Why Swalwell, Gonzalez Are Exiting Congress, and How Trump Got Israel to Negotiate with Lebanon

Summary

Here's the Scoop (NBC News) Podcast Summary

Episode: Why Swalwell, Gonzalez Are Exiting Congress, and How Trump Got Israel to Negotiate with Lebanon

Date: April 14, 2026
Host: Yasmin Vossoughian
Contributors: Ryan Nobles (NBC News Chief Capitol Hill Correspondent), Gordon Lubold (NBC News National Security Reporter)

---

Episode Overview

This episode dives into two breaking stories:

1. The resignations of Reps. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) and Tony Gonzalez (R-TX) from Congress amid escalating allegations of sexual misconduct, and what their departures reveal about institutional responses to such scandals.
2. The historic direct talks between Israel and Lebanon in Washington D.C.—their first in over thirty years—focusing on U.S. efforts (driven by President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio) to find a diplomatic solution to the escalating regional conflict involving Iran and Hezbollah.

The discussion is candid, deep, and fast-paced, centered around these political and geopolitical reckonings.

---

1. Congressional Resignations: Swalwell & Gonzalez

Background and Timeline

• Congress returns after two weeks’ recess, facing a packed agenda: ongoing partial government shutdown, the Iran war, and fresh scandals ([01:00]).
• Both Eric Swalwell (D-CA) and Tony Gonzalez (R-TX) resigned on the same day due to sexual misconduct allegations.
• Gonzalez had previously admitted to an affair with a staffer (who died by suicide) and was already under a House Ethics Committee investigation.
• Swalwell resigned following at least four women coming forward with allegations of sexual assault—some with corroborating evidence, fundamentally shifting perceptions among colleagues and the public ([02:00–05:20]).

Key Discussion Points

Open Secrets and Institutional Inertia

• Ryan Nobles:
  • “There were always these rumors about Eric Swalwell and inappropriate behavior with women... But rumors are not things that you report, and rumors make it very difficult to move that ball forward.” ([02:40])
  • The decisive change: “The brave women who claimed to have been abused by him came forward and told their story... at least four, potentially five or six women... and have receipts to back it up.”
  • This created an “untenable situation” for Swalwell—his supporters could no longer claim it was rumor ([04:00]).

Specific Allegations

• Swalwell's Conduct:

  • The most severe charge involved sexual encounters with a subordinate who alleged two instances in which she was too intoxicated to consent: “...in some jurisdictions, that could be defined as rape.” ([05:20])
  • Swalwell’s public response was ambiguous—denying “false” allegations while expressing regret for “mistakes in judgment” without specifying details ([04:32]; [05:20]).
  • Memorable Quote (Swalwell statement, read by Host):

    “I am deeply sorry to my family, staff, and constituents for mistakes in judgment I’ve made in my past. I will fight the serious false allegation made against me. However, I must take responsibility and ownership for the mistakes I did make.” ([04:32])

• Gonzalez's Departure:

  • Resigned likely to avoid the full Ethics process: “The second they’re no longer members of Congress, those ethics investigations go away.” ([07:17])
  • On timing: “The fact that there was a Republican and a Democrat caught up in this, that was gonna provide cover for both parties to say, let’s throw them both out.”

Congressional Culture and Reckoning

• Reference to Kevin McCarthy’s interview:

  • “Every member in Congress knows not to... let any young staffer get around Swalwell or Matt Gaetz. It’s not a secret.” (Ryan Nobles quoting McCarthy, [08:28])
  • Yasmin Vossoughian emphasizes that these were "open secrets," finally forced into daylight by staffers and social media, not lawmakers themselves.

• Ryan Nobles on Accountability:

  “What I think we could be on the verge of here is a reckoning in the halls of Congress about how to treat the behavior of members, mainly almost exclusively men, and the way that they treat the young women that are in and around Capitol Hill... There is a real movement now to say if you’re involved in this kind of behavior and there’s a credible allegation against you, it needs to come out into the light and you need to be held accountable.” ([09:02])

Breaking Update

• Another accuser, Lana Drews, came forward that same afternoon, alleging drugging, rape, and choking by Swalwell in 2018.
  • Swalwell’s attorney “categorically and unequivocally denies each and every allegation of sexual misconduct and assault” ([10:14]).

