A job seeker fills out an application during a job fair at California's Great America theme park on February 6, 2015 in Santa Clara, California. ; Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

California is considering whether to completely remove the box on job applications that asks prospective employees whether they’ve been convicted of a felony.

The so-called ‘ban the box’ movement has already been implemented in nine states and 15 cities, including Los Angeles and San Francisco, and the proposal from Sacramento Democratic Assemblyman Kevin McCarty would expand that statewide, requiring that employers make a conditional offer before inquiring about a prospective employee’s criminal record.

Supporters argue that more widespread ‘ban the box’ policies will reduce recidivism, because if it’s easier for an ex-con to get work after being released, there’s less of a chance that person will return to crime. Opponents say that there could be unintended consequences from expanded ‘ban the box’ policies, including but not limited to racial discrimination. They also argue it doesn’t do much to assuage employers’ concerns about hiring someone with a conviction on his or her record.

Guests:

Dorsey Nunn, executive director of Legal Services for Prisoners with Children, an organization advocating for rights of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated; he’s also the co-founder of its ‘All of Us or None’ campaign, which advocates ‘ban the box’ policies and implementation

Benjamin Hansen, associate professor of economics at the University of Oregon

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

FBI Director James Comey looks on during the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on Russian actions during the 2016 election campaign on March 20, 2017 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.

/ AFP PHOTO / Nicholas Kamm (Photo credit should read NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images); Credit: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images

FBI director James Comey and National Security Administration director Adm. Michael S. Rodgers are both testifying on Capitol Hill today before the House Select Intelligence Committee discussing possible Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

Comey has confirmed that the FBI is holding a formal inquiry into possible connections between the Russians and Trump campaign and has also stated that neither the FBI nor the Department of Justice has any information that corroborates President Trump’s claims that former President Obama wiretapped Trump Tower before his victory.

Also being grilled on the Hill today is Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch. The meat of the hearings will begin tomorrow as Judge Gorsuch is expected to face a stiff line of questioning from Democrats about his qualifications and views on a number of highly-charged issues. Gorsuch will need 60 votes to be confirmed for the seat formerly occupied by the late Justice Antonin Scalia.

Two of our regular political experts join us today to round up the hearings on Capitol Hill, look ahead to the week in politics, plus we’ll explore a little bit about the ‘deep state’ -- what it is, why it keeps popping up in the news, and why you should care.

Guests:

Toluse Olorunnipa, White House reporter for Bloomberg; he tweets @ToluseO

Lanhee Chen, research fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University; he was an adviser for Marco Rubio’s 2016 presidential campaign and former policy director for the Romney-Ryan 2012 presidential campaign; he tweets @lanheechen

Lynn Vavreck, professor of political science at UCLA; she tweets @vavreck

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

George Washington (1732 - 1799), the 1st President of the United States at Mount Vernon farm on the Potomac where he grew up, farmed and finally died. ; Credit: Three Lions/Getty Images

In “Never Caught,” historian Erica Armstrong Dunbar recounts the story of Ona Judge, one of George Washington’s former slaves.

Dunbar explores Ona Judge’s life as a runaway, as well as the Washingtons’ persistent and sometimes illegal attempts to recapture her, in a narrative that sheds new light on the U.S.’s founding father and the complex state of slavery in late 18th century America.

Dunbar will be speaking and signing books on Monday, March 20, at 7pm, at Eso Won Books. For more information, click here.

Guest:

Erica Armstrong Dunbar, Professor of Black American Studies and History at the University of Delaware; author of “Never Caught: The Washingtons’ Relentless Pursuit of Their Runaway Slave”

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

A child stands across a group of other children.; Credit: Photo by charamelody via Flickr Creative Commons

There’s no perfect plan for how to react when your kid is bullied.

But talking about it is one way Arizona dad, Isaac Irvine, chose to deal when it happened to his 9-year-old son, Bodi. As reported by CBS News the boy had been growing his hair to donate to cancer patients, and was made fun of by his classmates. So his dad took the opportunity to share their conversation about the day’s events in a video on Facebook. It shows Isaac posing the questions: “What happened?” “How’d it make you feel, man?” and “Do you think you’re the only person who get’s bullied?” The video has garnered more than 60,000 views and serves as a teaching moment for parents and kids.

How do you talk to your kids about bullying? Do you have advice for other parents? Call 866 893 5722 and let us know.

