If you are a frequent viewer of this show, you might remember that a little more than a month ago we took the show on the road to Saratoga Springs for opening day of the summer meet at the Saratoga Race Track.

Each year, this is the most profitable 6 week span for the New York Racing Association, as the best horses from around the world flock to upstate New York.

This is the final weekend of racing for the year, and we caught up with NYRA President and CEO Charlie Hayward Friday to talk about how the meet has been going.

We also asked him about the decision to cancel racing for a day last week when Tropical Storm Irene approached, and discussed the financial future of NYRA, which is expected to loose 8 million dollars this year.

Redistricting may not be the sexiest of topics, but it’s critically important to how the political landscape will be shaped next year.

This week, the state’s highest court overturned a lower court ruling– thus negating lines drawn by the Nassau county legislature’s Republican majority.

The Court of Appeals ruled that the legislature ignored proper redistricting guidelines and must go through the full process.

Now, why should you care about what one county on Long Island is doing? Well this ruling could have statewide implications for the redrawing district lines next year. Now State Democrats are saying it’s a sign

Sen. Mike Gianaris (D-Queens) is the Democrats’ redistricting champion. He joined Liz Benjamin from New York City Thursday.