Brian Lehrer: A Daily Politics Podcast

The Trump campaign to name things in his image continued this week as he signed an executive order to rename Lake Ontario Lake America. On today's show. Politico’s Ottawa bureau chief Nick Taylor-Vaisey talks about this and the escalation in President Trump's trade war with Canada.

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Do college students need to interact more with those who hold different political views?

On Today's Show:

Neil Gross, sociology professor at Colby College in Maine and the author of What Happened to College?: How Politics Broke Higher Education and What We Can Do to Fix It (Simon & Schuster, 2026), discusses how political polarization on campuses has grown more pronounced, what the implications are for democracy, and what is being done to counteract it.

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The cease-fire in the Iran war expires as Pres. Trump threatens an "economic D-Day" in an effort to gain leverage in the conflict. 

On Today's Show:
Yeganeh Torbati, the Iran correspondent for The New York Times based in Istanbul and co-author (with Bozorgmehr Sharafedin) of Stolen Revolution: Betrayal and Hope in Modern Iran (Doubleday, 2026), reports on the latest developments. 

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For the first time, China was viewed more positively than the U.S. globally in a recent Pew report. On today's show, Adam Segal, Ira A. Lipman Chair in Emerging Technologies and National Security and Director of the Digital and Cyberspace Policy Program at the Council of Foreign Relations, talks about China's foreign policy and soft power.

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As part of a 3-part series on the divisions within political movements, we explore divisions within the conservative movement, through the lens of the Heritage Foundation, a think tank with a number of recent high-profile departures over issues like misogyny and anti-semitism. 

On Today's Show:
Andrew Hale, fellow for international relations, economics, and trade at Advancing American Freedom, talks about the ideological and generational fight inside the think tank behind Project 2025, and what the battle over its direction says about where the Republican Party is headed after Trump.

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As we continue our series about internal divisions within different political groups, today, a look at the Democratic Party.

On Today's Show:
David Hogg, founder and president of Leaders We Deserve, co-founder and board member of March for Our Lives, and former vice-chair of the Democratic National Committee, talks about what's dividing the party, from the fallout over the DNC's 2024 autopsy to the primary challenges his group is backing heading into the midterms.

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In part one of a three-part series on the divisions within political movements, a look at the differences between the national DSA party platform and the policies espoused by DSA candidates winning elections.

On Today's Show:
Eric Blanc, assistant professor of Labor Studies at Rutgers University, author of several books including We Are the Union: How Worker-to-Worker Organizing is Revitalizing Labor and Winning Big (University of California Press, 2025), and the Substack newsletter LaborPolitics.com, talks about what's dividing members of the Democratic Socialists of America, as the party is having some electoral success.

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Some recent primary elections in the Midwest, particularly Wisconsin and Michigan, have changed the landscape for November's midterms.

On Today's Show:
Rachel Leingang, Midwest political correspondent for Guardian US, based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Teo Armus, reporter for The Washington Post focused on politics, demographics, voters and immigration, offers political analysis of the latest primary election results, including in Wisconsin and Michigan, and what they might signal about the midterms this fall.

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Over the past several years, a license-plate tracking company called Flock has partnered with over 40 percent of police departments nationwide, allowing local law enforcement to track people's whereabouts across state lines. 

On Today's Show: 
Jason Koebler, co-founder of 404 Media, unpacks how officials, including ICE, are using the technology, and why anti-surveillance activists on both sides of the are pushing back against the cameras.

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Over the past decade, the common meaning of the word 'woke' has fluctuated between "social consciousness" and "performative sensitivity." 

On Today's Show:
Jasmine Green, editorial & audience associate at The Bulwark, offers her take on the word "woke," the evolution of wokeness, and how Democrats might re-claim it from its current status as a mostly pejorative term.

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With the midterms approaching, and intra-party debates about how far to push their agendas, we explore what it means to be politically 'moderate.' 

On Today's Show:
Jon Allsop, contributing writer at The New Yorker, discusses the latest national political headlines and his recent story, "What Does It Even Mean to Be a Moderate?"

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It's been more than 50 years since President Richard Nixon resigned over the Watergate scandal. 

On Today's Show:
Jill Wine-Banks, legal analyst, former Watergate special prosecutor, co-host of the podcasts "#Sistersinlaw" and "Just the Facts" and the author of The Watergate Girl: My Fight for Truth and Justice Against a Criminal President (Henry Holt and Co., 2020), reflects on that time and the efforts to downplay the crimes of Watergate.

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This week marks the 81st anniversary of the US dropping atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.