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Judge Neil Gorsuch speaks during the first day of his Supreme Court confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill March 20, 2017.; Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Capitol hill is bustling today. On top of testimony by FBI Director James Comey before the House Intelligence Committee, the Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a major hearing that could determine the future of the balance of power on the nation's highest court.

Opening statements began this morning in the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch.

President Donald Trump tapped the federal appeals court judge from Colorado to replace influential conservative Justice Antonin Scalia, who passed away in February of last year.

Democrats are facing pressure from liberal members of their party to push back on President Trump's first court pick, especially in light of Senate Republicans’ refusal to hold hearings on President Obama's nominee, Merrick Garland. Republicans say Judge Gorsuch is supremely qualified and temperamentally suited to join the court, and observers believe he will follow in the originalist footsteps of Scalia.

What are the strategies of Republicans and Democrats going into today's hearings? What will the goals of both parties be in grilling, or supporting, Judge Gorsuch? What are Judge Gorsuch's goals? What strategies have prior Supreme Court nominees used to survive the hearing process, and what tactics have failed in the past?

Guests:

John McGinnis, the George C. Dix Professor in Constitutional Law at Northwestern

Margaret Russell, Associate Professor of Law, Santa Clara University

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

; Credit: Photo by Chris Potter via Flickr Creative Commons

In 2017, California became one of 33 U.S. states to adopt a popular yet highly contested ‘right-to-try’ law.

Right-to-try was created to allow terminally ill patients to try to access experimental therapies that haven’t been fully approved by the FDA. With the backing of two physicians, a terminal patient in California can ask a company for a drug or device that has completed only the first phase of the FDA’s testing.

The FDA already has an expanded access program that gives patients access to experimental drugs, though critics say the process is too lengthy and cumbersome. Proponents of right-to-try see it as a matter of civil liberty, a personal decision to be made by a dying patient seeking a modicum of hope, for themselves, or barring that, for posterity, who might learn from their experience.

But various bioethicists and the former FDA commissioner have opposed the legislation. Criticisms of right-to-try are that it could cause patients to lose access to health insurance or hospice, could allow companies to exploit patients, could expose patients to drugs that worsen their already deteriorated condition and that the law unfairly demonizes the FDA when pharma companies are the real problem.

Meanwhile, right-to-try is gaining popularity. Mike Pence, who signed a right-to-try bill in Indiana in 2015, has said he would support a federal version of the legislation, and Trump has also signaled support. Host Larry Mantle talks to two patient advocates about their opposing views on right-to-try, and the ethics and realities behind the legislation.

Do you have personal experience with right-to-try or the FDA’s expanded access program? Does right-to-try provide hope or does it allow for the exploitation of vulnerable people?

Guests:

Lina Clark, co-founder and board member of Hope Now for ALS, which works with government and industry to find a cure for Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)

Andrew McFadyen, executive director of the Isaac Foundation, which supports and advocates for patients and families with Mucopolysaccharidoses (MPS) diseases    

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

House Majority Whip, Steve Scalise (R-LA) (L), talks with House Majority Leader, Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), after a House Republican closed party conference attended by U.S. President Donald Trump, on Capitol Hill, on March 21, 2017.; Credit: Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Late Monday night, House Republicans unveiled a revised ACA replacement bill in the hope of swaying skeptical moderate and conservative Republicans.

Under the revised version, states have more latitude to decide who gets Medicaid, as well as provide help to older people who could see their premiums skyrocket under the original GOP bill.

President Trump met today with House Republicans on the bill today. The House vote is slated for Thursday.

Guest:

Lisa Mascaro, congressional reporter for the LA Times, where she’s been following the story

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

A man plays an XBox One - a new video game console and home entertainment system made by Microsoft- while waiting in line to buy an XBox One from a Microsoft "pop-up shop" at the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle on 22, 2013 in New York City. ; Credit: Andrew Burton/Getty Images

Playing video games is a more mainstream hobby than it's ever been before. But while more and more people mark themselves as gamers, one the medium's largest demographics remains adolescent men.

As video games continue to get more complex and intricate, they continue to capture the attention of the work-age, young men demographic. These same people are also faced with realities of life that aren't easy, including a difficult job market. That's why many are dropping out of the job market all together. According to a recent piece in The Economist by  Ryan Avent, the reason for the drop off could be because they're more attracted to the alternate reality of video games as a means to escape their real-life problems.

