Country Music’s Uneasy Relationship with the N.R.A.

Coming up on today’s show:

• The intersection between the NRA and country music has existed for a long time and points to the complexity of gun culture in America. Jonathan Bernstein, contributing writer for The Guardian, joins The Takeaway to look at the history of the relationship and how the NRA has used country music to extend its brand.

• In the aftermath of Hurricanes Irma and Maria, there has been a significant push to privatize Puerto Rico’s electric grid, run by the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA).  Naomi Klein, senior correspondent for The Intercept, has been following these types of privatization efforts in the wake of disasters for years, and she joins The Takeaway to weigh in.

• While much of the media and government focus has been on Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands have also struggled to recover in the wake of Hurricanes Irma and Maria. On Monday, FEMA reported that only fifteen percent of customers on the island of St. Thomas have had their power restored, along with just ten percent of those on the island of St. Croix. Brianna Sacks has been covering the islands’ recovery process for Buzzfeed News and she joins The Takeaway with the latest from the ground.

• On Wednesday, Michael Dourson will go before the Senate in his confirmation hearing to oversee the Environmental Protection Agency’s chemical safety programs. Dourson served in the EPA previously, but critics are concerned that a consulting group he founded has been paid by chemical companies consistently over the years. For more information about Dourson’s career, The Takeaway speaks with Sheila Kaplan, health and science reporter for The New York Times.

• A joint investigation by WNYC, ProPublica and The New Yorker delves into questionable business practices at the Trump Soho Hotel in lower Manhattan. Ilya Marritz, WNYC business reporter, and Andrea Bernstein, special projects editor for WNYC, join The Takeaway to discuss how two of President Trump’s children once narrowly avoided a felony charge. 

• Drama Club is a program that teaches theater to incarcerated youth. The Takeaway visited an improv performance by the young women housed in the Rose M. Singer Center on Rikers Island and spoke with some of the women in the program about how they use theater as a release.

This episode is hosted by Todd Zwillich.