The Critical Hour

Constitutional Scholars Present Impeachment Case: Will It Matter to Americans?

On this episode of The Critical Hour, Dr. Wilmer Leon is joined by Dave Lindorff, investigative reporter and founder of the news collective This Can't Be Happening!
Sputnik

During the first formal impeachment inquiry hearing before the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, three constitutional scholars — Noah Feldman, a professor at Harvard, Michael J. Gerhardt; a professor at the University of North Carolina; and Pamela S. Karlan, a Stanford law professor — testified that US President Donald Trump’s actions are an impeachable abuse of power. But an expert invited by Republicans — Jonathan Turley, a law professor at George Washington University — argued that the case against Trump is “slipshod” and premature. Will this move the needle in terms of public perception of this issue?

Google’s co-founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, are stepping down from their positions at the tech giant's parent company Alphabet amidst the DOJ and EU investigations, leaving Google CEO Sundar Pichai to manage both Alphabet and Google under one role. What are we to make of this? "The company has recently faced a growing number of complaints and allegations from politicians and its own workforce," the Guardian reported Wednesday. "Last year Page was called before the US Senate Intelligence Committee investigating foreign powers’ influence in elections, but he didn’t show up. Last week, Google dismissed several outspoken workers for allegedly violating its data security policies. Some employees accused the firm of trying to suppress its critics."

Oral arguments were presented Tuesday before a panel of judges at the Fifth US Circuit Court of Appeals on the constitutionality of laws in Mississippi that restrict the voting rights of former convicted felons. A lawsuit, brought by the Southern Poverty Law Center and six former felons, argues that restrictions enacted in an 1890 law were designed to permanently disenfranchise black voters. Mississippi is one of only three states in the country that has laws permanently barring convicted felons from voting.

The Trump administration is giving final approval to a policy that will take away food stamps from 755,000 Americans. The Department of Agriculture's new rule mandates that states enforce work requirements for able-bodied adults who do not have children. In the past, governors could waive those requirements, especially in places that struggle economically. This is the first of three proposed rule changes that could ultimately lead to 3 million Americans being cut from the food stamp rolls.  

GUESTS:

Dave Lindorff — Investigative reporter and founder of the news collective This Can't Be Happening!  

Barbara Arnwine — President and founder of the Transformative Justice Coalition and internationally renowned for her contributions on critical justice issues, including the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1991 and the 2006 reauthorization of provisions of the Voting Rights Act.

Chris Garaffa — Web developer and technologist.    

Rashid Nuri — Founder of the Truly Living Well Center for Natural Urban Agriculture (TLW). TLW is Atlanta’s premier urban agricultural organization, growing tons of chemical-free, nutritious food, providing jobs and educating communities about food, nutrition and self-sufficiency. His new book is titled "Growing Out Loud: Journey of a Food Revolutionary."  

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