Overview

• On the final episode of Marc Maron’s WTF released Monday, Barack Obama publicly challenged universities, businesses and law firms that have negotiated concessions with the Trump administration.
• He urged leaders to refuse pressure-driven terms, dismissing hiring criteria “cooked up by Steve Miller” and telling university presidents to “ride this out” rather than compromise academic independence.
• Obama condemned the National Guard deployment to Chicago as a deliberate end run around the Posse Comitatus Act, saying it erodes core understandings of democracy.
• He framed the current moment as a test of national values and warned that not voting has consequences, citing concerns such as Latino residents facing police stops without recourse.
• Reporting on pressure-based settlements describes agreements extracted from institutions, and indicates some are already fraying as several law firms question enforceability and decline to implement demanded changes.