Xavier Becerra Refuses Obama Trade Post; Home Sales In Southern California; Inheritance; LAUSD Has A New Superintendent; The Future Of NASA Under The New Administration
Xavier Becerra Refuses Obama Trade Post
Congressman Xavier Becerra, D-31st district, said Tuesday he will stay in the House and pass on becoming U.S. trade representative in Barack Obama's administration. Becerra emerged as a leading candidate for the post and even interviewed with Obama. But according to press reports, Becerra put the kybosh on the move because he wanted to stay in the House to work on several issues, including immigration. Larry talks to Becerra about this surprise decision.
Home Sales In Southern California
Home sales in Los Angeles County jumped by 12.7 percent in November, compared to the same month a year ago, while prices dropped 31.9 percent, a real estate information service reported today. A total of 5,037 homes sold in November, up from 4,468 for November 2007, while the median price of a home in Los Angeles County last month was $340,000, down from $499,000 in the same month a year ago. In Orange County, the median home price was $400,000, down 31.4 percent from the November 2007 median of $582,750, according to La Jolla-based firm DataQuick. 2,177 homes were sold in the county last month, up 38.9 percent from the 1,567 home sales in November 2007. Over all home sales in the six-county Southern California region in November jumped by 26.9 percent over the same month last year. Larry Mantle talks with DataQuick's analyst John Karevoll.
Inheritance
Larry Mantle talks with director James Moll about his new film "Inheritance" that will air on KCET on Thursday, December 18th at 8:30 p.m. In his film, Moll brings together two women from very different worlds; one, the daughter of Nazi Concentration Camp Commander, Amon Goeth, the other, one of his victims. Monika Hertwig, Amon Goeth's daughter joins Larry as well.
LAUSD Has A New Superintendent
Ramon C. Cortines, a senior deputy to the Los Angeles Unified School District superintendent, was named today as the successor for outgoing superintendent David L. Brewer III. Brewer will be leaving the district at the end of the month. The LAUSD board voted last week to pay Brewer about $500,000 to buy out the remaining two years of his contract. Cortines agreed to a three-year contract and will take over as superintendent on January 1. The board's vote to hire him was unanimous. The terms of his contract were not immediately available. Larry Mantle talks with Ray Cortines about the challenges he faces as Superintendent of the nation's second largest school district.
The Future Of NASA Under The New Administration
Back in 2004, President Bush announced his "Vision for Space Exploration," which was then authorized by Congress and promoted by current NASA head Michael Griffin. The plan was to retire the shuttle and begin construction of a new vehicle with a goal of establishing a moon base and, eventually, launching a mission to Mars. But with a new administration, and the economic crisis, it's unclear if this vision will reach fruition. What does President-elect Obama have in mind for space travel? And what do you think NASA should do in the years to come. Larry is joined by Dr. Louis Friedman, executive director of the Planetary Society, Scott Pace, director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University, and Kathryn Thornton, former NASA astronaut with the shuttle program.