Show Notes
From Apple News In Conversation: Americans spend billions of hours a year navigating government bureaucracy, whether filling out forms, waiting on hold, or standing in endless lines. Researchers call this hidden burden the “time tax.” In her new book, The Time Tax: How the Government Wastes Our Time — and How to Fix It, Atlantic staff writer Annie Lowrey argues all of this red tape is more than just annoying — it has real, lasting consequences for the country. Lowrey joins Apple News In Conversation host Shumita Basu to talk about who pays a disproportionate share of the time tax, why the system was designed to wear us down, and her ideas for how to fix it.
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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.