The Christian Science Monitor Daily Podcast

In the past few days, assumptions about the postwar international security order have been upended. Three of today’s stories offer a global take. They include Trump aides casting doubt on shared values with Europe, Europe beginning to reassess its relations with the U.S., and Putin counting on Trump to open world doors. Join the Monitor's Noelle Swan for today's news.

From Ukraine’s battle zones to its cities, war fatigue is real, three years after Russia’s incursion. So is resilience, our reporter found.

Also: today’s stories, including Trump “border czar” Tom Homan’s outlook on immigration; a look at Nova Scotia’s Black community, then and now; and one Monitor writer’s thoughts on “Captain America: Brave New World,” which introduces a Black Captain America to the big screen.

Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

President Donald Trump’s plan to take over Gaza and expel its residents received a warm reception in Israel. Dina Kraft looks into why many Israelis embrace a Trump plan for Gaza once seen as taboo. Also: today’s stories, including what, if anything, can be saved from the wreckage of USAID, a dive into America’s nuclear weapons and the U.S. Air Force missileers that manage it, and a delicious history of chocolate. Join the Monitor's Mark Sappenfield for today's news.

As courts weigh the legality of actions taken by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, the response from American voters is also starting to take shape. Will the same people who support pruning a bloated federal government, in the abstract, feel differently as those cuts ripple through their own communities?

Also: today’s stories, including Indian-U.S. immigration amid recent deportations from the U.S.; how the Justice Department will define anti-Christian bias; and worries in Europe over Russia’s “shadow fleet” of aging oil tankers.

Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Israel’s “Iron Wall” campaign in the West Bank is underway, displacing some 40,000 people, as correspondents Dina Kraft and Taylor Luck report today. Our stories also include why Musk’s DOGE is triggering alarm bells in the intel world, the origins of Black History Month, and young Sri Lankans working on tea estates finding a path out of poverty. Join the Monitor's Amelia Newcomb for today's news.

When it comes to tariffs, conventional wisdom suggests they lead nowhere good. Laurent Belsie dives into how U.S. President Donald Trump is doubling down on challenging that view. Also: today’s stories, including how federal workers are grappling with a feeling of ‘chaos’, how students and universities are finding that degrees in the humanities are actually in demand, and how far the French are willing to go to save French farming. Join the Monitor's Mark Sappenfield for today's news.

Today, we mark a transition as our editor for the past eight years, Mark Sappenfield, hands the baton to Christa Case Bryant. We have a big challenge before us, but a rich history uplifting the standard of journalism to draw on. Our stories include who will miss USAID most as Trump hollows it out, how Volkswagen slid from German engineering icon to innovation laggard, and how tourism could improve China and Japan’s relationship. Join the Monitor's Christa Case Bryant for today's news.

Do police and protesters have to see each other as the enemy? How do you police crowds – sports fans, protesters – in a way that calms, rather than provokes? Simon Montlake sits down with Clay Collins and discusses ‘dialogue policemen.’ Also; today’s stories, including how President Donald Trump compares with the famous proponent of tariffs and expansionism, President William McKinley, how the Arab world is responding to President Donald Trump’s proposal to take over Gaza and resettle the Palestinians there, and how Donald Trump reinvigorated Canadian national pride. Join the Monitor's Mark Sappenfield for today's news.

While President Trump has ridiculed past U.S. military deployments and nation-building efforts, he has consistently been drawn to Mideast diplomacy. But his proposal to “own” and develop the Gaza Strip and displace its population has many questioning how serious he is.

Also: today’s stories, including a check-in with a Venezuelan family on what President Trump’s second term means to them; how America’s youth are moving away from alcohol; and the vintners in France making nonalcoholic wine.

Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

The third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, is fast approaching. Much of the world has turned its attention elsewhere, but The Monitor continues to cover Ukraine robustly, and today, Scott Peterson talks to fighters on the front lines who are deeply committed to saving their homeland despite daunting challenges. Our stories also include FBI purges by Trump prompting a lawsuit, Trump inaugurating a new and uncertain era in U.S. trade relations, and a program in Nigeria sending children from the streets into the classroom. Join the Monitor's Amelia Newcomb for today's news.