Podcast appearances and mentions of clay collins

A series of dominoes might be starting to fall that could lead to Andy Burnham becoming the next prime minister of the United Kingdom. But first, he has to win Thursday's by-election in the constituency of Makerfield. That's not guaranteed. Also: today's stories, including how rapid advances in artificial intelligence models raise questions about national security; how the G7 summit shows Europe's enduring desire to work with the United States; and how the newly opened Obama Center pilots a community model. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

On Sunday, the White House will host a series of mixed martial arts fights – one of many planned 250th anniversary events that are proving more divisive than unifying. Some are already seeing America's semiquincentennial as a missed opportunity. Also: today's stories, including the cost of Pakistan's role as mediator between the United States and Iran, national pride at the World Cup for Cape Verdean soccer fans, and the standoff between Congress and President Donald Trump over privacy concerns with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Star-spangled superfans hope their raucous support might give U.S. soccer a home-field advantage. How long until the US team wins it all? Might be a while. Only eight countries have won the World Cup since it was first held in 1930. “The American bravado,” a former coach in the US told our reporters, “is that we should be good at everything.” Also: today's stories, including how The Stratos Project, a data center near Utah's Great Salt Lake, has scaled back its planned footprint; why Armenian voters are facing a thorny dilemma as they head to polls this Sunday, and our reviewer's take on Author Maggie O'Farrell's new book, “Land.” Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

India and Pakistan are accelerating a largely under-examined arms build-up. After last year's military flare-up, the shift toward faster, less predictable technologies is raising new concerns about future confrontation between old rivals. Also: today's stories, including how the Trump administration is upending decades of precedent for foreigners seeking U.S. permanent residency; why Colombia's security crisis gives conservatives a chance at returning to office; and how a common love of hummingbirds nurtures a special bond between our writer and her grandmother. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Fuel shortages are speeding a shift toward green energy and nuclear power across many countries, as the Iran conflict creates new urgency around energy security. Also: today's stories, including what's behind the global push to ban social media for kids; how in the southern U.S., the arrival of newcomers — mostly from the midwest — are changing how locals speak and live; and how a professor's unconventional solution to texting in class turns discipline into something tender. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

The U.S. military is the most powerful and best-funded in the world, but sea-mine defense has become an example of how key capabilities can be lost or neglected. Now, the Navy must scramble to address minesweeping in the Strait of Hormuz. Also: today's stories, including why more than 2,000 U.S. Marines are headed toward Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf; how six states are considering legislative proposals that protect the First Amendment rights of student journalists; and how our essayist practices birding as a way to slow down and notice the natural world. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

The Persian Gulf region is a vital source of oil and gas for the global economy. But the war in Iran is putting scarce water resources for the parched populations there in jeopardy, too. Also: today's stories, including how Asian countries are forced to make do with oil supplies; our critic's take on which films should be nominated for an Oscar; and a Monitor contributor's tale of her family car and the milestones it has seen. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

For former President Bill Clinton, who left office 25 years ago, the impact of the Epstein scandal may only further damage his image, particularly among younger Democrats, amid changing mores around sexual misconduct by powerful men. Also: today's stories, including, how in Boston, a Monitor reporter set off to find out what cities do with an abundance of snow; how India has increasingly used cricket as an extension of its foreign policy with Pakistan; and how a contributing writer finds respite in his postcard pastime despite living in a digital world. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

The hostages, living and dead, are home, yet the war in Gaza is unfinished business for Israelis. As the country pivots toward election-year politics, how is Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's refusal to authorize an independent state inquiry into Oct. 7 playing? Also: today's stories, including why the Supreme Court struck down the Trump administration's use of an emergency economic law to set broad tariffs; how schools that support undergraduates' basic needs are reporting better retention and achievement rates; and our reviewers' favorite books of February. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Recent votes on tariffs and blunt public criticisms signal a GOP that's more willing to defy President Donald Trump – and worried about this fall's midterm elections. Also: today's stories, including a look at community ski hills in New Hampshire; how British politicians are finding no place to hide in the wake of the Epstein files; and why Democrats are pressing for immigration enforcement reform as a Department of Homeland Security shutdown nears. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