---

2. Israel-Lebanon Historic Talks & U.S. Mediation

Context

• Israeli-Lebanese tensions high: Hezbollah has fired over 6,500 projectiles at Israel since the war began, Israel’s retaliation has caused massive displacement in Lebanon ([13:27]).
• First direct government-to-government talks in 30+ years held in Washington, hosted by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio ([14:21]).

Key Insights

Progress and Expectations

• Gordon Lubold:
  • "This is not a one-off event. This is a process... talks were reasonably positive, productive... but there's certainly no definitive finding from the talks yet." ([14:39])
• Yasmin Vossoughian:
  • Noted the sudden change by PM Netanyahu, who had recently stated he would not negotiate with Lebanon.

What Changed: U.S. Pressure

• Lubold:
  • The talks must be seen in the context of a broader U.S.-Iran negotiation effort, noting historic meetings between U.S. officials (like VP J.D. Vance in Pakistan) and Iranians ([15:42]).
  • Increased U.S. and political pressure (especially from President Trump) pushed Netanyahu to the table:

    “There is implied pressure, if not direct from President Trump on Netanyahu to figure out how to get the broader peace deal that I think President Trump wants, a lot of people in the US want." ([15:42])

Hezbollah’s Absence and the Limits of Negotiations

• Hezbollah is not part of talks and has already declared it will not abide by any agreements reached.
  • “The Lebanese government has some leverage on Hezbollah, but the real leverage comes from Tehran.” ([18:14])

Regional Stakes and the Bigger Picture

• Permanent Peace and Main Obstacles
  • For a comprehensive Israel-Iran-U.S. peace deal, Lebanon/Hezbollah must be addressed.
  • The real sticking points in the broader U.S.-Iran talks are the Strait of Hormuz (where Iranian naval threats persist) and Iran's nuclear program ([19:41]).

Timelines and Realism

• Lubold cautioned against over-optimism:

  “Anybody who's being pragmatic from the region, from inside the US is trying to convey to the Trump administration: this is not a simple thing... these kinds of deals do not happen overnight.” ([20:46])

  • Previous nuclear deal negotiations (JIGPOA) took two years—suggesting current hopes for a quick resolution are unrealistic.

---

3. Notable Quotes & Moments

• Ryan Nobles, on Congressional accountability: ([09:02])

  “There is a real movement now to say if you’re involved in this kind of behavior and there’s a credible allegation against you, it needs to come out into the light and you need to be held accountable."

• Lubold, on U.S. expectations in the Middle East: ([20:46])

  “As we all know, President Trump is, you know, author of the Art of the Deal, likes to make a deal, but deals don't happen overnight...these kinds of deals do not happen overnight.”

• Yasmin Vossoughian, on the reckoning for men in Congress: ([09:02])

  “Why did it take them coming forward to bring this to light?”

---

4. Headline Roundup ([24:34])

• LA Unified School District avoids a strike after a wage deal for school workers.
• Amazon and GlobalStar partner on a satellite internet deal to compete with Starlink.
• New fluoride study finds no link to IQ reduction, contrary to claims from RFK Jr.
• Tax refunds are on average 10% higher due to recent tax law changes, with important reminders about actual dollar impact and timing.

---

5. Timestamps for Key Segments

• Congressional resignations, background and timeline: 00:00–10:14
• Swalwell's new allegation and attorney response: 10:14
• Israel-Lebanon talks, context and significance: 13:27–22:08
• Headline roundup: 24:34–end

---

Summary

This episode provides timely and in-depth context on two crises: the abrupt resignations of high-profile members of Congress amid sexual misconduct accusations, signaling a cultural tipping point in accountability, and the unprecedented U.S.-brokered talks between Israel and Lebanon in the broader framework of the Iran conflict. Through candid analysis and revealing political quotes, the show emphasizes the slow but real movement toward both internal accountability in Congress and painstaking, high-stakes diplomacy in the Middle East.

Host Sign-off:
“That is going to do it for us. Here's the scoop from NBC News. I'm Yasmin Vestugian. We'll be back tomorrow with whatever the day may bring.”

