Washington

Cabinet unanimously approves Terkel c'tee; Washington welcomes move.

The following is a transcript of a TRNN interview with Ralph Nader. You can view the video of the interview here.

Over the past week, there's been a lot of talk over how the West has "lost" Turkey. Even Defense Secretary Robert Gates seems to be buying into this line of thinking.

This past Wednesday, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) delivered a wide-ranging speech at an Orthodox Union event in Washington, D.C. The senator's lecture touched on areas such as Iran's nuclear program, the Israel-Palestinian conflict, and several domestic policy issues.

On today's Wilshire & Washington, we discuss the Helen Thomas resignation, as well as the politics of the BP oil spill and how Hollywood might help. But first, we tackle the midterm primaries this week.

Stephen Kinzer is a journalist of a certain cheeky fearlessnes and exquisite timing. In his new book he's ahead of the game again.

In light of Turkey's reaction to the Israeli attack on the Gaza-bound flotilla last week, media pundits and policy wonks are already underlining the demise of the US-Turkish special relationship. The growing chorus of critics miss one vital point. Turkey was criticizing Tel Aviv's military overkill off the Gaza coastline, not Washington's.

By Avner Gidron, Senior Policy Adviser at Amnesty International

Originally published on The Hill

When several years ago I first met Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and had the pleasure to have two private conversations with him, he immediately struck me as the ultimate "purple" leader. As the Washington Post wrote recently, "Erdogan's Justice and Development Party has religious roots, but it also draws conservative entrepreneurs and liberals with its free-market policies."

Cordial Obama-Abbas meeting in Washington, reiterating the need for an end to Israel’s blockade of Gaza. Abbas: We don’t incite against Israel.