How does someone indulge their hobbies without letting them take over their obligations to be a functioning member of society?

Do video games, which usually involve goals and set tasks to complete those goals, create an unrealistic expectation for how life is supposed to work?

Guest:

Douglas Gentile, Ph.D., professor of developmental psychology at Iowa State University

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Neil M. Gorsuch testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on his nomination to be an associate justice of the US Supreme Court during a hearing in the Hart Senate Office Building.; Credit: MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images

Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch is facing the Senate Judiciary Committee for an initial round of questioning that is expected to last at least 10 hours today.

His confirmation hearing is revealing the great partisan divide encompassing so many issues. So far, he's been asked about overturning high court precedents, his judicial philosophy and the limits of presidential power. He has held back from commenting on how he would rule on issues like abortion, gun control and President Trump’s executive order on immigration. He was also asked about his opinion of Judge Merrick Garland, President Obama’s nominee to fill the Supreme Court vacancy opened upon Justice Antonin Scalia’s death. Judge Gorsuch praised Garland for his work as a jurist, but wouldn’t comment on the partisan fight surrounding his confirmation, or lack thereof.

In his answers, Judge Gorsuch has tried to portray himself as a man who unflinchingly follows the rule of law regardless of political pressure or the parties involved in the case, and said he’s made no promises to anyone in the White House or Congress about how he’d rule on a certain case.

Guests:

John McGinnis, the George C. Dix Professor in Constitutional Law at Northwestern

Margaret Russell, constitutional law professor at Santa Clara University

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Intersex activist and writer Hida Viloria.; Credit: Courtesy of Hida Viloria

Being intersex is about as common as being born with red hair.

But it might not feel like it, because when you’re intersex, you’re biologically both - or neither - male and female.

This is different from gender identity and sexual orientation. An intersex person can be straight or LGBTQ, and often wrestles between two cisgender worlds laced with discrimination and misinformation.

Hida Viloria was chromosomally born as an XX female but with physical traits identifying more as male. It wasn’t until age 27 that Viloria discovered s/he (pronounced “she”) was intersex, and has since become an outspoken activist and educator on the intersex life.

Host Larry Mantle speaks with Viloria about her new book “Born Both: An Intersex Life.”

Guest:

Hida Viloria, intersex activist, writer and author of “Born Both: An Intersex Life” (Hachette Books, 2017); s/he tweets @HidaViloria

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Picture taken on February 26, 2017 showing the moon moving to cover the sun for an annular solar eclipse, as seen from the Estancia El Muster, near Sarmiento, Chubut province.; Credit: ALEJANDRO PAGNI/AFP/Getty Images

Scientists and people living in North America are abuzz over the total solar eclipse that’s expected to take place on August 21 this year. It’s the first total sun eclipse to happen in continental US since 1979.

A total solar eclipse happens once every couple of years, but the phenomenon still draws big crowds and curious onlookers. In the new book, “Mask of the Sun,” writer John Dvorak look at the significance different cultures and people have assigned to both solar and lunar eclipses. Ancient Romans thought that people shouldn’t have sex during an eclipse, and even today, some pregnant women in Mexico wear safety pins on their underwear during one.

John Dvorak will be talking about his new book, "Mask of the Sun" today, March 22, at 1pm at Vroman's Bookstore in Pasadena  

Guest:

John Dvorak, a tech writer and author of numerous books, including his latest, “Mask of the Sun: The Science, History and Forgotten Lore of Eclipses” (Pegasus Books, 2017)

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

A Syrian woman travelling to the United States through Amman opens her laptop before checking in at Beirut international airport on March 22,2017.; Credit: ANWAR AMRO/AFP/Getty Images

The Department of Homeland security has new requirements for passengers on some airlines from several Middle Eastern and African countries.

Anything bigger than a cell phone must be packed away in a checked bag and will not be allowed on the flight.

This new rule was confirmed Tuesday morning by the Trump administration and has since been followed by similar rules for travelers from those countries going to the United Kingdom. It's already drawn outcry for unfair discrimination, but some believe that there is likely precedence for this sort of rule from the TSA.

Guest:

Alex Davies, transportation reporter for WIRED

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Water flows through the Owens Valley before it enters the aqueduct intake.; Credit: Mae Ryan/KPCC

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti this week declared a state of emergency for areas near the L.A. Aqueduct.

