Today, Explained

Surprise! Nikki Haley, President Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations, has resigned. Vox’s Alex Ward explains why one of the most popular members of the Trump cabinet would want to leave.

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Brett Kavanaugh starts his new job tomorrow. The Washington Post’s Robert Barnes previews the Supreme Court’s new term and Vox’s Matthew Yglesias says his first day cements a shift 25 years in the making.

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Why even answer the phone anymore?

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The FBI has finished its investigation of Brett Kavanaugh. Today, senators entered a highly secured room to review it.

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One candidate was stabbed. Another is sitting in jail. His replacement was slapped with corruption charges. Just your friendly neighborhood candidates for president in Brazil. *********** Correction: This episode mistakenly notes that a leading presidential candidate died in a helicopter crash in 2014. Eduardo Campos actually died in a plane crash. ***********

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The United States, Mexico, and Canada have a new trade deal. It’s called USMCA, or “the new NAFTA.” Vox’s Jen Kirby breaks it down before political scientist Ian Bremmer determines who's really going to benefit.

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California passed the strongest net neutrality law the country’s ever seen this weekend. The Department of Justice immediately sued. Who’s gonna win this broadband spat? ******************************** Tap here to find out more about Vox Media's new podcasts: https://www.voxmedia.com/about-vox-media/2018/9/24/17882894/vmpn-fall-2018-slate

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After tense words and a walkout, the Republicans got their man and the Democrats got their FBI investigation. Vox's Ezra Klein explains how both sides sorta won.

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Today, Brett Kavanaugh responded to Christine Blasey Ford's testimony that he tried to rape her in high school. (An episode on Ford's testimony was released earlier today.)

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Today, Christine Blasey Ford publicly testified about her allegations that Brett Kavanaugh attempted to rape her in high school. (Expect an additional episode about Kavanaugh's testimony in a few hours.)

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Dozens died, millions of animals drowned, billions of dollars worth in damage done, and Hurricane Florence isn’t even over yet. Before rebuilding begins, the government offers a way out. ******************************** Tap here to find out more about Vox Media's new podcasts: https://www.voxmedia.com/about-vox-media/2018/9/24/17882894/vmpn-fall-2018-slate

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The Trump administration wants to make it a whole lot harder to get a green card. Vox's Dara Lind explains the newest proposal to rein in legal immigration.

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U.S. Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh is facing more accusations of sexual misconduct.

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Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke shot Laquan McDonald 16 times. His murder trial began this week, four years after Laquan was killed. WBEZ's Shannon Heffernan explains how this shooting has changed Chicago.

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Elon Musk is having a bit of a week, a month, a year. Now the Department of Justice is investigating him, as is Today, Explained.

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China has a secret that’s slowly slipping out: roughly a million Uighurs are being held in “reeducation camps”. Gulchehra Hoja, a Uighur journalist, explains how reporting on China’s human rights abuses against Muslims led to the disappearance of 23 of her relatives.

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The Mueller investigation has revealed how easy it is to get away with white-collar crime in the United States. ProPublica’s Jesse Eisinger explains how we got here.

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Christine Blasey Ford has come forward to accuse Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault. Vox's Li Zhou recounts the alleged assault and Emily Bazelon from the New York Times Magazine explains what might come next.

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The FDA announced this week it’s cracking down on e-cigarettes, demanding that manufacturers like Juul prove within 60 days they aren’t harmful to youth. Vox’s Julia Belluz explains why kids love vaping and why they shouldn't.

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Today, Pope Francis met with American bishops at the Vatican to discuss the fallout from a report on decades of abuse by priests. A religion reporter explains the widening crisis within the Church, before a Jesuit priest and a few everyday Catholics struggle with how it affects their faith.

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Meteorologist Angela Fritz forecasts the catastrophic storm that's about to slam the Carolinas.

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Three transgender women of color have been murdered in the past two weeks. ProPublica’s Lucas Waldron explains why so many murders of trans people remain unsolved, and why a lot of it boils down to something called a “deadname.” ****************************************** Watch the Vox-ProPublica video on how ID laws can put trans people in danger: https://bit.ly/2MkETod

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Naomi Osaka defeated her lifelong hero Serena Williams to win the US Open on Saturday. The match might be remembered for the wrong reasons.

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Two Reuters reporters have been sentenced to seven years in prison for calling attention to a recent massacre in Myanmar. The United Nations says it's part of a larger genocide to wipe Rohingya from the country.

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Brett Kavanaugh’s emails are spilling out and they’re causing waves on Capitol Hill.

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The scandal-plagued blood-testing startup Theranos is shutting down. The Wall Street Journal’s John Carreyrou chronicles the rise and fall of a $10 billion business built on lies.

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Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings for the United States Supreme Court began today. Slate's Dahlia Lithwick say they were unlike any she'd seen before.

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Who is Robert Mueller?

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Louis CK surprised New York City's Comedy Cellar with a fresh set of jokes Sunday night. Some were not amused. Vox's Constance Grady explains how to apologize.

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New York investigators are turning up the heat on the Trump Foundation this summer. The Washington Post’s David Fahrenthold shares a series of increasingly unbelievable stories about the organization’s shenanigans.

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The top student loan officer in the country kicked off the school year by quitting. He says the Trump administration "turned its back on young people and their financial futures." Vox’s Libby Nelson explains one contentious call: Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has rolled back Obama-era regulations on for-profit colleges.

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Love him, hate him, or both, Senator John McCain will be remembered as a towering figure of American politics.

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The EPA is rolling back Obama-era regulations on coal-fired plants. It says its decision will kill 1400 Americans per year by 2030.

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The president has threatened to revoke the national security clearances for current and former government officials. The Washington Post's Shane Harris explains why this is a bad idea for basically everyone.

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In an unprecedented one-two punch Donald Trump’s personal lawyer pleaded guilty to and his campaign manager was found guilty of serious crimes yesterday evening. Vox’s Matthew Yglesias explores the implications.

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Inmates nationwide go on strike today to protest conditions they call “modern-day slavery": incarcerated Americans are paid pennies on the dollar for cooking food, making license plates, even fighting fires. The Marshall Project’s Nicole Lewis explains.

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New York City has approved the first cap in the U.S. on Uber and Lyft vehicles. WIRED’s Aarian Marshall explains who’ll be impacted the most, and whether this is scooters’ big chance to zip ahead.

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Twitter temporarily banned Alex Jones and Infowars this week. Why'd it take so long?

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A Pennsylvania grand jury has released a 1300-page report on child sex abuses within the state's Catholic Church. Jack Jenkins from Religion News Service peels back the curtain on 70 years of heinous assaults.

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Crazy Rich Asians hits theaters today. Los Angeles Times film critic Jen Yamato says it's been 25 years in the making.

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Democracies can fall many ways: military coups, assassinations, mass protests. But what does it look like when a democracy quietly backslides into autocracy? Vox’s Zack Beauchamp went on a trip to Hungary to explore (with support from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting).

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You might have missed it this weekend, but NASA shot a spaceship at the sun. Once it gets there, the Parker Solar Probe might find the secret to keeping our big hot star from destroying us.

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Aubtin Heydari tells the story of how he was almost murdered by a white supremacist at the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville last year.

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MoviePass is changing the way we see movies, but it's going to have to get its act together. Vox’s Alissa Wilkinson explains.

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California’s Mendocino Complex Fire is now the biggest in the state’s recorded history, surpassing a record set… last year. Vox’s Umair Irfan says the worst is yet to come.

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Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan wants to be the next Speaker of the House, but a pack of wrestlers could be blocking his path. Corky Siemaszko broke the story for NBC.

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Amazon will soon announce which city will land its second headquarters along with 50,000 new jobs. There’s a lot to win and maybe just as much to lose.

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The US economy is booming, unemployment keeps dropping, and the country is in the midst of one of the longest economic expansions in our history. Guest host Ezra Klein talks with economist Betsey Stevenson about what's driving this growth — and whether President Trump deserves credit for it.

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An immigration lawyer at the border says ICE agents are pressuring parents into being deported with their children. Vox’s Dara Lind broke the story.

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Today was supposed to be a big day for people who wanted to make their own guns with 3D printers. But last night, a federal judge in Seattle temporarily banned a man named Cody Wilson from sharing blueprints for his weapons online. WIRED’s Andy Greenberg makes his own AR-15 and explains.

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