Commonwealth Club of California Podcast

Join us as we discuss the biggest, most controversial and sometimes the surprising political issues with expert commentary by panelists who are smart, are civil and have a good sense of humor. Our panelists will provide informative and engaging commentary on political and other major news; and we'll have audience discussion of the week’s events and our live news quiz! Come early before the program for our members social hour (open to all attendees).

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As President Trump enters his third year in office, former New Jersey governor Chris Christie remains one of his closest political allies. The first major elected official to endorse then-candidate Trump, Christie had a ringside seat throughout the hectic 2016 campaign. Christie was even close to becoming Trump’s running mate. Days after Trump’s surprise victory, Trump fired Christie as head of his transition team. Recently, Christie almost became Trump’s White House chief of staff but pulled out, saying now is not the right time for him to join the White House. Now Christie is out to set the record straight about his career and his relationship with the president. In his new book, Let Me Finish, the brash former Republican prosecutor discusses running a Democratic state, his 15-year relationship with Trump, what he saw during the 2016 campaign and how his removal from the transition all but guaranteed chaos at the beginning of the Trump presidency. Christie’s book takes readers into conflicts with Steve Bannon, Kellyanne Conway, Jeff Sessions, Paul Manafort and other critical Trump insiders. Christie also addresses hot-button issues from his own years in power in New Jersey, including what really went down during Bridgegate. And, for the first time, Christie tells the full story of his own Kushner saga: how, as a federal prosecutor, he put Jared Kushner's powerful father behind bars for tax evasion, witness tampering and illegal campaign contributions. Join us for this important conversation with one of the president’s closest allies.

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Republicans in California are at a crossroads. In a historic midterm election, Republicans lost half of their U.S. House delegation while Democrats cemented their supermajorities in both state legislative chambers and swept statewide offices for the third straight election. With the Golden State seemingly slipping from the GOP, what steps should the party take to regain its foothold and expand its appeal? Is a comeback possible in this new era of hyperpolarization? Three prominent Republicans will offer their take on where the party can go from here. Catharine Baker served as assemblywoman for the East Bay’s 16th District from 2014–2018. As the only elected Republican in statewide office from the Bay Area, Baker had to tow a fine line between her party and her constituents. Kevin Faulconer currently serves as the 36th mayor of San Diego, where he uses his platform to advocate for a moderate California Republican Party that supports action on climate change and a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. Kristin Olsen is the former minority leader of the California State Assembly, where she spearheaded Republican policies during her term. Matt Shupe is a Bay Area political consultant and chairman of the Contra Costa Republican Party. During the 2018 election, Shupe worked as communications director for John Cox’s gubernatorial campaign. Join us for this important conversation about a changing state and the Republican party’s fight for survival.

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Peter Fiekowsky founded Healthy Climate Alliance with the intention of restoring the climate to its preindustrial climate health. He hopes to accelerate an emerging array of innovations to reduce the level of carbon in the atmosphere and to preserve and rebuild Arctic ice. While reducing emissions is important, he promotes climate restoration as both possible and essential—a strategic business strategy. The Silicon Valley tech entrepreneur and physicist runs the Healthy Climate Alliance along with his daughter Erica Dodds, executive director. They will point to profit-making enterprises that are sequestering carbon into building materials and pragmatic other land- and ocean-based technologies for restoring our climate. They will highlight and share with the audience an understanding of how companies and individuals can take strides to implement change for a healthier climate, their mission to restore the climate by reducing atmospheric CO2 levels to 300 parts per million and, thus, “giving our children a healthy climate like our grandparents had.” MLF ORGANIZER NAME Elizabeth Carney NOTES MLF: Business & Leadership In partnership with Presidio Graduate School

From the Okavango Delta to the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, Botswana draws in wildlife and nature lovers from around the world. It also has one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies and a highly advanced banking system. It has had a democratic government for over 50 years. Charles Frankel and Graham Johansson discuss what draws people to Botswana and the factors that contribute to the country’s success relative to the rest of Africa.

