Washington Week with The Atlantic

Washington Week with The Atlantic Airs Friday, Oct. 3, 2025 at 8PM on PBS(check local listings) Democrats’ Risky Strategy After months of being sidelined by President Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress, Democrats are using their party’s leverage in the federal funding process to confront them. But for the Senate and House minority leaders, shutting down the government is a risky strategy, and one that may not pay off as they face the White House's threats of mass federal layoffs and...

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has called hundreds of U.S. military leaders to Washington for a meeting. The panel discusses the meeting and new rules on press access at the Pentagon.

President Trump put television networks on notice, stoking fears that he’s using the government to silence his critics. The panel takes a deep dive into the fierce debate over free speech in the United States.

The assassination Charlie Kirk, conservative activist and close ally of President Donald Trump, has raised new questions about escalating political violence in the country. Join moderator Jeffrey Goldberg, Peter Baker of The New York Times, Laura Barrón-López of MSNBC, Susan Glasser of The New Yorker and Tom Nichols of The Atlantic to discuss this and more.