As people head to the polls to vote on new members for the House and Senate, many are also voting on various statewide ballot initiatives. Two states in particular are being watched closely, Oregon and Washington. There people will decide whether or not to increase taxes on soda and sugary drinks. What most people don’t know is that Coca Cola, Pepsi Co, and other American beverage companies are largely financing the initiatives and they are being pitched as a tax on affordable groceries. Helena Bottemiller Evich, food and agriculture reporter for Politico joins me for the new tactic in fighting soda taxes, sweeping statewide ballot measures. Next, as the migrant caravan continues to make its way to the United States, a new focus is being put on the countries they are coming from. Many migrants are fleeing poverty and violence in their home countries, but what exactly is going on there? There is a new breed of gang taking over there, ones that are preying on their own neighborhoods. Gangs like MS-13 and Barrio 18 are extorting local neighborhoods with protection schemes, gone are the days of the cartel and the kingpin. Robbie Whelan, correspondent for the WSJ, joins us to talk about how gangs have taken over El Salvador so much, that they could be the largest employers they hiring as many as 60,000 people.

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.