Forum (KQED)

In her new book, "How Safe Are We?," former Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano reflects on how secure the U.S. has been since 9/11. According to Napolitano, the most urgent threats America faces are climate change and cybersecurity -- not a crisis at the southern border. We'll talk to Napolitano, who implemented Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) in 2012 under President Obama, about immigration policy under President Trump, the current state of the Department of...

The Department of Energy revealed last week that it secretly authorized at least six U.S. companies to sell nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia, which wants to build two nuclear power plants. Separately, appearing on Capitol Hill last Wednesday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirmed that North Korea has not taken steps to rid itself of its arsenal. We'll discuss what these developments mean for U.S. national security and foreign relations.

Forum reviews, analyzes and answers your questions about the latest news from Washington, D.C.

A bill that would require California retailers to issue digital receipts instead of paper ones by 2022 passed the Assembly Natural Resources committee this week. Known as 'Skip the Slip,' the bill would ban paper receipts unless a customer specifically asks for one and impose penalties of up to $25 for each day a business violates the rule. Bill proponents argue that it will reduce waste and exposure to chemicals that coat paper receipts. But opponents say the shift to e-receipts would be...

Hollywood. Death. Avocados. These are only a few of the things Adam Conover has "ruined" on his hit TV series, "Adam Ruins Everything." Shining a light on popular culture, standard practices and household items alike, Conover's series finds humor in the ugly truths behind, well, everything. We'll talk with Conover about his comedy tour, the upcoming season of "Adam Ruins Everything," and what he's learned as an "investigative comedian."

Friday, March 29 was supposed to be Brexit Day, when the United Kingdom would officially leave the European Union. Instead, members of the British Parliament continue to reject Prime Minister Theresa May's negotiated deal for the split, delaying any final action. As a key vote is set to take place Friday, we'll check in on Parliament's options and what they'd mean for the U.K., Europe and the global economy.

Dudleyas are squat succulent plants with red-tipped silvery leaves that grow abundantly along California's rocky coastline, sprouting stalks of brightly colored flowers during the spring bloom season. They're also an ongoing target of organized plant poachers, who've been illegally uprooting dudleyas for distribution as far away as China and South Korea. We'll talk about what's driving global demand for the plants and what's being done to protect them.

Caltrans is planning a major rebuild of the MacArthur Maze, the convergence of three major highways: 580, 880 and 80, near the toll plaza on the east side of the Bay Bridge. The new construction would increase the amount of clearance for trucks on overpasses, but could cause shutdowns on an already jam-packed thoroughfare. Forum talks about Caltrans' proposals for the rebuild and what it could mean for commuters in the short and long term.

A bill introduced this week in the California legislature would require the state health department to approve and track all vaccine exemptions given by physicians. Since 2015, when California eliminated the "personal belief" dispensation for vaccination requirements, the rate of medical exemptions for kindergartners has more than tripled, to 0.7 percent for the 2017-2018 school year. According to the bill's sponsors, some of those exemptions were granted fraudulently. We'll discuss the...

Three San Francisco Supervisors are pledging to end the jailing of youth in the city. The move comes after a San Francisco Chronicle investigation found that serious crime by youth is down more than 80 percent from its peak in the mid-'90s. That's left San Francisco's 150 bed juvenile hall, like most youth lock up facilities in the state, less than half full. Forum talks about why youth crime has been declining and what it would mean to replace the city's expensive juvenile hall with...

The future of humanity rests in the hands of just nine companies, according to futurist Amy Webb. In her new book, "The Big Nine: How the Tech Titans and Their Thinking Machines Could Warp Humanity," Webb explores the evolution of artificial intelligence as it seeps into our everyday lives through smart appliances, transforming our homes into "data generation machines" for large corporations. Webb argues that AI should be regulated instead of allowing a few companies, market forces and...

Preet Bharara, an Obama appointee, made national headlines in 2017 when he was fired by the Trump Administration despite earlier signals that the president would keep Bharara on as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. But Bharara was already known in the legal world as an effective prosecutor, especially in cases of white collar crimes and public corruption. In his new book, "Doing Justice," Bharara shares his experiences of the U.S. justice system, what it's like being...

"Queen Bey" a new anthology about Beyoncé, lays bare just how hard it is to define her influence and her work: she is a visual artist, a singer, a rapper, an activist, a social media influencer, a woman, a mother. In this segment we'll explore Beyoncé's creative force: how she has managed to transcend genre and make so many people feel seen while coming into her artistic self. Tell us: what effect has Beyoncé had on you? What is the secret to her genius?

More than 2,500 bills have been introduced in the California Legislature to be considered this year. And unfortunately, the famous School House Rock song doesn't capture the nuance and complexities of how a bill gets signed into law. In fact, a bill can become a law without being signed at all! Forum discuses how the details in California's legislative processes, the many ways a bill can die and how well the whole system is working. What questions do you have about how a bill becomes a law...

Governor Gavin Newsom says child poverty in California is a "moral outrage." The state has the highest rate of child poverty in the nation, with one in five kids affected. We'll hear why a state as wealthy as California has so many children living in poverty and how Newsom plans to mitigate the issue.

Special Counsel Robert Mueller submitted his report to Attorney General William Barr on Friday, bringing to a close a 22-month investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 election and its possible collusion with the Trump campaign. The report, which calls for no new charges, may be disclosed in part to Congress this weekend. We'll discuss the latest developments.

As the number of Democratic presidential hopefuls grows, so does an ongoing debate within the party: What is the key to defeating the Republicans in 2020? Should the party seize the energy of its progressive wing and embrace policies like the Green New Deal and Medicare for All? Or should Democrats move to the center in hopes of picking up disaffected Republicans? We'll take up the debate.

The Boeing jets that crashed in Ethiopia and Indonesia both lacked safety features that Boeing charged an extra fee to install. That's according to a New York Times report that says the optional features could have helped pilots detect the problem that led to the crashes. Forum discusses the latest updates on the Boeing 737 Max crashes and whether the Federal Aviation Administration met its responsibility to ensure the safety of the planes.

At least 1,000 people are feared dead and thousands await rescue amid flooding caused by Cyclone Idai, which struck Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi last week. Over 1,800 acres of land are underwater, and food, medical supplies and fresh drinking water are increasingly scarce. We'll talk about relief efforts underway and discuss the impact of the natural disaster on a region already facing steep economic, infrastructure and political challenges.

Ask a pet owner if animals have emotions, writes primatologist Frans De Waal and they'll say, "of course!" But ask a University professor, and they'll squirm. While the leading theories in science only recognize basic emotions in animals such as anger, happiness and fear, De Waal argues that animals share all emotions with humans, including complex ones like hope, disappointment, guilt and empathy. De Waal joins Forum to discuss his decades of research on the behavior and social intelligence...