former staffer, White House Office of Policy Development
Director of Budget and Entitlement Policy at the Institute for Policy Innovation and general counsel for the American Civil Rights Union; staffer in the White House Office of Policy Development under President Reagan and as Associate Deputy Attorney General in the Justice Department under President George H. W. Bush
Does Bipartisanship Really Matter? President Obama ended his first full week in office with an appeal to America's Middle Class, appointing a task force to be headed by Vice President Biden. Will that appeal to Republicans around the country and set their Congressional leaders off stride? House members gave Obama a warm welcome on Capitol Hill, but not a single vote for his stimulus package . Will bipartisanship raise its head in the Senate? Some Democrats are complaining that the President's made too many concessions, especially on tax cuts, when GOP help isn't needed to pass a bill. We get an early progress report on emerging strategies and the prospect for action with new blood in the White House.
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.
Is the threat from Russia missing from the Russia meddling probe? There's much being made about the Trump administration's possible ties with Russia. But the bottom line is Russia's effort to influence American democracy. Do the President and his aides care enough to take action before voters go back to the polls?
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.
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.