The world responds to President Trump’s comments on a 'takeover' of Gaza
President Donald Trump’s proposal that the United States “take over” the Gaza Strip and permanently resettle its Palestinian residents was swiftly rejected and denounced on Wednesday by American allies and adversaries alike. Trump’s suggestion came at a White House news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who smiled several times as the president detailed a plan to build new settlements for Palestinians outside the Gaza Strip, and for the U.S. to take “ownership” in redeveloping the war-torn territory into “the Riviera of the Middle East.” Joining to discuss how global leaders are reacting to President Trump’s comments is Dov Waxman, political scientist and Gilbert Foundation professor of Israel Studies at UCLA.
With files from the Associated Press
Trump and Musk move to dismantle USAID, igniting battle with Democratic lawmakers
The Trump administration and billionaire ally Elon Musk moved to eradicate the agency that provides crucial aid that funds education and fights starvation, epidemic and poverty overseas, sparking a showdown with congressional Democrats who blasted the effort as illegal and vowed a court fight.
In one of the most dramatic efforts to push back on President Donald Trump’s bid to slash and reshape the federal government, some Democrats sought Monday to enter the headquarters of the U.S. Agency for International Development. They were blocked by officers from even broaching the lobby, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he was the acting administrator of the agency despite it being an independent body for six decades. Today on AirTalk, we get into the latest on this story, what USAID is, who it serves, and what dismantling it would mean for US-foreign relations. Joining us is Ellen Knickmeyer, foreign policy and national security reporter for The Associated Press and Tess Bridgeman, Sr. Fellow & Visiting Scholar of the Reiss Center on Law and Security at NYU Law and co-editor-in-chief of Just Security.
With files from the Associated Press
New Pew research presents one method of adaptive reuse for Los Angeles office spaces
New research by the non-profit The Pew Charitable Trusts (Pew). and design firm Gensler shares the viability of converting unused office space into affordable housing units. The analysis gets into a housing inventory issue that’s being felt in Los Angeles and Houston, and why building co-living spaces could improve housing affordability, even if units resemble a more dormitory style. With Los Angeles dealing with a continuing homelessness crisis, and more general housing inventory issues, the financial analysis by Pew and Gensler tries to make the case that some office vacancies could be converted into tiny apartments for $240,000 per unit. Today on AirTalk, we’ll break down the findings with those who helped put together the research. Joining us are Alex Horowitz, project director for The Pew Charitable Trusts’ Housing Policy Initiative, and Wes LeBlanc, strategy director and economist at Gensler.
AirTalk celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Here's how Larry Mantle got his start
AirTalk, the longest-running public affairs radio program in Southern California, is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year on April 1. LAist has a series of events planned over the next several months to mark the occasion. Today on the show, we tell the origin story of AirTalk and how Larry Mantle got his start and eventually went on to create and host the program for decades. He's joined by his son, Desmond Mantle, who helps guide the conversation.