Transcript

[Ryan Nobles]

What I think we could be on the verge of here is a reckoning in the halls of Congress about how to treat the behavior of members, mainly almost exclusively men, and the way that they treat the young women that are in and around Capitol Hill.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

Hey, everybody, and welcome to here's the scoop from NBC News. I'm Yasmin Vesugian. Today on the show, Congress is back in session with two fewer lawmakers, California Democrat Eric Swalwell and Texas Republican Tony Gonzalez. They're giving up their seats in the face of searing allegations of sexual misconduct. Why? This may not be the end of the investigation. And Israel and Lebanon met for high level talks in Washington, their first in more than three decades. What it could mean for peace in the region. Up first, though, we're going to start on Capitol Hill. Congress has been on recess for two weeks and they rejoin with a lot of unfinished business to take care of. They there is the longest partial government shutdown, which we're still in the war in Iran and some major scandals. Representatives Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzalez, both facing serious allegations of misconduct, announcing independently on Monday that they would be leaving the Hill. Now. Gonzalez had been under a House Ethics Committee investigation for a few months. He had previously admitted to having an affair with a staffer who later died by suicide while he'd pulled out of his reelection bid. Gonzalez had held onto his seat until last night. Representative Swalwell's case was relatively new. Since last week, at least four women have made serious allegations of sexual assault and misconduct against the congressman. But comments from other lawmakers suggest that these allegations may not have been so shocking after all. So how is this going to play out when it comes to these departures and how is it going to affect Congress going forward, especially with a packed agenda? I want to bring in now NBC News chief Capitol Hill correspondent Ryan Nobles. Hey, Ryan.

[Ryan Nobles]

Hi, Yasmin. How are you?

[Yasmin Vestugian]

Good. So I want to start with Representative Eric swalwell. He spent 13 years in the House. He was running for governor in California and was the front runner to succeed current Governor Gavin Newsom. After these allegations came to light, he denied them initially. Then he dropped his bid for governor. And then yesterday, yesterday evening, I should say, he resigned his House seat altogether. Talk about the timeline here, if you can, Ryan, and describe for me the pressure that Swalwell was facing.

[Gordon Lubold]

Yeah.

[Ryan Nobles]

So I mean, first let's talk about the timeline. And I think that a lot of you're seeing a lot of members of Congress, you're seeing a lot of journalists that are coming out and saying that there were always these rumors about. About Eric Swalwell and inappropriate behavior with women. And I can say that from my perspective covering Capitol Hill, I'd also heard of rumors. But rumors are not things that you report, and rumors make it very difficult to move that ball forward. And so it doesn't surprise me that this didn't really become a thing until the brave women who claimed to have been abused by him came forward and told their story. And the big difference between the rumors that were in the background of Eric Swalwell's career for almost the entire decade plus that he was in Congress versus the rumors that started to bubble up online leading up to this weekend, to where we find ourselves now with him no longer a gubernatorial candidate and no longer a member of Congress, is that you've had at least four, potentially five or six women come forward and tell very specific stories of abuse and have receipts to back it up. There were a lot of Eric Swalwell supporters who were willing to give him the benefit of the doubt because he is personally a charming individual who probably convinced people that these were just rumors. Now, when presented with these accounts from these women, some of which were willing to go on camera and tell their story, it just became an undeniable situation. And he certainly has the right and the ability to defend himself and provide his side of the story. But I think as a candidate and as a member of Congress, that became an untenable situation. He was staring down the barrel of. Of an ethics investigation and a possible expulsion in Congress. He clearly did not want to deal with that. So that's why I think you saw him exit the governor's race and then exit Congress shortly after.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

Let's talk about the allegations, Ryan, that he is facing, because you say these women told their story. They didn't just tell their story. They went to social media. Influencers. Right. This story also. Their stories spread like wildfire. He's facing allegations ranging from inappropriate text messages to sexual assault as well. I want to read for you. From his resignation statement, he says, I am deeply sorry to my family, staff, and constituents for mistakes in judgment I've made in my past. I will fight the serious false allegation made against me. However, I must take responsibility and ownership for the mistakes I did make. What do we know specifically about the accusations and what can we glean from his statement where he both defends himself and. And then also takes, quote, unquote, as he puts it, responsibility?

