We're just one week into February, and a lot has happened already — from the fallout over the Department of Justice's Epstein file dump, to President Trump's claims the U.S. should "nationalize" elections, to the decision to pull 700 federal immigration agents out of Minnesota on Wednesday. It's been a lot to follow — so we spoke to Tim Miller. He's writer-at-large at The Bulwark and host of The Bulwark Podcast.

And in headlines, lawmakers are nowhere near an agreement to fund the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. and Iran are set to hold nuclear talks in Oman, and the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots face off in Super Bowl LX.

Show Notes:

• Check out The Bulwark
• Call Congress – 202-224-3121
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• For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

The economy is in pretty much the same weird place it’s been for the past few months. Hiring is down, the cost of living is up, and no one really knows what's coming next. That uncertainty is partially thanks to AI, which is supposed to change work as we know it. It’s making everyone – from stock traders to white-collar workers – very, very nervous. On this episode, we talk to Stacey Vanek Smith. She’s a reporter for Bloomberg Businessweek and co-host of the Bloomberg podcast, Everybody's Business.

And in headlines, the Supreme Court signs off on California’s new congressional map, President Trump’s attempted assassin is sentenced to life in prison, and a group of Minnesota teachers and school districts sue to stop immigration enforcement activity on or near public schools.

Show Notes:

• Check out Everybody's Business
• Call Congress – 202-224-3121
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• For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

If you haven't been following conservative media for a long time, you might not know that there have actually been many eras of Tucker Carlson. He launched his career in print journalism before landing under the bright lights of Fox News in 2009. That's where he developed his super power – giving his audience exactly what they want, and feeding some of their worst impulses again and again under the glossy veneer of respectability. New Yorker staff writer Jason Zengerle first met Carlson back in the 1990s and has been following his career ever since. His new book, "Hated by All the Right People: Tucker Carlson and the Unraveling of the Conservative Mind," examines Carlson's evolution and the media's. We spoke with Zengerle about Carlson's past and what his shifting priorities reveal about American politics.

And in headlines, the House narrowly passes a spending bill to end the partial government shutdown, Renee Good's brothers testify before Congressional Democrats, and a U.S. fighter jet shoots down an Iranian drone.

Show Notes:

• Check out Hated by All the Right People: Tucker Carlson and the Unraveling of the Conservative Mind
• Call Congress – 202-224-3121
• Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8
• What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcast
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• For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced Monday that all federal officers in Minneapolis will now wear body cameras. She also said the program would expand nationwide "as funding is available." The push for body cameras is a key Democratic demand to end the partial government shutdown. It also comes on the heels of major concerns over DHS immigration tactics. In January alone, two U.S. citizens were shot and killed by federal immigration agents in Minnesota. Radley Balko has been covering law enforcement misconduct for decades. We spoke to him about how federal immigration enforcement's actions feel different – and what worries him most.

And in headlines, Bill and Hillary Clinton agree to testify before Congress about their ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, RFK Jr. announces an initiative to address homelessness and substance abuse in eight unspecified cities, and the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt reopens – potentially offering hope for thousands of Palestinians.

Show Notes:

• Check out Radley's piece – https://tinyurl.com/2s3fcbz8
• Call Congress – 202-224-3121
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President Trump is still not over the fact that he lost the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden, which might be why last Wednesday, the FBI executed a search warrant on an election facility in Fulton County, Georgia. Agents seized hundreds of boxes containing ballots and other documents related to the 2020 election. But this raid is just one of many ways the President has challenged the American election system since taking office a year ago. With the midterms just months away, we spoke with Marc Elias, the founder of the voting rights news and election-tracking site Democracy Docket.

And in headlines, the government is partially shut down as Congress debates reining in immigration enforcement, the Trump administration does damage control after the latest and largest batch of Epstein files, and the five-year-old boy and father detained by immigration officers in Minnesota have been released.

Show Notes:

• Check out Democracy Docket – www.democracydocket.com/
• Call Congress – 202-224-3121
• Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8
• What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcast
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• For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

Senate Democrats were ready to shut down the government Friday night in order to get much-needed reforms to ICE and Border Patrol — but they didn’t need to. On Thursday, they made a deal with Republicans and the White House to fund most of the federal government for the rest of the fiscal year. The Department of Homeland Security, however, will only be funded for two weeks while Senators negotiate some guardrails for ICE. So what happens now? To find out, we spoke with Virginia Democratic Senator Tim Kaine on Thursday just before Senate Democrats announced their deal.

And in headlines, President Trump hopes for Iranian regime change, the Justice Department files federal charges against the man accused of attacking Minnesota Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar, and activists ask Americans to skip school, work, and shopping Friday to protest ongoing ICE operations.

Show Notes:

• Call Congress – 202-224-3121
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• What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcast
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• For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

Minneapolis is still under ICE’s thumb — and contrary to the Trump Administration and some media reports, ICE has not “de-escalated” in the Twin Cities. Multiple media outlets have reported no real change in Department of Homeland Security activity — but the communities in Minneapolis are still standing up to the Trump Administration, using every peaceful tool at their disposal to do so. For more, we spoke to Alex Wagner, host of Crooked’s Runaway Country podcast, who is reporting from Minneapolis.

And in headlines, Secretary of State Marco Rubio testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the FBI raids a Georgia election office infamous to conspiracy theorists for its role in “rigging” the 2020 election, and Democrats are apparently ready to pass every bill in the massive funding package before the Senate — except for the DHS portion.

Show Notes:

• Check out Runaway Country – https://tinyurl.com/ykf6fs5c
• Call Congress – 202-224-3121
• Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8
• What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcast
• Follow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/
• For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

U.S. Secretary of State and National Security Adviser Marco Rubio is expected to publicly testify Wednesday about what exactly the U.S. has planned for Venezuela. But the next potential target of the Trump administration’s imperialist adventuring might be even closer to home. Ending Cuba’s communist regime — which has controlled the island since 1959 — is the dream of thousands of Cuban-Americans. And now, thanks in part to Rubio, it’s a serious goal of the White House. So, to talk more about South Florida’s influence on American politics at home and abroad, we spoke with Patricia Mazzei. She is the Miami bureau chief for The New York Times.

And in headlines, U.S. population growth slowed significantly between the summers of 2024 and 2025, Democratic efforts to redistrict in Virginia are stunted by a state court, and TikTok agrees to settle a landmark social media addiction lawsuit just before trial.

Show Notes:

• Check out Patricia's piece – https://tinyurl.com/2cxz46rb
• Call Congress – 202-224-3121
• Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8
• What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcast
• Follow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/
• For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday