Orange County journalists’ roundtable. Court halts forced abortion and sterilization for Mass. woman. One woman’s quest for social justice in America.
Another day on the campaign trail, a series of new shakeups
This morning in South Carolina the Republican field lost another one. Texas Governor Rick Perry ended his bid for the presidency, saying he’s come to the conclusion that there’s no viable path forward for him in this race. And he’s not wrong. Ever since a series of gaffes in early debates, Perry’s been polling at the back of the pack.
According to NPR, the Perry campaign decided to drop out because his poll numbers in South Carolina weren’t getting any better and they wanted to avoid the embarrassment of another poor showing. Perry threw his support – however limited – behind New Gingrich, saying Gingrich may not be a perfect man, but he’s a strong conservative visionary who can bring about real change in the country.
But Gingrich may have his own problems on the horizon. ABC News’ Brian Ross has an exclusive interview with Gingrich’s second wife, Marianne, in which she says he asked for an open marriage and doesn’t have the moral character to be President. Let’s not forget about Rick Santorum’s big news. It turns out he may have actually won the Iowa caucus by a razor thin margin, but not as razor thin as the margin Mitt Romney thought he won it by. Originally, Iowa election officials thought Romney won by less than 10 votes. Now it appears Santorum is 34 votes ahead. Republicans in Iowa are calling it a draw. Unfortunately it may be too late to give Santorum the boost he needs to take South Carolina. Recent polls show him behind Texas Senator Ron Paul, polling between 4 and 10%.
WEIGH IN:
Will this recent news drag him back to just-behind-the-frontrunner-status? Gingrich has already been slammed for his moral misjudgments in the past, how will his ex-wife’s interview affect his chances in conservative South Carolina? Will his campaign benefit from Perry’s support? And the $64,000 dollar question…who will be the next to drop out?
Guests:
Tim Lefever, Chairman of the Board, Capitol Resource Institute (CRI) in Sacramento
Jonathan Wilcox, Republican Strategist; former speech writer for Governor Pete Wilson
Orange County journalists’ roundtable
Larry and our talented trio of Orange County journalists riff on the latest news from the O.C., including the arrest of the suspected serial killer of homeless men, the battle over the shredding of public records by Anaheim officials, the controversial recall of Fullerton city council members and more.
Guests:
Gustavo Arellano, Managing Editor of the OC Weekly and author of “Ask A Mexican”
Teri Sforza, Staff Writer for the Orange County Register
Norberto Santana, editor-in-chief of the Voice of OC, a non-profit investigative news agency that covers Orange County government and politics
Court halts forced abortion and sterilization for Mass. woman
It's a wrenching case almost too unreal for a college ethics class. Last October, doctors in a Massachusetts hospital found out a schizophrenic woman they were treating was pregnant. They concluded the 32-year old, known only as Mary Moe, would be at serious risk if taken off her medication, but her fetus could be compromised if she stayed on her medication.
Moe's parents, with the help of the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health, filed a petition so they could give consent to abort the pregnancy, according to The Boston Globe. Earlier this month, a judge not only granted the parents guardianship, Judge Christina Harms ruled an abortion could occur, and further directed the woman be sterilized "to avoid this painful situation from recurring in the future."
This week, an appeals court struck down the controversial ruling. "The personal decision whether to bear or beget a child is a right so fundamental that it must be extended to all persons, including those who are incompetent," the court opinion stated.
Moe has been pregnant twice in the past. Before her psychotic break, Moe aborted her first pregnancy. After her mental illness began, she gave birth to a son. He is cared for by Moe’s parents. It's estimated that Moe is five months pregnant today.
WEIGH IN:
Whose health is more important during a pregnancy – mother or child? How do you weigh Moe’s moral & bodily integrity against the medical harm that could occur? How do you weigh the rights of Mary Moe, the fetus and Moe’s parents in this case? Is there medical data showing how a fetus could be impacted by anti-psychotic medication? Should Moe stay on the medication or be “weaned off?” Are family members the right people to make decisions for mentally ill persons who lack competence and capacity, or should it require independent judicial review? Without sterilization, is it okay for Moe to have a baby every year? Who knows what the health of the child will be? Assuming the child is taken away from her at birth, what about the harm in that?
Guests:
John Zeremba, Reporter, Boston Herald
Dr. Anne Lyerly, M.D., Obstetrician and Bioethicist; Associate Professor, Social Medicine & Associate Director, Center for Bioethics, University of North Carolina's School of Medicine; past Chair of the Ethics Committee at the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)
Arthur Caplan, Professor of Bioethics, University of Pennsylvania
One woman’s quest for social justice in America
In her new book “Power Concedes Nothing,” Connie Rice, one of America’s most prominent and successful civil rights attorneys, explores the origins and inspiration for her life’s work defending the underdog in cases against the LAPD, unfair employers and corrupt local governments.
The memoir chronicles Rice’s journey and those who inspired her starting with her father, a U.S. Air Force Major who broke racial barriers in his own carreer. Her mother was a school teacher with a passion for learning who taught Rice to revere great women leaders in history like Queen Elizabeth, Anne Frank and Congresswoman Barbara Jordan.
Rice went to Harvard undergrad and NYU law school. After joining the NAACP Legal Defense Fund in 1990, she moved from the courtroom to the streets of the “kill zones” in the wake of the LAPD beating of Rodney King in 1991. The lessons she learned from the invisible poor of Los Angeles changed her mission forever. Rice discovered that a city that buries its underclass, does so at its own imperil.
Rice counts among her allies LAPD police chiefs William Bratton and Charlie Beck, Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca, and gang interventionists such as Darren “Bo” Taylor. Rice joins Larry in-studio to talk about her tales of life in the trenches and fighting the good fight.
Guest:
Connie Rice, author of “Power Concedes Nothing: One Woman's Quest for Social Justice in America, from the Courtroom to the Kill Zones” (Scribner). Rice is an attorney and civil rights activist.
Connie Rice will discuss and sign “Power Concedes Nothing” at Vroman’s Bookstore in Pasadena tonight @ 7:00pm. For more info click here.