Bush Threatens to Veto Iraq Spending Bill; Viacom Sues YouTube

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Congress may be away for spring recess, but conflict with President Bush is on the rise.  Troop-withdrawal deadlines from Capitol Hill meet veto threats from the White House.  It’s a showdown over funding troops in Iraq. Also today, Viacom sues YouTube for a billion dollars.  Can innovation be protected as the law tries to catch up with technological change?

Making News

The Escalating Conflict between the White House and Congress ()

Congress left Washington for its spring recess without reconciling House and Senate differences over money for troops in Iraq. President Bush today demanded that they get on with it, so he can make good on his veto threat and get the kind of support he wants for troops in the field. What would a prolonged disagreement mean for the troops? We hear about the politics—and the realities--of funding the war in Iraq from from.

Guests:

• Winslow Wheeler: Director of the Straus Military Reform Project, Center for Defense Information
• Dana Milbank: National Political Reporter for the Washington Post
• Ron Hutcheson: White House Correspondent, McClatchy Newspapers

Links:

• Los Angeles Times on politics and military spending
• Matthew Dowd on losing faith in President Bush, New York Times on
• Senator Reid (D-NV) on failure of Bush strategy
• Congressional Research Service

Guest Interview

Viacom Sues YouTube ()

The Internet website YouTube is growing like mad. Last year's nine million monthly visitors skyrocketed to 133 million this year, and Google purchased YouTube for $1.65 billion. Surveys show that 100 million video clips are viewed on YouTube every day and they're not all amateur home movies. Big-time producers want their pieces of YouTube's action.  Viacom -- which owns Comedy Central, MTV and Nickelodeon --says Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert and SpongeBob SquarePants have been appearing on YouTube for free.  So, Viacom has sued YouTube for a billion dollars in damages. Will innovation and creativity be delayed as the law catches up with technology?  We get perspective from attorneys, media analysts and former network execs.

Guests:

• Douglas Lichtman: Professor of Law at the University of Chicago
• James Boyle: Professor of Law at Duke Law School
• Jordan Levin: Co-founder of Generate
• James McQuivey: Principal analyst at Forrester Research

Links:

• Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA)

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Warren Olney

Considered the dean of Southern California broadcast journalists, Warren tackles the issues Southern Californians care about. Expanding that concept, To the Point deals with issues of national concern and is on air in most major metropolitan markets across the country. On any day, you’ll hear a fast-paced, news-based talk show featuring multiple perspectives on a single major issue, with Newsmaker and Reporters Notebook features, as well. 

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Christian Bordal, Karen Radziner, Vanessa Romo, Dan Konecky

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