Brian Lehrer: A Daily Politics Podcast

Progressive policy items, like police reform and voting rights protections, are moving through Congress, not to mention a $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill. On Today's Show:Elana Schor, Politico Congress editor, recaps the news out of Congress this week, including two bills the House passed on voting rights and policing, and more.

The governor of Texas is lifting all state-imposed COVID precautions. But public health experts say it's too soon to return to normal. What are the politics at play in reopening? On Today's Show:Jeremy Blackman, politics reporter for the Houston Chronicle, talks about Governor Greg Abbott's decision to end Texas's mask mandate and lift all capacity restrictions for businesses in the state and how residents and local politicians are reacting. Plus, callers from red sates call in with their thoughts on their states' reopening plans.

Biden's journey on racial issues has been a long & winding one. The question now is, what will he do as president? What's he done so far, & what's on his agenda, for racial equality? On Today's Show:Paul Butler, professor at Georgetown Law and the author of Chokehold: Policing Black Men (The New Press, 2017), checks in on what more progress -- if any -- the administration has made on advancing racial justice so far.

The 13th Amendment removed slavery from our laws. Except as punishment for a crime. Do mass incarceration, prison labor and the profits it generates add up to modern day slavery? On Today's Show:Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley talks about his "Abolition Amendment" which would seek to close the "slavery loophole" in the 13th amendment, and Bianca Tylek, Worth Rises’s executive director, talks about programs that require incarcerated people to work for little or no pay.

Two women have accused NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment. How are those who were comforted by his leadership during the pandemic thinking about his other conduct? On Today's Show:Josefa Velásquez, senior reporter for THE CITY, talks about the story, the governor's (and Albany's) reactions and takes calls.

Over a third of nurses who have died from COVID-19 have been Filipino. We look at why so many Filipino immigrants become nurses, and how they've been failed by the healthcare system they work in. On Today's Show:Tracie Hunte, correspondent for The Experiment — a new series from The Atlantic and WNYC Studios — and Gabrielle Berbey, associate producer for The Experiment, discuss their reporting on how Filipino Americans came to work the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic. Their new episode is called “The Sisterhood.”

Trump got elected on an anti-immigration platform. Can Biden deliver the comprehensive bipartisan immigration reform this country has tried, and failed, to implement for so long? On Today's Show:U.S. Representative Linda Sanchez (D CA 38th, parts of LA and Orange Counties), House sponsor of the bill; thenSergio Gonzales, executive director Immigration Hub, former policy aide to then-Senator Kamala Harris, who helped draft the 2013 immigration reform package as a staffer for "Gang of Eight" member, Colorado Senator Michael Bennet.

The COVID relief bill is expected to pass in the House tomorrow. So let's dive into the details on what that could mean for people in different situations. On Today's Show:U.S. Representative (D-NY8) and House Democrats chairman Hakeem Jeffries, talks about the latest on the Covid-19 relief bill, and other national issues before Congress.

One of the startling facts to come out of the Jan. 6 insurrection is the fact that many of those charged in the attack are retired or active duty members of the military. On Today's Show:U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) talks about rooting out extremism and sexual assault from the military, how Congress is protecting itself from future attacks, the COVID-19 relief bill and other issues.

Can compromise be an obstacle to unity, rather than its herald? With all that's at stake in recovering from the pandemic, maybe a little partisanship is necessary. On Today's Show:U.S. Representative Tom Suozzi (D-NY3), talks about COVID relief in Congress, the Biden agenda and the role of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus in today's political atmosphere.