The U.S., Canada, and Mexico have reached a trade deal to replace NAFTA--the U.S.-Canada-Mexico Agreement. To discuss, we FEATURE Dr. Heidi Jane M. Smith. Dr. Smith is a political economy expert studying the politics of trade, debt, taxes and fiscal policy in Latin America. Her research focuses on how governments fund their public programs at the local, state and federal level. Her recent publications have appeared in World Development, Latin American Research Review, Public Administration Review, and Public Budgeting and Finance. Dr. Smith has taught public policy classes in Washington DC (George Mason University), Miami (Florida International University) and Mexico City (Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México). Extensive media experience.   

Hundreds of migrant children are being moved late at night into tent cities in West Texas. To discuss, we FEATURE Professor Claire R. Thomas. Thomas directs the Asylum Clinic at New York Law School, where she teaches law students how to represent immigrants seeking asylum and other humanitarian immigration protections in the United States. As an Adjunct Professor at NYLS, she also teaches the introductory immigration law course. She is also a contract attorney with CUNY Citizenship Now! and assists immigrants applying for naturalization, and is a consultant for The Door, a NYC non-profit, in which she supervises immigration attorneys working with immigrant youth. Media includes: The New York Times, Queens Daily Eagle, Women Across Frontiers, The New Statesman, Voice of America. 

A new bill has been signed in California that would require all publicly traded California-based companies to have women on their boards, thus forbidding all-male boards. To discuss, we FEATURE Kalpana Kotagal. Kotagal is a Partner in Cohen Milstein and a member of the firm’s Civil Rights & Employment practice and Chair of the firm’s Hiring and Diversity Committee. She is also the co-author of the "Inclusion Rider," referenced by Oscar-winning actress Frances McDormand in her 2018 Best Actress acceptance speech. Kotagal focuses almost exclusively on employment class actions involving allegations of discrimination. Currently, she represents a class of female sales employees in a Title VII and Equal Pay Act case against one of the nation's largest jewelry chains in Jock, et al. v Sterling Jewelers Inc. Her clients have alleged a pattern of sex discrimination in compensation and promotions. Media includes: The Hill, The Washington Post, Variety, The National Law Journal, Bloomberg.

The U.S. Supreme Court is back in session and will be looking at cases involving gerrymandering, employment discrimination, the death penalty, and more. To discuss, we FEATURE Debbie Hines. Hines is a Washington, DC based trial attorney, legal analyst, former Baltimore prosecutor and member of the Supreme Court bar. Debbie is an expert in criminal law, high profile criminal cases, gun control and gun laws, police brutality, death penalty, domestic violence and Supreme Court cases.  She often addresses legal/political issues at the intersection of gender, race and class. Presently, she maintains a boutique law practice focused on civil and criminal litigation. Media includes: Al Jazeera, BET, C-SPAN, CBS, CCTV, MSNBC, PBS, Sky News, Fox 5 News (“WTTG”), NPR.

An earthquake and tsunami have hit an island in Indonesia named Sulawesi leaving a death toll of around 1,200. The island is in need of aid as many survivors are still stuck on the island. To discuss, we FEATURE Lara Jacobson. Dr. Jacobson is a pediatrician and epidemiologist with experience in humanitarian emergencies. She completed her medical degree at Stanford Medical School, and has worked as an Attending Physician in high-acuity settings. During her work at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Jacobson responded to humanitarian emergencies in Haiti, Kenya, Djibouti, Chad, India, and Nepal. She has additional training in disaster management from IFRC. Extensive media experience. 

New short term health insurance plans will be in the market starting Tuesday, but many have pointed out that the coverage they provide may be very limited, often not covering pre-existing conditions, maternity care, mental health issues or prescription drugs. To discuss, we FEATURE Elise Gould. Gould is director of health policy research at the Economic Policy Institute. Her research areas include employer-sponsored health insurance, inequality and health, poverty, mobility, and the employer tax exclusion. She is a co-author of the State of Working America, 12th edition. In the past, she has authored a chapter on health in The State of Working America 2008/09, co-authored a book on health insurance coverage in retirement. Media includes: Bloomberg, NPR, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today.

The Justice Department has sued California over a recently signed bill that will guarantee free and equal access to the internet. The California legistlation is the strongest effort by a state against the net neutrality rollback by the FCC. To discuss, we FEATURE Valarie Kaur. Kaur is the founder of Groundswell Movement, considered “America’s largest multifaith online organizing network,” recognized for “dynamically strengthening faith-based organizing in the 21st century.” She is the co-founder of Faithful Internet which was set up to build the movement for net neutrality. Media includes: MSNBC, CNN, NPR, PBS, The Washington Post.

Yesterday, a Nobel Prize was given to James P. Allison and Tasuku Honjo for their research into cancer therapy. In addition, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. To discuss, we FEATURE Shobita Parthasarathy. Parthasarathy is an Associate Professor of Public Policy and Women’s Studies at the University of Michigan. She studies policy and politics related to controversial emerging technologies, particularly genetics and biotechnology, in the United States, Europe, and India. She also analyzes the role that science and expertise plays in policymaking. She is the author of numerous articles and a book, Building Genetic Medicine: Breast Cancer, Technology, and the Comparative Politics of Health Care (MIT Press, 2007). Findings from this book, which compared the development of genetic testing for breast and ovarian cancer in the United States and Britain, helped to inform the 2013 US Supreme Court case over gene patents. Media includes: The New York Times, Nature, The Conversation, PBS, The New Scientist.