Why Is This Happening? The Chris Hayes Podcast

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Why Is This Happening? The Chris Hayes Podcast

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Every week Chris Hayes asks the big questions that keep him up at night. How do we make sense of this unprecedented moment in world history? Why is this (all) happening? This podcast starts to answer these questions. Writers, experts, and thinkers who are also trying to get to the bottom of them join Chris to break it all down and help him get a better night’s rest. “Why is this Happening?” is presented by MSNBC and NBCNews Think.

  1. 6 DAYS AGO

    Crafting a Bipartisan Miracle with Chris Murphy

    Comprehensive border and immigration reform has eluded policymakers in the U.S. for decades. As global turmoil and conflict grows, questions and concerns still remain about the economic, security, and humanitarian justification and rationale for immigrants, asylum seekers and refugees seeking entry into the U.S. Vitriolic rhetoric, which has largely impeded meaningful progress, has only intensified in the months leading up to one of the most consequential elections in history. In the midst of all of this, somewhat of a miracle has materialized: bipartisan collaboration. Our guest this week served as the chief negotiator of a border bill that was negotiated between Senate Democrats and Senate Republicans. Democratic Senator Chris Murphy is the junior U.S. Senator for Connecticut and is a member of the Foreign Relations Committee. He joins WITHpod to discuss what has historically hindered a significant revamp of American immigration policy, how he was able to help broker conservative partnership, his concerns about “unaccountable elites, the fall of American neoliberalism and more.

    56 min

  2. SEP 24

    The Coalition of the Weird with Dave Weigel

    Why Is This Happening? The Chris Hayes Podcast

    57 min
  3. The Threat of Project 2025 on Climate

    SEP 17

    The Threat of Project 2025 on Climate

    A look at how Project 2025 could impact the future of our climate, presented in collaboration with MSNBC’s How to Win podcast.

    44 min

  4. SEP 11

    MSNBC Live: Democracy 2024

    We’re thrilled to share a mashup of our MSNBC Live: Democracy 2024 event that we recently held at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. Enjoy key conversations from this first of its kind in-person, interactive experience.

    1h 47m

  5. SEP 10

    Building a New South with Anderson Clayton

    North Carolina is one of the most interesting swing states in this election. Democrats have not won the Tar Heel state at the presidential level since 2008 when Barack Obama won it. It was a close race in 2020 and recent polling has shown Harris and Trump neck and neck in the state. There’s a lot to unpack about what’s going on. Anderson Clayton is the chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party. Elected at 25 years old, she is the youngest chair of a state Democratic Party in the U.S. Clayton joins WITHpod to discuss her political trajectory, the state of North Carolina politics, key issues including gerrymandering, her experience at the DNC and more.

    44 min

  6. SEP 3

    The Biden Miracle with Jay Turner

    During this year’s DNC, President Biden reflected on numerous accomplishments and discussed his track record. One of the signature pieces of legislation of the Biden presidency, and of Democrats in this era, is the Inflation Reduction Act, also known as the IRA. This August marked the 2-year anniversary of the landmark federal law. Our guest this week teamed up with his students to track the cumulative effects of the implementation of the IRA. Jay Turner is the Wiliam R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Environmental Studies at Wellesley College. He’s also a historian, author on U.S. environmental politics and wrote “Charged: A History of Batteries and Lessons for a Clean Energy Future.” He joins WITHpod to discuss progress made, developments in batteries and electric energy sources, possible paths forward to reach ambitious goals and more.

    57 min

  7. AUG 27

    Recapping an Electric DNC with Alex Wagner

    The Democratic national convention was a whole vibe this year. History was made during the electric four-day convention, which culminated with Vice President Harris accepting the Democratic Party’s nomination, the first black woman and person of South Asian decent to do so. Lucky for us, our own Alex Wagner, host of “Alex Wagner Tonight” on MSNBC, joined us fresh off her flight from Chicago to unpack what the “whirlwind” experience was like. Wagner also discusses the people who were there and what they mean for the party, areas of possible trouble or friction ahead that may not have been evident on TV and more.

    46 min

  8. AUG 20

    What Would a Fair Society Look Like? with Daniel Chandler

    Could the answer to building a more just society lie in 50-year-old ideas? Our guest this week points to the ideas of John Rawls, one of the greatest political philosophers, as a blueprint of sorts for building a more equitable society. Daniel Chandler is the research director of the Programme on Cohesive Capitalism at the London School of Economics. He’s also an economist, philosopher and author of “Free and Equal: A Manifesto for a Just Society.” He joins WITHpod to discuss how we might overcome some of the most devastating and escalating present day crises, what adopting Rawls’ liberal political framework could look like and more.

    51 min
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About

Every week Chris Hayes asks the big questions that keep him up at night. How do we make sense of this unprecedented moment in world history? Why is this (all) happening? This podcast starts to answer these questions. Writers, experts, and thinkers who are also trying to get to the bottom of them join Chris to break it all down and help him get a better night’s rest. “Why is this Happening?” is presented by MSNBC and NBCNews Think.

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