Episodes

  • Trump says he's pulling U.S. Troops from Germany. Does it matter?

    Trump says he's pulling U.S. Troops from Germany. Does it matter?
    May 4 2026
    Trump is once again threatening NATO allies. What would a reduction of U.S. troops in Germany mean for security and the U.S. military?


    Today, about 36-thousand U.S. troops are stationed in Germany, and they’re a key part of the U.S. military ecosystem and the NATO alliance.

    Now, President Trump plans to reduce that number.

    Trump has grown increasingly and publicly frustrated with NATO allies.

    This time he’s taking it out on German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said the U.S. has been humiliated by Iran.

    Among the many questions raised by this: What are U.S. troops doing in Germany anyway?

    For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

    This episode was produced by Fio Geiran, Tyler Bartlam and Karen Zamora.

    It was edited by Sarah Handel and Courtney Dorning.

    Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.


    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    11 mins
  • How does diplomacy work during a military deadlock?

    How does diplomacy work during a military deadlock?
    May 3 2026
    The war with Iran is in a deadlock. Despite a back and forth of peace plans, there is no permanent ceasefire.

    President Trump has oscillated between a willingness to engage in diplomacy and threats to resume the American bombing campaign if he doesn’t get a deal.

    All this has complicated negotiations, which the U.S. and Iran are holding through intermediaries.

    So, how do leaders try to negotiate with countries they’re in conflict with?

    For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

    Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

    This episode was produced by Henry Larson.

    It was edited by Sarah Robbins and Tinbete Ermyas.

    Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.


    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    8 mins
  • What it takes to report stories from the war in the Middle East

    What it takes to report stories from the war in the Middle East
    May 2 2026
    Covering a war isn’t easy and it takes a whole team working both on the air and behind the scenes to bring you accurate, independent reporting from the frontlines.

    For this week’s Reporter’s Notebook we speak with two journalists about the challenges of covering the war in the Middle East. Durrie Bouscaren has been reporting from the Turkish-Iranian border and NPR reporter Kat Lonsdorf has been covering the war in southern Lebanon.

    Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

    This episode was produced by Gabriel Sanchez and Henry Larson.

    It was edited by Adam Raney.

    Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    10 mins
  • Trump immigration application pause throws lives in limbo

    Trump immigration application pause throws lives in limbo
    May 1 2026
    The Trump administration has paused immigration applications for people from 39 countries, and for those already living in the U.S. the impact has been catastrophic.

    The lives of hundreds of thousands of people living in the country were thrown into limbo after the Trump administration paused their immigration applications in recent months.

    They were students, engineers, teachers and others living and working legally in the U.S.

    The pause affects those who were born in one of 39 countries the U.S. says pose a national security risk.

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    9 mins
  • RFK Jr. says it's the model for addiction treatment. Experts disagree

    RFK Jr. says it's the model for addiction treatment. Experts disagree
    Apr 30 2026
    HHS Secretary RFK Jr. thinks he has the answer to addiction treatment. The experts say otherwise.

    Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. thinks he’s cracked the code for addiction treatment.

    Kennedy, who used heroin for more than a decade, believes wellness, work and abstinence like the methods practiced in a rural Italian facility are the keys to sobriety.

    But Kennedy is facing new criticism over his proposal to open government-run farm and work camps. NPR addiction correspondent Brian Mann traveled to Italy to see things up close.For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

    Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

    This episode was produced by Kai McNamee and Tyler Bartlam.

    It was edited by Andrea de Leon and Courtney Dorning.

    Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.




    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    10 mins
  • How an antisemitic conspiracy theory made its way to a state capitol

    How an antisemitic conspiracy theory made its way to a state capitol
    Apr 29 2026
    A New Hampshire Republican. A German Holocaust denier. A suspicious bottle of baby oil. An NPR investigation reveals how the alarming rise of antisemitic conspiracy theories reached a state capitol.


    For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

    Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

    This episode was reported and produced by Tom Dreisbach, with help from Karen Zamora. It was edited by Barrie Hardymon with help from Monika Evstatieva, Bob Little, and Kristian Monroe. Audio engineering by Jimmy Keeley.

    Tony Cavin is NPR’s Managing Editor for Standard and Practices.

    Legal support from Johannes Doerge.

    Thanks also to Dan Barrick and our colleagues at New Hampshire Public Radio.

    Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.


    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    28 mins
  • Can Illinois hold the feds accountable for immigration crackdown?

    Can Illinois hold the feds accountable for immigration crackdown?
    Apr 28 2026
    The Illinois state government has been investigating the United States government.


    Specifically, a panel called the Illinois Accountability Commission has been conducting interviews and reviewing footage from last year's federal immigration enforcement crackdown in Chicago, known as Operation Midway Blitz.

    Illinois Governor JB Pritzker established the commission late last year to create a public record of the weeks-long immigration crackdown throughout the Chicago area.

    For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.


    This episode was produced by Alejandra Marquez Janse and Karen Zamora.

    It was edited by Patrick Jarenwattananon and Courtney Dorning.

    Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.

    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    11 mins
  • Correspondents dinner shooting unleashes conspiracy theories

    Correspondents dinner shooting unleashes conspiracy theories
    Apr 27 2026
    Within minutes of the news of a shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, people claimed on social media that the incident was “STAGED." To be clear — these were conspiracy theories, not supported by what we know about the suspect.

    The most common of these theories claim the shooting was orchestrated in an effort to boost President Trump’s plans for a new White House ballroom.

    It isn’t surprising that rampant speculation would instantly surround an act of apparent politically-motivated violence, but this incident suggests that voices on the left are increasingly engaged with conspiracy theories.

    For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

    This episode was produced by Tyler Bartlam and Karen Zamora.

    It was edited by Patrick Jarenwattananon and Courtney Dorning.

    Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.


    See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

    NPR Privacy Policy
    Show More Show Less
    9 mins