Moral Ambiguity in the Age of Trump

Coming up on today’s show:

• Americans haven’t heard much about the ongoing war in Syria lately, but there’s a new front in the conflict with complicated and high stakes for the U.S. Sarah El Deeb,an Associated Press correspondent covering Syria and Lebanon, and Ambassador Frederic Hof, a former special adviser for transition in Syria at the U.S. State Department, explain. 

• Under the Trump Administration, dramatic changes to policy mean that the United States is on track to receive the lowest amount of refugees in decades. WNYC Reporter Matt Katz shares part II of his story on a Congolese husband and wife who are currently separated due to the White House’s steep changes to U.S. refugee policy.

• On Monday, the Trump Administration approved a deal that would allow for a proposed road to run through Alaska’s Izembek National Wildlife Refuge.  Previous administrations have blocked the move, but Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke signed the land swap between the federal government and King Cove Corporation, paving the way for the 30-mile road.  Della Trumble, a lifelong Aleut resident and King Cove Corporation finance manager, weighs in. 

• All this week, The Takeaway is looking at President Trump’s first year in office, and the effects it’s had on the government, and on people’s lives. When Trump came into office, he inherited around 100 judicial vacancies, nearly twice as many as President Obama had in his first year. Russell Wheeler, a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution’s Governance Studies Program, explores how the 45th president is shaping America’s court system. 

• This week marks 45 years since the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Roe v. Wade. For 33 of those 45 years, Clarke Forsythe has worked with Americans United for Life in the courts and state legislatures to restrict abortion, always with an eye on the ultimate win: Overturning Roe V. Wade. He explains how anti-abortion activists are working to roll back abortion rights around the country. 

• Allegations that President Donald Trump paid off — just weeks before the election —  an adult film actor he slept with have not been making headlines. Could the story have an impact with Trump’s base? Data tells us that’s unlikely, and that white evangelicals are less likely to condemn politicians for seemingly immoral acts than in the past. We dig into this evolution with Barry Hankins, professor and chair of Department of History and scholar at the Institute for Studies of Religion at Baylor University.

This episode is hosted by Todd Zwillich