Will Arizona Governor Jan Brewer sign the controversial "religious freedom" bill? We'll weigh the issue. Then, a look at California Governor Jerry Brown's drought proposal--and the significance of online doctor reviews. Later, 3 Days to Kill, Pompeii, The Wind Rises and more on Filmweek--and the latest on the investigation into Sen. Ron Calderon.
Breaking: FBI files charges against Ron Calderon and brother
The FBI has announced charges Sen. Ronald S Calderon (D-Montebello) and his brother, Tom, on corruption and money laundering charges.
RELATED: Calderon, brother indicted on public corruption charges following FBI raid
Sen. Calderon has been the subject of a year-long corruption investigation. The FBI raided the lawmaker's Sacramento in June last year as part of the investigation. Al Jazeera television network broke the news of the probe four months later, publishing a leaked affidavit alleging that the 56-year-old senator had accepted $88,000 in bribes from an undercover agent and a hospital executive.
His older brother, Tom, is charged on money laundering charges.
Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg was on AirTalk to discuss Gov. Brown's water plan when news broke of Calderon's indictment:
RELATED: Calderon corruption charges: Who's who in the investigation of Calif. State Sen. Ron Calderon
According to the indictment:
- Calderon "executed a scheme to defraud the citizens of the state of California of their right to the honest services of their elected officials through bribery and kickbacks, and the concealment of material information."
- Ron Calderon sought bribes and kickbacks for himself, his children, the Calderon Group (this is Tom's consulting group) and Californians for Diversity (a nonprofit run by Tom Calderon)
- Michael Drobot, former chief executive of Long Beach's Pacific Hospital, is alleged to have paid bribes to Ron Calderon. Calderon also allegedly sought employment from Drobot for his son, got trips on private planes, ate at expensive restaurants and played golf at high-end resorts
- Drobot, 69, pleaded guilty to two counts in a scheme in which he billed workers’ compensation insurers hundreds of millions of dollars for spinal surgeries performed on patients who had been referred by dozens of doctors, chiropractors and others who were paid illegal kickbacks, the Department of Justice said. Drobot was cooperating with federal prosecutors. He faces a possible sentence of 10 years.
- Calderon's son was hired by Drobot to work in the summers of 2010, 2011 and 2012. Each summer, the son was paid $10,000, and each summer he worked just 15 days.
- Regarding bribes from undercover FBI agents posing as film studio executives, Calderon took trips to Las Vegas, received meals and got employment for his daughter. Eliminating the spinal pass-through could have saved California taxpayers $60 million.
The Calderons are an influential political family in Southern California. Tom is a former Montebello assemblyman and has worked as a political consultant since 2002. Charles, another brother, is a former assemblyman and state senator from Whittier. Ian, Charles' son, became the assemblyman representing Whittier in 2012.
Full indictment below:
Guests:
Frank Stoltze, KPCC politics reporter joining us from the U.S. Attorney’s office in Downtown LA
Alice Walton, KPCC politics reporter
Fernando J. Guerra, PhD., Professor of Political Science and Director of the Center for the Study of Los Angeles, Loyola Marymount University; SCPR Board of Trustees member;
Will AZ Governor Jan Brewer sign controversial "religious freedom" bill?
A controversial bill that allows business owners to use their religious beliefs to refuse service to gay patrons passed the Arizona legislature on Thursday. Supporters of the bill say the legislation is a way for churches, businesses or individuals to maintain their religious freedom by not being forced to do something that violates their religious beliefs.
The bill was written by the conservative advocacy group Center for Arizona Policy and the Christian legal organization Alliance Defending Freedom. Opponents have called the bill a license to discriminate and say it could effectively ban gays and lesbians from entering businesses or being employed by companies based solely on their sexual orientation.
Gays and lesbians are not protected from discrimination under Arizona law. Similar legislation has been brought up in several other states including Kansas and South Dakota but the Arizona bill is believed to be the first of its kind to pass.
The bill is now being sent to Gov. Jan Brewer for a signature but she has not indicated whether she will sign it. A signed bill will likely lead to a long and costly court challenge.
Should Gov. Brewer sign the bill knowing it will likely lead to an expensive court battle? Does the Arizona bill go too far in protecting religious liberties?
Guests:
Andrea Kelly, Government and Politics Reporter, Arizona Public Media
Jude Joffe-Block, reporter with KJZZ
Does Gov. Brown's drought proposal address California's long term water needs?
Governor Jerry Brown unveiled a $687 million proposal this week designed to tackle the ongoing drought problem in the state.
The package includes funding for projects to conserve, capture and manage water as well as financial assistance to hard-hit communities. The measures still have to be approved by the legislature and will be paid for with voter-approved bonds and money transferred from other funds.
RELATED: Gov. Jerry Brown on his plan to ease California's water woes
Controversially, the legislation does not include funding to build new water storage facilities, which some Republicans see as key to a long term strategy. Two leading Republicans in the Assembly, Connie Conway of Tulare and Frank Bigelow (R-O'Neals) called Brown's measures a "drop in the bucket" that would do little to address the long term drought problem. Conway and Bigelow submitted their own proposal on Thursday for a statewide water bond.
A Democratic version of the bond is now scheduled to go to voters in November 2014 but is still being finalized. The Republican plan would authorize nearly $8 billion in general obligation bonds to fund water storage and sustainability projects in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
So far, Brown has tried to keep the statewide water bond separate from the immediate drought relief package, but should the two be intertwined? Does Brown's plan do enough to address long term issues like water storage?
Guests:
Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-6th District (most of Sacramento County)
Connie Conway (R-Tulare), California State Assemblywoman representing the 26th Assembly District, including Tulare, Visalia and Mountain Park. Conway co-authored a competing statewide water bond measure released on Thursday.
How important are online reviews for doctors?
It’s grown increasingly customary to check Yelp reviews before trying a new restaurant, browse Angie’s List before hiring a plumber, and now, to read up on doctors before a check up.
Multiple sites, including HealthGrades, ZocDoc, and others host reviews of medical practitioners, and according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, a quarter of the population uses online physician reviews to help choose a doctor. But are the reviews accurate?
Dr. David Hanauer, lead author of the study, says that while ⅔ of people are aware of the online reviews and a quarter read them, only 5% of patients actually write reviews of their doctors.
The result? A potentially unbalanced portrait of practitioners.
Is it possible that as online reviews become more mainstream, analysis of physicians may be aggregated into one review site? Would the AMA or insurance groups take responsibility for hosting reviews? And even then, would it be effective for patients with limited knowledge of the medical field to review expert physicians? Do you trust online reviews of doctors?
Guests:
Dr. David Hanauer, M.D., Associate Professor, University of Michigan Medical School, author of Public Awareness, Perception, and Use of Online Physician Rating Sites, published this month in the Journal of the American Medical Association
Filmweek: 3 Days To Kill, Pompeii, The Wind Rises and more
Larry, KPCC film critics Henry Sheehan and Charles Solomon and Variety film critic Justin Chang review this week’s releases, including 3 Days To Kill, Pompeii, The Wind Rises and more. TGI-Filmweek!
3 Days To Kill
Pompeii
The Wind Rises
Guests:
Henry Sheehan, film critic for KPCC and CriticsAGoGo.com
Justin Chang, film critic for Variety
Charles Solomon, animation film critic for KPCC and author and historian for amazon.com