Washington Week with The Atlantic

News and Public Affairs Series / 23 Seasons

Washington Week with The Atlantic is the longest-running primetime news and public affairs program on television. The show features a group of journalists participating in a roundtable discussion of major news events and can be found at 8pm ET on most local PBS stations.

Watch Latest: S2025 E1

26m 46s

Surprise Jan. 6 committee hearing offers explosive testimony

9m 18s

Former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson testified on Tuesday before the Jan. 6 committee that former President Trump demanded armed protesters be allowed into his morning rally and that he insisted on joining the crowd at the Capitol, among other details. But some have pushed back on parts of her story and many Republicans have dismissed her testimony as hearsay.

Landmark decisions cap historic term for the Supreme Court

10m 41s

The Supreme Court this term made several significant decisions in addition to overturning Roe v. Wade, and on Thursday the justices limited the EPA's power to regulate greenhouse gas emissions. This is a major setback for the Biden administration's efforts to combat climate change. But in a win for President Biden, the court upheld his authority to end the "Remain in Mexico" policy.

Jan. 6 panel lays out Trump efforts to change 2020 election

19m 15s

The Jan. 6 committee this week offered chilling new details on how former President Trump pressured Vice President Pence to overturn the 2020 election and even put Pence’s life in danger by enraging the mob. The committee also accuses Trump of scamming his supporters and lying about election fraud.

The Fed takes aggressive action to prevent a recession

3m 33s

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday raised interest rates by three-quarters of a percent. This was the central bank’s biggest rate hike since 1994, an aggressive step to try and control the rapid rise in inflation.

Soaring prices, tanking markets and the political fallout

8m 48s

The Federal Reserve raised interest rates this week by three-quarters of a percent to fight inflation, the largest hike in 28 years. Fed chair Jerome Powell also indicated that a similar rise could come in July if the economy doesn’t improve. Stocks tumbled in response to the historic action and Wall Street fell into bear market territory amid increased concerns that a recession may be looming.

Will the Senate take bipartisan action on gun control?

10m 42s

Gun reform efforts on Capitol Hill continued this week following the high-profile mass shootings in Uvalde and Buffalo. On Wednesday, survivors and parents of recent mass shooting victims testified before Congress. Amid all this, a bipartisan group of senators say they are optimistic that their negotiations over a narrow package could get the 60 votes needed to pass.

Biden calls for new gun laws amid ongoing debate in Congress

11m

Since the massacre in Buffalo three weeks ago on May 14, there have been at least 37 mass shootings in the United States, including in Uvalde, Texas and Tulsa, Oklahoma. In an address to the nation this week, President Biden called for action to contend with the spate of gun violence, as a bipartisan group of lawmakers tries to hammer out a deal on a gun reform bill.

White House shifts messaging on inflation ahead of midterms

9m 14s

Inflation is at a four-decade high and rising prices at grocery stores and gas stations are hitting Americans hard. With six months to go until the November midterms, the Biden administration is trying to shift its messaging on inflation and the economy. But despite fears of an economic slowdown, the May jobs report was better than expected.

Jan. 6 committee is set to begin public hearings after probe

10m 18s

The select House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection will begin public hearings next week. For the last 11 months, the committee has spoken to nearly 1,000 witnesses, some from former President Trump's inner circle. They are looking into at least five areas related to the attack, including efforts to pressure federal, state and local officials to overturn the election.

Georgia's primaries, political implications of Uvalde attack

13m 1s

It's too early to tell if the Texas school shooting pushes gun control up the list of issues voters care about. But Georgia's primaries offered a glimpse into voters’ thinking, including a rebuke against former President Trump. Gov, when Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger defeated his favored GOP candidates. Kemp will now face Democrat Stacey Abrams in the general election.

Grief and anger in Buffalo as nation mourns racist attack

15m 1s

In Buffalo, an alleged gunman driven by white supremacist ideology murdered 10 people and injured three more at a supermarket. Most of the victims were Black, making it one of the deadliest racist massacres in recent American history. President Biden traveled to Buffalo to grieve with the community as the House passed a bill to tackle domestic terrorism that has yet to gain Senate approval.

Primary elections spotlight Trump’s hold on the GOP

7m 58s

Critical primary elections were held this week in North Carolina and Pennsylvania. In the Tarheel state, candidates endorsed by former President Trump had mixed results. In Pennsylvania, GOP Senate candidates Dr. Mehmet Oz and David McCormick are locked in a tight race to challenge Democrat John Fetterman as election denier Doug Mastriano won the Republican primary for governor.

New biography captures George Floyd's life

13m 51s

On our Washington Week Extra, we explore a breakout biography on George Floyd's life titled, “His Name is George Floyd: One Man’s Life and the Struggle for Racial Justice.” Washington Post reporters Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa, who co-authored the book, join Yamiche Alcindor to discuss.

U.S. reaches a million COVID deaths amid deadlock on funding

10m 34s

The U.S. this week reached 1 million deaths from COVID-19, a tragic new milestone in the pandemic that comes amid new warnings of an upcoming surge in infections. A battle is now underway on Capitol Hill that will determine President Biden's request for billions in additional funding for testing, vaccines and treatment.

Will abortion rights be a factor in midterm elections?

12m 34s

The fallout from the leak of the Supreme Court’s draft opinion on Roe v. Wade continued this week, with the issue likely to play a role in this year’s midterm elections. A vote in the Senate to protect abortion access failed, as demonstrators staged protests outside the homes of some Supreme Court justices. Meanwhile, the power of former President Trump's endorsement was seen in GOP primary races.

GOP seeks source of leak, Dems try to secure abortion rights

18m 48s

A leaked draft of a Supreme Court opinion sent shockwaves across the nation this week with revelations that the majority of justices support overturning Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark case that has federally protected a woman’s right to an abortion. Chief Justice John Roberts confirmed the authenticity of the text but said it is not final, while also announcing an investigation into the leak.

Trump's influence on display in key Republican primary races

4m 5s

Former President's Trump's impact on the Republican Party was highlighted this week as the primary election season began in Ohio and Indiana, where the majority of the candidates he supported scored victories in key races. Chief among the winners was Senate candidate JD Vance, an author and venture capitalist, who was once a Trump critic before turning into a vocal supporter.

'This Will Not Pass' uncovers new revelations about Jan. 6

14m 44s

The newly released book “This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden and the Battle for America’s Future,” contains eye-opening findings on the actions of former President Trump, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, and others, in the days surrounding Jan. 6. New York Times national political correspondents Alex Burns and Jonathan Martin, who co-authored the book, join Yamiche Alcindor to discuss.

Biden requests billions for Ukraine as Putin warns the West

13m 46s

With Russia's invasion of Ukraine now in its tenth week, Russian missiles struck Kyiv as the U.N. secretary general was visiting. That came amid fears the war could expand beyond Ukraine’s borders. Russian President Putin warned the West that any outside interference in the conflict would be met with a quick response, while President Biden asked Congress for $33 billion more in aid for Ukraine.

VP Harris catches COVID, Fauci walks back pandemic comments

6m 33s

COVID-19 struck deep within the White House this week when Vice President Kamala Harris's office announced that she had tested positive for the virus. The revelation came as Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to President Biden, raised eyebrows when he told the PBS NewsHour Tuesday that the U.S. is now "out of the pandemic phase," a comment he later walked back.

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