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Tangle

Independent, non-partisan politics news where you'll hear the best arguments from across the political spectrum on the news of the day. Plus, fascinating interviews with people in the political world. Check out our newsl

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  • PREVIEW - The Friday Edition: Trump’s first month: The good, bad, unclear, and abhorrent.

    32:37|
    The day Donald Trump was inaugurated, my son was born.In retrospect, the timing feels inevitable ("Founder of politics newsletter has baby on inauguration day"), but it created an interesting dynamic for me.Most notably, I got to step back from the day-to-day ruckus of what it's like when Trump is flooding the zone with news and could take in each story with a bit more thoughtfulness. And as I return from paternity leave, it means that I now have the chance to share a month’s worth of distilled thoughts with you about the start of the Trump administration.I've decided to sort Trump’s first month into four buckets: the good, the bad, the unclear, and the abhorrent. Many of you know me, are familiar with my writing and views, and understand that my politics are all over the place. To get ahead of some criticisms I expect: Yes, there are more things in the "bad" and "abhorrent" sections than the "good" section. This shouldn't be surprising. Most presidents make their most aggressive, partisan, and base-oriented actions early on in their presidencies. This is especially true when they have control of both the House and Senate, and is even more true of a president who campaigned on a revenge tour against his "enemies." As a political moderate, I am not a member of Trump's base, so I already expected to have, at minimum, mixed feelings about his first month in office. And while I didn’t review Biden's first month in 2021, I also had strong (and mixed) feelings about his initial executive orders, push to eliminate the filibuster, and terrible cabinet nominees.This is a preview of today's special edition that is available in full and ad-free for our premium podcast subscribers. If you'd like to complete this episode and receive Sunday editions, exclusive interviews, bonus content, and more, head over to ReadTangle.com and sign up for a membership.Ad-free podcasts are here!Many listeners have been asking for an ad-free version of this podcast that they could subscribe to — and we finally launched it. You can go to ReadTangle.com to sign up! You can also give the gift of a Tangle podcast subscription by clicking here.You can subscribe to Tangle by clicking here or drop something in our tip jar by clicking here. Our Executive Editor and Founder is Isaac Saul. Our Executive Producer is Jon Lall.This podcast is written by Isaac Saul and edited and engineered by Jon Lall. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75 and Jon Lall. Our newsletter is edited by Managing Editor Ari Weitzman, Senior Editor Will Kaback, Hunter Casperson, Kendall White, Bailey Saul, and Audrey Moorehead. Our logo was created by Magdalena Bokowa, Head of Partnerships and Socials. 

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  • The Senate and House budget plans

    30:52|
    Republicans in Congress are moving to pass a budget plan to advance President Donald Trump’s domestic agenda. On Wednesday, the Senate voted 50-47 to take up the outline of a budget that would increase immigration and military spending but does not include an extension of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The vote is a key step in the budget reconciliation process, which allows a party to bypass the Senate's 60-vote filibuster rule to pass eligible budget legislation with a simple majority vote. However, Republicans in the House and Senate are advancing separate bills and will need to approve identical resolutions to use the reconciliation process. We are surveying our podcast listeners to better understand our audience and improve our products. If you regularly listen to the podcast, or even if you have listened just once, please take three minutes and fill out this audience survey. We’d really appreciate it!Ad-free podcasts are here!Many listeners have been asking for an ad-free version of this podcast that they could subscribe to — and we finally launched it. You can go to ReadTangle.com to sign up!You can read today's podcast⁠ ⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠, our “Under the Radar” story ⁠here and today’s “Have a nice day” story ⁠here⁠.Take the survey: Where do you think Congress should cut the federal budget? Let us know!You can subscribe to Tangle by clicking here or drop something in our tip jar by clicking here. Our podcast is written by Isaac Saul and edited and engineered by Dewey Thomas. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75. Our newsletter is edited by Managing Editor Ari Weitzman, Will Kaback, Bailey Saul, Sean Brady, and produced in conjunction with Tangle’s social media manager Magdalena Bokowa, who also created our logo.
  • Updates on the Department of Government Efficiency.

    30:43|
    The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, has gained access or attempted to gain access to numerous departments across the federal government for its cost-cutting initiatives. The actions have prompted state attorneys general to file suits blocking DOGE from accessing confidential data, and in the past week several U.S. district judges have issued temporary rulingson the ongoing challenges. We are surveying our podcast listeners to better understand our audience and improve our products. If you regularly listen to the podcast, or even if you have listened just once, please take three minutes and fill out this audience survey. We’d really appreciate it!Ad-free podcasts are here!Many listeners have been asking for an ad-free version of this podcast that they could subscribe to — and we finally launched it. You can go to ReadTangle.com to sign up!You can read today's podcast⁠ ⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠, our “Under the Radar” story ⁠here and today’s “Have a nice day” story ⁠here⁠.Take the survey: What do you think of DOGE so far? Let us know!You can subscribe to Tangle by clicking here or drop something in our tip jar by clicking here. Our podcast is written by Isaac Saul and edited and engineered by Dewey Thomas. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75. Our newsletter is edited by Managing Editor Ari Weitzman, Will Kaback, Bailey Saul, Sean Brady, and produced in conjunction with Tangle’s social media manager Magdalena Bokowa, who also created our logo.
  • U.S.-Russia negotiations on Ukraine

    30:05|
    On Tuesday, U.S. and Russian officials met in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to discuss the future of the war in Ukraine. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, and Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff led the American delegation, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov represented Russia. The meeting did not include Ukrainian or European representatives, though President Donald Trump said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky would be involved in any peace negotiations. Ad-free podcasts are here!Many listeners have been asking for an ad-free version of this podcast that they could subscribe to — and we finally launched it. You can go to ReadTangle.com to sign up!You can read today's podcast⁠ ⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠, our “Under the Radar” story ⁠here and today’s “Have a nice day” story ⁠here⁠.Take the survey: What do you think of the Trump administration’s talks with Russia and Ukraine? Let us know!You can subscribe to Tangle by clicking here or drop something in our tip jar by clicking here. Our podcast is written by Isaac Saul and edited and engineered by Dewey Thomas. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75. Our newsletter is edited by Managing Editor Ari Weitzman, Will Kaback, Bailey Saul, Sean Brady, and produced in conjunction with Tangle’s social media manager Magdalena Bokowa, who also created our logo.
  • SPECIAL EDITION: Biden and Trump show us the promise and peril of presidential clemency.

    22:43|
    Editor's note: We are off for President's Day today, but have a special edition featuring a guest writer today.Core to our mission at Tangle is offering perspectives from influential and thoughtful voices from across the political spectrum. As we've grown, our ability to advance that mission has also grown, allowing us a broader reach and new ways to offer coverage of political news to our subscribers.Today, we are pleased to publish a thoughtful essay from Jacob Sullum, senior editor at Reason, about President Joe Biden's and President Donald Trump's recent acts of clemency.Jacob Sullum, a senior editor at Reason magazine, is the author of Beyond Control: Drug Prohibition, Gun Regulation, and the Search for Sensible Alternatives, forthcoming from Prometheus Books.Our Executive Editor and Founder is Isaac Saul. Our Executive Producer is Jon Lall. This podcast was recorded by Will Kaback and edited and engineered by Jon Lall. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75 and Jon Lall. Our newsletter is edited by Managing Editor Ari Weitzman, Senior Editor Will Kaback, Hunter Casperson, Kendall White, Bailey Saul, and Audrey Moorehead. Our logo was created by Magdalena Bokowa, Head of Partnerships and Socials. 
  • PREVIEW - The Sunday Podcast: Ari and Will talk about an NBA Trade, the Trump Administration and Defense Budgets

    31:54|
    Please enjoy this preview episode of our Sunday podcast. The full editions are available exclusively for premium podcast members. To become a member, please go to tanglemedia.supercast.com and sign up. In this episode, Ari and Will talk about a significant NBA trade, a lot of Trump administration talk and propriety in government. After that Ari and Will go over some global defense budgets in a fun game. And last but not least, the Airing of Grievances.You can subscribe to Tangle by clicking here or drop something in our tip jar by clicking here. Our podcast is written by Isaac Saul and edited and engineered by Dewey Thomas. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75. Our newsletter is edited by Managing Editor Ari Weitzman, Will Kaback, Bailey Saul, Sean Brady, and produced in conjunction with Tangle’s social media manager Magdalena Bokowa, who also created our logo.
  • The 3rd Annual Valentine's Day Special featuring Isaac, Phoebe, and a very special (and tiny) guest.

    01:40:19|
    This is the 3rd Annual Valentine's Day Podcast!On this special episode, Isaac and his amazing wife, Phoebe, talk about navigating through their experiences as first time parents, how their perspectives have expanded and changed on birth, healthcare, family leave, and abortion. They also discuss their future and what each is looking forward to. And throughout the episode, they are joined by a very special guest, their newborn son, Omri.You can subscribe to Tangle by clicking here or drop something in our tip jar by clicking here. Our Executive Editor and Founder is Isaac Saul. This podcast is edited and engineered by Jon Lall. Music for the podcast was produced by Jon Lall. Our newsletter is edited by Managing Editor Ari Weitzman, Senior Editor Will Kaback, Hunter Casperson, Kendall White, Bailey Saul, and Audrey Moorehead. Our logo was created by Magdalena Bokowa, Head of Partnerships.