The Melting Pod

The Melting Pod
  • 0,0 (0)
  • GOVERNO
  • SERIE QUINDICINALE

The Melting Pod brings you stories of our dysfunctional immigration system, and where we go from here.  Hosted by three friends who’ve served inside the federal government for two decades and four presidents of both parties, The Melting Pod will give you a deeper understanding of the immigration headlines, without jargon or shallow punditry.  Amanda Baran, Doug Rand, and Claire Trickler-McNulty will also bring you extraordinary people with extraordinary stories to tell – about how we got here and where we're going.

  1. Welcome to The Melting Pod

    PUNTATA 1

    Welcome to The Melting Pod

    The Melting Pod brings you stories of our dysfunctional immigration system, and where we go from here.  In this inaugural episode, Claire reveals how everything going on with ICE is even worse than it looks; Amanda explains how Trump is *de*-legalizing millions of people who thought they were protected; and Doug shatters any remaining illusions that MAGA is okay with legal immigrants. Plus we introduce ourselves, drag the New York Times a bit, and give you a few things to be hopeful about in 2026. Join us! Learn More Amanda, Claire, and Doug express their own personal opinions on The Melting Pod. This episode was produced by Michael Palmer (palmer.media). Read more about the topics in this episode: * Sweeping Raids, Giant Camps and Mass Deportations: Inside Trump’s 2025 Immigration Plans - New York Times (Nov. 11, 2023) * ICE Has Diverted Over 25,000 Officers from Their Jobs - Cato Institute (Sept. 3, 2025) * Medical examiner likely to classify death of ICE detainee as homicide, recorded call says - Washington Post (Jan. 15, 2026) * Trump administration sued over visa freeze on immigrants from 75 countries - NPR (Feb. 2, 2026) Give More Want to help build a more sane and humane immigration system? Support hardworking organizations like these: National: * #AfghanEvac – working to ensure the U.S. keeps its promise to our Afghan allies * Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project – the country’s largest membership organization of asylum seekers, working together for change * Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) – organizing and advocating for racial, social and economic justice * Haitian Bridge Alliance – providing humanitarian, legal, and social services * International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP) - strategic litigation and advocacy to uphold the rights of people seeking safety * Justice Action Center - immigrant justice through litigation and storytelling Local: * Al Otro Lado - legal and humanitarian support to refugees, deportees, and other migrants in the U.S. and Tijuana * Catholic Charities Rio Grande Valley - providing assistance to the poor and most vulnerable populations in the Rio Grande Valley community * Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center - free and low-cost legal services to immigrants and refugees in West Texas, New Mexico, and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico * Support an immigration service provider near you Chapters (00:00:00) Intro (00:01:03) Was anyone prepared for this? (00:03:57) Minneapolis is different from anything that came before (00:07:34) The DHS funding fight – high stakes, weak leverage (00:10:45) If Claire were in charge, what would Democrats prioritize? (00:12:47) How the ICE surge is taking real cops off the beat (00:16:40) Deaths in detention (00:19:05) How Trump is de-legalizing immigrants with permission to be here (00:24:22) How Trump is choking off legal immigration   (00:27:14) Litigation heroes fighting the immigration ban (00:31:58) Birthright citizenship – what happens next? (00:34:20) Claire’s story: “How can we shut her up” (00:37:40) Amanda’s story: “I hated law school with a passion” (00:41:50) Doug’s story: “I took some detours” (00:43:25) Memo to NYTimes: Trump is just lying to you (00:45:35) Things to actually hope for in 2026? (00:51:18) Closing

    52 min
  2. Biden and the Border (Part 1), with Charanya Krishnaswami

    PUNTATA 2

    Biden and the Border (Part 1), with Charanya Krishnaswami

    Nobody’s happy with how the Biden administration handled the U.S./Mexico border, but it’s hard to find an honest reckoning. That’s why you need to hear the story of Charanya Krishnaswami, a senior advisor at the Department of Homeland Security during all four of those tumultuous years. She’s brilliant, insightful, and even hilarious – all while pulling back the curtain on how so many smart people struggled to make good decisions. This episode is Part 1 of Charanya’s story, starting on day one of the Biden administration and taking us through the mounting panic of the second year…  Learn More Amanda, Claire, and Doug express their own personal opinions on The Melting Pod. This episode was produced by Michael Palmer (⁠palmer.media⁠). Read more about the topics in this episode: * How the Other Side Leaves - This American Life visits a refugee camp in Tijuana, Mexico filled with Ukrainians fleeing the war (05.06.2022) * Coins depicting Border Patrol agent grabbing Haitian migrant trigger investigation - Los Angeles Times (06.16.2022)  * The Voyage of the St. Louis - Museum of Jewish Heritage (May 5, 2022) Give More Want to help build a more sane and humane immigration system? Support hardworking organizations like these: National: * ⁠#AfghanEvac⁠ – working to ensure the U.S. keeps its promise to our Afghan allies * ⁠Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project⁠ – the country’s largest membership organization of asylum seekers, working together for change * ⁠Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI)⁠ – organizing and advocating for racial, social and economic justice * ⁠Haitian Bridge Alliance⁠ – providing humanitarian, legal, and social services * ⁠International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP)⁠ - strategic litigation and advocacy to uphold the rights of people seeking safety * ⁠Justice Action Center⁠ - immigrant justice through litigation and storytelling Local: * ⁠Al Otro Lado⁠ - legal and humanitarian support to refugees, deportees, and other migrants in the U.S. and Tijuana * ⁠Catholic Charities Rio Grande Valley⁠ - providing assistance to the poor and most vulnerable populations in the Rio Grande Valley community * ⁠Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center⁠ - free and low-cost legal services to immigrants and refugees in West Texas, New Mexico, and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico * ⁠Support an immigration service provider near you⁠ Chapters (00:00:00) Intro (00:00:32) Biden and the border – many failures, no simple heroes or villains (00:02:29) Why you need to hear Charanya Krishnaswami (00:04:47) Honest post-mortems are good; acronyms are bad (00:06:51) 2021: Starting up a new presidential administration … via Zoom  (00:11:24) Biden did not reverse all of Trump’s immigration policies on day one (00:14:17) What is Title 42?  (00:17:23) Why no president can “just shut down the border” (00:21:13) We have asylum laws for a reason; remember the St. Louis (00:23:31) How the Title 42 border rules made everything worse (00:29:27) COVID, lawsuits, and chaos (00:31:25) What happened when Haitian refugees arrived in Del Rio (00:36:44) Why did Border Patrol feel betrayed? (00:39:01) 2022: Attempted solution #1: The Asylum Officer Rule (00:49:31) Why did this solution die on the vine? (00:51:39) The vibe shift: Make Number Go Down (00:55:24) Freakout as the pandemic is ending (00:58:31) A strange and obscure silver lining (01:00:36) Attempted solution #2: The Transit Ban (01:02:49) “Skim milk protection” (01:05:22) What happened when Ukrainian refugees arrived in Tijuana (01:11:34) Conclusion (until Part 2…)

