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Scott interviewed Andrew Cockburn about some recent articles he’s written. They start with a piece digging into the actual national security budget, which is much higher than people typically think. They also talk about the consequences of the war on terror, Julian Assange, the threat of government censorship and more.

Discussed on the show:

• “Our Real National Security Budget” (Substack)
• “The Pentagon’s Silicon Valley Problem” (Harper’s)

Andrew Cockburn is the Washington editor of Harper’s Magazine and the author of The Spoils of War: Power, Profit and the American War Machine and Kill Chain: The Rise of the High-Tech Assassins. Follow him on Twitter @andrewmcockburn.

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

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Chris Deliso, director of the independent Balkanalysis.com, discusses the three-year-long political crisis in Macedonia brought about when a consortium of internal and external agitators tried to replace the long-ruling conservative party. These agitators included Macedonia’s leftist Social Democrats, Albania’s prime minister, European intelligence agencies, George Soros’s Open Society Foundation, and the US Ambassador to Macedonia.

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Jacob Hornberger, president of The Future of Freedom Foundation, discusses his effort to educate more African-American college students about the evils of the war on drugs, since they are disproportionately effected by racist drug laws, yet typically make up a small part of his lecture audiences.

Upcoming FFF events:

End the War on Drugs – free program at Florida A&M University College of Law on Wednesday, March 22, 2017.

The National Security State and JFK – $99 admission to “one of the most fascinating, important, and relevant conferences” in FFF’s 27-year history. Guest speakers include director Oliver Stone and Ron Paul. The conference is Saturday, June 3, 2017 at the Dulles Airport Marriott in Northern Virginia.

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Samuel Oakford, an investigative journalist and contributor to Airwars.org, discusses the grossly underreported official number of civilians killed by coalition and Russian airstrikes in Iraq and Syria in the ongoing fight against ISIS; and why the Airwars estimates are much more realistic.

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Former CIA terrorism analyst Cynthia Storer discusses the credentials of Sebastian Gorka, President Trump’s deputy advisor on national security affairs, who claims to be an expert on Islamic terrorism; Cynthia’s earlier CIA work tracking Osama bin Laden and warning about Al-Qaeda’s intent to target the US; and why labeling the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization would be a stupid thing to do.

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Hope Hodge Seck, a writer for Military.com, discusses the deployment of Marines attached to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) into Syria, and their preparation to provide artillery back-up to American supported militia fighters poised to attack the Islamic State stronghold in Raqqa.

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Joost Hiltermann, program director for the Middle East and North Africa at the International Crisis Group, discusses the Trump administration’s mistaken view that the Houthis in Yemen are an Iranian proxy-militia like Hezbollah in Lebanon. Hiltermann also debunks claims that Iran is allied with Al-Qaeda, and examines the clan-based divisions in Yemen, the country’s unique religious makeup, and what kind of political solution could end the war.

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Andrew Cockburn, the Washington editor of Harper’s Magazine and the author of Kill Chain: The Rise of the High-Tech Assassins, discusses the history of Yemen’s (sort of) civil war, the different factions and foreign backers, and why President Trump is escalating US support for Saudi Arabia and its Al-Qaeda allies (yet fighting them at the same time).

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Jason Ditz, news editor for Antiwar.com, discusses why a few thousand more US troops in Afghanistan won’t stop the steady loss of ground to the Taliban; President Trump’s deployment of troops all over the Middle East/North Africa to fight ISIS; and the official understatement of civilian casualties from US air strikes in Iraq and Syria.

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