The Current Podcast
1) What did the US achieve in the Venezuela operation?
Scott Anderson and Caitlin Talmadge discuss the legal, tactical, and strategic angles of the recent U.S. military operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife. Anderson, a fel...Show More
2) Gov. Andy Beshear: How health care powers rural economies
Tony Pipa, senior fellow at the Center for Sustainable Development and host of the Reimagine Rural podcast, sits down with Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear to discuss what the governor calls the "bigges...Show More
3) Behind the negotiating table to end the Russia-Ukraine war
A recent flurry of negotiations among American, Russian, Ukrainian, and European officials to find a diplomatic solution to end the Russia-Ukraine war has, so far, been unsuccessful. To discuss Putin'...Show More
4) Are students and workers ready for AI?
Artificial Intelligence (AI), is heralding a profound shift in how we learn, work, and live. To gain insight into how AI is reshaping the American workforce and economy, two Brookings experts join thi...Show More
5) Inside the next Democracy Playbook: Strategies for global democratic U-turns
In this episode, ACDS chair Norm Eisen discusses the forthcoming fourth edition of the Democracy Playbook and the emerging research showing how democracies can reverse democratic backsliding. He expla...Show More
Inside the next Democracy Playbook: Strategies for global democratic U-turns
13:18 | Dec 1st, 2025
6) The catastrophe in Sudan
The conflict in Sudan is the world's worst humanitarian crisis. More than 150,000 people have died; millions have fled their homes and are starving; and prospects for a ceasefire are bleak. To discuss...Show More
7) Chicago's Latino business community is adapting in the face of policy volatility
Little Village, a Latino business corridor in Chicago, has been contending with tariffs, immigration enforcement, and other changes in federal policy. But business owners have been figuring out new wa...Show More
Chicago's Latino business community is adapting in the face of policy volatility
16:35 | Nov 19th, 2025
8) Why are expiring ACA subsidies raising health insurance premiums?
With expanded subsidies for Affordable Care Act plans set to expire at the end of 2025, Americans on ACA health plans are starting to see big increases in their monthly health insurance premiums for 2...Show More
9) Can the COP30 climate conference achieve its goals?
The thirtieth Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP30, meets in Belém, Brazil next week. The most urgent challenge is finance: How do we pay fo...Show More
10) Syria at a crossroads
After years of war, Syria is attempting to rebuild under a new government. Brookings Fellow and Director of the Turkey Project Aslı Aydıntaşbaş is joined by Visiting Fellow Mara Karlin, a former assis...Show More