Tuesday, May 04, 2010

Today on the Signorile Show

We spent a lot of the show yesterday speaking about the oil leak off the New Orleans coast of the Gulf of Mexico, getting thoughts on off-shore drilling and if this catastrophe changed your mind in if you were previously a supporter. For some it did, including California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who, according to the Associated Press, "says he will find another way to help close the state's $20 billion budget deficit after the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico caused him to withdraw his support for a plan to expand oil drilling off the California coast."

But BP has been on the defensive.It has begun construction on domes to contain the leak, allowing them to trap and pump the excess oil. Is this too little, too late? And is the White House doing enough to take control of the situation? We'll discuss this crisis today.

Yesterday, we spoke about this weekends potential terror attack in New York, when authorities discovered a Nissan Pathfinder with bomb making materials parked in Times Square. This morning, Faisal Shahzad, a Pakistani American, was arrested at Kennedy Airport in connection to the failed bombing attempt. Mr. Shahzad was reportedly on his way to Dubai. Did the footage we saw on the cable networks help in identifying this man? According to the Washington Post, no. "Critics of the surveillance networks, including many civil liberties groups, noted that the cameras had neither prevented a potentially deadly terrorist attack nor led investigators immediately to a perpetrator. And city officials acknowledged that the 'person of interest' -- a balding man whose video image was seen by millions over the weekend -- may not have had anything to do with the attempted bombing." We'll discuss this afternoon.

Guest / 3:30pm EST - What The Heck Is BP Putting In The Gulf? Kate Sheppard, environmental reporter with Mother Jones, joins us this afternoon to answer this question.

Guest / 4:30pm EST- Christopher Rice, author and son of novelist Anne Rice, joins us this afternoon to speak about his activism with the LGBT community and his writing.

A lesbian couple and an agnostic couple sued the Boy Scouts, claiming that the organization is a religious group, and that they should not be using public land for activities. The US Supreme Court let the ruling from the Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals stand, a loss for the group. We'll discuss.

News of the thwarted terror attempt and the oil leak pushed news from the White House Correspondents Dinner to the back seat. The president joined politicians, media and other celebrities for that one night a year where they can all sit back and laugh at the year that was. But did the president cross a line with a specific joke? Addressing the Jonas Brothers, who were in attendance, President Obama said, "Jonas Brothers are here, they're out there somewhere. Sasha and Malia are huge fans, but boys, don't get any ideas. Two words for you: predator drones. You will never see it coming. You think I'm joking?" One third of drone attacks are civilian casualties. Do you think the president crossed a line with this joke?

This and so much more, today on The Michelangelo Signorile Show!

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