Quality-of-Life: Trash, Scaffolding, and Norms

Ravi Gupta sits down with Bradley Tusk to break down New York City’s mounting budget crisis, a $6B deficit, and the tough choices facing Mayor Mamdani. They dig into the city’s $40B education system—why it spends more than anywhere else yet delivers mediocre results—and what real reform could look like. The conversation spans everything from union power and government inefficiency to housing, public safety, and the future of urban leadership. It’s a sharp, unfiltered look at whether Mamdani has the political courage to move beyond ideology and actually fix what’s broken. 

Bradley Tusk’s The Firewall Podcast 

____________

Leave us a voicemail with your thoughts on the show! 201-305-0084⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

• Follow Ravi at @RaviMGupta

• Notes from this episode are also available on Substack: ⁠https://thelostdebate.substack.com/⁠

• Read more from Ravi on Substack: ⁠https://realravigupta.substack.com⁠ 

• Follow The Branch at @thebranchmedia

• Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-lost-debate/id1591300785

• Listen to more episodes of Lost Debate on Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/7xR9pch9DrQDiZfGB5oF0F⁠

• Listen to Where the Schools Went: ⁠https://thebranchmedia.org/show/where-the-schools-went/⁠