former Chief Counsel, Democratic National Committee
Former Chief Counsel to the Democratic National Committee, now an attorney in Washington, DC
PROFILE
Joseph Birkenstock
Guest
FROM Joseph Birkenstock
To the Point
MoveOn, the Democrats and Iraq With a vote of 341 to 79, many Democrats joined Republicans today in condemnation of MoveOn.org for its full-page ad calling General David Petraeus "General BetrayUs." Today, MoveOn paid an additional $77,000 to the New York Times, which admits it was mistaken for publishing the group's ad at the discount rate of $65,000. MoveOn.org says the attack was designed to show Congressional Democrats how to get tougher on bringing an end to the war in Iraq. Even Speaker Nancy Pelosi concedes there's a public perception that her party has failed to live to expectations since winning the majority last November. Republicans still call the incident evidence of the Times' "liberal bias." One group calls it a violation of campaign finance law. Democrats say Republicans should denounce Rush Limbaugh for calling Nebraska's decorated Vietnam veteran Chuck Hagel "Senator BetrayUs." What does it all have to do with ending the war in Iraq—and the presidential campaign?
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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
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.