Chief Political Correspondent for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
<a href="http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/insider/baxter.html" target="_blank">Chief Political Correspondent</a> for the <a href="http://www.ajc.com" target="_blank">Atlanta Journal-Constitution</a>
National Issues and Local Elections Absentee ballots already are being cast, but most voting won't happen until Tuesday. With less than a week before the mid-term elections, the war in Iraq means big trouble for Republicans, according to nationwide polls. But control of the next Congress will depend on local voting for Senate seats in 33 states and for House seats in 435 different districts. Many races are so close that control of the Congress and Senate could depend on some last-minute development nobody's thought of before. Despite dwindling support nationwide, can President Bush still make a difference? Are the candidates addressing the issues their constituents want to hear about most? What are prospective voters seeing on TV? We take a look at some cliff-hangers around the country to see how local issues and circumstances might impact the outcome.
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.
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?
President Trump: US to withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord Trump says he was elected to serve Pittsburgh, not Paris.
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.