Race and Identity Politics in Trump’s 2020 Bid
This week, President Trump continued to try to crack down on immigration at the border by announcing a new asylum policy that stands to leave thousands of refugees in limbo. He also escalated his racist attacks on four Democratic members of Congress, all women of color, whom he had earlier told to “go back” to their countries despite three of them being born in the U.S. In response to that rhetoric, the House voted Tuesday along party lines to condemn the president’s remarks as racist. The controversy has also revealed an increasing reliance on the use of race, immigration and questions over national loyalty by President Trump ahead of the 2020 presidential contest.
Guests:
- Melanie Mason, political reporter, L.A. Times
- Tim Miller, GOP consultant and senior contributor, The Bulwark
Police Use of Force
The Department of Justice this week declined to pursue federal charges against a police officer involved in the death of Eric Garner, an African American man who died during an attempted arrest by police on Staten Island in 2014. Bystander video of the fatal police encounter galvanized the Black Lives Matter movement and its ongoing efforts to highlight the use of excessive force by law enforcement. In California, lawmakers are nearing passage of a bill that could create some of the strictest standards in the nation governing the use of deadly force, as new reports of police misconduct continue to come to light through a new law that took effect Jan. 1. SB 1421 requires law enforcement agencies to release some records of misconduct by officers in response to requests that have been filed by media organizations and victims’ families.
Guests:
- Alex Emslie, criminal justice editor, KQED News
- Sukey Lewis, criminal justice reporter, KQED News
Chevron Oil Spill