Government & Politics

Singer Jerry Butler, aka The Iceman. His 1969 hit, “Only the Strong Survive,” is a rhythm and blues classic, and also the title of his new autobiography: “Only the Strong Survive: Memoirs of a Soul Survivor” (Indiana University Press) Butler founded the vocal group The Impressions as well as having a successful solo career. His awareness of civil rights led him to politics, and he is serving his fourth term on the Cook County Board of Commissioners in Chicago. The book was written with Earl Smith, Butler’s brother-in-law and a journalist.

Political scientist Robert Pastor, Ph.D. joins us to talk about possible election reforms in the American system after this presidential vote. Pastor is a professor of Political Science at Emory University, and in his former role as a Carter Center Fellow, he helped create international election monitoring teams. He has monitored 20 foreign elections. Pastor is the author of 10 books on subjects such as U-S foreign policy, international trade and democratization.

Senior analyst at the National Security Archive, Peter Kornbluh. Recently the CIA released thousands of secret U.S. documents about their role in the overthrow of the Allende government in Chile in 1973. Kornbluh led the effort to get the documents declassified.

Attorney Cass Sunstein (SUN-steen). He’s considered by many to be one of the nation’s authorities when it comes to interpreting the U.S. Constitution. He’s the author of “One Case at a Time: Judicial Minimalism on the Supreme Court,” (Harvard University Press) which came out last year. Today, he explains the legal aspects of the election controversy in Florida. He teaches at the University of Chicago.

Linguist Geoff Nunberg talks about a new kind of literacy test revealed by the Palm Beach County Ballot controversy.

A look at the U.S. elections from abroad. Foreign editor Lloyd Doyle of the British paper the Independent tells us what people outside the United States think about the current controversy.

We remember Lea Rabin, the widow of assassinated Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. She died on Sunday at the age of 72. She had cancer. (REBRAODCAST from 4/9/97)

New York Times reporter and Prague Bureau Chief Steve Erlanger. He’ll talk to us about Serbia after the elections that ended the rule of Milosevic. And he’ll talk about the new president, Vojislav Kostunica. Erlanger will report to us from Belgrade. (

Literary forensics expert Don Foster. Named the first literary detective of all time, he uncovered the identity of Joe Klein as the Anonymous writer of 1996’s “Primary Colors”. His new book is “Author Unknown: On the Trail of Anonymous” (Henry Holt, Inc.) which details the techniques he uses to identify writers behind anonymous books and documents. He teaches English at Vassar College.

TV critic David Bianculli reviews the election night coverage.

Journalist S.V. Date is based in Florida where he is Tallahassee bureau chief for The Palm Beach Post. He’ll discuss the recount in Florida for the Presidential election. Date is also the author of the new novel “Smokeout” (Putnam)

Satirist Harry Shearer. He’s the host of NPR’s Le Show. He’s also the author of "It's the Stupidity, Stupid: Why (Some) People hate Clinton and Why the Rest of Us Have to Watch." (The Library of Contemporary Thought, The Ballintine Publishing Group) which came out earlier this year. Today he speaks on the outcome of the presidential election.

Journalist Dana Milbank. A senior writer for the Washington Post, he covered the presidential election for that paper. He talks about the outcome of the presidential election and recounts the pivotal moments in the parties’ campaigns.

Wendy Warren, editor at Philadelphia Daily News discusses covering the election.

Rob Ritchie, Executive Director of the Center for Voting and Democracy. He’ll discuss non-traditional voting-- such as early voting which is now an option in 13 states. Many states have made it easier to get absentee ballots, and more people than ever are using that option.. In Oregon, all the ballots this year are mail-in.

Curtis Gans an expert on voter turnout and participation, and the director of the Committee for the Study of the American Electorate, a non-partisan group which analyzes the habits of voters. Gans supports the electoral process. Akhil Amar is Southmayd Chair of Consitutional Law at Yale Law School. He would like to see the electoral college system abolished.

Religion scholar Karen Armstrong. She’s the author of the bestselling books “The Battle for God,” “Jerusalem,” and “The History of God.” She’ll discuss the religious history of the Middle East, and the significance of the region to the people there. She’s also written “Islam: A Short History” (Modern Library Chronicles).

Christopher Buckley was George Bush Sr.’s speechwriter from 1981-1983 when Bush served as Vice President. The son of William F. Buckley, he is the author of the political satire, "Thank you for Smoking" which poked fun at everything and everyone associated with the tobacco industry- from anti-smoking advocates to tobacco company executives. Buckley is the editor of Forbes’ FYI Magazine. He’ll discuss the presidential campaign from the perspective of a Bush supporter.

Former standup comic and creator and current host of ABC’s “Politically Incorrect,” Bill Maher. On his late-night talk show, Maher invites celebrity guests from all parts of the political spectrum to discuss politics and the issues of the day.