Jan. 6 Witnesses Testify They Told Trump Not To Declare Quick Victory As House Panel Dives Deeper Into The “Big Lie”

Donald Trump’s campaign manager Bill Stepien and other top aides testified Monday at the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol attack that they believed the 2020 presidential race was too close to call on Election Night, but Trump nevertheless declared himself the winner. Stepien abruptly backed out of appearing live Monday because his wife went into labor, but the committee moved ahead with other in-person witnesses and previously recorded testimony from Stepien and others close to the president, including Ivanka Trump. At today’s hearing, the panel dove deeper into the “big lie,” Trump’s false claims of voter fraud that fueled his efforts to overturn the 2020 election and provoked a mob of his supporters to lay siege to the U.S. Capitol. Committee members also say they have uncovered enough evidence for the Justice Department to consider an unprecedented criminal indictment against the former president. Today on AirTalk, Larry discusses today’s hearing with Matt Dalleck, professor of political management at George Washington University. 

With files from the Associated Press 

Wildfires Are Fueling A Mental Health Crisis Among Firefighters

Wildfires are ripping through more land, and burning with greater intensity, in California and the west coast. The Dixie Fire, the Caldor Fire, the Camp Fire which leveled the town of Paradise, CA… The list goes on. And these fires leave behind more than just ash and scorch marks. They are a tremendous source of trauma for the people who live in the affected areas, as well as the firefighters who risk their lives to put them out. Julie Cart, environment reporter for CalMatters, wrote a 4 part series exploring the mental health toll of these fires. Today on AirTalk, Larry is joined by Julie and Cal Fire Battalion Chief Jeff Burrow.

The History Behind HOAs And The Powerful Role They Play In SoCal

If you live in a residential community or a condominium, there’s a good chance you’re part of a homeowners association or HOA. These associations help maintain certain concepts, structures and ordinances within the community. And they often come with homeowner fees and rules (potentially lots of rules). While forms of these covenants go way back, HOAs boomed in the 1960s, including here in Southern California. Today on AirTalk, Evan McKenzie, professor of political science and associated faculty of law at the University of Illinois at Chicago and author of “Privatopia: Homeowner Associations and the Rise of Residential Private Government,” joins to discuss the history behind HOAs and the powerful impacts they’ve had on SoCal and beyond, including discrimination, housing prices and more.

COVID-19 AMA: Infections And Hospitalizations Tick Up in L.A. County, How COVID Affects Unborn Babies, And More

In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry Mantle speaks with Dr. Peter Katona, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health professor of epidemiology and clinical professor of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

Topics today include:

• L.A. County coronavirus cases and hospitalizations are rising again 
• FDA: Pfizer’s COVID-19 shot appears effective in kids under 5 
• The C.D.C. lifts order requiring travelers test negative for COVID-19 before flying to the U.S. 
• Study: Coronavirus infection during pregnancy is linked to brain development problems in babies 
• How COVID is affecting how the flu and other common viruses act 

Are We Entering ‘Stagflation’? If So, What Would That Mean?

Stagflation. It was the dreaded “S word” of the 1970s. For Americans of a certain age, it conjures memories of painfully long lines at gas stations, shuttered factories, and President Gerald Ford’s much-ridiculed “Whip Inflation Now” buttons. Stagflation is the bitterest of economic pills: High inflation mixes with a weak job market to cause a toxic brew that punishes consumers and befuddles economists. For decades, most economists didn’t think such a nasty concoction was even possible. They’d long assumed that inflation would run high only when the economy was strong and unemployment low. But an unhappy confluence of events has economists reaching back to the days of disco and the bleak high inflation, the high-unemployment economy of nearly a half-century ago. Few think stagflation is in sight. But as a longer-term threat, it can no longer be dismissed. Today on AirTalk, Larry is joined by Jacob Bogage, business reporter at The Washington Post and Maurice Obstfeld, professor of economics at UC Berkeley and senior fellow at the Petersen Institute of International Economics in Washington, D.C.

With files from the Associated Press

The Senate Announces A Potential Bipartisan Deal On Gun Safety. Can It Help Limit Gun Deaths?

A bipartisan group of at least 20 U.S. Senate bargainers on Sunday announced a framework of gun safety measures in response to last month’s mass shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas. The proposal would offer modest gun laws including funding “red flag” laws for states, as well as school safety and mental health programs. With at least 10 Senate Republicans on board, it appears the measures could pass without worry of a filibuster.

Today on AirTalk, Larry discusses the potential reform with UCLA law professors Adam Winkler and  Eugene Volokh.

With files from Associated Press