Jerry Brown announces his bid for governor. Then, Larry talks with John A. Pérez, the new speaker of the California Assembly. A new Field Poll surveys attitudes on reforming state government. Are federal unemployment benefits being abused? And later, is sex addiction real?
Jerry Brown for governor: What are his chances?
The former two-time governor and current attorney general, much to nobody’s surprise, is expected to announce his official candidacy at 11 this morning. He’ll be the Democratic Party’s only candidate. So now the question is how will he measure up against Republican Meg Whitman’s war chest? And what are Steve Poizner’s chances against Brown, if he wins the Republican primary?
Guests:
Frank Stoltze, KPCC political reporter
Dan Schnur, Director of the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at USC College of Letters, Arts & Sciences
CA Assembly has a new speaker
John A. Pérez was sworn in as the new speaker of the California General Assembly yesterday, replacing Karen Bass, who is leaving the Assembly this year due to term limits. In a speech, Pérez said his priorities include passing a ballot measure to restore majority rule to budget related bills and preventing lobbyists from texting legislators during floor debates. The Los Angeles Democrat is the first openly gay person to hold a leadership role in the Legislature.
Guest:
John A. Pérez, Newly sworn-in Assembly Speaker (D-Los Angeles)
Californians' attitudes towards government reform
Californians may not agree on much, but everyone seems to believe the state’s system of government is in serious need of repair. But after months of public debate over how to fix the gridlock, voters remain divided over proposals to alter the state’s constitution. Also, according to a new Field Poll released today, 75% believe that the major challenges facing the state can be addressed by elected officials without more fundamental changes. Yet most voters blame lawmakers for the mess we’re in. We talk with the Jon Christensen, of the Stanford University’s Bill Lane Center for the American West, one of the co-sponsors of the survey, and conduct our own informal poll with AirTalk listeners. Can government performance be improved without fundamental, structural change?
Guest:
Jon Christensen, Executive Director, Stanford University’s Bill Lane Center for the American West
Unemployment: safety net or hammock?
Despite hopeful signs that the recession is ending, unemployment remains in the double digits. At 12.4%, California’s jobless rate is the highest in the country. As lawmakers debate whether to extend unemployment benefits again, some of the Nation’s jobless have found a silver lining in the economic meltdown. They’re called the “funemployed.” Supported by unemployment checks, these happily jobless folks aren’t spending their days poring over job listings. They’re travelling on the cheap, shopping for new clothes and learning to play the cello. They are, some might say, milking the system as long as they possibly can, content living for today. Does this sound like someone you know? Is this kind of behavior justifiable?
Sick or selfish: Is there such a thing as a sex addict?
Tiger Wood’s teary confession begs a question: does a man who continually strays from his wife suffer from a disorder? Many psychiatrists say, “yes.” In fact, psychiatrists are proposing adding “hypersexual disorder” to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. But is a rakish man really sick or just selfish? And if someone is not involved in a committed relationship, is there really anything clinically wrong with abundant sexual activity? And has medicine already gone too far in classifying behaviors as “abnormal?”
Guests:
Dr. Martin Kafka, a clinical associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School
Dr. Allen Frances, professor emeritus and former chairman of the department of psychiatry at Duke University