Politics & Government

White House Correspondents On What It's Like To Cover The Trump Presidency

5:30pm December 11, 2020

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with three White House correspondents — NPR's Tamara Keith, Yamiche Alcindor of PBS and Jeff Mason of Reuters — about their journeys covering the Trump presidency.

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Texas Is Asking Supreme Court To Throw Out Election Results From 4 Key Swing States

5:30pm December 11, 2020

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul about a lawsuit brought by 17 Republican attorneys general asking the Supreme Court to to throw out the election results in four battleground states.

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Republican Sen. Mike Lee, seen at a 2015 event, said the Smithsonian doesn't need "an array of segregated, separate-but-equal museums for hyphenated identity groups."

Sen. Mike Lee Blocks Legislation For Latino, Women's Museums

5:18pm December 11, 2020

by Elizabeth Blair

In a move that infuriated supporters of museums to be dedicated to Latinos and women on the National Mall, the Republican senator blocked legislation Thursday that would lead to the creation of both.

Rep. Marcia Fudge delivers remarks Friday in Wilmington, Del., after being introduced as President-elect Joe Biden's nominee to head the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Politics & Government

Biden Introduces Additional Cabinet Nominees, Pledging To Address Inequality

4:56pm December 11, 2020

by Alana Wise

The president-elect on Friday introduced several notable alumni of the Obama administration to join his Cabinet in January.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., arrives Friday at the U.S. Capitol when lawmakers faced a midnight deadline to pass a bill to fund the government.

Politics & Government

After Delays, Senate Approves Bill To Avoid Government Shutdown Ahead Of Deadline

3:43pm December 11, 2020

The Senate passed a bill funding federal agencies before a Friday night deadline. It was stalled as senators fought over other legislation. It also passed the defense bill with a veto-proof majority.

Critics Say New Trump Rule Gives Contractors More Freedom On Religious Discrimination

3:42pm December 11, 2020

by Tom Gjelten

The Trump administration has issued a new rule this week that allows federal contractors that claim a religious mission to exclude any job applicant who does not share their beliefs.

Incoming White House Public Engagement Director On His Plans For The Job

3:42pm December 11, 2020

NPR's Audie Cornish speaks with Rep. Cedric Richmond, D-La., about his future role as the director of the White House Office of Public Engagement in the Biden administration.

How One Senator's Missteps Lead To 'A Painful Age Question' In Congress

3:42pm December 11, 2020

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Jane Mayer of The New Yorker about her reporting on Sen. Dianne Feinstein and the problem of age in the Democratic Party leadership.

Politics & Government

'Bad Behavior By People In High Office': Rachel Maddow On The Lessons Of Spiro Agnew

2:01pm December 11, 2020

by Terry Gross

Richard Nixon's first vice president resigned amid charges of bribery and tax evasion. Maddow and Mike Yarvitz revisit Agnew's story in the podcast (and now book) Bag Man. Originally broadcast in '19.

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President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris were named Person of the Year for 2020 by Time.

Joe Biden, Kamala Harris Named 'Time' Person Of The Year

11:50am December 11, 2020

by Jaclyn Diaz

The two made the cut after topping Time's shortlist that included President Trump, the movement for racial justice, Dr. Anthony Fauci and medical workers on the front line of COVID-19.