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Connor Freeman was on Antiwar Radio this week to talk about Netanyahu’s address to Congress on Wednesday. He and Scott discuss the speech, the reaction of Congress, the protests that broke out outside, Netanyahu’s ridiculous framing and the actual reality of what Israel is doing in Gaza.

Discussed on the show:

• “The Israeli army’s approval of free-for-all violence in Gaza” (+972 Magazine)
• “We Volunteered at a Gaza Hospital. What We Saw Was Unspeakable.” (Politico)

Connor Freeman is the Assistant Editor of the Libertarian Institute, primarily covering foreign policy. He is a co-host on Conflicts of Interest. His writing has been featured in media outlets such as Antiwar.com and Counterpunch, as well as the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity. You can follow him on Twitter @FreemansMind96

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 interviews Hannah Cox, from Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty, who explains why anyone who favors smaller government should oppose the death penalty. Among the problems she cites: one in nine death penalty convicts are later outright exonerated, not to mention many more who are released due to potential innocence or procedural issues; the fact that it costs up to $1 million more to execute someone than if they were given life without parole; and that the defendants who get death penalty convictions are often not the ones who committed the most heinous crimes, but simply the ones with the least effective lawyers. Cox urges all lovers of liberty to join her in support of total abolition of the death penalty.

Discussed on the show:

• “The Right Way: More Republican lawmakers championing death penalty repeal” (Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty)

Hannah Cox is National Manager of Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty. Follow her on Twitter @HannahCox7.

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; Washinton Babylon; Liberty Under Attack Publications; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

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David Stockman talks about the recent drone strike on a Saudi Arabian oil facility and America’s sanctions war in Iran. For some reason, everything in the Middle East seems to be about Iran, as far as American neocons are concerned. They will do anything to turn a situation into an excuse to push for war with Iran, or to hurt them in a less violent but in some ways more horrific manner, like with economic sanctions. Stockman hopes that Trump will realize how advantageous it would be if we could get along with Iran, and take steps to institute a new nuclear agreement—or even reinstate the old one, call it something else, and take credit for his magnificent negotiating skills.

Discussed on the show:

• “Locked and Loaded on Behalf of Empire First” (Antiwar.com Original)

David Stockman is the ultimate Washington insider turned iconoclast. He began his career in Washington as a young man and quickly rose through the ranks of the Republican Party to become the Director of the Office of Management and Budget under President Ronald Reagan. After leaving the White House, Stockman had a 20-year career on Wall Street. He is the author of Trumped!, The Triumph of Politics, and his history of the financial crisis, The Great Deformation: The Corruption of Capitalism in America.

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; Washinton Babylon; Liberty Under Attack Publications; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

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Max Blumenthal recounts his recent trip to Syria, where he witnessed firsthand the destruction wrought by the proxy war fought there with the support of the U.S. To this day, willingness to negotiate with the Assad regime makes you a pariah in Washington, as we’ve seen from Tulsi Gabbard’s presidential campaign. Blumenthal also talks about America’s economic war on Iran, which, like all sanctions, hurts only a country’s people and rarely does anything to accomplish the supposed political ends.

Discussed on the show:

• “Meet the militantly pro-Israel Trump official directing the economic war on Iran” (The Grayzone)
• WFTU
• “Commentary: I just visited Iran. Here’s what I heard about the U.S.” (Reuters)

Director and writer of “Killing Gaza,” Max Blumenthal is a senior editor of the Grayzone Project and the author Goliath, Republican Gomorrah, and The 51 Day War. Follow Max on Twitter @MaxBlumenthal.

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; Washinton Babylon; Liberty Under Attack Publications; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

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

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Shireen Al-Adeimi discusses the U.S. role in the Saudi-led war in Yemen, particularly that of Obama administration official Samantha Power. Tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of civilians have died from starvation and deprivation during the war in Yemen, many of them children. Al-Adeimi explains that part of the reason it’s so hard to get democrats to criticize President Trump for what his role in the war is that they would have to reckon with Obama’s part in helping the Saudis start the war in the first place. With impeachment hearings starting up, she and Scott wonder whether this will be used at all as grounds for impeachment, or if democratic leadership will be content to stay silent, just like most of the mainstream media.

