President Trump announced a trade deal with Japan that will impose 15% tariffs on imports. Wall Street is happy, but it could put the United States in an awkward position as the Trump administration continues to seek other deals. Sabri Ben-Achour explains. Also, the federal government is leading a major deregulatory crusade. And they want your input. Plus, quilts and blooming plants make us smile.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• "Trump's Labor Department proposes more than 60 rule changes in a push to deregulate workplaces" from AP News
• "Trump Strikes Deal With Ally Japan Setting Tariff Rate at 15%" from Bloomberg

• Listener Jen’s quilting Instagram

  
  

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Lately, tech companies like Meta have been putting hundreds of billions toward building new data centers to power their AI ambitions. Some communities have been pushing back, however, arguing these facilities strain local resources. But demand for data centers isn’t expected to slow down anytime soon. On the show today, Landon Marston, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, explains what data centers actually are, why they require so much energy and water to operate, and how they can affect nearby communities. Plus, how can data centers become more sustainable?

Later, reflections on Medicaid cuts and the power of journaling. And, a listener makes us smarter about “100-year floods.”

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• "Their Water Taps Ran Dry When Meta Built Next Door" from The New York Times
• "Coreweave stock pops after company announces $6 billion AI data center in Pennsylvania" from CNBC
• "Meta's Zuckerberg pledges hundreds of billions for AI data centers in superintelligence push" from Reuters 
• "How A.I. Is Changing the Way the World Builds Computers" from The New York Times
• "China Is Putting Data Centers in the Ocean to Keep Them Cool" from Scientific American 

• ”The 100-Year Flood” from the U.S. Geological Survey

  
  

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Acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Todd Lyons said his agency’s crackdown on unauthorized immigration will extend to employers as well. Industries that rely heavily on undocumented workers are pushing back. We’ll get into it. And, American consumers are spending in the face of tariff-fueled inflation fears. (For now, at least.) Plus, Korean beauty loyalists and summer camps for sewing make us smile.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• "ICE head says agency to crack down on American companies hiring unauthorized workers" from The Hill
• "Transcript: Acting ICE director Todd Lyons on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," July 20, 2025" from CBS News
• "The U.S. Economy Is Regaining Its Swagger Despite Trump’s Tariffs" from The Wall Street Journal  
• "Teens Learn the Lost Arts of Sewing and Ironing at New Summer Camp Taught By Local Grandmas Staving off Loneliness" from Good News Network
• "A Year’s Worth of Mascara? Fans of Korean Beauty Stock Up as Tariffs Loom." from The New York Times 

• "After Pledging to Keep Prices Low, Amazon Hiked Them on Hundreds of Essentials" from The Wall Street Journal   

  
  

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The Trump administration has agreed to share the data of millions of Medicaid enrollees with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials in an effort to locate immigrants who may be undocumented in the U.S. We discuss the implications of this agreement. And, we explain a White House executive order in the works than plans to target AI models seen as too “woke.” We get into how that aligns with the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Plus, we’ll play a round of Half Full/Half Empty!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Trump administration hands over Medicaid recipients’ personal data, including addresses, to ICE” from The Associated Press
• “White House Prepares Executive Order Targeting ‘Woke AI’” from The Wall Street Journal
• “A UK-based company hopes to use “robot dogs” to address labor shortages in health care” from Marketplace
• “Social media algorithms create “algospeak,” a kind of internet slang” from Marketplace
• “Roblox will scan users’ video selfies to assess their ages” from WIRED
• “TSA to add a lane for families with children and members of the military” from Fast Company

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The Senate approved the Trump administration’s rescission package today, which proposes taking back $9 billion in federal funding already allocated for programs such as public media and foreign aid. We’ll get into the implications for the bipartisan nature of the budgeting process. Plus, we explain the latest development of a lawsuit against Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and company leaders, which stems back to the 2018 privacy scandal involving Cambridge Analytica. Then, we’ll smile at a piece of new technology that claims to shoot mosquitoes using lasers. And, do you believe in supernatural forces?

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “Russ Vought: Appropriations process ‘has to be less bipartisan’” from POLITICO
• “The Appropriations Process Was Already Broken. The Rescission Bill May Have Just Shattered It.” from NOTUS
• “Meta investors, Zuckerberg reach settlement to end $8 billion trial over Facebook privacy litigation” from Reuters
• “This ‘Iron Dome’ for mosquitoes shoots down bugs with lasers” from Fast Company
• “Angels, witches, crystals and black cats: How supernatural beliefs vary across different groups in the US” from The Conversation

We love hearing from you. Leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART or email [email protected].

