Patt Morrison for Friday, April 16, 2010

PATT MORRISON SCHEDULE

Friday, April 16, 2010

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 – 1:19

OPEN

 

 

1:21 – 1:39

Drug-fueled foreign policy: how narcotics battles shape American diplomacy

From the streets of Ciudad Juarez to the poppy fields of Afghanistan, one of the biggest factors driving the foreign policy of the United States is illegal narcotics, from where it’s grown to how it’s transported and who is profiting from its eventual sale.  In Afghanistan, 2009 was yet another record year in the production of poppies, which are turned into heroin and opium and help to fund the Taliban’s insurgency—there are rampant rumors of Afghan government officials who also profit off the heroin trade, while various interdiction efforts on the part of U.S. forces have failed to make a dent in the amount of poppies being grown.  Closer to home, Mexico continues to battle aggressive drug cartels and in a perverse irony, both the Mexican government and the cartels themselves are deeply dependent on the United States; the former on U.S. law enforcement aid, the latter on American guns and drug users.  How are drug wars fueling America’s foreign policy?

 

Guest:

William McGlynn, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics & Law Enforcement Affairs

IN STUDIO

Backup:  Drew Bailey, 202-647-3455

 

 

 

1:41 – 1:58:30

Are California legislators really ready to go bipartisan on the budget process?

The California State Assembly has apparently put their partisanship behind them to introduce a new package of reforms to help the Golden State move forward. The package includes measures that would amend the state constitution to call for a simple majority vote to pass a budget, among other provisions to stabilize state finances. There will also be reforms aimed at enhancing public oversight and reducing the number of bills introduced each year. The Assembly calls it bipartisan, but how cooperative will opposing party members be when the reforms actually take effect? Patt talks to assemblymen on opposite sides of the aisle about the new proposals and their outlook for success.

 

Guests:

Assemblyman Mike Feuer, D-42^nd District, which covers areas of Los Angeles and Beverly Hills

CALL HIM:  310-285-5490, backup 310-367-9558-mobile

Contact:  Susan and Arianna Smith arianna.smith@asm.ca.gov

phone 916.319.2042-O, 916-505-2571-Arianna’s mobile

 

NOT CONFIRMED:

Kevin Jeffries, R – 66^th District, which includes the Temecula and Lake Elsinore area.  He is a member of the Assembly Budget Committee and was in the hearings on this issue yesterday.

Contact: Andrew Shedrock  916-319-2242,  916-319-2066-main O,  Andrew.shedrock@asm.ca.gov

 

 

2:06 – 2:19

Death Penalty update in California

California hasn’t put a prisoner to death in four years, since a judge ruled the state’s three-drug method of lethal injection posed an unconstitutional infliction of cruel and unusual punishment.  In 2007, Governor Schwarzenegger named a special panel to rewrite the procedures behind closed doors, which was ultimately ruled illegal. Since then, corrections officials have sought the public’s input and rewritten the protocols.  They released their proposal in January, which began the process of finding a constitutional means of execution. Citing cost and state deficit, the anti-death penalty group “Death Penalty Focus,” is preparing to celebrate its 19th anniversary.  Among honorees will be actor Alec Baldwin who has been a major supporter of Death Penalty Focus.  Patt talks to Alec about his views and why he’s campaigned for the cause.

 

Guests:

NOT CONFIRMED:

Alec Baldwin, Emmy Award Winning Actor and Academy Award Nominee. He is a long-time supporter of Death Penalty Focus

• Alec Baldwin will be awarded the Justice in the Arts Award by “Death Penalty Focus” next Wednesday, April 21

NOT CONFIRMED:

Kent Scheidegger, Legal Director & General Counsel for the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation

CALL HIM @ 916-446-0345

PATT: He is pro-death penalty and believes the current lethal injection standards are humane

 

 

2:21 – 2:39

OPEN

 

 

2:41 – 2:58:30

Ian McEwan goes “Solar”

Novelist Ian McEwan likes to tell tales of disturbed and disturbing personalities and events.  The main character in his new novel, “Solar,” fills that bill and then some. Through Michael Beard, the best-selling author of “Atonement” explores the quest of one overweight and philandering Nobel prize-winning physicist to save the world from environmental disaster.  McEwan uses the comical portrayal of an accomplished and vice-ridden scientist as a metaphor for how difficult it is for lazy, self-centered human beings to change their behavior to reverse global warming.  Inspired by a trip to the Arctic, geared at getting artists and scientists to think about climate change, McEwan offers up this meditation on global warming and social contract in total collapse.  In the hands of McEwan, the result is a comedy of human nature rather than a preachy diatribe.

 

Guests:

Ian McEwan, bestselling author of thirteen books, including the novels “On Chesil Beach,” “Saturday,” and “Atonement.” He is winner of the National Books Critics Circle Award, the W.H. Smith Literary Award, the Booker Prize and the Somerset Maugham Award. His latest book is “Solar”

ON TAPE

 

 

Jonathan Serviss

Producer, Patt Morrison Program

Southern California Public Radio

NPR Affiliate for Los Angeles

89.3 KPCC-FM | 89.1 KUOR-FM | 90.3 KPCV-FM

626.583.5171, office

415.497.2131, mobile

jserviss@kpcc.org / jserviss@scpr.org

www.scpr.org