The Washington Roundtable discusses President Donald Trump’s invocation of emergency powers to enact sweeping tariffs and the ensuing global economic meltdown, in addition to how authoritarians have historically used economic control and coercion to strengthen their grip on power. The Roundtable also examines other spheres where Trump’s maximalist approach might make a mark, including immigration enforcement, the politicization of the military, and the potential seizure of Greenland. 

This week’s reading:

• “Donald Trump’s Ego Melts the Global Economy,” by Susan B. Glasser
• “Pete Hegseth’s Secret History,” by Jane Mayer (December, 2024)
• “The Truth About Donald Trump’s ‘Liberation Day,’ ” by John Cassidy
• “Has Trump’s Legal Strategy Backfired?,” by Ruth Marcus
• “Fighting Elon Musk, One Tesla Dealership at a Time,” by Sarah Larson
• “How Trump Is Helping Tycoons Exploit the Pandemic,” by Jane Mayer (July, 2020)

To discover more podcasts from The New Yorker, visit newyorker.com/podcasts. To send in feedback on this episode, write to themail@newyorker.com with “The Political Scene” in the subject line.