Welcome to Talking Feds.

A roundtable that brings together prominent former federal officials and special guests

for a dynamic discussion of the most important political and legal topics of the day.

I'm Harry Littman.

The week began with the country's eyes glued to the closing arguments in the case of Derek

Chauvin, the Minneapolis police officer accused of murdering George Floyd as captured by

a young bystander on a video that horrified and galvanized the nation in the world.

After a markedly brief deliberation, the jury Tuesday returned a verdict of guilty on

all counts, and the former police officer was taken into immediate custody to await

a sentence that figures to be at least 15 years.

The verdict brought a national sense of relief and even exultation, which gave way quickly

to a sharp focus on systemic reform of police conduct across the country.

Former President Barack Obama declared that, true justice requires that we come to terms

with the fact that black Americans are treated differently every day.

The Department of Justice immediately announced an investigation of the Minneapolis Police

Department under its pattern and practice authority, which Attorney General Merrick Garland

recently restored to full strengths rescinding limits imposed by the Trump DOJ.

Thursday, President Biden marked Earth Day by hosting a virtual global summit announcing

that the United States intends to cut emissions nearly in half by the end of the decade.

The undertaking would change U.S. lives in nearly every way, for manufacturing practices

to the way we drive.

Finally, the White House endorsed a bill to make the District of Columbia a state, which

...