U.S. Congress

Film critic Stephen Schiff reviews the new Eddie Murphy movie, which is being billed as a return to form after the actor's recent string of critical flops. But Schiff says that Murphy has lost his cool.

Journalist Steve Roberts is the senior writer for "U.S. News & World Report." Before that, he covered Congress for The New York Times. He'll talk with guest host Marty Moss-Coane about the 103rd Congress which just went into session. It's the most diverse group yet.

Roberts is Political Analyst for NPR and ABC. The daughter of parents who shared a Congressional seat for a combined total of fifty years, Roberts' star in journalism is rising on radio and TV. In a conversation recorded live before an audience, Terry asks her about covering Congress and how her political upbringing affects her reporting.

Journalist Steve Roberts. He's the senior writer for "U.S. News & World Report." Before that he covered Congress for "The New York Times." He'll talk about Tuesday's elections.

Washington political commentator Elizabeth Drew, author of "On the Edge: The Clinton Presidency." The book examines Clinton's first eighteen months in office. She talks with Terry about last night's election and what it will mean for the White House.

Will is a conservative commentator and regular contributor to "Newsweek" and "The Washington Post." He has just published a collection of his best essays from the past four years, "The Leveling Wind: Politics, the Culture & Other News 1990-1994." He talks with Terry about last week's elections.

The former congresswoman became Louisiana's first woman member of Congress in 1972. She was elected after her husband, then House majority leader Hale Boggs, died in a plane crash. Boggs was an advocate for civil rights and women's issues before her retirement in 1990. She is the mother of NPR and ABC-TV's Cokie Roberts, Washington lobbyist Thomas Hale Boggs, and the late Barbara Sigmund, who was mayor of Princeton, New Jersey. Boggs has new autobiography is called "Washington Through a Purple Veil: Memoirs of a Southern Woman."

Penny was in Congress for twelve years. He's just written a new book about the cultures that modern lawmakers bring to Congress which he says "have gnawed away at the sturdy foundations of republican democracy and trustworthy service that our Founding Fathers bequeathed." Penny's new book is Common Cents, which he wrote with journalist Major Garrett. Penny is now spokesperson for the Concord Coalition, a bipartisan coalition that promotes fiscal responsibility and deficit reduction.

Senator Bill Bradley has written a book about his life called Time Present, Time Past published by Knopf. Bradley announced last year that he would not seek re-election in 1996. In addition to his political career, Bradley was also a star basketball player with the New York Knicks.

Vilar's memoir "A Message from God in the Atomic Age" chronicles three generations of self-destructive behavior: in 1954, her grandmother was imprisoned for opening fire at the U.S. House of Representatives; in 1977, her mother leapt to her death from a speeding car; and in 1988, Vilar herself was committed to a psychiatric hospital after attempting suicide. Alternating between her notes from the psychiatric ward and the chronicling of the history of her family, Vilar tells of her own attempts to come to terms with her family history.

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Newt Gingrich. He's written a new book, "Newt Gingrich: Lessons Learned the Hard Way: A Personal Report" (HarperCollins).

Former Colorado Congresswoman Pat Schroeder. She was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for 24 years. She's the first woman to hold the office that long. During that time she championed causes important to women: pay equity, the Equal Rights Amendment, breast cancer research, and family leave. She also landed a coveted spot on the House Armed Services Committee. She also coined the term "Teflon president" to describe Ronald Reagan. She's written a new memoir, "24 Years of House Work. . .and the Place is Still a Mess" (Andrews McMeel)

Film critic John Powers comments on the plan to award Elia Kazan an honorary Academy Award. Kazan is best known for his films "On The Waterfront," and "A Streetcar Named Desire." The award is controversial because Kazan turned over names of suspected communist members during the 1950s.

Congressman Richard Gephardt. He's the Democratic leader of the U.S. House of Representatives and has written a new book, "An Even Better Place: America in the 21st Century" (Public Affairs). In it he writes about the "cycle of destruction" in politics, the personal attacks on the character and integrity of politicians by other politicians and how it effects the country at large and our sense of democracy.

Reporter Eric Schmitt. He covers Capitol Hill for the New York Times. He’ll talk about the new Congress and power sharing in the 50/50 Senate. Schmitt will also talk about how the just resolved Presidential election—along with a truncated transition period for George W. Bush -- may effect political decision making on the Hill.

In her 40 years of public service she worked for civil rights, helped write the guidelines that are now established in the Sexual Harrassment Act, worked for reform in South Africa and has argued before the Supreme Court. She has been the Commissioner on Human Rights in New York, the first woman appointed to head the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and a law professor. Holmes Norton is the subject of the new biography Fire in My Soul, written by a long-time friend, Joan Steinau Lester.

He's the creator and producer of NBC's new series Mr. Sterling, about a freshman senator on Capitol Hill. O'Donnell was a writer and producer for the first two seasons of NBC's The West Wing. Before his television career, O'Donnell was in politics himself. He was Democratic chief of staff of the United States Senate Committee on Finance from 1993 to 1995. Prior to that he was senior advisor to Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan D-NY from 1989 to 1992. Currently O'Donnell is also senior political analyst for MSNBC.

Obama, an Illinois state senator, is considered the party's rising star. He is currently running against Republican Alan Keyes for a seat in the U.S. Senate. Obama's keynote address at the Democratic National Convention brought him to the attention of many Americans. He talks about the race and his memoir, Dreams From My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance.

Republicans in Illinois have asked Alan Keyes to run against Barack Obama for the U.S. Senate. Keyes, a resident of Maryland, has served in a number of government posts, including U.S. ambassador to the United Nations economic and social council and assistant secretary of state for international organizations. He also hosted his own radio show.