President Donald Trump's nomination of Kevin Warsh to head the Federal Reserve calmed markets, but the former member of the board of governors could also set the Fed on a new course. Also: today's stories, including how an electoral victory in Myanmar offers hope to some for the restoration of democratic norms; a theme of resistance from 1960s Mississippi to 2020s Minnesota civil rights protest history, as examined by our cultural commentator; and one essayist's take that winter has much more to offer than snow and slush. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

President Donald Trump's nomination of Kevin Warsh to head the Federal Reserve calmed markets, but the former member of the board of governors could also set the Fed on a new course. Also: today's stories, including how an electoral victory in Myanmar offers hope to some for the restoration of democratic norms; a theme of resistance from 1960s Mississippi to 2020s Minnesota civil rights protest history, as examined by our cultural commentator; and one essayist's take that winter has much more to offer than snow and slush. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

After a lightning military advance in Kurdish-held northeastern Syria, Damascus is demanding that the Kurdish-led SDF, a key U.S. ally in the fight against ISIS, agree to integrate into the national army. The United States has thrown its support behind a unified Syria. Also: today's stories, including why the Pentagon is changing Stars and Stripes' independent status, one man's journey from a poor Russian village boy to custodian of state secrets, and our essayist's advice for when the world's worries threaten to weigh you down. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

A brutal Iranian crackdown has appeared to quash most protests, and officials are seeking to portray a sense of “national solidarity.” But images and eyewitness accounts of shocking “atrocities” are accumulating that paint a different picture. Also: today's stories, including a look at how U.S. President Donald Trump may respond to protests in Iran; how Ukrainian citizens are being put to the test by Russian air attacks against energy infrastructure; and our review of the Dolly Parton biography, “Ain't Nobody's Fool.” Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

President Donald Trump's withdrawal from dozens of global organizations – many focused on climate issues and human rights – was swiftly condemned by U.S. allies. One power that increasingly has stepped into the leadership breach is China. Also: today's stories, including a look at two Supreme Court cases involving whether the Constitution's guarantee of equal protection under the law extends to transgender people competing in single-sex sports; how more women are emerging into leadership roles in Latino Christian churches; and the rise of women's sports in England. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

The long, emotionally exhausting ordeal of hostages held in Hamas tunnels, and the general trauma of October 7th, has led to a visible rise in religious belief among Jewish Israelis. As one hostage notes: “God will always listen. He does not get tired.” Also: today's stories, including why Latin America's authoritarian leaders are leaning into Christmas; a remembrance of Rob Reiner from our film critic; and which traditions our staff and contributors partake in to tap into the true meaning of Christmas. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

With his approval rating for economic leadership dropping in polls, President Donald Trump has tried to downplay voters' concerns about affordability. The same problem that tripped up President Joe Biden is now dogging Mr. Trump. Also: today's stories, including a look at Texas' Senate race; how some Senegalese say it's time for the country to be less reliant on France; and how “Zootopia 2” is breaking records in China. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

With military leaders in the spotlight over drug boat attacks, an important question is surfacing: How do soldiers know when to follow orders and when to push back? Also: today's stories, including why Japan is grappling with the question, “How much work is too much?"; why some retirees are turning to AI chatbots; and our writer's review of ‘The Name on the Wall,' by author Hervé Le Tellier. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

