Brian Lehrer: A Daily Politics Podcast

Elon Musk and DOGE are slashing the size of the federal workforce in what they say will bring big savings to taxpayers. On Today's Show:Stephen Fowler, political reporter with NPR's Washington desk, reports on the typos, exaggerations and shoddy math in DOGE's receipts.

After 6 weeks of the new Trump administration, different parts of the political left are calling for different postures in opposing it. On Today's Show:Anand Giridharadas, journalist, publisher of the newsletter The.Ink, analyst for MSNBC, and the author of The Persuaders: At the Front Lines of the Fight for Hearts, Minds, and Democracy (Knopf, 2022), shares his thoughts on the state of American democracy and what protest actions can be taken by those opposed to President Trump's current policies.

After President Donald Trump delivered his address to joint session of Congress, we explore how the Democratic senator from Michigan responded.On Today's Show:Kadia Goba, congressional reporter for Semafor, provides her analysis from the chamber, and her reporting on how Democrats have responded to Trump's speech

With RFK Jr. at the helm of the nation's health policies, we hear some public health analysis on his recent official actions from an expert on infectious diseases.On Today's Show:Jessica Malaty Rivera, epidemiologist, science communicator and PhD student at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, talks about the government's response to the ongoing measles outbreaks, why an FDA vaccine advisory committee meeting on planning next year's flu shot was cancelled and what it could mean for next year's flu season.

President Trump is being choosy about which reporters are allowed to cover him as part of the White House press pool.On Today's Show:Susan Page, USA Today Washington bureau chief and the author of several books, including The Rulebreaker: The Life and Times of Barbara Walters (Simon & Schuster, 2024), talks about the latest national political news, including the White House's relationship with the media, and the tense negotiations last week with Ukrainian President Zelensky.

People opposed to the Trump administration have organized an economic boycott to demonstrate their opposition.On Today's Show:John Nichols, national-affairs correspondent for The Nation magazine and the author of, with Sen. Bernie Sanders, It’s OK to be Angry About Capitalism (Crown, 2023), talks about today's planned protest boycotts and other responses by those opposed to the early Trump administration actions.

In this conversation with Paul Farhi, a former Washington Post reporter, the implications of Jeff Bezos's new directive for the newspaper’s opinion section are unpacked. Farhi explains how this shift towards advocating for personal liberties and free markets alters traditional editorial practices. He delves into the evolution of opinion journalism, discussing the impact of billionaire ownership on media integrity. The discussion raises crucial questions about the future of diverse perspectives in a changing media landscape.

What does US economic policy look like at the intersection of Trump's legislative agenda, his tax policy and the budget put forward by congressional Republicans?On Today's Show:Jacob Bogage, Congressional economics correspondent at  The Washington Post, and Joseph Rosenberg, senior fellow at the Urban Institute / Tax Policy Center, offer their policy analysis of the current US government. 

We're starting a new monthly series in which New Jersey's new junior Senator.On Today's Show:U.S. Senator Andy Kim (D NJ), talks about his work in the Senate and the issues in New Jersey, including the Trump administrations cuts to key services, and other national issues important to his constituents.

U.S. Justice Department attorneys and Mayor Eric Adams appeared before federal Judge Dale Ho, asking that the five federal corruption and bribery charges against Adams should be dropped.On Today's Show:Elie Mystal, justice correspondent and columnist for The Nation and host of their legal podcast, "Contempt of Court," author of Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy's Guide to the Constitution (The New Press, 2023), and the forthcoming Bad Law: 10 Popular Laws That Are Ruining America (The New Press, 2025), offers his analysis on the rule of law and accountability with regard to Mayor Adams, President Trump and Elon Musk.