Brian Lehrer: A Daily Politics Podcast

There's a proposal in Congress to put questions of statehood and representation to the people of Puerto Rico. But in thinking about its future, we must reckon with its colonial present. On Today's Show: Alana Casanova-Burgess ,  host of La Brega , and reporter and producer for WNYC's On the Media, and Yarimar Bonilla ,  professor of Puerto Rican Studies and Anthropology at the City University of N...

Paying for a $2 trillion infrastructure bill won't be easy, and Democrats don't all agree on what the taxes that pay for it should look like. On Today's Show: Rep. Tom Suozzi , (D-NY3, parts of Long Island and Queens), explains his stance on not voting for the infrastructure bill unless the SALT deduction is restored, and talks about the politics behind some current tax policy questions. Hosted by...

Polls suggest that the public supports many of the progressive policies being pushed by the Biden administration. But how to pay for it is a more complicated question. On Today's Show: Catherine Rampell , syndicated opinion columnist at The Washington Post, political/economic commentator at CNN and special correspondent at PBS NewsHour, runs through the latest in national politics and news. Hosted...

While the mainstream press is focusing on the Democrat versus Republican parties debate over President Biden's multi-trillion dollar infrastructure plan, there's another debate that's also emerging. This one between moderate Democrats, who think the plan is the right size, and more progressive Democrats, who think the plan is too small, in terms of the number of dollars. On Today's Show: Nelini St...

President Joe Biden's infrastructure plan unveiled yesterday isn't just about infrastructure. It's also about unions, climate and restoring economic balance after decades of the concentration of wealth in this country. On Today's Show: Megan Cassella , Politico reporter covering Biden administration economic policy, talks about the big infrastructure proposal from President Biden. Hosted by Simple...

As scientists continue to monitor the impact of the available COVID vaccines, how do our personal equations around risk and safety change? On Today's Show: Celine Gounder ,  professor of medicine & infectious diseases at the NYU School of Medicine; Bellevue Hospital doctor, medical analyst for CNN and the host/producer of American Diagnosis and Epidemic podcasts, explains what a CDC study of essen...

The safest way to return to full-capacity mass gatherings is to make sure attendees have been vaccinated. The right software could help, but there are some privacy and equity concerns. On Today's Show: New York recently launched a vaccine passport called the "Excelsior Pass." Brian Behlendorf , general manager of Blockchain Healthcare and Identity at the Linux Foundation of Public Health, talks ab...

The geopolitical situation facing President Biden is largely a situation created by his predecessor, who re-shuffled old alliances and worked to dismantle the US foreign policy apparatus. On Today's Show: Gabriel Debenedetti , national correspondent at New York Magazine, talks about the latest news from Washington, D.C., including the uphill battle the Biden administration faces as it confronts th...

Why did the NCAA give their female athletes a rack of dumbells while male players got a full fitness facility? That, and more on gender disparities in sports. On Today's Show: Sally Jenkins , sports columnist for the Washington Post, and formerly a senior writer for Sports Illustrated, talks about the recent outrage over the NCAA's unequal treatment between men and women athletes competing in Marc...

Filibuster reform is a key topic on the agenda for the Senate. What could it mean for the rest of the Democratic majority's agenda? Plus, reflections on calling out sexual misconduct. On Today's Show: U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D NY) answers questions about the issues facing the senate and the state, including regulating firearms meant for military use, sexual harassment and due process, and...

The debate over the filibuster could have implications that reach deep into the Biden administration's ability to get things done, on issues like voting rights and gun safety. On Today's Show: Tyler Pager , Washington Post White House reporter, and Marianna Sotomayor , Washington Post Congressional reporter covering the House of Representatives, talk about the prospects of any gun control legislat...

Because of the way Congress has changed the rules governing student loans, 6 million people didn't get the relief most got in the first COVID package that passed last year. On Today's Show: Molly Webster , RadioLab senior correspondent, talks about her recent NYT op-ed explaining how she borrowed $78,000, has paid $60,000, and still owes $100,000 -- with no relief in sight. Hosted by Simplecast, a...

