Podcast Summary: "What's Trump Doing in DC?"

Podcast: Consider This from NPR
Host: Ailsa Chang
Guest: Masha Gessen (Columnist, New York Times, Author of Surviving Autocracy)
Date: August 20, 2025
Episode Length: Approximated at 15 minutes (ads and promos excluded)

Overview

This episode of Consider This dives into the federal takeover of law enforcement in Washington, D.C. by President Trump, focusing on the impact on local businesses, the city's social atmosphere, and the broader implications for American democracy and autocracy. Through local stories and expert analysis, the podcast asks: What is the real goal of the federal intervention in D.C., and what does it signal for the country's democratic norms?

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Scene in D.C.: Impact on Local Businesses

[00:02–02:07]

• Ellie Restaurant’s Struggles:

  • Nick Pimentel, the co-owner of Ellie in D.C.'s Mount Pleasant neighborhood, describes a drop in both customer traffic and morale since the start of 2025.

  • Restaurant Week, normally a boost for business, has underperformed dramatically this year:

    "Last summer, Restaurant Week we were pretty much fully booked all seven days. This year, reservations are still coming in, but we're about 50 to 60% booked." (Nick Pimentel, 00:49)

  • Pimentel highlights the unnerving presence of federal law enforcement in the neighborhood:

    "He has seen officers, masked, plain clothes, armored, mostly just standing around in the neighborhood, but also they're walking down the street looking in windows.” (Ailsa Chang, 01:17 & Nick Pimentel, 01:31)

• Atmospheric Change:

  • Staff and customers feel "unnerved" rather than reassured.
  • Pimentel clarifies that he wasn't threatened by crime beforehand; his main concern is keeping his business and employees afloat.

    "We're not a profitable restaurant. Definitely not going to even break even in August." (Nick Pimentel, 01:10)

2. The Federal Takeover: What’s Happening in D.C.?

[03:48–04:42]

• The Trump administration has:

  • Deployed the National Guard in D.C.
  • Set up immigration checkpoints.
  • Invoked emergency powers to take over the D.C. Metropolitan Police Force.

• Official justification: Combating "out of control crime."

• Contradictory Data: Violent crime is actually at a 30-year low.

3. Autocracy & Perception: Masha Gessen's Analysis

[04:42–08:06]

The Power of Perception and Control

• Autocratic Signaling:

  • Gessen argues that much of autocracy is about being seen as in charge of "all the people in uniforms and carrying guns."

    "There is something that Trump is extremely sensitive to, which is whether he looks like he's in control of everything...in an autocracy, ultimately it's probably the most important thing is what people think about who's in charge of all the people in uniforms and carrying guns." (Masha Gessen, 04:52)

• Visible Law Enforcement and "Feeling Safe":

  • Trump claims to have received thanks from citizens who now feel safer; however, Gessen challenges both the credibility and policy value of such anecdotal assertions.

    "We have a president who systematically says things that are not true. So I think it may be a mistake to engage with this assertion that he has heard from people who say they feel safer...that's not generally how public policy is made." (Masha Gessen, 06:10)

Echoes of Russia: Speed and Normalization

• Comparing Autocratic Transitions:

  • Gessen, who witnessed Russia’s shift under Putin, sees disturbing parallels:

    "The demonstration that this military force is deployed directly by the leader of the country is an autocratic hallmark." (Masha Gessen, 07:30)

  • The process in the U.S. is described as accelerated compared to Russia:

    "It took Putin over a decade to consolidate autocratic rule...I think Trump has done in seven months." (Masha Gessen, 08:18)

• Normalization of Extraordinary Measures:

  • Even as sweeping actions are taken, public and journalistic reactions become increasingly blunted:

    "We are falling into the trap of treating these as isolated incidents and also looking for ways in which this isn't quite the disaster that maybe we feel in the pit of our stomach." (Masha Gessen, 09:15)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Power of Appearances:

  "For somebody to come on the scene and say, okay, I'm in charge of all these people is a very important part of establishing the perception of autocratic rule."
  (Masha Gessen, 05:38)

• On Public Safety Claims:

  "Not just perception, but, you know, whether these kinds of measures are effective for public safety. And there's zero evidence for that."
  (Masha Gessen, 06:57)

• On the Pace of Autocratic Change:

  "It's moving so much faster in the United States than it did in Russia...It took Putin over a decade to do as much as I think Trump has done in seven months."
  (Masha Gessen, 08:18)

• On Societal Response:

  "Normalization on steroids...Now we're watching this happen in D.C. and we're not even, I think, spending enough time talking about this as a pat."
  (Masha Gessen, 09:15)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:02] – Restaurant owner Nick Pimentel on business downturn and new law enforcement presence.
• [01:10] – Pimentel on the changing industry climate since COVID and under new federal policies.
• [03:48] – Description of the Trump administration's moves to take over D.C. law enforcement.
• [04:42] – Masha Gessen introduced; first impressions on the D.C. situation.
• [06:10] – Discussion on the reliability and policy relevance of Trump’s safety claims.
• [07:30] – Parallels between D.C. and the rise of autocracy in Russia.
• [08:18] – Gessen on the relative speed of U.S. normalization.
• [09:15] – Discussion about normalization and diminished outrage.

Tone & Takeaways

The episode is urgent, analytical, and grounded in personal narrative and historical comparison. Local distress is juxtaposed with expert warnings about the dangers of normalization in the face of rapid, centralized assertions of power. Through both the voices of those on the ground and those with a global perspective on autocracy, listeners are cautioned to look beyond official narratives and recognize the significance of these developments for American governance.