LNSmithee's MyC-SPAN

Founder Rick Prelinger talked about the Prelinger Archives in San Francisco, California, a collection of over 60,000 “ephemeral” (advertising, educational, industrial, and amateur) films. In this second of a two-part look at the Prelinger Archives, founder Rick Prelinger spoke about his project to collect and digitize thousands of home movies . He also talked about some of his favorite industrial films.

Harvey Schwartz talked about his book, Building the Golden Gate Bridge: A Workers' Oral History. He showed pictures of the laborers and spoke about their testimonies of harsh weather, safety procedures, and work conditions during the Great Depression.

House Speak Nancy Pelosi spoke on the necessity of passing the financial markets bailout bill. She blamed President Bush for the current financial industry turmoil.

University of Michigan Law School professor and Supreme Court historian Richard Friedman discussed the history of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s “court packing” attempt.

Chief Justice William Rehnquist spoke about importance of the Supreme Court’s independence in protecting the United States constitutional system. He emphasized that this independence took years to evolve, and that the other two branches had challenged it several times.

House Judiciary Committee members presented opening statements about four articles of impeachment they considered in the hearing. The Republican majority argued that President Bill Clinton should suffer impeachment because he had, in their eyes, lied under oath. The Democratic minority argued that even if true the charges did not warrant an impeachment a they did not reach the standard of “high crimes and misdemeanors” as stated in the U.S. Constitution.

At the Aspen Ideas Festival Mr. Anderson moderated a panel featuring television producer Norman Lear, actor and filmmaker Sydney Pollack, and author and filmmaker Nora Ephron. They talked about the ways in which film and television programs conveyed American values. Among the issues they addressed were transmitting cultural and moral messages through artistic media, business influences in the production of television and film, how entertainment changes and reflects contemporary values, as well as enduring values. They also answered questions from the audience.

Lois Lerner, former director of Internal Revenue Service Exempt Organizations, invoked her Fifth Amendment rights for a second time before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. During a May 22, 2013, hearing, she invoked for the first time her rights to refuse to testify after her opening statement. After Ms. Lerner refused to answer questions, Committee Chair Issa immediately adjourned the hearing, setting off a testy exchange with Ranking Member Cummings who wanted to make a statement.

Tom Perkins spoke with Adam Lashinsky about income inequality. Mr. Perkins said that income inequality was due to social, fiscal, and monetary policy failures, and suggested that there was a “persecution of the rich.” He also spoke about the Affordable Care Act, Democratic tax proposals, and reasons for the failure of many new businesses. He blamed many of America’s fiscal problems on President Johnson’s declaration of “War on Poverty.” He also responded to questions from members of the audience.

Internal Revenue Service Commissioner John Koskinen testified about his agency’s response to allegations that it had targeted conservative groups for special scrutiny when determining tax-exempt status. Chair Darrell Issa (R-CA) threatened to hold the witness in contempt of Congress, accusing him of trying to “manage political fallout.” Commissioner Koskinen said it would take years for his agency to comply with the full scope of document requests from Congress related to the IRS targeting scandal. Many of the document requests were for the electronic correspondence of former IRS Tax Exempt Organizations Director Lois Lerner, who had twice refused to testify before the cmmittee, citing her Fifth Amendment rights.

After the hearing gaveled out, Mr. Koskinen answered questions from reporters.