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Max Politics is a New York politics podcast hosted by journalist Ben Max featuring in-depth interviews with elected and appointed officials, candidates, advocates, and others about New York City and State politics and policy. Produced at New York Law School and its Center for New York Law. Get in touch: benmax25@gmail.com
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Intro/outro music is Live-It by Ketsa. source (Free Music Archive) and license type (CC BY-NC-ND)
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Intro/outro music is Live-It by Ketsa. source (Free Music Archive) and license type (CC BY-NC-ND)
686 Episodes
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New York State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, a Westchester Democrat who has led the Senate since 2019, joined the show to discuss the status of state budget negotiations as the Senate and Assembly majorities and Governor Hochul work to agree on a spending and policy plan. The state fiscal year began April 1, but the parties have passed budget extenders to pay the state's bills while they negotiate the roughly $265 billion spending plan that will also include a variety of major policy decisions, how much aid the state gives New York City, and much more. (Ep 577)
New York City Council Finance Chair Linda Lee, a Queens Democrat, joined the show to discuss the Council's response to Mayor Mamdani's $127 billion preliminary budget for next fiscal year (FY27, which begins July 1), top Council priorities, how the two sides of City Hall differ on closing the city's budget gap, what the city is asking for from the state, and more. (Ep 576)
New York City Comptroller Mark Levine, a Democrat, returned to the show for further discussion of the city's difficult budget picture and how to fill the multi-billion-dollar budget gap that Mayor Mamdani inherited — including on savings, spending, tax policy, state aid to the city, and more — as well as discussion of the importance of economic growth in the city and key pillars to a city economic development strategy. (Ep 375)
State Senator Gustavo Rivera, a Bronx Democrat and chair of the Senate health committee, joined the show to discuss state budget negotiations with under two weeks until the April 1 start of the new fiscal year. The conversation touched on major areas of negotiation among Governor Hochul and the two Democratic majorities of the State Legislature including climate and energy regulations, tax rates, Medicaid and other health policy and budget issues, mayoral control of New York City schools, and more. (Ep 574)
Experts Howard Slatkin and Annemarie Gray joined the show to discuss housing priorities for the Mamdani Administration, the city's overall housing policy and political climate, the push for state-level environmental review reform to speed housing development, and more housing policy specifics. Slatkin, executive director of Citizens Housing and Planning Council, is a former top official at the NYC Department of City Planning, and Gray, executive director of Open New York, is a former housing and planning official in the NYC Mayor's Office. (Ep 573)
New York City Council Member Lincoln Restler, a Brooklyn Democrat, joined the show to discuss making city government work, his priorities for the new term, a recent hearing on the city's Streets Plan and the expansion of bus, bike, and pedestrian infrastructure, his bill to create the Department of Community Safety that Mayor Mamdani has promised, and more. (Ep 372)
Julie Won, a Democratic candidate for Congress in New York's 7th Congressional District (which includes parts of Brooklyn and Queens), joined the show to discuss her campaign to succeed the retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez in the House of Representatives. Won is a City Council member from Queens running in this June 2026 primary. (EP 571)
Jasmine Gripper and Ana Maria Archila returned to the show to discuss their work leading the New York Working Families Party, progressive politics and efforts to influence state policy-making, Mayor Mamdani, Governor Hochul, and endorsements in 2026 Democratic primaries including New York's 7th and 10th congressional districts. Gripper and Archila have been co-directors of the NYWFP for the last few years, and Gripper has now become sole state director while Archila just left party leadership to soon join the Mamdani administration as Commissioner of International Affairs. (Ep 570
Claire Valdez, a Democratic candidate for Congress in New York's 7th Congressional District (which includes parts of Brooklyn and Queens), joined the show to discuss her campaign to succeed the retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez in the House of Representatives. Valdez is a state Assembly member from Queens and Democratic Socialist running for Congress with the support of NYC-DSA and Mayor Zohran Mamdani. The primary is in June 2026. (Ep 569)
