Mexican Consular Card Update; The President's Proposed 2006 Budget; How Urgent Is Social Security Reform?; Frontline: The House of Saud
Mexican Consular Card Update
Since 2002, Mexican nationals living in the United States have used the “matricula consular” cards to open up bank accounts and for health care services. The cards show the date of birth, a current photograph and the address of the card holder but County supervisor Mike Antonovich said Monday he received a fraudulent Mexican identification card with his own photo on it and wants the county to stop recognizing the consular cards as valid identification. Larry Mantle talks with Tony Bell, Assistant Chief Deputy for LA County Supervisor Mike Antonovich, Angelica Salas, Executive Director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, Los Angeles, CHIRLA, and Mary Trigg, Head of Corporate Communications for Wells Fargo Bank, Los Angeles, about how the cards are used and whether their use should be curtailed or amended to protect against fraud.
The President's Proposed 2006 Budget
President Bush’s 2006 fiscal year budget aims to cut the deficit in half, while increasing spending on defense and homeland security. Controversial within this proposed budget, described as “tight” by Republicans, are cuts to Medicaid and farm subsidies. In addition, the budget does not include the cost of military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. Max Sowickey, economist for the Economic Policy Institute, Jack Kyser, Chief Economist, Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation, and Professor Tu Jarvis, Professor of Agricultural and Resource Economics at UC Davis, join Host Larry Mantle to examine the proposed 2006 federal budget and to see how it might affect California.
How Urgent Is Social Security Reform?
In last week’s State of the Union address, President Bush said that Social Security will go bankrupt in the year 2042, if nothing is done to fix it. Soon after, some journalists, economists and democratic lawmakers questioned the validity of Bush’s statement, claiming that no crisis exists. Just how urgent is Social Security reform? Larry Mantle gets clarification from Congressman Paul Ryan, author and journalist Roger Lowenstein, and Rae Hederman from the Heritage Foundation.
Frontline: The House of Saud
Larry Mantle talks with Martin Smith about the premiere of Tuesday's Frontline documentary, called "House of Saud." The documentary examines America's troubled relationship with Saudi Arabia and the family that has led the country since its inception in 1902.