A recent report found that ICE was usng driver's licenses and facial recognition software to search for undocumented immigrants. To discuss, we FEATURE Deepa Iyer. As Senior Fellow at the Center for Social Inclusion, Iyer provides analysis, commentary and scholarship on the ways to build racial equity and solidarity in light of the rapid demographic transformation in America’s neighborhoods, schools and workplaces. She is an attorney who has worked on civil and immigrant rights issues in the non-profit and governmental sectors for 15 years. Most recently, Deepa served as Executive Director of South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT) for a decade. Media includes: The New York Times, The Guardian, Al-Jazeera America, The Nation.

President Trump gave a speech on Monday to announce that America is a world leader in environmental issues. To discuss, we FEATURE Brenda Ekwurzel. Ekwurzel works on the national climate program at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS). She is leading UCS's climate science education work aimed at strengthening support for strong federal climate legislation and sound U.S. climate policies. Media includes: USA Today, Good Morning America, Fox, CNN, ABC, NPR. 

Governor Cuomo has signed a bill that would allow congressional committees to access President Trump's state tax returns. To discuss, we FEATURE Annette Nellen. Nellen is a professor at San José State University teaching graduate-level tax courses. Her tax policy work focuses on modernizing tax systems while respecting the principles of good tax policy. Her work looks at how tax systems can be brought into the 21st century ways of living and doing business, and how doing so will better serve governments, businesses and society.

 Media includes: San Francisco Chronicle, Los Angeles Times, San Jose Business Journal, San Jose Mercury News. 

Southern California was recently hit with 6.4 and 7.1 magnitude earthquakes. Scientists are predicting an aftershock in the coming week. To discuss, we FEATURE Rossana G. Antonio. Antonio is an Assistant Deputy Director for Los Angeles County Department of Public Works, the largest department of public works in the nation. She is responsible for directing the technical design of all public infrastructure facilities including highway, flood control and bridge structures. She was selected as a geotechnical expert for the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Earthquake Investigation Team following devastating earthquakes in El Salvador. She co-authored the “Lifeline Performance of El Salvador Earthquakes of January 13 and February 13, 2001 Monograph” which assisted the government of El Salvador in the rebuilding efforts. Media includes: The Beat Radio Show, Pasadena Now 92.5 FM.     

This week, a New Orleans courtroom will be hearing a case involving the Affordable Care Act. The Republican-led case is another case that is looking to rule the ACA as unconstitutional. To discuss, we FEATURE Laura Packard. Packard is a nationally-known health care advocate and stage 4 cancer survivor. She serves as co-chair of Health Care Voter, a national campaign to hold elected officials accountable for their votes on health care, and support those who fight to protect our care. She traveled across the country to 24 states on the Protect Our Care #CareForceOne bus tour, telling her story for the last six weeks of the 2018 campaign. Media includes: US News & World Report, The Washington Post, NowThis, The Guardian, MSNBC.  

Amazon workers are going on strike on Prime Day, July 15th and 16th, to protest unfair working conditions. To discuss, we FEATURE Erica Smiley. As the co-Executive Director of Jobs With Justice, Smiley is known for developing innovative strategies to expand collective bargaining power—including strategies that position working people to negotiate directly with the corporate actors that impact all aspects of their lives. She also teaches a class on Contemporary Labor Studies at the City University of New York (CUNY) via the Joseph S. Murphy Institute. Media includes: New Labor Forum, Dissent Magazine, the Journal on Class, Race and Corporate Power.  

Iran has surpassed its limit on uranium enrichment and has announced Sunday that it will go over the limit again this week. To discuss, we FEATURE Laura S.H. Holgate. Holgate is an internationally recognized expert on nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons; nonproliferation; nuclear security; nuclear energy; global health security. She was posted as the US Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency and other UN Agencies in Vienna, Austria, from 2016-2017. She served 15 years in the US Departments of Defense and Energy and the National Security Council, designing and implementing policies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction. Media includes: The Washington Post, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Voice of America, MSNBC, Fox News, C-SPAN.