Connections

Investigative journalist David Cay Johnston on the first month of Trump 2.0

By Evan Dawson,

Published February 13, 2025 at 3:56 PM EST

Two smiling men wearing headphones sit at a table in a radio talk studio: a man at left has short grey hair and a grey beard and is wearing a grey fleece with orange writing on the chest; a man at right has short dark hair and is wearing a white button-down shirt and grey plaid blazer. — David Cay Johnston on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Thursday, February 13, 2025

A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.

In 2015, investigative journalist David Cay Johnston wrote that Donald Trump wanted to rule not as a president, but as a dictator.

Less than a month into the second Trump presidency, Johnston writes that the speed of illegal actions has been breathtaking. Johnston discusses DOGE, the president's desire to be the sole authority on federal money, and more.

Our guest:

David Cay Johnston, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author

Connections

Evan Dawson

Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.

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Megan Mack

Megan Mack is the executive producer of "Connections with Evan Dawson" and live/televised engagement programming.

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Julie Williams

Julie Williams is an associate producer for "Connections with Evan Dawson" and is also the office administrator for radio, news and technology and operations. She started at WXXI in 2019 and has been working on Connections since 2022.

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