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On this week’s episode, The Washington Post’s Libby Casey, James Hohmann and JM Rieger discuss the ongoing fallout between Elon Musk and President Donald Trump’s top Cabinet and administration officials, as well as the CEO's announcement Tuesday that he will step away from his U.S. DOGE Service responsibilities as a "special government employee." Musk, a GOP megadonor and close adviser to Trump, has seen his net worth crumble in the aftermath of the current trade war, as his Tesla stock plummets amongst a shaky quarterly earnings report that showed a 71 percent drop in profits. Musk touted a proposal to cut $2 trillion from the annual federal budget on the 2024 presidential campaign trail, and while his DOGE team has caused chaos with numerous job cuts and potentially illegal access to sensitive data information, the actual savings achieved by the DOGE initiative may be just a fraction of what was promised. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/04/24/elon-musk-doge-scott-bessent-tesla/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=can-he-do-that https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/04/18/irs-shapley-bessent-musk/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=can-he-do-that

On this episode, The Washington Post's Libby Casey, James Hohmann and JM Rieger discuss the latest allegations that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth shared information about military plans on a group chat – this time, one that reportedly included his wife, brother and personal lawyer. The crew breaks down Hegseth's attempts at damage control, and why he's still in the job. Then, we go inside the reported chaos, screaming matches and proposed DOGE cuts at the Pentagon. And a former Hegseth aide says he was pushed out by a faction of Defense Department employees with an ulterior motive.

On this episode, The Washington Post's Rhonda Colvin, James Hohmann and JM Rieger break down President Trump's broadside at Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell on Thursday, saying he looks forward to Powell's "termination." The crew explains why Trump wants Powell out as Fed chair – and his long history of targeting the country's central banking system for criticism. Then, a federal judge said he would launch an investigation into whether Trump officials should face criminal contempt charges for defying his order not to remove Venezuelan migrants from the United States. What would happen if an official actually faced a contempt charge?

On this episode, The Washington Post's Rhonda Colvin, James Hohmann and JM Rieger break down whether President Trump has a plan to enact his biggest policy priorities – or if major changes to government and policy are being undertaken without detailed objectives. And is there anyone in the White House who Trump truly listens to? Plus, Trump has targeted another University – this time going after Harvard.

On this episode, The Washington Post's Libby Casey, Rhonda Colvin and James Hohmann break down President Trump's apparent strategy of pushing norms and testing the U.S. court system to see how far he can push his policies. The crew looks at how Trump has approached firing federal workers and immigration, and how the court system has handled legal challenges on both policy fronts. Plus, has the Supreme Court largely given his policies a pass, or is it reigning him in?

On this episode, The Washington Post's Libby Casey, Rhonda Colvin and James Hohmann discuss the latest on the economy and Trump's tariffs – starting with the short-lived morning rally in the U.S. stock markets. The crew breaks down whether President Trump and his administration might be willing to negotiate with countries on the import duties Trump has put in place. Plus, will a proposed Senate bill that would limit the president's power to put tariffs in place without congressional approval actually pass? Then, the crew breaks down a change to the way the Justice Department will investigate cryptocurrency fraud.

On this episode, The Washington Post's Libby Casey, Rhonda Colvin and James Hohmann are joined by White House reporter Cat Zakrzewski to discuss the latest on the massive set of tariffs President Trump is putting into place. Plus, how will tariffs affect consumers – and is Congress finally preparing to take some of its own power back? Then: The deadline for a TikTok sale is coming up soon. The crew breaks down the latest on attempts to negotiate some kind of sale to a U.S. buyer.

On this episode, The Washington Post's Libby Casey, Rhonda Colvin and James Hohmann are joined by White House economic reporter Jeff Stein to discuss President Trump's proposed sweeping tariffs – and the day he and his team have referred to as "Liberation Day." What effect will those tariffs have, how will the costs be passed on to American citizens, and why is Trump so set on remaking the United States' relationship with the rest of the world? Plus, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) speaks for hours and hours on the Senate floor in protest of Trump's early months in office.

On this episode, The Washington Post's Libby Casey, Rhonda Colvin, James Hohmann and JM Rieger discuss the Signal leak by Trump administration officials, whether there could be investigations, and why some of the officials involved are denying classified information was sent in the group chat that included a magazine editor. Plus, President Trump and his administration seem to be creating a climate of fear at the country's borders, checking visitors' phones and in several cases arresting people who are in the country legally – including a Tufts University student. And will Trump's tariffs on automobiles affect the economy?

On this episode, The Washington Post's Libby Casey, Rhonda Colvin and James Hohmann break down the Trump administration's leak of national security information to a magazine editor – and how Congress reacted to it in a fiery hearing on Tuesday. Plus, is the Trump administration transparent – or just claiming to be?

