The Morning Edition

Ronald Reagan’s presidency of the 1980s is known as the ‘Reagan Revolution’, while Franklin D Roosevelt - the only president who has served for more than two terms -  is known for his reformist agenda.So, now that it’s officially a year on from Donald Trump’s inauguration, for a second time, how does the scale of what he has upended and changed compare?Today North American correspondent Michael Koziol on the deliberate chaos of the Trump presidency, and whether he is likely to toss aside legalities and run for a third term.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kazem Hamad rose rapidly to become one of the nation’s most powerful organised crime players. The syndicate he is accused of heading waged a relentless turf war for control of Australia’s multibillion-dollar illicit tobacco trade, which has seen firebombings around the country. But Hamad’s arrest last week was unexpected, because it happened not in Australia, but thousands of kilometres away in Iraq. Today, senior reporter Chris Vedelago on the capture of one of Australia’s most wanted accused criminals.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Australian Open stars, such as Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka, hit the courts this week, they’ll do so with the support of screaming fans, massive sponsorship deals, and a shot at a record-breaking prize haul. But what of those who aren’t even close to being world No.1?For them, the journey to the Open is often a juggle to make ends meet – one of scrimping and saving – sometimes without a paid coach, let alone a sponsor.Today, sports reporter Marc McGowan on whether Australian Open competitors get paid enough. And the gruelling journey to the Australian Open for the tennis players you've probably never heard of.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Inside Politics is still on a break, but we’re set to return in two weeks.   Today, we return to an episode released just after Anthony Albanese’s successful meeting with Donald Trump, and one in which we had a special guest -  former Labor opposition leader Bill Shorten. Bill also has some advice for the opposition, and its leader Sussan Ley, before a slight diversion to discussing the dress sense of our chief political correspondent, Paul Sakkal.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Kevin Rudd announced on Monday that he would leave his post as ambassador to the United States a year early, it was a penny-drop moment for many. Wasn’t this inevitable since his incredibly awkward meeting with US President Donald Trump in the White House in October? Today, foreign affairs and national security correspondent Matthew Knott on where this leaves our relationship with the most mercurial US president in recent memory. Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The protests that have been spreading across Iran for weeks have been growing more violent. Video footage showed and eye witnesses described security forces opening fire on protesters, while reports from human rights agencies say the death toll is in the thousands .But could these protests tip over into a counter-revolution? Might Iran’s brutal Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his regime be overthrown?Kylie Moore-Gilbert, an Australian Middle Eastern scholar, spent 804 days in an Iranian prison before being released in 2020. Today, she discusses how this uprising differs from previous ones in Iran. And what it will take for the Iranian regime to fall.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While firefighters in Victoria battle devastating bush fires that have destroyed homes and livestock, at the other end of the country, Queenslanders were bracing for floods from ex-tropical cyclone Koji. Today, David Bowman, a professor of pyrogeography and fire science at the University of Tasmania, on what causes this climate whiplash and how our changing climate is worsening our extreme weather.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the first day of the new year, Donald Trump wrote on his social platform Truth Social, what he wanted for 2026. And I quote, “Peace, peace on earth”.  Two days later, Trump invaded Venezuela. And now, the American president is threatening to invade at least four other countries.  Today, Bruce Wolpe, senior fellow at the United States Studies Centre, and a former congressional staffer, on whether Trump’s imperialist aggression, and a recent mutiny of more than a dozen top-ranking MAGA members, might break his hold on power.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re on a break over summer, our dear chief political correspondent Paul Sakkal is probably off to a yoga retreat somewhere in Bali, and we return at the end of January for another fun-filled year of Inside Politics. Well, we can’t ignore the impact that Donald Trump had on domestic politics last year and for this episode, we return to a point in time when most of the press pack was obsessed with whether Anthony Albanese will meet with the US president. It finally happened, and we recorded this episode about a week before the meeting would take place. Paul is joined by our special guest star, and economics correspondent Shane Wright, to forecast the details of the meeting, before they argue about Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ abandonment of superannuation reforms.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hi, it’s Samantha Selinger-Morris here, and I’m the host of The Morning Edition. We’re bringing you the best episodes of 2025 before your Morning Edition team returns on Monday. In August, two police officers were shot and killed at a property in Victoria’s high country and suspected murderer, Dezi Freeman, went on the run. Now, more than four months later, he is still missing.  In this episode, associate editor and special writer Tony Wright takes us to the whispering forests and deep valleys of the high country, which have long hidden those on the run.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.