This week, we take a look at the wave of distrust sweeping the Supreme Court. Plus, takeaways from the Jan. 6 hearing and an outlook on skyrocketing gas prices.
Scott’s weekly weigh-in
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We witness a lot of dispiriting events in the news business — and that’s especially true now. Still, I found myself staggered this week by the House Jan. 6 committee’s first hearing on the insurrection. “It was carnage. It was chaos,” one Capitol Police officer told the panel.
We were fortunate to interview the committee’s chair, Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi. We were just as lucky to hear insights from our own Ron Elving. And in this week’s essay, I was moved to share how the eyewitness testimony and new videos made the event even more vivid. The hearings resume Monday morning and will be on most local public stations.
Our producer Danny Hensel got Jeanne Gang to show us her new 101-story skyscraper in Chicago — the world's tallest structure designed by a woman. (One of the floors is empty to allow lake winds to blow through.) She speaks lyrically of being a part of the same cityscape as other architectural greats — Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright.
Scott Simon is one of NPR's most renowned news anchors. He is the host of Weekend Edition Saturday and one of the hosts of the morning news podcast Up First. Be sure to listen to him every Saturday on your local NPR station, and follow him on Twitter.
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The Supreme Court is being rocked by rampant distrust — among clerks and the justices themselves. The leak of the draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade has created an ugly atmosphere in the nation’s highest court. “The place sounds like it’s imploding,” one source told NPR’s Nina Totenberg. The court’s clerks, who traditionally act as its “diplomatic corps," are terrified that their professional lives could be blown up.
The first Jan. 6 hearing made a strong case that Donald Trump is a threat to democracy. Among the most striking revelations made by the House committee was that Rep. Scott Perry and other Republican congressmen sought presidential pardons for their roles in attempting to overturn the 2020 election — and that Ivanka Trump broke with her father over his election lies. NPR’s Domenico Montanaro breaks down the key takeaways from the primetime hearing.
Why eating lunch at your desk is banned in France. The solo work lunch is prohibited by French labor code — and shunned in a culture that prizes a change of pace, and scenery, during the midday meal. It turns out that the French lunch break was born during a public health crisis, then nearly killed off in another.
From our member station
Kristyna Wentz-Graff/OPB
A utility in Oregon is harnessing the power of batteries to produce clean energy 24/7 — rain or shine. The facility is the nation’s first large-scale wind, solar and battery operation that supporters are calling a “game changer” for the state’s transition to renewable energy. The batteries will allow electricity to be captured and stored even if there’s no sun or wind available. — Oregon Public Broadcasting
Before you go...
Jon McMorran
A group of activists who work to defund disinformation sites online have their sights set on a daunting new target: Fox News.
Gas prices have now hit $5. Here’s how we got to this moment — and what's ahead.
Kate Bush’s 1985 song “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” shot up to the top of the charts after being featured in Stranger Things. Our critics chose seven of her other songs that deserve the spotlight.
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