A conservative political analyst shares what he sees as positive signs during the first weeks of the Trump administration. We find out how many refugees are calling Wisconsin home, where they have come from, and what their future may be. Plus, a state representative talks about the costs of manufacturing credits in the state. And President Trump fired the acting Attorney General after announced the Department of Justice would not defend the travel ban.
Featured in this Show
-
President Trump Fires Acting Attorney General After She Refuses To Defend Travel Ban
President Trump fired acting Attorney General Sally Yates after she issued a statement saying that the Department of Justice would not defend an executive order that would ban travelers from seven countries with alleged terrorist activity. We speak with Jaweed Kaleem of the L.A. Times about the news.
-
Weekly Standard Editor: 'Trump's Doing OK' In Opening Days Of Presidency
It’s been a busy week and a half for the new presidential administration, with confirmation hearings, executive orders, a U.S. Supreme Court pick and a steady stream of tweets.
And the decisions by President Donald Trump have delivered mostly good results, said Fred Barnes, the executive editor of The Weekly Standard, a weekly conservative magazine.
“I think Trump’s doing OK, not great,” said Barnes. “He’s certainly moving at a very fast speed. I remember when Reagan didn’t get to his first serious action until the eighth day. Trump had already gotten rid of a trade treaty, he’s done stuff on immigration, he’s done all kinds of things by his eighth day.”
Presidents making executive actions in their first week is no foreign concept. Trump signed a record number of executive orders and presidential memoranda in his first week in office, according to NPR.
There’s been backlash, with protests after the inauguration and in reaction to the executive order on the travel ban. While those issues garnered the most attention, Barnes said Trump’s biggest mistake thus far has been his fight with Mexico.
“He had to get along with Mexico,” Barnes said. “He needs to have an ally in the Mexican president. Mexico isn’t going to move away. So by getting into a fight unnecessarily over this question of who is going to pay for the wall, I think Trump’s made a mistake on that.”
Trump stated that Mexico will pay for the wall along the southern border by charging a 20 percent tariff on all goods shipped from Mexico into the United States. Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto canceled a meeting with Trump late last week.
Barnes speculated that Democrats may have more room for cooperation with Trump than a more traditional, small-government Republican. Although, added Barnes, some of the potential goodwill may have been lost after some Senate Democrats on Tuesday boycotted confirmation hearings for a pair of Trump’s cabinet picks.
Still, said Barnes, there’s probably some room to come together on infrastructure spending.
“Trump wants to spend a trillion dollars, and Democrats want to spend a trillion dollars, not all in one year. I think they’ll come together on that because it serves the interest for both of them,” Barnes said.
However, Trump’s commitment to spend on a variety of projects – including the space program, expanding medical research and bolstering the military – could rub some Republicans the wrong way.
“That’s big government stuff,” Barnes said, adding that House Republicans would likely balk at a high price tag.
-
Weekly Standard's Fred Barnes On The Opening Days Of The Trump Presidency
Fred Barnes from the Weekly Standard says there are a lot of positive signs in the early days of the Trump presidency.
-
The People Who Make Up The Refugee Population in Wisconsin
There has been a lot of conversation in the United States about what role it should play in the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis. But for Wisconsin, many refugees are coming from Asian countries–such as Myanmar. We speak with WisContext Reporter and Associate Editor Scott Gordon about Wisconsin’s role in resettling refugees.
-
Representative Hintz Calls On The State Legislature To Reconsider Manufacturing Tax Credit
Representative Gordon Hintz is calling on fellow lawmakers to reconsider and amend the Wisconsin manufacturing tax credit. Representative Hintz joins us to talk about the cost of the tax credit and what he’d like to see changed.
Episode Credits
- Rob Ferrett Host
- Veronica Rueckert Host
- J. Carlisle Larsen Producer
- Rob Ferrett Producer
- Jaweed Kaleem Guest
- Fred Barnes Guest
- Scott Gordon Guest
- Gordon Hintz Guest
Wisconsin Public Radio, © Copyright 2024, Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and Wisconsin Educational Communications Board.
