covidrelief

In today's episode, Andy & DJ discuss one of the biggest left-wing contributors handing over his $25 billion dollar empire to his son, how billions of dollars were stolen or wasted in COVID relief aid, and former president Donald Trump departing for Florida ahead of his federal court appearance.

House Democrats try to pass the American Rescue Plan by the end of the week, President Biden says he wants schools open five days a week by the end of April, and Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Administration is under investigation for undercounting Covid-related nursing home deaths. Then Georgia State Representative Bee Nguyen talks to Tommy about her fight against a new round of voter suppression legislation from Republicans.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, please visit crooked.com/podsaveamerica.

For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com.

Republicans make Joe Biden an offer he can refuse, the race to vaccinate America is on, and the new face of the GOP is a QAnon school shooting truther who believes that wildfires are caused by Jewish laser beams. Then Congresswoman Katie Porter talks to Jon Lovett about getting people access to mental health care during the pandemic and why the GameStop drama should lead to tougher Wall Street regulation.

The power to pardon criminals or commute their sentences is one of the most sacred and absolute a president has, and President Trump has already used it to rescue political allies and answer the pleas of celebrities.

With his term coming to an end, the president has discussed granting three of his children, his son-in-law and personal lawyer pre-emptive pardons — a rarity in American history.

We look ahead to a potential wave of pardons and commutations — and explore who could benefit.

Guest: Michael S. Schmidt, a Washington correspondent for The New York Times.

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Background reading:

• Speculation about pardon activity at the White House is churning furiously, underscoring how much the Trump administration has been dominated by investigations and criminal prosecutions of people in the president’s orbit.
• The president’s pardoning of Michael Flynn, a former national security adviser, signals the prospect of a wave of pardons and commutations in his final weeks in office.

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily