On this week’s episode of Beyond the Bubble, Donald Trump’s early actions signal a willingness to let corporations explore public lands for profit, the White House dismisses suggestions that its budget blueprint is a political document and Democrats throw money at another long-shot red-state contender.
Episode 9: The battle ahead over public lands and private profit
Joining Kristin Roberts to share battleground-state reporting on how voters are reacting to Trump’s Washington are Pati Mazzei of the Miami Herald and Colin Campbell of The News & Observer in Raleigh, as well Western issues correspondent Stuart Leavenworth and White House reporter Anita Kumar.
In this episode:
• White House officials say Trump’s proposed budget cuts affecting rural America reflect a need to find money to pay for projects rural voters want, including the border wall and immigration enforcement.
• Florida Republicans praise Trump’s decision to leave NASA alone in his budget blueprint, but show some willingness to part with their president over his desire to gut the agency that enforces climate regulations.
• A listener asks about the president’s position on public land use, launching a deep dive into our reporting on the competition between job-producing exploration and environmental protection.
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