Today on AirTalk, we discuss Marie Yovanovitch's testimony at the impeachment hearings. Also on the show, updates on the Saugus High shooting; FilmWeek; and more.
Impeachment Hearing: Day 2 With Marie Yovanovitch
On the second day of impeachment hearings, former ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanitch testified before the House Intelligence Committee.
Yovanovitch was removed from her post in May by what she described as a “smear campaign” by the Trump Administration and the former Ukrainian Prosecutor General Yurij Lutsenko. Yovanovitch had clashed with Lutsenko over alleged corruption in his department, say Ukrainian officials.
Yovanovitch previously testified to Democrats behind closed doors last month that she was warned to “watch her back,” before being ousted as ambassador. She said that she was the victim of a “campaign of disinformation” by Trump’s allies working through “unofficial back channels.” She attributes her loss of position to her anti-corruption stance. Without sustaining any criticism from the State Department itself, Yovanovitch was removed from office in May.
Republican House members largerly wrote off the relevance of Yovanovitch’s testimony. California Representative Devin Nunes said she “is not a material fact witness.” But House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff asserted that by removing Yovanovitch, Trump and his allies had “set the stage for an irregular channel” of foreign policy communication with Ukraine led by Rudy Giuliani to pressure Zelensky to investigate Hunter Biden and the Democratic Party.
Today on AirTalk, we break down Yovanavitch’s testimony.
With files from the Associated Press
Guests:
Anna Edgerton, politics editor for Bloomberg; she tweets
Amanda Renteria, chair of Emerge America, a national organization that works to identify and train Democratic women who want to run for political office; she is the former national political director for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign and was a staffer for Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA); she tweets
Sean T. Walsh, Republican political analyst and partner at Wilson Walsh Consulting in San Francisco; he is a former adviser to California Governors Pete Wilson and Arnold Schwarzenegger and a former White House staffer for Presidents Reagan and H.W. Bush
Alan Dershowitz, professor emeritus of law at Harvard University and author of "Trumped Up: How Criminalization of Political Differences Endangers Democracy" (2017)
William C. Banks, professor emeritus of law at Syracuse University, he’s the co-author of “Constitutional Law: Structure and Rights in Our Federal System,” (Carolina Academic Press, 2018)
Barbara McQuade, professor of law at the University of Michigan; she served as the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan from 2010-2017
David Rivkin, partner at the law firm BakerHostetler; he has previously held positions at the Department of Justice, in the Office of White House Counsel and elsewhere in the federal government; he tweets
Updates On Saugus High School Shooting
A student pulled a gun from his backpack and opened fire at a Southern California high school Thursday, killing two students and wounding three others before shooting himself in the head on his 16th birthday, authorities said.
The attacker was hospitalized in critical condition, officials said, and investigators offered no immediate motive.
The gunfire began around 7:30 a.m. at Saugus High School in the Los Angeles suburb of Santa Clarita. Authorities estimated that the suspect took just 16 seconds to pull out the weapon, shoot five classmates and turn the gun on himself.
KPCC Reporter Kyle Stokes joins us today to share additional information.
With files from the Associated Press
Guest:
Kyle Stokes, KPCC Reporter; he tweets
FilmWeek: ‘Ford v Ferrari,’ ‘Charlie’s Angels,’ ‘The Good Liar’ and more
Larry Mantle and KPCC film critics Justin Chang, Tim Cogshell and Charles Solomon review this weekend’s new movie releases.
"Ford v Ferrari" in wide release
"Charlie’s Angels" in wide release
"The Good Liar" in wide release
"Waves" at the ArcLight Hollywood & The Landmark
"Scandalous: The True Story of the National Enquirer" at Laemmle’s Royal
"Atlantics" at Laemmle’s Monica Film Center (streams on Netflix November 29)
"Crown Vic" in select theaters (check local listings)
"I Lost My Body" at Laemmle’s Music Hall
"16 Bars" at Laemmle’s Monica Film Center
"The Report" at The Landmark (begins streaming Nov. 29 on Amazon)
"White Snake" at the Nuart Theater
"To Kid Or Not To Kid" at Laemmle’s NoHo
CRITICS' HITS:
Justin: "Ford v Ferrari" & "Waves"
Tim: "Charlie's Angels," "Atlantics" & "16 Bars"
Charles: "Scandalous: The True Story of the National Enquirer"
MIXED FEELINGS:
Justin: "I Lost My Body" & "The Report"
Tim: "The Good Liar," "Crown Vic" & "To Kid or Not To Kid"
Charles: "White Snake"
Guests:
Tim Cogshell, film critic for KPCC, Alt-Film Guide and CineGods.com; he tweets
Justin Chang, film critic for KPCC and the Los Angeles Times; he tweets
Charles Solomon, film critic for KPCC, Animation Scoop and Animation Magazine
The Enduring Cultural Impact Of Blade Runner, From 1982 To November 2019
Los Angeles: November, 2019 -- a time where cars fly, off-world trips are possible and complex artificial intelligence beings walk the streets.
At least, so it is in Ridley Scott’s 1982 film “Blade Runner.” Based on the book “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” by Philip K. Dick, the film follows bounty hunter Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), hired to track down and destroy rogue bioengineered “replicants” whose quest for self-possession threatens human society. Through Scott’s lens, the iconic L.A. of palm trees and beaches becomes a dark, rain-drenched dystopia, with such classic landmarks as the Bradbury Building, Grand Central Market, the 2nd Street Tunnel and Union Station playing host to Scott’s melancholic world. Despite an initial flop at the box office,“Blade Runner” has gone on to become a classic in science fiction, as well as a pioneer in the futurist-noir genre that has influenced countless other films and television shows since.
In honor of the film’s cultural impact and that fated November 2019 date, FilmWeek hosted a screening of “Blade Runner” at the Ace Hotel on November 2nd, followed by a Q&A with our host, Larry Mantle, actress Joanna Cassidy and FilmWeek critic Wade Major.
Guests:
Joanna Cassidy, film and television actress who plays the replicant “Zhora” in “Blade Runner”; she tweets
Wade Major, film critic for KPCC and CineGods.com