WSJ Opinion: Potomac Watch

WSJ Opinion: Potomac Watch

From the award-winning opinion pages of The Wall Street Journal, Paul Gigot, Kim Strassel, Bill McGurn and Kyle Peterson discuss the latest from Washington. Get critical perspective and the analysis you need on developments from the nation’s capital. Join them every weekday. Send your feedback to pwpodcast@wsj.com

Episodes

May 14, 2025 29 mins
The Justices prepare to debate Donald Trump's executive order denying citizenship to U.S.-born children of illegal aliens and temporary residents, including those with student or work visas, in a case that challenges a long consensus on the 14th Amendment. Plus, the court will also consider whether federal judges overstep their authority when they issue nationwide injunctions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/a...
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House Republicans outline their plan to extend the expiring 2017 tax cuts and prevent a $4.5 trillion tax increase, but the bill also includes a long list of political giveaways, including President Trump's promised tax exemption for tips and overtime, a tripling of the SALT deduction, and a $1,000 taxpayer contribution to "MAGA accounts" for babies. Is this the new GOP consensus? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone....
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The United States and China agree to a 90-day rollback of tariffs, signaling a deescalation in the trade war between the two countries. Is this an economic breakthrough or a tactical retreat by Donald Trump? Plus, the Trump administration is considering accepting a new Air Force One from Qatar, but the potential gift comes with ethical questions attached. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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After campus agitators make another scene at Columbia University, new Acting President Claire Shipman calls the NYPD, which makes about 80 arrests. Meantime, President Trump escalates his confrontation with Harvard University, threatening to take away its tax exemption, as Education Secretary Linda McMahon tells the school that it shouldn't bother applying for future funding. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/ad...
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Donald Trump and Keir Starmer announce a preliminary trade deal after the pause on the President’s “Liberation Day” tariffs that caused distress in the financial markets. What does it mean for possible future pacts with Europe and China, and is the U.S.-U.K. agreement a sign of improvisational dealmaking?   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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How much progress are Republicans making, as they keep plugging away on legislation to pass their agenda via the Senate's reconciliation process, avoiding a filibuster? Questions that still divide the GOP are whether to reform Medicaid and the SNAP food-stamp program, and what about the SALT deduction and Donald Trump's promise of no taxes on tips and overtime? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Hundreds of flights through Newark, N.J., have been disrupted, after an incident in which air-traffic controllers reportedly lost radar and communications for a short time. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said planes weren't in danger, but why can't the U.S. fix this outdated system? Plus, 35 Democrats in the House vote to end California's mandate for electric vehicles. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adch...
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Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Riley talks about his book in which he argues that black Americans made faster educational and economic progress before the onset of racial preferences and welfare programs. They also discuss whether it makes sense for colleges to give preferences to students from poor economic backgrounds.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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The U.S. economy shrank in the first quarter of 2025, according to data released this week, and public companies on their earnings calls have recently warned about tariff effects, slowing consumer spending, and coming price increases. On the other hand, the jobs figures for April look solid. Yet nobody knows whether President Trump's Liberation Day tariffs are coming back. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adc...
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Donald Trump removes national security adviser Mike Waltz and his deputy after the Signal chat controversy. What does the move mean for the administration's foreign policy? Plus, House Speaker Mike Johnson gives an update on the “big, beautiful” spending bill tackling defense spending, student loans, and Medicaid. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Does the First Amendment give a church the right to open a religious charter school? Or can states require that charter schools be secular, as part of the government's system of public education? The Justices wrestle with those questions in a case from Oklahoma, which could be a landmark ruling, with consequences for nearly four million students who now attend charters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoi...
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The feds charge a state judge with helping an illegal immigrant evade ICE agents at the courthouse in Milwaukee. Is this an overreach by the Trump administration or a justified response to a violation of the law? Plus, amid President Trump's deal with El Salvador and new confusion about the circumstances of three deported U.S. citizen children, two polls suggest slipping public support. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit mega...
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April 28, 2025 29 mins
Donald Trump ends the first 100 days of his second administration with lower approval ratings than at this point in his first term. Are his tariffs and the economy to blame, and what are some accomplishments so far that could inspire optimism for the rest of his time in office? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Republican governors are pursuing waivers from the Agriculture Department to disallow purchases of candy, soft drinks, and other sweets via the SNAP food-assistance program. Is this commonsense government or burdensome nannyism? Plus, Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin won't seek re-election in 2026, creating a Democratic primary in a blue state that could drift further left. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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After Russian missiles strike Kyiv, killing at least 12, Donald Trump urges Vladimir Putin to “STOP!” Yet the White House is putting most of its pressure on Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, who opposes legitimizing Putin's illegal takeover of Crimea with formal recognition. Plus, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and the Legislatures agree to cellphones in K-12 classrooms. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm...
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When a public school adds stories with LGBT themes to its elementary reading curriculum, do religious parents have a First Amendment right to opt out? And did ObamaCare evade a constitutional check when it delegated power to the Preventive Services Task Force? The Supreme Court debates those points in Mahmoud v. Taylor and Kennedy v. Braidwood Management. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth faces more scrutiny, after an ouster of top aides and news reports about a second Signal chat group. But Donald Trump says he stands by Hegseth, amid rumors that the White House wants a replacement. Plus, the Supreme Court issues a midnight order halting deportations under the Alien Enemies Act, with a sharp dissent by Justice Samuel Alito.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adcho...
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Donald Trump keeps testing the limits of his executive authority, and courts have been pushing back. Is a constitutional crisis on the horizon? On this episode of Potomac Watch, law professor John Yoo speaks to Paul Gigot about what could be a looming clash between the President and the Supreme Court. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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After putting his political capital on the line in GOP primaries, Abbott is close to enacting $10,000 scholarships for 100,000 students, as the bill passes the state House with votes to spare. Plus, New York Sen. Chuck Schumer blocks two of Donald Trump's nominees for federal prosecutor by withholding his "blue slip," but the president says he'll give Jay Clayton an interim appointment Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megap...
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April 17, 2025 26 mins
Trump clashes with Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell over the Central Bank’s response to his tariffs. While Powell is expressing concerns, the president wants interest rates cut now. So what’s a stake for the economy, monetary policy and Powell’s tenure? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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