The U.S. presidential election is coming up. To discuss, we FEATURE Erika Soto Lamb. Soto Lamb is the social impact lead at Comedy Central where she has been working to recruit poll workers to ensure that there will be a safe and fair election. In 2018, she helped launch "Should We Vote?", Comedy Central’s first electoral campaign calling on their audience to turn out to vote in the 2018 midterms. Previously, she was National Director of Strategic Communications for Democrats for Education Reform. Between 2012 and December 2017 she was the Chief Communications Officer for Everytown for Gun Safety, the largest gun violence prevention organization in the country. Media includes: The Washington Post, The New York Times, NBC News, MSNBC.
The second and final presidential debate is on Thursday. To discuss, we FEATURE Lori Cox Han. Han is Professor of Political Science at Chapman University in Orange, California. With research and teaching interests in the presidency, media and politics, women and politics, and political leadership. Han is the author of several books, including Presidents and the American Presidency, 2nd ed. (Oxford University Press, 2018); A Presidency Upstaged: The Public Leadership of George H.W. Bush (Texas A&M University Press, 2010); and Governing From Center Stage: White House Communication Strategies During the Television Age of Politics (Hampton Press, 2001). Media includes: Los Angeles Times, Orange County Register, USA Today.
COVID-19 cases have surpassed 40 million worldwide. To discuss, we FEATURE Susan Blumenthal. Blumenthal served as U.S. Assistant Surgeon General, Senior Global Health Advisor and the first Deputy Assistant Secretary of Women’s Health in the US Department of Health and Human Services and was a White House Advisor on Health. She is currently a Senior Fellow in Health Policy at the New America, Senior Policy and Medical Advisor at amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, and Chair of the Global Health Program at the Meridian International Center where her work focuses on a broad range of public health and science issues facing the nation and world. Extensive media experience.
Stimulus talks are still ongoing, with Democrats and Republicans still unable to reach a deal. To discuss, we FEATURE Joelle Gamble. Gamble is a principal with the reimagining capitalism team at Omidyar Network, where she focuses on topics related to building the power of working people and shaping a new economic paradigm. Prior to joining Omidyar Network, Gamble worked on international economic priorities at the U.S. Department of the Treasury and assisted Princeton faculty with labor economics research while pursuing her graduate degree. Media includes: The Nation, Fusion, Fox Business, NBC.
U.S. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett's Senate Judiciary Committee panel vote has been set for October 22, with the full Senate beginning its debate on the nominee on October 23. To discuss, we FEATURE Mary Kathryn Nagle. Nagle is an attorney/playwright working to restore and preserve tribal sovereignty and jurisdiction. Nagle graduated summa cum laude from Tulane Law School and subsequently clerked on both the federal district court and United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. As a Partner at Pipestem Law PC, she has filed briefs in the United States Supreme Court that advocate for safety for Native women from domestic violence and sexual assault. Media includes: The Washington Post, The New York Times, Slate, MSNBC, NPR.
The U.S. Supreme Court will be looking at a case involving the Trump administration's border and asylum policies, which will make asylum seekers remain in Mexico as they await their hearings. To discuss, we FEATURE Yesenia Chavez. Chavez, a daughter of Mexican immigrants, serves as the ACLU's Immigrants' Rights Policy Analyst within the National Political Advocacy Department. Prior to ACLU, she was the Immigrant Women's Health and Rights Policy Analyst at the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, and led the organization's immigration policy efforts against the detention of pregnant individuals, family separation, ICE & CBP funding, and the organization's campaign on the "public charge" rule. Media includes: The Atlantic, Good Morning Washington.
On Sunday, a federal judge struck down the Trump administration's attempt to end food stamp benefits for unemployed people. To discuss, we FEATURE Elise Gould. Gould is a senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute. Her research areas include wages, poverty, inequality, economic mobility and health care. She is a co-author of The State of Working America, 12th Edition. Gould authored a chapter on health in The State of Working America 2008/09; co-authored a book on health insurance coverage in retirement; and published in venues such as The Chronicle of Higher Education, Challenge Magazine, and Tax Notes. Media includes: The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, NPR.
A few weeks ago acting secretary of homeland security Chad Wolf addressed white supremacist extremists as a rising domestic terrorism threat in the U.S. To discuss, we FEATURE Nichole Argo. Argo is a Social Psychologist in the Departments of Engineering and Public Policy and Social and Decision Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University. Argo spent several years doing field work on political violence. She is one of the few experts on terrorism and political violence to have interviewed and lived with militants, and was one of the first to provide data to refute the “religion, poverty, or indoctrination” theories of terrorist motivation in 2003. Extensive media experience.
CVS will be hiring 15,000 pharmacy workers as they prepare for the collision of COVID-19 and flu season. To discuss, we FEATURE Lois Quam. Quam is the Chief Executive Director of Pathfinder International and spent 17 years at UnitedHealth Group, where she focused on serving older and low-income Americans. She was responsible for forming a relationship with AARP to provide health insurance to its' members, spearheaded UnitedHealth’s entrance into the Medicare Part D pharmacy program, strengthened the company’s clinical and care management capabilities and oversaw the formation of Ovations, a business segment devoted to serving the health needs of people over age 50. Media includes: The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Fortune, NPR.
Frank Jensen, the mayor of Denmark's capital Copenhagen, has resigned after admitting to sexually harassing multiple women. To discuss, we FEATURE Sine Plambech. Plambech is an anthropologist working on irregular migration, trafficking, sex work, and the European migration crisis. She is a researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studie’s Department of Migration, Finance & Aid and Adjunct Professor at Barnard College – Department of Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies, Columbia University. Media includes: Le Monde, Deutche Welle, iCNN, BBC.
The Justice Department has filed am antitrust lawsuit against Google, alleging that the company has abused its monopoly over search. To discuss, we FEATURE Christina Gagnier. Gagnier leads the Intellectual Property, Internet & Technology practice at Gagnier Margossian LLP, with a specialization in copyright, information privacy and social media. Gagnier consults technology companies on policy issues ranging from patent law reform to communications issues, such as Network Neutrality. Gagnier’s primary research concerns issues of cyber rights and the intersection of on and offline action. Media includes: The Atlantic, Politico, Ars Technica, Inc.com, The New York Times, MSNBC, NBC.