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Scott interviews Matthew Hoh about his experience trying to steer the Obama administration’s Afghanistan policy away from the edge and his experience helping both himself and others confront PTSD. Hoh starts by recounting his Afghanistan experience. He and Scott then discuss the war more broadly. At the end, Hoh described his experience with PTSD, explained the scope of the problem facing veterans of the terror wars and offered up some resources for listeners who may be struggling themselves. 

Discussed on the show:

• Obama’s Wars by Bob Woodward
• The Best and the Brightest by David Halberstam
• A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam by Neil Sheehan
• “Deserted: The U.S. Military’s Sexual Assault Crisis as a Cost of War” (Cost of War Project)
• r/VeteransBenefits

Matthew Hoh is associate director at the Eisenhower Media Network and formerly worked for the U.S. State Department. Hoh received the Ridenhour Prize Recipient for Truth Telling in 2010. Subscribe to his Substack and follow him on Twitter @MatthewPHoh 

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Roberts and Robers Brokerage Incorporated; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; Libertas Bella; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott.

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Scott talks to Peter Van Buren about impeachment and the fiasco at the Iowa Caucuses, and what they mean for the Democrats’ political prospects heading into the election. Van Buren says that although President Trump’s behavior with respect to Ukraine seems a little sleazy, nothing even remotely impeachable happened, and the trials in the House and Senate were little more than shows of partisan hatred or loyalty. He also says this victory for Trump will clearly be detrimental to the democrats in 2020, as will the complete screw-up of the recent presidential voting in Iowa. He and Scott discuss the way these two events demonstrate America’s failure to even pretend to be a free, liberal democracy anymore, instead letting pretty much everyone know that the country is controlled by political elites who get their way no matter what. When someone does defy the will of the deep state, they are thrown in prison and shunned by the media, as in the cases of Chelsea Manning and Edward Snowden.

Discussed on the show:

• “The campaign to impeach President Trump has begun” (The Washington Post)
• “Dems Don’t Realize How Much Impeachment Hurts Them” (The American Conservative)
• “Clinton Remark on Kennedy’s Killing Stirs Uproar” (The New York Times)
• “Who’s Got the Rocks to Stand Up to Government?” (Peter Van Buren)
• Collateral Murder
• Baghdad War Diary

Peter Van Buren worked for 24 years at the Department of State including a year in Iraq. He is the author of We Meant Well: How I Helped Lose the Battle for the Hearts and Minds of the Iraqi People and the novel Hooper’s War. He is now a contributing editor at The American Conservative magazine.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

Donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal, or Bitcoin: 1KGye7S3pk7XXJT6TzrbFephGDbdhYznTa.

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Sheldon Richman discusses President Trump’s new “Vision to Improve the Lives of the Palestinian and Israeli People,” which is really just an update of last year’s “Deal of the Century.” The plan presents itself as generous and fair, but really, says Richman, it simply codifies much of the settlement and annexation of Palestinian land that Israel has been engaged in for decades, and would create what in practice would be an apartheid state. Richman says this plan is, for the most part, probably a ploy to paint the Palestinians as unwilling to cooperate after they inevitably refuse. Indeed, Palestinian authorities have thus far not even been involved in the negotiations.

Discussed on the show:

• “Trump Lays an Egg: The Israel/Palestine Vision” (The Libertarian Institute)
• “Trump Would Make Palestinian Subjugation Permanent” (Antiwar.com Original)
• Oslo Accords
• The Invention of the Jewish People
• “Israel can no longer shake off the Apartheid label ” (Mondoweiss)

Sheldon Richman is the executive editor of the Libertarian Institute and the author of Coming to Palestine and America’s Counter-Revolution: The Constitution Revisited. Follow him on Twitter @SheldonRichman.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

Donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal, or Bitcoin: 1KGye7S3pk7XXJT6TzrbFephGDbdhYznTa.

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Scott interviews John Dennis, a Republican congressional candidate from California challenging Nancy Pelosi in the upcoming election. Dennis, a businessman, says he wants to unseat Pelosi mainly because she’s terrible on issues of war and the intelligence state. These areas used to be strengths among Democrats, but since the Obama administration the left has been conspicuously silent. Dennis believes that not only are American Republicans coming around to become the antiwar party, but also that principled leftists might see the appeal of his positions over those of Pelosi, whom many on the left despise.

Discussed on the show:

• Defend the Guard Legislation
• “The Neocons Strike Back” (The New Republic)

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

Donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal, or Bitcoin: 1KGye7S3pk7XXJT6TzrbFephGDbdhYznTa.

