Brian Lehrer: A Daily Politics Podcast

How do we make the legislative branch more democratic? On Today's Show:David Daley, senior fellow at FairVote and author of the books Ratf**ked: Why Your Vote Doesn't Count (Liveright 2016) and Unrigged: How Americans Are Battling Back to Save Democracy (Liveright 2020), discusses the undemocratic nature of the United States Senate and offers solutions to make it more representative of all Americans.

With election districts being redrawn around the country, how do changing electoral boundaries change the politics that come out of those elections?  On Today's Show:Michael Li, senior counsel for the Brennan Center’s Democracy Program, talks about the process of redrawing district lines after the census every 10 years and how that process can favor parties and incumbency, or voters.

In four swing states, some gubernatorial candidates have indicated that they would have refused to certify Biden's 2020 election win. What might those midterms mean for 2024? On Today's Show:Kira Lerner, democracy reporter at States Newsroom, talks about the four swing states with governors races that could upend the 2024 presidential election.

How some jurisdictions are making it harder to vote, while others are expanding opportunities to ensure that everyone eligible has the chance to cast a ballot? On Today's Show:Ari Berman, senior reporter at Mother Jones, covering voting rights and author of Give Us the Ballot: The Modern Struggle for Voting Rights in America, joins our midterm election series to discuss the attack on democracy and the continued fight for voting rights in America.

With the midterms approaching, how secure is our election system, non-withstanding the former president's lies about widespread election fraud in 2020? On Today's Show:William Adler, senior technologist in elections and democracy at the Center for Democracy and Technology, joins to discuss when and where election fraud actually takes place, and how it can be prevented and tracked.

On Today's Show: NPR's Claudia Grisales recaps what was likely the final January 6 hearing by the House Select Committee, and explains where the investigation goes from here.

On Today's Show:Senator Kirsten Gillibrand discusses some policy matters before Congress, and how the midterms could change things in Washington, D.C.    

The FDA might enact new policies around food labeling. Here's what you should know in order to understand the nutrition of the food you buy. On Today's Show:Marion Nestle, professor emerita of nutrition, food studies, and public health at NYU and the author of many books, including her latest, Slow Cooked: An Unexpected Life in Food Politics (University of California Press, 2022) talks about the changes, how the food industry is heavily invested, plus how food insecurity and access to healthy food play into these decisions.

As President Biden announces the pardons for federal cannabis possession charges, we look at where the piecemeal process of legalization and decriminalization stands today. On Today's Show:Alyson Martin, co-founder of Cannabis Wire and adjunct professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, joins to discuss President Joe Biden's recent announcement to pardon convicted cannabis users and how states might follow his lead.

Joe Biden said last month that the pandemic era of COVID was over. Is there a public policy approach to the endemic future of the virus? On Today's Show:Eric Topol, physician, founder and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, professor of molecular medicine and executive VP at Scripps Research, talks about whether either Republicans or Democrats have a plan for the future of endemic COVID-19, and shares what he thinks needs to be done.