Patt Morrison for Thursday, 10/15/09

PATT MORRISON SCHEDULE

Thursday, October 15, 2009

1-3 p.m.

 

CALL-IN @ 866-893-5722, 866-893-KPCC; OR JOIN THE CONVERSATION ONLINE ON THE PATT MORRISON BLOG AT KPCC-DOT-ORG

 

 

1:06 – 1:30

OPEN

 

 

1:30 – 1:58:30

DA Kamala Harris: Smart on Crime

As San Francisco’s first female district attorney, and the first African American woman in California to hold the DA office, Kamala Harris is used to be a trailblazer.  By opposing the death penalty and taking a more lenient stance on illegal immigration, she is also no stranger to controversy.  Her book “Smart on Crime” argues to reverse many traditional crime-fighting tools that have failed to keep more people out of jail, and to keep record high recidivism rates down.  As a candidate for California’s Attorney General, can Kamala Harris carry the “smart on crime” philosophy to Sacramento?

 

Guests:

Kamala Harris, San Francisco District Attorney; author of “Smart on Crime:  A Career Prosecutor’s Plan to Make us Safer”

IN STUDIO

 

2:06 – 2:30

Agribusiness’s beef with Michael Pollan, plus a side of academic freedom?

Harris Ranch Beef Co. chairman David E. Wood pledged $150,000 for a new meat processing plant on Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s campus, but threatened to “rethink” his “continued financial support” after the university booked a lecture by sustainable food guru Michael Pollan, which took place today. Wood’s also unhappy about an animal science professor who called conventional feedlots (like Harris Ranch) unsustainable. Pollan still spoke—albeit as part of a panel—and the money remains pledged, but how do universities navigate academic freedom in tight financial times?

 

Guests:

David Wehner (WAY-ner), dean at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

 

Robert C. Post, dean and Sol & Lilliam Goldman professor of law, Yale Law School; he was instrumental in crafting

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2:30 – 2:39

Welcome to the U.S.—now press here, firmly

Losing track of foreign visitors in the U.S. isn’t a new issue—last year alone 2.9 million visitors on temporary visas checked into the country but never left.  After 9/11 keeping tabs on these foreign visa holders took on a new urgency, as was proven last month by the young Jordanian man arrested trying to blow up a high-rise in Dallas, who had overstayed his visa.  Now there’s a proposal to fingerprint foreign visitors when they arrive and leave the U.S.—will that help track them?

 

Guest:

Rep. Jane Harman, D-36^th Congressional District; chair of the House Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing & Terrorism Risk Assessment

SHE CALLS US

 

 

2:41 – 2:58:30

Can the US economy recover without the buying power of the American worker?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics is reporting that the weekly regular pay for production and non supervisory workers has been in decline for an unprecedented ten consecutive months. Yet despite those numbers, retail sales fell less than projected last month.  Will Americans be able to spend their way out of the recession or will continued job losses and pay cuts stymie recovery?

 

Guest:

Sylvia Allegretto, Economist, University California, Berkeley

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