March 24th, 2017

“[Trump] dubbed it, “America First,” which terrifying when you think about all the things will now be last, from protecting our environment to protecting our safety.”

– Lisa Gilbert, vice president of legislative affairs with Public Citizen, and chair of the Clean Budget Coalition, on the Trump administration’s proposed “slash-and-burn” budget for fiscal year 2018

Listen to the entire program using these links, or to individual interviews via the links appearing prior to each segment description below.

MP3 64 kb/s HQ broadcast quality podcast Podcast

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Trump’s Proposed Slash and Burn Budget Hurts the Vulnerable Most

MP3 Interview with Lisa Gilbert, vice president of legislative affairs with Public Citizen, and chair of the Clean Budget Coalition, conducted by Scott Harris
budget
President Donald Trump’s first formal budget proposal to Congress, unveiled on March 16, is one of the most extreme of any president in recent history. The White House proposal, dubbed the “America First” budget, increases defense spending by $54 billion and offsets increased funding of the military with reductions to non-defense spending, including deep cuts for education, environmental protection, health and human services and foreign aid. The proposed budget appears to follow a philosophy laid out by Trump’s chief strategist, white nationalist Steve Bannon, who declared that the new administration is in a battle to “deconstruct the administrative state.” Story continues
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Voice of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline Protest

MP3 Excerpts of rally speeches by anti-pipeline activists Ericka Faircloth, Valerie Williams and Marvin Winstead, recorded and produced by Melinda Tuhus
pipeline
A group of anti-pipeline activists just completed a 15-day, 200-mile walk across the North Carolina portion of the proposed Atlantic Coast pipeline, which would also traverse West Virginia and Virginia, bringing more fracked natural gas through these three states. It’s a project of Duke Energy and Dominion Resources, which the companies say will increase the gas supply in the mid-Atlantic region; however, opponents have reasons to believe the gas will be exported. Story continues
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Campaign to Convene Constitutional Convention Jeopardizes Americans’ Fundamental Rights and Values

MP3 Interview with Jay Riestenberg, campaigns & states media strategist with Common Cause, conducted by Scott Harris
constitution
A well-funded campaign by conservative groups calling for a constitutional convention to enact a balanced budget amendment has flown under the radar of most of America. Now, the effort to convene such a convention under Article V of the U.S. Constitution is within striking distance of gaining the required number of states to succeed. If only six more states sign on, proponents of a convention will have the 34 states needed to hold the first constitutional convention since the original convention of states drafted the U.S. Constitution in 1787. Story continues
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This week’s summary of under-reported news

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Compiled by Bob Nixon
Small farmers from the Bajo Aguán Valley in Honduras have sued a branch of the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), for bankrolling the Dinant Corporation, which is being blamed for attacks and killings over disputed land. (“Farmers Sue World Bank Lending Arm Over Alleged Violence in Honduras,” The Guardian, Mar. 8, 2017; “Honduran Farmers Sue World Bank Group for Complicity in Human Rights Violations,” EarthRights International at earthrights.org)
Amid calls by the Trump administration for deep cuts to the United Nations, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson warned that the United States may pull out of the UN Human Rights Council unless the body carries out “considerable reforms.” (“Tillerson To U.N. Rights Council: Reform or We’re Leaving,” Foreign Policy, Mar. 14, 2017)
Twenty years after the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled that minority students confined to non-white schools were denied the right to an equal education, Hartford revamped its educational system to emphasize diversity even after the failures of mandatory busing in the 1970s and 1980s. Now Hartford families have the choice of going to a magnet school, a neighborhood school or attend a school in a neighboring district. Today, nearly half of Hartford’s public school students are enrolled in integrated schools as opposed to 10 percent of students in 2003. (“Where busing works,” Chritain Science Monitor, Feb. 25, 2017)


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