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FiveThirtyEight
Lead writer for news at the data-driven site FiveThirtyEight
PROFILE
Carl Bialik
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FROM Carl Bialik
To the Point
Will a Reported Crime Wave Kill Criminal Justice Reform? Law-and-order Republicans and liberal Democrats agree: federal prisons are overcrowded because tough sentencing laws in the 1990's went too far. Bipartisan criminal-justice reforms have emerged in the House and the Senate, but the pace is slow. Politicians can't survive the charge of being "soft on crime." Now, after decades of declining crime rates, there's a reported increase — especially in homicides. Is it real? Will it put a stop to one of the few measures lawmakers agree on — in a presidential year?
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Left, Right & Center
The week that wouldn't quit Will next week get even weirder? (Special one-hour episode)
To the Point
Ex-FBI Director Comey tells his side of the story Today, former FBI Director James Comey came close to calling the President who fired him a liar. The White House denied the claim and called it insulting, but Republican Senators did not challenge Comey’s truthfulness. Many questions remain: did the President try to obstruct a federal investigation? Later, we’ll go behind the “velvet rope” for a look at 5-Star health care for the richest Americans.
To the Point
Human Rights in the era of Donald Trump President Trump’s UN Ambassador, Nikki Haley, said today the US might pull out of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council. Serious violators of human rights are members of the Council itself–and a US resignation could make things worse. Later on today’s show, now that he’s into his second term, comedian turned US Senator Al Franken is telling jokes again.
To the Point
Replacing Obamacare: Now you see it… now you don’t As the Senate deliberates replacing Obmacare, health coverage for millions of people is at stake. There've been no public hearings, and a draft measure won't be made public. Is the House version so unpopular that that Senate is hiding a version that looks much the same?