New York City Comptroller Mark Levine, a Democrat just elected to the citywide position of chief financial officer, joined the show to discuss Mayor Zohran Mamdani's first budget plan, just after Mamdani released the $127 billion preliminary budget for Fiscal Year 2027 (which begins July 1, 2026). Levine discussed the city's fiscal and economic health, his initial reaction to Mamdani's budget plan (which includes a property tax increase unless the city gets more revenue through state-approved tax increases), and the next steps in the budget process. (Ep 568)
Jon Paul Lupo — a political strategist and former Director of Intergovernmental Affairs for Mayor Bill de Blasio — joined the show to discuss Mayor Zohran Mamdani's first state budget testimony in Albany (which occurred Feb. 11, 2026), how mayors prepare for so-called 'Tin Cup Day,' mayor-governor and mayor-legislature relationships, city budget challenges, the mayor's priorities, and more. (Ep 567)
Antonio Reynoso, a Democratic candidate for Congress in New York's 7th Congressional District (which includes parts of Brooklyn and Queens), joined the show to discuss his campaign to succeed the retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez in the House of Representatives. Reynoso, the Brooklyn Borough President and a former City Council member, has been endorsed by Velázquez, among others. The primary is in June 2026. (Ep 466)
Andrew Rein, president of nonprofit Citizens Budget Commission, joined the show to discuss the budget challenges Mayor Mamdani faces and how to address them, where Mamdani is right and wrong in his explanation of the city budget (which included a 1/28/26 press conference to blame former Mayor Adams), the new mayor's push for increased taxes on high earners and corporations, and more. (Ep 564)
Dan Garodnick — outgoing Director of the Department of City Planning and Chair of the City Planning Commission — joined the show to reflect on four years of significant progress addressing New York City's housing crisis, key zoning and planning accomplishments of his tenure, what should come next on these fronts, and more. Garodnick, a member of the MTA Board and a former City Council member from Manhattan, was appointed planning chief by Mayor Eric Adams and worked closely with former Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer and other top housing, planning, and economic development officials. (Ep 563)
Rep. Dan Goldman, a Democrat representing New York's 10th Congressional District, joined the show to discuss his bid for reelection to the U.S. House of Representatives in the district that spans Lower Manhattan and a swathe of Brooklyn. He's facing a challenge in the June 2026 Democratic primary election from former city comptroller Brad Lander. (Ep 562)
Brad Lander, former New York City Comptroller and 2025 mayoral candidate, joined the show to discuss his campaign for Congress in New York's 10th Congressional District, which includes Lower Manhattan and a swathe of Brooklyn. Lander is challenging Rep. Dan Goldman in the June 2026 Democratic primary for one of New York's seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. (Ep 561)
Ben Furnas and Sara Lind — leaders of Transportation Alternatives and Open Plans, respectively, and members of Mayor Mamdani's transition committee — joined the show to discuss ideas for creating a more livable city with improvements for how people get around, use outdoor space, and enjoy the city. They discussed ideas and expectations for Mamdani on street safety, open space, traffic, bike lanes, outdoor dining, use of the curb, and much more, and touched on how Mayor Adams did on those issues. (Ep 560)
Diane Savino — recently a senior advisor to Mayor Eric Adams (2023-25) and previously longtime state senator (2005-22) — joined the show to discuss her work in the Adams administration and the former mayor's legacy, the start of Zohran Mamdani's mayoralty, how government works and doesn't, the state-level passage of Medical Aid in Dying legislation that she worked on as a senator, and more. (Ep 559)
Urban historian Thomas Dyja and political strategist Dr. Basil Smikle Jr. joined the show to put Eric Adams' mayoralty and Zohran Mamdani's inauguration into modern historical context. They joined host Ben Max to discuss the meaning of the Eric Adams era and its impact on the city, how Adams fits in the modern pantheon of mayors, and the meaning of Mamdani's election to succeed Adams, including the hopes and questions about his budding mayoralty. Dyja is the author of several books, including New York New York New York: Four Decades of Success, Excess, and Transformation. Smikle Jr. has been involved in many political campaigns in New York, is a former executive director of the New York State Democratic Party, and is currently a professor in and director of the master's program in nonprofit management at Columbia University's School of Professional Studies, among other roles in politics and academia. (Ep 558)
Tom Allon — longtime journalist, publisher of City & State magazine, and former informal advisor to Eric Adams who helped him with "mayor school" – joined the show to consider Adams' tenure and legacy as Mayor of New York City. (Ep 557)
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