Week In The News: Virginia Politics, State Of The Union, Trump Investigation

Published February 8, 2019 at 9:00 AM CST

President Donald Trump gives his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019 at the Capitol in Washington, as Vice President Mike Pence, left, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi look on. (Doug Mills/The New York Times via AP, Pool)

The State of the Union? Divided. Virginia politics? Upended. Trump inauguration records? Subpoenaed. Green New Deal? Unveiled. The roundtable unpacks the week that was.

Guests

Yamiche Alcindor, PBS NewsHour White House correspondent. (@Yamiche)

Paul Lisnek, political analyst for Chicago’s WGN News. Host of “Politics Tonight” on Chicago’s CLTV. (@PaulLisnek)

Jack Beatty, On Point news analyst. (@JackBeattyNPR)

From The Reading List

WGN: “Political analyst Paul Lisnek on State of the Union address”

Associated Press: “Democrats speechless as scandal engulfs Virginia’s leaders” — “With Virginia’s top three elected officials engulfed in scandal, fellow Democrats were rendered practically speechless, uncertain of how to thread their way through the racial and sexual allegations and their tangled political implications.

“Gov. Ralph Northam’s career was already hanging by a thread over a racist photo in his 1984 medical school yearbook when a woman publicly accused the lieutenant governor of sexually assaulting her 15 years ago, and then the attorney general admitted that he too wore blackface once, as a teenager.

“Everyone in Richmond, it seemed, was waiting Thursday for Virginia’s Legislative Black Caucus to respond to the latest developments. ‘We’ve got a lot to digest,’ the group’s chairman, Del. Lamont Bagby, said Wednesday.

“Attorney General Mark Herring — in line to become governor if Northam and Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax resign — issued a statement acknowledging he wore brown makeup and a wig in 1980 to look like a rapper during a party when he was a 19-year-old student at the University of Virginia.”

CNN: “As Mueller probe winds down, House Trump investigation powers up” — “All along, the White House had hoped that President Donald Trump’s torment over Russia would end with Robert Mueller’s final report.

“Now the special counsel’s final flourish is beginning to look like just the start of the President’s frustrations.

“House Democrats, armed with subpoena power, on Wednesday announced a broader-than-expected investigation into Trump’s ties to Russia, Saudi Arabia and just about anywhere else. And criminal probes are digging ever deeper into the global business record of the real estate billionaire who became President and therefore opened himself to painful scrutiny.

“Trump’s red line — that no one should delve into his or his family’s personal finances beyond a relationship with Russia — has been snapped.”

NPR: “Despite Few Details And Much Doubt, The Green New Deal Generates Enthusiasm” — “For a non-binding resolution with an uncertain future, the Green New Deal is getting a lot of attention, along with a decidedly mixed reaction.

“Dozens of Democrats Thursday introduced the measure, an ambitious framework for future legislation designed to eliminate the U.S. carbon footprint by 2030.

“‘Our energy future will not be found in the dark of a mine but in the light of the sun,’ said Sen. Ed Markey, D-MA as he announced the legislation on Capitol Hill.

“The resolution has few details, but aims to overhaul the U.S. economy and spread wealth more evenly. It calls for a speedy shift in energy generation, from fossil fuels to renewable sources like wind and solar, and for ‘a fair and just transition for all communities and workers.’ “

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.