Ted Cruz v Big Bird

Big Bird’s been tweeting about his Covid jab but Senator Cruz isn’t impressed, calling the post “government propaganda for your 5-year-old”. Also, it’s officially infrastructure week… again. Congressman Andy Levin tells us why he changed his mind and voted for the bill on Friday. And journalist Dan Alexander joins us for a SPAC-tacular explanation of how Donald Trump plans to finance his new social media platform. Today’s Americast was made by Estelle Doyle and Phil Marzouk. The studio director is Emma Crowe, the assistant editor is Alison Gee and the editor is Jonathan Aspinwall.

Om Podcasten

The authoritative weekly US news and politics podcast from BBC News, Americast investigates the social and cultural issues that define America today.Is Joe Biden too old to win another go in the White House? What does Donald Trump’s latest criminal charge mean for the Republican campaign? And why have issues such as LGBT rights, global warming and the war effort in Ukraine become so divisive across the US political spectrum? From foreign policy to pop culture, Americast keeps you up to date and in the know about the stories that matter with on-the-ground insights from right across the US.Americast is hosted by trusted journalists including the BBC’s North America editor Sarah Smith, North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher, presenter Justin Webb, and disinformation and social media correspondent, Marianna Spring. Joined by special guests each week such as former chief medical adviser to the president, Dr Anthony Fauci, former FBI director James Comey, CNN anchor and author Jake Tapper, Succession actress J Smith-Cameron, and Suruthi Bala and Hannah Maguire from podcast RedHanded, they look at America through an international lens, trying to make sense of the increasingly polarised political debate.Each week on Americast, Marianna Spring also brings listeners the latest update on BBC Undercover Voters, the award-winning investigation into the content that is recommended to US voters on social media. Marianna has created undercover voters – multiple social media accounts belonging to different characters who sit across the US political divide. By tracking the content that is pushed at each of them, this investigation will cover a turbulent time for US politics with speculation over a Trump bid for the presidency and Biden facing domestic and international challenges.GET IN TOUCH: • Join our online community: https://discord.gg/qSrxqNcmRB • Send us a message or voice note via WhatsApp to +44 330 123 9480 • Email [email protected] • Or use #AmericastFind out more about our award-winning "undercover voters" here: bbc.in/3lFddSF.