According to the latest consumer price index, the reported prices of several items, including apparel and household furnishings, increased in June, suggesting some preliminary effects of the Trump administration’s tariff policies. We discuss President Donald Trump’s response calling for the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates, and why it’s so crucial to preserve an independent central bank. Then, we take a look at Missouri, where the state’s legislature and the governor overturned the outcome of a ballot initiative. What does that say about the state of public participation in the democratic process? And, we celebrate some wins from listeners about a rekindled drive to write poetry and what it means to be a good friend.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• "Missouri governor repeals paid sick leave law approved last year by voters" from The Associated Press
• "Missouri Rolls Back Paid Sick Leave Entitlement; $15 Minimum Wage Remains" from National Law Review
• “Missouri’s voters restored abortion rights. Their leaders are trying to overrule them” from the newsletter The 19th News
• "D.C. budget update: Tipped minimum wage compromise fails, ranked choice voting funded as budget advances" from WAMU
• "Inflation picks up again in June, rising at 2.7% annual rate" from CNBC

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The One Big Beautiful Bill Act is projected to cut Medicaid spending by more than $1 trillion. The law changes eligibility rules, and some predictions estimate at least 10.5 million people will be eliminated from the program. On the show today, Rachel Werner, executive director of the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics at the University of Pennsylvania, explains how the funding cuts could limit the caregiving options for older Americans who need at-home care and place a larger responsibility on their families. Plus, we discuss how to start planning for long-term care amid all the legislative changes.

Then, we’ll celebrate a listener’s win about her chocolate lab puppy. And, an astrobiologist’s quest to find life on Mars.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “How Medicaid Cuts Could Force Millions Into Nursing Homes” from The Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics at the University of Pennsylvania
• “Advocates warn that Medicaid cuts in the big budget law put home-based health care at risk” from Marketplace
• “New AARP Report: Majority of Adults 50-plus Want to Age in Place, But Policies and Communities Must Catch Up” from AARP
• “A Closer Look at the Medicaid Work Requirement Provisions in the “Big Beautiful Bill” from KFF
• “Medicaid cuts: The how and why” from the newsletter Your Local Epidemiologist
• “As the need for nursing homes grows, nurses are in short supply” from Marketplace

We love hearing from you. Leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART or email [email protected].

The Senate is expected to vote on President Donald Trump’s rescissions package this week, which proposes rescinding $9.4 billion in previously approved spending to several programs, including public media and foreign aid spending. We discuss how this could undermine the bipartisan process. Then, we take a look at Bitcoin trading at new record highs, as U.S. lawmakers prepare to pass new regulations on cryptocurrency. We explain the bills being proposed in what’s been dubbed “Crypto Week.” Plus, we hear listeners’ wins about a resurgence of monarch butterflies and a lifelong dream of clubbing in Berlin.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• “GOP leader faces showdown with Republicans on Trump-backed funding cuts” from The Hill
• “Schumer warns package to claw back funding would ‘poison’ annual spending talks” from The Hill
• “A Senate vote this week will test the popularity of DOGE spending cuts” from The Associated Press
• “Bitcoin Soars Past $120,000 as House Takes Up Crypto Bills” from The New York Times
• “‘Crypto Week’ on Capitol Hill” from Marketplace
• “Trump Rescission Proposal Builds on Illegal Impoundments, Would Undermine Future Funding Deals” from Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

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The Trump Administration today said it will restrict undocumented immigrants from accessing public programs, including Head Start. Kimberly explains how the move fits into the government’s broader effort to change who’s entitled to services in the United States. And, the Supreme Court gave Trump the green light to continue mass federal layoffs, for now. We’ll get into the emotional rollercoaster many of these workers have been on this year. Plus, we’ll play a round of Half Full/Half Empty!

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• "What the Media Gets Wrong About Medicaid ‘Cuts'" from DC Journal
• "Taxpayer-Funded Benefits Are for American Citizens — Not Illegals" from The White House 
• "Trump to cut off Head Start for immigrants in US illegally" from AP News  
• "State Department fires more than 1,300 employees in downsizing plan" from The Washington Post 
• "Federal workers fearful after Supreme Court backs Trump’s mass firings plan" from The Washington Post
• "How Trump’s immigration policies could threaten Social Security" from Marketplace 
• "Tariffs push companies to rethink traditional forecasts" from Marketplace
• "In new food fad, protein products are no longer just for gym-goers" from Marketplace
• "Microsoft Pledges $4 Billion Toward A.I. Education" from The New York Times
• "A 70-hour work week? Some job listings are foregoing work-life balance" from Marketplace

• ”The disturbing parallels between modern accounting and the business of slavery” from Marketplace

  
  

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Even before the catastrophic flooding in Texas, weather experts were ringing alarm bells over how staffing cuts at federal weather agencies could affect the reliability of weather forecasts in the United States. Marketplace’s Amy Scott joins us on the show today to explain how these cuts are impacting the day-to-day at the National Weather Service, and look at other headwinds the agency could face in the future, including privatization efforts and the ever-complicating factor of climate change.

Here’s everything we talked about today:

• "Burning Questions: How do cuts to NOAA impact all of us?" from “How We Survive” 
• "FEMA cuts put more pressure on local disaster relief" from Marketplace 
• "Debate erupts over role job cuts played in weather forecasts ahead of deadly Texas floods" from AP News
• "Flood predictions could worsen when Trump’s cuts take hold" from Politico
• "As Floods Hit, Key Roles Were Vacant at Weather Service Offices in Texas" from The New York Times
• "Republicans want to privatize weather forecasts. Do Trump appointees stand to benefit?" from Fast Company 

We love hearing from you. Leave us a voicemail at 508-U-B-SMART or email [email protected].