau chief for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Mr. Biden’s visit to Saudi Arabia garnered scathing criticism and modest accords.An unspoken result of Mr. Biden’s meeting with Prince Mohammed: A setback in the case of Jamal Khashoggi, a journalist who was killed by Saudi agents in 2018.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcast

People heading to court often turn to the internet for guidance. In so doing, many come across the work of Justin Paperny, who dispenses advice on his YouTube channel. His videos offer preparation advice and help manage expectations, while providing defendants information to be able to hold their current lawyers accountable, and to try to negotiate a lighter sentence.Mr. Paperny, a former financial criminal, also leads White Collar Advice with his partner Michael Santos, another former convict. The firm is made up of 12 convicted felons who each have their own consulting specialty based on where they served time and their own sentencing experiences.The journalist Jack Hitt relates the story of the two men and the details of their firm, which “fills a need in 21st-century America.” It is, Mr. Hitt writes, “a natural market outgrowth of a continuing and profound shift in America’s judicial system.”This story was written by Jack Hitt recorded by Audm. To hear more audio stories from publications like The New Yor

Ancient galaxies carpeting the sky like jewels on black velvet. Fledgling stars shining out from deep within cumulus clouds of interstellar dust. Hints of water vapor in the atmosphere of a remote exoplanet.This week, NASA released new images captured from a point in space one million miles from Earth.Today, we discuss the James Webb Space Telescope, the world’s most powerful space observatory, its journey to launch and what it can teach us about the universe.Guest: Kenneth Chang, a science reporter for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Here are more scenes of the universe captured by the Webb telescope.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcas

In recent days, the political crisis in Sri Lanka has reached a critical point, with its president fleeing the country and protesters occupying his residence and office. Today, “The Daily” explores how the island nation, whose economy was once held up as a success story in South Asia, came apart — and why it’s a cautionary tale.Guest: Emily Schmall, a South Asia correspondent for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Yesterday, mass demonstrations and tear gas filled the streets of Colombo, the Sri Lankan capital, and late into the night, protesters clashed with the police outside Parliament.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

For months, leaders of the Democratic Party and President Biden have been bracing for huge losses in the upcoming midterm elections. Today, “The Daily” explores a new New York Times poll that complicates that thinking — and could set the stage for a very different showdown in November.Guest: Nate Cohn, a domestic correspondent for The Upshot at The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Here’s what a new Times poll shows about divisions and dissatisfaction in the United States.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Last week, Elon Musk announced that he was pulling out of his $44 billion agreement to purchase Twitter. Today, we explore why a company that once tried to fend off this acquisition is now trying to force Mr. Musk to buy it.Guest: Kate Conger, a technology reporter for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Why Mr. Musk is leaving Twitter worse off than it was when he said he would buy it.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the court’s conservative majority argued it was simply handing the question of abortion to the states and their voters to decide for themselves.But in reality, the court was ensuring that many states, from Arizona to Ohio, would immediately ban the procedure without much debate, because their legislatures are now dominated by hard-line Republicans. Today, we tell the story of how those Republican legislators achieved that dominance.Guest: Kate Zernike, a political reporter for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: How the beginning of the end of Roe v. Wade arrived on election night in November 2010.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at

Warning of imminent ecological catastrophe, the Earth Liberation Front became notorious in the late 1990s for setting fire to symbols of ecological destruction, including timber mills, an S.U.V. dealership and a ski resort. The group was widely demonized. Its exploits were condemned by mainstream environmental groups, ridiculed by the media and inspired a furious crackdown from law enforcement.But in 2022 the group is more relevant than ever. These days even America’s mainstream environmental movement has begun to take a more confrontational approach, having previously confined its activities largely to rallies, marches and other lawful forms of protest. Even the “staid” environmental groups based in Washington have slowly started to embrace more radical tactics. Climate activists are starting to abandon their dogmatic attachment to pacifism, choosing instead to work toward destroying the “machines” inflicting the damage — but will such a radical idea prove effective?The journalist Matthew Wolfe delves into t

After a flurry of ministerial resignations and calls from members of his own party for his departure, Boris Johnson agreed on Thursday to resign as prime minister of Britain.During his tenure, Mr. Johnson survived a series of scandals and skated past a lot of bad news. But even he was unable to maneuver his way out of his latest misstep.Guest: Mark Landler, the London bureau chief for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Mr. Johnson’s resignation brought a messy end to a messy three-year tenure.Here’s a guide to why he was forced out and who might succeed him.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

After Roe v. Wade was decided in 1973, a group of conservative lawyers embarked on what would become a decades-long mission to reverse the ruling.One of those lawyers, James Bopp, explains how they succeeded and what comes next.Guest: James Bopp, general counsel for the National Right to Life Committee. Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Reaction to the Supreme Court’s decision reflected a polarized nation: jubilation and relief on one side, outrage and grief on the other. Both sides quickly pivoted to the fights ahead.Reversing the ruling in Roe v. Wade, far from settling the matter, has instead kindled court and political battles across the states that are likely to go on for years.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop cultu

Brittney Griner, the American W.N.B.A. star who has been detained in Russia since February, recently sent a letter to President Biden. “I’m terrified I might be here forever,” she wrote.The White House vowed to use “every tool” to bring Ms. Griner back to the United States, but organizing her release is a tricky proposition, complicated not least by Washington’s break with Moscow over the war in Ukraine.Guest: Michael Crowley, a diplomatic correspondent for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Brittney Griner has endured months in a Russian prison and faces the threat of years more.Her letter to Mr. Biden asked him to keep her case in mind. “I realize you are dealing with so much, but please don’t forget about me and the other American detainees. Please do all you can to bring us home,” she wrote.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be

President Biden has heralded the recent gun safety bill as the most significant federal attempt to reduce gun violence in 30 years.But after a gunman opened fire from a rooftop onto a Fourth of July parade in a Chicago suburb, questions abound about what the landmark legislation will — and will not — achieve.Guest: Sheryl Gay Stolberg, a Washington correspondent covering health policy for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Six people were killed and dozens more wounded in the deadly shooting at a parade in Highland Park, Ill., a suburb of Chicago. The police have taken a 22-year-old man into custody.Gun violence researchers have waged an often-frustrating battle to translate their findings into public policy.Here’s what is in the gun safety law — officially called the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act — and what was left out.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transc

A little over 50 years ago, Nancy Stearns, a young lawyer, was presenting a case in New York with a bold legal assertion: that the right to abortion was fundamental to equal rights for women.She never got to conclude her argument — first New York changed the law, then came Roe v. Wade. Now, with Roe overturned, she describes how it feels to watch the right to terminate a pregnancy fall away.Guest: Nancy Stearns, a lawyer who used an argument of equal rights to challenge the constitutionality of abortion bans.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: The United States almost took a different path toward abortion rights. Abramowicz v. Lefkowitz was the first case in the country to challenge a state’s strict abortion law on behalf of women.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts an

At the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, European leaders painted the battle in stark moral terms, imposing harsh sanctions against Russia and talking about President Volodymyr Zelensky as a hero.But as the war drags on, different conversations have taken place behind the scenes to consider what Ukraine might need to give up to achieve peace.Guest: Matina Stevis-Gridneff, the Brussels bureau chief for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Countries in the Group of 7 face dueling pressures: Penalizing Russia while easing the economic pain at home.Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany and President Emmanuel Macron of France are expected to visit Ukraine on Thursday — but they may face a tense reception.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore ever

On Jan. 6, 2021, when supporters of Donald Trump stormed the Capitol, Cassidy Hutchinson was at work in the White House alongside her boss, Mark Meadows, then the chief of staff.Her stunning testimony has provided a fly-on-the-wall account of what Mr. Trump knew about the events that day.Guest: Luke Broadwater, a congressional reporter for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Ms. Hutchinson’s evidence made her one of the most forceful and compelling witnesses to reveal details about Mr. Trump’s bizarre and violent behavior.The revelations could nudge Mr. Trump closer to facing criminal charges, legal experts said.Here’s a timeline of the key scenes in Ms. Hutchinson’s testimony.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to

In the days since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, states have rushed to either ban, restrict or protect abortion.The different approaches have created a fragmented, patchwork map of America.Guest: Margot Sanger-Katz, a domestic correspondent covering health care for The New York Times.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: With Roe overturned, the distances many women will need to travel for an abortion will increase drastically.Here are answers to some of the fundamental questions about the ramifications of the justices’ decision.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

This episode contains strong language and mentions sexual assault.The Supreme Court decision on Friday to overturn Roe v. Wade sent abortion clinics into a tailspin.That day Rosenda, a receptionist at a family planning clinic in Arizona, spent eight hours on the phone telling women the clinic could no longer help them.“I wanted to hug her, I wanted to help her but I know I can’t,” she said of one patient she called. “I wanted to scream.”In the hours after the decision, we spoke to clinic doctors and staff members trying to make sense of the news.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: The overturning of Roe set off waves of triumph and of despair, from the protesters on either side massing in front of the Supreme Court, to abortion clinics and crisis pregnancy centers.Over the weekend, anti-abortion forces vowed to push for near-total bans in every state in the nation, and abortion rights groups insisted they would harnes