It's the Brian Lera Show on WNYC. Good morning, everyone. Here's a reality with the Supreme Court

canceling much of the Voting Rights Act. The court locked the federal government out of the redistricting

debate to a large degree and gave it almost entirely to the states. You probably know that.

And it's just the latest example of how much political change in whatever direction now runs through state capitals.

Texas and California and others have now changed their congressional districts

just this week, South Carolina, surprised some people by deciding not to lock out their only

black member of Congress, Jim Clyburn. The New York state budget finally got approved last night

with many policy changes that respond to the court and to the Trump administration.

We'll look at some of those specifics in our next segment.

So political change in whatever direction runs so much through the state capitals now.

It runs through Trenton and Albany and Sacramento.

Yes, through Austin and Baton Rouge, through Columbus and Columbia, through Madison and Tallahassee,

less through Washington and more through Lincoln.

That's the capital of Nebraska.

You didn't know that, did you?

Well, one former New York state lawmaker is now the co-founder of a movement called the States

Project and author of a new book called The Fourth Branch,

How State Government Can Save Our Union. Daniel Squadron argues that not just during the Trump

years, but over the last 15 to 20 years, states have done more harm or good than Congress

on almost every issue. Let's talk. Daniel Squadron used to represent much of Western

Brooklyn in the New York State Senate as a Democrat. He's also been an aide to Senator Chuck Schumer,

among other things. Again, his book is called The Fourth Branch, How State Government,

...