By Robert Gaines and Scott Horton Originally published at The National Interest. The success of the multinational mission in Kabul depends on the creation of an independent national security force—one that may be impossible to build. After nearly two decades of bloodshed, meaningful progress is finally being made towards a conclusion of the war in Afghanistan. Negotiations with the Taliban in Qatar have achieved an uncommon consistency. On the domestic front, a bipartisan resolution matching...
4/26/19 Phil Giraldi on the Tireless Russiagate Truthers
Phil Giraldi makes the case that the Russiagate investigation was not simply a good faith effort to ensure then-candidate Trump was not an agent of the Russian government, but a legitimate plot to ruin his chances at the presidency by insiders connected to the Clinton campaign who hoped to benefit from her victory. The hatred of Trump is so strong that many democrats still believe him to be guilty despite the Mueller report’s conclusion to the contrary, not to mention policies from Trump that...
4/26/19 Frida Berrigan: a Childhood Ruined by Nuclear Weapons
Frida Berrigan was five years old at the time of the Three Mile Island disaster, which marks her first memory of a life centered around anti-nuclear activism, as both of her parents, renowned Catholic nuclear activists Liz McAllister and Phil Berrigan, spent most of her childhood in and out of prison for their acts of civil disobedience. Berrigan joins the show to share her story. Discussed on the show: “Nuclear weapons ruined my life, and I wouldn’t have it any other way” (Waging Nonviolence)...
4/26/19 Conn Hallinan on the Revenge of the Kurds
Conn Hallinan joins the show to explain the political situation in Turkey, where President Recep Erdogan has been consolidating power away from the parliament and into a strong executive. The problem, explains Hallinan, is that a groundswell of Kurdish voters has wrested local control from Erdogan in lots of municipal elections, and after having campaigned partially on an anti-Kurdish nationalist platform, Erdogan might now have to make nice with them in order to get anything done. Discussed...
4/26/19 Stephen Zunes on the Other Reason Biden Shouldn’t Be President
Stephen Zunes talks about democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden’s shameful record on foreign policy—the real reason he shouldn’t be president. In the senate, Biden was a champion of deposing Saddam Hussein all along, explains Zunes, and his claims of merely wanting weapons inspections in Iraq should be disregarded. Setting aside the disturbing evidence of Biden’s inappropriate touching of young girls, his record on U.S. foreign policy should disqualify him from our approval. Discussed on...
4/26/19 Patrick Cockburn on an Undefeated ISIS
Scott talks to Independent Middle East correspondent Patrick Cockburn about ISIS, who, despite claims of their defeat, are back waging a guerrilla campaign in Iraq. Discussed on the show: We Can Finish ISIS - but Only if the West Winds Down Its Proxy Wars (Independent) How the Islamic State's Brutal Project Was Finally Overthrown (Independent) “Undefeated, ISIS Is Back in Iraq” (New York Review of Books) Patrick Cockburn is the Middle East correspondent for The Independent and the author...
4/26/19 David Stockman on the Mood in ‘Never-Trumpville’
David Stockman offers his take on the end of the Russia investigation. He points out that the Mueller report categorically denies just about every allegation made by President Trump’s opponents, including the surveillance of his campaign based on false information about Carter Page, and the ever-popular “Trump Tower meeting.” Scott and Stockman both worry that too many American democrats have the attitude, “even if Russiagate is made up, anything is justified in bringing Trump down.” Discussed...
4/22/19 Peter Van Buren on What Mueller Knew and When
Peter Van Buren joins the show for an update on the aftermath of the Mueller report. Although some commentators are claiming that the report’s findings are inconclusive with respect to President Trump’s conduct during the campaign, Van Buren reminds us that the question was, all along, whether Trump or members of his team colluded with Russians to swing the election in his favor. The report concludes that there’s no evidence of this, nor for obstruction of justice. So Van Buren wants to know:...
4/19/19 Max Blumenthal on Assange, Manning, and Venezuela
Max Blumenthal talks whistleblowers, the middle east, and regime change in Venezuela. In particular, he and Scott lament all the journalists who are critical of Chelsea Manning and Julian Assange, in which case their mentality must be “if the government doesn’t want me to know this, I don’t have any right to”—not the proper role of a journalist, needless to say. Blumenthal also describes the region-wide catastrophe that could result if the U.S. intervenes in Venezuela, and is shocked that...
4/19/19 Matt Taibbi on This Generation’s ‘WMD’
Scott talks to Matt Taibbi about his new book, Hate Inc, written in the aftermath of the media malfeasence around Russiagate. But the media’s problems go much deeper, explains Taibbi. Mainstream discussion used to take place in a tightly controlled middle ground between two “extremes”, which were actually both very moderate and centrist. Today, internet and cable journalism allows the opposite: a specific set of views highly catered to what each of us wants to see on TV, on our Twitter feeds,...
4/19/19 Jason Ditz with an Update on Libya
Jason Ditz, news editor at antiwar.com, joins the show for an update on Libya and lots of other recent foreign policy news. Discussed on the show: “Libyan Unity Govt Bombs, Then Recaptures Tripoli Airport” (Antiwar.com) “Qatari official: Afghan talks postponed indefinitely” (AP News) “Iran’s Rouhani: US Should Suspend Sanctions Because of Flooding Crisis” (Antiwar.com) Jason Ditz is the news editor of Antiwar.com. Read all of his work at news.antiwar.comand follow him on Twitter @jasonditz....
4/12/19 Philip Weiss on Right-wing Politics in Israel
Scott talks to Philip Weiss about Israeli politics in light of Netanyahu’s recent victory in the election for prime minister. Israeli society, explains Weiss, leans heavily right wing, especially the young people, and this creates serious barriers to negotiations for peace with the Palestinians. In yet another setback, President Trump recently “promised” the Golan Heights to Israel, something that is not his to give. We are reminded of Horton’s Law: A politician will break all of his good...
4/12/19 Max Blumenthal on the National Security State’s Manufactured Extremism
Max Blumenthal comes on the show to talk about his new book, The Management of Savagery: How America’s National Security State Fueled the Rise of Al Qaeda, ISIS, and Donald Trump. He explains not only the familar narrative of U.S. support for rebel groups in the Middle East creating bloody civil wars and general unrest, but also how mainstream, centrist marginalization of unorthodox views has fueled polarization and allowed for the rise of an extreme and dangerous political right. Discussed on...
4/12/19 William Van Wagenen on the Destruction of Yarmouk
Scott talks to William Van Wagenen about his latest article for the Libertarian Institute, “A Brief History of the Destruction of Yarmouk,” which traces the story of the Palestinian refugee camp at Yarmouk. Much of the blame for the horrible conditions there fell on the Syrian government, when in reality much of the fault lies with rebels, who were killing refugees and deliberately preventing food and aid from getting in. This skewed reporting, of course, contributed to the anti-Assad bias of...
4/12/19 Daniel Lazare on the Plot to Use George Papadopolous to Get to Trump
Scott talks to Daniel Lazare about the story of George Papadopoulos, the young man at the center of the FBI’s investigation into Donald Trump. Lazare recently reviewed Papadopolous’s book, in which he claims to be completely innocent of any wrongdoing and merely a convenient target for the FBI. Discussed on the show: “The Tale of a ‘Deep State Target’” (Consortiumnews) Deep State Target: How I Got Caught in the Crosshairs of the Plot to Bring Down President Trump Daniel Lazare is the author...
