WAMU-FM: WAMU: The Diane Rehm Show Podcast

Tax policy has never been easy - for politicians to agree on or for Americans who are not accounting experts to understand. Now we have the so-called fiscal cliff looming over the nation. And the Obama administration and Republican leaders are at a stalemate on how to avert it. Anti-tax crusader Grover Norquist has played an outsized role in the debate. Most Republican members of the current Congress have signed Norquist's anti-tax pledge. With November elections over and the fiscal cliff just weeks away, some pledge-signers have begun to waver. Grover Norquist of Americans for Tax Reform joins Diane to talk about one of life's two certainties - taxes.

Mary Schapiro took over as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2009. The nation was in serious financial crisis and Wall Street seemed to resemble the Wild West in need of a strong sheriff. Many saw Schapiro as that sheriff and credit her with salvaging the agency's role as Wall Street's watchdog. Critics point to unfinished business, such as addressing the root causes of the financial crisis and punishing the perpetrators whose actions contributed to it. A discussion of the role of the SEC and its future under new leadership.

Protests in Egypt over the president's power grab. The Palestinian Authority makes a U.N. bid. And European finance ministers set new bailout terms for Greece. Moises Naim of El Pais, Anne Applebaum of Slate and The Washington Post and Tom Gjelten of NPR join Diane for analysis of the week's top international news stories.

Negotiations to avoid the "fiscal cliff" continue. A fight over U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice heats up. And President Obama lunches with former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. The week's top national stories: what happened and why.

Harvard professor Michael Sandel on whether there's something wrong with a world in which everything is for sale.

The Senate considers a bill to allow federal agencies to access electronic messages. Balancing privacy rights and public safety.

"The Bonfire of the Vanities" was Tom Wolfe's 11th book and first novel. Inspired by Thackeray's 19th century satire "Vanity Fair," Wolfe set out to capture the essence of high and low society in 1980s New York. The story centers on Sherman McCoy, a wealthy bond trader and self-regarded "master of the universe." His life is destroyed when he and his mistress make a wrong turn into the Bronx one night. Critics said Wolfe's portrayal of urban class and race came as close as fiction could to breaking news. It's the 25th anniversary of the novel, and this month's Readers' Review.

Mary Schapiro took over as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2009. The nation was in serious financial crisis and Wall Street seemed to resemble the Wild West in need of a strong sheriff. Many saw Schapiro as that sheriff and credit her with salvaging the agency's role as Wall Street's watchdog. Critics point to unfinished business, such as addressing the root causes of the financial crisis and punishing the perpetrators whose actions contributed to it. A discussion of the role of the SEC and its future under new leadership.

Inventor, futurist and author Ray Kurzweil has long predicted humans will one day be able to transcend the limitations of their biology. In a new book, Kurzweil explains why that day is coming sooner than we might think. He argues that the expansion of the brain's neocortex was the last biological evolution man needed to make. That's because it is inevitably leading to "truly intelligent machines," which Kurzweil calls the last invention that humanity needs to make. Join Diane and Ray Kurzweil for a discussion on prospects for attaining immortality through technology.

Egypt's president appeared to back away from his declaration last week to take on near-absolute power. A representative for Mohamed Morsi said Monday a compromise with the Supreme Judicial Council would leave most of the president's actions subject to court review. But the agreement would protect the Constitutional Council from being dissolved before finishing its work. The deal didn't satisfy critics who say President Morsi's power grab is a threat to Egypt's fragile young democracy. And some suggest the U.S. is turning a blind eye to the president's actions as long as he supports a truce between Palestinians and Israelis. Diane and her guests discuss the latest on Egypt's power struggle.

The works of historian William Manchester included two enormously popular biographies of Winston Churchill: "The Last Lion", Volumes I and II. They were published in the 1980s and chronicled Churchill's life up until World War II. Manchester spent a number of years doing the research for the next installment, but his health began to fail. Before he died in 2004 he asked his friend, journalist Paul Reid, to complete the task. Now, nearly two decades later, this third and final volume has been published. It details Churchill's pivotal role during World War II and his post-government years. Join Diane for a conversation with biographer Paul Reid about the life of Winston Churchill.

Diane and her guests talk priorities and prospects for compromise on tax rates, spending cuts and other key policy decisions in the final weeks of the lame duck Congress.

Historian Evan Thomas talks with Diane about why he believes President Dwight D. Eisenhower saved the world from nuclear holocaust.

Raising rates versus limiting deductions and loopholes: tax policy debate in Washington and efforts to raise tax revenues by $1.6 trillion over the next decade.

Amanda Burden might be the most influential figure in New York City government, after Mayor Michael Bloomberg. As New York City Planning Commissioner for the past decade, she has spearheaded efforts to re-zone a huge swath of New York and reclaim its waterfront. While Burden focuses on those grand ambitions, she is also dedicated to details that make "streetscapes" work. Her supporters call her a visionary who will leave behind a much-improved city. But critics worry she's creating gentrified neighborhoods that no longer welcome the working class. Diane talks with Amanda Burden about her role as the city's planning commissioner and lessons learned from Hurricane Sandy.