Former Louisiana State Senator Anthony "Tony" Guarisco, Jr. is our lead off guest and he stays with us for the first two segments of today's show. Tony served as State Senator from 1976-1988 and while in office he successfully sponsored a bill permitting physicians in Louisiana to prescribe medical marijuana for glaucoma and chemotherapy patients, which ultimately did not come to fruition. He and Jim discuss this, as well as other bills Tony pushed for while in office. They also talk taxes, partisanship in Washington, Edwin Edwards, and much more.
Tulane Professor, Author and New Orleans resident Katy Simpson Smith is with us today to promote her debut novel The Story of Land and Sea. The novel follows three generations of family through the years following the American Revolution and how they come to find redemption amidst slavery and war. She talks with Jim about what she went through in writing her novel, her feeling of responsibility to represent the wide range of experiences women have had historically, and much more. She'll be at the Columns Hotel in New Orleans, La. on Wednesday September 3rd, 2014 at 7:00pm.