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This week, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., joined forces with Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., to introduce ambitious Medicare for All legislation that would provide comprehensive coverage to every American without premiums, co-payments, or deductibles. The move comes at a striking moment — with Donald Trump in the White House and Republicans controlling both chambers of Congress, the bill's passage remains unlikely. In this week's episode of The Intercept Briefing, Jayapal delivers a candid assessment of Democratic strategy in the Trump era. "You can't just be an opposition party. You do have to also be a proposition party.” It's why Medicare for All was so important, she explains. “We have to show people that we are willing to un-rig the system.” Jayapal acknowledges critical missteps by her party. "A lot of my colleagues may have gotten scared off and somehow thought that what the American people wanted was for us to play footsie with Donald Trump instead of go toe to toe with him," she says. "And I think it is very clear now, after the first three months of destruction and chaos and cruelty, that that is not the way to go. This is not an administration that you want to try and get in bed with. This is an administration that we have to fight if we want to preserve our democracy." She has been particularly frustrated by her colleagues in the Senate. "The Senate had the ability to confirm Trump's Cabinet, and you saw many Democrats going along with those confirmations as if somehow this was OK to put these people who are completely incompetent and have no understanding whatsoever, and even worse have lots of things in their backgrounds that never should have allowed them to be confirmed as Cabinet members." The Senate, she adds, had “a certain power to stand up early that they didn't use." Now is the time, says Jayapal, to offer a clear roadmap for resistance. "My job now is to use the platform I have and the relationships I have to build the resistance movement on the outside and on the inside. And that is really on every level from Congress to the courts to the public." Listen to the full conversation of The Intercept Briefing on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-intercept-briefing/id1195206601], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/2js8lwDRiK1TB4rUgiYb24?si=e3ce772344ee4170], or wherever you listen. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

On the eve of his second inauguration, Donald Trump did something no U.S. president had ever done: He launched a meme coin. The cryptocurrency — whose value hinges more on hype than utility — surged to an all-time high of $75.35 [https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/official-trump/] a token. The next day, First Lady Melania Trump dropped her own meme coin, debuting at about $13 a share [https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/melania-meme/].  Both coins have since tumbled, but on Wednesday Trump’s token briefly bumped up again to $15.47 before dipping. The latest surge came after the coin’s official website announced that 220 top meme coin holders [https://gettrumpmemes.com/dinner] will be invited to a gala dinner with the president in May — black tie optional.  These tokens, that are not tied to any real world assets, have proven lucrative [https://www.citationneeded.news/trump-crypto-empire/] for Trump and his family. Last month, the Financial Times estimated Trump made upwards of $350 million [https://www.ft.com/content/cb1def8f-53a6-478e-9b3e-33c383b29629] from the project. While small traders have lost big, the Trump Organization and its affiliates — controlling 80 percent [https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2025/04/24/trump-meme-coin-price-surges-after-top-holders-are-invited-for-dinner-with-president/]of the token supply — have made hundreds of millions in just trading fees [https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/trumps-meme-coin-made-nearly-100-million-trading-fees-small-traders-lost-money-2025-02-03/]. Trump, once a crypto skeptic, is now the industry’s most powerful advocate. “ He went to a big bitcoin conference in Nashville [https://theintercept.com/2024/08/03/trump-nashville-bitcoin-conference/] last July. That's where he declared he would make the U.S. the crypto capital of the planet,” says Intercept reporter Matt Sledge. “And the crypto industry started showering money on him. They saw somebody who would be friendly to their industry.” This week on The Intercept Briefing, Sledge, who covers crypto’s political reach [https://theintercept.com/staff/matt-sledge/], discusses how investing in the president has paid off for the industry and for the Trump family. “So far in Trump's presidency, things have gone great for the crypto industry. Even as the rest of the economy is on pretty perilous footing, a bunch of crypto companies have seen the SEC and other regulatory agencies drop investigations or lawsuits. Trump has created a 'bitcoin reserve,' and in general, regulators and Congress are behaving much more friendly toward the industry.” For more on how Trump is reshaping the crypto landscape and what it means for the rest of us, listen to the full conversation of The Intercept Briefing on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-intercept-briefing/id1195206601], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/2js8lwDRiK1TB4rUgiYb24?si=e3ce772344ee4170], or wherever you listen. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

