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Week In Politics: Iran Sanctions, Supreme Court Nominee

NPR's Audie Cornish speaks with political commentators E.J. Dionne of The Washington Post and Brookings Institution and Kristen Soltis Anderson of The Washington Times. They discuss the Trump administration's sanctions on Iran, Trump's Supreme Court nominee and new executive actions signed this week.

Week In Politics: Iran Sanctions, Supreme Court Nominee

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Commentary

Commentary: If Trump Builds His Wall, We'll Be 'Trapped Inside With Him'

In light of the president's plan to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, author Peter Behrens has this commentary.

Commentary: If Trump Builds His Wall, We'll Be 'Trapped Inside With Him'

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Week In Politics: Trump's First Week In Office

NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with our regular political commentators, David Brooks of The New York Times, and E.J. Dionne, of The Washington Post and the Brookings Institution about President Trump's first week in office.

Week In Politics: Trump's First Week In Office

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Commentary

Commentator Mike Pesca On Redeeming Football's 'Lousy Season'

It was a rocky year for the NFL. TV numbers were down and the season lacked a great story. Commentator Mike Pesca of The Gist podcast wonders if the Super Bowl can salvage things.

Commentator Mike Pesca On Redeeming Football's 'Lousy Season'

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Commentary

Journalists Are Still 'Detectives For The People' Despite Fake News

NPR's Michel Martin comments on the importance of the press being what late journalist Wayne Barrett called "detectives for the people," as President Trump begins his first week.

Journalists Are Still 'Detectives For The People' Despite Fake News

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There Were Hopes And Dreams Aplenty At Trump's Inauguration, But Whose?

Leila Prelec with son Sergei Tourien at Donald Trump's inauguration. Prelec said she brought Sergei with her from Medfield, Mass., "to experience love of country." Keith Woods hide caption

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Keith Woods

Code Switch

There Were Hopes And Dreams Aplenty At Trump's Inauguration, But Whose?

I went to Donald Trump's inauguration to see if people there felt the same pride and promise that I did four years earlier. We met at a common intersection, then went very separate ways.

Week In Politics: President Trump's Inauguration

NPR's Robert Siegel speaks with David Brooks of The New York Times, and E.J. Dionne, of The Washington Post and the Brookings Institution about President Trump's inauguration.

Week In Politics: President Trump's Inauguration

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Looking Back With Gratitude On Obama, And His Optimistic Vision Of America

Then-Senator Barack Obama speaks as rain falls during a rally at Widener University in Chester, Penn. in October 2008. Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty Images

Commentary

Looking Back With Gratitude On Obama, And His Optimistic Vision Of America

Fresh Air

Writer Mat Johnson reflects on what the Obama presidency meant to his biracial family. "I didn't always agree with Obama," he says. "But I always respected — and will always respect — that man."

Looking Back With Gratitude On Obama, And His Optimistic Vision Of America

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In China, Pollution Fears Are Both Literal And Metaphorical

Face masks were placed on stone monkeys at the Beijing Zoo on Dec. 19 to protest heavy air pollution in northeast China. A week earlier, riot police cracked down after artists put similar masks on human figures in Chengdu. STR/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Commentary

In China, Pollution Fears Are Both Literal And Metaphorical

Fears of contagion shape politics in today's China. A protest by artists against smog was met with swift repression. That's because authorities fear a different kind of pollution: destabilizing ideas.

After Trump's Election, A Nonpracticing Muslim Returns To Prayer
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Commentary

After Trump's Election, A Nonpracticing Muslim Returns To Prayer

Fresh Air

Comedian Zahra Noorbakhsh often jokes about being a "pork-eating, alcohol-drinking, married-to-an-atheist" Muslim. But lately she finds herself wanting to connect with her religious traditions.

After Trump's Election, A Nonpracticing Muslim Returns To Prayer

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Trump Is Bringing His Love-Excoriate Relationship With Media Into Office

Greg Calhoun, President-elect Donald Trump and Steve Harvey speak with the media Friday at Trump Tower in New York. Bryan R. Smith/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Commentary

Trump Is Bringing His Love-Excoriate Relationship With Media Into Office

As during the campaign, the president-elect wants the established media's attention and craves its respect — but gladly will feed outlets into the news grinder if they cross him. Ask CNN and BuzzFeed.

A Discomfiting Question: Was The Chicago Torture Case Racism?

Chicago police Commander Kevin Duffin, speaking during a news conference in Chicago Thursday, describes the kidnapping and hate crime charges filed against four black people who attacked a white man and livestreamed it on Facebook. Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune/Getty Images hide caption

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Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune/Getty Images

Code Switch

A Discomfiting Question: Was The Chicago Torture Case Racism?

The man was held captive and beaten by four people who livestreamed the attack. He was white. His tormentors were black. Calling that a hate crime doesn't tell the whole story.

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