AirTalk’s weekly political roundtable recaps the headlines you might have missed over the weekend and looks ahead to what to watch for in state and national politics in the week to come. We also interview Secretary of State Alex Padilla and California Attorney General Becerra; discuss the Sante Fe shooting; and more.
Legal and political implications of President Trump’s request for DOJ to investigate FBI surveillance of his campaign
President Trump fired another shot at the Department of Justice and its investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election on Sunday, when he took to his preferred
I hereby demand, and will do so officially tomorrow, that the Department of Justice look into whether or not the FBI/DOJ infiltrated or surveilled the Trump Campaign for Political Purposes - and if any such demands or requests were made by people within the Obama Administration!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 20, 2018
to announce that he would be formally requesting the DOJ look into the possibility that the FBI spied on his 2016 presidential campaign for political purposes.
The tweet appeared to be in response to reports that an FBI informant had reached out to several Trump campaign aides during the campaign, though the New York Times reports the FBI informant contacted two campaign aides after the agency was made aware of evidence that they were in contact with individuals linked to Russia.
The Department of Justice has referred the matter to its inspector general, Michael E. Horowitz, and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said in a statement that that the DOJ needs to know and respond appropriately if any inappropriate surveillance did take place. The president’s request is yet another escalation in the battle between the president and his Justice Department
How far does the president’s authority extend in terms of what he can direct the Justice Department to do in terms of its investigation? How does the Justice Department proceed from here? Is there precedent for this kind of request?
Guests:
Chris Megerian, Los Angeles Times reporter based in Washington, D.C. where he reports on the special counsel investigation; he tweets
Michael German, fellow with the Brennan Center for Justice Liberty and National Security Program; he was a special agent with the FBI, 1988-2004
Laurie L. Levenson, former federal prosecutor and a professor of law at Loyola Law School
Week in politics: Political implications of Trump’s request for DOJ to investigate FBI surveillance of his campaign, plus more weekend headlines you might’ve missed
AirTalk’s weekly political roundtable recaps the headlines you might have missed over the weekend and looks ahead to what to watch for in state and national politics in the week to come.
Trump wants DOJ to look into whether FBI surveilled his campaign
Giuliani says Mueller to wrap up inquiry by September 1
Trump endorses John Cox for CA gov
U.S. putting tariffs on hold while negotiating with China
Follow up on the TX school shooting
Trump admin to tie health facilities’ funding to abortion restrictions
California politicians among group opposed to sanctuary cities who met with POTUS last week
CA bill would extend Medi-Cal coverage to undocumented immigrants -- what impact might this have on GOP voter turnout?
Kevin McCarthy warns GOP that DACA vote could cost them the House
Gina Haspel confirmed as CIA chief
Farm bill fails after Freedom Caucus turns on it
Trump to nominate acting VA Secretary to lead agency
Status of N. Korea summit, U.S. scraps training exercise with South
No new NAFTA deal in sight with midterms looming (Mnuchin told Fox News Sunday today that POTUS could tolerate the deal slipping into 2019)
Guests:
Lanhee Chen, research fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University; he was an adviser for Marco Rubio’s 2016 presidential campaign and served as policy director for the Romney-Ryan 2012 presidential campaign; he tweets
John Iadarola, host of the YouTube show ThinkTank, part of The Young Turks Network; he also serves as a co-host for The Young Turks weekly live show; he tweets
With the primaries around the corner, we talk election prep with Secretary of State Alex Padilla
With the June 5 primaries coming up in just a few weeks, we’re sitting down to talk with California’s Chief Elections Officer and Secretary of State, Alex Padilla.
If history is any guide, out of nearly 20 million registered Californians, about 6 million will actually turn out to the polls. For a midterm election primary, voter apathy will be especially tough to beat. That apathy doesn’t affect all equally -- Republicans are actually the most reliable voters in the golden state. But their numbers are shrinking, as independent voters are getting close to outnumbering Republicans in California.
This is also the last election before many of Southern California’s polling places are swapped out in favor of temporary offices called vote centers, thanks to the California Voter’s Choice Act. How will this affect voting going forward?
If you have questions for Secretary of State Alex Padilla, give us a call at 866-893-5722. To register to vote, click here.
Ready for Election Day? Get up to speed on what you need to know with KPCC’s Voter Game Plan. Read up on the candidates and ballot measures, find out about registration deadlines and ask us your questions.
Guest:
Alex Padilla, Secretary of State of California
Latest on the Santa Fe shooting: Gun debate, police tactics and how the community is coping
There is still a lot that isn’t clear about Friday’s shooting at Santa Fe High School in Texas.
The suspect, 17-year-old Dimitrios Pagourtzis, was charged with capital murder and aggravated assault on a public servant on Friday. The Justice Department may file more charges after authorities confirmed some of the bombs found in connection with the shooting were functional, despite original reports that they were not.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott – who has historically opposed stricter gun control measures – will be holding “roundtable discussions” on how to prevent gun violence starting Tuesday, but he has not proposed any specific policy changes. His initial comments indicate he may focus on strengthening background checks, mental health services and the presence of school safety personnel.
However, the details of the police response on Friday are still largely unclear. There were also two armed police officers on campus at the high school, one of whom was shot and in critical condition Sunday.
Larry sits down with two reporters and an expert in critical incident management to hear the latest.
Guests:
Travis Bubenik, reporter at Houston Public Media; he was in Sante Fe yesterday; he tweets
Dan Frosch, U.S. news correspondent for the Wall Street Journal based in Texas; he tweets
Alon Stivi, CEO of Direct Measures International, a security consultancy, tactical training and protective services company that works with schools; he also runs an active shooter survival course which is funded by the Department of Homeland Security
California attorney general race: interview with incumbent Xavier Becerra
There are four candidates running for the position of California Attorney General.
The primary election will be held on June 5, 2018, to determine the top-two candidates who will be appearing on the Nov. 6 general election ballot. Larry sits down with each candidate ahead of the June primary.
The candidates are California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, retired Judge of the Superior Court of California Steven Bailey, Los Angeles business and real estate attorney Eric Early and incumbent Xavier Becerra. Today, California Attorney General Becerra joins Larry to discuss his campaign.
Click on the candidate to listen to our interviews with Dave Jones, Eric Early and Steven Bailey.
Ready for Election Day? Get up to speed on what you need to know with KPCC’s Voter Game Plan. Read up on the candidates and ballot measures, find out about registration deadlines and ask us your questions.
Guest:
Xavier Becerra, California Attorney General running for reelection; he tweets
Earth’s survival, as argued by a wizard and a prophet
When you think about the world 40 years from now, what do you foresee?
For one, envision a population of 10 billion. Now, if you’re like scientist William Vogt, Earth is overcrowded, grappling with limited resources and doomed. So we must do everything possible to, “Cut back! Cut back!” This is the prophet mentality.
But if you’re like scientist Norman Borlaug, the future is full of innovation and there is only one answer to save humanity and the planet. Innovate! Innovate! is the mantra of the wizard.
Both Vogt and Borlaug are scientists from the 20th century, and little is known about them, but these two are the main characters in Charles C. Mann’s latest book, “The Wizard and the Prophet: Two Remarkable Scientists and Their Dueling Visions to Shape Tomorrow’s World.” “Vogtian” and “Borlaugian” sounded too much like alien species to Mann, so he chose to divide the two categories of scientific thought into prophets and wizards instead.
The award-winning writer joins Larry Mantle to talk about the heated clash between both groups, and how he chose to tackle one of mankind’s biggest questions: Can nature bend to man? Or will man inevitably bend to nature?
Guest:
Charles C. Mann, longtime journalist and correspondent for The Atlantic, WIRED and Science; author of his latest book, “The Wizard and the Prophet: Two Remarkable Scientists and Their Dueling Visions to Shape Tomorrow’s World” (Alfred A. Knopf, 2018); he tweets