RE: Patt Morrison for Monday, March 26, 2012

PATT MORRISON SCHEDULE

Monday, March 26, 2012

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 – 1:39

The Affordable Care Act turns two in court
The Obama administration goes to trial today [Monday] in front of the Supreme Court to defend its Affordable Care Act, which – beginning in 2014 – will require that every individual purchase health insurance. 26 states, plus the National Federation of Independent Business, have challenged the Act, claiming that it “exceeds Congress’ power to regulate interstate commerce.” Arguments are slated to last three days, with Monday’s hearing centered on whether it is valid for the Court to rule on the individual insurance mandate before it has gone into effect. Whether the mandate is constitutional, whether the rest of the law can stand without the mandate, and whether the possible expansion of Medicaid coverage is legal will be argued on Tuesday and Wednesday. Decisions will not be announced until later this summer, if not early fall. Conventional opinion is that the Supreme Court will rule against the Act along partisan lines (Republican appointees hold a 5-4 majority), but critics have also pointed out that multiple conservative judges in the lower courts have upheld the bill. Their argument has been that “most people will eventually enter or affect the insurance market,” which does give Congress the right to regulate. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Anthony Kennedy, both Republican appointees, have also been singled out for past decisions that indicate they could be persuaded by the Obama administration’s argument.

GUESTS NOT CONFIRMED:

Joan Biskupic, has covered the Supreme Court since 1989, as a reporter for The Washington Post, USA Today PBS's Washington Week, and now Reuters; she is also the author of "American Original: The Life and Constitution of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia" and "Sandra Day O'Connor: How the First Woman on the Supreme Court Became Its Most Influential Justice"

 

Jonathan Gruber, professor of economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and director of the National Bureau of Economic Research’s Program on Health Care; he was a paid consultant to both the Romney and Obama Administrations on health care reform, he helped craft Massachusetts’s universal healthcare law

 

MANDATE IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL

Ilya Somin, associate professor of Law and editor, Supreme Court Economic Review at

George Mason University School of Law

 

MANDATE IS CONSTITUTIONAL

Vikram Amar, associate dean for Academic Affairs, professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law

 

 

1:41:30 – 1:58:30 OPEN

 

2:06 – 2:30

 “Bully” provides an intimate look at lives of youth
It seems that one hears about a tragic case of bullying on the news all too often these days. Anyone who has been bullied can understand the anxiety felt by the children at the center of the documentary “Bully.” Filmmaker Lee Hirsch follows five families affected by bullying and takes a look at the impact it has on their lives. The documentary made headlines when Katy Butler, a 17-year-old high school junior in Michigan started a petition to pressure the MPAA to change the film’s R-rating to PG-13 so more could see and discuss the film. Hollywood celebrities such as Meryl Strep, Katie Couric and Johnny Depp have joined the teen in lobbying the MPAA to revise the rating.

Guest:
Lee Hirsch, director, writer, producer, cinematographer, “Bully”

2:30 – 2:58:30 OPEN