john nichols

Joe Lieberman hijacked news coverage for a while this week, but it was Howard Dean's defense of real health care reform that inspired White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs to a snarling personal response. Ben Bernanke was anointed Time's Person of the Year despite a hold on his renomination and a bill passing the house to audit the Federal Reserve. Is the Establishment closing ranks around its own?

Since U.S. presidents and Congress have dragged their heels on climate-change legislation, local activists and governments have often taken the lead in pushing for stronger regulations and innovations. Miquela Craytor, James Gennaro and Dale Bryk discuss working locally to create sustainable jobs and fight climate change. John Nichols of the Nation calls for the government to shift TARP money to create a jobs program. Mary Mcbride talks songwriting and being out of the closet as a musician with a very mixed audience.

Esther Armah, Michael Bronner, and Jamal Dajani fill in the blanks and provide some alternative viewpoints to MSM media coverage of the Afghan escalation. The Nation's John Nichols reminds us that the Constitution actually gave Congress the power to make war. Antonino D'Ambrosio is back, exploring the tradition of activism through art and music in "Let Fury Have the Hour," using the Clash to look at the ways artists influence and educate. And Sebastian Doggart talks about "Courting Condi," about the Secretary of State during the Bush years.

Barack Obama, in a dramatic speech last night, was arguing for escalation in Afghanistan. The real down payment on America's future, of course, would be investing in the health of its citizens. Joining us to discuss the health care bill are Maggie Mahar, John Nichols, Jonathan Cohn and Olga Pierce. Obama called the escalation an investment in America's future, but what about the Afghan people?