To the Point
Passing the Speakership Gavel and the Budget
A bipartisan budget deal will keep the government open and paying its bills, but it's being denounced by the right wing of the Republican Party. We hear how business as usual has become a political liability.
By Warren Olney • • 52m ListenA bipartisan budget deal will keep the government open and paying its bills, but it's being denounced by the right wing of the Republican Party. We hear how business as usual has become a political liability.
Later on the program, black life in America and "systemic" racism. We hear more from Ta-Nehisi Coates.
Photo: Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI) leaves after the Republican candidate forum on Capitol Hill in Washington October 28, 2015. (Yuri Gripas/Reuters)
In this episode
3 storiesFormer House Speaker Dennis Hastert Pleads Guilty
Dennis Hastert of Illinois was House Speaker — third in line for the Presidency — from 1999 until 2007, longer than any other Republican has held that office. Today, Hastert pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge that could mean six months in prison.
Read the story7 minCleaning the Barn and Passing the Gavel
Today, Congress is likely to pass the first federal budget in five years. If the Senate agrees, the government will stay open and pay the bills until after the next election. For the most part, Democrats will be happy to go along, but Republican candidates for President and the right wing of the GOP are on the warpath against it .
Read the story33 minTa-Nehisi Coates on Growing Up as a Black Boy Facing Violence
Ta-Nehisi Coates is national correspondent for the Atlantic magazine and author of Between the World and Me . Yesterday, on this program, he made the case for reparations to compensate for generations of racism in America. Today, he talks about his own life and what he's telling his teenage son.
Read the story10 min