Consider This from NPR

"Wildfire" is the word we tend to use when we talk about what Los Angeles has been dealing with the past week. But Lori Moore-Merrell, the U.S. Fire Administrator for the Federal Emergency Management Agency used a different word, when she spoke to NPR this morning. She described a "conflagration." Saying they're not wildland fires with trees burning. They're structure to structure fire spread.They may have started at the suburban fringe, but they didn't stay there. Which prompts a question: what happens when fire meets city?For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.orgEmail us at considerthis@npr.orgLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

From handling crises in the rail and airline industries to overseeing the distribution of billions of dollars in infrastructure funding, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has taken on a lot over the last four years.Now, his tenure is coming to an end.Host Scott Detrow speaks with Buttigieg about what the Biden administration accomplished, what it didn't get done, and what he's taking away from an election where voters resoundingly called for something different. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.orgEmail us at considerthis@npr.orgLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

While the debate over homeless policy plays out across the country, Project HOME has offered resources to homeless people in Philadelphia for decades. We talk with the co-founder, who just retired after 35 years. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Jimmy Carter's four years in the White House were largely defined by an event that took place halfway through his term. On November 4th, 1979 Iranian college students took over the US Embassy in Tehran, and took 52 Americans hostage.For the next 444 days, the Carter administration tried to secure the hostages' release. In April, 1980 they even commissioned a rescue mission that ended in failure. While Carter was trying to end the hostage crisis, he was also campaigning for a second term. A year to the day after the Americans were taken hostage, Ronald Reagan beat Carter in a landslide.The hostage crisis played a key role in Carter's defeat. The Iranian Hostage crisis helped doom Jimmy Carter's presidency, but for some of the people he helped free, he was a hero. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.orgEmail us at considerthis@npr.orgLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Extremely dry conditions coupled with high winds have led to an explosive wildfire situation in southern California. Multiple fires have erupted across the Los Angeles area since Tuesday. Tens of thousands of people have had to evacuate, and firefighters are struggling to contain the flames.Adria Kloke is one of the people who has had to flee. She packed up her belongings, along with her cat, and left her home in Pacific Palisades on Tuesday. Kloke shares her story with NPR.For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.orgEmail us at considerthis@npr.orgLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

In Washington, D.C., the federal government is closed – as are most of the schools in the area. That's because the first major snow storm in about three years barreled in Sunday night. Meanwhile, the Southern U.S. is preparing for another storm that could paralyze parts of Texas, Arkansas and Northern Louisiana. And Southern California is preparing for "life threatening, destructive gusts" driving wildfires. That's a lot of wild weather...so what's going on?For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.orgEmail us at considerthis@npr.orgLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

What happened on January 6, 2021? There have been news reports, documentaries and witness testimonies all trying to put that question to rest. But despite an impeachment trial and a House Select Committee investigation, the fight over how that day will be remembered isn't over.For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.orgEmail us at considerthis@npr.orgLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Billionaire Elon Musk begins 2025 as one of the most influential people in the United States. He's developed a close relationship with President-elect Donald Trump, and has been advising the incoming administration on policy and staffing. And Musk is now increasingly weighing in on European politics as well.Host Scott Detrow speaks with reporter Rebecca Collard about Musk wading into European politics.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

As president, Jimmy Carter promised always to tell the American people the truth about what was happening in the country. We'll look at how that affected his presidency as we remember Carter's life and legacy.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

New Orleans is still reeling from the New Year's Day attack that killed 14 people on Bourbon Street. We ask a counterterrorism expert how attacks like this can be prevented and hear the latest from New Orleans.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy