- Social:
Oxford University
Director of the Refugee Studies Center at Oxford University and author of Survival Migration: Failed Governance and the Crisis of Displacement
PROFILE
Alexander Betts
Guest
FROM Alexander Betts
To the Point
Can the Nations of Europe Resolve a Humanitarian Crisis? By April of last year, 56 migrants died trying to reach Europe from the Middle East North Africa. This year, the number's already 1750 — and humanitarian agencies warn it could rise to 30,000 as people flee from chaos and war in their home countries. In Brussels yesterday, a summit meeting of the European Union held an emergency " summit " and agreed to increase spending to cope with the crisis. But its new plan is already being called inadequate — more a police action than an ambulance service. Do prosperous Western countries have a moral obligation to accept refugees despite the politics of immigration?
Recommended
To the Point
Janesville and the American Dream Janesville, Wisconsin is the hometown of Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan. But he couldn’t prevent the closing of the General Motors factory after 100 years. On this Memorial Day rebroadcast of To the Point, we hear what’s happened to what once was a model of American middle-class unity.
To the Point
Will the Senate write a healthcare bill in secret? While Democrats and Republicans argue White House relations with Russia, another question is being decided behind closed doors: who gets help buying health insurance and who doesn't? We hear how the pros and cons are being shrouded in secrecy.
To the Point
Trump's 'America First' goes missing abroad In the Middle East, President Trump is changing some policies of the Obama Administration—and reversing his own campaign attacks on Islam as a religion that "hates us." We hear about his visit to Saudi Arabia and what's at stake for the rest of his foreign excursion.
To the Point
Who's to blame for the opioid crisis? Some of the lawyers who took on Big Tobacco are now going after Big Pharma. It’s all about the deadly epidemic of opioid use. Are the drug companies to blame? What about the users? Later, on today’s Talking Point: making sense of Britain’s upset election.