[Ryan Nobles]

So the most serious allegation, and I think really the allegation that took this over the top. The story that was told by one of the accusers to the San Francisco Chronicle, and then later CNN had a very similar version of that story. We have independently confirmed who this individual is. We would not name her, and we know that she worked for Swalwell during this period of time. But she described multiple sexual encounters with Swalwell that happened while he was her boss, while he was a member of Congress, which is a direct violation of House rules, but then described two different instances where they were involved in a sexual situation in which she described herself as too intoxicated to consent, and that's assault. And in some jurisdictions, that could be defined as rape. And I think that was a bar that was way too far for anyone in the Democratic Party to continue to support Eric Swalwell. And he has not explicitly explained his side of that story. He's not said whether or not he viewed the interaction as consensual, has not even said whether or not it happened. He's just saying that it's false. But then at the same time, does kind of admit to these mistakes. He doesn't describe which mistakes he is alluding to, and he didn't really make any effort to explain himself. And I think that the path he chose was just to take himself out of the fray.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

So we had a twofer yesterday because I mentioned this earlier. Republican Representative Tony Gonzalez also announced his retirement yesterday, and he had previously planned to return when his term was up, but he faced his own ethics investigation over misconduct. Is there anything to read into here the timing of his resignation? Was he now under pressure to leave because of Swalwell subsequently resigning as well?

[Ryan Nobles]

I think what happened here was that the spotlight on this kind of overall issue of sexual misconduct among members of Congress was bubbling. It's been percolating for quite a while. Gonzalez was at the forefront of it. And I think what Gonzalez saw was that this. The fact that there was a Republican and a Democrat caught up in this, that that was gonna provide cover for both parties to say, let's throw them both out, and that there was a real possibility that there would have been dual expulsion resolutions on the floor maybe as soon as this week. I mean, the other thing to keep in mind about this, Yasmin, is the second they're no longer members of Congress, those ethics investigations go away. So it's not gonna stop any future criminal proceeding for either guy. But a House ethics investigation, to go through that whole process and have that report be re. That is a lot of your own personal business that'll be out there to the world.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

Former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. He was on ABC this week. He said, and I quote, he tried to get rid of Swalwell six to eight years ago. He was then subsequently asked as to whether or not this was about the sexual misconduct allegations. Here's some of what he said.

[Ryan Nobles]

Every member in Congress knows not to. Not to let any young staffer get around Swalwell or Matt Gaetz. It's not a secret.

[Michael Smerconish]

There.

[Ryan Nobles]

There's a reason why you didn't want those two people around.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

We should note, by the way, that former Congressman Matt Gaetz has denied allegations of sexual misconduct. But again, it wasn't lawmakers that brought these accusations to light, as you and I have already talked about. It was congressional staffers. It was social media influencers. Right. So if this was some kind of open secret about Swalwell's behavior on the Hill, why did it take them coming forward to bring this to light?

[Ryan Nobles]

Yasmin, it's a great question. It's one that I don't have an answer to. But what I do believe is happening and what I think we could be on the verge of here is a reckoning in the halls of Congress about how to treat the behavior of members, mainly almost exclusively men, and the way that they treat the young women that are in and around Capitol Hill. And I think one of the reasons that I believe a reckoning is coming is because there is a growing number of female members of Congress, both Republican and Democrat, who feel empowered to stand up and say, we're done with this, who are sick and tired of the kind of insular nature of members of Congress protecting their own kind of, you know, shielding the worst eggs in the basket to try and protect the overall body. There is a real belief, I think a real movement now to say if you're involved in this kind of behavior and there's a credible allegation against you, it needs to come out into the light and you need to be held accountable. Now, what that accountability looks like, that remains an open question.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

Ryan Nobles, thank you.

