This interview is also available (here) in a version packaged for broadcast on KPFK 90.7 FM in Los Angeles, with an introductory summary of foreign policy news and Antiwar Radio interviews from the week of July 11-15. Gareth Porter, independent historian and journalist for IPS News, discusses his article “What Is Sadr’s Game on Future US Troop Presence?” at antiwar.com, about Moqtada al-Sadr trying to have it both ways, by privately agreeing to an extended US troop presence (and getting free...
07/14/11 – Fred Branfman – The Scott Horton Show
Fred Branfman, a writer and longtime activist, discusses his article “Obama’s Secret Wars: How Our Shady Counter-Terrorism Policies Are More Dangerous Than Terrorism” at AlterNet; the “industrial-sized” US killing machine, purportedly used to win the war on terrorism, that strikes with impunity the world over; how drone strikes and assassinations create new enemies far faster than “terrorists” are killed, with the added bonus of destabilizing allied governments; the lack of a cohesive US...
07/14/11 – Jeremy Scahill – The Scott Horton Show
Jeremy Scahill, author of Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army, discusses his article “The CIA’s Secret Sites in Somalia” at The Nation; why Somalia’s very weak central government would quickly fall to Al Shabab without support from the US and African Union; the latest discovered secret CIA prison/training facility “black site” in Mogadishu; a reminder that US intervention didn’t start yesterday, and that previous efforts have led to the disaster unfolding today;...
07/13/11 – Adam Morrow – The Scott Horton Show
Adam Morrow, journalist with IPS News, discusses the return of million-man demonstrations in Egypt’s Tahrir Square; the powerful forces allied against successful Egyptian democratization; why world leaders, especially the autocratic ones tenuously holding power, are very worried about Hosni Mubarak’s prosecution; and the end of the honeymoon between Egypt’s protesters and the once-beloved army.
07/13/11 – Eric Margolis – The Scott Horton Show
Eric Margolis, foreign correspondent and author of War at the Top of the World and American Raj, discusses why France and the US are working in tandem against the Assad regime in Syria; how Syria’s dissolution would cause massive regional upheaval, and should cause the West and Israel to rethink regime change plans; the public relations trappings that disguise naked imperialism by the US/NATO; the “low IQ” hawks in Congress who shout “send in the troops!” but don’t know Syria from Senegal; and...
07/12/11 – Pepe Escobar – The Scott Horton Show
Pepe Escobar, journalist and author of Obama Does Globalistan, discusses his article “What’s really at stake in Libya” at the Asia Times; the underlying “war of acronyms” in Libya (NATO and AFRICOM vs BRIC and EU); the Taliban’s resurgent strength and ability to strike at will; al-Qaeda’s strategy to shift the Afghan war to Pakistan’s tribal areas, as revealed in Syed Saleem Shahzad’s book; the slim chance regional powers (China, India, Russia, Iran, Pakistan) can work a deal to bring peace...
07/12/11 – Laura Pitter – The Scott Horton Show
Laura Pitter, counterterrorism advisor in Human Rights Watch’s Terrorism and Counterterrorism Program, discusses the HRW report “Getting Away With Torture;” why the Bush administration should be criminally investigated for its torture program; giving compensation to torture victims who cannot bring suit in court due to state secrets privilege; the illegality of holding prisoners incommunicado in “black sites,” even if they are otherwise treated humanely; why federal courts are more fair and...
07/11/11 – Muhammad Sahimi – The Scott Horton Show
Muhammad Sahimi, Professor of Chemical Engineering and political columnist on Iran issues, discusses his article “Don’t Remove the MEK From the Terrorist List;” at antiwar.com; why the US chose to keep MEK leaders safe in Iraq after the 2003 invasion, rather than exchange them for al-Qaeda members held in Iran; the groundswell of support in the US (thanks to a suspiciously large budget, neoconservative allies and successful lobbying) for removing the MEK from the State Department’s list of...
07/11/11 – Ray McGovern – The Scott Horton Show
Ray McGovern, member of Veterans For Peace and former senior analyst at the CIA, discusses his part in the latest (unsuccessful) Gaza Aid flotilla on “The Audacity of Hope;” how Hillary Clinton essentially gave a green light for an Israeli attack against unarmed American activists; why Greek cooperation with Israel and the US in halting the flotilla may be the price paid for an economic bailout; George Washington’s wisdom on the dangers of entangling foreign alliances; a White House official...
07/11/11 – Michael Hastings – The Scott Horton Show
Journalist Michael Hastings, winner of the George Polk Award for his article “The Runaway General” in Rolling Stone magazine, discusses how the Afghan War is killing US soldiers’ morale, since they believe (rightly) that it’s a useless effort; the “surge” that failed to produce any measurable progress, politically or militarily; Defense Secretary Leon Panetta’s “gaffe” on leaving 70 thousand troops in Afghanistan through 2014; why official announcements on troop numbers are less important than...
07/08/11 – Jason Ditz – The Scott Horton Show
This interview is from the KPFK 90.7 FM Los Angeles broadcast of July 8th. Jason Ditz, managing news editor at Antiwar.com, discusses developments in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Somalia and Libya; the latest attempt to pin US problems in occupied Iraq on the importation of Iranian weapons; and drone strikes in Somalia and the semi-secret war against al-Shabaab.
07/08/11 – Ramzy Baroud – The Scott Horton Show
Ramzy Baroud, author of My Father Was a Freedom Fighter: Gaza’s Untold Story, discusses his article “Yemen Continues to Inspire Amid Great Odds” at CommonDreams.org; the Saleh family mafia controlling the country, supported by the US and Saudi Arabia; the entirely reasonable demands of Yemeni protesters, amounting to no more than the basics of a civil society; hopes for an inclusive political settlement that produces some democracy and keeps Yemen intact; and how the Saleh government and the...
07/08/11 – Gareth Porter – The Scott Horton Show
Gareth Porter, independent historian and journalist for IPS News, discusses the Obama administration officials who lied us into an Afghan surge (even though reporters are supposed to use more diplomatic language); how Mullah Omar’s Taliban avoided trouble with the US and tried to keep bin Laden in check; how Bill Clinton’s “Monica Missiles” destroyed a chance to get bin Laden, as well as a few training camps; how the Pakistani Taliban’s formation shows the ideological split between al-Qaeda...
07/08/11 – Marcy Wheeler – The Scott Horton Show
Marcy Wheeler, blogging as “emptywheel” at firedoglake.com, discusses the trial of former CIA officer Jeffrey Sterling for allegedly spilling the beans on Operation “Merlin,” a foolhardy attempt to pass bogus nuclear weapons plans to Iran; the return of federal prosecutor William Welch, who managed to botch both the Ted Stevens and Thomas Drake trials; and the government’s pursuit of NY Times journalist James Risen for his investigative work on warrantless wiretapping and the Bush...
07/07/11 – Bruce Fein – The Scott Horton Show
Bruce Fein, author of American Empire: Before the Fall, discusses his article “President Obama’s Political Sepulcher” on HuffingtonPost; why Libya may be a step too far for Obama’s “unconstitutional unilateral presidential war making;” taking State Department legal adviser Harold Koh‘s definition of “hostilities” to its absurd logical conclusion; Congress’s eagerness to forfeit its obligation and responsibility to check the power of the Executive branch; and why a sustainable democratic...
