What Next | Daily News and Analysis

As the head of the Department of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem has made herself the official face of the Trump administration’s military crackdowns on protesters in Los Angeles, raids in majority-Democratic cities, and the deportations of student activists. How has she been able to consolidate so much power so quickly?Guest: Seth Tupper, Editor-in-Chief of the South Dakota SearchlightAhilan Arulanantham, Co-Director of the Center for Immigration Law and Policy at the UCLA School of LawWant more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On Friday, Israel launched massive strikes in Iran, targeting nuclear sites and killing top military leaders in the largest single-day attack on the country since the 1980s. Iran has retaliated, launching ballistic missiles at Israeli cities and killing at least eight people. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is walking a tightrope as it tries to maintain its alliance with Israel and negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran.How might the war escalate from here? And what does this mean for America’s relationships in the region?Guest: Gregg Carlstrom, Middle East Correspondent for The Economist. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. fired all 17 members of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, accusing members of serving industry interests and never recommending against a vaccine. Their role, however, was advising on usage for vaccines that the FDA already approved. As RFK Jr. restaffs the committee with his own “nonpartisan” members, where does that leave vaccines and the state of American health?Guest: Noel Brewer, Gillings Distinguished Professor in Public Health at the University of North Carolina.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A guide to keeping your phone, and your digital life, safe when you’re crossing the border.Guest: Lily Hay Newman, senior writer for WIRED covering information security.Podcast production by Evan Campbell and Patrick Fort. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Elon Musk has ridden off into the sunset acrimoniously (maybe), but the Department of Government Efficiency is just getting started. Will DOGE continue wildly cutting or is something even more chaotic coming next? Guest: Makena Kelly, senior writer at WIRED. Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Evan Campbell and Patrick Fort. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump is sending the troops to California, while also getting ready for a big birthday parade—for himself and the US Army—in DC. Does grasping for symbols of military strength smack a bit of desperation? Guests: Jamelle Bouie, columnist at the New York TimesJeremy Lindenfeld, reporter and Capital and Main local news fellow.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Gaza, two million people are at risk of starvation, as Israeli-controlled aid has been repeatedly interrupted and marked by violence towards aid workers and chaos at distribution sites. Guests: Mohammed Mhawish, journalist and writer from Gaza City.Alex de Waal, Executive Director of the World Peace Foundation at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts, author of the 2017 book, Mass Starvation: The History and Future of Famine. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After years of bigger floats and bigger rainbow-ified logos, corporate sponsorship for Pride Month celebrations is dropping off this year. But, given that Pride is the commemoration of an uprising against police harassment, maybe that’s a good thing.Guests: Christina Cauterucci, Slate senior writer and the host of Outward, Slate’s podcast about LGBTQ+ life, and Slow Burn: Gays Against Briggs.Tessa Skara, comedian, musician, co-host of annual comedy show “⁠Corporate Pride⁠” with ⁠James Tom⁠.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When immigration raids began in the Los Angeles area last weekend, so did spontaneous protests. On Sunday, Trump federalized 2,000 California national guardsmen in response. While Trump stopped short of invoking the Insurrection Act, he claimed authority to send troops wherever ICE operations might be contested by mass demonstrations.Guest: Elizabeth Goitein, co-director of the Liberty and National Security Program at the Brennan Center for Justice.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater inherited the government’s antitrust case against Google and is eager to follow it through—but likely not for the same reasons as her predecessors. Guest: Nancy Scola, reporter and contributing writer at POLITICO. Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sean Diddy Combs’s trial in New York started about a month ago and was expected to take about two months, so here at the halfway mark, we check in with a Slate correspondent who has been on the scene at the courthouse.Guest: Nadira Goffe, staff writer of culture at Slate.This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exclusive episodes of What Next —you’ll also access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Ethan Oberman, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of the goals of DOGE was to get rid of the “silos” that keep government agencies from sharing freely amongst themselves efficiently and instead organize data using tools offered by companies like Palantir. The thing is, a lot of those silos are there by design, and removing them could be a nightmare for privacy advocates. Guest: Sheera Frenkel, tech reporter for the New York Times.Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since January, the Trump administration has suspended the right to claim asylum at the southern border. One narrower form of protection—for those who had been tortured by their governments—was supposed to remain. But lawyers have realized that even that appears to be gone.Guest: Mark Betancourt, freelance reporter covering immigration from DC, who wrote “This Ethiopian Woman Was Tortured by Her Government. The US is Sending Her Home Anyway” for KQED.