The Bottom Line

The coronavirus pandemic has upended lives around the world.

In the United States, it has exposed the fact that this is one of the only developed countries in the world without paid sick leave.

And it is one of the only countries in the world that does not guarantee any paid time off for new mothers.

Fault Lines has travelled across the US to report on the country's paid leave crisis.

We heard from families directly affected by a lack of paid leave: Ali and Derek Dodd, a couple in Oklahoma who tragically lost their infant son in a daycare accident, who advocate for paid family leave for parents; Leah Clay, a single mother in the state of Georgia who ended up on public assistance after taking unpaid leave from her job as a breastfeeding counsellor to care for her baby; and Jacqui Silvani, a mother in New Hampshire who lost her teaching job while taking unpaid leave to care for her toddler undergoing cancer treatment.

These cases highlight the stakes for millions of Americans who find themselves having to choose between their jobs or caring for themselves or their families. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 113 million Americans without paid family and medical leave - whether it is time to recover from childbirth and care for a newborn, take care of a sick family member, or recover from an illness themselves.

The last comprehensive federal legislation passed on the issue was in 1993 under former President Bill Clinton - the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) - which only guarantees unpaid job-protected leave. But about 40 percent of Americans do not meet the criteria required by FMLA, and because it is unpaid, even people who do qualify often cannot afford to take it.

This has all led to a caregiving crisis in the US and the consequences can be dire. Without paid family and medical leave, many American workers face extreme financial hardship. They are often forced out of their jobs and into public assistance. Women in particular - who take on the bulk of caregiving responsibilities - are disproportionately affected. This is especially true for women of colour. The lack of adequate paid leave for new mothers, for example, can have harmful effects on the mother and the baby.

So why is there still no nationwide policy in place, and what does this mean for millions of American workers? Fault Lines investigates.

Throughout the United States, concern about the spread of the novel coronavirus has topped the headlines for weeks.

Travel plans are being cancelled, and election campaigns have suspended their rallies as people wonder about attending any event with crowds.

The US administration announced that it is working on a fiscal stimulus package to shore up the economy. It may include paying sick leave for hourly workers, to make sure that workers don't hesitate to get tested, even if it leads to a quarantine period.

Many economists noted that the epidemic has exposed major issues in US society, including income inequality and uniform access to healthcare.

In this episode of The Bottom Line, host Steve Clemons and his panel explore the economic fallout of the epidemic.

Guests:

Dr Ali Khan - Former US Assistant Surgeon General and former Director of the Centers for Disease Control Office of Public Health Preparedness and Response

Claudia Sahm - Economist with the Washington Center for Equitable Growth

Jon Gruber - Professor of economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and former President of the American Society of Health Economists

Kathleen Tierney - Professor of sociology at the University of Colorado and author of "Disasters: A Sociological Approach"

- Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe

- Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish

- Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera

- Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/

After Super Tuesday - where people in 14 states pick their top choice for presidential candidate - the Democratic Party faces the semi-final battle for the soul of the party: Establishment or Revolution?

Supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders say their candidate brings grassroots excitement to the race, with decidedly un-Trumpian plans for the environment, immigration, education and healthcare. Detractors say his plans are too socialist for Americans and that he threatens the sense of economic security enjoyed by the middle class.

Supporters of former Vice President Joe Biden say their candidate stands in the centre of the Party, and all other wings of the Party could rally behind him without feeling sold out. His detractors say he does not bring the same energy to the race as Sanders, and his proposals are "milquetoast".

So which way will the Party go, and what does it have to do to win the face-off with Republican President Donald Trump?

Join Steve Clemons and his panel as they examine the war within the Democratic Party.

Guests:

Reverend Leah Daughtry - Chief executive officer of the Democratic National Convention in 2008 and 2016

Michelle Gale - Grassroots Democratic Party activist in Chicago

Lenae Erickson - Senior vice president for social policy and politics at the Third Way think-tank

- Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe

- Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish

- Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera

- Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/

The former US national security adviser, John Bolton, once said: "There is no United Nations. There is an international community that occasionally can be led by the only real power left in the world – that is, the US."

When the West, led by the United States, wanted to make sure that World Wars I and II would not happen again, it helped create countless international organisations to maintain a US-led global order (NATO, WTO, WHO, UN, IEA, OECD, etc).

But this order is showing its age. It faces challenges within, increasing numbers of citizens in the West are turning their back on globalism, and taking out their frustrations on "the other" and people in the Global South argue that the old global order does not reflect the geopolitical realities of 2020.

So is the world heading to a state of "Westlessness" where the West no longer desires to maintain the old order? And if so, what happens to the notion of international law and institutions? Do smaller countries have to fend for themselves?

Join Steve Clemons and his panel of experts as they discuss the repercussions of "Westlessness".

Guests:

Danielle Pletka - senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute

Ian Bremmer - president of Eurasia Group

Wolfgang Ischinger - chairman of the Munich Security Conference

- Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe

- Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish

- Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera

- Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/

In the last United States presidential election cycle in 2016, more than $2bn was raised and spent by the top two candidates, and some experts estimate that the 2020 elections will be even more expensive.

Can the tough decisions facing Americans - funding healthcare and higher education, managing the titans of Silicon Valley, taxing the wealthy - be dealt with fairly when politicians have traditionally been funded by the same corporations and wealthy individuals that government is meant to regulate?

Join Steve Clemons and his panel of experts as they debate the role of money in US politics.

