American Politics

Law Professor Cass Sunstein. An expert in Constitutional interpretation, he explains the US Supreme Court decision in Bush v. Gore handed down last night. He talks about the legal difficulties of the case, what the final decision means for each candidate, and what sort of historical precedent a decision such as this one sets for the future.

Journalist Jeffrey Toobin. A staff writer for the New Yorker and senior analyst for television network ABC, he’s currently working on a book about the election controversy. He talks today about the election in retrospect, the U.S. Supreme Court decision that was handed down last night, and what the decision means for Bush and Gore.

Historian Alexander Keyssar. In his new book “The Right to Vote: The Contested History of Democracy in the United States” (Basic Books), he examines the checkered history of our country’s right to vote, and how this right was not for a time extended to certain groups of people, from propertyless white men, to women, immigrants, and African-Americans. Even now, he argues, that the wealthy and well-educated are for more likely to go to the polls than the poor and under educated. Keyssar is Professor of History and Public Policy at Duke University.

Kim Alexander is President of the California Voter Foundation, organized to pioneer new technologies to improve democracy. The group produces the California Online Voter Guide. Recently Alexander was part of the Task Force for Internet Voting put together by California’s Secretary of State.

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.

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.

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.