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Daily thoughtful conversation about the latest news and politics.
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · June 2026
A compact daily politics excerpt that turns fast-moving institutions, court fights, immigration policy, and foreign affairs into usable context.
Brian Lehrer: A Daily Politics Podcast is a compact daily politics excerpt from a live WNYC radio show, usually centered on one political question at a time.
You want today's political mess translated before it becomes tomorrow's group chat panic.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A sharp look at war talk, prediction markets, and the thin line between insight and profiteering.
Brian Lehrer and John Cassidy treat a war question less like spectacle and more like a problem of incentives. They start with Trump's talk of unconditional surrender, then move quickly to the awkward part: how conflict turns into a market, and how inside knowledge can be turned…
Anthropic's Pentagon work frames AI safety as a military policy fight.
Anthropic's Pentagon work gives this conversation a sharp center, with the ethical rules of an AI company set against the realities of defense contracting and the ban on autonomous weapon systems.
A grounded look at Texas primary signals and MAGA splits, with November still unresolved.
It treats Texas as the clearest early signal in this midterm year, with James Tallarico's win over Jasmine Crockett and the John Cornyn-Ken Paxton runoff turning the race into a test of how control of Congress could shift.
A climate rollback story that becomes a plainspoken lesson in law and public health.
Brian Lehrer spends this hour on a climate rollback with real stakes: the Trump EPA's effort to cancel the 2009 endangerment finding that supports federal greenhouse-gas regulation.
Tariffs, polling, and State of the Union politics shape a clear, timely political briefing.
Brian Lehrer opens on Monday, February 23, by tying tomorrow night's State of the Union to Republican nerves in competitive districts, then brings in Jonathan Lemire to sort through the Atlantic piece, the president's polling, and the tariff stakes.
A sober look at how people using the legal immigration system can become targets.
It is a sober, tightly focused look at a disturbing shift inside the immigration system. The piece traces how routes that once seemed safe can now leave people exposed to arrest, detention, and even deportation, and it keeps the stakes grounded in USCIS paperwork, scheduled…
A careful look at how detention, not just deportation, becomes the hidden machinery of immigration enforcement.
Brian Lehrer opens by widening the frame: beyond war coverage, he turns to the Trump administration's domestic drive toward mass detention. The episode connects the release of a West Bank immigrant from a Texas detention center to a year in custody, then brings in Jonathan…
A patient history lesson that turns a Trump-Iran headline into a broader argument about American power.
The episode treats Trump's Iran remarks as a window into how American power works, not as a one-off news burst. Brian Lehrer and a Northwestern historian move from the president's boast to the longer record of U.S.-Iran entanglement, including the coup against Mosaddegh and…
A near-daily politics rundown from Dana Goldberg and Alison Gill on Trump-era legal fights.
Three Slate journalists debate the week's politics, plus live shows and author interviews.
Mike Pesca opens with a monologue, then digs into Supreme Court ethics and Iran policy.
Brian Lehrer opens with the Supreme Court's hearing on mail-in ballots and what Election Day actually means.
Brian Lehrer focuses on Wall Street Journal reporting that Lindsey Graham may have helped push Donald Trump toward striking Iran, with Sabrina Siddiqui describing Graham's lobbying of Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu, and even Mohammed bin Salman.
Brian Lehrer opens with Trump's claim that a former president praised his aggressive actions regarding the conflict in Iran.
Bridget Bergen fills in for Brian and starts with the stalled DHS funding fight.
Brian Lehrer opens on a war that looks like it is widening instead of settling down.
Brian Lehrer introduces New Jersey Senator Andy Kim for the monthly Call Your Senator segment and first plays an extended clip from Secretary of State Marco Rubio's speech at the Munich Security Conference.
Brian Lehrer’s Daily Politics Podcast opens on Washington pressure.
Brian Lehrer starts by pulling the discussion back to immigration enforcement.
This episode discusses the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and its intersection with the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, featuring an interview with a New York Times correspondent.
A daily politics podcast covering the latest news, including Vice President Vance's involvement in Hungary's election and its implications for the MAGA movement.
Brian Lehrer discusses Vice President J.D.
Brian Lehrer discusses the Eric Swalwell case and the Voluntary Intoxication Exclusion law in New York.
Brian Lehrer discusses the resurgence of the Jeffrey Epstein story after Melania Trump's statement and its potential distraction from the Iran war.
Brian Lehrer discusses President Trump's Iran war threats and interviews Sarah Fitzpatrick about national security.
Brian Lehrer opens with Trump’s language about Iran and asks what “unconditional surrender” is supposed to mean.
Brian Lehrer interviews Wired editor Stephen Levy about the standoff between AI company Anthropic and the Pentagon over ethical restrictions in their defense contract.
Brian Lehrer analyzes the first major primary results of the midterm election year, focusing on key Senate races in Texas and North Carolina.
Congressman Pat Ryan, an Iraq war veteran, discusses the Trump administration's military action in Iran, comparing it to the Iraq war and criticizing the lack of congressional authorization.
Brian Lehrer interviews New Yorker Iran expert Robin Wright about the political crisis in Iran following the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Brian Lehrer interviews voting rights expert Ari Berman to analyze a key section of Trump's State of the Union address focused on voting restrictions.
Brian Lehrer interviews climate law expert Pat Parenteau about the Trump administration's move to repeal the 2009 EPA finding that greenhouse gases endanger public health.
Brian Lehrer opens with the political stakes around tomorrow night's State of the Union.
Brian Lehrer focuses the conversation on a troubling shift inside USCIS.
Brian Lehrer and Washington Post reporter Scott Nover dissect why CBS lawyers blocked Stephen Colbert from airing an interview with Texas Democratic candidate James Tallarico, citing an archaic FCC equal time rule.
Brian Lehrer discusses President Trump's interview with New York Times reporters and interviews White House correspondent Katie Rogers.
Brian Lehrer discusses the potential Warner Bros.-Netflix merger, starting with a nostalgic reference to the Warner Bros.
Brian Lehrer discusses President Trump's meeting with NYC Mayor-elect Mamdani, tariffs, Epstein files, and Marjorie Taylor Greene's feud with Trump.