CitizenCast

Donald Trump keeps telling Americans we're in a "golden age" of economic prosperity. Ali Velshi breaks down the reality.

The highly contagious disease is sweeping the United States. Philly currently has zero confirmed cases — a stark difference from the city's major outbreak 30 years ago. Are we more prepared this time around?

A long-time university president calls for a constitutional convention on higher education in the city known for revolutions. Penn, et al, are you listening?

Thirty percent of all breast cancer patients experience a potentially deadly recurrence. Scientists at Penn are finding ways to prevent dormant cells from waking up.

This time, we take a lightning look at takeaways from Governor Shapiro's FY27 budget

In this episode of Guest Commentary, a local political activist has an idea we should steal to bring power back to the people

Take in the most notable changes to Mayor Parker's FY27 budget in this lightning episode.

In court documents, the Trump administration admitted to terminating federal clean energy grants "to states that awarded electoral votes to Kamala Harris in the 2024 election." Ali Velshi weighs in.

"The problems we have as a country don't go away because the federal government leaves the stage," says Mary Ellen Wiederwohl, CEO of Accelerator for America, on the latest episode of How To Really Run A City. "All this stuff lands on the front steps of City Hall."

And then what? That's what hosts Kasim Reed (former mayor of Atlanta) and Michael Nutter (former mayor of Philadelphia), along with Citizen Co-founder Larry Platt, explore with Brown University Professor Marc Dunkelman, author of the new book, Why Nothing Works: Who Killed Progress — and How to Bring It Back.

"We need to rethink the balance between our impulse to empower central authority and the attempts to ensure that power doesn't do damage," says Dunkelman.

Dunkelman highlights the push and pull of centralized power in U.S. politics, tracing a line from the Progressive Era of the late 19th century to the destructive anger of modern MAGAism.

Reed weighed in with his experience. "Fair is harder," he says. "I believe in action-oriented leadership. Move faster. Be decisive. Be more inclusive, yes, but by god, do something."

Join us for an unvarnished discussion about why trust in both politics and infrastructure continues to be broken in this country, along with steps we can take to actually make things work.

As Dunkelman says, "There's a fantasy that if you just get everyone around a table, they will eventually come to an agreement. The truth is, we need deciders. That's why we have elections."

As cities go, so goes the nation!

Research shows Americans are spending less time with the folks next door than just a decade ago. Roxanne Patel Shepelavy joined the hosts of WHYY's Studio Two to discuss ways we can turn this trend around.