The Brian Lehrer Show

The prospect of a government shutdown is growing as Democrats are threatening to not help Republicans on the Hill pass a spending bill by the September 30 deadline. Deirdre Walsh, congressional correspondent for NPR's Washington Desk, talks about the politics of the potential shutdown and related news from Congress.

Bill McKibben, environmental activist, founder of Third Act and author of many books, most recently: Here Comes the Sun: A Last Chance for the Climate and a Fresh Chance for Civilization (W. W. Norton & Company, 2025), discusses his new book, and reflects on his life's work, both as a climate activist and journalist.

As part of the election series "30 Issues in 30 Days," Mike Hayes, WNYC/Gothamist reporter covering the New Jersey governor's race and the author of The Secret Files: Bill De Blasio, The NYPD, and the Broken Promises of Police Reform (Kingston Imperial, 2023), talks about the issue of too little affordable housing in New Jersey, including court-required efforts to build more, and how the gubernatorial candidates' plan to comply.

Ry Rivard, reporter covering regional infrastructure for Politico, looks at the gubernatorial candidates' positions on climate change and energy policies in New Jersey.

In a new memoir, Yusuf Islam, also known as the singer-songwriter Cat Stevens, writes about how he converted his faith and changed his name after a near-death experience. Listeners call in to share stories of why they changed their name, other than marriage.

Greg Lukianoff, attorney, president and CEO of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression and the author of several books on free speech, offers his thoughts on how he says both the political left and right weaponize crackdowns on speech, and why he thinks that is a problem for everyone's rights.

Elizabeth Kim, Gothamist and WNYC reporter, talks about the latest news from the mayoral campaign trail, including an off-and-back-on-again town hall; growing frustration from some over Sen. Schumer's refusal to endorse Zohran Mamdani; a potential fight brewing over charter schools; and Mayor Adams's comments about bathrooms and gender identity.

David Gelles, reporter on the New York Times climate team and the Times’s Climate Forward newsletter and author of Dirtbag Billionaire: How Yvon Chouinard Built Patagonia, Made a Fortune, and Gave It All Away (Simon & Schuster, 2025), talks about New York City Climate Week and the challenge of several developing nations who are facing the challenges of a changing climate without the support of the United States, since the Trump administration withdrew the United States from the Paris Agreement.

David Brand, housing reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, explains NYC’s three ballot proposals on streamlining the housing construction process.

Salonee Bhaman, co-curator for "The New York Sari: A Journey Through Tradition, Fashion, and Identity" at The New York Historical and curatorial scholar at the Center for Women's History at The New York Historical, and S. Mitra Kalita, co-founder of URL Media and CEO and publisher of Epicenter-NYC, talk about the exhibition at The New York Historical that shows the cultural and community significance of the sari among immigrant communities in New York.

Chelsea Cirruzzo, Washington correspondent for STAT News, talks about the White House press conference on autism, acetaminophen, and immunizations, plus the results of last week's meeting of the federal advisory committee on vaccines, and the confusion over federal, state and local public health rules.

Richard Gowan, International Crisis Group's director of UN and Multilateral Diplomacy, shares what to expect at the UN General Assembly, including what President Trump may say in his Tuesday address, the war in Gaza and other crises and the role of the United Nations globally.

In a new memoir, Yusuf Islam, also known as the singer-songwriter Cat Stevens, writes about how converted his faith after a near-death experience. Listeners call in to share what has prompted them to change their faith.

Daniel Di Martino, fellow at the Manhattan Institute whose research focuses on immigration, and Amy Torres, executive director of the New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice, debate the issues around sanctuary laws in the New York City mayor's race and the New Jersey governor's election.

Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them. How Trump May Be Changing the Elections Process (First) | AI in the Job Market (Starts at 51:0 0) | Your Family's 'Secret Language' (Starts at 1:18:00) If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here.

Nate Soares, president of the Machine Intelligence Research Institute and the co-author (with Eliezer Yudkowsky) of If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies: Why Superhuman AI Would Kill Us All (Little, Brown and Company, 2025), talks about why he worries that AI "superintelligence" will lead to catastrophic outcomes, and what safeguards he recommends to prevent this.

A new Siena poll shows a (slight) majority of New Yorkers said the state is on the right track, while 59% of respondents thought the U.S. is heading in the wrong direction. New Yorkers call in to share what they think is going well in the state compared to the rest of the country.

Brooklyn Borough president Antonio Reynoso talks about why he's now supporting the plan to redevelop Brooklyn's Marine Terminal ahead of a pivotal vote on the project.

Elie Honig, senior legal analyst at CNN, New York Magazine columnist, former state and federal prosecutor and author of several books, including When You Come at the King: Inside DOJ’s Pursuit of the President, From Nixon to Trump (Harper, 2025), explores investigations by the Department of Justice of presidents and other high-ranking officials throughout the years, and how the system may be tested during Trump's second presidency.

As the Atlantic Festival takes place in NYC, staff writers and panelists Ashley Parker, staff writer at The Atlantic, former Washington Post White House bureau chief, and Adam Serwer, staff writer at The Atlantic, preview their panels and discuss the latest from the White House particularly the events after the the assassination of Charlie Kirk.