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What the Voting Rights Act Decision Means, and Hegseth’s Heated Testimony

What the Voting Rights Act Decision Means, and Hegseth’s Heated Testimony

The Headlines
Apr 30, 2026 9 min
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About this episode

<p>Plus, chatbots told scientists how to make bioweapons. </p> <p>Here’s what we’re covering:</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/30/us/politics/supreme-court-voting-rights-act-conservatives.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">In Narrowing Voting Rights Act, Conservative Justices See Progress on Racism</a>, by Adam Liptak</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/29/us/politics/hegseth-congress-hearing-takeaways.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Takeaways From Hegseth’s Testimony on Iran War and His Tenure</a>, by John Ismay and Megan Mineiro</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/29/business/oil-gas-prices-iran.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Oil Price Surges as Effects of War Reverberate</a>, by Emmett Lindner</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/29/us/ai-chatbots-biological-weapons.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">A.I. Bots Told Scientists How to Make Biological Weapons</a>, by Gabriel J.X. Dance</p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/29/sports/lester-wright-dead.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Lester Wright, the Fastest Known Centenarian, Dies at 103</a>, by Jeré Longman</p> <p>Tune in every weekday morning, and tell us what you think at: <a href="mailto:theheadlines@nytimes.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">theheadlines@nytimes.com</a>.</p> <p><p>Subscribe today at <a href="http://nytimes.com/podcasts">nytimes.com/podcasts</a> or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher">https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher</a>. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.</p></p><br/> <p>Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.</p>

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