The Brian Lehrer Show

Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them.
One Month of Mayor Mamdani (First) | How AI is Changing Medicine (Starts at 39:32) | A History of General Strikes (Starts at  1:09:33)
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Eric Blanc, assistant professor of Labor Studies at Rutgers University, author of several books including We Are the Union: How Worker-to-Worker Organizing is Revitalizing Labor and Winning Big (University of California Press, 2025) and author of the Substack newsletter Labor Politics, talks about the history of general strikes, and what makes them effective, and listeners call in if they are participating in Friday's general strike.

President Donald Trump and Democrats say they have reached a deal to avert a partial government shutdown. Siobhan Hughes, a reporter covering Congress in The Wall Street Journal's Washington bureau, talks about the latest and whether Republicans will agree to limit funding and impose restrictions on the Department of Homeland Security.

As the cold snap continues and the piles of snow linger, listeners share if they've taken up a hobby appropriate to the season.

Elizabeth Kim, Gothamist and WNYC reporter talks about Mayor Mamdani's first month in office, including challenges like this week's big snowstorm and a major budget crisis.