bill clinton
GRITtv: Feb. 24, 2011
"This could be the kind of social justice moment that many of us have been waiting for," says Bill Fletcher, Jr. of the Center for Labor Renewal. He points out that the revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia are not just spreading to Libya, locked in a deadly struggle with its own dictator, but in Ohio, Wisconsin, and around the US. "People are picking up on the energy and the audacity of the democratic revolt," he notes. Bill joins Laura in studio to discuss the fight in Libya, the connections to labor uprisings in Wisconsin, Ohio, and Indiana, and why progressives have an opportunity now that can't be let slide. Though Scott Walker has claimed that the fight in Madison is mostly outsiders being brought in by the unions, Madison residents know otherwise. Workers' rights are near and dear to the hearts of many people in Wisconsin, and not just those who are under threat of having their collective bargaining rights slashed. The Wisconsin firefighters are exempt from Walker's actions, but have been rallying in support of the workers, and Madison's Union Cab is a worker-owned collective, but they too have joined the protests. Mahlon Mitchell of the firefighters' union and Fred Schepartz of Union Cab joined Laura in Madison to discuss their reasons for joining the protests when their rights aren't being threatened. Finally, Wisconsin has long been a testing ground for conservatives to undercut progressive policies. Welfare reform was originated there, too, with Republican governor Tommy Thompson and the Bradley Foundation, who are also behind Scott Walker. Laura has some thoughts. Distributed by Tubemogul.
Email this pageGRITtv: The F Word: Crushing Workers in Wisconsin
So that's what they mean by from welfare to work. First you go force the poorest Americans into the workforce, then you go after their bargaining power. Wisconsin has long been the eye of this storm. “We have an environment in Wisconsin in which any poor family can climb out of the despair of poverty and pursue the American dream.” Distributed by Tubemogul.
GRITtv: Marie St. Cyr: Time For a Plan For Haiti
"People are talking about the resilience of the Haitian people, but 1.3 million are still in tents," says Marie St. Cyr of Haiti, one year after the earthquake that devastated the nation. She points out that less than 4000 new housing units have been built, and communication is a mess. "I go to a meeting and the meeting is being held in English, who is it being held for?" she asks. Marie is chair of the Lambi Fund of Haiti, and joins us in studio to look at what still needs to be done to rebuild Haiti and how the U.S. can help.
GRITtv: Jan. 11, 2011
"We in the U.S. have more people in jail than anywhere else in the world, we spend more on our military than the whole world combined, we have more guns, yet people somehow feel insecure," notes Bill Quigley of the culture in the U.S. Questions about guns aren't the only questi0n to be asked in the wake of the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords, Judge John Roll, and several others in Arizona this weekend. There are many questions to be asked, about priorities, motives, and more. Bill joins us in studio to discuss the latest from Arizona, and also to look at the ongoing devastation in Haiti one year after the earthquake. "You would think the earthquake happened last week," he says of his most recent visit. "People are talking about the resilience of the Haitian people, but 1.3 million are still in tents," says Marie St. Cyr of Haiti, one year after the earthquake that devastated the nation. She points out that less than 4000 new housing units have been built, and communication is a mess. "I go to a meeting and the meeting is being held in English, who is it being held for?" she asks. Marie is chair of the Lambi Fund of Haiti, and joins us in studio to look at what still needs to be done to rebuild Haiti and how the U.S. can help. Finally, a story in the New York Times this week reminds Laura of what we have left to fight for.
GRITtv: October 20, 2010
It's nearly the homestretch for the 2010 midterm elections, and unsurprisingly, race remains a hot topic. From a new ad in Nevada urging Latinos not to vote to Sharron Angle's latest comments about Latino youth looking Asian, and ongoing concern that black voters will not turn out in numbers like they did in 2008, it's clear that no matter how much candidates deny it, race is this season's hot button. Farai Chideya, of the public radio and multimedia news program Pop and Politics, has been traveling the country putting together a three-part public radio/multimedia series on "Race, Rage and Reconciliation in the 2010 Midterm Elections," and she joins Laura in studio to discuss what she's seen and learned.Dr. Joycelyn Elders is no stranger to making controversial statements in public, so her support of California's Proposition 19, the marijuana legalization ballot initiative, shouldn't be surprising. After all, years ago she was ousted as Bill Clinton's Surgeon General after noting that a discussion of masturbation should be part of educating young people on avoiding HIV infection.Elders joins us via Skype from Arkansas, where she is professor emeritus at the University of Arkansas School of Medicine and an associate at Arkansas Children's Hospital, to discuss marijuana legalization, the return of masturbation as a campaign issue, and the ongoing struggle for universal health care in the U.S."People are looking to state ballot initiatives to have some form of control over governance when elected officials are abdicating," says Jane Hamsher of this year's crop of ballot initiatives around the country. Perhaps best known is California's Proposition 19, which would legalize, regulate, and tax marijuana, but there are also important tax initiatives on ballots around the country, as well as state environmental regulations.Hamsher joins us via Skype and Nathan Newman of the Progressive States Network is in studio to discuss the various ballot initiatives and their effect both on voter turnout and on actual governance.