[Ryan Nobles]

Thanks, Yance.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

This afternoon, another woman, Lana Drews, came forward alleging that Eric Swalwell drugged, raped, and choked her in a California hotel room back in 2018. Her attorney says she's filing a police report in Los Angeles. In a new statement from Swalwell's attorney, he quote, unquote, categorized and unequivocally denies each and every allegation of sexual misconduct and assault that has been leveled against him. All right, we're going to take a very quick break. And when we are back, Israel and Lebanon meet for their first talks in over 30 years. What role these negotiations could play in the war with Iran. And hey, while you're waiting, just do me a favor hit subscribe wherever you're listening to our podcast. And if you already subscribe, thank you. By the way, consider rating and reviewing us wherever you listen. It helps other listeners find us as well. Thank you. We'll be back in a minute. If you're looking for new ways to get ahead, then you're our kind of person. We're Udemy and we help learners like you upskill in AI productivity, leadership and management, and more. Learn at your own pace from real world experts. You can also prep for certifications that show employers what you know upskill for the career you [e-mail] now back to your regularly scheduled listening.

[Craig Melvin]

For years, Gone south has been a podcast about crime in the American South. But for our new season, we're widening the lens through deeply reported, narrative driven stories. In conversations with journalists, historians, musicians and people who've lived these stories firsthand, we're digging into the myths, scandals and power structures that still shape the south and in a lot of ways, the country itself. From re examining the cultural meaning of the Alamo to tracing the family history of Alex Murdoch to investigating the federal indictment of New Orleans former mayor, each episode stands alone. But together they paint a picture of what this region really is and how it came to be. With 40 new episodes released weekly, gone south is a show for people who want to understand how history lingers and why it still matters. Now follow and listen to gone South Season 5, An Odyssey podcast, available now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your shows.

[Kate Snow]

Hey, it's Kate Snow, NBC News anchor and host of the Drink. This month, Demi Lovato is my guest. The global superstar tells me that she is the happiest she's ever been right now. But getting there, it wasn't simple. Demi opens up about starting in Hollywood young and why she now thinks she may have started too soon. She talks about recovery, her new marriage, and the deeply personal reason behind her name cookbook. The Drink is always about the journey to the top, and this was an honest conversation about what that takes. Hope you'll listen and follow the Drink wherever you get your podcasts.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

And we are back with here's the scoop from NBC News. The war with Iran has a number of fronts and one of the biggest is not even in Iran. It is in Lebanon. That is where the Iranian proxy group Hezbollah is based and since the start of the war, Hezbollah has been attacking Israel in solidarity with Iran. The IDF says Hezbollah has launched more than 6,500 rockets, missiles and drones towards Israel. Israel has fired back and carried out an intense ground invasion, displacing more than a million people inside Lebanon. Today the Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted peace talks between Israel and Lebanon to try and hammer out a ceasefire. But Hezbollah, which by the way is not party to these negotiations, has said they're not going to abide by any agreements that come out of these talks. So how much progress can we really expect here for that? I want to bring in NBC News national security reporter Gordon Lubold to try and answer that question for us. Hey Gordon.

[Gordon Lubold]

Hi Yaz, how are you?

[Yasmin Vestugian]

I'm good. This is a rare moment, right? There are no diplomatic relations between Israel and Lebanon. They have not had these high level talks in over three decades. What do we know has come out of the talks that took place today in Washington?

[Gordon Lubold]

Yeah, so this is a big negotiation, but as Secretary of State Marco Rubio was making a point to say is this is not a one off event. This is a process attempt attempting to manage expectations about what could be achieved in one day or even a couple of days. So I think that we'll kind of see, I think that talks were reasonably positive. I think they were productive from what we're hearing out of the State Department today. But there's not ayou know, there's certainly no definitive finding from the talks yet that we know of.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

So Gordon, last week the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, he said he didn't want to talk with Lebanon. Then there was this about face. Something changed and here they are in the United States speaking Israel and Lebanon. Do we know what changed and what they are now zeroing in on what the objective is here of these talks.

[Gordon Lubold]

So I think we have to look at the Israeli Hezbollah situation in the broader context of the U. S Iran conversation negotiation. As listeners know, Vice President J.D. vance went to Pakistan to have this kind of historic meeting with the Iranians over ending that conflict. The conflict between Israel and Lebanon is a piece of that. I think the political wins in Washington dictate that Bibi Netanyahu, who is credited or blamed for getting President Trump this deep into the conflict in Iran, needs to be open to changing the tone and looking for a path toward negotiation with Hezbollah. And so there is implied pressure, if not direct from President Trump on Netanyahu to figure out how to get the broader peace deal that I think President Trump wants, a lot of people in the US Want. And so I think what's changed is the kind of political realities for Bibi Netanyahu in Israel from the US from

[Yasmin Vestugian]

the president directly picking up the phone to Benjamin Netanyahu and saying, you got to tone it down.