When it comes to cutting emissions, there are many paths to success. Sweden, France, South Korea and Ontario have all taken steps to replace fossil fuels with nuclear, hydro and renewable energy. Norway has ambitions to swap its dependence on oil for clean energy in relatively short order. China is expanding electric car and battery production in an effort to stake out leadership in 21st century industries. But the absence of U.S. climate leadership is causing heads of state to ease off their goals. In France, violent protests against higher diesel taxes are casting a shadow over efforts to raise the price of fossil fuels to combat climate change. Join us for a discussion about who’s moving ahead and who’s moving backward in the transition to a clean energy economy.

In an age where society is only growing more divided, Douglas Rushkoff endeavors to explain some of modernity’s most divisive influences and the importance of overcoming them. In his newest book, Team Human, Rushkoff argues that humans are inherently social creatures, achieving the greatest success and fulfillment when working together. However, Rushkoff describes how major underpinnings of society, such as wealth, education and technology, are actually further isolating people. Rushkoff has extensively studied the impacts of modern development and technology on human life. From his thorough knowledge and research, Rushkoff has concluded that we need to place greater focus on human cooperation to overcome modern isolating effects. Join us for this discussion with Rushkoff to learn how we can remake society together. ** THIS PODCAST CONTAINS EXPLICIT LANGUAGE **

In How to Live Forever, Encore.org founder and CEO Marc Freedman tells the story of his thirty-year quest to answer some of contemporary life's most urgent questions: With so many living so much longer, what is the meaning of the increasing years beyond 50? How can a society with more older people than younger ones thrive? How do we find happiness when we know life is long and time is short? In his new book, Freedman finds insights by exploring purpose and generativity, digging into the drive for longevity and the perils of age segregation, and talking to social innovators across the globe bringing the generations together for mutual benefit. He finds wisdom in stories from young and old, featuring ordinary people and icons such as jazz great Clark Terry and basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. But the answers also come from stories of Freedman's own mentors—a sawmill worker turned surrogate grandparent, a university administrator who served as Einstein's driver, a cabinet secretary who won the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the gym teacher who was Freedman's father. You can read more about Freedman views on the power of intergenerational relationships here. How to Live Forever is a deeply personal call to find fulfillment and happiness in our longer lives by connecting with the next generation and forging a legacy of love that lives beyond us. Freedman will discuss his new book at the beautiful Buck Institute, an organization dedicated to helping people live better longer. It is a special event you won't want to miss. In association with the Buck Institute.

On the eve of the People's Republic of China's 70th anniversary, journalist and author Helen Zia discusses the desperate exodus out of that country's biggest and most sophisticated city—a port so notorious that its name was synonymous with evildoing. Her new nonfiction book, Last Boat out of Shanghai: The Epic Story of the Chinese Who Fled Mao's Revolution, is the first English language account of this mass flight, an event that mirrors the Jews and other intellectuals fleeing Berlin as Hitler came to power and the frantic rush for evacuees to enter the American embassy as Saigon fell. This is the history of a generation of Chinese intellectuals dispersed throughout the world. The story remained untold, even in China, until Zia interviewed more than 100 survivors of this late 1940s and early 1950s exodus. Many endured great hardship and nativist hostility, including the McCarthy inquisition in the United States, as they tried to find safety for themselves and their families. Their offspring include Maya Lin, I.M. Pei, Amy Tan, Steven Chu, Elaine Chao, David Henry Hwang, Chang-lin Tien, Gish Jen and many other notables. Zia’s first book, Asian-American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People, was a groundbreaking history of Asian-Americans in the United States. A Fulbright scholar, she first visited China in 1972, just after President Nixon’s historic trip. As a journalist, she has covered Asian-American communities and social and political movements for decades. She is a former executive editor of Ms. magazine and graduate of Princeton University’s first coeducational class. NOTES MLF: Asia Pacific Affairs In association with the Committee of 100

This program is part of our Good Lit series, underwritten by the Bernard Osher Foundation. Only a few years ago, Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian spent 544 days in an Iranian prison. Rezaian experienced interrogations, trials and the complexity of international negotiations. He was even used as a bargaining chip in the Iran nuclear deal negotiations. In his book Prisoner, Rezaian delves into his dramatic and suspenseful story as an American prisoner of Iran. He describes how friends and family in the United States worked tirelessly to advocate for his release, lobbying John Kerry and President Obama to seek his freedom. Join us for this fascinating story from Rezaian, a Bay Area native, about hope, international justice, U.S.–Iran relations and the man caught in the middle.