Discussed on the show:

• “How Dare Samantha Power Scrub the Yemen War From Her Memoir” (In These Times)
• “The U.S.-Backed Coalition Can’t Agree on Why It’s Bombing Yemen” (In These Times)
• A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide
• “How Obama Decided to Intervene in Libya” (Rolling Stone)
• “85,000 Children in Yemen May Have Died of Starvation” (The New York Times)
• The Education of an Idealist: A Memoir
• “Yemen Cannot Afford to Wait” (Defense One)
• “US maintains intelligence relationship with Houthis” (Al-Monitor)

Shireen Al-Adeimi is an assistant professor of Education at Michigan State. She conducts research language and literacy and writes frequently about Yemen. Follow her on Twitter @shireen818.

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; Washinton Babylon; Liberty Under Attack Publications; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

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

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Christine Ahn joins the show for an update on the Korean peace process, now that John Bolton is out of the Trump administration. She thinks Bolton was a major obstacle to Korean unification, and that now Trump might go along with the negotiations between the North and South—something that recent American presidents have been unwilling to do. One of the democrats’ favorite attacks against Trump, that he “sides with dictators,” completely misses the point, says Ahn. In defying John Bolton to negotiate with Kim Jong-un, Trump is really siding with South Korean President Moon Jae-in and the vast majority of the South Korean people, since they want peace on the peninsula as well.

Discussed on the show:

• “With Bolton Out of the Way, Peace With North Korea Is Possible” (Truthout)
• “The Legal Case for Striking North Korea First” (WSJ)
• September 2018 inter-Korean summit
• H.Res.152 – Calling for a formal end of the Korean war.

Christine Ahn is the international coordinator of Women Cross DMZ, a global movement of women mobilizing for peace on the Korean Peninsula. Follow her at Truthout and on Twitter @christineahn.

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; Washinton Babylon; Liberty Under Attack Publications; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

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

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Catherine Besteman joins the show to share some of her research about America’s covert proxy war in Somalia. American military intervention in Somalia goes back at least as far as the Bush administration’s support for Ethiopia in its invasion of the country in 2006, and Besteman says this type of intervention has done nothing but empower groups like Al-Shabaab, which the U.S. supposedly wants to curtail. As usual, the mainstream media has little interest in covering what’s really going on.

Discussed on the show:

• “‘Send her back’ isn’t just racist. It ignores the US’s critical role in Somalia” (The Guardian)

Catherine L. Besteman is the Francis F. Bartlett and Ruth K. Bartlett Professor of Anthropology at Colby College. She is known for her work with Somali Bantu refugees who have migrated from East Africa to the U.S. Follow her work at colby.edu.

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; Washinton Babylon; Liberty Under Attack Publications; 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 Gareth Porter about his recent article for the American Conservative about why Iran’s possible role in the recent Saudi oil field attacks is beside the point. Porter thinks it’s pretty likely that Iran was behind the attacks, probably as a demonstration of their ability to seriously disrupt the global economy with very little cost or effort. But this should not in any way dissuade the Trump administration from trying to establish peace between the U.S. and Iran, and if anything, probably stresses the importance of doing so.

Discussed on the show:

• “Why Evidence of Iran’s Role in Attack Doesn’t Matter” (The American Conservative)
• “Truncating the Antecedents: Addendum on 9/11 and the Present Wars in Afghanistan and Iraq | Robert Higgs” (Independent Institute)
• “6/30/19 Elijah Magnier on the Danger of War with Iran” (The Libertarian Institute)

Gareth Porter is an investigative historian and journalist on the national security state, and author of Manufactured Crisis: The Untold Story of the Iran Nuclear Scare. Follow him on Twitter @GarethPorter and listen to Gareth’s previous appearances on the Scott Horton Show.

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; Washinton Babylon; Liberty Under Attack Publications; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

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

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Grant Smith lays out the astonishing corruption taking place between state governments and big business in cahoots with foreign lobbies across the U.S. He focuses on two large companies in Virginia that are tied to the Israel lobby, whose massive coffers allow them to infiltrate “advisory boards” and sway state power in their favor. By finagling special grants and privileges for themselves, they can easily outcompete the smaller businesses trying to play by the rules of the market. Worst of all, says Smith, none of the supposed investigative reporters are covering this.

Discussed on the show:

• “Something’s Fishy About AquaMaof’s “Project Jonah” in Virginia” (WRMEA)
• “Meet VIAB: Virginia’s Taxpayer-Funded Israel Lobby” (Antiwar.com Original)

Grant F. Smith is the author of a number of books including Big Israel: How Israel’s Lobby Moves America and Divert!. He is director of the Institute for Research: Middle Eastern Policy in Washington, D.C.

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; Washinton Babylon; Liberty Under Attack Publications; Listen and Think Audio; TheBumperSticker.com; and LibertyStickers.com.

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

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