As the 2026-2027 school year began in the School District of Philadelphia, NBC10 Political Reporter Lauren Mayk sat down with the man in charge of Philadelphia schools, Superintendent Dr. Tony Watlington. They talked about what Watlington hopes to see this year, how long it’s going to take to deal with an asbestos issue at Kensington High School and the district’s Facilities Plan.

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In the latest episode of Battleground Politics, NBC10’s Lauren Mayk speaks with Philadelphia’s new managing director Carlton Williams. Williams has held multiple jobs in Philadelphia under multiple administrations, including L&I and the Office of Clean and Green. He speaks with Lauren about his new role, how he handled another big job in the spotlight and what’s currently on his plate.

Here's a full breakdown of the episode:

:00 - Intro

1:02 – Williams’ approach to his new role

2:48 – How Williams will differ from previous managing director Adam Thiel

5:09 – Adjusting to a new role

7:33 – Williams reflects on his time leading L&I

10:58 – Aftermath of deadly Grays Ferry garage collapse

12:21 – Changes to L&I

12:53 – Philly streets and potholes

15:46 – Next steps for Kensington

19:00 – Sanitation contract negotiations

23:19 – ICE Out Philly

24:55 – Finding new leader of Office of Clean and Green

26:28 – What Williams will oversee

27:10 -- Whether Williams would ever run for office

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Governor Josh Shapiro recently signed an executive order placing what he described as the most stringent requirements on data center development in the country. But how will the new guidelines work? In the latest episode of Battleground Politics, NBC10’s Lauren Mayk discussed the order and its expected impact on data centers with Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Jessica Shirley

Here’s a full breakdown of the episode:

:00 – Gov. Josh Shapiro on data centers

1:54 – Response to Gov. Shapiro’s executive order

3:08 – How new permit process will impact the pace of data center development

4:06 – How order requirements impact data centers that already have environmental permits

6:27 – Backing local decisions on data centers

7:58 – Whether or not Gov. Shapiro has a final say on data center projects

8:50 – Speculative data center projects

10:35 – Environmental requirements for Pennsylvania data centers

12:21 – Protecting consumers from higher costs

13:19 – NDAs and data centers

14:23 – Data centers and state tax incentives

15:19 – Data Center Coalition’s response to executive order

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