General stores are a lifeline to many rural communities. But in Vermont, towns are fighting to keep their general stores alive. In today's issue, we also look at the EPA's new clean-water rules, the toll of Sudan's civil war on women, and why an Indiana state senator is resisting pressure to redraw the state's congressional map. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Four years of leftist rule have not rid Chile of social inequalities, but worries about a crime wave blamed on immigrants appear to give a right-wing presidential candidate an edge in Sunday's election. Also: today's stories, including how Syria is facing new tension with Israel, how Boston's struggling subway system got back on track, and how one Monitor writer learned the power of kindness through helping a stranger buy bread. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Four years of leftist rule have not rid Chile of social inequalities, but worries about a crime wave blamed on immigrants appear to give a right-wing presidential candidate an edge in Sunday's election. Also: today's stories, including how Syria is facing new tension with Israel, how Boston's struggling subway system got back on track, and how one Monitor writer learned the power of kindness through helping a stranger buy bread. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Some Republicans might grow wary of creating pickup opportunities that make some GOP seats slightly less safe; others might feel more motivated now to redraw lines. Democrats could feel emboldened to push for redistricting in states beyond California, or perhaps conclude they can win without it. Also: today's stories, including why the Monitor visited Michigan to gauge the economic climate 9 months into the Trump Administration, how President Trump's conduct of foreign policy echoes ancient Athens' behavior, and why Head Start is important to rural communities. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Some Republicans might grow wary of creating pickup opportunities that make some GOP seats slightly less safe; others might feel more motivated now to redraw lines. Democrats could feel emboldened to push for redistricting in states beyond California, or perhaps conclude they can win without it. Also: today's stories, including why the Monitor visited Michigan to gauge the economic climate 9 months into the Trump Administration, how President Trump's conduct of foreign policy echoes ancient Athens' behavior, and why Head Start is important to rural communities. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

After lower courts struck down the legal argument for the Trump administration's most sweeping tariffs, the Supreme Court now takes up the matter. The case is important not only for the economic policy of the United States, but for the Constitution's separation of powers. Also: today's stories, including how one biologist in Libya plans to protect critically endangered Mediterranean angel sharks, how 2025 election results in the U.S. will be closely watched for signs of growing or waning political support for Republicans and Democrats, and how Israelis are grappling with the notion of trusting an international force to preserve the fragile Gaza ceasefire. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Workarounds have shielded most Americans from the government shutdown's effects, but program interruptions might soon test public patience and political will. Also: today's stories, including how consent laws in France have now changed, how one Colorado Christian remains grounded in her church community amidst a trend of women leaving churches, and why activists and diplomats are talking reform on climate conferences like COP. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Argentina votes Sunday in midterm legislative elections that serve as a report card for President Javier Milei's economic policies. He tamed inflation, but now the economy is stalled, many are worse off, and corruption has emerged as an issue. Also: today's stories, including why the daylight robbery of jewelry from the Louvre has shocked Paris, a look at how one woman affected by the LA wildfires is shaping her future, and how the new movie “Springsteen,” portrays a more subdued Bruce. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

The volume of U.S. military hardware headed to Puerto Rico suggests an escalation of the Trump administration's military campaign against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The president says land strikes might follow. Also: today's stories, including a look at the state of Indigenous rights in Bolivia; how some French voters still have faith in government despite turmoil; and a review of Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi's latest movie, “It Was Just an Accident.” Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

With harvest under way, China's response to President Trump's tariffs has frozen America's soybean farmers out of the huge Chinese market. A soybean deal could lead to a broader agreement on trade. Also: today's stories, including how Estonian women are aiding in their country's defense through volunteer reservist forces, how U.S. immigration enforcement has affected the agriculture industry, and what's at stake in Tanzania's election as authoritarianism rises in East Africa. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Federal workers who have experienced previous government shutdowns say the uncertainty is always stressful. But this one already feels worse, multiple federal employees tell the Monitor, coming after months of interagency upheaval and layoffs from the Trump administration. Many feel uneasy about not only the immediate standoff – but what will happen when it ends. Also: today's stories, including how insurgency has threatened a centuries-old perfume-making tradition in northern Nigeria, how young people have created a wave of social and political protests, and how one family discovers connection through books. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

The indictment of former FBI director James Comey, which President Donald Trump demanded on social media, comes amid threats of more prosecutorial action. Critics say it could have a chilling effect across government. Mr. Trump says he is seeking justice, not revenge. Also: today's stories, including how repeated incursions of drones and jets into European airspace have reopened debate about how well NATO efforts to deter Moscow are working; a look at North Carolina's recovery efforts in the one year since Hurricane Helene; and whether Bhutan can hold on to its non-materialist Buddhist values and boost economic growth at the same time. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Funding the government is ultimately a must-pass priority for Congress. But with votes from both parties needed, it's also an opportunity for the minority Democrats to seek leverage. And pressure from their base is pushing them toward taking a hard line. Also: today's stories, including Russia's new rival to Eurovision; one Monitor writer's reflection on his first trip to Tokyo; and our Monitor film critic's remembrance of Robert Redford's career and legacy. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