President Biden's challenge at the border is to craft a policy that's humane without encouraging unauthorized entries. So where do unaccompanied minors fit into the policy? On Today's Show: Bitta Mostofi , commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, and  Maria Odom , vice president for Legal Programs at Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), talk about the situation at the southern border an...

For the past year, we've heard some politicians use racist rhetoric around COVID-19. On Today's Show : Rep. Grace Meng talks about the link between speech, bias and violence. Plus, Biden's immigration record, and what's next on Congress's agenda. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We all have that person we've been meaning to call and check in on. Those calls can be hard to make, but our WNYC colleague wants to make it a little easier, by doing it together. Text "Call Day" to 70101 to sign up for "Pick Up The Phone And Call Day." On Today's Show: The team at WNYC's Death, Sex & Money is instituting a new holiday called "Pick Up the Phone and Call" day, to help people who ha...

We asked immigrants to call in and recommend some policy positions they hope Biden takes with respect to their countries of origin. On Today's Show: Fareed Zakaria , Washington Post columnist, host of CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS, and the author of Ten Lessons for a Post-Pandemic World (W. W. Norton & Company, 2020). Then, Susan Glasser , staff writer for The New Yorker, CNN global affairs analyst and...

The COVID vaccine is intended to make it harder for the virus to make you dangerously sick. But it also might help folks who got sick before and still have long-lingering symptoms. On Today's Show: Daniel Griffin , MD, PhD, infectious disease clinician and researcher at Columbia, chief of the division of Infectious Disease for ProHEALTH Care medical group, talks about what we know about vaccines a...

On Today's Show: A shooting at three spas in Atlanta left eight people dead, including six  women   of Asian descent .  Joo Han , deputy director of the Asian American Federation, reflects on the murders and talks about how her group is organizing to #StopAsianHate amidst a surge in violence. Plus, Asian-Americans listeners call in to describe their experiences this year and how they're reacting t...

Some US states are loosening COVID restrictions early, while much of Europe has suspended the use of a previously approved vaccine. On Today's Show: Ravina Kullar , PharmD, epidemiologist and infectious disease physician based in Los Angeles,  discusses the latest COVID-19 developments — from the suspension of use of the AstraZeneca vaccine in several European countries to the news that officials...

Biden and Harris have hit the road, traveling the country to sell the public on the idea that masking up and staying cautious is the patriotic way to end this pandemic. On Today's Show : A conversation from right after Biden's prime-time speech last Thursday with Susan Page , USA Today Washington bureau chief and author of the forthcoming Madam Speaker: Nancy Pelosi and the Lessons of Power (Twelv...

The relationship between criminal justice and technology is complicated, especially given that the tools marketed to law enforcement often perpetuate racial biases in mass incarceration. On Today's Show: Bianca Tylek , Worth Rises’s executive director, and Albert Fox Cahn , executive director of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, talk about the data and information systems that track i...

People are uncertain about the CDC's guidance on safety once your vaccinated. But are public health messengers missing an opportunity to tie the vaccine to a return to normalcy? On Today's Show: Leana Wen , emergency physician, professor at George Washington University, contributing columnist for The Washington Post , CNN medical analyst, and former Baltimore Health Commissioner, shares her take o...

Biden's speech last night laid out a timeline for "independence from this virus." But unlike his predecessor, he made it clear that a return to normalcy means masking up and getting vaccinated. On Today's Show: Ayesha Rascoe , White House correspondent for NPR, talks through the latest news coming out of Washington, including highlights from President Biden's address to the country after signing t...

The team at the Daily Show knew that Trump's Jan. 6 rally could turn violent. So they did what they do best: find the funny. What's the role of satire when Democracy is under attack? On Today's Show: Jordan Klepper, comedian, television host, and correspondent for The Daily Show, reflects on his time covering Trump rallies throughout the former President's term. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz co...

The $1.9 trillion stimulus bill is nearing the finish line. So what wound up in the package, and what got cut? Who's getting a check, and how much? On Today's Show: Bonnie Watson Coleman , U.S. Representative (D, NJ-12), talks about recent legislation passed by the House, her work in Washington and her NJ district, and her recent bout with COVID. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.a...