 Hosted by Warren Olney, "To the Point" is a fast-paced, news based one-hour daily national program that focuses on the hot-button issues of the day, co-produced by KCRW and Public Radio International.Primary Format :
Language :
Also Listed as:
City : State/Province : Country : Region : User Tags:
User Votes:
RSS Feed Website
People found this Podcast
Searching for:
View this Podcast on a Google Map. 

Text Only listing of KCRW's To The Point Podcasts
Methings.com listings of KCRW's To The Point Podcasts
If you like this podcast, you might also like:
|
Is Gun Control Dead? Gun violence has made recent headlines ? most conspicuously in Tucson, and in other cities as well. But there's no new debate about restrictions on deadly weapons. We talk about gun rights, victims' rights and increased concerns about the intrusive powers of government. Also, President Obama taps GE's CEO to chair his new jobs panel, and the Navy's treatment of a soldier accused of passing secrets to WikiLeaks.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website What Next for Efforts to Repeal Healthcare?Healthcare reform is front and center again on Capitol Hill with big-time political risks for both Democrats and Republicans. We look at Republican efforts to repeal the President's healthcare reform. Also, President Hu of China meets with Congressional leaders, and Michelle Obama, Walmart, and healthy foods.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Cyber Attack Reportedly Slows Iran's Nuclear ProgramThe New York Times reports that the US and Israel tested equipment just like that in Iran's nuclear program, which was partly disabled by the Stuxnet computer virus. Is Stuxnet the future of cyberwarfare? What are the risks of blowback and the immediate consequences for renewed talks with Iran? Also, House Speaker John Boehner has turned down his invitation to tonight's state dinner.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Tunisia Uprising and the Arab WorldThe rulers of the Arab world are watching and so are their subjects, as an unprecedented revolution plays itself out in Tunisia. We get the latest. Also, "Baby Doc" Duvalier is taken into custody in Haiti, and the battle over health reform begins again in the Congress.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The US and China: Face to Face at the White HouseAs President Hu Jintaou arrives tomorrow for a White House visit, the US and China are being compared to two aircraft carriers that can only be moved from the very top. We hear how both countries have been preparing. Can personal connections resolve the increased tensions of recent years? Also, "Baby Doc" Duvalier returns to Haiti, and Martin Luther King, Jr., then and now.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The Supreme Court and the Bankrupt: Is Debt the American Way?US consumers scaled back in the first years of the Great Recession, but now they're buying again and getting extended credit. Are the laws written to encourage debt? Are Americans born to shop, even when they can't afford to? Also, Tunisia's president flees the country amid mounting protest, and John Paul II on a fast track to sainthood.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The President's Speech and the Politics of TragedyPresident Obama delivered an emotional tribute last night to the victims of Saturday's shooting in Tucson. Will he succeed in changing the tone of America's public discourse? Also, the rising foreclosure rate, and a new look at Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The State of Mental Healthcare in AmericaMentally ill people may threaten violence. Most never come through. But should laws protecting their privacy and their freedom be changed, just in case? Would that mean treating sick people like criminals before they've done anything wrong? Also, the first anniversary of Haiti's earthquake.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Guns and Politics in ArizonaIn the aftermath of Saturday's shooting, Arizona is a state divided. Should gun laws be strengthened or made more permissive? Have the economy and illegal immigration created a "toxic atmosphere" for political dialogue? Also, the Presidents oil spill panel recommends tighter rules, and Verizon gets the iPhone.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Shooting Rampage in TucsonThere's been no change in the condition of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, two days after she was shot while conducting a townhall on Saturday. Doctors in Tucson say that's good news. In Washington, Congress has suspended business for this week, including the vote on repealing the President's healthcare reform. But in print, on TV and on the Internet, debate rages over what led to a shooting rampage that killed six, including a 9-year old girl, and wounded 18 others. Did vitriolic politic ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Reading the US Constitution, Then and NowRepublicans now controlling the House claim the Constitution demands reductions in the size of government. Is America?s founding document all that clear? We get a variety of opinions reflecting how open it is to different interpretations. Also, Obama's economic team and unemployment, and "citizen scientists" outclass computers.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Is There Such a Thing as Internet Privacy?Tracking consumers on the Internet and selling detailed profiles is a $400 million business expected to double this year. Advertisers have real-time access to whatever you're doing on-line. Will new privacy laws be needed to restore consumers' confidence? Is there any good news about this kind of intrusion? Also, a historic reading of the Constitution in the Congress, and shake-ups at the White House.