Democracy on ICE? The mood turns in America

<p>On the streets of Minneapolis, in polls and in the halls of Congress, disapproval of President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda is mounting. Democrats won a near-term battle on funding—for now—but a <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2026/01/29/ices-impunity-is-a-formula-for-more-violence?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">wider war</a> awaits. Kim Jong Un, North Korea’s leader, appears to be positioning his daughter <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2026/01/08/the-teenage-girl-who-may-rule-north-korea?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ever more visibly</a> as his successor. And remembering <a href="https://www.economist.com/obituary/2026/01/28/mark-tully-spoke-to-indians-as-one-of-them?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mark Tully</a>, a veteran BBC correspondent in India.&nbsp;</p><br /><p><em>Get a world of insights by </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribing to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p><p><br /></p><hr /><p style="color: grey; font-size: 0.75em;"> Hosted on Acast. See <a href="https://acast.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: grey;" target="_blank">acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>