The Politics Hour with Kojo Nnamdi

WAMU 88.5

Join Kojo and resident analyst Tom Sherwood on Fridays at noon for our weekly review of the politics, policies and personalities in the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia. Each week Kojo and Tom help make sense of legislation, hold elected officials accountable and provide in-depth analysis of local issues and elections. The Politics Hour is also a vital forum for Washingtonians to engage directly with their local leaders.

8hr 18min

Thumbnail for "The Politics Hour: Virginia’s newly elected U.S. Rep. James Walkinshaw and D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen".

James Walkinshaw, winner of the special election for Virginia’s 11th congressional district, joins us. Plus, D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen on the RFK stadium vote and the latest threat to District autonomy.

September 12, 202550min 29sec72.7 MB

Thumbnail for "The Politics Hour: Why Virginia's lieutenant governor's race may be the election's most competitive".

Republican candidate for Virginia Lieutenant Governor John Reid talks the campaign, data centers, and school gender policies. Prince George's County Councilmember Wanika Fisher discusses pausing data center development.

September 26, 202550min 29sec48.37 MB

Thumbnail for "The Politics Hour: D.C. Council approves RFK stadium deal; Virginia elections heat up".

Ward 7 Councilmember Wendell Felder on the historic deal to build a football stadium in his ward. Democratic candidate for Lieutenant Governor Ghazala Hashmi on the race for Virginia's number two.

September 19, 202548min 56sec46.98 MB

Thumbnail for "The Politics Hour: It's back to school with Prince George's and Fairfax school superintendents".

Prince George's County's Shawn Joseph and Fairfax County's Michelle Reid on federal funding cuts, cell phone policies, and concerns over immigration enforcement.

September 5, 202547min 49sec45.91 MB

Thumbnail for "The Politics Hour: Maryland Gov. Wes Moore; plus, two D.C. officials with opposing views on the federal surge".

7 hrs ago The Politics Hour: Maryland Gov. Wes Moore; plus, two D.C. officials with opposing views on the federal surge Ward 4 D.C. Councilmember Janeese Lewis George on the federal takeover of local police, D.C. Police Union Chair Gregg Pemberton on why he supports the federal law enforcement surge, and Maryland Governor Wes Moore discusses the need for federal funding to rebuild the Key Bridge.

August 29, 202550min 30sec72.72 MB

Thumbnail for "WAMU News Call-In Special: A community conversation about the federal takeover of D.C. police".

We heard from you about this historic week in D.C.

August 15, 202550min 30sec72.61 MB

Thumbnail for "The Politics Hour: Prince George’s County Executive Aisha Braveboy on potentially losing the Commanders".

Prince George’s County Executive Aisha Braveboy on what’s next for Northwest Stadium and Arlington County Board member Maureen Coffey on challenges ahead for building “missing middle” housing.

August 8, 202550min 30sec72.73 MB

Thumbnail for "The Politics Hour: The D.C. Council seals the RFK stadium deal; plus, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich".

We get up-to-the-minute news on the RFK stadium deal vote. Plus, Virginia Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell on the federal investigations into George Mason University.

August 1, 202550min 29sec72.6 MB

Thumbnail for "The Politics Hour: What's in the revised RFK stadium deal; plus, Metro GM Randy Clarke on the bus overhaul".

The D.C. Council is planning to vote on the revised RFK stadium deal with the Washington Commanders Aug. 1. Also, we speak with Metro General Manager Randy Clarke about the new bus routes.

July 25, 202549min 4sec47.1 MB

Thumbnail for "The Politics Hour: D.C. Council Chair Phil Mendelson on budget cuts and Trayon White's re-election".

D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson talks Congressional pressure to pass the RFK stadium deal and compromising on tipped minimum wage. WAMU’s new Maryland reporter Jenny Abamu discusses what federal layoffs mean for local residents.

July 18, 202549min 31sec47.55 MB

The Politics Hour: Virginia’s newly elected U.S. Rep. James Walkinshaw and D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen

September 12, 202550min 29sec

Fairfax voters this week overwhelmingly elected Democrat James Walkinshaw to succeed the late Gerry Connolly in Congress in Virginia's 11th district. Walkinshaw, who was sworn in on Wednesday, takes over for his mentor during a particularly tumultuous time for Northern Virginia. Congressman Walkinshaw joined the show to discuss the 51,000 civilian federal workers who live in the district, a potential regional recession, and the possibility of a federal shutdown. Plus, we asked him to weigh in on Virginia's upcoming statewide elections.

The House Oversight Committee advanced a series of bills this week that threaten to further undermine D.C.'s autonomy, including legislation replacing the locally elected D.C. attorney general with a presidential appointee, allowing youth 14 years or older to be tried for certain offenses, and ending cashless bail in the District. Introduced amendments also called for revoking the city's ban on right turns on red and prohibiting automatic traffic enforcement cameras. Also, this week,the federal takeover of D.C. police expired. Ward 6 D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen took the mic to discuss what comes next and why he believes the legislation would make the District less safe. We'll also asked about the upcoming second RFK stadium vote.

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