In this week’s episode of The Intercept Briefing, we examine the case of Mohsen Mahdawi [https://theintercept.com/2025/04/14/ice-columbia-student-mohsen-mahdawi-citizenship-interview/], a Palestinian student whose decadelong journey toward American citizenship ended not with the oath of allegiance, but in handcuffs. On Monday, the Columbia student arrived at his long-awaited citizenship interview in Vermont. Instead, immigration agents arrested him, and he now faces deportation to the occupied West Bank. Rep. Becca Balint, D-Vt., who represents his district, is outraged and told The Intercept Briefing, “If you'll deny due process from somebody who was in this country with a green card for 10 years, who is somebody who talked about peace and connection between Palestinians and Israelis [https://theintercept.com/2025/04/15/rubio-antisemitism-mahdawi-columbia-student-ice-palestine-israel/]who was looking to build bridges — if this man is somehow a threat to our society, then we are down a sick path.” Mahdawi spoke to The Intercept the night before his fateful appointment and said he understood the risk he might be facing. He is now the ninth [https://www.columbiaspectator.com/news/2025/04/06/federal-government-terminates-visas-of-four-international-students-university-says/] Columbia student targeted [https://theintercept.com/2025/03/28/ice-warrants-columbia-students-gaza-protests/]for deportation [https://theintercept.com/2025/04/01/trump-ice-deport-students-immigrants-american-dream/]. The Trump administration has revoked or changed [https://theintercept.com/2025/04/08/trump-immigration-international-student-visas-deport/] over a 1,000 [https://www.insidehighered.com/news/global/international-students-us/2025/04/07/where-students-have-had-their-visas-revoked] student visas, according to Inside Higher Ed.  Mahdawi’s case exemplifies how immigration enforcement is being weaponized, says Balint. “ If they're so proud of what they're doing, then show your damn face, then show your ID. Then talk about what grounds you are holding this person. But it's being done in secret, and it is meant to shock and awe and to get the rest of us to remain silent. They have no evidence, they have no details, which is what we're demanding of both Secretary [Marco] Rubio and Secretary [Kristi] Noem." Immigration lawyer Matt Cameron spoke to The Intercept about the broader implications of the administration’s agenda and said that this is much bigger than just students and immigrants. “ It's a message to student protesters obviously to start with, but it's a message to all of us that our free speech is a liability,” he warned. Cameron pointed to the case of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, a Maryland resident who was illegally deported to El Salvador and is now imprisoned despite no criminal record. The U.S. Supreme Court has ordered the government to facilitate his return, but so far, the administration has resisted. "This is going to be one of the most important cases of our lifetimes,” said Cameron. “ Even for people who don't think they're interested in following immigration issues: This is for all of us. And you know, Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia will be all of us pretty soon here if we don't stay on our rights.” ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Donald Trump’s presidency continues to challenge all conventional understanding of executive authority. His administration's extensive use of executive orders has reshaped the political landscape, testing established laws [https://theintercept.com/2025/04/08/trump-big-law-firms-paul-weiss-courts/], ethical boundaries, and institutional norms. Among those raising alarms is Democratic Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, who has consistently questioned what happens when governmental powers are directed against the very citizens they were designed to protect. On this week’s episode of The Intercept Briefing, she discusses these concerns, including the administration's immigration enforcement tactics targeting international students — among them, one of her own constituents. Rümeysa Öztürk, a Ph.D. candidate at Tufts University who has a valid student visa, was abducted off the streets by ICE agents [https://theintercept.com/2025/03/30/tufts-rumeysa-ozturk-ice-immigration-op-ed/]. “ She was kidnapped in broad daylight. There is no evidence of any criminal wrongdoing. The only — the only — thing that she did was co-author an op-ed centering the humanity and the dignity of the Palestinian people and because that is a dissenting opinion of the hostile Trump administration, she finds herself a political prisoner,” says Pressley. “So I need people to understand that this could be anyone when constitutional rights are being violated, when due process is being violated. It could be you tomorrow for reading a banned book. It could be you tomorrow for suffering a miscarriage. It could be you tomorrow for practicing diversity, equity, and inclusion,” she warns. In a broad ranging conversation with host Jessica Washington [https://theintercept.com/staff/jessicawashington/], she also raises fundamental questions about executive authority and democratic safeguards. “It was all laid out in Project 2025, which was not a blueprint — it was a playbook. And they're making good on that playbook. And I think people didn't take it seriously,” Pressley points out.  “They recognized that a lot of what he was laying out in that playbook was unlawful — was unconstitutional. So they said, how could it ever happen? And yet, you know, here we find ourselves.” And despite widespread criticism [https://theintercept.com/2025/02/07/briefing-podcast-trump-democrats/] and anger [https://theintercept.com/2024/11/18/democratic-party-reform-organizing/] about the Democratic Party’s response — or lack thereof — she believes her party is stepping up. “Even though I believe that we are — as a party — being exhaustive, being strategic, [we] have found our footing. I believe we are being more effective as an opposition party in resistance to this hostile administration,” Pressley says.  But she acknowledges the Democrats can do more. “ I do believe that we have a sound strategy of litigation, legislation, agitation, mobilization, and I think we are finding our footing. We have to match their energy. They're flooding the zone. We have to do the same thing.” Listen to the full conversation of The Intercept Briefing on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-intercept-briefing/id1195206601], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/2js8lwDRiK1TB4rUgiYb24?si=e3ce772344ee4170], or wherever you listen. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Tesla’s stock plummeted more than 30 percent in the first quarter of 2025, losing its post-election gains, as the electric vehicle pioneer grapples with an unexpected challenge: a consumer revolt against CEO Elon Musk's leadership of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency and his political alliances. Once celebrated across the political spectrum, Tesla has transformed from an environmental icon into a political flashpoint.  Tesla dealerships have become symbols, explains Lara Starr, who organized a 200-person demonstration in Marin County, California. "You can't disentangle Tesla from Musk, and you can't disentangle Musk from Trump. And the one thing I can say about Musk positively is he has handed us a place in almost every community around the country that is symbolic of everything wrong that is going on in Washington." The impact of this grassroots rebellion is beginning to show in Tesla's financial reports. Global sales [https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/02/business/tesla-sales/index.html]have hit historic lows for the company, with particularly sharp declines in traditionally strong markets. Despite Tesla's business challenges, the billionaire poured considerable resources on reshaping America's political landscape. His political spending — including with his super PAC spending $25 million in a single Wisconsin Supreme Court race — has yielded disappointing returns. His preferred candidate was defeated. In this week’s episode of The Intercept Briefing, reporters Matt Sledge [https://theintercept.com/staff/matt-sledge/]and Sunjeev Bery examine this grassroots rebellion and what it reveals about Musk's power and the future of political activism. "There's been a lot of talk about how the Democrats are in disarray and not sure how to recover from the election last year. But the Wisconsin election — and the way that Elon Musk got involved and personalized it and made it about him himself — gave Democrats an easy yes-no vote on Elon Musk, and I think that was really significant here," says Sledge.  He points out how that election is also a rebuke of the Trump–Musk alliance: " It is fascinating that it is happening through this electoral mechanism, and that people are being allowed to give a referendum on this relationship, and that the democratic process is potentially having a direct input on this relationship." Intercept contributor Sunjeev Bery [https://theintercept.com/staff/sunjeev-bery/] says the Tesla protests are much bigger than just Tesla or Musk. "The Tesla takedown movement has become this astonishing wave of opposition to Trump, the fascist directions of the Trump regime, everything Elon Musk is pushing with DOGE. It's a place where lots of people who are angry about all of the different things that the Trump regime is up to — all of the fires they're setting — can come together and focus on Elon Musk, Tesla, and the physical place of his dealerships." Listen to the full conversation of The Intercept Briefing on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-intercept-briefing/id1195206601], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/2js8lwDRiK1TB4rUgiYb24?si=e3ce772344ee4170], or wherever you listen. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.