The Brian Lehrer Show

Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them.MTA Chair Janno Lieber on Congestion Pricing, Penn Station and More (First) | Goodbye to Federal Regulations (Starts at 39:00) | 100 Years of 100 Things: Street Photography (Starts at 1:04:00)If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here.

Listeners share stories of navigating career pivots at moments when they felt their college degree took them as far as it could go.Support of WNYC’s coverage of economic mobility and opportunity is provided in part by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. For more information about how the Gates Foundation supports economic mobility and opportunity, visit usprogram.gatesfoundation.org.

David Graham, staff writer at The Atlantic and an author of the Atlantic daily newsletter, plus author of The Project: How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America (Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2025), looks at where the initial actions of the Trump administration align with the Heritage Foundation's Project 2025, and what's still to come.

Mike Lawler, U.S. Representative (R, NY-17), talks about the issues facing his district and the country and his role as part of the Republican majority in Congress.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s recent comments on autistic Americans sparked massive backlash from the community last week. Now, there's news that the National Institute of Health's new autism study is collecting private medical records from Americans. Colin Killick, executive director of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, provides his perspective on the impact RFK Jr.'s rhetoric and latest actions are having on the autistic community during Autism Acceptance Month.

Nick Reisman, Politico New York reporter covering New York state government and politics and co-author of the New York Playbook, talks about the issues holding up the New York State budget negotiations, due April 1.

Daniel Rober, associate professor and department chair of the Catholic Studies department at Sacred Heart University, talks about the leading contenders to be the next pope, the fraught process in the Vatican and the different directions the next leader of the world's Catholics might take the church.

Betsy Smith, president and CEO of the Central Park Conservancy, talks about Saturday's opening of the revamped Harlem Meer area of the park, plus other news.

Layla O'Kane, a senior director at Opportunity@Work, and Cole Napper, vice president of People Analytics at Lightcast, a labor market analytics company, talk about the latest data on career and career advancement opportunities for skilled workers without a college degree.→ State of the Paper Ceiling | Opportunity@Work

John "Janno" Lieber, chair and CEO of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), talks about the MTA's fight with the federal government over congestion pricing, how the tolling program is going, the Trump administration's takeover of the Penn Station revamp and more transit news.

Anne Applebaum, staff writer at The Atlantic, historian and author of Autocracy Inc. (Penguin, 2024), argues the checks on presidential power, put in place by the founders, have so far failed in the second Trump administration, and talks about what causes authoritarian governments to fail.

Elizabeth Kim, Gothamist and WNYC reporter, talks about how both state assembly member Zohran Mamdani and Comptroller Brad Lander are vying to be the top progressive candidate in the Democratic mayoral primary, and more news from City Hall and the campaign trail.

Lauren Weber, reporter at The Wall Street Journal, talks about why certain high-demand, upwardly mobile jobs remain hard to fill as we continue our series about workers skilled through alternative routes. → They Are Hot, Upwardly Mobile Jobs. Here’s Why They Are So Hard to Fill. | Wall Street Journal

As our centennial series continues, Sam Barzilay, creative director & co-founder of Photoville, looks at the history of street photography, from the invention of the Leica hand-held 35mm camera which made capturing "the decisive moment" possible, to the challenges presented by AI and smartphone technology of today.=>"Women Street Photographers" exhibit through April 28=> Photoville Festival coming in June.

As the National Institute of Health is set to cut funding for climate research, Maggie Astor, New York Times reporter covering the intersection between health and politics, explains the broader impact these cuts may have on our public health.

Coral Davenport, New York Times reporter covering the de-regulation of the federal government, talks about the hundreds of rules and regulations the Trump administration plans to do away with.

New York State will award three coveted casino licenses by the end of this year. Nick Garber, politics reporter at Crain's New York Business, reports on where the process stands, including news on environmental reviews, a big player dropping out and where the Mets owner Steve Cohen's bid stands.