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After 20 months of war, with violence erupting far from the Middle East, where is the future of Zionism headed?Guest: Isaac Saul, Tangle executive editor and author of “I think I’m leaving Zionism, or Zionism is leaving me.”Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Five years after George Floyd’s murder sparked nationwide protests, the legacy of that movement is still being written in Minneapolis and America writ large—even as some attempt to erase it.Guest: Marcia Howard, president of the teacher chapter of Minneapolis Federation of TeachersBrandt Williams, senior editor covering race, class and communities for MPR News. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: voter discontentment at the two major parties is creating an opening for a far-right populist with an anti-immigration, protectionist agenda that economic experts warn would be devastating. With a Trump trade deal in hand, can Keir Starmer and Labour give British voters something to vote for, rather than just against?Guest: Anand Menon, professor of European Politics and Foreign Affairs at Kings College London. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

His time in Washington was brief, but we’ll be picking up the pieces for a long time. What Elon’s exit signals for the future of DOGE, and Musk’s political career. Guest: Kate Conger, reporter for the New York Times covering X and other technology companies.Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The war between Ukraine and Russia is being fought increasingly via drone —and NATO and US military leadership is training troops for future conflicts that will pit man against machine.Guest: Jake Epstein, senior defense reporter for Business Insider.Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Evan Campbell and Patrick Fort. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Adriana Smith was nine weeks pregnant when she was declared brain dead in February—far enough along that her fetus showed cardiac activity. The hospital then refused to let her family decide whether or not they want to keep Smith on life support long enough for the fetus to be delivered.Guests: Imani Gandy, Editor-at-Large for Rewire News Group, covering law and courts and co-host of the podcast “Boom! Lawyered.”Mary Ziegler, law professor at UC Davis, author of Personhood: The New Civil War Over Reproduction.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Everyone assumes the reason Gavin Newsom has had right-wingers like Charlie Kirk and Steve Bannon on his podcast is to burnish his credentials for an imminent presidential run. But no podcast episode is going to make Republican voters forget that he’s a California Democrat.Guest: Marisa Lagos, political correspondent for KQED and co-host of the Political Breakdown podcast.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Revlimid pill costs about 25 cents to make, and about a thousand dollars to buy—but it’s keeping him alive, so what choice does he have?Guest: David Armstrong, investigates healthcare at ProPublica, author of “The Price of Remission.”Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As What Next celebrates Memorial Day, please enjoy this episode ⁠from our colleagues at Decoder Ring⁠. What Next will be back in your feed tomorrow.Something seems to have happened to car headlights. In the last few years, many people have become convinced that they are much brighter than they used to be—and it’s driving them to the point of rage. Headlight glare is now Americans’ number one complaint on the road. The story of how and why we got here is illuminating and confounding. It’s what happens when an incredible technological breakthrough meets market forces, regulatory failure, and human foibles.So if you feel like everyone’s driving around with their high beams on all the time, it’s not your imagination. What once seemed like an obscure technical concern has gone mainstream. But can the movement to reduce glare actually do something about the problem?In this episode, you’ll hear from ⁠Nate Rogers⁠, who wrote about the “headlight brightness wars” for The Ringer; ⁠Daniel Stern⁠, automotive lighting expert and editor of Driving Vision News; and Paul Gatto, moderator of ⁠r/fuckyourheadlights⁠.This episode of Decoder Ring was written by Willa Paskin and Olivia Briley, and produced by Olivia Briley and Max Freedman. Our team also includes Katie Shepherd and supervising producer Evan Chung. Merritt Jacob is our Senior Technical Director.If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, please email us at ⁠[email protected]⁠, or leave a message on our hotline at 347-460-7281. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The crypto industry poured tons of money into the last election cycle. Is the GENIUS Act, which has bipartisan support, their big payoff?Guest: Hilary Allen, professor at American University’s Washington College of Law.Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Trump’s “one big beautiful bill” cleared the House this week and heads off to the Senate where…actually let’s bring in an expert to explain what happens next.Guest: Jim Newell, Slate’s senior political writer.This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exclusive episodes of What Next —you’ll also access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Ethan Oberman, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

