Post Reports

Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency – a team of 20 or so engineers – now has influence in a number of departments, working to deplete the civil service. But is this legal?

Read more:

Elon Musk and other unelected officials are working to remake the U.S. government. 

Faiz Siddiqui has been covering the world’s richest man for years, and he says Musk’s playbook at DOGE is similar to what he did at X, formerly known as Twitter: Cut first, ask questions later.

There are still questions about whether that worked for X and whether it’s legal for the U.S. government. 

Today’s show was produced by Rennie Svirnovskiy. It was edited by Maggie Penman and mixed by Sam Bair. 

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Over the weekend President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. would be putting an import tax on goods coming from Mexico, Canada and China. He said he wanted to stop people from bringing fentanyl into the country and prevent migrants from crossing the borders. The leaders of the other countries are working to find alternative solutions with Trump, and on Monday the tariffs against Mexico and Canada were delayed for a month after he had conversations with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. But if they take effect later, the steep taxes could push the price of many items up for Americans, like cars and cell phones. 

Martine Powers speaks with Mexico City correspondent Mary Beth Sheridan about how these tariffs would work and what the impact of them could be on Americans and the globe.

Today’s show was produced by Rennie Svirnovskiy and Sabby Robinson. It was mixed by Sam Bair. And edited by Reena Flores. 

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Franke spoke out during the spring student protests on the Columbia University campus. She had watched as mostly Republican lawmakers grilled the presidents of MIT, the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard on live television. Soon after, the latter two women resigned — followed months later by Columbia’s Minouche Shafik. Franke read about professors at colleges in other states, from Arizona to California to Pennsylvania, who said they were fired or punished for speaking out about the Gaza war.

Months later, she didn’t know whether she’d be next. Nor had she decided how to respond to Columbia’s verdict of its probe into her actions, whenever it came: She could accept what the university determined. She could draw on her legal expertise to fight any punishment in court. Or she could give up and retire early, because sometimes she was no longer sure she wanted to stay.

Could she still teach at Columbia, if she could no longer recognize it? This is the story of what unfolded in Franke’s life after the student protests. The piece was reported, written and read by Hannah Natanson. Audio production and original music by Bishop Sand.

Trump’s extraordinary news conference on the plane crash near Reagan National Airport, his administration’s freeze and unfreeze of all federal funds, and the Senate hearings for three more of his controversial Cabinet picks.

Senior political reporter Aaron Blake talks through another chaotic week of political news with Congress reporter Liz Goodwin and White House economics reporter Jeff Stein. They break down Trump’s baseless claims that DEI could be the cause of the fatal plane crash in the Potomac, why the administration reversed its decision to halt the flow of all federal funds, and whether Trump’s picks for FBI director, director of national intelligence and health and human services secretary have enough support to be confirmed.

Today’s show was produced and mixed by Ted Muldoon. It was edited by Lucy Perkins and Rachel Van Dongen. 

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

“It was probably out in the middle of the river. I just saw a fireball, and then it was gone.” Today on “Post Reports,” unpacking a deadly collision in the nation’s capital.

Read more:

On Wednesday night, an American Airlines plane and an Army Black Hawk helicopter collided in midair near Reagan National Airport. Both aircraft crashed into the Potomac River in Washington. 

D.C. officials believe the three soldiers in the helicopter and all 64 passengers and crew aboard the airplane were killed. 

Today on “Post Reports,” host Elahe Izadi and transportation reporter Lori Aratani break down what we know about the collision, the close calls faced around Reagan National Airport in the recent past, and President Donald Trump’s baseless claims that diversity, equity and inclusion programs within the Federal Aviation Administration were to blame for the crash. 

Today’s show was produced by Bishop Sand and Rennie Svirnovskiy. It was mixed by Sam Bair and edited by Reena Flores. Thanks to Teddy Amenabar, Blair Guild, Evan Hill, Jorge Ribas, Chris Rowland, Kyle Swenson and Clarence Williams.

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

The stock market plummeted this week after a Chinese company showed it could do more with less. Today, we talk about the new AI chatbot DeepSeek, and why people are freaking out about it – from Silicon Valley to Wall Street to Washington.

Read more:

For two years, American artificial intelligence companies looked unstoppable. Then came DeepSeek. 

Today on Post Reports, we talk to tech policy reporter Eva Dou about how a scrappy startup became so dominant, and what it means for the AI arms race. 

Eva has a book out now about one of the world’s most controversial tech companies, set against the backdrop of the political, social and economic transformation of China. It’s called “House of Huawei: The Secret of China’s Most Powerful Company.”

Today’s show was produced by Rennie Svirnovskiy. It was edited by Maggie Penman and mixed by Sam Bair. Thanks to James Graff. 

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s selection has raised red flags among medical experts and public health officials, especially because of his stance on vaccines. Health reporter Lauren Weber and data reporter Caitlin Gilbert examined hundreds of appearances that RFK Jr. has made to understand the extent of his disparaging claims about vaccines. 

Today on “Post Reports,” Weber discusses what they exclusively unearthed and what it all means for the contentious confirmation battle ahead. 

Read more: 

Caroline Kennedy warns senators of ‘predator’ RFK Jr. in searing letter

10 RFK Jr. conspiracy theories and false claims, in his own words

Pressure builds on RFK Jr. as confirmation hearing remains unscheduled

Today’s show was produced by Elana Gordon. It was edited by Reena Flores and mixed by Sam Bair. Thanks to Stephen Smith and Caitlin Gilbert. 

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Over the weekend, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials received instructions from the White House to ramp up deportations, from a few hundred per day to at least 1,200. This came after President Donald Trump expressed disappointment with the results of his mass deportation campaign so far, according to people with knowledge of the briefings.

The orders significantly increase the chance that officers will engage in more indiscriminate enforcement tactics or face accusations of civil rights violations as they strain to meet quotas, according to current and former ICE officials.

Host Martine Powers speaks with immigration reporter Nick Miroff about what these new deportation quotas mean for the country, and the obstacles the Trump administration could face in making these goals a reality.

Today’s show was produced by Emma Talkoff with help from Ariel Plotnick. It was edited by Maggie Penman and mixed by Sam Bair. 

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Ahead of President Donald Trump’s inauguration, scores of career diplomats at the State Department were asked by Trump aides to resign. 

Trump campaigned on dismantling what he has called the “deep state” of federal bureaucrats, who he views as lacking loyalty to him and undermining his agenda. The forced departures were seen as confirmation of this plan – and a step toward changing the tone of the department. 

But who are these bureaucrats, and what are their stories? 

Those are the driving questions behind Netflix’s “The Diplomat.” Martine Powers spoke to its creator and executive producer, Debora Cahn. The show is about the life of a no-nonsense Foreign Service officer who’s suddenly made the U.S. ambassador to Britain. It is messy, it is human, and it – unintentionally – sometimes seems to be in conversation with the headlines.

On “Post Reports” today, Martine and Debora talk about the stories we don’t hear out of the Foreign Service, the allure of “competency porn,” and what “The Diplomat” can tell us about the value of “using your words.”

Today’s show was produced and mixed by Rennie Svirnovskiy, with help from Peter Bresnan. It was edited by Maggie Penman. 

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Senior political reporter Aaron Blake talks with senior White House reporter Isaac Arnsdorf and national political reporter Marianne LeVine about how Trump’s executive actions are already having a tangible impact. They also talk about how Trump’s pardon of Jan. 6 rioters was met with a muted response from several prominent Republicans. 

Today’s show was produced by Laura Benshoff. It was edited by Lucy Perkins and Rachel Van Dongen and mixed by Sam Bair. 

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.