GRITtv: Dr. Joycelyn Elders: Marijuana & Masturbation
Dr. Joycelyn Elders is no stranger to making controversial statements in public, so her support of California's Proposition 19, the marijuana legalization ballot initiative, shouldn't be surprising. After all, years ago she was ousted as Bill Clinton's Surgeon General after noting that a discussion of masturbation should be part of educating young people on avoiding HIV infection. Elders joins us via Skype from Arkansas, where she is professor emeritus at the University of Arkansas School of Medicine and an associate at Arkansas Children's Hospital, to discuss marijuana legalization, the return of masturbation as a campaign issue, and the ongoing struggle for universal health care in the U.S. Distributed by Tubemogul.
GRITtv: Sept. 30 2010
"You don't go to war without being changed by it," says Geoff Millard, former Chair of the Board of Iraq Veterans Against the War. From sky-high suicide rates for veterans at home to horrific stories of "kill teams" in Afghanistan, we're hearing stories every day of the traumas that going to war inflicts on our young men and women. Millard and IVAW, though, have been working both at home and back in Iraq to bring about some sort of reconciliation, both for soldiers and for Iraqi civilians. Millard joins Laura in studio to discuss IVAW's Operation Recovery campaign to stop redeploying traumatized soldiers, the ongoing news from the wars, and his upcoming trip back to Iraq on a humanitarian mission. "Standing up and speaking out against a supervisor is harder than what I do every day," says Mary Kay Henry, new president of the Service Employees International Union. Yet becoming the first woman--and the first out lesbian--to lead the country's largest labor union means she's faced some pretty tough battles, and she's gearing up for another one: an election in which corporations are outspending progressives 26 to 1 for anti-worker candidates. Henry joins Laura in studio for a talk about the future of SEIU, her past as an organizer, and why it's important to keep the fight going long after November's elections. Finally, the Obama administration seems to be taking out its frustrations on the so-called "professional left," setting up blame for anticipated losses in November. But maybe they could take a lesson from Bill Clinton, of all people...
GRITtv: The F Word: It's the Economy, Not the Bloggers
It seems odd to quote Bill Clinton when it's Obama's recycling of Clintonite politicians that has helped get us into this mess, but there it is. “It's the economy, stupid.” Americans are angry with the Obama administration, and the Obama administration is angry with—bloggers? The left-leaning media? What's wrong with this picture?
GRITtv: Charlene Strong: For My Wife
Fourteen years ago this week, Bill Clinton signed the Defense of Marriage Act into law. DOMA, as it is known, allows states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states, and laid the foundation for marriage bans across the country. Charlene Strong has been fighting DOMA since the death of her wife, Kate Fleming, in a flood in their Washington State home. Strong faced discrimination at the hospital and the funeral home while dealing with the loss of her partner, and a documentary was made of her struggle. For My Wife is available now on DVD to buy or to rent, and she joins Laura in studio to remind us all what the denial of marriage rights really means to couples.
GRITtv: Sept. 22 2010
"The first step is to stop apologizing," says Deepak Bhargava, executive director of the Center for Community Change. "We have ideas; we are often cowed by the ferociousness of the argument from conservatives." Indeed, in the wake of Larry Summers' departure from the Obama administration--and the news that the administration wants to head off criticism that it's been anti-business--as well as the failure of Don't Ask Don't Tell repeal and the DREAM Act in the Senate, it often seems like conservatives are winning. But, Bhargava notes, ordinary Americans are organizing as well, and the One Nation march in Washington will be a start toward holding the administration accountable, and building a real bottom-up movement. Fourteen years ago this week, Bill Clinton signed the Defense of Marriage Act into law. DOMA, as it is known, allows states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states, and laid the foundation for marriage bans across the country. Charlene Strong has been fighting DOMA since the death of her wife, Kate Fleming, in a flood in their Washington State home. Strong faced discrimination at the hospital and the funeral home while dealing with the loss of her partner, and a documentary was made of her struggle. For My Wife is available now on DVD to buy or to rent, and she joins Laura in studio to remind us all what the denial of marriage rights really means to couples. Finally, Larry Summers is out, off to make more money off his own policies, presumably. But what's next, and how can we get progressive voices in? Laura has some thoughts.