[Gordon Lubold]

Yeah, I need some help here. You know, I need a deal. I think we kind of know that we're long past the six week mark, which was his kind of what we, I think all knew and he said publicly and Caroline Levitt at the White House have said like that was the kind of timeframe and we're long past that. So I think we know that President Trump is, you know, running out of his own Runway, political Runway, to prosecute this conflict.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

So the thing is Israel and the Lebanese government are negotiating in the United States. Hezbollah is not there. And Hezbollah has said they are not going to abide by any agreements that are made in this meeting, in this negotiation in Washington, D.C. so how much influence does the Lebanese government have over Hezbollah? How can they trust that anything could get done, could change because of this agreement without Hezbollah there?

[Gordon Lubold]

It's a great question. It's a central question. The Lebanese government has some leverage on Hezbollah, but the real leverage comes from Tehran. And if there's enough pressure from Tehran to pressure its proxy in Hezbollah to find a path for negotiating, then I think there's a path to getting this broader negotiation between the US And Iran to include Israel and Hezbollah to the point where they could maybe settle decades of conflict.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

Let's talk about the bigger deal then, because you mentioned Lebanon is a sticking point. Iran has said Lebanon is included in this two week ceasefire. The United States and Israel has said it is not. We're not getting reports here at NBC that there is a potential second meeting that's going to happen to negotiate a permanent end to this war as early possibly as this week. If Israel and Lebanon cannot come to an agreement, could that spell trouble for a permanent end to the war between the United States, Israel and Iran? Or do they also see it and are just not communicating to the world that this is a longer commitment to really negotiate an end to this thing?

[Gordon Lubold]

So, absolutely. I don't know how you cut a deal between us and Iran without some kind of a ceasefire, extended ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah. But the, you know, while the Israel, Lebanon thing is important between us and Iran right now, I think the major sticking point is the Strait of Hormuz, which as listeners know or may know, is being monitored heavily by US Navy ships, some ships are getting through, but not that many. And also the Iranian plans for its uranium and what happens to that uranium. There's other issues too, but those are the kind of two big ones.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

Do the sources that you are talking to tell you that the United States understands this could take longer than just this two week ceasefire, or do they think they can get this done in the timeframe they have laid out?

[Gordon Lubold]

Anybody who's being pragmatic from the region, from inside the US Is trying to convey to the Trump administration. This is not a simple thing. As we all know, President Trump is, you know, author of the Art of the Deal, likes to make a deal, but deals don't happen overnight. And as we go back and look many years ago, between the nuclear deal between the US And Iran, you know, shorthand is the JIGPOA that took two some years to negotiate. President Trump's clearly not interested in any kind of negotiation that is that long. And maybe it doesn't need to take that long. But I think that they are people inside the administration and people from the region who well know that these kinds of deals do not happen overnight are trying to help the administration to manage expectations about what can be accomplished in what timeframe. It's a little bit opaque to a lot of us in the cheap seats because you can't tell where exactly they are. But I think what was important about NBC's reporting was that the narrative that the talks kind of ended and didn't go well in Pakistan wasn't exactly true. I think what is true is they are still trying to figure out a way to get a deal.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

Warren Lubold, thank you.

[Gordon Lubold]

Thanks so much for having me.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

Coming up, Los Angeles schools narrowly avoided a strike and revenge for fluoride. We'll be back with the headlines.

[Michael Smerconish]

Tell me if this is your experience. Every day we navigate the headlines, but too often, many are tethered to the opinions on the far left or the far right.

[Ryan Nobles]

I get it.

