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.