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Sam Jacobs of Ammo.com discusses the 2016 Oregon standoff between federal agents and Ammon Bundy, Lavoy Finicum and their allies. Most listeners probably remember some of the details of the 2014 standoff in Bundy’s native Nevada, which ultimately resulted in a judge dismissing all charges with prejudice after it was shown that federal agents lied about their side of the story. Most probably aren’t as familiar with the details of a similar incident in Oregon, which led to Finicum’s death. Jacobs explains some of the nuances of the case, concluding that even though Finicum’s innocence is not as clear as some make it out to be, there was obvious malfeasance on the part of law enforcement, as well as an attempt to supplant the truth with a false narrative afterward.

Discussed on the show:

• “The Oregon Standoff: Understanding Lavoy Finicum’s Death and Washington’s Management of BLM Land” (Ammo.com)
• “Midnight Express (1978)” (IMDb)

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

Donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal, or Bitcoin: 1KGye7S3pk7XXJT6TzrbFephGDbdhYznTa.

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Joe Lauria discusses the allegations that his website, Consortium News, is a puppet of the Russian government, recently leveled against them by both Canadian television network Global News, and Canada’s Communications Security Establishment. It seems that this is the now just the smear used by mainstream media and intelligence agencies against anyone who is willing to consider alternatives to their narrative. Lauria reiterates the need for a true nonpartisan consensus of libertarians, leftists, and paleoconservatives, all of whom should be able to see through the government’s worst foreign policy lies.

Discussed on the show:

• “Consortium News Sends Libel Notices to Canadian Signals Intelligence Agency and Major Television Network” (Consortium News)
• “Nuland-Pyatt leaked phone conversation” (YouTube)
• “Trump Gives Away the Store and Israel Will Now Officially Become an Apartheid State” (Consortium News)

Joe Lauria is the editor-in-chief at Consortium News. He is a former UN correspondent and wrote at the Boston Globe and Wall Street Journal. You can follow him on Twitter @unjoe.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

Donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal, or Bitcoin: 1KGye7S3pk7XXJT6TzrbFephGDbdhYznTa.

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Scott discusses the impeachment proceedings against President Trump with journalist Michael Tracey, who says that there are some alarming allegations underneath the democrats’ blanket accusation of “abuse of power.” What they are really alleging, says Tracey, is that Trump is guilty of treason, a crime that carries the death penalty. Most alarming of all, though, is how pervasive the cold war rhetoric has become even among average democratic voters. People don’t seem to realize that this political soap opera they tune into for entertainment is moving the world steadily toward the brink of nuclear war. Tracey and Scott both think Trump could be impeached for actual crimes—but this is not a standard any reasonable person should support.

Discussed on the show:

• “Democrats’ Dubious Impeachment Subtext of Treason” (Real Clear Politics)
• Colour revolution

Michael Tracey is a New York based journalist. You can find a collection of his writing at his website or follow him on Twitter @mtracey.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

Donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal, or Bitcoin: 1KGye7S3pk7XXJT6TzrbFephGDbdhYznTa.

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Daniel Lazare discusses the ongoing impeachment proceedings against President Trump, which he calls nothing more than a continuation of the Russiagate delusion. He and Scott rehash some of the history that has led America to the point where it even feels like Russia is a serious threat to the U.S., namely the policies of Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama. If your version of history began yesterday, it’s easy to think something must be done in response “Russian aggression,” but if you understand what came before, none of this really looks like Russia’s fault after all. Sadly Trump is carrying on many of the same deleterious policies as cover against the kinds of accusations being leveled at him by the democrats.

Discussed on the show:

• “Democrats Invoke Cold War Narrative To Push Impeachment” (Antiwar.com Original)
• “Adam Schiff’s Very Scary Warmongering Speech” (Antiwar.com Original)
• “The campaign to impeach President Trump has begun” (The Washington Post)
• “Tulsi Gabbard 🌺 on Twitter: “I got challenged to a fun push-up contest at my town hall yesterday!… ” (Twitter)

Daniel Lazare is the author of The Frozen Republic: How the constitution is Paralyzing Democracy and a regular contributor at Consortium News. Find all of his work at his website and follow him on Twitter @dhlazare.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

Donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal, or Bitcoin: 1KGye7S3pk7XXJT6TzrbFephGDbdhYznTa.

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Scott talks to Pastor Benje Graves about the dominance of pro-war republicanism among American protestants. Graves says that these Christians think their belief in American empire comes from a good-faith reading of the Bible, but that really it’s wrapped up in an identitarian coalition political movement that uses selective reading of scripture to enforce what they have already chosen to believe. Graves maintains that the U.S. military intervention in the Middle East clearly goes against the teaching of the Bible, and works hard to get his congregation to see that. He even shares stories about how much more challenging missionary work in Asia is, thanks to a negative view of what America has done there in the name of Christianity. Scott hopes that Graves and others like him can do what Ron Paul did for conservatives during his presidential campaigns, by showing that one’s identity as an Evangelical Christian does not mean supporting interventionist wars.

Discussed on the show:

• John Winthrop City on a Hill Speech

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

Donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal, or Bitcoin: 1KGye7S3pk7XXJT6TzrbFephGDbdhYznTa.

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