Provocations with Robert Kuttner AuthorBytes Cafe

This is an interview with Ian Bassin, former associate White House Counsel under President Obama and executive director of the group, Protect Democracy (protectdemocracy.org). The subject is how Special Counsel Robert Mueller can protect himself from Trump's latest political interference and make sure his investigation is completed and action taken.

Bob Kuttner returns as your host this week with Frank Clemente, co-founder and executive director of Americans for Tax Fairness. Will the Republican tax bill passed last year turn out to be a political loser? What do ordinary Americans believe about the tax code? And what makes Donald Trump's tax cut different than those of Ronald Reagan or George W. Bush? All this and more on this week's Provocations.

Amanda Teuscher, managing editor of The American Prospect, guest-hosts this edition of Provocations. This week's guest is Manuel Madrid, a writing fellow at the Prospect who covers, among other topics, economic development in Puerto Rico. Amanda and Manuel discuss the impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 on Puerto Rico's economy, touching on the island's history and unusual status under American tax law.

On this episode of Provocations, Bob Kuttner hosts Scott Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing. They discuss the differences between the trade policy President Trump promised and the trade policy he has actually delivered, and what the consequences might be for the U.S.-China relationship, as well as American relations with the E.U.

This week, Bob Kuttner interviews Dr. Sidney Wolfe, co-founder and director of the Public Citizen’s Health Research Group, on the current state of the American pharmaceutical industry and on compelling the industry to lower drug prices. The two discuss the legal backing, benefit to the public, and political prospects of using existing U.S. law – Section 1498 of the U.S. Code – to turn the industry into something akin to a public utility.

On this week’s Provocations, Bob Kuttner interviews Larry Cohen, former president of the Communication Workers of America and current chairman of Our Revolution. They discuss the 2016 Democratic primary elections, the state of the party's nomination process, and the prospects and stakes of reforming it ahead of the 2020 election.