- Social:
House of Representatives
Republican Congressman from Kentucky and Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee's Energy and Power Subcommittee
PROFILE
Ed Whitfield
Guest
FROM Ed Whitfield
To the Point
Is West Virginia's Water Crisis a Wake-up Call? Last Thursday, water from West Virginia's Elk River began to smell like licorice. The trouble was traced to a leak of methylcyclohexylmethanol from a one-inch hole in a storage tank just upstream from the plant treating water for 300,000 people, including those living in Charleston, the capital city. For five days, West Virginians were told, “don't drink the water — cook with it, shower, bathe the baby or wash your clothes." Levels of MCHM are finally being reduced, but nobody yet knows how much danger it's posing to public health. One of thousands of chemicals never tested for safety, MCHM is used in the coal industry, the driver of West Virginia's economy. The industry and its supporters attack EPA regulations as a “war against coal." Could regulatory enforcement have prevented the spill?
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To the Point
Venezuela spirals into economic and political chaos Venezuela, a country whose potential for prosperity is unmatched, finds itself on the verge of civil war. What sustains the repressive government? With time running out, guest host León Krauze looks at what the international community can do to pull the country from the edge of collapse.
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
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.