Tagged: Politics

President Barack Obama delivered the first State of the Union address of his second term last night, outlining bold initiatives on reforming the nation’s high schools, immigration policy, economic development, and gun control.

Today we want to hear what you thought of the president’s remarks, and joining us with his reaction to the speech is WAMC’s own political observer, Dr. Alan Chartock. WAMC's Ray Graf hosts.

    Former New York City mayor Ed Koch died after a brief illness early this morning at 88, ending a long and often rambunctious public life. The former Congressman and permanent Big Apple ambassador spoke with Randy Cohen on WAMC’s Person Place Thing last year. They discussed Koch’s burial place in one of the last open plots in Manhattan.

WAMC caught up with Massachusetts Congressman Richard Neal, a Democrat. He addressed various topics, including federal gun control reforms. Neal says he supports President Obama’s call for a range of gun control measures, but says his fellow Democrats shouldn’t take an all-or-nothing stance when bargaining with Republicans.

The nation is fast approaching the so-called fiscal cliff, and after last week’s school shooting in Connecticut and the addition of gun policy to the legislative agenda, it’s unclear whether democrats and republicans will be able to make up their minds on anything before the end of the lame duck session.