WAMU-FM: WAMU: The Diane Rehm Show Podcast

The Senate approved the most fundamental change to its filibuster rules in more than a generation. Diane and her guests discuss what the new "majority rules" mean for presidential nominees and legislation moving forward.

The U.S. and Afghanistan reached a tentative security agreement. But in a surprise move, Afghan President Karzai declared he would not sign it until the spring. Talks on Iran's nuclear program resumed in Geneva as top Iranian cleric Ayatollah Khamenei warned his negotiators not to give ground. Twin suicide bombings outside the Iranian embassy in Beirut underscore concerns that Lebanon is being drawn into Syria's civil war. China announced it will ease its one-child policy. And the death toll from the typhoon that hit the Philippines surpassed 5,000. A panel of journalists joins Diane for analysis of the week's top international news stories.

In a historic shift, the Senate narrowly votes to eliminate the use of the filibuster against nearly all presidential nominations. California becomes the seventh state to reject President Barack Obama's insurance fix for cancelled health care policies. Obama's approval rating sinks to an all-time lows amidst the troubled Affordable Care Act rollout. The Department of Justice reaches a $13 billion settlement with J.P. Morgan, the largest ever between the government and a single company. And the nation remembers President John F. Kennedy on the 50th anniversary of his assassination. A panel of journalists joins Diane to discuss the week in news.

The events of November 22, 1963, changed America. An eyewitness account of what happened in Dallas after John F. Kennedy's assassination, what we know about the investigation and why it continues to stir debate today.

On the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination, a discussion of the public perceptions and political realities in the Kennedy White House, the city of Dallas and the nation.

A deadly firefight with Iraqi insurgents caught on video by Fox News has transformed eight U.S. soldiers into media stars. Nineteen-year-old Billy Lynn is the lead character in a novel about the surviving men of the "Bravo Squad" and their brief return home. As the squad mourns the death of a fellow soldier, they are sent on a two-week nationwide "victory tour" to drum up support for the war. But their painful reality is obscured as they are honored during a Dallas cowboys Thanksgiving Day game. A Readers' Review discussion of "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk" by Ben Fountain.

Polls show that about half of Americans approve of allowing gay and lesbian couples to marry. But among Republicans, that percentage drops sharply. This week a public rift in the family of former Vice President Dick Cheney thrust the issue onto the front page again. One of Cheney's daughters is married to a woman. The other, Liz Cheney, is running for office on the Republican ticket in Wyoming. On national TV over the over the weekend, Liz Cheney said she believes in the traditional definition of marriage. That puts her in line with most other Republicans — but not most other Americans. Diane and her guests discuss changing perspectives on same-sex marriage.

Ten years ago, major oil and gas companies thought it was crazy to try to extract fossil fuels buried in shale rock deep below the ground. But a few oil and gas prospectors thought differently. In a new book, a Wall Street Journal reporter shows how these men risked their careers to develop a new drilling process known hydraulic fracturing or fracking. He chronicles the story of how a group of ambitious and headstrong drillers ignored the experts and dramatically transformed America's energy production. In just a few years "the Frackers" made astonishing fortunes and triggered a global environmental outcry.

Twice as many Americans will be eligible for cholesterol-lowering statin drugs based on new guidelines from two leading cardiovascular associations. Recommendations from the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology mark the biggest shift in heart disease prevention in nearly three decades. Statin use in a broader population has been controversial. Some doctors point to their great cholesterol-lowering benefits and their potential to reduce the risk of certain cancers. Others worry about exposing more patients to statins' side effects, including an increased risk of diabetes and muscle pain. Diane and her guests discuss controversial new cholesterol treatment guidelines.

John Grisham's first novel was "A Time to Kill," a thriller about a young, Mississippi lawyer who successfully defends a black client charged with murder. Grisham wrote that book in his laundry room while practicing law in Mississippi. It remains one of the bestselling novels of all time. Now, 25 years later, Grisham returns to the same rural Mississippi town with a sequel: the story features many of the same characters and another controversial trial tinged with race. Attorney Jake Brigance is back and his client is a dead man who left behind a controversial will and a big family secret. Diane talks with best-selling author John Grisham.

Israel's prime minister lobbied hard against proposals offered by Western diplomats over Iran's nuclear program. Disagreement between the U.S. and Israel over concessions from Iran and next steps in the diplomatic process.

Nearly a quarter of Medicare's $550 billion annual budget pays for medical treatment in the last year of life. And almost a third of Medicare patients have surgery in their last month of life. But when people are fully informed about the risks of many life-prolonging procedures, they often decide against them. That's what happened to a woman in Connecticut. After the devastating experiences her husband went through following a stroke, she refused major heart surgery for herself. In a new book, the couple's daughter - a journalist - tells their story and offers advice for us all.

When U.S. service members return home from war zones, many suffer from post traumatic stress or traumatic brain injuries as well as anxiety and depression. They often need professional help, but too many turn to alcohol and drugs to cope. Increasing numbers of veterans have found themselves on the wrong side of the law after a downward spiral fueled by substance abuse. But there's hope. Across the country, more judges are putting offenders through veterans treatment courts instead of handing out prison sentences. How these new court programs are changing the lives of returning soldiers and their families.

Economic prosperity and conserving the environment is often seen as being in conflict — to get the former, you have to sacrifice the latter. But there's a growing body of research that suggests when we don't protect nature, short term economic gains may result in long term losses. In his new book, leading British environmentalist Tony Juniper says that's because the things nature provides us, that we tend to think of as free, has a monetary value that can be measured. And it's time for companies and governments to start accounting for it when doing business. For this month's Environmental Outlook, Diane talks with Tony Juniper about his new book, "What Has Nature Ever Done for Us? How Money Really Does Grow on Trees."

Yesterday's announcement that The Washington Post would be sold to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos shocked the newspaper industry. The deal is the latest in a series of consolidations, driven by a migration to online sources. Print newspaper advertising revenues have fallen 55 percent in the past five years. At The Post, revenues had fallen for seven straight years. Four days ago, The New York Times Company sold The Boston Globe for $70 million, having paid more than $1 billion for it in the early 1990s. The Post sale ends four generations of ownership by the Graham family. Diane and her guests discuss the sale of The Washington Post and the future of print journalism.