American Politics

A liberal in his early years, Will joined the conservative camp while studying at Oxford. He is regarded as one the most intellectual conservative thinkers in his field. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary in 1977. His most recent book is "Restoration," which argues that term limits for Congresspeople could improve the legislative process and discourage a divided government.

Judis was a radical in the Sixties, and came to appreciate the intellectualism and dialogue in the conservative movement, a topic he pursued as a journalist. He considers the current splintering of that movement, and where President Bush fits in.

Incumbent Republican Senator Arlen Specter for the State of Pennsylvania. He's up for re-election this year, running against Lynn Yeakel. Yeakel has never served in public office, but says she was inspired to run after Specter's questioning of Anita Hill during the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings.

Alderman's new book is about mostly conservative pundits -- the likes of George Will, Sam Donaldson, and William Safire -- who appear on TV and write newspaper columns, affecting political discourse in this country. Alterman's new book is called "Sound and Fury: The Washington Punditocracy and the Collapse of American Politics."

Weddington is the lawyer who represented Jane Roe in the Supreme Court. Weddington was in her 20s when she argued the landmark abortion case. She has a new memoir called "A Question of Choice."

Isaacson has just written an extensive book about the life of Secretary of State and Nobel Prize Laureate. The writer takes us from Kissinger's boyhood in Germany, his family's flight to America in 1938, through his army career, his years at Harvard as a student and later a professor, and his rise to political power. Isaacson notes Kissinger's many accomplishments, but also portrays him as secretive, paranoid and duplicitous.

Trish Riley, the executive director of the National Academy for State Health Policy, talks about health care reforms in light of the fact that 35 million Americans are lacking health insurance. National health insurance is also a big campaign issue on both sides of the presidential race. Riley's organization works with states on health care policy, and will talk about what various states are doing, and where the balance should be struck between national and state responsibilities.

Professor of English Joan DelFattore at the University of Delaware wrote the book "What Johnny Shouldn't Read," in which she examines several of the more publicized Federal court cases of the 1980s involving attempts to censor schoolbooks, looking at the resulting impact on publishers and on state education officials. She looks at efforts of both the right and the left to influence curricula.

Democratic candidate for the Pennsylvania U.S. Senate Seat, Lynn Yeakel. She is running against incumbent Republican Senator Arlen Specter. Yeakel has never served in elected office before, but says she was inspired to run because of Specter's treatment of Anita Hill during the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings. Yeakel helped found and has been President of "Women's Way," a coalition of organizations raising money to help women and their families. It's the first and largest regional women's fund in the U.S.

Theatre critic, director, and educator Robert Brustein is the founder and Artistic Director of the American Repertory Company, director of the Harvard Drama Center, and drama critic for the New Republic. He'll talk with Terry about how the arts are in peril because of government action by the left, the middle, and the right.