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Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research
Pollster and longtime democratic strategist and author most recently of American Ascendant: A Revolutionary Nation's Path to Addressing Its Deepest Problems and Leading the 21st Century
PROFILE
Stan Greenberg
Guest
FROM Stan Greenberg
To the Point
The Democrats in Philadelphia: Looking for Brotherly Love Bernie Sanders will address the convention tonight, along with Michelle Obama and Elizabeth Warren. But even before tonight's opening session, the Democratic Convention has seen its first casualty. National Committee Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz took the fall for some 20,000 leaked emails showing some staff members favored Hillary Clinton and wanted to sabotage Bernie Sanders.
To the Point
Is Clinton's Absolution Republican Ammunition? The FBI investigation into Hillary Clinton’s handling of classified emails while Secretary of State officially ended Tuesday, but the aftershocks for the presumptive Democratic candidate continue. FBI Director James Comey cleared Clinton of criminal wrongdoing, but he also handed the Trump campaign a ready-made attack ad by scolding Clinton and her staff for handling sensitive information with “extreme carelessness.” Today Comey went before lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
To the Point
South Africans Mourn the Death, Celebrate the Life of Nelson Mandela Since he died yesterday at the age of 95, much of the world has been mourning Nelson Mandela , South Africa's first black president. Despite 27 years of brutal imprisonment as a suspected "terrorist," he is remembered as the father-figure who liberated a black majority from oppressive white rule and became a champion of racial reconciliation. But, the history is more complicated than that. We hear different opinions about the man and his legacy.
To the Point
Sizing Up Obama's Second Term High ratings in public opinion polls helped President Obama weather financial crises, withstand relentless Republican opposition and win re-election. Now, his ratings are dropping. The disastrous roll-out of healthcare.gov and his own misleading promise that people who liked their health insurance policies could keep them when the Affordable Care Act was implemented are obvious reasons. Critics see inexperience and bad management. Even supporters – including more than a dozen Democratic Senators who spent two hours with the President this week venting frustrations -- say he's failed to communicate well with the public. Two of them complained in public about "a crisis of confidence." Does the President have time to restore his image and pursue his agenda before being overtaken by the inevitable "lame duck" status of a second term?
To the Point
Can Barack Obama Top Bill Clinton? For almost an hour, former President Bill Clinton had the delegates on their feet last night, mixing details about policy with warnings about a potential Republican victory. It was vintage Clinton — blistering Mitt Romney 's Republicans at the same time he was advocating cooperation. Even when he got wonkish, it was clear that both the audience and Clinton were having fun. Reporters, commentators and delegates all agree that he'll be a tough act to follow. We hear excerpts, informed analysis and predictions of what to expect tonight when the nominee for re-election finally takes the stage. We also ask delegates from several states to describe the convention experience. To the Point is broadcasting live from the Democratic convention all week. You can find extended interviews, pictures and more at KCRW.org/election2012 .
Which Way, L.A.?
Will Super Tuesday Settle the Question? Mitt Romney won the presidential caucuses Saturday in Washington State, but no delegates were picked for this summer's convention. Tomorrow, more delegates will be chosen than in all the previous primaries and caucuses combined.
To the Point
Will Super Tuesday Settle the Question? Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is at the White House today, talking with President Obama about possible war with Iran. Meantime, Republican Presidential candidates are preparing to face off in ten states on Super Tuesday tomorrow. Mitt Romney won the presidential caucuses Saturday in Washington State, but no delegates were picked for this summer's convention. Tomorrow, more delegates will be chosen than in all the previous primaries and caucuses combined. Some top party leaders are falling in line behind Romney, before it's too late to bring the party together. Is it a bad year for Rick Santorum 's social issues? Is it time to focus on the economy? With Obama's poll ratings on the rise, does history suggest that the GOP has a better shot at controlling the Senate than winning the White House?
To the Point
Democrats, Republicans and 'The Mother of All Tax Reform' Polls show Americans believe that President Bush's tax cuts helped the rich at the expense of the middle class. Will Congress do something about it? Last week, led by Democrats, the House Ways and Means Committee approved a $76 billion measure to stop the growth of the alternative minimum tax and provide tax breaks for middle-class homeowners and poor parents. It would be paid for with tax increases on business executives and Wall Street financiers. Those sound like the kind of changes American voters are hoping for, but tax reform and election-year politics don't always mix. Even Democratic consultants warn that it's risky to mess with taxes in an election year. Voters are fickle and campaigns have to be paid for. How will Democrats choose between their votes and their contributors? Will tax reform have traction in the presidential campaign?
Recommended
To the Point
Trump's 'America First' goes missing abroad In the Middle East, President Trump is changing some policies of the Obama Administration—and reversing his own campaign attacks on Islam as a religion that "hates us." We hear about his visit to Saudi Arabia and what's at stake for the rest of his foreign excursion.
To the Point
Terrorism and tweets, hate speech and murder Just days before an election, Britain is coping with a rash of deadly terrorism, and Prime Minister Theresa May is on the defensive. And again today, President Trump has tweeted criticism of the Mayor of London. Later, a double murder in Portland, Oregon has revealed the ugly past of a supposedly “progressive” city. One immediate question: is “hate speech” protected by the First Amendment?
Left, Right & Center
How was the trip? President Trump's travels got less fun as he went from the Middle East to Europe.
To the Point
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.