James Martin, SJ, a Jesuit priest, founder of Outreach, an LGBTQ Catholic resource, editor at large for America Media, consultor to the Vatican's Dicastery for Communication, and author of Come Forth (HarperOne, 2023) and Learning to Pray (HarperOne, 2021), reflects on the life and leadership of Pope Francis, who died earlier today at 88, as listeners share their thoughts.

Harold Hongju Koh, professor of international law and former dean at Yale Law School and former legal adviser of the U.S. Department of State, talks about President Trump's actions against big law firms that were involved in cases against the president or his businesses.

The Trump administration has seized control over the Penn Station reconstruction project and kicked the MTA out of the process. Stephen Nessen, transportation reporter for the WNYC Newsroom, explains why Trump is so interested in Penn Station and more details about this major building project transfer.

Quinta Jurecic, contributing writer at The Atlantic, fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution and senior editor at Lawfare, offers legal analysis of the Supreme Court's rulings on deportation and the Trump administration's response so far.

Rick Seltzer, reporter for The Chronicle of Higher Education, talks about the latest news in the escalating fight between Harvard University and the Trump administration, including what the frozen government funds pay for at the wealthy institution, why it matters that Harvard is standing up to the government's demands and more.

Ethan Crenson, president of the New York Mycological Society, talks about the many underappreciated mushrooms dotted on the sticks and branches of New York City.

The New York State budget is now almost three weeks late. Jon Campbell, Albany reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, reports on the disagreements that are holding it up, including changes to the state's criminal discovery laws.

As our centennial series continues, Jonathan Zimmerman, professor of history of education at the University of Pennsylvania and the author of several books, including a new edition of Whose America? Culture Wars in the Public Schools (University of Chicago Press, 2022), looks at the past 100 years of American publicly financed education.

Mark Graham, director of the Wayback Machine at the Internet Archive, explains his work preserving digital history in the face of fewer companies preserving their web content and the White House directives to take down government web pages. Plus, Annie Rauwerda, who runs the Depths of Wikipedia social media accounts, weighs in.

Faith Hill, staff writer at The Atlantic, talks about the reliance of working parents on grandparents for childcare and when it gets to be too much.

Adrienne Adams, New York City Council speaker, talks about her campaign to be the Democratic nominee for NYC mayor and the issues facing the city.

Emily Bazelon, staff writer for The New York Times Magazine, co-host of Slate's "Political Gabfest" podcast, Truman Capote fellow for creative writing and law at Yale Law School and author of Charged: The New Movement to Transform American Prosecution and End Mass Incarceration (Random House, 2019), talks about the latest developments in the stand-off between a federal judge and the Trump administration over deportations, and other national news.

Jennifer Toh, MD, practicing allergist and immunologist at ENT and Allergy Associates, and member of the executive committee of the New York Allergy & Asthma Society, answers questions about diagnosing and coping with spring allergies.

Anna Louie Sussman, freelance journalist covering gender, economics, health, and reproduction, discusses her three-part series for The New York Times about human embryos, which explores the legal and ethical considerations people have to manage when they create embryos as part of the IVF process.

Andrew Cuomo's campaign has hit some road bumps this week, but recent polls still have the former governor in strong first place. Elizabeth Kim, Gothamist and WNYC reporter, and Brigid Bergin, WNYC's senior political correspondent, explain why Cuomo's campaign didn't receive any matching funds from the New York City Campaign Finance Board this week, who gave him a big check instead, and more of the latest news from the mayoral race.

Hamed Aleaziz, reporter covering the Department of Homeland Security and immigration policy for The New York Times, shares his reporting on the Trump administration's immigration policies, including what he and his colleagues at the Times found in their investigation into the deportation of 238 migrants to a prison in El Salvador.

Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for KFF Health News and host of the What the Health? podcast, breaks down the headlines from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s so-called "Make American Healthy Again" tour, designed to highlight Kennedy’s plan to fight chronic disease and promote a healthy diet, amid cuts to chronic disease prevention programs and widespread layoffs at the Food and Drug Administration.

