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The Scramble: Trump, Carson, and Standing Rock

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Ben Carson.

Donald Trump will make an announcement on December 15 that he will leave his business "in total" to focus on the presidency. This will likely mean he is transferring management responsibilities to three of his five children: Ivanka, Donald Jr., and Eric. But a transfer may be nearly impossible, given the wide-ranging and deep entanglements Trump's children have in his business. 

Next: President-elect Trump appointed Ben Carson to lead the $47-billion-dollar budget of the department of Housing and Urban Development. The department oversees programs that provide vouchers and other rental assistance for five-million low-income families, fights urban blight, helps homeowners stave off foreclosures, and has been working for years to promote fair housing programs through President Obama's Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing program. Is it fair to ask what qualifies him to run this agency?

Lastly: The Army Corps of Engineers halted construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline until further review. It made protesters happy for now, but the battle is not yet over. 

GUESTS:

  • Matt Flegenheimer - Reporter for the New York Times
  • Betsy Crum - Executive Director, Women’s Institute for Housing and Economic Development
  • Elise Viebeck - National enterprise reporter at Washington Post 
  • Wes Enzinna  - Senior editor and writer at Mother Jones

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Colin McEnroe and Chion Wolf contributed to this show. 

Betsy started as an intern at WNPR in 2011 after earning a Master's Degree in American and Museum Studies from Trinity College. She served as the Senior Producer for 'The Colin McEnroe Show' for several years before stepping down in 2021 and returning to her previous career as a registered nurse. She still produces shows with Colin and the team when her schedule allows.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.