WWL First News with Tommy Tucker

Scott Boyle, District Engineer Administrator for the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development, discusses recent damage to local infrastructure due to fires from homeless encampments underneath bridges.

* Joe Giarrusso on some progress in fixing New Orleans' budget mess * We're seeing ever-increasing buyouts for college coaches * There's a big flood protection millage on the ballot for some of y'all * How Louisiana farmers are doing as the shutdown drags on * Which college sells the most booze at football games? * Calls for a "national divorce" have been growing. It's incredibly unlikely

Buyouts for college football coaches are close to $200 million dollars this year. Where is all that money coming from? And Jeff Landry thinks we need to get it under control...can we? Matt Brown, publisher of the Extra Points newsletter, joins us.

* Whether you're newly eligible for Medicare or you've had it for years, there's a lot to learn about the program. Dr. B. Peoples Health joins us to talk about four common Medicare myths. * There's a millage up for renewal for the West Bank Flood Protection Authority.

There's a millage up for renewal for the West Bank Flood Protection Authority. We talk to regional director Jesse Noel about it.

Whether you're newly eligible for Medicare or you've had it for years, there's a lot to learn about the program. Dr. Brent Wallis (Dr. B), Chief Medical Officer of People's Health, joins us to talk about four common Medicare myths.

* Recapping a meeting over those Belle Chasse bridge tolls with State Senator Pat Connick. * Checking in with Joe Giarrusso about how the meeting with the state bond commission went and get the latest on New Orleans budget mess.

Checking in with Councilmember Joe Giarrusso about how the meeting with the state bond commission went and get the latest on New Orleans budget mess.

We recap a meeting over those Belle Chasse bridge tolls with State Senator Pat Connick.

* Calls for a “national divorce” have been increasing, with a new poll showing almost two-thirds think we're too divided to solve our country's problems. * Checking in with Ag Commissioner Mike Strain

Tommy checks in with Mike Strain, Commissioner of the Louisiana Department of Agriculture & Forestry

Calls for a “national divorce” have been increasing, with a new poll showing almost two-thirds think we're too divided to solve our country's problems. We'll spend some time with political scientist Ryan Griffiths, Professor of political science at Syracuse University and author of The Disunited States: Threats of Secession in Red and Blue America and Why They Won't Work.

Democrats won big in New York, New Jersey, Virginia and California last night. Is it a resounding rebound against the MAGA agenda or a blip that shows big problems ahead in the midterms for the GOP?

* We recap the trade deadline and where the Saints stand and go over the state of the Black and Gold's roster. * A number of energy projects in Louisiana have been paused or canceled this year and could mean the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars. * Former NOPD chief on what it's like running the dept. with a budget crunch * LSU is still one of the best coaching jobs in the country * Why it's important for Louisiana to keep regulations on the menhaden industry * Higher uncertainty, more inflation: consumers are getting pummeled

* Is the talent pipeline that drove American innovation drying up? * Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said they may have to close some US airspace if the shutdown goes into next week. What would that mean?

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said they may have to close some US airspace if the shutdown goes into next week. What would that mean? Henry Harteveldt, a travel industry analyst at Atmosphere Research Group, joins us.

Anita Raj, executive director of Tulane University's Newcomb Institute, has concerns over a major talent pipeline for innovation and technology in the US.

* Former NOPD chief Ronal Serpas shares his experiences on what it's like to run the department with budget problems. * The Wildlife and Fisheries Commission is holding a meeting on Thursday about the pogy boat buffer zone offshore.

The Wildlife and Fisheries Commission is holding a meeting on Thursday about the pogy boat buffer zone offshore. We talk with State Representative Joe Orgeron about that and the industry in general.

Tommy talks to Ronal Serpas, Professor of Practice in the Department of Criminal Justice at Loyola and a former NOPD chief, about his experiences running NOPD while New Orleans was under a budget crunch.

* A number of energy projects in Louisiana have been paused or canceled this year and could mean the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars. * We recap the trade deadline and where the Saints stand and go over the state of the Black and Gold's roster.

The Saints traded Rashid Shaheed and Trevor Penning. We break down the moves with Steve Geller.

A number of energy projects in Louisiana have been paused or canceled this year and could mean the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars. We break it down with Greg Upton, Director of LSU's Center for Energy Studies.

