The Daily Dive

The Biden administration is still trying to contain all of the fallout from the Taliban taking over Afghanistan. The most pressing issue right now is the continued evacuation of Americans and Afghan allies, but there are several other storylines in this wide ranging event. The Afghanistan war still remains unpopular with the American people, but why didn’t the administration act on the calls for evacuations from diplomats earlier and is it possible at all to trust the Taliban’s promises? Ret. USMC Lt Col. Jonathon Myers, former intelligence officer and author of American to the Corps: A Marine Corps Intelligence Officer’s Incredible Journey, joins us to break it all down.

Next, governors in Florida, Missouri, and Texas have begun pushing expensive Covid antibody treatments instead of masks and vaccines. States are setting up and staffing infusion centers with the hope of keeping people out of hospitals. Florida’s surgeon general issued a ruling for anyone to be able to take Regeneron’s monoclonal antibody treatment without a doctor prescription. Dan Goldberg, health care reporter at Politico, joins us for the push for Covid cocktails over masks.

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Covid booster shots are coming this fall. The Biden administration has called for boosters to be available for those that are fully vaccinated with Pfizer or Moderna eight months after their second shot. With the Delta variant, the coronavirus is still too widespread and too transmissible and the outcome of the pandemic seems pretty certain, the virus is not going away and will be endemic. Sarah Zhang, staff writer at The Atlantic, joins us for how we are going to have to live with coronavirus.

Next, older millennials are beginning to enter their high-earning years, but for many, it doesn’t feel like it. With a higher debt-to-income ratio and delaying home ownership and having a family, these higher-earning years might not provide the financial security they were hoping for. Julia Carpenter, personal finance reporter at the WSJ, joins us for how millennials are still struggling despite making more.

Finally, some hotels are going the way of the airline industry and offering a la carte pricing for certain services and amenities. Early check-in, access to the pool, gym use, or even daily housekeeping could be offered as add-ons in exchange for a lower room rate. Big hotel chains are still wary of such a change, but the fourth largest hotel owner is trying out the new business model. Craig Karmin, real estate bureau chief at the WSJ, joins us for a change up in hotel fees.

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Many Covid relief programs have been subject to fraud by scammers, but a whole slew of international scam artists have taken advantage of the enhanced unemployment benefits offered up to those affected by the pandemic. Russian scammers, Chinese hackers, and Nigerian scammers have used stolen identities easily accessed from data breaches and relaxed verification requirements to make bogus claims for Covid aid. Aging state unemployment systems also contributed to the problem. The scams are so widespread, we don't really know how much money has been stolen, but it is believed to be in the hundreds of billions of dollars. Kit Ramgopal, reporter with the investigative unit at NBC News, joins us for how they did it.

Next, the pandemic has changed the way we eat and what chefs serve us. Restaurants are still trying to recover from prolonged closures, supply chain issues, and lack of staff. In response to all of that we saw menus slimmed down to optimize to-go orders, which is still the case in many areas, but we also saw complete menu overhauls that limited seafood because of costs and less complicated menus that are easier to execute. Patricia Escárcega, reporting fellow at The Counter, joins us for more.

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U.S. defense officials expected that Afghanistan’s capital could fall to the Taliban 90 days after troops withdrew from the area, but it took less than ten days. How were they able to take over so quickly? A number of factors contributed including intelligence failures, a lack of will to fight by the Afghan forces, corruption and money. Amanda Macias, national security reporter at CNBC, joins us for how Afghanistan fell so fast.

Next, speaking on the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan’s capital, President Biden acknowledged that tings unfolded quicker than they expected but also said that he stood squarely behind his decision to pull troops out of the area. What are the next steps for U.S. policy toward Afghanistan and did we learn anything from intelligence failures on the ground? Dr. Tom Copeland, author of "Fool me Twice: Intelligence Failure and Mass Casualty Terrorism," joins us for the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.

Finally, it’s been a theme we have seen throughout the pandemic, a reassessment of the work-life balance. According to the latest Washington Post poll, a third of workers under 40 considered changing their careers or where they lived during the pandemic. Surprisingly, the majority of workers in this poll also wanted to return to their workplace all or most of the time. Scott Clement, polling director at The Washington Post, joins us for more.

