Brian Lehrer: A Daily Politics Podcast

With the news today that Steve Bannon has been indicted on conspiracy and money laundering charges, we check in on the case against him. On Today's Show: Devlin Barrett, Washington Post reporter focusing on national security and law enforcement, talks about his reporting, which found that at least one of the documents seized from Mar-a-Lago by the FBI contained highly-sensitive information on the nuclear capabilities of other countries. Plus, what to make of the news that Steve Bannon turned himself in to the authorities.

What would it mean for climate change if California can phase out gas-powered vehicles by 2035, an ambitious target set recently by state regulators? On Today's Show:Dan Gearino, reporter covering clean energy and the Midwest for Inside Climate News, discusses California's move to phase out the sale of gas-powered cars, which other states now look to emulate.

Now that primaries have mostly wrapped up, we turn to some congressional and gubernatorial races that are heating up around the country. On Today's Show:Steven Shepard, senior campaigns and elections editor and chief polling analyst for Politico, joins to break down the most hotly contested congressional and gubernatorial races in the country ahead of the midterm elections.

This Labor Day, we wanted to look at a piece of US history that has arguably done more to shape our nation than earlier "founding documents." On Today's Show:Kermit Roosevelt III, professor of constitutional law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, a former law clerk to Supreme Court Justice David Souter, author of The Nation That Never Was: Reconstructing America’s Story (University of Chicago Press, 2022) – and a great-great-grandson to Pres. Teddy Roosevelt – offers a reinterpretation of U.S. history that places Lincoln's Gettysburg Address as our true founding document.

Understanding race and racism is an important step toward helping children make sense of their world, and to try to make it better. On Today's Show:Ibram X. Kendi, professor in the Humanities and the founding director of the Boston University Center for Antiracist Research and the author of How to Raise an Antiracist (One World, 2022) talks about his new book offering guidance to parents and caregivers.

Over a year since the United States withdrew from Afghanistan, we check in on the Taliban government, the status of Afghan refugees and the US posture toward the region. On Today's Show:Najib Aminy, reporter and producer at Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting, talks about his recent work that explores the question of whether the U.S. should recognize the Taliban, as well as why so few applications for humanitarian parole have been approved by the U.S. after its departure from Afghanistan.

With COVID still weighing on people's minds, and inflation on people's wallets, has the allure of staying in kept audiences away from the return of live performances? On Today's Show:Live performers have been back on stage for over a year, but attendance remains below pre-pandemic numbers. Javier C. Hernández, culture reporter for The New York Times, discusses why show-goers are staying home and what the live entertainment industry is doing to bring them back.

The ball is in the Attorney General's court after the release of an affidavit that outlines why the FBI executed a search warrant for presidential documents held at Trump's residence. On Today's Show:Katie Benner, Justice Department reporter at The New York Times, joins with takeaways and the latest news from the release of the affidavit in the FBI search of former President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate.

After winning a special election in a purple-ish district, we speak with a Congress-bound freshman about what his win means for Democrats' prospects in the midterms. On Today's Show:After defeating his Republican opponent in a special election in New York, Ulster County executive and Congressman-elect Pat Ryan (D NY-19th), joins to discuss.

Over time, political labels come into and out of fashion. So between liberal, progressive, socialist, leftist and more, what are Democrats calling themselves these days? On Today's Show:Blake Hounshell, editor of The New York Times' On Politics newsletter, discussed his latest article on how some Democrats, who once ran away from the "liberal" label in the 1990s, are now also moving away from the term "progressive."