Brian Lehrer: A Daily Politics Podcast

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. 

European leaders have called an emergency meeting after President Donald Trump suggested Ukraine is to blame for Russia’s invasion of it.On Today's Show:Richard Stengel, former Under Secretary of State during the Obama administration, political analyst at MSNBC and author of Information Wars: How We Lost the Battle Against Disinformation (Atlantic Monthly Press, 2019), breaks down the latest as Trump seemingly pivots away from European allies and towards President Vladimir Putin's Russia.

On today's show: Robert P. Jones, president and founder of Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) and the author of The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy: And the Path to a Shared American Future (Simon & Schuster, 2023); Ryan Burge, associate professor of political science at Eastern Illinois University, research director for Faith Counts, and the author of The Nones: Where They Came From, Who They Are, and Where They Are Going (Fortress Press, 2021); and Konstantin Toropin, Military.com's Pentagon correspondent, discuss the overlap and contradictions in the Trump administration's policies toward identity and religious affiliation.

In Munich last week, Vice President JD Vance asked leaders not to shun the far right. On today's show: Fred Kaplan, Slate's War Stories columnist and the author of many nonfiction books and his latest, a novel, A Capital Calamity (Miniver Press, 2024), offers analysis of the Trump administration's European tour.

With the word 'unprecedented' often used to describe President Trump's approach to executive power, we look at his first few actions in historical context.On Today's Show:On Presidents Day, as our centennial series continues, Douglas Brinkley, professor of history at Rice University, a CNN Presidential Historian, and a contributing editor at Vanity Fair, talks about the history of U.S. presidents and their exercise of executive power and how President Trump's actions compare.