On Today's Show:
Fred Kaplan, Slate's War Stories columnist, contributor to The iPaper and the author of many nonfiction books and his latest, a novel, A Capital Calamity (Miniver Press, 2024), recalls the history and discusses the current state of nuclear weapons, especially as it relates to the war with Iran.

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The Trump administration's efforts toward peace in Iran and in Gaza both seem to be in a cycle of successes to celebrate, and setbacks to explain.

On Today's Show:
F. Gregory Gause, professor emeritus at Texas A&M University offers analysis of the ongoing war with Iran, which he argues has been a failure, so far. 

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Following a recent cybersecurity breech by OpenAI, in which two of their in-progress models autonomously hacked into the AI company Hugging Face, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are pushing for an "AI Kill Switch" bill in Congress. 

On Today's Show:
Brendan Bordelon, AI and tech influence reporter at Politico, discusses Washington's changing approach to AI regulation amid growing concerns over data security in every sector, and and unpacks how tech giants are responding to shift.

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What does the most up-to-date polling say about the electoral prospects in states with open Senate races this midterm season?

On Today's Show:
Jessica Taylor, Senate and governors editor for The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter, offers analysis of the competitive Senate races ahead of this November's midterm elections, and discusses how likely it may be for Democrats to take control of Congress.

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With geopolitical strife in the Middle East, the Strait of Hormuz and in Ukraine, how could President Trump's global posture impact the upcoming midterm elections?

On Today's Show:
Jonathan Lemire, co-host of Morning Joe on MSNOW; writer for MSNOW and contributing writer to The Atlantic, talks about the latest national political news.

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The United States and Saudi Arabia reached a landmark 30-year civilian nuclear cooperation agreement, but within a day, President Donald Trump threw it into limbo by conditioning its approval on Saudi Arabia normalizing relations with Israel.

On Today's Show:
Fred Kaplan, Slate's War Stories columnist, contributor to The iPaper and the author of many nonfiction books and his latest, a novel, A Capital Calamity (Miniver Press, 2024), breaks down the latest news on this, and the war with Iran, and what comes next.

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An error in New Jersey led to registering about 6,600 non-citizens to vote, though only about 400 did.

On Today's Show:
Liza Weisberg, supervising attorney at the ACLU of New Jersey where she focuses on democracy and voting rights, talks about the incident, and what it tells us about election security more broadly, and Mike Hayes, WNYC and Gothamist's New Jersey politics reporter and the author of The Secret Files: Bill De Blasio, The NYPD, and the Broken Promises of Police Reform (Kingston Imperial, 2023) shares his reporting on the topic.

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Do higher levels of testosterone make for more effective soldiers? Pete Hegseth thinks so. 

On Today's Show:
Jeremy Faust, emergency medicine physician, public health researcher and author of the Inside Medicine Substack, talks about the confirmation hearing for the potential new CDC director, and why some senators were surprised by her answers, plus why Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is requiring servicemembers to have their testosterone tested.

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A local senator shares his legislative priorities and his take on the U.S.'s role in geopolitics under President Trump.

On Today's Show:
U.S. Senator (D NJ) Andy Kim talks about his work in the Senate and the issues in New Jersey, including his proposal for universal health care for children called "Medikids," the war in Iran and more.

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Remarks about the 2020 election last week from President Trump have raised eyebrows for a number of reasons. 

On Today's Show:
Ari Berman, national voting rights correspondent for Mother Jones, discusses the renewed push for this legislation, which voting rights advocates say undermine Americans' access to the ballot, plus reacts to President Trump's Thursday night speech on voting.

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After two separate incidents of fatal shootings by ICE officers, how have the agency's procedures come into play?

On Today's Show:
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán, NPR national correspondent covering immigration, talks about the latest on the fatal shootings by ICE agents and current policy directives for the department.

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We continue our conversations with local congressional candidates who are running in the upcoming midterm elections.

On Today's Show:
Darializa Avila Chevalier, Democratic nominee for Congress (NY-13), organizer and sociologist, talks about her big win and what her priorities will be if she is elected to Congress in November.

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We continue our conversations with lawmakers and candidates ahead of this year's midterm elections.

On Today's Show:
U.S. Representative Tom Suozzi (D NY3) talks about national politics and his call for Democrats to embrace patriotism and defend capitalism in the wake of DSA victories.

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What's the state of the midterm elections after the death of Senator Lindsey Graham, and the withdrawal of Graham Platner from his Senate race?

On Today's Show:
Elana Schor, senior Washington editor at Semafor, talks about the latest national political news, including the death of Senator Lindsey Graham, Graham Platner's withdrawal from his Senate race in Maine, and the latest on tensions between the U.S. and Iran over the Strait of Hormuz.

