To the Point
Women on the Front Lines
America's female soldiers have served on the front lines in Iraq and Afghanistan, but the law says they can’t be assigned to combat. It’s a dispute raging from the Pentagon to the Congress.
By Warren Olney • • 50m ListenAmerica's female soldiers served on the front lines in Iraq, and they're doing the same thing in Afghanistan. But the law says they cannot be assigned to combat. Does that unfairly limit their military careers? What about the guarantee of equality under the law? We hear about a dispute that's raging from the courts to the Pentagon to the Halls of Congress. Also, a new report says Countrywide used loans to win favor, and Kansas has gone from a swing state to a model of corporate-dominated conservatism.
Banner image: Army Major Ladda "Tammy" Duckworth suffered the loss of both legs when a rocket-propelled grenade penetrated her helicopter beneath her feet and exploded at her knees in Iraq. Photo by Rudi Williams
In this episode
3 storiesReport Says Countrywide Loans Used to Win Favor
Countrywide Financial, which helped create the sub-prime mortgage crisis, discounted hundreds of loans to members of Congress and officials of Fannie Mae, protecting its business and fending off regulation. That's the result of three years of investigation by a House committee chaired by Republican Darrell Issa of California.
Read the story7 minShould Women Soldiers Be Assigned to Combat?
During the Iraq war, an Army medic ran through gunfire to rescue wounded comrades, earning a Silver Star. But one rescued man said she should never even have been there. The medic was a woman, even though women are never assigned to combat.
Read the story37 minWhat's Still the Matter with Kansas?
In 2004, as his home-state politics were swinging between the moderate and conservative wings of the Republican Party, Thomas Frank wrote the book, What's the Matter with Kansas? Now, in Harper's magazine, he says former US Senator Sam Brownback "has treated his governorship as a chance to enact the entire conservative wish list all at once."
Read the story6 min
