Almost 24 hours after Gen. Flynn’s resignation, it was alleged that Trump’s campaign had repeated contact with senior Russian intelligence - we dive into what's going on; police have detained a woman for the alleged assassination of Kim Jong-nam, half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jung-un; we check in LAPD Chief beck on policing undocumented immigrants; and more.
Tracking the tick-tock of the US-Russia saga
US intelligence officials quoted by the New York Times claim members of the Trump campaign had repeated contacts with senior Russian intelligence officials.
The FBI is investigating those alleged contacts, as well as the hacking of the DNC. The disclosure follows leaks revealing former NSA director Michael Flynn's conversation with the Russian ambassador.
The New York Times quotes two unnamed US intelligence officials. The story broke about 24 hours after Michael Flynn's resignation as National Security Advisor. He's alleged to have talked with the Russian ambassador to the US about the Obama Administration's sanctions prior to President Trump taking office.
Meanwhile, members of Congress from both parties are calling for a Senate investigation. The FBI launched a probe months ago.
Guests:
Tim O’Brien, executive editor of Bloomberg Gadfly and View; his book ‘TrumpNation: The Art of Being The Donald’ (Grand Central Publishing, 2007); he tweets
Olga Ivshina, correspondent with the BBC’s Russian Service; she tweets
Jeffrey Tayler, author and journalist, Russia correspondent for The Atlantic Monthly; he tweets
What LAUSD’s internal audit tells us about bullying and how to prevent it
According to an LAUSD internal audit on anti-bullying initiatives released Monday, 1 in 5 high school students and 1 in 4 elementary school students have been bullied in the last school year.
Besides exploring demographics related to bullying, the report found inadequacies in administrative response and tracking. For example, many staff and teachers “did not receive high quality training on bullying prevention on an annual basis” and of the 23 schools visited, 22 did not maintain or use bullying complaint logs.
The district’s shift to restorative justice, which emphasizes counseling and personal responsibility rather than suspension and discipline, received some positive response from teachers, but wasn’t shown to be consistently implemented.
So what is the best way to deal with bullying, both on a staff-to-student and administrative level? Which approaches work and which don’t? What has been your experience with school bullying and effective prevention?
Guests:
Judy Chiasson, LAUSD coordinator for Human Relations, Diversity and Equity
Ron Avi Astor, professor at USC’s schools of social work and education
Poisoned needles, femme fatale assassin: the intrigue behind Kim Jong-nam’s killing
Malaysian police have detained a Vietnamese woman in the alleged assassination of Kim Jong-nam, half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jung-un.
Kim Jong-nam was murdered Monday at Kuala Lumpur airport in Malaysia. News of the death came out yesterday.
Malaysian police are searching for several other suspects in the case. The killing has sparked international intrigue and hearsays. After news of the murder broke, South Korea’s spy agency said that two women using poisoned needles were behind the attack. And a grainy photo of an Asian woman wearing a shirt emblazoned with the letters "LOL" has gone viral on the internet, who’s rumored to be one of the assassins.
Guest:
Michael Madden, a visiting scholar at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, who runs the site North Korean Leadership Watch
President Trump's news conference with Prime Minister Netanyahu at the White House
WASHINGTON (AP) - As his predecessors have done, President Donald Trump is urging Israel to "hold off" on building Jewish settlements -- an appeal he made at a joint news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today at the White House. But Trump broke with those who preceded him in office on the idea of a two-state agreement. He held off on endorsing the idea of a future independent Palestine -- and said he'd be open to alternatives if the Israelis and Palestinians propose something better.
Guest:
Jeffrey Heller, editor-in-charge for Reuters’ Jerusalem Bureau; he tweets
LAPD Chief on policing undocumented immigrants, civilian discipline panels and more
Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck will join AirTalk today to address a range of crime and safety news including LAPD's policy for handling undocumented immigrants in Los Angeles.
Despite the Trump Administration's call for a crackdown on immigrants living in the US illegally, Beck has said he will not change the department's stance on immigration enforcement. Speaking to reporters in late January, Beck said "We have built relationships by effective law enforcement that doesn't focus on where a person was born or the color of their skin. And we don't intend to change that."
Additionally, AirTalk will address a new report about mediation delivered yesterday to the LA Police Commission. It found that a program intended to help LAPD officers and residents understand each other better is largely successful when both sides agree to meet. However, cops and residents often choose not to engage in face-to-face mediation.
Other important developments include another year-over-year rise of violent crime in LA; a Pew survey of police attitudes towards policing; and more. What are your questions for Chief Beck?
Guest:
Charlie Beck, Chief, Los Angeles Police Department; he tweets