Brookings Institution
Norman Eisen is the chairman of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and a senior fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution. From 2009-2011 her served as chief White House ethics lawyer for President Obama, and from 2011-2014 as US Ambassador to the Czech Republic.
Donald Trump, Jr. and the Russian emails After releasing a chain of e-mails, the President’s son stands accused of participating in Russia’s assault on American democracy. Last night he told Sean Hannity , he "probably would have done things a little differently," but even with "20-20 hindsight" he didn’t do anything wrong. In response to Washington talk about possible crime — even treason — he says no serious information was even exchanged. What’s been revealed about Russia’s subversive activities? How much will it matter to the President’s base of supporters?
Trump brings legal, business complications to the White House In San Diego today, Gonzalo Curiel held a hearing in the ongoing civil fraud case against Trump University. He's the federal judge Trump called biased because of his Mexican ancestry. That's one of dozens of lawsuits facing the President-Elect and his global network of business interests. Photo by Patrick T. Fallon/Reuters Norman Eisen was chief White House Ethics Lawyer in the first two years of the Obama Administration. A former diplomat, now at the Brookings Institution, Eisen has more on what the legacy of a businessman who boasts having never held political office will mean when he's in the White House.
A presidential campaign as a personal investment When he was a candidate for the GOP presidential nomination some years ago, billionaire Steve Forbes carefully separated his personal businesses from his campaign. As New York Mayor, Michael Bloomberg followed the same practice. Donald Trump is doing what no rich White House contender has done before: freely and openly mixing business and politics. When he first announced, Trump boasted that he could make money running for president -- and he's making good on his promise. Trump's campaign has bought travel on his plane, rented his facilities, bought his steaks and paid his personal staff — all for more than $8 million. Nobody says that's illegal, but the Trump Foundation may have violated civil law by using other peoples' donations to finance Trump's personal lifestyle. We compare Trump's campaign to those of past billionaire candidates — and hear about potential conflicts of interest if he takes charge of federal policies.
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.
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.
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.
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.