Advertise on podcast: The Big Dig Presents: Catching The Codfather

In 2009, the moment for national healthcare reform has arrived, and there is hope that just like in Massachusetts, the effort can be bipartisan. But as negotiations begin in Washington, the politics outside the capital are shifting fast.

Immediately ‘Romneycare’ becomes the template for national healthcare reform. And while Democrats are focused on replicating the successes of the plan, there are already cracks showing in the coalition that came together to pass it. --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Azita Ghahramani Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

Time is running out for Massachusetts to pass healthcare reform. The bill’s fate now rests with the two old friends who run the state legislature and control everything that happens there. Unfortunately, these old friends have stopped talking.  --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Azita Ghahramani Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

The controversial centerpiece of the Affordable Care Act – the requirement for all Americans to purchase health insurance – began its strange political journey at the conservative Heritage Foundation. In deep blue Massachusetts the mandate was considered a fringe idea, until it lands on Governor Romney’s desk.  --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Azita Ghahramani Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

After their bruising senate campaign, Kennedy and Romney reunite for a mission to lobby the Bush administration. At stake: more than a billion dollars of federal money that is propping up the state’s entire healthcare system.  --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Azita Ghahramani Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

In the midst of the Watergate scandal, Richard Nixon reaches out to his rival Ted Kennedy and offers him a deal – a one time chance to reshape American healthcare, which might also save Nixon’s doomed presidency. Will the young senator take the deal? --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Azita Ghahramani Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

Mitt Romney’s first political campaign was not for president or governor; it was for the U.S. Senate, and it was against Ted Kennedy. Early on the challenger looks unstoppable – handsome, eloquent, moderate – then the Kennedy camp starts digging into Romney’s past.  Special thanks to FRONTLINE for archival sound from The Long March of Newt Gingrich & The Health Care Gamble.  --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Azita Ghahramani Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

Healthcare is the problem American politics cannot solve. It’s the subject of screaming matches at town halls, the cause of the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, the justification for political assassination in cold blood. But how did our most basic need become such a divisive issue? In Season Four of The Big Dig podcast, "Mitt & Ted", we tell the origin story of national healthcare reform. Mitt Romney and Ted Kennedy began their political journeys on opposite sides of the issue, and they ended once again on opposite sides, but for a brief period in the middle they worked together to pass a groundbreaking law – one that promised to finally transform the politics of American healthcare – the law known as Romneycare. So, what brought this odd couple together and what ultimately pulled them apart? For early access to episodes, join The Big Dig membership program. Learn more at wgbh.org/hovlane.  --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Azita Ghahramani Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

John Vecchione represented a group of fishermen who challenged government regulations all the way to the Supreme Court. Together, they helped overturn the decades-old “Chevron Doctrine,” which has been cited thousands of times in federal court rulings. But Vecchione is not done, and you might be surprised to learn what regulations he is challenging next.  For a very different take on the future of regulation after the fall of the Chevron Doctrine, check out this article from climate reporter Molly Taft: The Koch Brothers Are Getting What They Wanted: The Supreme Court Is Gutting Environmental Protections

A new revelation forces federal investigators to close down the case, fast. But what will taking down The Codfather mean for the port of New Bedford? Major sponsorship for "Catching The Codfather" is provided by Roger’s Fish Co. --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Jenifer McKim Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Intern: Fiona Boyd  Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

When federal agents first meet with Carlos Rafael, the fishing mogul offers up a tantalizing clue: a special system for ‘painting fish.’ It’s the key to understanding the entire fraud, and why Carlos is the only one who could pull it off. Major sponsorship for "Catching The Codfather" is provided by Roger’s Fish Co. --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Jenifer McKim Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Intern: Fiona Boyd  Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

A new regulatory system is meant to end overfishing, but Carlos Rafael exploits it to accumulate even more boats and power – drawing resentment from other fishermen, and attention from the feds.  Major sponsorship for "Catching The Codfather" is provided by Roger’s Fish Co. --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Jenifer McKim Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Intern: Fiona Boyd  Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

The west has cowboys, the east has fishermen – it's a job defined by freedom and self-reliance. But in 1991 a contentious lawsuit forces the government to step in, setting Carlos Rafael and the regulators on a collision course. You can watch the full film of “A Fish Story” on YouTube.  Major sponsorship for “Catching The Codfather” is provided by Roger’s Fish Co. --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Jenifer McKim Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Intern: Fiona Boyd Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

How did Carlos Rafael become “The Codfather”? It starts in the 1980s, when a bitter strike divides the city of New Bedford and its famed fishing fleet. But Carlos manages to turn the strike to his advantage. Major sponsorship for "Catching The Codfather" is provided by Roger’s Fish Co. --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Jenifer McKim Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Intern: Fiona Boyd  Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller

Carlos “The Codfather” Rafael dominates the most valuable fishing port in the United States, and no one is quite sure how he did it. But in 2015, when undercover federal agents offer to buy his business, Carlos opens his books. Major sponsorship for "Catching The Codfather" is provided by Roger’s Fish Co. --------------------------- Credits: Host and Scriptwriter: Ian Coss Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss Story Editor: Lacy Roberts Editorial Advisor: Jenifer McKim Fact-checkers: Ryan Alderman and Isabel Hibbard Intern: Fiona Boyd  Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss Graphic Design: Bill Miller