Governor Jerry Brown has appointed Xavier Becerra as California’s next Attorney general – we look at the implications, as well as who will fill Becerra’s seat in the House; North Dakota’s governor has set Dec. 5 as the eviction date for Access Pipeline protesters – we dive into the competing interests and historical context of the land; what is the future of the death penalty in CA?; plus, we analyze the politics of Black Republicans.
What Xavier Becerra will do as attorney general and who will fill his seat in the House
Governor Jerry Brown has nominated Xavier Becerra (D-Los Angeles), the highest-ranking Latino in Congress, to succeed Senator-elect Kamala Harris as California’s next Attorney General.
Guest host Patt Morrison talks with the L.A. Times Sacramento bureau chief John Myers about who is likely to bid for Becerra’s seat in the House and how his potential move could shake up the state’s gubernatorial race in 2018.
Guest:
John Myers, Sacramento bureau chief at the Los Angeles Times who’s been following the story; he tweets
How Nancy Pelosi can win back the confidence of the Democrats who voted against her
Despite nationwide rancor within their party, House Democrats re-elected California Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi as minority leader yesterday in a 134 to 63 vote.
Her rival, Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio, fared better than previous challengers indicating Pelosi does not have the confidence of one-third of her colleagues. According to the Associated Press, Ryan and his backers claimed a victory in sending a message to Pelosi about the significant desire for change among House Democrats.
"Somebody had to do something," said Ryan, a seven-term lawmaker who before now had been largely a back-bencher. "Our prospects have improved just because of this conversation."
Speaking to reporters after the vote, an apparently elated Pelosi said, "I have a special spring in my step today because this opportunity is a special one, to lead the House Democrats, bring everyone together as we go forward.
What do you want Pelosi to focus on in the coming months?
With files from the Associated Press.
Guests:
John Nichols, National Affairs Correspondent for The Nation; he tweets
Michael Tomasky, Editor, "Democracy" - a quarterly journal focused on the progressive movement; Columnist, “The Daily Beast”; he tweets @mtomasky
Roundtable: the many competing interests at Standing Rock
North Dakota’s governor has set an eviction date for December 5, but there are no plans for forcible removal of the Dakota Access Pipeline protesters, which has led to confusion.
Thousands of protesters, who call themselves “water protectors,” continue to camp near the stretch of land that is to pump nearly 570,000 barrels of crude oil per day from the Dakotas to Illinois.
AirTalk takes a look at the oil industry’s perspective, the historical context of U.S. government-Tribe relations and environmental factors to parse out what’s happening and how we got here.
Guests:
Shannon Speed, Ph.D., director of UCLA’s American Indian Studies Center and associate professor of Gender Studies & Anthropology; she is also a citizen of the Chickasaw Nation
Sharon Buccino, director of Natural Resources Defense Council’s Land & Wildlife program
John Stoody, vice president of Government and Public Relations with the Association of Oil Pipelines, a DC-based industry group involved in the North Dakota Pipeline project
Legal experts discuss next steps for California’s death penalty system under Prop 66
Despite showing its true blue color on issues like marijuana and gun control, California surprised many when voters chose to shoot down a proposition to abolish the state’s long defunct death penalty and passed one that aims to reform and expedite the appeals process.
Now, groups like the ACLU and others have filed suit to prevent the state from resuming executions. But proponents of the new appeals system say they believe the challenges will be dismissed and executions could resume within the next year.
What are the next steps on both sides of the death penalty fight in California? What are the factors at play on each side of the legal challenges to the new system?
For more on this story, click here.
Guests:
Laurel Rosenhall, California politics reporter for CALmatters, a nonpartisan media venture committed to explaining how California’s state capital works and why it matters
Kent Scheidegger, legal director and general counsel for the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation, an organization advocating reduced rights for accused and convicted criminals
Nancy Haydt, criminal defense attorney based in Santa Barbara and a member of the Board of Governors of California Attorneys for Criminal Justice; she authored an extensive analysis of Prop 66
Inside the politics of Black Republicans
The role of race in politics is often provocative. And one could argue that’s especially true for African American Republicans.
They can be perceived as sellouts, not living up to the expectation of what their political values supposedly should be. But beyond criticism, it may be more important to understand the reasoning behind this political choice, especially in light of the racial tension in the presidential election. So how does black identity play a role in Republican principles? Corey D. Fields explores this question in his book, “Black Elephants in the Room: The Unexpected Politics of African American Republicans.”
Using first-hand accounts, Fields illustrates the factors that shape political and racial identity for black Republicans. He speaks to Larry Mantle today to shed light on mixing racial identity with seemingly unexpected political choices.
Guests:
Corey Fields, author of "Black Elephants in the Room: The Unexpected Politics of African American Republicans" (University of California Press, 2016) and Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology at Stanford University
Shirley Husar, surrogate for Donald Trump for the state of California. She is also a delegate for the 27th Congressional District, consisting of Pasadena, Altadena and other cities.