Brian Lehrer: A Daily Politics Podcast

In honor of Martin Luther King Day, we present a live event exploring King's legacy, and what the lessons of his activism can offer us today. On Today's Show:For the centennial series "100 Years of 100 Things," Rev. Jacqueline Lewis, senior minister and public theologian at the Middle Collegiate Church, and author of Fierce Love: A Bold Path to Ferocious Courage and Rule-Breaking Kindness that Can Heal the World (Harmony, 2021), and Jeanne Theoharis, professor of political science at Brooklyn College, and the author of many books on the civil rights and Black Power movements and the contemporary politics of race, reflect on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life and legacy, on the day that honors him.

The popular social media app TikTok could be banned for U.S. users starting this Sunday, when a new law goes into effect. On Today's Show:Social media reporter for The Information, Sylvia Varnham O'Regan discusses the latest news, including how President-elect Donald Trump may react to the ban, and Emily Bazelon, staff writer for The New York Times Magazine, co-host of Slate's "Political Gabfest" podcast, Truman Capote fellow for creative writing and law at Yale Law School and author of Charged: The New Movement to Transform American Prosecution and End Mass Incarceration (Random House, 2019), offers legal analysis of the Supreme Court's decision to uphold the ban.

The US Surgeon General has been raising the alarm about the health risks of alcohol, as well as what he calls the 'loneliness epidemic.' On Today's Show:U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy talks about the recent report highlighting the cancer risk of even moderate alcohol consumption, and other public health issues as he prepares to leave his post at the end of the Biden administration.

Political pundits frequently express concerns about the intense partisanship in our political culture. But could our divisions be productive and useful?On Today's Show:Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University, CNN political analyst, NPR contributor, and author of several books, including his latest, In Defense of Partisanship (Columbia Global Reports, 2025), shares his analysis of politics today, and shares some key presidential inauguration speeches from the last 100 years.

On Tuesday, the Republican-led Senate will hold confirmation hearings for confirmation hearings for Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for defense secretary. On Today's Show:Hear lines of questioning from Sen. Cotton and Sen. Gillibrand at the hearings, plus analysis afterward from Karen Greenberg, director of the Center on National Security at Fordham Law and the author of several books, including Subtle Tools: The Dismantling of American Democracy from the War on Terror to Donald Trump (Princeton University Press, 2021)

Another big political week gets underway, as the Senate prepares a number of confirmation hearings for Trump's incoming cabinet.On Today's Show:Ron Wyden, U.S. Senator (D OR) and the author of It Takes Chutzpah: How to Fight Fearlessly for Progressive Change (Grand Central, 2025), talks about his new book and how he'll work with the new Republican majority in the Senate.

Many Americans are spending more alone time than ever before. How is that impacting out political lives, and the structures of society?On Today's Show:Derek Thompson, staff writer at The Atlantic, author of the "Work in Progress" newsletter and host of the podcast Plain English, and the author, with Ezra Klein, of Abundance (Simon & Schuster, forthcoming 2025), talks about his latest reporting on why so many people feel isolated, and how it impacts their civic lives.

With political polarization at an all-time high, what does it look like for two well-informed people with opposing views to have dialog across different ideas?On Today's Show:Ryan Grim, co-founder of Drop Site News, co-host of the podcast Counter Points, and author of several books including The Squad: AOC and the Hope of a Political Revolution (Henry Holt and Co., 2023), and Emily Jashinsky, DC correspondent for UnHerd and co-host of the Counter Points podcast, talk about the national political news of the day.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently announced that its social media platforms -- Facebook, Instagram and Threads -- will stop using third-party fact-checkers and rely solely on its users to flag misinformation.On Today's Show:Mike Isaac, New York Times reporter covering tech companies and Silicon Valley, explains why the company is repositioning its policy and how that may favor President-elect Donald Trump's second administration. Plus, Yael Eisenstat senior fellow at Cybersecurity for Democracy and former global head of Elections Integrity Ops for political advertising at Facebook discusses her time at Facebook in 2018 as the head of global elections integrity for political ads and what this new move could mean for the company’s ability to meet its responsibility to secure elections.

What could the future look like for climate change and public health policy?On Today's Show:U.S. Representative Frank Pallone (D-NJ 6th) kicks off the new weekly series with a discussion of the work of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.