OpenAI started as a non-profit dedicated to building safe A.I. Now, they’re obsessed with building artificial general intelligence by any means necessary - even if they don’t quite know what that is. Guest: Karen Hao, reporter and author of “Empire of AI: Dreams and Nightmares in Sam Altman's OpenAI”Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rev. Dr. Barber II is objecting to Republicans’ budget bill on the grounds of morality as much as politics—which is why he’s been praying, protesting, and getting arrested to stick up for those who will be affected by it. Guest: Reverend Doctor William J. Barber II, pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church, Disciples of Christ in Goldsboro, North Carolina, professor at Yale Divinity School, and founder of the Forward Together Moral Movement.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of the more surprising targets of Project 2025—and now, therefore, the Trump administration—is FEMA. How will proposed changes affect what FEMA can do, as hurricane season begins, and as a changing climate makes weather more unpredictable?Guest: Thomas Frank, editor for E&E News’ climate finance team.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a return to a classic party policy goal, Republicans want to add “work requirements” to Medicaid to offset costs in Trump’s “one big beautiful bill.” Work requirements for health insurance have been tried before, on the state level, and the end result is a lot of people—including working people—losing their health insurance.Guest: Leo Cuello, research professor at the Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy’s Center for Children and Families and former Health Policy Director of the National Health Law Program.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Donald Trump strives to deliver on his harsh immigration enforcement campaign promises, the president’s approval rating on the issue has dropped. But very public mistakes—with very real consequences—and dipping polls don’t seem to be slowing the administration down yet.Guests:Adrian Carrasquillo, author of the Huddled Masses newsletter from The BulwarkPrimitiva Hernandez, executive director of 805Undocufund, a central California non-profit providing legal and financial assistance to immigrants Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What do you do when your likeness has been turned into A.I.-generated pornography?—it’s a problem people are already facing. But legislation moving through Congress may cause more problems than it would solve.Guests:Joanne Chew, actress and visual artist based in LA.Samantha Cole, cofounder of 404 media and author of “How Sex Changed the Internet and How the Internet Changed Sex.”Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Evan Campbell and Patrick Fort. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What do you do when your likeness has been turned into A.I.-generated pornography?—it’s a problem people are already facing. But legislation moving through Congress may cause more problems than it would solve.Guests:Joanne Chew, actress and visual artist based in LA.Samantha Cole, cofounder of 404 media and author of “How Sex Changed the Internet and How the Internet Changed Sex.”Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Evan Campbell and Patrick Fort. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aging equipment and chronically understaffed air traffic control have made flying in and out of Newark’s Liberty International Airport a delay-snarled mess. And the problems there aren’t entirely unique. Will Congress and the Trump administration be the ones to fix it? Guest: Will Guisbond, staff reporter covering air traffic control for The Air CurrentWant more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Evan Campbell and Patrick Fort. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Between the crypto ventures, real estate deals, and a gift-wrapped tricked-out 747, it feels like Donald Trump is more open-for-business than ever this term. And since no one seems able or willing to stop him, why wouldn’t he be?Guest: Andrea Bernstein, investigative journalist and host of Trump Inc and author of “American Oligarchs: The Kushners, The Trumps, and the Marriage of Money and Power.”Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ahead of his first trip to the region, Donald Trump’s policies toward the Middle East have been full of surprises. He wants sanctions on Syria lifted; he revealed the U.S. has been negotiating directly with Hamas; and he’s considering a new nuclear deal with Iran—and without consulting with Israel. Guest: Gregg Carlstrom, Middle East correspondent for the Economist.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What if the Democratic Party’s problem isn’t just messaging—it’s the Democrats themselves, and “seniority politics” that never call incumbents to account? Is it time for a Tea Party-style cleaning-of-the-house?Guest: David Hogg, DNC Vice Chair and founder of Leaders We Deserve PACWant more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Despite being perhaps the least experienced person to ever hold his position, Pete Hegseth has set about dramatically reforming the Department of Defense to Donald Trump’s specifications—which seem to have less to do with creating a more effective fighting force, and more to do with window dressing.Guest: Tom Bowman, Pentagon reporter for NPR.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The intimate and extremely personal experience of bringing a child into this world? There’s an app for that…and forums…and so much advice…that contradicts other advice…and a surprising amount of eugenics.Guest: Amanda Hess, critic at the New York Times and author of the book “Second Life: Having a Child in the Digital Age.”Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As we head into Mother’s Day weekend (there’s still time to get to the florist if you hurry!), we dive into “motherhood in the moment”—where “pro-natalism”, the rising cost of childcare, and, um, Chapelle Roan are making the “Tiger Mom” era of a decade ago seem quaint. Guest: Jenée Desmond-Harris, staff writer for Slate and host of Dear Prudence.This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exclusive episodes of What Next —you’ll also access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Ethan Oberman, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why artificial intelligence isn’t waiting for consumer demand.Guest: Gerrit De Vynck, tech reporter for The Washington Post.Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Evan Campbell and Patrick Fort. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The consequences of Donald Trump’s new tariffs are working their way through the supply chain and soon will start showing up for consumers in the form of empty shelves, higher prices, and potentially even layoffs and a recession. Guest: Christopher Mims, Wall Street Journal tech reporter and the author of Arriving Today: From Factory to Front Door---Why Everything Has Changed About How and What We Buy.Jessica Berger, CEO of Bundle x Joy.Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How Donald Trump is attempting to shape the arts to his own liking, from installing himself as head of the Kennedy Center to canceling grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, throwing organizations and projects of all sizes into uncertainty and chaos.Guests:Alisa Solomon, director of the Arts & Culture concentration at the Columbia Journalism SchoolKaty Waldman, staff writer for the New Yorker. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Ethan Oberman, Isabel Angell, Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Marco Rubio has been collecting titles. In addition to Secretary of State, he’s now also the acting administrator of USAID, the acting archivist for the National Archives and Records Administration—and he just became a National Security Advisor. It fits his career trajectory, wherein Rubio has proven time and time again to be whatever he needs to be.Guest: Justin Peters, Slate correspondent and author of “What Happened to Marco Rubio?”Want more What Next? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to What Next and all your other favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Ethan Oberman, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is the arrest of Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan the start of Trump’s open war on judges?Guest: Jeremy Fogel, retired federal judge and executive director for the Berkeley Judicial Institute.Want more What Next? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to What Next and all your other favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Ethan Oberman, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What is it about the way that Elon Musk wields power that led 65 percent of Americans to agree he has too much influence on the federal government?Guest: Faiz Siddiqui, Washington Post tech reporter and author of “Hubris Maximus: The Shattering of Elon Musk.”Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What drove Marc Andreessen’s transformation into a political actor, and what is he looking for from having Washington in his thrall?Guest: Zoe Schiffer, WIRED journalist covering business and Silicon Valley.Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Evan Campbell and Patrick Fort. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Many of the policy changes in Trump’s first 100 days have come from the White House—but now, it’s Congress’s turn. Republicans have roughly a month to pass a multi-trillion-dollar bill to advance the president’s domestic agenda. But will the bill’s combination of tax cuts and increases in spending on defense and border security render it unpassable for GOP budget hawks?Guest: Jim Newell, senior politics writer at Slate.Want more What Next? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to What Next and all your other favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Ethan Oberman, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After Tufts student Rümeysa Öztürk was abducted off the streets of her district, Rep. Ayanna Pressley is not mincing words when it comes to the Trump administration: “These are the actions of a dictator.” Last week, Rep. Pressley traveled to Louisiana with a Congressional delegation to visit Öztürk and Mahmoud Khalil in the ICE detention facilities where they’re being held. Now, she’s speaking out about what she witnessed firsthand.Guest: Ayanna Pressley, US representative for Massachusetts’ 7th district and member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.Want more What Next? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to What Next and all your other favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Ethan Oberman, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At his first press conference as head of the Department of Health and Human Services, RFK Jr. gave a glimpse of what the department will look like under his leadership: a smaller overall budget, relitigating settled scientific questions. Guest: Kiera Butler, senior editor and reporter at Mother Jones and author of Raise: What 4-H Teaches Seven Million Kids and How Its Lessons Could Change Food and Farming Forever.Want more What Next? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to What Next and all your other favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Ethan Oberman, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Supreme Court is hearing two cases this month regarding religion in public schools that seem to contradict each other—a public school in Maryland where parents claim books with LGBTQ characters or themes are indoctrination, and a Catholic charter school in Oklahoma arguing it has the right to state funding. Can the court’s religion-friendly majority give them both what they want without falling afoul of the First Amendment?Guest: Mark Joseph Stern, senior writer for Slate.Want more What Next? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to What Next and all your other favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Ethan Oberman, Isabel Angell, and Rob Gunther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Trump administration has already begun cutting the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which includes the U.S. National Weather Service. What’s the advantage to understanding the weather less?Guest: Daniel Swain, weather and climate scientist with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources.Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.