Political Roundup: Trump Faces New Charges, McConnell Freezes Mid-Speech, Hunter Biden’s Plea Deal Goes Awry And More
There’s been a flurry of news out of Washington this week. New charges — and a new defendant — added to the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump underscore how the Mar-a-Lago investigation is still very much ongoing, even as the focus has been on an expected indictment in a separate case related to the 2020 election. In an updated indictment handed down Thursday, prosecutors allege that Trump asked a staffer to delete camera footage at his Florida estate in an effort to obstruct the federal investigation into his possession of classified documents. Meanwhile in Congress, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell briefly left his own press conference Wednesday after stopping his remarks mid-sentence and staring off into space for several seconds, raising questions about his health. And Hunter Biden Biden was supposed to plead guilty Wednesday to misdemeanor charges for failing to pay taxes. But U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika in Delaware put the brakes on the guilty plea after raising concerns during an hours long hearing about the structure and terms of the agreement and another deal that would allow him to avoid prosecution on a gun charge if he meets certain conditions. We break it all down with Ron Elving, senior Washington editor at NPR and Paul Kane, senior congressional correspondent at the Washington Post.
With files from the Associated Press.
It’s Been 75 Years Since Truman Ordered The Armed Services To Integrate - How Far Does The Military Still Have To Go?
Seventy-five years ago, Harry Truman signed an executive order banning segregation in the armed forces. For those who don’t want to do the math, that was in 1948, three years after the end of World War Two. Creating a unified fighting force was a mammoth task, politically and logistically. And in some ways, the military is still working on it. The statistics show that military leadership is unreflective of the diversity in the enlisted ranks. Meanwhile, outcomes for Black veterans are substantially worse than their white counterparts. Joining us to talk about the history of military integration is Matthew Delmont, professor of history at Dartmouth College. His most recent book is Half American: The Epic Story of African Americans Fighting World War II at Home and Abroad.
Social Media Can Be Mentally Distressing For Parents In All Kinds Of Ways – How Do You Navigate It?
We’ve long heard from parents who are concerned about how social media is impacting their kids, but have parents flipped the mirror on themselves? It’s no secret social media can be a factor in comparisons, shame, anxiety and depression. This can be particularly distressing for parents, especially mothers. There are high expectations of what “good” mothering looks like and social media and the so-called mommy influencers are helping paint that picture, for better or worse. Today on AirTalk, we discuss subtle turmoil social media can cause on parents’ mental well-being, and we want to hear from parents about how they’ve navigated this. How does social media make you feel as a parent? Are you more careful about who you follow? Have you given up social media entirely because it causes you to question how you parent? Joining to discuss is Jessica Grose, opinion writer at the New York Times and author of the book “Screaming on the Inside: The Unsustainability of American Motherhood” (Mariner Books, 2022).
FilmWeek: ‘Haunted Mansion,’ ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem,’ ‘Bobi Wine: The People’s President’ And More
Larry Mantle and LAist film critics Lael Loewenstein, Manuel Betancourt and Charles Solomon review this weekend’s new movie releases in theaters, streaming, and on demand platforms. They also revisit the box-office hit, "Barbie," as it goes into its second weekend in theaters still dominating ticket-sales.
- “Haunted Mansion” Wide Release
- “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem” Wide Release
- “War Pony” Laemmle Monica Film Center [Santa Monica] & Available on Demand
- “The Unknown Country” Landmark’s Nuart Theater [West LA]
- “The First Slam Dunk” In Select Theaters
- “Bobi Wine: The People’s President” Laemmle Royal[West LA]
- “Justice League: Warworld” Available on DVD and Digital
- “The Mistress” Laemmle Glendale & Available on VOD
- “Miraculous: Ladybug & Cat Noir The Movie” Bay Theater [Pacific Palisades] & Streaming on Netflix
- “Barbie” Wide Release
FilmWeek Feature: Larry’s Interview With Author Nat Segaloff On His New Book “The Exorcist Legacy: 50 Years Of Fear”
It’s been called the scariest movie of all time and it just turned 50 years old. William Friedkin’s “The Exorcist” came out in 1973 and has since inspired sequels, prequels, and TV series. In his latest book “The Exorcist Legacy: 50 Years of Fear,” writer and film historian Nat Segaloff brings his insights to a film that has embedded itself in our collective psyche and its place in the zeitgeist. Nat joins Larry on FilmWeek to talk about the history of “The Exorcist” and why it has had such staying power in horror and film culture.
