Why Is This Happening? The Chris Hayes Podcast

Updated: 26 Aug 2025 • 414 episodes
www.nbcnews.com

Every week Chris Hayes asks the big questions that keep him up at night. How do we make sense of this unprecedented moment in world history? Why is this (all) happening? This podcast starts to answer these questions. Writers, experts, and thinkers who are also trying to get to the bottom of them join Chris to break it all down and help him get a better night’s rest. “Why is this Happening?” is presented by MSNBC and NBCNews Think.

Show episodes

Chris Hayes & Bill McKibben 26 Aug 2025 • EN

'Here Comes The Sun' with Bill McKibben

Amid all of the political turmoil and global crises, one source of hope stands out: our ability to power modern life with zero emissions. Scientists warn that to limit global warming, emissions need to be cut significantly in the coming years to reach net-zero by mid-century. Bill McKibben, founder of climate justice o

54 min
00:00
54:17
No file found

When President Trump announced sweeping tariffs on all Chinese imports, China retaliated back with tariffs of its own. Since February 2025, the US and China have engaged in a renewed trade war – and to this day, no agreement is in sight. Bill Bishop, a China expert and former media executive with more than a decade exp

57 min
00:00
57:29
No file found

This week, President Trump called Baltimore “so far gone” amid the deployment of the National Guard in DC. In reality, Baltimore has seen record low rates of violent crime the past few years. Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott joins WITHpod to talk about the perception versus reality for crime stats in in Baltimore, the cit

51 min
00:00
51:10
No file found

Author and journalist E. Jean Carroll successfully sued Donald Trump in two civil suits, one for sexual abuse and another for defamation. The two suits resulted in a total of $88.3 million in damages awarded to Carroll, both of which are under appeal. She has written five books including her latest, “Not My Type: One W

50 min
00:00
50:51
No file found

The state of the U.S. economy will come into full view this week as a wave of crucial economic data is set for release, including the jobs report, inflation, consumer confidence and corporate earnings. Where is the U.S. in terms of the global economic order? And how did we get to this point? Aya Ibrahim served as senio

56 min
00:00
56:07
No file found

We’ve seen a good number of protests during Trump 2.0. What role does our ability to organize and protest play in this moment as we see the erosion of democracy right in front of us? Omar Wasow, associate professor of political science at UC Berkley, joins to discuss how he’s making sense of American politics at this m

52 min
00:00
52:57
No file found