Howard Dean, John Podesta, J. David Cox, Ed Towns, and Rick Perlstein

Friday July 3, 2009

Former Vermont Governor Howard Dean, who most recently served as chairman of the Democratic National Committee, will be featured this week on AFGE’s “Inside Government” radio show. Former Clinton White House chief of staff and co-chairman of President Obama’s transition team, John Podesta, who currently serves as president and CEO of the Center for American Progress, also will be interviewed.

On the show, Dean will address the call for a public option in health care reform, while Podesta will discuss the Obama administration’s desire to rely less on private contractors and bring more work back into the federal government.

But first, hear from AFGE National Secretary-Treasurer J. David Cox, who will update listeners on the critical situation inside the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Cox will address the VA’s staffing and funding shortages, AFGE’s opposition to the VA Health Care Facility Leasing Program, and a claims backlog expected to top 1 million. For more information on these issues and many others, please visit www.fundtheva.com.

U.S. Rep. Ed Towns (D-N.Y.) then will discuss his role as chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform committee, and the need to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse in the federal government. Finally, hear from Rick Perlstein, author of “Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America,” who will share his thoughts on the conservative movement as well as pressing issues in today’s world such as the energy crisis.