We're back from our hiatus! In this episode, we talk with Mark Sappenfield, the Monitor's former top editor turned roaming Europe reporter and watcher of global trends. Find out what that shift has been like, and what went into the framing of his highly readable recent story on Finland's grassroots defense strategy – a talker in the newsroom and beyond. Plus, Mark gets going on his favorite word (nuance) and his favorite riff: what's special about Monitor journalism. Also, hear about a Finn so stealthy that he gave up hunting because it had begun to feel unfair. Hosted by Clay Collins.

The U.S. has entered a new age of political violence, evidenced by the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Those who work in conflict resolution say Americans need to engage in the hard work of seeing those we disagree with as fully human and worthy of respect. Also: today's stories, including how the U.K. is grappling with the controversial public display of St. George's flag; how Moscow is ignoring war in favor of nonstop celebration this summer; and how one essayist chooses to cherish September. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

A sizable number of teens and young adults in the U.S. are not in school, employed, or in job training. Civic leaders want to reconnect them to a path toward productive adulthood. Also: today's stories, including how grand juries in Los Angeles and Washington, DC, are pushing back against indictments; how a vote of confidence in French Prime Minister François Bayrou reveal a nation at political loggerheads; and how young Americans are seeking more in-person connection through team sports from softball to kickball. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

The tragic shooting of children at Annunciation Catholic School in Minnesota comes after the assassination of a state legislator earlier this summer. The incidents have revealed divides over how to reduce gun violence – as well as a universal desire to emerge from the turbulence stronger. Also: today's stories, including how some religious leaders and volunteers are standing with immigrants at court hearings; how the U.S. and China are racing to build humanoid robots capable of performing many daily tasks; and how the end of tax exemptions for small parcels entering the U.S. is affecting the Indian diaspora. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina threatened to snuff out the spirit of New Orleans. Two decades later, our reporter and photographer chronicle the city's healing journey. Also: today's stories, including how carmakers like Ford are focusing on EVs; how Syrian seamstresses are bringing an ancient craft to life; and our columnist's visit with his son to the Equal Justice Initiative's sculpture park in the wake of President Donald Trump's order to review America's museums. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

While Black Lives Matter protests may not have brought lasting reforms nationwide, in Sanford, Florida, the town where Treyvon Martin was killed in 2012, change has taken root. Also in today's stories: the people fighting to keep local news alive, the stand-up comics testing free speech in India, and the role of Monopoly in rescuing POWs from German prison camps. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Japan is the only country in the world to have experienced nuclear war. As the country marks the 80th anniversary of the United States' bombing of Hiroshima, some activists wonder if the city is as committed to disarmament as it once was. Also: today's stories, the Trump administration's tariffs take effect on dozens of nations, our Paris correspondent takes a dip in the Seine, and British painter David Hockney's glorious art book that captures his 60-year career. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

While elite institutions shaped the pandemic response, critics say they sidelined dissenting views, deepening distrust and contributing to Donald Trump's reelection. As the pandemic divided the United States, could a full accounting help the nation heal? Also: today's stories, including European and Arab governments making diplomatic progress towards peace, an artist pulling her work from the National Portrait Gallery, and a national opera house serving as a bomb-shelter cathedral in Ukraine. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

A spirit of “We're in this together” colored the early days of the pandemic in the United States. But that frayed as debate over what steps to take became increasingly politicized. Also: today's stories, including how a third of the enclave's 2.3 million people are not eating for multiple days in a row, how the truth-telling folk singer Patty Griffin was thinking about hanging up her guitar, and our global progress roundup this week: how California's Yurok tribe doubled its land holdings. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Even as emergency responders continue to comb through debris a week after a flash flood surged on the Guadalupe River north of San Antonio, Texas, an analysis is beginning on how similar tragedies could be avoided in the future. Also: today's stories, including how rebuilding after Syria's civil war is a potentially lethal task, how anyone can make a difference with courage and persistence, and how stories about childhood memories underscore summertime as a season steeped in nostalgia. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