Cristiano Lima-Strong, associate editor at Tech Policy Press, offers analysis of the Federal Trade Commission's antitrust case against Meta, where they will argue that the social media giant maintained a monopoly after it bought Instagram and WhatsApp.

Allan Wernick, legal advisor to CUNY Citizenship Now! - CUNY's free immigration law service program, offers guidance to tourists, visa-holders and permanent residents with green cards on their rights at the U.S. border.

Samantha Maldonado, senior reporter for THE CITY, where she covers climate, resiliency, housing and development, explains how recent Trump administration cuts to Federal Emergency Management Agency threatens over $300 million in climate resiliency for New York City-specific efforts, plus a new executive order that takes aim at state programs meant to charge polluters in order to drive down greenhouse gas emissions.

Catie Edmondson, congressional correspondent for The New York Times, offers political analysis of the budget blueprints passed by Congress last week, including what tax and spending cuts might look like, and why Republicans were far from united on this.

As our centennial series continues, Dominic Preziosi, editor of Commonweal, talks about the 100-year history of the magazine and American Catholicism, in general.

Andy Phillips, vice president of the Tax Institute at H&R Block in Kansas City, MO, offers advice and answers questions on this day before the deadline to file income tax returns.

Even with a 90-day pause on President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs, Greg David, who covers fiscal and economic issues for THE CITY and directs the business and economics reporting program and the Ravitch Fiscal Reporting Program at the Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, argues that local economy—supported in part by Wall Street and tourism—will worsen, and how state and city budgets will respond to the economic turmoil.

Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson kicks off a new series of interviews with county executives as she talks about her work on maternal health disparities, her State of the Borough address, and other Bronx news, including the impact on The Bronx of Trump administration actions.

As our centennial series continues, Robert Coker, author of the book Roller Coasters: A Thrill Seeker's Guide To The Ultimate Scream Machines (Main Street, 2002) and Douglas Barnes, co-hosts of The Season Pass podcast, talk about the history of roller coasters, from the "Golden Age" of 1920's wooden coasters like Coney Island's Cyclone through modern steel "strata coasters," like the late lamented Kingda Ka, which was recently imploded to make room for a new ride.

William Cohan, financial writer for Puck News and author of many books, including Power Failure: The Rise and Fall of an American Icon (Penguin Random House, 2022), offers analysis of the latest twists and turns of President Trump's trade war, and how Wall Street is reacting to the chaotic rollout (and rollback) of the tariffs.

Listeners share their stories of obtaining and advancing in white collar, nonmanual professions without a bachelor's degree.

Listeners call in to speak on the weirder sports, games, or competitions that they follow, plus we share some of our favorites.

Kirsten Gillibrand, U.S. Senator (D NY), talks about her work in Washington and more.

As we continue our series about alternative pathways into well-paying careers, Amy Volz, head of workforce innovation at Trane Technologies, a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning and refrigeration systems company with a focus on climate and sustainability, and Ebony Thomas, managing partner at Grads of Life, a nonprofit that connects top employers with people in the talent pool those employers might have otherwise missed, talk about the proactive steps some employers have taken to embrace candidates who have skills earned through boot camps and other micro-credentialing programs despite no college degree.Support of WNYC’s coverage of economic mobility and opportunity is provided in part by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. For more information about how the Gates Foundation supports economic mobility and opportunity, visit usprogram.gatesfoundation.org.

Ras Baraka, mayor of Newark (D), talks about his campaign to be the Democratic nominee for governor in the June primary and the issues that matter to voters in Newark and across the state.

Nancy Solomon, WNYC reporter and host of the “Ask Governor Murphy” monthly call-in show, recaps her April conversation with New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, including how President Donald Trump's tariffs might play out in the local economy, how Democrats can reduce red tape to build more affordable housing in New Jersey and much more.