Podcast

Trump and Pompeo Dictate New Map on Africa//Franco Still Dead
The world is as they say it is. Never mind the people who actually live there, Trump and Pompeo decided and imposed new boundaries between Morocco and Algeria. It may start a war between them but at least it gets

Stop American War Billions Marching Us To Disaster
Why do we keep investing our national treasure in policies which make us much less secure? Part of the reason is what our guest calls the “fire-hose of content” from the 24/7 news cycle. Our foreign policy affects us all

After 50 years, A Tipping Point for the Defeat of Fossil Fuels?
What we’ve been saying all the years has come true. The easy oil days are over. Banks are always leery of making bad investments, and heavy footprint fossil fuel interests also frighten the insurance industry. Oil is just not profitable

Biden’s Better Foreign Policy?
The slogan was Build Back Better. In terms of foreign policy, our guest today Foreign Policy In Focus’s John Feffer says: “Thanks in no small part to Donald Trump, the United States just doesn’t matter much anymore,” our leadership is

The Beginning of the End for National Cruelty?
With his gleeful displays of cruelty, is it possible that Donald Trump performed the service of waking us all up to cruelty commonly in national and corporate policy? In his new book, Cruelty or Humanity: Challenges, Opportunities, and Responsibilities Australian

Now’s the Time to Make Democracy Better
We barely pulled democracy back from the ledge. Now there’s work to be done to make democracy work even better. On this show Kristen Eberhard talks about steps described in her new book “Becoming a Democracy: How We Can Fix

Strongmen: From Mussolini to Trump’s Republicans
It didn’t start with Trump and it won’t end when he leaves office. There is an historic pattern to strongmen and he fit the playbook perfectly. In her new book, Strongmen From Mussolini to the Present, historian of authoritarian governments

The Danger of Trumpism After Trump
The threat of deeply dedicated religious nationalists is not about to go away when Trump leaves office. An electoral defeat energizes them. The author of the important book “The Power Worshipers,” Katherine Stewart expounds on her recent NYTimes op-ed, titled

The Push Biden’s Going to Need
Ousting Trump is not enough. Getting back to the normalcy of tremendous economic injustice is not enough. With unprecedented wealth owned by a very few, close to 50% of Americans are at the edge of real poverty. Guest is Reverend

4 Day Work Week: Beneficial Effect of Covid?
With the pandemic throwing everything up in the air, there are new opportunities for us to shape the way it all lands. Going back to the old “normal” is not the only option. On this show Joe Ryle a leader

Thomas Frank’s New Book On Elitist Anti-Populism: “The People, NO”
The parties have flipped: It used to be that Republicans were for Wall Street, Democrats were for Main Street. Now the Democrats are seen as the party of the elitists, Republicans are for the common people. On this show Thomas

Treason: What Is It Really?
The word treason has been thrown around a lot lately. By Trump against his detractors and also leveled at Trump for seeking to stage a coup against America. On this show one of the nations leading authorities on the law

Ending the Drug War Got More Votes Than Biden or Trump
It was a momentous election. In blue states and red, voters overwhelmingly passed measures legalizing cannabis and, in Oregon, decriminalizing all drugs. So many people have been hurt, families have been separated, and the drug war has failed miserably to

After A Right Wing Coup, Social Democracy Makes a Comeback
As Americans were dancing in the streets with the ousting of Trump, so the people of Bolivia celebrated the return of Evo Morales, first indigenous president after a coup forced him to flee. The new president is Luis Arce, former

We Beat Trump, Now the Battle for the Soul of the Democratic Party
Former presidential candidate best selling author Marianne Williamson talks about why Trumpism arose, and what opportunities the Democratic Party now has. Will Biden be yet another neoliberal or will he listen to the very real causes of chronic despair which

What Are Right Wing Men Afraid Of?
Why the need for dominance and control? Why the huge draw of white working class men to Donald Trump? Does the appeal of violent police somehow make up for a sense of loss of male control over everybody else? On

The Day After: The War on Democracy Itself
Reagan kicked it off: the emotional manipulation of the word “freedom” obscures political realities. On this show, recorded the day after the vote, guest Ken Nanus analyses the data and concludes that, unlike actual conservatives, anything standing in the way

Greek Fascist Party Convicted as a Criminal Gang
They went from a tiny group at the fringe to the third largest political party in Greece. In the birthplace of democracy, after a five year trial, the most significant anti-fascist trial since Nuremberg, the Golden Dawn has been convicted.

What A Defiant and Bold Democratic Party Looks Like
Even in a minority, fighting back carries a number of positives. On issues that matter to average Americans, Democrats have been pushed off course. Some thought the way to attract independents was timidity. As our guest Eleanor Eagan of the

Supreme Court: The Power to Obstruct Democracy
The framers of our Constitution intended the judicial system to be the “least dangerous branch” of government. They did not foresee today’s powerful national parties having the ability to short circuit democracy. As we see in action now, on this

Trump Floods the Mid-East with US Weapons
It’s all about bragging. Trump said his “deal” between the UAE and Israel would create a half million new jobs. The true number is less than a tenth of that. On this show Pentagon arms expert William Hartung explains how

Europe Going Its Own Way: Good for America Too?
The European nations don’t need enemies like the US does. Since geography is destiny, they see a bizarre American President and have their own economic interests beyond dependence on weapons systems. On this show international journalist Patrick Lawrence describes what

Voting in Indian Country, A View from the Trenches
We know about voter suppression against African Americans but what about Indigenous Americans, Indians? The effort to disenfranchise the 2% of the national population is not a secret, yet nearly unknown. On this show author Jean Schroedel shares disturbing findings

Trump: Mobster in Chief
The often successful tactics and techniques of America’s crime syndicate have not gone unnoticed by Trump and his gangs. In his new article: “The Mobster in Chief: Will the November Election be Decided in the Streets?” returning guest John Feffer

Restoring Democracy: It’s a Tough But Do-Able Fight
The right wing Republicans outsmarted Democrats. Starting in 2008, they understood the path to grabbing and holding power goes through state legislatures. They could see that their white older male base is eroding and that they don’t need to compete

How Trump’s “Patriotic Education” is Anti-American
He called our current history education in our schools “a form of child abuse.” Teaching critical thinking and the real history of America would be shut down in Trump’s “Patriotic Education.” The popular 1619 Project and Zinn’s Education Project which

Can Democrats Address What Fuels Angry Populism?
Populism is a legitimate form of anger at perceived elites dismissing everyday people. There are indeed real reasons for today’s populist anger. On this show Rutgers Law School professor Dennis M.Patterson explains why we need to take populism seriously. It

Could the Military Save Us From Civil War?
In normal times, it’s the the military making war elsewhere in the world, allegedly to protect our peace at home. But with armed white gangs afraid their dominance of America may be slipping away, and with a president egging them

Anti-Racist Feminism Key To Covid, Environmental Solutions
How did we get in this mess in the first place? Will little tweaks allow America to effectively address climate change, racism, and the deadly pandemic? Author Northeastern University professor Jennie C. Stephens argues that there is a “polluter elite”

Women Lead March to Health Coverage
Significant historic change it seems is often led by women. The movement for universal health care is not exception. Women telling their stories, leading from where they are is the key ingredient. In her new book Marching Toward Coverage, author