Maria and guest co-host Jamilah King, managing editor at BuzzFeed News, discuss President Biden’s trip to the Middle East, including his visit to Israel and his meeting in Saudi Arabia with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. They also get into the latest January 6th hearing, and the recent protests in Uvalde, Texas. 

This episode was mixed by Rosana Cabán.

ITT Staff Picks:

• “Rather than announcing any major initiatives, Biden, who is on a four-day trip to Israel, the occupied West Bank, and Saudi Arabia, seems more like he is headed into the region in search of an exit from it,” writes Murtaza Hussain for The Intercept.  

• The seventh January 6th hearing focused on confirming that former President Donald Trump was at the center of the attempted coup, writes John Nichols for The Nation. 

• Al Tompkins reports on why KVUE and the Austin-American Statesman decided to release video footage of law enforcement’s response to the mass shootings in Uvalde, for Poynter.

Photo credit: Bandar Aljaloud/Saudi Royal Palace via AP