* What have we seen from the job market and the economy as the shutdown has dragged on for over a month? * We get into LSU's coaching search and their new fulltime AD

We'll talk some more about LSU's coaching search, new athletic director, and more with Glenn Guilbeau, editor of Tiger Rag

What have we seen from the job market and the economy as the shutdown has dragged on for over a month? Mark Hamrick, Bankrate senior economic analyst, joins us.

* Will the Saints make any moves before the trade deadline? * Will NOLA's budget mess impact criminal justice this year or next? * What would happen if we got rid of the filibuster? * 1 out of every 2 Louisiana households are one paycheck away from financial peril * Taking a deep dive into Brian Kelly's tenure, failure at LSU

We talk with Congressman Troy Carter about the shutdown and how he wants to see it end.

* We continue our conversation with Becky Mowbray, the president and CEO of BGR, about what's on the ballot in New Orleans: bond propositions and charter changes. * We talk with Congressman Troy Carter about the shutdown and how he wants to see it end.

We continue our conversation with Becky Mowbray, the president and CEO of BGR, about what's on the ballot in New Orleans: bond propositions and charter changes.

* Checking in with New Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams about whether the budget mess could impact criminal justice efforts * Will the Saints make any moves before the deadline?

Will the Saints trade anybody away before the deadline? Tommy talks with WWL Saints sideline reporter Jeff Nowak.

We check in with New Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams about whether the budget mess could impact criminal justice efforts

* How are Louisiana farmers doing with the shutdown and tariffs? * Spending some time with Wilson Alexander, LSU beat reporter for The Advocate, about his deep dive into Brian Kelly's tenure at LSU and what went wrong

We spend some time with Wilson Alexander, LSU beat reporter for The Advocate, about his deep dive into Brian Kelly's tenure at LSU and what went wrong

Michael Deliberto joins Tommy to talk about how farmers are handling the shutdown. Plus, what should be expect from crop prices moving forward?

* Could the Senate get rid of the filibuster? Should they? President Trump thinks so. * How big of a problem is food insecurity in Louisiana, especially with concerns over how much SNAP funding will go out in November?

How big of a problem is food insecurity in Louisiana, especially with concerns over how much SNAP funding will go out in November? Michael Williamson, CEO of United Way of Southeast Louisiana, joins us.

Could the Senate get rid of the filibuster? Should they? President Trump thinks so. Justin Buchler, Associate Professor of Political Science at Case Western Reserve University, joins us.

* The Rams could have beaten down the Saints by even more if they wanted * Next NOLA budget will be "borderline austerity" to help fix the mess * Why did Brian Kelly fail at LSU? * How did the current healthcare system get to this point? * Bank On It: Making a complicated term less complicated * How did Tyler Shough look in his first start?

We spend an hour with UNO professor Walter “Dub” Lane taking a deep dive into healthcare and health insurance. How did we get our current system? How do the ACA marketplaces work? What kind of price increases are people seeing without the subsidies?

* We check in with Councilmember JP Morrell about the budget mess in New Orleans * What kind of impact could the shutdown have on early childhood education and child care?

What kind of impact could the shutdown have on early childhood education and child care? We talk with Mattilyn Karst Benson with the Louisiana Policy Institute for Children.

Checking in with Councilmember JP Morrell about the budget mess in New Orleans and how they're going to fix it.

* Why did Brian Kelly fail at LSU? * Bank On It, financial insights you can count on with Jason Shields, the COO of Gulf Coast Bank & Trust

Bank On It, financial insights you can count on with Jason Shields, the COO of Gulf Coast Bank & Trust

We talk with WWL.com columnist Jeff Palermo about the Tigers' coaching search, how the SEC is shaping up, and LSU/Bama game week.

Tommy and Mike Detillier break down the Saints 34-10 loss to the Rams

The FBI announced that a terror plot was thwarted in Michigan before it could ruin Halloween for everyone. Here's the latest. Plus, Marine City had a dilemma when a football championship fell on Halloween. Here's how they're handling it. And how old is too old to trick or treat? And then we go to the solar system to discuss how spooky the galaxy is. We also find out which galaxy smells like raspberry and what the moon looks like cut in half.

* How surprising is it that the LSU drama is playing out in public? * Joe Giarrusso on how the city is going to solve the financial mess * Is Gov. Landry's involvement making the LSU job less attractive? * How changing the clock backwards and forwards an hour affects our bodies * The moon smells like gunpowder, and other weird, fun science facts

* We spend some time with Jillian Scudder, an astrophysicist from Oberlin College, about how we spot far away objects and planets, how many come near the Earth, and answer all your space-related questions * Tommy's Weekend Winners: sports betting tips