City Politics; The Budget Challenges Mayor-Elect Mamdani Will Face; National Politics on the End of the Shutdown; 'Sewer Socialism' on Your Block

The Brian Lehrer Show | Nov 12, 2025
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On today's show: 

  • Elizabeth Kim, Gothamist and WNYC reporter, talks about the new hires Mayor-elect Mamdani has announced will be part of his administration, plus the news from Mayor Adams's final days in office.

  • Greg David, contributor covering fiscal and economic issues for THE CITY and director of the business and economics reporting program and Ravitch Fiscal Reporting Program at the Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, talks about the challenge Mayor-elect Mamdani will face as he tries to fulfill his campaign promises while balancing the city's budget.

  • On Wednesday, the House of Representatives is set to return to work after a 54-day hiatus. Nicholas Wu, congressional reporter at POLITICO, talks about the upcoming vote in the House on the funding bill that would end the government shutdown, why some Democrats are furious at their Senate colleagues who broke ranks to cut a deal and more.

  • Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has pointed to "sewer socialism"—the early Milwaukee model where socialist mayors treated basic public infrastructure as central to serving working people—as part of the vision that guides him. In that spirit, listeners call in to tell us which small public-works improvement would make life better on their block.

Transcripts are posted to each segment as they become available.

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