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After Two Weeks Without A Speaker, The House Votes Today In Hopes Of Avoiding A Shutdown
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Oct 17, 2023
Listen 1:03:27
After Two Weeks Without A Speaker, The House Votes Today In Hopes Of Avoiding A Shutdown

Today on AirTalk, House Republicans to vote Jim Jordan as the new speaker. Also on the show, finding Covid-19 vaccines for your kids; an interview with actor Mandy Patinkin; breaking down Newsom’s vetoes; the effects of offshore wind farms and more.

WASHINGTON, DC - OCTOBER 16: Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) speaks briefly to reporters as he departs a House Republican Caucus at the U.S. Capitol.
WASHINGTON, DC : Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) speaks briefly to reporters as he departs a House Republican Caucus at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC.
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Drew Angerer/Getty Images
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Getty Images North America
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After Two Weeks Without A Speaker, The House Votes Today In Hopes Of Avoiding A Shutdown

Listen 10:56
After Two Weeks Without A Speaker, The House Votes Today In Hopes Of Avoiding A Shutdown

Republicans will try to elect a firebrand Rep. Jim Jordan as the new House speaker, elevating a chief ally of Donald Trump to a center-seat of U.S. power and showing just how far the hard-right flank has moved into the GOP mainstream. On Tuesday, the House is scheduled to start voting at noon in what could become a showdown for the gavel. At least a handful of holdout Republicans are refusing to give Jordan their votes, viewing the Ohio Republican as too extreme for the powerful position of House speaker, second in line to the presidency. But with public pressure bearing down on lawmakers from Trump’s allies including Fox News’ Sean Hannity, it’s not clear how long the holdouts can last. Jordan swiftly flipped dozens of detractors in a matter of days, shoring up reluctant Republicans who have few options left two weeks after Kevin McCarthy’s ouster. Joining us today on AirTalk is Ron Elving, senior editor and correspondent on the Washington Desk at NPR News.

With files from the Associated Press.

Why It’s Difficult To Find COVID Vaccines For Young Kids

Listen 10:18
Why It’s Difficult To Find COVID Vaccines For Young Kids

In September, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended the next round of COVID shots for everyone 6 months and older. Doses were supposed to be available that day in pharmacies and doctor’s offices across the country.

But more than a month later, the smaller-dosage pediatric COVID shots for children 6 months to 11 years old are still difficult to find. A confluence of problems — from technicalities about who can give shots to small kids, to the lack of accurate information online on where kid-sized doses can be found — is still preventing parents from making sure their children are protected. We explore the problems and offer some solutions with Jackie Fortiér, senior health reporter for LAist, and Dr. Colleen Kraft, attending pediatrician at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

With files from LAist. Read the full story here

Emmy, Tony Winner Mandy Patinkin On His New Show "Being Alive" At Segerstrom

Listen 10:48
Emmy, Tony Winner Mandy Patinkin On His New Show “Being Alive” At Segerstrom

Beloved for his leading roles on Broadway in plays like “Sunday at the Park with George” and “Evita” and on television in series like “Homeland” and “Chicago Hope,” Emmy and Tony Award-winning actor Mandy Patinkin is back on stage for his show “Being Alive” which comes to the Segerstrom Center for the Arts on November 2nd. Described as “a collection of many of Mandy’s favorite Broadway and classic American tunes…from Irving Berlin to Stephen Sondheim, from Cole Porter to Harry Chapin,” fans will have a chance to see the decorated actor perform the songs for which he’s so well known, with accompaniment from pianist Adam Ben-David. Today on AirTalk, Mandy joins Larry Mantle to talk about his upcoming show at the Segerstrom.

For more information on the show and how to purchase tickets, click here to visit the Segerstrom’s website.

Bills, Bills, Bills: We Break Down What Legislation Gavin Newsom Has Signed – And Vetoed

Listen 12:40
Bills, Bills, Bills: We Break Down What Legislation Gavin Newsom Has Signed – And Vetoed

It’s been an eventful legislative session in Sacramento, where over a thousand bills crossed Governor Gavin Newsom’s desk. He signed 890 of them (85%) of them into law, but caught some capitol-watchers by surprise by vetoing some prominent legislation, including a bill that would have decriminalized psychedelics and another that would have banned caste discrimination. Could these vetoes be a signal that he’s moving towards the center in order to prepare for a presidential run? Joining us to break down what the governor signed off on–and what he didn’t–are Hannah Wiley, politics reporter for the Los Angeles Times’ Sacramento bureau covering the California Capitol and state agencies and Alexei Koseff, who covers Governor Gavin Newsom, the Legislature and California government for CalMatters.

CDC May Endorse Antibiotic Doxycycline For STI & UTI Prevention, We Break Down Its Utility

Listen 9:11
CDC May Endorse Antibiotic Doxycycline For STI & UTI Prevention, We Break Down Its Utility

U.S. health officials plan to endorse a common antibiotic as a morning-after pill that gay and bisexual men can use to try to avoid some increasingly common sexually transmitted diseases. The proposed CDC guidelines were released earlier this month, and officials will move to finalize it after a 45-day public comment period.

Today on AirTalk we discuss this with Dr. Paul Adamson, M.D. infectious diseases physician and assistant clinical professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

With files from the Associated Press

Offshore Wind Farms Are Key To California’s Plan To Power Its Grid With Entirely Zero-Carbon Energy. But What Do We Know About Their Effects?

Listen 9:18
Offshore Wind Farms Are Key To California’s Plan To Power Its Grid With Entirely Zero-Carbon Energy. But What Do We Know About Their Effects?

As the world works to identify, tap and operationalize renewable energy sources, the potential of wind energy is one area of particular interest. Here in California, the state has an ambitious goal of using 100 percent zero-carbon energy to power its grid, and offshore wind farms are a big piece of that goal. As Calmatters Julie Cart reports in a recent investigation she published exploring the future of wind energy in California, five energy companies recently purchased hundreds of miles of ocean water off the coast of Northern and Central California with the intent of building offshore wind farms. The catch is that these companies are venturing into relatively uncharted waters -- it’s not clear exactly how these offshore wind farms will affect the communities that surround them on the shore.

Today on AirTalk, Julie joins Larry to share her reporting, explain how these wind farms will be constructed and how they could affect the communities that surround them, and highlight some of the potential environmental concerns that could arise in the process.

Credits
Host, AirTalk
Host, Morning Edition, AirTalk Friday, The L.A. Report Morning Edition
Senior Producer, AirTalk with Larry Mantle
Producer, AirTalk with Larry Mantle
Producer, AirTalk with Larry Mantle
Associate Producer, AirTalk & FilmWeek
Associate Producer, AirTalk
Associate Producer (On-Call), AirTalk
Apprentice News Clerk, FilmWeek