SIO521: The Daily Is Sane-Washing Trump's War on Higher Ed

SIO521: The Daily Is Sane-Washing Trump's War on Higher Ed

July 21, 2026 · 47 min · Episode 521

About this episode

Thomas discusses Trump's new education policies with guest David O'Brien, exploring the historical context and implications for higher education funding.

Thomas is joined by David O'Brien , a higher education policy scholar who works for the California Community Colleges system, to pick apart Trump's new rules threatening to cut off student loans and Pell grants from "low-earning" degree programs, and to fact-check The Daily's recent take on the same story. The real history runs through Reagan, Prop 13, and decades of quiet austerity nobody on that podcast wants to mention. Mentioned: The Daily college episode Reagan 1966 campaign clip Prop 13 CUNY tuition history California Master Plan for Higher Education Are you an expert in something and want to be on the show? Apply here ! Please support the show on Patreon! You get ad-free episodes, early episodes, and other bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/seriouspod

People in this episode

Host: Thomas

Guest: David O'Brien

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: California Community Colleges, The Daily, CUNY, California Master Plan for Higher Education

More episodes of Serious Inquiries Only

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Serious Inquiries Only podcast page.