Politics & Government

President Trump has named Tomas Philipson as acting chair of his Council of Economic Advisers. Philipson, who is already a member of the council, is a University of Chicago professor who specializes in the economics of health care.

He previously served as a top economist at the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

Philipson takes over from White House economist Kevin Hassett, whose departure was announced on Twitter last month.

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

Today the state of Oklahoma laid out its closing argument for holding a pharmaceutical company responsible for the national opioid epidemic.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

BRAD BECKWORTH: Because the facts in this case showed the causation is causation. When you oversupply, people die.

SHAPIRO: That's Brad Beckworth, lawyer with the Oklahoma Attorney General's Office. On the other side, Johnson & Johnson attorney Larry Ottaway said opioids are already subject to a litany of rules.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

Today the state of Oklahoma laid out its closing argument for holding a pharmaceutical company responsible for the national opioid epidemic.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

BRAD BECKWORTH: Because the facts in this case showed the causation is causation. When you oversupply, people die.

SHAPIRO: That's Brad Beckworth, lawyer with the Oklahoma Attorney General's Office. On the other side, Johnson & Johnson attorney Larry Ottaway said opioids are already subject to a litany of rules.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

Copyright 2019 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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And joining us now to talk about the president's language and how it will factor into the reelection campaign is Marc Lotter. He is director of strategic communications for Trump's 2020 campaign and former special assistant to the president.

Copyright 2019 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

Today the state of Oklahoma laid out its closing argument for holding a pharmaceutical company responsible for the national opioid epidemic.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

BRAD BECKWORTH: Because the facts in this case showed the causation is causation. When you oversupply, people die.

SHAPIRO: That's Brad Beckworth, lawyer with the Oklahoma Attorney General's Office. On the other side, Johnson & Johnson attorney Larry Ottaway said opioids are already subject to a litany of rules.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

Today the state of Oklahoma laid out its closing argument for holding a pharmaceutical company responsible for the national opioid epidemic.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

BRAD BECKWORTH: Because the facts in this case showed the causation is causation. When you oversupply, people die.

SHAPIRO: That's Brad Beckworth, lawyer with the Oklahoma Attorney General's Office. On the other side, Johnson & Johnson attorney Larry Ottaway said opioids are already subject to a litany of rules.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

Copyright 2019 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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