The Brian Lehrer Show

For this "Summer Best-Of" we've put together some of our favorite conversations our centennial series, 100 Years of 100 Things: Ashley Stimpson, Maryland-based freelance journalist who writes about science and conservation, takes us through the past 100 years of kids going to the woods for summer camp. Victoria RosnerMachines for Living: Modernism and Domestic LifeMaureen CorriganSo We Read On: How The Great Gatsby Came to Be and Why It EnduresThe Great GatsbyAvery Trufelman These interviews were polished up and edited for time, the original versions are available here: 100 Years of 100 Things: Summer Camps (Aug 26, 2025) 100 Years of 100 Things: Modernism (Jan 8, 2025) 100 Years of 100 Things: The Great Gatsby (Jan 13, 2025) 100 Years of 100 Things: Preppies and Their Clothes (Mar 26, 2025)

The Fordham Tri-State Tick Risk is at 10 out of 10 this summer. Thomas Daniels, research scientist in vector ecology, director of Louis Calder Center in Armonk, the biological field station of Fordham University, talks about what led to the population surge and best practices to avoid picking up ticks outdoors and the diseases they carry.

After the next round of ranked choice voting results came in, Assembly member Zohran Mamdani's lead grew to 12 points, meaning he easily secured the official Democratic nomination. Elizabeth Kim, Gothamist and WNYC reporter, reviews the data and talks about what this means for the general election.

Now that we have the full results of last Tuesday's mayoral primary election, Michael Lange, New York City based researcher, strategist, political organizer, and author of the newsletter "The Narrative Wars" on Substack, talks about the coalition of voters that came together to decisively elect assemblymember Zohran Mamdani as the Democratic nominee after correctly predicting the political winds were in his favor despite polling which showed otherwise.

Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent at KFF Health News and host of the What the Health? podcast, talks about the House and Senate budget bills and what they would mean for Americans' access to healthcare.

Ruth Marcus, a contributor to The New Yorker and a former columnist for The Washington Post and the author of Supreme Ambition: Brett Kavanaugh and the Conservative Takeover (Simon & Schuster, 2019), talks about Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson and takes stock of what the Supreme Court's latest decisions mean for the identity of the court and the ability of judges to check executive power.

Right before the full results of New York City's ranked choice voting in the mayoral primary is released, Steven Romalewski, director of CUNY Mapping Service in the Center for Urban Research at The Graduate Center, CUNY, talks about his predictions based on the first choice data.

Patrick McGeehan, reporter for The New York Times covering infrastructure in New York City and surrounding area talks about Gov. Hochul plan for a new nuclear plant upstate.

David Brand, housing reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, reports on Monday's meeting of the Rent Guidelines Board, which resulted in a vote to approve rent increases for stabilized apartments.

Justin Brannan, New York City Councilmember (District 43 - Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach) and chair of the Council Finance Committee, explains what's in the city budget for the next fiscal year, including a pilot program for free child care for children under 2 for low-income families, an extension of library hours at ten branches, and more.

Nicholas Wu, Politico congressional reporter, talks about the latest national political news, including the so-called "Big Beautiful Bill" Congress is aiming to pass by July 4th as Congress begins its "vote-a-rama."

The 'Buy Now, Pay Later' option is growing in popularity and now these loans will be a factor in credit scores. Imani Moise, personal economics reporter for The Wall Street Journal, explains how it works, and listeners call in to talk about how they use the services, and whether or not it has been helpful as they manage their finances.

Susan Dominus, New York Times Magazine staff writer and the author of The Family Dynamic: A Journey Into the Mystery of Sibling Success (Crown, 2025), talks about how siblings - especially in high-achieving families - influence each other almost as much as, or maybe more than, their parents.

Brad Lander, New York City comptroller, talks about the mayoral primary campaign, his alliance with Zohran Mamdani and the city budget.

Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them. An interview with presumptive Democratic NYC mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani (First) | A 100-year history of the fight for gay rights (Starts at 10:50) | A history of NYC's machine politics and how they played out in the 2025 Democratic mayoral primary (Starts at 40:00) If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here.

S. Mitra Kalita, co-founder of URL Media and CEO and publisher of Epicenter-NYC, reflects on the diverse electorate that powered Zohran Mamdani's upset win, especially South Asian voters, and what his win indicates about what New Yorkers want and need from their politicians.

Elie Mystal, justice correspondent and columnist for The Nation magazine and host of their legal podcast, "Contempt of Court," author of the New York Times best-seller Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy's Guide to the Constitution (The New Press, 2023), and Bad Law: 10 Popular Laws That Are Ruining America (The New Press, March 2025), offers legal analysis of the final SCOTUS opinions of the term, including on the so-called "birthright citizenship" case and more.

New York City Councilmember Shahana Hanif (District 39, Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens, Columbia Waterfront, Gowanus, Park Slope, Windsor Terrace, Borough Park, Kensington) talks about her win against a well-funded challenger in a high-profile race, as well as the coalition that voted for Mamdani, plus the policies she thinks resonated with voters.

Kate Shaw, professor at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, co-host of the Supreme Court podcast Strict Scrutiny and a contributing opinion writer with the New York Times, talks about recent Supreme Court decisions including Medina v. Planned Parenthood, which permits South Carolina to deny Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood, and another decision from the shadow docket that allows the Trump administration to deport migrants to countries where they have no connections.

Kirsten Gillibrand, U.S. Senator (D-NY), talks about why she's referring to President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful bill" as the "big, beautiful betrayal," comments on New York State Assembly member Zohran Mamdani's win in the New York City mayoral primary race and more.