Today, AirTalk kicks off a new, semi-regular series with California’s top law enforcement official, Kamala Harris. It’s been about six months since Harris, a career prosecutor who served two terms as San Francisco’s District Attorney, was sworn in as California’s 32nd Attorney General. She’s the first woman, the first African-American, and the first Asian-American, to hold the office in the state’s history and is considered by many to be a rising star in politics. But her stances on gay marriage (she thinks Prop 8 is blatantly unconstitutional), and on the death penalty (she doesn’t support it), rankle many conservatives. Since taking over office Harris has pledged to fight transnational gang crime, protect consumers from mortgage fraud and other scams, and to focus on reducing the state’s high recidivism rate, which represents a peril to public safety and a serious drain on the budget. How’s she doing so far? What impact will Governor Jerry Brown’s new “austerity” budget have on law and order spending? How will this impact the AG’s agenda? Larry checks in with California’s top cop and invites listener questions.
Guest:
Kamala Harris, Attorney General of the State of California