Gareth Porter, an independent investigative journalist, discusses how the US media and intelligence community are attempting to portray Trump as a Russian stooge, in an effort to keep the pressure on Russia, the New Cold War brewing, and the money flowing to the military/industrial complex. Porter dissects the 25-page assessment from the CIA, FBI and NSA claiming Russia tried to help Trump win the election; as well as the leaked phone conversation between former National Security Adviser...

Conn Hallinan, a writer for Foreign Policy in Focus, discusses Trump’s bombastic rhetoric and ever-changing policy pronouncements on Iran, Yemen, and North Korea; and how he could blunder into war with China if he follows through on threats to blockade China from islands it controls in the South China Sea.

James Carden, a contributing writer at The Nation and the executive editor for the American Committee for East-West Accord, discusses John McCain and Lindsey Graham’s visit to the front lines in Ukraine, where they offered support for Ukrainian soldiers against the rebels, seriously undermining the 2015 Minsk cease-fire agreement. Meanwhile, Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard returned from Syria, claimed “there are no moderate rebels,” and questioned why the US is supporting the same terrorist...

Grant F. Smith, director of the Institute for Research: Middle Eastern Policy, discusses the $254 billion in inflation-adjusted US aid to Israel since 1949; the pro-Israel think tanks that try to hide Israel’s large share of foreign aid by comparing it to US expenditures and troop deployments in Japan, Germany and South Korea; and why Israel has no real common interests with the US and hasn’t reciprocated like an allied country should.

Gareth Porter, an independent investigative journalist and author of Manufactured Crisis: The Untold Story of the Iran Nuclear Scare, discusses why Trump’s anti-Iran talk is not much different than that of the last several administrations’ before his, going back to Bill Clinton’s presidency; and why actual US policy on Iran is controlled less by the president than the interests of the permanent national security state, which is hostile to Iran yet risk-averse and fond of the status...

Brad Hoff, a US Marine veteran and writer on Middle East affairs, discusses the newly declassified CIA document from 1986 entitled “Syria: Scenarios of Dramatic Political Change,” that spells out a regime change policy remarkably similar to today’s anti-Assad rhetoric coming out of Washington; and why nobody bothers to consider that the successor to an overthrown secular autocratic state could be even worse – a radical Islamic State, for example.

Mark Perry, author of Talking to Terrorists: Why America Must Engage with its Enemies, discusses the military philosophy of new national security adviser Lt. General H.R. McMaster, who, as smart and qualified as he is, might not be the best man for the job; and the growing anti-Russia tilt within President Trump’s cabinet that runs counter to his campaign promises to improve relations between the world’s preeminent nuclear powers.

Jon Schwarz, a writer for The Intercept, discusses President Trump’s executive order restricting immigration and why most Americans are understandably confused about why “Muslims hate us,” since politicians and the media completely avoid making any link between decades of US invasion, occupation, and sanction of the Middle East and the unavoidable terrorism blowback such a foreign policy generates.

George Joseph, an editorial fellow at CityLab, discusses the widespread use of powerful cell phone interception and extraction equipment by police departments, and their collection of phone location data and even the content of texts and calls with devices like “Stingrays” and “Dirtboxes” that vacuum up private information and don’t discriminate between suspected criminals and ordinary people.

Rick Sterling, an investigative journalist based in the San Francisco Bay Area, discusses the many flaws in Amnesty International’s report accusing the Syrian government of executing thousands of political prisoners in mass hangings. This is AI’s contribution to the West’s propaganda machine that is trying to escalate the war in Syria and push for Assad’s ouster. AI has previously backed up false accusations (the infamous incubator babies) against Iraq in the lead up to the Gulf War and...

James Bovard, the author of many books including Attention Deficit Democracy, discusses the 70+ fusion centers funded by the Department of Homeland Security, that specialize in wasting money, publishing worthless reports on non-existent terrorism threats, and violating the privacy of Americans. Jim also discusses the media’s hand-wringing about Trump’s fearmongering, even though the practice has a long history among US presidents looking to menace the public with “an endless series of...

Tom Collina, the policy director for Ploughshares Fund, discusses why the Trump administration is planning to spend $100 billion to replace hundreds of old ICBMs deployed across Colorado, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Wyoming, even though they are part of an outdated ‘nuclear sponge’ plan designed to draw Russian missiles to America’s upper Midwest in the event of nuclear war. Tom goes on to explain why ICBMs don’t make any strategic sense and should be phased out entirely – and why...

Greg Thielmann, a 25-year veteran of the U.S. Foreign Service, discusses the Trump administration’s overblown protestations of Iran’s ballistic missile testing; the US government’s tendency to corrupt intelligence reports and exaggerate threats to start conflicts – like the 2003 Iraq War; and why the Iranian nuclear deal is a great diplomatic achievement by both sides and a victory for nuclear non-proliferation advocates.

Daniel Lazare, author of The Frozen Republic: How the constitution is Paralyzing Democracy, discusses how Trump’s new administration – including US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley and national security adviser Michael Flynn – is thwarting his most promising foreign policy changes on Russia and Syria, and steering him back to the Washington consensus of endless war.

Joe Lauria, an independent international affairs journalist, discusses the Iraqi army’s long struggle to finally retake eastern Mosul from the Islamic State; the very difficult upcoming battle for the remainder of the city; the fate of Mosul’s internally displaced refugees; and Trump’s worrying consideration of Elliott Abrams for Deputy Secretary of State.