political scientist
Political scientist and author of Circle in the Sand: The Bush Dynasty in Iraq
PROFILE
Christian Alfonsi
Guest
FROM Christian Alfonsi
Which Way, L.A.?
September 11: Advance Warnings and the War in Iraq Seven years after the 9/11 Commission's best-selling report, co-chairmen Lee Hamilton and Thomas Kean have issued a report saying the US is still not prepared for a major catastrophe. Though only Hamilton and Keane issued the " Report Card ," ten years after September 11, many questions remain. What about efforts to warn the Bush Administration about al Qaeda? Why did President Bush accuse Saddam Hussein? Has US intelligence strategy been improved?
To the Point
September 11: Advance Warnings and the War in Iraq The co-chairs of the 9/11 Commission claim in a " Report Card " that the nation is still not as secure as it should be, partly because intelligence lacks coordination. Lee Hamilton and Thomas Kean say first responders couldn't find each other on radios; Congressional oversight of homeland security and intelligence is "dysfunctional;" privacy, civil rights and the treatment of prisoners need further attention; and transportation security is a major concern. What about intelligence prior to 9/11? What did President George W. Bush know and when did he know it? Why did he insist that Saddam Hussein was involved? We talk with a former 9/11 Commission member, a former FBI agent who turned whistle-blower and a historian of two Bush Presidencies involved with Iraq, and hear how US intelligence has been updated since September 11.
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To the Point
The Trump agenda: where's the beef? President Trump says big things are happening. After celebrating a House bill on health care, he doesn’t yet have Senate agreement. With James Comey’s public testimony scheduled tomorrow, the President today tweeted his selection of a new FBI Director. Is the Chief Executive all style and no substance? Later, terror attacks in Iran and conflicting claims about who’s behind them.
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.
To the Point
Trump plays scolder-in-chief with NATO allies At the opening of NATO’s dramatic new headquarters in Brussels today, President Trump acknowledged that Article 5 — promising that “an attack on one nation is an attack on all” -- has only been invoked one time: in the aftermath of September 11. But the President failed to provide what 27 other Alliance members have been waiting for: a re-commitment by America’s new leader to Article 5. Instead, they got a scolding.
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.