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After the Supreme Court held against President Trump's executive order challenging birthright citizenship, he has pushed the House of Representatives to find a legislative pathway to challenge it.

On Today's Show:
U.S Representative (D NY-6) Grace Meng talks about her primary victory, the state of the Democratic party and where birthright citizenship stands after the Supreme Court ruled to preserve it last month.

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As the NATO summit is underway, geopolitical questions center on Iran and Ukraine, as well as other conflict zones. 

On Today's Show:
Drew Hinshaw, senior reporter at The Wall Street Journal, and Joe Parkinson, chief, world enterprise team at The Wall Street Journal, share their reporting on the changing relationship between Europe and the USA under President Trump, especially in light of complications from the wars in Ukraine and Iran.

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As the midterm elections loom, a look at some key battlegrounds and headlines that could have an impact on the results in November. 

On Today's Show:
Astead Herndon, host and editorial director at Vox, talks about the state of the midterm elections, including the fallout in Maine after an ex-girlfriend accused Democratic candidate for Senate Graham Platner of rape, a tight senate race in Michigan and more.

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With Democratic Socialist candidates finding successes in elections around the country, why has the far-left party's agenda stopped emphasizing a former tentpole issue?

On Today's Show:
Robinson Meyer, founding executive editor of Heatmap talks about the DSA's evolving relationship to the Green New Deal and climate policy in general, as its members keep winning elections in big cities.

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Now that the 250th birthday party is over, what are your feelings about country?

On Today's Show:
USA Today Washington bureau chief Susan Page, author of The Queen and Her Presidents (HarperCollins, 2026), discusses the America 250 speeches and celebrations, as listeners share how they are feeling about the country today.

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A look at President Trump's recent financial disclosure paperwork reveals a number of lucrative streams of income. 

On Today's Show:
David Uberti, a reporter covering the intersection of financial markets and the economy for The Wall Street Journal, discusses those financial disclosures, including gains from his crypto businesses, and more. 

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Ahead of this weekend's semiquincentennial July 4th celebrations, some historians bring their insights on the Revolutionary era in New York. 

On Today's Show:
Thomas Wermuth, co-founder and director of the Hudson River Valley Institute and chair of Hudson River Valley History at Marist University, and Iris De Rode, a Dutch historian specializing in the American Revolution, share some of the untold stories of New York's role in the American Revolution and discuss their book Fire & Freedom: American Revolution in New York (Cornell University Press, 2026).

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Today marked the final day in session for the Supreme Court, which ruled on a number of key, and in some cases, divisive issues.

On Today's Show:
Emily Bazelon, staff writer for The New York Times Magazine, co-host of Slate's "Political Gabfest" podcast, senior research scholar in law and author of Charged: The New Movement to Transform American Prosecution and End Mass Incarceration (Random House, 2019), offers legal analysis of the last cases argued this term.

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With Congress back in session, how are lawmakers and their political parties squaring up their agendas ahead of the November elections?

On Today's Show:
Nicholas Wu, congressional reporter at Semafor, talks about the latest from Capitol Hill, including the president's push for the SAVE Act and more.

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On today's show: Lisa Kashinsky, national political reporter at POLITICO, talks about the Democratic Party's infighting and its broader implications for the 2026 midterms and the 2028 presidential race as establishment Democrats sweat over some key primary election wins by progressives in New York.

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One of the key economic levers the government can manipulate are in pursuit of anti-trust policy.

On Today's Show:
Alvaro Bedoya, senior advisor at the American Economic Liberties Project and former FTC commissioner, offers his opinion on how the Paramount - Warner Brothers Discovery mega merger will affect everyday people and their jobs, and more on what he calls the pervasiveness of monopolies and their effects in the US today.

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Politics often involves matters of conscience, especially on consequential issues like gun violence, voter suppression and climate change.

On Today's Show:
U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock (D GA), senior pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta and the author of  (Penguin Press, 2026) draws on the book of Isaiah to offer a sermon on the moral crises facing America, and how to address them spiritually and politically.

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An agreement has been reached between the United States and Iran to end the war in Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

On Today's Show:
David Sanger, White House and national security correspondent for The New York Times and the author of New Cold Wars: China's Rise, Russia's Invasion, and America's Struggle to Defend the West (Crown, 2024), discusses the details of the deal.
 

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On July 1, there will be changes to the student loan repayment system that change the situation for new and old borrowers alike.

On Today's Show:
Cory Turner, NPR education correspondent and senior editor, shares what's changing, and how those impacted can navigate the changes.

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