Each week, guests and hosts on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour share what's bringing them joy. This week: the shows The Agency and The Pitt, audiobooks by Philomena Cunk, and cinema from the late director David Lynch.

(WASHINGTON) — The Senate on Thursday confirmed John Ratcliffe as CIA director, President Donald Trump's nominee to lead America's premier spy agency and his second nominee to win Senate approval.

Bolton did, however, publish before getting permission to do so, and anyone who has had a security clearance knows that dodging the review is a violation not just of the letter of one’s clearance conditions but also of the norms and instincts inculcated by the culture of national security.

By a 74-25 vote, lawmakers approve a former director of national intelligence accused of politicizing intelligence assessments.

Ratcliffe, the former director of national intelligence in the final months of Trump’s first term, drew controversy over perceived politicization of intelligence assessments.

Ratcliffe, Trump’s former Director of National Intelligence, sought to reassure senators that he would remain apolitical in his role as CIA director.

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The Senate Banking Committee voted along party lines to approve Scott Turner’s nomination for Housing and Urban Development secretary. He previously served as the executive director of the White House Opportunity and Revitalization Council during Trump's first term, and he played nine seasons in the NFL.

President Donald Trump is remaking the traditional boundaries of Washington, asserting unprecedented executive power and daring anyone to stop him.

President Donald Trump is speaking remotely Thursday to an international audience of business leaders, politicians and other elites at the World Economic Forum’s annual event in Davos, Switzerland. After his speech,

President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order that aims to ease regulation on cryptocurrency, seeking to fulfill the policy promises he made to the industry after courting its cash and support throughout the 2024 campaign.

He has offered a vision for a more aggressive spy agency, and his focus on the threat from China is widely shared by Republican and Democratic lawmakers.