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The New Congress, the Deficit and the PentagonThe new House majority wants to reduce federal spending, and every commission on the deficit has called for cuts in the Pentagon. So, why are they off the table? How much could be saved without endangering national security? Also, Mark Twain and the "N" word.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Republicans in the House: A New Era on Capitol HillTomorrow's Republican takeover of Congress will be heavy with symbols appealing to Tea Party stalwarts and other enemies of "Big Government." We hear about the strategy, the agenda and the prospects for Democrats to fight back. Also, the Governor of Pakistan's Punjab Province is assassinated, and an innocent man is exonerated after 30 years in a Texas prison.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Economic Stimulus: The Promise and the RealityIn two years, President Obama's stimulus package has not produced the infrastructure projects many people expected. Is that what it was really designed to do? We hear from two state "stimulus watchdogs" and others. Also, Goldman Sachs friends Facebook, and cold weather and global warming.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Israel's Building Could Derail Peace TalksIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been talking tough about settlements in East Jerusalem and a US threat of military action over Iran's nuclear program. Have last week's midterm elections changed the diplomatic dynamic for President Obama? Also, Iraq's government impasse is broken, and the US national debt and public sacrifice.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Judicial Independence, Elections and Provocative RulingsDifferent states select their judges in different ways, including appointment and a variety of election systems. When three Supreme Court justices were rejected last week, the decision of Iowa voters was celebrated as a rebuke of judicial overreach and decried as a threat to judicial independence. We hear about same-sex marriage and judicial selection. Also, GM posts largest quarterly profit in 11 years, and how America's top achievers in math compare to the rest of the world.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Climate Change: Politics versus Science of Global WarmingAfter last week's elections, Karl Rove told a conference of shale-gas developers not to worry about efforts to limit greenhouse pollution. Fifty-percent of new Republicans in the Congress are climate-change skeptics. We look into what that could mean. Also, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu pushes new settlements, threatening peace talks. On Reporter's Notebook, will Charlie Crist make rock ?n roll history?Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Obama Foreign Policy and the New CongressBarack Obama's election was celebrated in Europe, and he opened his hand to Russia ? even Iran. What has he accomplished so far? What new obstacles will he face from empowered Republicans? Also, the President endorses a Security Council seat for India, and "the decider" reflects on his decisions.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Can Barack Obama Enrich Ties with India?When President Obama arrives in India, he?ll find a country growing four times faster than the US and relishing its new role as an international competitor. We look at the challenges and possible benefits of his visit to Mumbai and Delhi. Also, the US economy adds jobs in October, and the $1,000 genome and "personalized medicine."Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The Lame Duck Congress and the Republican AgendaRepublicans claim a mandate to cut spending, but which programs do this week's voters want sacrificed? The GOP will be in control of the House, and the Senate Minority Leader wants Barack Obama to be a one-term president. Will the White House be looking for compromise? Also, stock investors love the Fed's big bond buy, and Florida's rising Republican star.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Voters Choose Divided GovernmentPresident Obama now faces a divided Congress, with Republicans taking over the House and Democrats barely holding on to the Senate. We talk about what happened yesterday and what it might mean for the future. Also, California goes in a different direction.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Anticipating Al Qaeda's Next Bomb PlotIntelligence agencies are revealing more about the plot to send package bombs to Chicago. We hear about a possible dry run in September, about al Qaeda in Yemen and about the threat to worldwide shipments of air cargo. Also, the ugly campaigns and angry voters of 2010 midterm elections. On Reporter's Notebook, Iran, nuclear talks and international sanctions.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Election Preview around the CountryRepublicans are looking to takeover Congress tomorrow and possibly even the Senate. We hear about major races from Pennsylvania to Florida to Nevada and California. Also, the latest on the cargo plane bomb plot.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The 2010 Election Season Was 'Barely True'With the US facing two wars and a flagging economy, are this year?s midterm campaigns facing facts or creating mythologies? Are the media doing their job of keeping politicians honest? Also, the FBI searches UPS planes for suspicious packages, and Google--beyond the Internet.