Posts Tagged 'jim lehrer'

Cicerone stresses importance of science to sustain world’s population

July 5, 2012·Comments closed

Rather than worrying about whether the country would exist after the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln and the United States Congress made the effort to provide for the country’s future.

During the war, Lincoln and Congress signed the Morrill Act, which created all the country’s public universities and the National Academy of Sciences, said Ralph Cicerone, current president of the academy.

“Even in tough times, you’ve got to be thinking ahead,” Cicerone said. “Show some ambition and get on with it.”

Cicerone and retired “PBS NewsHour” anchor Jim Lehrer had a conversation about the lack of goals and ambition and about science’s role in society during Thursday’s morning lecture as part of Week Two’s theme, “The Lehrer Report: What Voters Need to Know.”

Morning Lecture Previews

Gerson, Shields join Lehrer for political wrap, ‘NewsHour’ style

July 5, 2012·Comments closed

Jim Lehrer will moderate a conversation between nationally syndicated columnists Michael Gerson and Mark Shields at 10:45 a.m. today in the Amphitheater, closing Week Two’s morning lecture series, “The Lehrer Report: What Informed Voters Need to Know.”

Gerson, whose columns appear twice weekly in The Washington Post, writes a right-leaning column on issues that include politics, global health, development, religion and foreign policy.He was a top aide to President George W. Bush, a senior editor at U.S. News and World Report and a speechwriter for Bob Dole during the 1996 presidential campaign.

Shields, who has worked in Washington during the administrations of nine U.S. presidents, started writing his left-leaning column, now distributed nationally by Creators Syndicate, in 1979. In 1968, he worked for Robert F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign. He also held leadership positions in three other presidential campaigns and wrote a book about the 1984 presidential campaign, On the Campaign Trail.

Morning Lecture Recaps

Lehrer: People watch debates to confirm predispositions about candidates

July 4, 2012·Comments closed

Presidential debates serve a greater purpose than just helping the public decide whom they want as president.

The 2012 presidential debates are just as important as any of those that have occurred every election year. They are the only moments during campaigns when presidential candidates stand side by side and discuss the same topics, Lehrer said.
In his only solo appearance of the week, retired “PBS NewsHour” anchor Jim Lehrer shared his thoughts on presidential debates and criticized this year’s Republican primary debates during Wednesday’s morning lecture.

Morning Lecture Previews

Acclaimed climate expert Cicerone joins Lehrer on Amp stage

July 4, 2012·Comments closed

Imagine it’s early 2001. The new George W. Bush administration is in office, with rumors circulating about its skepticism of global warming in particular and science in general. You get a call from the National Academy of Sciences. They want you to chair a study on the state of climate change. The White House is asking for the study, and they want a report in four weeks.

Ralph J. Cicerone got that call. NAS president since 2005, Cicerone is this morning’s lecturer as the Jim Lehrer-moderated examination of “What Voters Need to Know” continues.

Morning Lecture Recaps

Ayres, Brazile dissect major issues from opposite sides

July 3, 2012·Comments closed

The 2012 election between President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney has often been compared to the 2004 election.

The line between Americans’ dissatisfaction with United States politics and the trust the public has in Obama compared to Romney leads to a close race.

Brazile and Whit Ayres, a Republican strategist, had a conversation with retired “PBS NewsHour” anchor Jim Lehrer as part of Week Two’s programming on the theme “The Lehrer Report: What Informed Voters Need to Know.” Ayres and Brazile discussed why they believe each candidate should win the election and the recent Supreme Court health care decision’s role in the 2012 elections.

Morning Lecture Previews

Lehrer to relate experiences as ‘dean’ of presidential debate moderators

July 3, 2012·Comments closed

The 2012 presidential election is on the horizon, and Chautauquans will have the opportunity to hear stories from one of the most prominent presidential debate moderators in history.

Jim Lehrer, moderator of 11 presidential debates, will share stories from the debates and talk about the privilege of interviewing nearly every candidate for president and vice president during the past six elections.

Lehrer said he looks forward to returning to Chautauqua because speaking to an engaged audience is a speaker’s paradise.

Morning Lecture Recaps

Kohut, Lehrer take the pulse of the American voter

July 2, 2012·Comments closed

The public’s mixed opinions of the Supreme Court’s decision on the Affordable Care Act exemplifies the division in today’s politics.

Only 45 percent of Americans agreed with the decision, as opposed to 45 percent who disagreed with it, said Andrew Kohut, president of the Pew Research Center, at Monday’s morning lecture.

Despite the decision, Kohut said he believes the court’s acceptance of the bill will legitimize it to some degree.

“What has clearly happened is that the administration and President Obama really dodged a bullet,” Kohut said, “because if this legislation had been overturned, it would have taken away one of his achievements — and the knock on Obama, even for people who like him, is he hasn’t accomplished much.”

Morning Lecture Previews

Ayres, Brazile examine inner workings of presidential campaign

July 2, 2012·Comments closed

In continuing this week’s theme, “The Lehrer Report: What Informed Voters Need to Know,” GOP pollster and strategist Whit Ayres and Democratic strategist Donna Brazile will join Jim Lehrer at 10:45 a.m. today in the Amphitheater.

“Long-term forces are at work in this presidential election,” Ayres said about the upcoming showdown between incumbent President Barack Obama and Republican candidate Mitt Romney.

The major variables include the economy, the nation’s satisfaction with the country’s direction, world affairs and the job market.

Morning Lecture Previews

Kohut, Lehrer to examine public opinion as election approaches

July 1, 2012·Comments closed

There is a man who wants to know what’s on your mind.

Andrew Kohut, president of the Pew Research Center and director of the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, has been researching, collecting and analyzing changes and trends in public opinion since the late 1980s. At 10:45 a.m. today in the Amphitheater, Kohut will meet with retired “PBS News Hour” anchor and Week Two morning lecture host Jim Lehrer to open a week of programming titled “The Lehrer Report: What Informed Voters Need to Know.”

“Starting with Andy Kohut, to hear from his leadership from the Pew Research Center, allows us to know what’s on people’s minds,” said Sherra Babcock, director of the Department of Education.

Morning Lecture Previews

Lear, Rosenblatt kick off week of literary celebration

June 24, 2012·Comments closed

Roger Rosenblatt is running out of friends.

Joined by his colleagues and confidants at 10:45 a.m. each weekday in the Amphitheater, Rosenblatt will lead discussions on the literary arts ranging from cartoons to television to children’s literature. This is his third year playing the role of host — the series began in 2008 and recurred in 2010. And because each week requires a minimum of five friends, he joked that his resources are wearing thin.

“I also wanted to make sure that everyone in the group was older than me,” Rosenblatt said, “but that’s getting more and more difficult.”