Drexel University
Assistant Professor of Political Science at Drexel University and author of We Created Chávez: A People's History of the Venezuelan Revolution
PROFILE
George Ciccariello-Maher
Guest
FROM George Ciccariello-Maher
To the Point
Amid Nationwide Protest, Can Venezuelan Chavismo Survive? Venezuela, with the world's largest oil reserves, is in chaos after weeks of increasingly bloody violence on city streets and in middle-class neighborhoods. Protests that began three weeks ago in the city of San Cristobal have spread to Caracas and other parts of the country. Opponents blame the Socialist government for destroying the economy, creating a new elite and distracting attention by cracking down on legitimate protest. At least 14 people have been killed with 150 or more injured. President Nicolás Maduro, heir to the late Hugo Chávez, says "fascists" supported by the US are intent on staging a coup. Now, Maduro is calling for a "peace conference" tomorrow — hoping to be joined by Henrique Capriles, the state Governor he defeated in last year's elections. How did the current violence begin? Does the US really want "regime change?" Will energy supplies be affected worldwide?
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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?
To the Point
What happens when America retreats from the world? Is President Trump taking his "America First" agenda to extremes, withdrawing the country from the international stage on trade and climate change, distancing America from its traditional allies across the Atlantic and even threatening to physically isolate the country through the building of a wall along its southern border? León Krauze guest hosts.
Left, Right & Center
President Trump: US to withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord Trump says he was elected to serve Pittsburgh, not Paris.
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.