Show Notes
NBC national-security reporter Gordon Lubold discusses the U.S. military’s growing leadership vacuum under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
A federal whistleblower says the Postal Service has been secretly working to overhaul mail-in voting to comply with one of President Trump’s executive orders, despite a judge recently blocking it. The Washington Post’s Patrick Marley explains how the system could prevent thousands of Americans from receiving ballots for the midterms.
Plus, how around 900 students barely escaped deadly flash floods in Nepal, a judge ruled that the man accused of assassinating Charlie Kirk will stand trial for murder, Germany is blaming Russia for an attempted airport drone attack, and how an MLB team swung its way to the top of its division.
More from Apple News Today
More than $10 billion is expected to be spent on advertising in this midterm cycle. New York Times reporter Teddy Schleifer joins to explain where the money comes from, how a recent Supreme Court ruling has shifted power back toward party committees, and what voters should watch for in the final two weeks.
The Guardian’s Ashifa Kassam takes us inside Europe’s “autumn of discontent.” The Justice Department has charged 28 people in California with election crimes and is seeking to block roughly 20,000 ballots from being counted in the midterm elections despite experts saying noncitizen voting is extremely rare. NPR’s Miles Parks discusses the implications of the move. Federal judges in Washington are being asked to weigh in on details of President Trump’s attempt to make over the capital, and they’re getting increasingly frustrated. Associated Press reporter Gary Fields explains why. Plus, Trump’s $8 billion bailout for farmers, the NASCAR driver diagnosed with CTE, and how a novel piece of infrastructure is saving wildlife in the West. Today’s episode was hosted by Gideon Resnick.
President Trump says he is open to a trilateral summit with Russia’s Putin and China’s Xi to discuss Ukraine without Zelenskyy present. The Wall Street Journal’s Lingling Wei explains what the talks signal to smaller nations.
Voters in Alberta today decide if the province should pursue secession. Leyland Cecco from The Guardian breaks down the long-shot independence referendum.
From Apple News In Conversation: With the 2026 midterms just two weeks away, many Americans are paying close attention not only to races and candidates but to the election process itself. Cook Political Report editor in chief Amy Walter and veteran GOP pollster Patrick Ruffini join Apple News In Conversation host Shumita Basu to answer questions from our listeners — including why polling has become so hard to trust, how redistricting fights are reshaping races, and what guardrails are in place after results start coming in.