The State of It: USA

Katy Balls reports from the Republican midterm convention in Dallas where President Trump made a pledge that every adult will get a $5,000 dividend if the Republicans win the House and the Senate. That adds up to about $1.2 trillion.
Golden balloons were dropped and the crowd joined the president in repeating a vow to vote for "the greatest president in the history of the United States that loves us so much he can't even breathe".
JD Vance's speech was received well and the audience chanted "48", suggesting they'd like the vice-president to become the 48th president of the United States. Is he pulling ahead of Marco Rubio as the bookies' favourite to be the Republican candidate for 2028?

Katy Balls, Washington editor and columnist at The Times and The Sunday Times
Gerard Baker, columnist at The Times and editor at large at The Wall Street Journal

Producer: Harry Kitson
Executive producer: Molly Guinness

Picture: Getty Images
Audio: Reuters
This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're in Dallas for the Republican National Convention. It's been nicknamed Trumpapalooza. But some Republicans are uneasy about putting the president front and centre of their midterms campaign when his approval ratings are so low. Is it a wise move?
The UK has imposed sanctions on Israel and accused Binyamin Netanyahu's government of supporting ethnic cleansing. How much of an issue is this for the US administration?
And 25 years on from 9/11, we reflect on how America was changed by the attacks on the Twin Towers.

Katy Balls, Washington editor and columnist at The Times and The Sunday Times
Gerard Baker, columnist at The Times and editor at large at The Wall Street Journal

Producer: Harry Kitson
Executive producer: Molly Guinness

Picture: Getty Images
Audio: Reuters
This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

President Trump’s Iran war was supposed to be over in weeks. Instead, tensions are escalating again, with Iran threatening cyberattacks on US infrastructure and the Strait of Hormuz still at the centre of the crisis. Does Trump really want to rename the Strait of Hormuz Trump Strait?
Katy Balls joins Carole Walker to assess whether Trump is losing control of the conflict — and why he’s saying he’s glad Prince Harry and Meghan have left America.

Produced in partnership with Times Radio

Katy Balls, Washington editor and columnist, The Times and Sunday Times
Carole Walker, presenter, Times Radio

Producer: Angus Mitchell

Picture: Getty Images
Audio: Reuters
This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What can culture tell us about the US that news can’t? Gerry and Katy pick books, films, TV and songs that have shaped the way they see America.
Is Modern Family an underappreciated bit of social realism? Why does Katy think a 2004 Disney movie strikes at an essential component of American patriotism? And what film is the most viewed on Air Force One?

Katy Balls, Washington editor and columnist at The Times and The Sunday Times
Gerard Baker, columnist at The Times and editor at large at The Wall Street Journal

Producers: Euan Dawtrey, Harry Kitson

Picture: Modern Family
Music credit: Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts, Bob Dylan from the album Blood on the Tracks (1975), Columbia
This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Who was attacked by a rabbit on his summer holiday?
How many days a year does Donald Trump play golf?
And why was George W Bush so keen on cutting brush?
In this summer special episode, Katy and Gerry explore the political and cultural significance of the American summer.

Katy Balls, Washington editor and columnist at The Times and The Sunday Times
Gerard Baker, columnist at The Times and editor at large at The Wall Street Journal

Producers: Euan Dawtrey, Harry Kitson

Picture: Getty Images
This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.