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The fight between parents, school districts, and governors over mask wearing in schools continues as more students are returning to class. In some states, Republican governors have passed rules that schools cannot mandate masks, but confronted with increasing Covid cases, school superintendents are defying orders and requiring them for kids. Ginger Gibson, deputy Washington digital editor at NBC News, joins us for the mask fight, why the new census numbers are important, and the incoming NY Gov. Kathy Hochul has already said she will run in 2022.

Next, the world is experiencing another major coronavirus surge and every country is dealing with it differently. In those responses we are seeing pockets of people resisting the vaccines, but also a severe lack of access to the shots in poorer countries. Germany and Israel have vaccinated two-thirds of their populations, Great Britain has left it to personal responsibility and is learning to live with the virus, and Indonesia has become a new epicenter dealing with a growing number of deaths. Sammy Westfall, reporter at the Washington Post, joins us for how the world is handling the latest surge.

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This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

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This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

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The FDA is moving to authorize booster shots for those that are immunocompromised. This would be a shift in the American vaccination strategy as the Delta variant surges across the country and other countries have also approved boosters. Studies have shown that a third vaccine dose can trigger a more robust immune response in those with weaker immune systems. Jon Rockoff, health business editor at the WSJ, joins us for more.

Next, through its Artemis program, NASA was planning to send astronauts to the moon by 2024. According to a new report, that’s not going to happen. Among other challenges, the spacesuits to be used to walk on the moon, won’t be ready until 2025. Even when they are completed, we will only have two flight-ready suits at a cost of over $1 billion. Christian Davenport, space reporter at The Washington Post, joins us for the latest NASA delays.

Finally, an increase in requirements for proof of vaccination by schools, employers, and local governments is fueling a black market for fake vaccination cards. You can find fake vaccination certificates on social media or the dark web and can be easy enough to counterfeit yourself, but even digital systems are being fooled. J.D. Tuccille, contributing editor at Reason, joins us for more on fake vaccine cards.

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As the Delta variant continues to surge across the U.S., we are hearing more stories of children being hospitalized. Part of it is a numbers game, as cases across the country go up, so will the number of kids infected, but are they getting sicker? For the most part, kids that show up to hospitals have milder symptoms, but there are those that do develop pneumonia and other serious effects from Covid. Emily Anthes, reporter at the NY Times, joins us for kids and the Delta variant.

Next, we have seen an extension on the moratorium on evictions providing some relief to tenants behind on their rent, but the rent-relief program created to help tenants and landlords cover those costs has been slowed down by delays, confusion, and too much paperwork. The program run by the Treasury Department is slated to dole out over $46 billion in payments. To date, they have only sent out about $5 billion. Andrew Ackerman, reporter at the WSJ, joins us for more.

Finally, one of the most enduring internet pranks and memes has been good ol’ Rickrolling. Someone sends you a link to something that you have a legitimate interest in seeing, you click it, and boom, Rick Astley’s 1987 hit “Never Gonna Give You Up” starts playing. Well now, the official video for that song has hit over one billion views on YouTube. Travis Andrews, internet culture writer at the Washington Post, joins us for this internet prank milestone.

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After a report indicating he harassed 11 women, an ongoing impeachment probe, and numerous calls for him to step down, NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that he will resign effective in 14 days. Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul will take over and become the first female governor of New York. Phillip Bump, national correspondent at The Washington Post, joins us for the resignation and a look at some of the other corruption in New York state politics.

Next, the Senate finally passed the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill with a vote of 69-30. 19 Republicans joined Democrats to push the plan through and it will now move to the House, where progressives say it doesn’t go far enough. The Senate now moves on to debate a $3.5 trillion package that is expected to pass without any Republican support. Tanya Snyder, transportation reporter at Politico, joins us for more.

Finally, children are going back to school and there is still chaos and confusion over masks. We are in the sophomore year of Covid and there is still no consensus on how to keep students and teachers safe. Some school districts across the country are mandating mask wearing and defying state orders to do so. Governors have even threatened to withhold school funding if masks are required. Dan Goldberg, healthcare reporter at Politico joins us for the back to school mess.

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