DeepSummary
The podcast episode discusses the ongoing chaos within the House of Representatives involving Speaker Mike Johnson and the far-right Republican faction opposing his plan to bring a foreign aid bill for Ukraine to a vote. The hosts interview Joan Greve, a senior political reporter for The Guardian, who provides insights into the situation on Capitol Hill and the potential consequences of this conflict.
Another topic covered is the House's passage of a bill to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which allows warrantless surveillance. The hosts explain the controversial aspects of this law, including its expansion to cover more companies and services, and discuss the bipartisan support and criticism it has received.
The episode also includes daily updates on the ongoing criminal trial against former President Donald Trump related to hush money payments, as well as news on the Supreme Court's consideration of a case that could undermine the Justice Department's prosecutions of January 6th rioters, and the announcement of new U.S. sanctions against Iran.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- The House Republican party is facing internal turmoil, with Speaker Mike Johnson facing opposition from the far-right faction over his plan to bring a foreign aid bill for Ukraine to a vote.
- The House passed a reauthorization of Section 702 of the FISA law, which allows warrantless surveillance, raising concerns about privacy rights and potential abuse by intelligence agencies.
- The reauthorized FISA law includes an expansion to cover more companies and services, including data centers storing private information of civilians.
- The ongoing criminal trial against former President Donald Trump related to hush money payments is progressing, with jury selection underway.
- The Supreme Court is considering a case that could undermine the Justice Department's prosecutions of January 6th rioters.
- The U.S. announced new sanctions against Iran following its drone and missile attacks on Israel.
- The episode covers various other news headlines and updates related to politics and current events.
- The internal conflicts within the House Republicans, the FISA reauthorization, and Trump's criminal trial are the main focus of the episode.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “For the time being, there are a handful of more centrist members of the House democratic caucus who are saying that they will come to Johnson's assistance if the motion to vacate comes up for a vote, if we find ourselves in a scenario where Johnson is ousted and Republicans can't come up with somebody else to fill that role, they had an incredibly difficult time doing that last time around. Then maybe there is a scenario in which some House Republicans choose to vote either for Jeffries or simply vote present and bring that number down to the point where Jeffries could become speaker.“ by Joan Greve
- “The reason why so many House Republicans are less than happy about this plan for the foreign aid bills is because many of them are very critical of sending more money to Ukraine. And that would be at least one piece of this, this broader plan that Johnson has.“ by Joan Greve
- “One thing that Johnson has been doing recently and what he did with the government funding bills is that he passed them using this mechanism called suspension of the rules. What that allows you to do is circumvent some of the usual requirements for getting to a final vote in the House, which means that he has been relying on support from Democrats to get these bills through. And that has been really irksome to some of the hard right members who feel like they aren't doing anything with their majority.“ by Joan Greve
- “History shows that intelligence agencies will use every inch of authority Congress provides to spy on Americans. And he called the bill, quote, a breathtaking expansion of section 702, which should terrify anyone who cares about Americans rights.“ by Josie Duffy Rice (quoting Senator Ron Wyden)
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Episode Information
What A Day
Crooked Media
4/17/24
House Republicans are in chaos again after a second conservative lawmaker voiced support for a push to oust Speaker Mike Johnson. The speaker announced plans to bring a foreign aid bill for Ukraine up for a vote, causing an uproar. Joan Greve, senior political reporter for The Guardian, breaks down the mood on Capitol Hill.In the Senate, lawmakers will consider a bill to reauthorize a section of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, that has bipartisan support and bipartisan critics. The part of the law up for renewal allows the federal government to obtain vast amounts of intelligence and communications within the broad category of “foreign intelligence information,” all without a warrant. Without quick Senate approval, it will expire on Friday.
Speaker Johnson VS. House Far-Right GOPAnd in headlines: The Supreme Court seemed open to siding with some January 6th rioters in a case that could undo hundreds of Justice Department prosecutions, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the US will enforce new sanctions on Iran after its weekend attack on Israel, and seven jurors have been seated in former President Donald Trump’s historic criminal hush-money trial.
Show Notes:
- WSJ: "On Ukraine’s Front Line, Soldiers Are Forced to Tune In to Washington Politics" –https://tinyurl.com/3kptnhk7
- What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcast
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- For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday