‘First thing we do, we kill all the lawyers.’

How Trump’s immigration policies have been (largely) stopped in the courts. A conversation with law professor Peter Margulies.

Lawyers -- outraged by the Trump Administration's harsh policies against immigrants -- have brought scores of cases challenging the President's actions. They have been remarkably successful in persuading judges to invalidate or put on hold many of the Administration's new policies. Law professor Peter Margulies tells us why the lawyers ...
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Gillette’s New Ad, Rep. Steve King, and Cursive’s Decline

Past Present Episode 163

Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: Gillette released a new ad taking aim at “toxic masculinity.” Natalia recommended historian Gail Bederman’s book Manliness and Civilization: A Cultural History of Race and Gender in the United States, 1880-1917 and a Twitter thread she compiled of relevant historical images. Neil referred to his HuffPost piece on the campaign’s ...
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Gillette’s New Ad, Rep. Steve King, and Cursive’s Decline

Border Tragedies

A Tempest Tossed Essay by Alex Aleinikoff on Trump border policies.

The death of 7 year old Jakelin Caal while in Border Patrol custody is a tragedy, and it is sadly emblematic of Trump Administration border policies that have devastated families, undermined U.S. asylum laws and betrayed traditional American values. Alex Aleinikoff, Director of the Zolberg Institute on Migration and Mobility ...
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Tempest Tossed Episode 10

The Trump Administration’s Assault on Gender Asylum

Two actions of the Trump Administration have sought to make it practically impossible for women who are victims of intimate partner violence to apply for and be granted asylum in the United States. The first is an action by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions to overturn a decision of the Board of ...
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The Weekly Standard, Sheryl Sandberg, and “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”

Past Present Episode 160

In this episode, Natalia, Niki, and Neil discuss the closing of the conservative magazine The Weekly Standard, changing public perceptions of Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, and the controversy over the 1944 Christmas classic “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.” Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: After twenty-three years, the ...
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The Weekly Standard, Sheryl Sandberg, and “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”

Classical Statues, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” and Oklahoma Land Rights

Past Present Episode 159

In this episode, Neil, Niki, and Natalia discuss the disputed whiteness of classical statues, the Emmy Award-winning show The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and Native American claims to land rights in Oklahoma. Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: A small cadre of archaeologists and art historians are ...
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Classical Statues, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” and Oklahoma Land Rights

George H.W. Bush, Exorcisms, and the Squatty Potty

Past Present Episode 158

In this episode, Niki, Natalia, and Neil discuss the death of President George Herbert Walker Bush, the resurgence of exorcisms, and the viral popularity of the Squatty Potty. Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show: Forty-first president George H.W. Bush died recently at age 94. Niki mentioned ...
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George H.W. Bush, Exorcisms, and the Squatty Potty

Inmate Firefighters, China’s Social Credit System, and Chanukah

Past Present Episode 157

In this episode, Natalia, Neil, and Niki discuss convict firefighters, China’s new social credit system, and the history of Chanukah. Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show:  California’s latest wave of forest fires is being battled in part by inmates in the state’s prisons through a ...
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Inmate Firefighters, China’s Social Credit System, and Chanukah

Segregation Academies, the Death of an American Missionary, and Victoria’s Secret

Past Present Episode 156

In this episode, Neil, Natalia, and Niki discuss segregation academies, the death of an American missionary, and the declining market share of lingerie giant Victoria’s Secret. Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show:  Mississippi Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith, who is in a runoff contest to hold on ...
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Segregation Academies, the Death of an American Missionary, and Victoria’s Secret

The 2018 Recounts, Jim Acosta, and Bedtime Stories

Past Present Episode 155

In this episode, Niki, Neil, and Natalia discuss the aftermath of the midterm elections with special guest, Slate senior political correspondent Jamelle Bouie, the revocation of CNN journalist Jim Acosta’s “hard pass” to the White House, and the supposed radicalization of children’s literature. Here are some links and references mentioned ...
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The 2018 Recounts, Jim Acosta, and Bedtime Stories