California Wildfires: A Perfect Storm of All That Ails America
The explanations will have to wait.
Recent Stories
Climate News to Watch in 2025
2024 was a mixed bag for climate change. Here’s what’s on the horizon for 2025.
The One Place Trump Doesn’t Have to Annex: Crazytown
In a world that needs stability, it’s not ideal that the US president is nuts.
An Amicable Nomination Process for Trump’s Picks Is Off to a Bad Start
Will Republicans try to push through some of Donald Trump’s nominees without providing Democrats with the required documents? In at least one case so far, it seems that way.
Vivek Is Lying Low After Offending MAGA Faithful
After causing an uproar by criticizing American culture, Vivek Ramaswamy has been biding his time and hoping this storm will pass without jeopardizing his promising MAGA career.
Flint, 10 Years Later
In the decade since the start of the Flint water crisis, policymakers and communities have made improvements to the lives of residents, but opportunities for progress remain.
Congress Remains Firmly in ‘Christian’ Hands
Nearly all Republicans in the new Congress identify as “Christians,” while atheists and agnostics are grossly underrepresented.
Trump’s Imperial Ambitions Are No Laughing Matter
Donald Trump’s first term was marred by chaos. In two weeks, things will get much crazier. Just ask the people of Canada and Greenland.
The Cries That Bind
Underneath all the partisan bickering is a deep well of agreement.
Trump, Musk, Despair, Humor, and Hope: All on Tap for 2025
No shortage of reasons to despair — but humor and bits of hope still shine through.
Pardoning the January 6 Mob Is Just the Beginning
Americans don’t support pardons for jailed January 6 insurrectionists. However, on the fourth anniversary of Trump’s mob storming Congress, they seem inevitable. And that is likely just going to be the beginning of a perversion of justice the likes of which the country has not seen in a very long time.
Are Democrats Up for the Nomination Fights Ahead?
Senate Democrats may feel that Donald Trump’s nominees are unqualified, but they are not doing anything about it.
Donald Trump’s Lies Are Getting More Hurtful Every Day
Trump is like an energy vampire. His lies suck all of the rationality out of the body politic.
The Troubling Radicalization of Elon M.
Using social media platforms can lead to self-radicalization. Apparently, so can owning one.
Donald Trump’s Steps Down the Well-Trod Path to Authoritarian Rule
Consummate rule-breaker Trump follows The Rules.
America’s Healthcare Emergency: How to Fix It From the Ground Up
An MIT economist reveals why short-term fixes fail, and offers a blueprint for a complete system transformation.
Toe the Line or Total Chaos — House Republicans Make Their Choice Today
It would be crazy for fiscal conservatives to derail the vote for House Speaker today… which is why we are not betting against it.
As MAHA Looms, a Look Back on MAGA’s Big HCQ Lie
The paper behind Trump’s “game changer” COVID-19 cure has finally been retracted, but the damage is done — with many snake oil salesmen headed for Washington.
Sanders Jumps Into Fight Over H-1B Visas, Blasts DOGE Brothers
With an “America First” message of his own, progressive firebrand Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) waded into the debate over H-1B visas that is splitting MAGA Republicans.
New Orleans Attack Highlights Need for Rigorous Vetting of Trump’s Nominees
Republicans are using the New Orleans terrorist attack to make the case that Donald Trump’s national security nominees should be confirmed swiftly. Instead, it shows that they should be vetted especially carefully because of the importance of their jobs.
Why Elon Musk’s Demand for Suffering Won’t Stop at Mars
Critics describe Elon Musk’s guiding philosophy of longtermism as primed to justify “atrocities.”
Elon Musk’s New Year’s Day Bodes Poorly for 2025
The way Elon Musk spent his New Year’s Day, and what is evidently on his mind, are ominous signs of what’s to come.
My New Year’s Message: Help Us Find Out What Happened to America
Did Trump exploit the loneliness epidemic in America?
Roberts Hints at Trump as Threat to ‘Judicial Independence,’ Omits SCOTUS Woes
When addressing four main threats to judicial independence (while leaving out those affecting the Supreme Court itself), Chief Justice John Roberts might as well have addressed Donald Trump directly.