On this episode, President Trump has called Washington’s D.C. a ‘rat-infested…sh—hole’. Over $1 billion in city funding earmarked for 2025 has been held up by Republican lawmakers and the federal workforce is being decimated. Today, the gang is joined by local reporters Meagan Flynn and Emily Davies to make sense of the Trump administration’s complex and at times combative relationship with the nation’s capital. Washington’s federal workforce is reeling, with mass layoffs already announced and implemented across government agencies. The Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, continues to create fear, chaos and confusion amongst government employees. Plus, Trump signs an Executive Order aimed at shuttering the Department of Education. We tell you what that means, and why it matters. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/03/20/trump-presidency-news/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=can-he-do-that https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2025/03/20/trump-executive-order-education-department-close/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=can-he-do-that https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2025/03/20/trump-education-department-executive-order/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=can-he-do-that

On this episode, Libby Casey, Rhonda Colvin, James Hohmann, and immigration reporter Maria Sacchetti discuss the deportation of hundreds of alleged Venezuelan gang members to a prison in El Salvador without due process under the Alien Enemies Act, a rarely invoked law from the 18th century. In response to a court placing a restraining order on the deportations, the President called for the judge to be impeached, Trump and his allies' defiant tone against the judiciary drew the ire of Chief Justice John G. Roberts in a rare public rebuke. Plus, reaction to President Donald Trump’s high-stakes call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as they negotiated the terms of a potential cease-fire in Ukraine.

On this episode, Rhonda Colvin, James Hohmann, and JM Rieger take a closer look at President Donald Trump’s transformation from vocal crypto critic to now spearheading the U.S. government’s full-throated embrace of cryptocurrency and digital commodities. Trump’s new love of crypto was on full display during White House Crypto Summit on March 7, led by crypto and artificial intelligence czar David Sacks. The Trump administration, along with tech industry leaders, touted deregulation, a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a Digital Assets Stockpile, executive orders and legislation. Plus, Sam Bankman-Fried lobbies for a pardon from prison on Tucker Carlson’s podcast and reaction to the White House’s surprise decision to withdraw their Center of Disease Control and Prevention nomination, former congressman Dave Weldon, who found out as he was driving to the Capitol to testify.

On this episode, The Washington Post's Rhonda Colvin, James Hohmann and JM Rieger explain why Washington is once again under the cloud of a looming government shutdown – and why fiscal conservatives might have to hold their noses and vote to keep the government open. Plus, how Vice President JD Vance is finding a role for himself as a go-between for members of Congress who want access to the White House.

In this episode, The Washington Post's Libby Casey, Rhonda Colvin and James Hohmann decode President Trump's efforts to redefine America's role on the world stage – from seemingly starting trade wars with China, Mexico and Canada to straining alliances with Europe that have defined American foreign policy since the Second World War. Plus, what is Trump really trying to accomplish – and is he playing chess, with a longer strategy in mind, or just checkers?

Join Sidebar for live coverage of President Trump's joint address to Congress, March 4 at 8 p.m. – only at YouTube.com/WashingtonPost.

On this episode, Libby Casey, Rhonda Colvin, James Hohmann, and Washington Post DOGE reporter Faiz Siddiqui take a closer look at “special government employee” Elon Musk who continues to upend the federal government, overseeing the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency while joking that he is merely “tech support” during his appearances at the White House. What is the current relationship between President Donald Trump and Musk? Will his “move fast, break things, rebuild” Silicon Valley management mantra ends up disabling key government functions? When does he sleep?

On this episode, Libby Casey, Rhonda Colvin, and James Hohmann discuss the fallout from Elon Musk’s email to federal workers that threatened firings if they did not respond to a request to detail their work responsibilities last week. This comes at a time when Republican lawmakers in the House are finalizing language of the so-called “big beautiful bill”, a Trump-endorsed legislative package that would become a federal budget resolution if and when it comes up for a floor vote. With only a three vote majority in the house, House Speaker Mike Johnson will need almost every Republican representative's approval to pass the legislation. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries reaffirmed on Tuesday that no Democrats will vote in support of the House GOP budget reconciliation resolution as it stands.

On this episode, The Washington Post’s Libby Casey and JM Rieger are joined by metro reporter Emily Davies and White House correspondent Michael Birnbaum to discuss the escalating rhetoric used by President Donald Trump and his administration, calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “a dictator without elections,” while also meeting with Russia delegates for peace talks, notably without Ukrainian involvement. Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service, and The Trump administration also continued to cut federal workforce jobs across the country, targeting probationary employees, and sometimes citing ‘performance’ issues without evidence. Meanwhile, Trump threatened to ‘take over’ governance of Washington D.C., reversing its current home rule status, claiming local leaders are not doing enough on crime, cleaning up graffiti, and removing homeless encampments.

On this episode, The Washington Post's Libby Casey and JM Rieger are joined by congressional economic correspondent Jacob Bogage to discuss Elon Musk's DOGE team attempting to access a highly guarded IRS computer system that contains Americans' personal financial information. The crew breaks down what's actually in the files DOGE representatives are seeking, why, and what makes career government officials are so concerned. Then, the Trump administration continues to shrink the size of federal government by laying off employees – and over the weekend, haphazard firings, which included employees at almost every government agency, including at the National Nuclear Security Administration.