Background Briefing: August 16, 2023
Trump’s Racist Response to the Latest Indictments is to Call Black Judges, Prosecutors and Election Workers “RIGGERS”
We begin with Trump’s racist response to his latest indictments aiming his dog whistles at the black prosecutors and judges accusing and trying him; Judge Chutkin, Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, Atlanta DA Fani Willis and New York AG Leticia James. On Truth Social Trump introduced a new racial slur based on the N-word, “RIGGERS,” which he coined, and right wing media and websites are running with. Joining us from Atlanta is Andra Gillespie, a Professor of Political Science and Director of the James Weldon Johnson Institute for the Study of Race and Difference at Emory University. She teaches courses on American politics, race and politics and qualitative methodology and is the author of The New Black Politician: Cory Booker, Newark and Post-Racial America and the editor of Whose Black Politics? Cases in Post-Racial Black Leadership. Her latest book is Race and The Obama Administration: Symbols, Substance and Hope.
A Win For Young Environmentalists in Red State Montana
Then we examine a ruling by a judge in Montana in favor of 16 young people, from 5 to 22 years of age, who sued the state over a law that bars considering climate change in environmental review of energy policies. With Montana having 5,000 gas wells, 4,000 oil wells, four oil refineries and six coal mines Judge Kathy Seeley of the Montana District Court found that the amount of fossil fuels extracted, burned, processed and exported by the state, makes Montana responsible for as much carbon dioxide as is produced by Argentina, the Netherlands or Pakistan. Joining us is Michael Gerrard, a Professor of Professional Practice at Columbia Law School where he teaches courses on environmental law, climate change law, and energy regulation, and is director of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law. He also chairs the faculty of Columbia University’s Earth Institute and has written or edited thirteen books, including Global Climate Change and U.S. Law, the leading work in its field, and the 12-volume Environmental Law Practice Guide. His latest book is Legal Pathways to Deep Decarbonization in the United States and we discuss his article at MSNBC, “A deep red state just delivered a huge win for climate justice.”
Biden Celebrates the One Year Anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act
Then finally with Biden celebrating the one year anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act at the White House today we discuss “Bidenomics” with an economist Robert Hockett, who has first-hand experience working at the International Monetary Fund and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and continues to consult for a number of US federal, state and local legislators and regulators. He drafted Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s “Green New Deal” resolution for the House of Representatives and officially advises her on economic policy. The Edward Cornell Professor of Law and a Professor of Public Policy at Cornell University, his latest books are Financing the Green New Deal: A Plan of Action and Renewal, and The Citizens’ Ledger: Digitizing Our Money, Democratizing Our Finance.