Tom Steyer Teases ‘Major Announcement’ for 2018
Billionaire and Democratic donor Tom Steyer discussed his political ambitions with KQED’s Government and Politics Senior Editor Scott Shafer. Steyer talked about the motivation behind his $20 million campaign to gather more than 3.75 million signatures in favor of impeaching President Trump. Steyer also teased a “big announcement” that he will be making at a press event Monday.
H-1B Visa Reform
Many high-tech firms in the Bay Area rely on the H-1B visa program to hire foreign workers. Republican congressman Darrell Issa and co-author Democrat Rep. Zoe Lofgren have a bipartisan bill aimed at closing what they call loopholes in the current program. Critics, including many in the Trump administration, say the program is being exploited to take jobs away from American workers.
Guests:
- U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-San Diego)
- U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose)
California’s Legal Marijuana Market
On New Year’s Day, California became the sixth state to allow the recreational use of marijuana for adults. The state already has issued more than 400 licenses to businesses that are hoping for big profits in the multibillion-dollar industry, but several cities are still scrambling to put regulatory systems in place at the local level. Meanwhile, this week the Trump administration took aim at recreational cannabis, allowing federal prosecutors to more aggressively enforce laws against marijuana, which remains illegal at the federal level.
Guests:
- David Downs, San Francisco Chronicle reporter
- Terryn Buxton, Oakland Extracts owner
- Henry Wykowski, Wykowski & Associates attorney