The declaration calls for protection of areas at risk of flooding due to this year’s Eastern Sierra snowpack, which is 241 percent above normal, about two times what Angelenos use in a year. The primary land at risk? Owens Valley, where the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) expects up to 1 million acres of runoff. Homes and hydroelectric power plants are at risk with the runoff, as well as dust mitigation infrastructure on Owens Lake, which the LADWP has invested more than $1 billion since 2000. Garcetti has also taken this as an opportunity to address climate change issues, and said he’s committed to making the city more sustainable.

So how is the LADWP planning to deal with this? And would L.A. be liable for any damages to Owens Valley?

Guests:

Eric Garcetti, mayor of Los Angeles

Richard Harasick, senior assistant general manager of the Water System for Los Angeles Department of Water and Power

Mike Prather, Owens Lake advocate for the Eastern Sierra Audubon, a nonprofit wildlife conservation organization; chair of the Inyo County Water Commission

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer guards a group of 116 Salvadorean immigrants that wait to be deported,at Willacy Detention facility in Raymondville, Texas.; Credit: JOSE CABEZAS/AFP/Getty Images

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti signed an executive order expanding the LAPD's ban on stopping people suspected of being in the country illegally.

What's called Special Order 40 now applies to the Fire Department, Airport Police and Port Police. The mayor announced the action yesterday, at the same time LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said fewer Latino Angelenos are reporting domestic violence and sexual assault. Sex assault reports are down 25-percent year-to-date. Domestic violence claims down ten-percent. The chief said fears of deportation are discouraging those reports.

Meanwhile, immigration enforcement advocates are chiming in following Chief Beck’s comments. In a statement, Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman Virginia Kice told KPCC’s AirTalk that law enforcement’s suggestions that immigration enforcement is contributing to the decline in crime reporting was “entirely speculative and irresponsible.”

Today on AirTalk, a former ICE special agent in charge for Los Angeles responds to those claims.

Statement from ICE spokeswoman Virginia Kice:

"Los Angeles law enforcement officials’ suggestion that expanded immigration enforcement has contributed to a recent decline in the reporting of certain types of crimes is entirely speculative and irresponsible.

On the contrary, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) recognizes the imperative for crime victims and witnesses to come forward. The agency works closely with state and local law enforcement to see that foreign nationals who are victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking crimes are informed about the availability of special visas to enable them to remain in the U.S. Additionally, the fact that someone is the immediate victim or witness to a significant crime is a factor ICE prominently considers when weighing how to proceed in a particular case.

ICE’s enforcement actions are targeted and lead driven, prioritizing individuals who pose a risk to our communities. The agency’s officers conduct themselves in accordance with their authorities under federal law and the Constitution.

The inference by Los Angeles officials that the agency’s execution of its mission is undermining public safety is outrageous and wrongheaded. In fact, the greater threat to public safety is local law enforcement’s continuing unwillingness to honor immigration detainers. Rather than transferring convicted criminal aliens to ICE custody as requested, agencies, including the Los Angeles Police Department, are routinely releasing these offenders back onto the street to potentially reoffend, and their victims are often other members of the immigrant community.

ICE looks forward to working with Los Angeles and other jurisdictions across the country in the coming weeks and months on this important issue."

Guests:

Eric Garcetti, mayor of the City of Los Angeles

Claude Arnold, retired special agent in charge for Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations in the greater Los Angeles area

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Armed officers attend to the scene outside Westminster Bridge and the Houses of Parliament on March 22, 2017 in London, England. ; Credit: Jack Taylor/Getty Images

LONDON (AP) - A vehicle mowed down pedestrians on London's Westminster Bridge, killing at least one woman and leaving others with injuries described as catastrophic.

Around the same time Wednesday, a knife-wielding attacker stabbed a police officer and was shot on the grounds outside Britain's Parliament, sending the compound into lockdown.

Guest: 

Hal Kempfer, retired Marine Lieutenant Colonel and CEO of KIPP knowledge and intelligence program professionals; he does counter terrorism training with government entities around California

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

(L-R) House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) and Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR) attend a House Rules Committee meeting to set the rules for debate and amendments on the American Health Care Act.; Credit: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

The vote for the GOP’s Obamacare replacement bill is still slated for today, even as questions over its passage in the House linger.

President Donald Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan have been working tirelessly to bring conservative Republicans on board. About 25 House Republicans belonging to the Freedom Caucus have vowed to vote down the bill. Only 22 down votes are needed to bury its chances in the House.