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The Tea Parties and the CongressTea Partiers don't like either political party, but their candidates are Republicans as a matter of political reality. Not many are expected to make it to Capitol Hill, but could they have influence beyond their numbers? Also, poor oversight of billions in Afghan reconstruction funds, and the President and the comedian.>Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website An Age of Austerity: Can It Happen Here?Global economic realities are leading to big changes in the welfare states of Europe. Will the US see an Age of Austerity after next week's elections? Also, Indonesia devastated by a double whammy of both a tsunami and volcano. On Reporter's notebook, dozens of animal species face the threat of extinction worldwide, as decades-old promises of significant action are not being met.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Does WikiLeaks Cause Damage by Shedding Light?WikiLeaks has caused another international sensation by releasing classified documents about the Iraq war. We ask what we know now that we didn't know before. Are WikiLeaks and its whistle-blowers a curse or a blessing? Also, Iran begins to fuel its nuclear reactor, and new revelations about BP.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website California Votes on Legalizing MarijuanaWill California be the first state to legalize pot? Will the Obama Administration reverse the will of the voters? Win or lose, what will Proposition 19 mean for the rest of the country? Also, WikiLeaks releases nearly 400,000 secret documents from the Iraq War, and a preview of a very unlikely world series.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' in Legal LimboWhile the courts and Congress decide what to do about "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the Pentagon says it's trying to clear up the confusion. Has it created even more? Also, French police push back against protestors. On Reporter's Notebook, is it the end of the high-tech fence on the Mexican Border?Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Much at Stake in 2010 Governors' RacesThis year's campaigns for Governor range from most expensive to the most ridiculous. We get a representative sample and hear how important state governors can be nationwide. Also, Also, the $60 billion US-Saudi arms deal, and what cutting government really means.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Germany Reignites Debate on Multiculturalism, IntegrationTurkish immigrants and national identity in Angela Merkel?s Germany. Also, one-quarter of ballots are nullified for fraud in Afghan elections, and Don't Ask, Don't Tell in legal limbo ? and so are potential recruits.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Fast-Growing China: A New Crop of Leaders, New Five Year PlanFar from threatening to overtake the US anytime soon, China is wrestling with major problems that threaten internal stability. We hear what new leadership and the latest five-year plan could mean for China itself and its relations with the rest of the world. Also, Bank of America thaws frozen foreclosures, and Insurance companies and healthcare reform.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website America's Anti-China SyndromeIn November election campaigns, both parties are blaming China ? in different ways -- for America's declining economy. Would new policies make a difference? Is it time for a trade war or is the US responsible for its own problems? Also, protests heat up in France over pension reform, and an update on Chile and its trapped miners.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website School Reform: Politics and the MoviesAn advocate of the President's Race to the Top has lost her job in the City of Washington. What's the impact on school reform based on teacher accountability? Also, a dispiriting draw in the Nevada Senate debate.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Robo-Signers, Foreclosures and the Battered Housing MarketMassive foreclosure fraud threatens economic recovery, and it?s exposed a disturbing question: who really owns the mortgage on your home? Also, talking with the Taliban, and a surprising call for press freedom in China.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The Oil Spill, the President and Public PerceptionFive weeks after the Deepwater Horizon explosion, President Obama interrupted his Chicago homecoming today for his second trip to Louisiana. He picked up tar balls on beaches, drove past sign-waving residents and met with a who?s who of local and regional officials. We hear what he had to say.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website President Obama on Oil in the Gulf; Gays in the MilitaryAs scientists concluded today that the Gulf oil spill is the worst in the nation?s history, President Obama spoke to reporters who asked him again and again if federal response has been too little, too late. We have more on his news conference and a progress report on "Top Kill." Also, the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" compromise on Capitol Hill.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Will 'Top Kill' Prevent a Disaster from Getting Worse?President Obama will announce new deep-sea oil regulations tomorrow, and Friday he'll visit the Gulf coast for the second time since the spill. Will BP finally have plugged the oil gusher? We get a progress report today on what's called ?Top Kill.? Also, retiring the Space Shuttle Atlantis. On Reporter's Notebook, why are 1200 National Guard troops are on their way to the Mexican border?Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Is Synthetic Biology about to Make Life in a Laboratory?A renowned geneticist claims a major advance toward creating life in a laboratory. We look at the possible benefits and drawbacks, as well as ethical and religious questions raised by "synthetic biology." Also, stocks dive on financial and political worries, and South Africa and the World Cup.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Defense Spending, Military Needs and the Federal DeficitDefense Secretary Robert Gates has advised President Obama to veto spending for projects the Pentagon doesn't want. But Gate's own proposals mean the Defense Budget might not decline after all. Are tough questions about the growing deficit going unanswered? Also, South Korea seeks UN Action against Pyongyang, and Facebook, sharing and privacy.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The Gulf Oil Spill: Pollution and PoliticsAs thick ooze begins to wash up on the Gulf coast, tensions are rising between BP, the Obama Administration and independent scientists. What?s in store for marine life, human health - and regulatory authority? Majority Leader Harry Reid says the Senate?s finance reform means, ?the joyride on Wall Street will come to a screeching halt.? Will the House go along? And, with jittery investors looking on worldwide, Germany today agreed to spend almost a trillion dollars to bailout the rest of ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Drug Violence, Illegal Immigration and the President of MexicoBrown oozed has begun to show in marsh grass on the coast of Louisiana, and part of the oil slick has entered the ?loop current,? which could take it around Florida and up the East Coast. Felipe Calderon got a standing ovation today from a joint session of Congress when he pledged to continue his all out war against violent drug cartels, however critics say his actions could be counterproductive. Also, another major art theft in Europe.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The Votes Are In. Now It?s Time for the Spin.President Obama called Arizona?s immigration law ?misdirected,? and said it?s the federal government?sresponsibility to pass what he calls ?comprehensive immigration reform. Also, did Tea Partiers in Kentucky send a message to Republican Party leaders in Washington? Did President Obama get a slap from organized labor in Arkansas? Did Democrats in Pennsylvania demonstrate more strength than expected?at the same time showing a preference for new blood as opposed to the old? And on Reporter' ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Will the Senate Get Tough on Finance Reform?After the House passed finance reform last year, it was widely assumed that the Senate would produce a kinder and gentler measure. But, think again. Incumbents of both parties are facing tough challenges in this election year, and Goldman Sachs has been charged with consumer fraud. Also, We'll talk about the the US Supreme Court and justice for juveniles.Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website Fear and Loathing as Well as Praise for ArizonaBP has been able to siphon up some of the crude oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico. Arizona has stirred a political hornets? nest with its new law against illegal immigration. Over the weekend, Sarah Palin gave the new law her blessing. Meanwhile, has Iran found a solution to its nuclear standoff with Western nations - or only another tactic aimed at derailing new sanctions?Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website A Supreme Court Without a WASP: Good or Bad for American Values?If Elena Kagan?s nomination is confirmed, it?ll be the first time in history there?s no white, Anglo-Saxon protestant on the US Supreme Court. There will be 6 Catholics and 3 Jews and nobody who did not go to law school at Harvard or Yale. Do religious background and education determine how a judge sees the law? What about ideology, legal philosophy?and sexual orientation? Does the high court?s changing makeup mark the end of white, Anglo-Saxon protestant domination of a country founded by ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website The Gulf Oil Spill and Climate Change in an Election YearBecause of the Gulf oil spill, polls show increased support for climate change legislation among American voters. But Senate Republican leaders say they?ll oppose a compromise measure unveiled yesterday by Democrat John Kerry and Independent Joe Lieberman. The bill would provide incentives for offshore oil exploration?while also allowing states to veto drilling in the waters of neighboring states. What else would it do? We?ll hear more today about nuclear power, so-called ?clean coal? and ... Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | View full cache | Visit Website President Karzai Comes to WashingtonAfter a campaign of tough love that appeared to go nowhere, President Obama has turned on the charm for Afghan President Hamid Karzai. Has this visit produced a plan for what happens next? Also, a House committee in Washington probed the cause of the Gulf oil spill, a new containment box was lowered over the gusher 5000 feet down. And, a day after cobbling together an unlikely coalition, Britain?s new Prime Minister pledges ?a government that will last.? How long?Listen | Listen in your iPhone | Download | |