[Michael Smerconish]

We live in a polarized world. But there is a middle ground. There is a place for independent thinking where many of us stand together. Consider my podcast your ticket out of your media silo. I'm Michael Swarconish. I'm here to bring you a balanced news presentation on the biggest issues of the day, every day. Refreshingly independent politics. That's what you'll get on the Smerconish podcast. You can find it on Sirius XM or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

This week on Meet the Press, after a week of ultimatums and uncertainty, what's next in the war with Iran. Plus, as President Trump has warned, Cuba could be next. Kristen Welker's exclusive television interview with President Miguel Diaz Canal this week on Meet the Press. Listen to the full episode now wherever you get your podcast

[Craig Melvin]

for years, Gone south has been a podcast about crime in the American South. But for our new season, we're widening the lens through deeply reported narrative driven stories and conversations with journalists, historians, musicians and people who've lived these stories firsthand. We're digging into the myths, scandals and power structures that still shape the south and in a lot of ways, the country itself. From re examining the cultural meaning of the Alamo to tracing the family history of Alex Murdoch, to investigating the federal indictment of New Orleans former mayor, each episode stands alone. But together, they paint a picture of what this region really is and how it came to be. With 40 new episodes released weekly, Gone south is a show for people who want to understand how history lingers and why it still matters. Now follow and listen to gone South Season 5 An Odyssey podcast, available now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your shows.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

And we are back with here's the scoop from NBC News. Let's get to some headlines. The Los Angeles Unified School District has averted a large scale strike after reaching a tentative agreement with 30,000 essential school workers. Three unions representing everyone from teachers to bus drivers, custodians, cafeteria workers and special education assistants have negotiated a 24% wage increase and more health benefits for their members. LA is the second largest school district in the country. Amazon has inked a $11.57 billion deal with satellite firm Global Star, hoping to buff up its business to go head to head with Elon Musk's Starlink. The deal gives Amazon access to two dozen satellites, adding to its current 200 satellite network. The company is aiming to have about 3,200 satellites in low Earth orbit by 2029. But Starlink is still a much bigger player in space. Musk's firm already has 10,000 units in orbit and more than 9 million users globally. A new long term study of fluoride in drinking water finds it has no effect on IQ throughout life. The results, published this week, show that intelligence and brain function were not impacted by whether people drank community water with fluoride as children even into their later years. The results contradict claims by Health Secretary RFK Jr. That fluoride is, quote, industrial waste associated with IQ loss. The pushback against fluoride is widespread. A growing number of communities have prohibited the addition of fluoride in drinking water. Florida And Utah have already enacted bans across the state and several other states have similar legislation that is pending. And finally, if you haven't filed your taxes yet, you still have some time. Well, maybe a little bit of time. Tomorrow, by the way, is tax day. In case you didn't know, for a lot of people, that could be good news, right? Tax refunds are going to be coming in about 10% higher on average. That's because of some changes that went into effect last year, like no tax on tipped wages or overtime, a higher personal deduction of up to $25,000, an increase in the child tax credit up to $2,200 per child, and the SALT tax deduction for homeowners going up to $40,000. But if you have already spent that tax refund in your mind, you may want to wait until the check is actually in the mail. 10% more sounds like a lot, but it's probably only going to mean a couple of hundred bucks at most. By the way, if you don't get a refund, that's fine. Although a couple hundred bucks right now would feel pretty good. Financial advisors have told me you are actually better off breaking even. Who knew? All right. That is going to do it for us. Here's the scoop from NBC News. I'm Yasmin Vestugian. We'll be back tomorrow with whatever the day may bring. And if you like what you heard, subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. And you can also subscribe to our daily newsletter, the Inside Scoop. It is a deeper dive on the main stories of the day that comes out every weeknight straight to your inbox. You can sign up for the Inside Scoop as part of a paid [e-mail] we'll see you tomorrow. I'm Craig Melvin. Cheers.

[Craig Melvin]

Cheers.

[Gordon Lubold]

Cheers.

[Craig Melvin]

I've always been a glass half full

[Yasmin Vestugian]

kind of guy, and now I'm talking to some people who look at the world that way, too.

[Craig Melvin]

Some really fascinating folks who share their

[Yasmin Vestugian]

defining moments, their triumphs, their challenges.

[Ryan Nobles]

Their stories are funny and quite candid.

[Yasmin Vestugian]

So I hope you'll join me each week.

[Ryan Nobles]

And who knows, you might just come

[Craig Melvin]

away with your own glass half full.

[Kate Snow]

Search Glass Half Full with Craig Melvin

[Craig Melvin]

From Today on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts.