Politics & Government

Politics & Government

Week in politics: Border immigration; debt ceiling talks; Trump's CNN townhall

8:12am May 13, 2023

What immigration at the US/Mexican border means, politically, for the Biden Administration; the debt ceiling talks; and blowback on CNN for that townhall with former President Donald Trump.

Politics & Government

Rep. Mike Lawler on the debt ceiling speech Biden gave in his district

8:12am May 13, 2023

by Scott Simon

NPR's Scott Simon talks with Rep. Mike Lawler about debt ceiling negotiations. This week, President Biden pressed his case in a speech in the moderate Republican's New York district.

Immigrants seeking asylum wait to board a bus to a U.S. Border Patrol processing center, after crossing into Arizona from Mexico, on Thursday in Yuma, Ariz.

Fear and confusion, but not chaos, along the southern border after Title 42 ends

6:55pm May 12, 2023

The pandemic-era policy nearly halted the processing of asylum applications. As Title 42 was lifted on Thursday, officials braced for an influx of migrants. But the reality was relatively calm.

The chaos after Title 42 undercuts Biden's pledge for immigration reform

5:44pm May 12, 2023

by Franco Ordoñez

President Biden campaigned on a message of competency — and on humane treatment for migrants. We look at how the chaos after Title 42 undercuts that pledge, and what it means for Biden in 2024.

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Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan granted bail after dramatic arrest

12:50pm May 12, 2023

A Pakistani court has granted former Prime Minister Imran Khan bail in multiple cases against him. The 70-year-old politician still faces corruption charges.

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U.S. Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., speaks to the media outside the federal courthouse in Central Islip, N.Y., Wednesday. The next day, he appeared virtually in a Brazilian court to face separate charges.

George Santos confessed to stealing checks in Brazil in a deal to drop charges

11:32am May 12, 2023

by Carrie Kahn

The New York Republican congressman reached a deal with Brazilian prosecutors in which he agreed to confess and pay restitution and fines to avoid prosecution.

CNN was 'right to try' a town hall with Trump even if it failed, argues moderator

10:17am May 12, 2023

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with Jon Ralston, CEO of The Nevada Independent, about why he strongly supported the CNN's town hall with Trump — and then changed his mind minutes into the broadcast.

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Sen. Bill Cassidy wants to save Social Security

10:13am May 12, 2023

by Susan Davis

If Washington does nothing, Social Security will start to run out of money in about a decade. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana, is trying to lead an effort to save Social Security. Is anyone listening?

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Sen. Bill Cassidy sits for an NPR interview in Washington, D.C., on May 10.

Politics & Government

Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy wants to save Social Security. Will Washington let him?

9:56am May 12, 2023

by Susan Davis

The Louisiana Republican has been quietly working to build consensus around a bipartisan plan to address coming solvency issues with Social Security. So far, party leaders aren't listening.

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Politics & Government

Biden and lawmakers postpone debt ceiling meeting as their staffs keep negotiating

8:12am May 12, 2023

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina about the debt ceiling. The U.S. government could default on its debt in a matter of weeks if the debt ceiling isn't raised.

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