    1 h 13 min
  3. Biden and the Border (Part 2), with Charanya Krishnaswami

    PUNTATA 3

    Biden and the Border (Part 2), with Charanya Krishnaswami

    You don’t serve four years as a senior official in Biden’s Department of Homeland Security without seeing some things. This episode is Part 2 of Charanya Krishnaswami’s never-before-told story, walking us through the unprecedented border crossings in 2023 and the misunderstood reasons those numbers dropped in 2024 – far too late for political redemption. Along the way, we call out some ugly racism on the Democratic side of the aisle, lament the futility of Congress, and conclude with Charanya’s clear-eyed border plan for the next President. Learn More Amanda, Claire, and Doug express their own personal opinions on The Melting Pod. This episode was produced by Michael Palmer (⁠palmer.media⁠). Read more about the topics in this episode: * Circumventing Lawful Pathways final rule - Federal Register (May 16, 2023) - extra credit for the first listener who turns this into a TikTok dance… * Refugee Roulette: Disparities in Asylum Adjudication - Stanford Law Review (2007) * Homeland Security Shares Unhinged AI Photo in Post on Immigration - The New Republic (10.02.2026) Give More Want to help build a more sane and humane immigration system? Support hardworking organizations like these: National: * ⁠⁠#AfghanEvac⁠⁠ – working to ensure the U.S. keeps its promise to our Afghan allies * ⁠⁠Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project⁠⁠ – the country’s largest membership organization of asylum seekers, working together for change * ⁠⁠Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI)⁠⁠ – organizing and advocating for racial, social and economic justice * ⁠⁠Haitian Bridge Alliance⁠⁠ – providing humanitarian, legal, and social services * ⁠⁠International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP)⁠⁠ - strategic litigation and advocacy to uphold the rights of people seeking safety * ⁠⁠Justice Action Center⁠⁠ - immigrant justice through litigation and storytelling Local: * ⁠⁠Al Otro Lado⁠⁠ - legal and humanitarian support to refugees, deportees, and other migrants in the U.S. and Tijuana * ⁠⁠Catholic Charities Rio Grande Valley⁠⁠ - providing assistance to the poor and most vulnerable populations in the Rio Grande Valley community * ⁠⁠Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center⁠⁠ - free and low-cost legal services to immigrants and refugees in West Texas, New Mexico, and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico * ⁠⁠Support an immigration service provider near you⁠⁠ Chapters (00:00:00) Intro (00:01:06) Who are you, Charanya?  (00:02:21) Matt Yglesias platforms an anonymous racist  (00:05:42) Everyone loves a Hollywood narrative  (00:07:42) Who are “The Groups”?  (00:08:53) 2023: Preparing for a big shift in border policy  (00:13:04) Is it legal to make people wait in Mexico?  (00:15:07) Carrots and sticks  (00:19:19) What is a “Pull Factor”? What *isn’t*? (00:23:17) Premature declaration of victory (00:26:54) “The numbers were staggering”  (00:28:10) Going to Congress – who thought this was a good idea?   (00:36:07) 2024: Who “fixed” the border? (00:40:41) The human cost  (00:42:48) How do we learn the right lessons?  (00:51:18) “There wasn’t a switch that could be flipped”  (00:53:37) A lack of decisiveness  (00:55:32) A five-point plan for the next President  (01:05:55) “We can’t get scared away from our vision” (01:06:28) Conclusion

    1 h 9 min
Visualizza tutta la stagione 1 (3)

Trailer

Descrizione

The Melting Pod brings you stories of our dysfunctional immigration system, and where we go from here.  Hosted by three friends who’ve served inside the federal government for two decades and four presidents of both parties, The Melting Pod will give you a deeper understanding of the immigration headlines, without jargon or shallow punditry.  Amanda Baran, Doug Rand, and Claire Trickler-McNulty will also bring you extraordinary people with extraordinary stories to tell – about how we got here and where we're going.

Informazioni

  • Creatore
    The Melting Pod
  • Puntate
    4
  • Stagioni
    1
  • Sito web del podcast
    The Melting Pod
  • Fornitore