Today, Explained

Brett Kavanaugh is President Trump’s pick to replace Anthony Kennedy on the United States Supreme Court. The New York Times Magazine’s Emily Bazelon says the nomination was decades in the making. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tonight the president announces who might replace Anthony Kennedy on the United States Supreme Court. During his campaign, he promised he would choose pro-life justices to dismantle the abortion case Roe v. Wade. Mary Ziegler, author of "After Roe", explains what the country might look like if the 1973 decision is overturned. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s official: Scott Pruitt will no longer lead the Environmental Protection Agency. Vox’s Umair Irfan explains why it doesn’t really matter who replaces him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When the clock strikes twelve tonight, the US government plans to hit Chinese goods with $34 billion in tariffs. China plans to lash back. Vox’s Matthew Yglesias explains who this trade war will hurt the most. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#AbolishICE has gone from an online murmur to a national movement, but a lot of Americans are confused about what exactly Immigration and Customs Enforcement does. Vox’s Dara Lind explains the short history of the controversial agency and what it might mean to see it dissolved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Meet Mexico’s next president: Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Call him AMLO. He’s a leftist, a populist, and wasn’t shy about calling Donald Trump a “neo-fascist”. Professor Carlos Bravo Regidor explains how AMLO went from losing the presidency twice to winning it in a landslide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Supreme Court upheld President Trump’s travel ban this week, making it all but impossible for the citizens of seven countries to enter the United States. One of those countries is Yemen, which the United Nations says is undergoing the worst humanitarian crisis on the planet. International Crisis Group’s Joost Hiltermann explains how things got so bad, and why they could get a lot worse. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is set to become the youngest woman to ever serve in Congress this November. The 28-year-old Democratic Socialist defeated ten-term Representative Joe Crowley in a massive upset for the Democratic Party. Vox’s Kay Steiger explains whether socialism is the future of the left. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After 30 years on the Supreme Court, Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement today. Slate’s Dahlia Lithwick explains what the departure of the swing vote means for the Court and the country. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court upheld President Trump’s travel ban. Emily Bazelon from The New York Times Magazine explains the opinion, a fiery dissent, and how the justices used this case to undo one of the Court’s most racist decisions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A 32-year-old from Santa Monica, California, helped President Trump conceive of the most divisive immigration policy in decades. The Atlantic’s McKay Coppins explains how Stephen Miller went from high school troll to West Wing advisor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bill and Melinda Gates are messing with nature. But they’re doing it to save the world. This week, their foundation gave away millions to make malaria-carrying mosquitoes extinct before long. On the way, they’ll have to tweak some DNA. Vox’s Joss Fong explains. ****************************************************** Check out the Vox Video on the ethical debate over using genetically modified mosquitoes: https://bit.ly/2kBle83 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

President Trump signed an executive order which aims to end his own policy of family separation at the border. Yeah... it's confusing. Martha Mendoza from the Associated Press tries to parse it out, and immigration lawyer Anne Chandler explains the chaos families are still experiencing at the border. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The United States has been threatening to withdraw from the United Nations Human Rights Council for some time, but President Trump and Ambassador Nikki Haley made it official last night. The announcement comes just one day after the council called the act of separating kids from their parents “unconscionable.” Foreign Policy’s Colum Lynch explains why the withdrawal is bad news for the world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's Juneteenth! What is this holiday that hardly anyone fully understands? UCLA's Brenda Stevenson explains the history, and argues that the celebration of emancipation is more important now than ever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

That’s how many kids have been separated from their parents at border crossings over a six-week span since the Trump administration’s new zero tolerance policy took effect in April. CBS’s David Begnaud tours a holding facility in Texas. Then Vox’s Dara Lind explains why some conservatives are denouncing Trump’s new policy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tiny blood-sucking Lyme-disease-carrying ticks are out to ruin your summer. Since 1991, Lyme disease has doubled in the United States due to a variety of factors, including global warming and suburbanization. Vox’s Julia Belluz explains how to avoid ticks and, if worse comes to worst, deal with Lyme disease. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The World Cup kicks off today. Looking for a country to cheer for? Consider Egypt. The team might not be the most storied or stacked, but it’s got Mohamed Salah. The New York Times’ chief soccer correspondent Rory Smith explains how the Muslim player who prays after every goal (and there are many) has the potential to transcend xenophobia, Islamophobia, and run-of-the-mill racism on the road to Russia. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On Monday, Attorney General Jeff Sessions made it harder for Central Americans fleeing gang violence or women escaping domestic violence to gain asylum in the United States. This comes after the Trump administration made a practice of separating families who have entered the country illegally. Vox’s Dara Lind explains how U.S. immigration policy is dramatically shifting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un made history today. Or did they? NPR’s Elise Hu was there. She explains what happened and what didn’t. Plus, The New Yorker’s Robin Wright recounts United States summit history. She says there are two keys to a successful summit, and Singapore's meeting lacked both. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices