Fact-Checking the GOP Tax Plan

Coming up on today’s show:

• There’s been a lot said about the Republican tax plan over the past few weeks and months, and today we’re tackling those claims head on. Daniel Shaviro is Wayne Perry professor of taxation at New York University School of Law. He’s tells us what’s true and what’s false when it comes to the tax plan.

• Conversations about gaps in health insurance coverage often focus on urban and rural communities. But a recent study found that 40 percent of uninsured Americans live in the suburbs. Alina Schnake-Mahl, a doctoral candidate at the Harvard School of Public Health and co-author of the recent study, joins The Takeaway to discuss her research.

• Cardinal Bernard Law, the archbishop of Boston who resigned in disgrace, died today in Vatican City. He was 86 years old. Law is most remembered today for his role in covering up the child sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church. Mike Rezendes, an investigative reporter for the Boston Globe Spotlight Team who helped break the story on the Catholic Church’s cover-up, looks at Cardinal Law’s life and legacy.

• A legal case involving 200 people who participated in protests during President Trump’s inauguration could have major implications on future protests and free speech. Sam Adler-Bell,a policy associate at the Century Foundation, discusses the arguments the government is using in the case, and the precedent it could set.

• New Jersey’s fragmented medical examiner system has long been plagued by dysfunction and a lack of oversight. A new investigation reveals the scale of the problem. Sean Sullivan, statehouse reporter for NJ Advance Media, explains.

• Since 1923, the Scholastic Art andWriting Awards have recognized the work of young people around the country. Queens-based poet and playwright Trace DePass joins the program to talk about some of the best teen writing to emerge in 2017. He says it’s been a year full of political passion, unique takes on form, and work that gets at the heart of issues of national significance.

This episode is hosted by Todd Zwillich