AirTalk’s weekly political roundtable recaps the major headlines you might’ve missed in politics news over the weekend and looks ahead to the week to come. Also on the show, we're taking a look at a bill that hopes to make voting mandatory; analyze how the coronavirus is affecting global business; and more.
Week In Politics: Bloomberg Qualifies For Debate, The Stone Intervention And More
AirTalk’s weekly political roundtable recaps the major headlines you might’ve missed in politics news over the weekend and looks ahead to the week to come. Here are the headlines that we’re following this week:
2020
We look ahead to South Carolina and Nevada
The ninth Democratic debate is Wednesday and Michael Bloomberg qualified
The latest NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist Poll is out and Bernie Sanders has surged with 31 percent national support, with Michael Bloomberg in second place
New York city mayor Bill de Blasio endorsed Sanders, who’s doing well for himself thus far. But can he broaden his coalition -- and does he need to?
After coming in third in New Hampshire, Klobuchar is facing increasing scrutiny
How’s Biden’s campaign maneuvering itself?
Federal judges called an emergency meeting the the DOJ and President Trump intervened in the sentencing of Roger Stone
On Friday, Attorney General Bill Barr rebuked President Trump for interfering with the DOJ, Trump insisted on his right to do so
DOJ alumni posted an open letter condemning the interference
ICE officials will be deployed to ‘sanctuary cities,’ including Los Angeles
The Afghan Taliban and the U.S. took the first steps towards a peace deal
Kenan Thompson will be MC-ing the White House Correspondents’ dinner. Will Trump attend?
Guests:
Elizabeth Spaldling, associate professor of government at Claremont McKenna College based out of D.C.; senior fellow at Pepperdine University’s school of public policy
Matt Barreto, professor of political science and Chicano/a Studies at UCLA and co-founder of the research and polling firm Latino Decisions; he tweets
Should Voting Be Compulsory? One California Lawmaker Thinks So
A newly introduced California bill would make it a requirement that all registered voters cast a ballot, even if that ballot is unmarked.
If passed, AB 2070 would go into effect in 2022.
Should California have compulsory voting? How would it affect our elections? Might the legislation create unintended consequences? Call us at 866-893-5722.
Guests:
Assemblymember Marc Levine, California State Assemblyman representing the 10th district, which encompasses the North San Francisco Bay Area; he is the author of AB 2070
Elizabeth Spaldling, associate professor of government at Claremont McKenna College based out of D.C.; senior fellow at Pepperdine University’s school of public policy
Matt Barreto, professor of political science and Chicano/a Studies at UCLA and co-founder of the research and polling firm Latino Decisions; he tweets
Boy Scouts Of America Files For Bankruptcy -- What’s Next For The Organization
Barraged by hundreds of sex-abuse lawsuits, the Boy Scouts of America filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday in hopes of working out a potentially mammoth victim compensation plan that will allow the 110-year-old organization to carry on.
The Chapter 11 filing in federal bankruptcy court in Wilmington, Delaware, sets in motion what could be one of the biggest, most complex bankruptcies ever seen. Scores of lawyers are seeking settlements on behalf of several thousand men who say they were molested as scouts by scoutmasters or other leaders decades ago but are only now eligible to sue because of recent changes in their states’ statute-of-limitations laws.
By going to bankruptcy court, the Scouts can put those lawsuits on hold for now. But ultimately they could be forced to sell off some of their vast property holdings, including campgrounds and hiking trails, to raise money for a compensation trust fund that could surpass a billion dollars.
The bankruptcy petition listed the Boy Scouts' assets as between $1 billion and $10 billion, and its liabilities at $500 million to $1 billion.
With files from the Associated Press
Guest:
Nathan Bomey, reporter at USA Today and co-author of an investigative piece looking at the allegations of sexual abuse against the Boy Scouts and the bankuptcy declaration of the organization; he tweets
Local, National And International Impact Of Coronavirus On China-U.S. Business Relations
Apple Inc. is warning investors that it won't meet its second-quarter financial guidance because the viral outbreak in China has cut production of iPhones.
The Cupertino, California-based company said Monday that all of its iPhone manufacturing facilities are outside Hubei province, the epicenter of the outbreak, and all have been reopened. But the company said production is ramping up slowly. Apple says demand for iPhones is also down in China because many of Apple's 42 retail stores there are closed or operating with reduced hours. China is Apple's third largest retail market for iPhones, after the U.S. and Europe. Outside China, Apple said iPhone demand has been strong and is in line with the company's expectations. On Jan. 28, Apple said it expected second quarter revenue between $63 billion and $67 billion. Apple's second quarter ends March 30. The death toll from COVID-19, a disease caused by the new coronavirus, was 1,770 as of Monday.
Business in Los Angeles is feeling the impact as well. With the slowdowns or complete stoppages at Chinese factories due to the outbreak, imports of goods coming through major U.S. ports like L.A./Long Beach have slowed as well. Fewer flights to and from China from Southern California means not only a hit in the revenue from Chinese tourists who come to visit the area, but also for small businesses that organize trips from the U.S. to China.
Today on AirTalk, we’ll explore the implications for U.S.-Chinese business relations as both sides work to deal with the outbreak.
With files from the Associated Press
Guests:
Stephen Cheung, president of World Trade Center Los Angeles, a nonprofit organization that focuses on attracting foreign direct investments to the Los Angeles region, and former director of International Trade for The Port of Los Angeles; he tweets
Doug Barry, Senior director of communications and publications with The US China Business Council, a nonprofit organization representing approximately 200 U.S. companies that do business with China
Lack Of Toilets For Homeless Causes Public Health Crisis in L.A.
There’s an urgent public health risk here in Los Angeles -- the lack of toilets available to the roughly 36,000 homeless people in the city.
NBC4 investigative reporter Joel Grover has a new report out on this health risk. Most homeless encampments in the city do not have access to a nearby toilet, leaving residents to use the streets rather than a restroom. Even passersby are at risk of diseases like Hepatitis A.
Have you seen homeless encampments in the city that looked unsanitary? What do you think needs to be done?
Guests:
Joel Grover, investigative reporter working on NBC4’s Streets of Shame project; he tweets
Michael R. Cousineau, is a professor of preventive medicine at the University of Southern California; an expert in public health