The Sunday Read: ‘What Does the U.S. Space Force Actually Do?’

Two closely watched trials are heading toward a verdict. We discuss the complexities of both cases. Guests: Katharine Q. Seelye, who has been covering a manslaughter case in Taunton, Mass., involving texts between two teenagers; Lili Bernard, one of Bill Cosby’s accusers who has been attending his now-deadlocked trial in Norristown, Pa. For more information on today’s episode, visit http://nyti.ms/2rFwYIE. For two weeks, we’re offering listeners a free trial of a New York Times digital subscription. Visit nytimes.com/dailytrial to sign up. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

16 Jun 201721min

Moments before he opened fire, the gunman asked who was on the baseball field: Democrats or Republicans. And what happens when a 400-year-old play about one of history’s most infamous acts of political violence is adapted for today? We discuss political violence at a time of extreme partisanship. Guests: Michael Shear, who covered Wednesday’s shooting in Alexandria, Va.; Michael Cooper, an arts reporter. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. For two weeks, we’re offering listeners a free trial of a New York Times digital subscription. Visit nytimes.com/dailytrial to sign up. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

15 Jun 201723min

Attorney General Jeff Sessions took his turn appearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election. We discuss his testimony. Plus: a dispatch from the courthouse in Norristown, Pa., where after more than 16 hours of deliberation over two days, the jurors in the Bill Cosby sexual assault case have still not been able to reach a verdict. Guests: Matt Apuzzo, who has been covering the investigation into possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russia; Graham Bowley, who is covering Mr. Cosby’s trial. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. For two weeks, we’re offering listeners a free trial of a New York Times digital subscription. Visit nytimes.com/dailytrial to sign up. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

14 Jun 201722min

Her disclosure of classified documents in 2010 ushered in the age of leaks. Now Chelsea Manning has been freed from prison and talks about why she did it — and everything that followed. Guest: Matt Shaer, a contributing writer for the magazine, who narrates the tapes from his conversation with Ms. Manning, her first in-person, on-the-record interview in almost a decade. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. For two weeks, we’re offering listeners a free trial of a New York Times digital subscription. Visit nytimes.com/dailytrial to sign up. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

13 Jun 201725min

James Comey says he took it as a command. President Trump says he never even said it. We discuss the one word that an obstruction of justice case could turn on: “hope.” Guests: Adam Liptak, who covers the Supreme Court; David E. Sanger, who has been reporting on U.S. cyberattacks. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. For two weeks, we’re offering listeners a free trial of a New York Times digital subscription. Visit nytimes.com/dailytrial to sign up. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

12 Jun 201721min

James Comey’s testimony on Thursday reveals that the leak of a James Comey memo was orchestrated by ... James Comey. We discuss why the former F.B.I. director leaked the memo, and the sequence of events he intentionally set in motion to get it to The Times. Guests: Matt Apuzzo and Michael Schmidt, who cover national security for The Times. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. For two weeks, we’re offering listeners a free trial of a New York Times digital subscription. Visit nytimes.com/dailytrial to sign up. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

9 Jun 201723min

James Comey goes before the Senate Intelligence Committee today. We talk through his prepared remarks, and look at what President Trump might have meant when he said “we had that thing you know.” And why would Islamic State militants be targeting Iran? Guests: Michael S. Schmidt, who has broken several stories about encounters between President Trump and Mr. Comey; Thomas Erdbrink, The Times’s Tehran bureau chief. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. For the next two weeks, we’re offering listeners a free trial of a New York Times digital subscription. Visit nytimes.com/dailytrial to sign up. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

8 Jun 201720min

Afghanistan was barely mentioned in last year’s election. But while U.S. attention has turned from the Taliban to the Islamic State, the Taliban are back, stronger than ever, and the government is on the brink of collapse. Guests: Mujib Mashal, our senior correspondent in Afghanistan; Helene Cooper, who covers the Pentagon. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. For the next two weeks, we’re offering listeners a free trial of a New York Times digital subscription. Visit nytimes.com/dailytrial to sign up. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

7 Jun 201719min