Midday

House Speaker John Boehner says there is no easy way to stop the budget cuts -- known as the “sequester” -- that began taking effect Friday, and he voiced uncertainty about how Washington can solve the fiscal problems that have consumed the nation’s politics for more than two years. Sequester threatens nearly 50,000 jobs and many programs in Maryland. Andrea Seabrook, former NPR congressional correspondent and now the host of her podcast, DecodeDC, explains how this whole thing began and how it might end.

In the second of a two-part series, Midday on Health contributor Dr. John Cmar gives an insider’s tour of how a hospital works. From the who’s who of hospitals to what to expect when you’re admitted to what to ask before you leave. Also, with “match week” coming up for fourth-year medical students, we get a primer on hospital residency programs.

The General Assembly is considering legislation that would raise Maryland’s minimum wage from $7.25 per hour to $10 by 2015. President Obama wants to see the national rate at $9. But would raising the minimum have adverse effects on the nation's economy? Our guests: Sen.

A treat for lovers of American folk music, a visit by the singer-songwriter before his weekend performances in Maryland. Winner of a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, Tom Paxton has been writing and singing songs for 50 years. Many other performers, including Pete Seeger and Judy Collins, have sung his songs. Tom Paxton performs as part of the Common Ground On The Hill concert series on Friday March 1 at Brown Memorial Woodbrook Presbyterian Church in Baltimore, and Saturday, March 2  at the Carroll County Arts Center in Westminster.

What's the difference between a suicide bomber and an American mass killer such as Adam Lanza? Not much, according to criminologist Adam Lankford. Suicide terrorists and rampage shooters have far more in common than has been recognized, he says, a controversial conclusion that has turned conventional wisdom about mass murderers upside down. Lankford teaches criminal justice at the University of Alabama. He is the author of "The Myth of Martyrdom: What Really Drives Suicide Bombers, Rampage Shooters, and Other Self-Destructive Killers."

The series of federal budget cuts known as sequester are set to  begin on Friday effecting millions of Americans and threatening the jobs of nearly 50-thousand Maryland residents. We discuss the scope of sequester with our guests: Melissa Deckman, chair and professor of Political Science and the Louis L. Goldstein Professor of Public Affairs at Washington College and Barry Rascovar political columnist for the Gazette and a communications consultant.

Sweeping gun-control legislation faces a battle in the Maryland Senate while the House of Delegates launches hearings on an assault-rifle ban, limitations on ammunition and the licensing of handgun owners. We continue our post-Newtown discussions with Daniel Webster, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research and one of the nation’s leading experts on firearms. He has briefed Maryland lawmakers on his research on illegal gun sales, and best ways to keep guns away from criminals and to reduce violence.

Frederick Douglass, who escaped slavery in Maryland to become the most influential black American of the 19th century, lived the last two decades of his life in Washington, D.C., became active in local politics, continued to crusade for civil rights, and married a white woman. Journalist and author John Muller tackles this part of the legendary orator’s life in "Frederick Douglass In Washington, D.C. the Lion of Anacostia."

Following a consultant’s report that forecast a grim financial future for the city, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake rolled out a plan of bold reforms that she says will bring stability to city government and make Baltimore more attractive as a place to live and do business. The plan includes proposals for trash fees, lowering the city's property tax rate, getting city employes to contribute more to their pensions and firefighters to work longer hours. Ryan O'Doherty, the mayor's chief of communications and policy, answers listeners questions.

Do you know which U.S. president witnessed the decapitation of his 11-year-old son? Or what president was the source of the colloquialism “OK”? This hour, in honor of the President’s Day holiday, author Kenneth C. Davis tells us about some of the least-known presidents of all-time from James Polk, the only speaker of the House of Representatives ever to be elected president, to William McKinley, the third of four presidents to die at the hands of an assassin. Davis is the best-selling author of “Don’t Know Much About The American Presidents.”