The Wheelhouse

This hour, we dissect President Trump's joint address to Congress -- what he's themed "the renewal of the American spirit."

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Welcome to the Wheelhouse -- WNPR’s Weekly News Roundtable -- as we celebrate our first week as “The Enemy of the American People!” 

It’s true that trust and confidence in the media has faltered over the years, as has confidence in every branch of government. But the “failing” New York Times, as President Trump calls the paper, has actually seen a gigantic surge in its readership.

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It's been an interesting week for Connecticut U.S. Senators. President Donald Trump said Richard Blumenthal misrepresented a conversation with Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch. In a tweet, Trump called out the Senator for an incident in 2010: "Sen. Richard Blumenthal, who never fought in Vietnam when he said for years he had (major lie)."

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It's budget day! It's the day Governor Dannel Malloy unveils his budget proposal to the state. And what can we expect? Well, cities and towns may be on the hook for more money going towards teachers' pensions; the elimination of a $200 property tax credit; changes to the Education Cost Sharing formula; a transportation lockbox? 

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The theme of the past week may well be "protest." Thousands came out to local airports across the country to protest Donald Trump's immigration executive order. Democrats, including Connecticut's own senator Chris Murphy, are speaking out against Trump's executive orders and cabinet nominations.

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We're halfway through week one of Donald Trump's presidency. So far, we've experienced Sean Spicer's "abnormal" press conference, an executive order to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, separate meetings with the President of Egypt and union leaders, another executive order to advance the approval of oil pipelines, and not one tax return. 

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The inauguration is days away. Whether you're excited or not, the transfer of power from Barack Obama to Donald Trump is an historic event.  And an expensive event, at a price tag of more than $200 million. The Department of Homeland Security says they expect 900,000, including many protestors. While past Presidents like Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter, and George W. Bush will be in attendance, more than fifty House Democrats say they will not attend. 

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Last night night, President Obama delivered his farewell address to the nation. The speech was - let’s say, juxtaposed - with news that intelligence officials have briefed both Obama and President-Elect Donald Trump about reports that Russia had gathered “salacious” and compromising material about Trump. Although, it’s unclear what exactly counts as salacious anymore. 

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Wednesday is the start of Connecticut’s legislative session. Lawmakers reconvene, starting squarely at a massive state budget deficit, and a crisis in pension costs that Comptroller Kevin Lembo said will “crush us” unless something is done. 

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The U.S. locks up more people than any other country in the world, with 2.3 million people behind bars. One-third of the U.S. population has a criminal record. 

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