Heading Into the New Year, Things You Can Do to Make the World Slightly Better
We’re looking at a new year, and a new administration shortly after. There are things we can do right now that will be much less effective in a couple weeks. Here’s a list of them.
World’s Biggest Meatpacker JBS Wants Public Money to Fight Climate Change
Major Brazilian polluter champions agribusiness as a solution to hunger at G20.
WhoWhatWhy’s Best Sunday Cartoons of 2024
Here are our favorite works of DonkeyHotey from 2024.
Jimmy Carter: A Case Study in the Judgment of History
He slowly won me over, as he struggled with various crises and perfect storms that would cost him the support of many voters.
Federal Appeals Court Upholds Jury Verdict Finding Trump Liable for Sexual Abuse
A panel consisting of three federal appeals court judges on Monday upheld the jury verdict that found Donald Trump liable for sexually abusing writer E. Jean Carroll.
Hoping to Avoid a Chaotic Speaker Fight, Incoming Co-Presidents Endorse Johnson
Donald Trump and Elon Musk want Mike Johnson (R-LA) to remain speaker. Will that be enough to get him over the hump on January 3?
Remembering Jimmy Carter
Carter may have been overshadowed by other American presidents, but he lived longer than any other, and his legacy is substantial.
Trump Wants New GOP Majority to Plunge Into Debt Ceiling Fight
Donald Trump wants Congress to eliminate the debt ceiling before he takes office so that voters don’t realize that he will increase the debt. However, it seems unlikely that he will get his wish.
2024 in Review: My Attempts to Make Sense of a Nonsensical Year
Oracle and chronicle of America’s unbelievable (but predictable) descent.
Musk’s AfD Endorsement Shows He’s Not a Germany Expert, He Is a Far-Right Expert
After helping install Donald Trump as US president, Elon Musk took another hard-right turn as he set his sights on undermining another Western democracy.
2024 — The Year When the Truth Stopped Mattering
This year had the usual list of political winners and losers. However, collectively, we lost something more important than any race for any office. 2024 was the year in which the truth stopped mattering altogether.
WhoWhatWhy’s Best Ted Rall Cartoons of 2024
Ted Rall pulls no punches. He’s a patented political pugilist, landing haymaker after haymaker, week after week. Rall’s cartoons may not float like a butterfly, but they certainly sting like a bee. Here are some of our favorites from 2024.
WhoWhatWhy’s Top Podcasts of 2024 — Part 2
This year, podcasts didn’t just capture the conversation—they drove it. They became the soundtrack of discovery shaping how we see the world.
Let Me Hurt and Don’t Tell Me To Hope
We have witnessed nothing less than the triumph of evil on a scale we never imagined.
WhoWhatWhy’s Best Jon Richards Cartoons of 2024
Whether he’s skewering Republicans or Democrats, Jon Richards always has a sharp eye for the political hypocrisy of the moment.
Trump Issues Holiday Reminder That He Is Nuts
In one absolutely insane Christmas message, Donald Trump manages to threaten three countries (including two NATO members).
WhoWhatWhy’s Best Climate and Environment Stories for 2024
Climate change and myriad other environmental crises were not meaningfully addressed in 2024. But WhoWhatWhy and our Covering Climate Now partners remained dedicated to bringing you news on all of it.
Why CEOs and the Very Rich Should Receive Enhanced Protection
Because truth in advertising
Climate Change Is Driving Dangerous Bacteria Farther North
Satellite data could help address rising rates of vibriosis infections, often the result of eating undercooked seafood, along the East Coast of the United States.
WhoWhatWhy’s Best International Stories for 2024
Ukraine remained the major focus through much of 2024, as well as Israel’s continued attacks on Gaza. WhoWhatWhy was there.
‘All the Best People’ — What the Gaetz Report Says About Trump’s Nominees
While the media focuses on the juiciest details of the Ethics Committee report on the misdeeds of Matt Gaetz, the real story is something else.
A Baker’s Dozen of My Favorite Substacks From 2024
A look back at a year that hardly seems real
If You Did Not See Musk’s AfD Support Coming, You Don’t Know Elon
Elon Musk once claimed that his social media platform would have to be politically neutral to deserve the public’s trust. Now he is openly supporting a right-wing German party with neo-Nazi ties.