President Trump is set to meet with this faction of Republicans on changes they want to see in the bill.

Guests:

Lisa Mascaro, congressional reporter for the Los Angeles Times who’s been following the story

Margot Sanger-Katz, correspondent for The New York Times’s Upshot covering health care, who’s been following the story

Jennifer Haberkorn, senior health care reporter for POLITICO who’s been following the story

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Former US President Ronald Reagan sits 09 June 1989 in his office in Century City near Los Angeles. Reagan was US president from 1980 to 1988.; Credit: CARLOS SCHIEBECK/AFP/Getty Images

In his fourth and most recent book about Ronald Reagan, biographer Craig Shirley explores Reagan’s, from failed 1976 presidential run to 1980 victory.

“Reagan Rising” explores the four years during which Reagan remade himself as well as the identity of the conservative movement.

Host Larry Mantle talks to Craig Shirley about Reagan’s trajectory, his lasting impact on the Republican party and more.

Guest:

Craig Shirley, biographer, lecturer and historian; author of “Reagan Rising: The Decisive Years, 1976-1980”  (Broadside Books, 2017)

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Seventeen-year-old Passion Rencher, who has cerebral palsy, attends Widney High School – a special education magnet school in near Mid-City.; Credit: Maya Sugarman/KPCC

Public school districts in the United States will now have to provide students with disabilities meaningful, “appropriately ambitious” educational opportunities to advance academically.

After hearing the case back in January, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled in favor of an autistic Colorado boy and his family, who took the Douglas County School District to court arguing that he was not provided with a “free and appropriate public education” as is required under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1975. What ‘appropriate’ means may differ in each individual case, and the justices wouldn’t go as far as to give it a definition in their unanimous decision, but they did come down on the opposite side of other federal courts, which have ruled that the district only needs to provide educational benefits that are more than ‘minimal or trivial.’ The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver had previously ruled in favor of the district.

What will the overall impact be on public school districts across the country? How are local districts in Southern California responding? What trade-offs will have to be made?

Guests:

Pedro Noguera, Ph.D., distinguished professor of education at the UCLA Graduate School of Education

Alex Rojas, Ph.D., superintendent of the Bassett Unified School District, which is located in the San Gabriel Valley; serves some unincorporated parts of L.A. County and portions of the City of Industry, La Puente and Whittier

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

File: A marijuana plant is displayed during the 2016 Cannabis Business Summit & Expo in Oakland.; Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

A bill introduced by six California legislators in February would prohibit state and local law enforcement from helping federal drug agents arrest and investigate marijuana license holders unless they receive a court order, effectively creating a sanctuary for the cannabis industry here.

Proponents argue the bill will protect sellers and growers applying for state licenses from a federal crackdown. But some members of local law enforcement have come out against the measure, calling it an unnecessary obstacle.

We talk to the lead author of the bill and the president of the California State Sheriff’s Association about the pros and cons of the legislation.

Guests:

Reggie Jones-Sawyer, (D-Los Angeles) CA assemblymember serving the 59th district and the lead author of the bill, AB 1578

Donny Youngblood, Kern County Sheriff and president of the California State Sheriff’s Association

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

The remains of a marina in Salton City, California, March 1st, 2017.
; Credit: EVA HAMBACH/AFP/Getty Images

The largest lake in the state of California could soon finally be on its way to recovery after years of delays and hand-wringing.

The California Natural Resources Agency announced a 10 year, $383 million plan that aims to complete a number of projects left to languish for the last several years while funding was approved. It starts with building a network of small ponds and marshy wetlands across 29,000 acres of land that will not only help cover the large swaths of lakebed that create toxic dust storms, but also provide a habitat for migrating birds. So far, the state has earmarked $80.5 million for these projects, but the plan does outline more funding that will be necessary, and it’s not clear exactly from where that money will come.

Supports say the plan is long overdue and a step in the direction of finally resolving the expensive environmental crisis at the Salton Sea. Critics say while it’s certainly time something be done about the ongoing issues, the fact remains that no one knows how the restoration will be paid for or what happens if the state doesn’t follow through.

Desert Sun reporter Ian James joins Larry on AirTalk today to share the latest update on efforts to restore the Salton Sea.

Guest:

Ian James, reporter for The Desert Sun covering water and the environment who has been covering the Salton Sea story; he tweets @TDSIanJames

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.