As Texans continue to process one of the deadliest natural disasters in state history, the unity around a will to recover remains unquestioned. Also: today's stories, including unity between Trump and Netanyahu despite differences on Gaza and Iran, the work of a Pakistani non-profit to normalize reporting child abuse, and how the new “Superman” movie as a story of truth, justice, and immigration is holding a mirror to U.S. society. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

On Friday, the Supreme Court sided with the Trump Administration to limit the power of federal judges to issue nationwide procedural rulings. While some see the decision as necessary to curb nationwide injunctions, others are worried it presents an “existential threat to the rule of law.” Also: today's stories, including Iranians in Europe left in limbo following airstrikes from Israel and the U.S.; a look at Yukon's half Indigenous-owned, homegrown airline; and the Monitor's picks for the 10 best books of June. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

With much to lose, Arab states have emerged as the loudest voices calling for diplomacy to end the Israel-Iran conflict. Led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, they are urging President Donald Trump to seek a return to business-friendly regional stability. Also: today's stories, how U.S. states are now more involved in tracking trends that show where problems need addressing, how U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have reached a trade agreement that may offer a reset in their relationship, and how civilian minivans are being converted into makeshift armored ambulances in Ukraine. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

As the United States Army, the linchpin of the military, celebrates its 250th anniversary Saturday, a long-planned military parade in Washington, D.C., has become a lightning rod for concern about the sweep of a president's power. Also: today's stories, including President Donald Trump's confidence that the chill in U.S. political relations with Africa won't hinder his economic and strategic goals in countries there, how Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has emerged as one of the loudest democratic voices sounding the alarm about what he sees as the authoritarian tendencies of the Trump administration, and our film critic's review of writer-director Celine Song's latest film, "Materialists." Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

The story of Hardwick, Vermont, a hamlet in the state's poorest region, is a case study in what it means for a food system to truly “go local” in a world that has leaned on a global supply chain that's now under threat. Today's stories also include a family caught in the Oct. 7 Hamas attack documenting its journey, Coco Gauff finding redemption in Paris, and political parties that were once rivals leading South Africa together. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Lee Jae-myung's victory in South Korea's presidential election on June 3 fills a leadership void that was hobbling Asia's fourth-largest economy. It heralds a liberal shift in South Korea's domestic agenda and efforts by Seoul, a key U.S. ally, to ease tensions with China and North Korea. Also: today's stories, including how antisemitism in the United States is reaching generational highs; how rhetoric is yielding to diplomacy as Iran and the United States prepare for a sixth round of nuclear talks; and a book review on Shaun Walker's “The Illegals: Russia's Most Audacious Spies and Their Century-Long Mission To Infiltrate the West.” Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

Nairobi is like many cities. It's vibrant but chaotic. Well-functioning here, showing cracks in its infrastructure there. In this episode we go behind writer Erika Page's reporting of a tale of two (satellite) cities outside of Kenya's capital, part of a growing constellation of such centers of life and commerce. And we talk about how a reporter keeps finding stories about people trying, at least, to do things better. Hosted by Clay Collins.

U.S. President Donald Trump has presented a vision of the Western Hemisphere that hearkens back to a 19th-century spheres-of-influence approach to international affairs: the regions of North, Central, and South America should be exclusively the United States' economic, diplomatic, and military domain. This approach disrupts a postwar global order and historical alliances — we looked at historical precedents, and at what's different today. Also: today's stories, including a look at an organization led by Palestinians and Israelis seeking peace; what's to come with Russia-Ukraine peace talks; and how Trump's efforts to end state EV mandates is changing the rules of the road. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.

A new regional alignment of in the Middle East, signalling a shift in power away from Iran's weakened Axis of Resistance. Moderate Sunnis now have friendly governments in Beirut, Damascus, and Baghdad, creating an “Axis of Cooperation.” Also: today's stories, including a look at current strains on and shortages faced by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA); how USAID cuts have affected governments in Central America; and why some teachers are once again turning to blue books in the classroom. Join the Monitor's Clay Collins for today's news.