Guests:

Matt Stoller, Research Director of the American Economic Liberties Project and author of Goliath: The 100-year War Between Monopoly Power and Democracy

Michael Fauntroy, Professor of political science at Howard University

Liz Mair, Republican strategist

- Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe

- Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish

- Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera

- Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/

Weeks after the outbreak of a novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China, researchers are still not sure how it spreads between humans, and how to neutralise it.

While the mortality rate is relatively low, the quick spread of the virus triggered shock waves worldwide. By mid-February, cases were reported in more than 20 countries.

"Coronaviruses are known to circulate amongst humans but also other animal populations and particularly bats, and there are also other types of animals that can also carry coronaviruses," Dr Lisa Maragakis, senior director of infection prevention at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, tells Al Jazeera.

"So the thought now is that there were probably some intermediary species in that market or in the vicinity that had the coronavirus and mutations in the virus can also cause it to affect humans."

We discuss the fallout of the epidemic beyond the public health dimensions. How does it affect China's role in the world? Should we expect any economic impact?

Join Steve Clemons and his panel of experts as they get to The Bottom Line.

Guests:

Dr Lisa Maragakis - researcher of infectious diseases and senior director of Infection Prevention at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Dr Leana Wen - physician and professor of Public Health at George Washington University; former Health Commissioner for the City of Baltimore

Robert Scott - senior economist for the Economic Policy Institute

Joshua Eisenman - assistant professor at the University of Notre Dame

- Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe

- Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish

- Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera

- Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/

Standing beside a grateful Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Donald Trump unveiled his Middle East plan, which is referred to as the "Deal of the Century", on January 28.

The plan promises a better life for the Palestinians if they give up their hopes for freedom.

The Palestinians were not involved in the making of the 80-page brochure and were not invited to the launch party.

So, what are the prospects for Trump's "ultimate deal" for the Middle East?

Join Steve Clemons and his panel in a discussion of the timing and content of the plan.

Guests:

- Noura Erakat - Human rights lawyer, co-founder of Jadaliyya, assistant professor of Africana Studies at Rutgers University

- Dan Arbell - Former Israeli diplomat and negotiator, scholar at Center for Israeli Studies at American University

- Shibley Telhami - Anwar Sadat Professor for Peace and Development at the University of Maryland

- Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe

- Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish

- Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera

- Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/

After a lengthy investigation in the House of Representatives, US President Donald Trump was accused of abusing his power and obstructing Congress.

Now his case moves to the trial phase, as the Senate converts to a big courtroom.

Despite the consensus being that Trump will be acquitted, this week was historic for the United States, and for democracy in general: It is only the third time in 243 years that a sitting US president has faced an impeachment trial.

Besides the debate on the facts of the case against Trump, Senators have political considerations to wrestle with as well, as national elections loom in the near future.

Democrats have framed the debate as a fight for the rule of law, and Republicans have framed it as a persistent political witch-hunt against a president who wants to permanently change the way Washington does business.

But which side will come out stronger at the end of the proceedings? And who will come out damaged?

Join Steve Clemons and his panel of experts as they get to The Bottom Line.

Guests:

- Jason Miller - co-host of the daily podcast, "War Room: Impeachment" and former spokesman for the 2016 Trump campaign

- Hilary Hurd - contributor for the Lawfare Blog who is wrapping up her law degree at the Harvard University

- Richard Goodstein - attorney and Democratic strategist in Washington, DC.

- Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe

- Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish

- Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera

- Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/

The U.S. president asked the West’s main military alliance to “become much more involved in the Middle East.” What does that mean?

After the assassination of Iranian Gen. Qassem Solaimani in early January, U.S. President Donald Trump said that a string of accomplishments had “changed our strategic priorities,” paving the way for U.S. forces in the region to withdraw.

“We can come home, or largely come home, and use NATO,” he said, describing the Middle East as “a big source of problems.”

Washington, as the biggest player in NATO, can sway the mission of the alliance. NATO’s mandate has evolved over the past 70 years from confronting the USSR to fighting alongside the United States in Afghanistan and Iraq.

So what is next for NATO? Will Trump be able to impose his will on the other 28 members? What would NATO’s engagement in the Middle East look like? And what would Washington’s disengagement with the region look like?

Join Steve Clemons as we get to The Bottom Line.

Guests:

• Alexander Vershbow, former Deputy Secretary General of NATO, and prior to that, U.S. ambassador to the Alliance. He's now at the Atlantic Council.

• Heather Conley, former U.S. State Department official working on Europe. Currently the Director of the Europe Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies

• Nile Gardiner, foreign policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation and former aide to Lady Margaret Thatcher

- Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe

- Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish

- Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera

- Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/

With no appetite in the United States to launch new wars or prolong old ones, the assassination of a top Iranian general last week came as a peculiar escalation.

Does the White House want to send a signal that it is engaging or disengaging from the Middle East?

General Qassem Soleimani was the commander of Iran's Quds Brigades, which is used by Iran to expand its military presence and influence in countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen.

There were no indications that his assassination, which Iran considers an act of war, is part of a wider US strategy.

So, what's next for Iran-US relations? And how did we go from relative calm in 2016 to high tension in 2020?

Join host Steve Clemons and his guests in this discussion on Solaimani's assassination, US-Iran relations and the chances for de-escalation.

Guests:

Vali Nasr - Professor of Middle East studies at Johns Hopkins University and author of The Shia Revival (2006)

Michele Dunne - Director of the Middle East Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and former US diplomat in Cairo and Jerusalem

Matthew Brodsky - Senior fellow at the Gold Institute for International Strategy

- Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe

- Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish

- Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera

- Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/