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Scott’s first guest on Antiwar Radio this week was Connor Freeman, the Assistant Editor at the Libertarian Institute. They talk about the Ukrainian strikes deep in Russian territory, and the apparent green light Washington gave Kyiv to carry out more. Their reasoning? Putin hasn’t dropped a nuke yet, so there’s room to escalate. Scott and Freeman talk about the danger of this mindset and also touch on the recent Washington Post story about the lack of evidence that Russia attacked its own gas infrastructure back in September. 

Discussed on the show:

• Rage Against the War Machine Protest
• “Washington Erases Red Lines, Escalates Proxy War with Russia” (Libertarian Institute)
• Antiwar News with Dave DeCamp
• “Road to war: U.S. struggled to convince allies, and Zelensky, of risk of invasion” (Washington Post)
• “For Western Weapons, the Ukraine War Is a Beta Test” (New York Times)
• “No conclusive evidence Russia is behind Nord Stream attack” (Washington Post)

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: Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; and Thc Hemp Spot.

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Philip Giraldi, executive director of The Council for the National Interest, discusses Gareth Porter’s debunking of US “intelligence” supporting an attack on Syria; reports that the Syrian rebels accidentally set off deadly chemical weapons from the Saudis; why Secretary of State John Kerry can’t possibly know the casualty figures in Syria – no matter how confidently he states them; and AIPAC’s full-court press on Congress to get another war started in the Middle East.

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Jacob Hornberger, founder and president of The Future of Freedom Foundation, discusses why President Obama should be impeached if he starts a war with Syria without a Congressional Declaration; the British Parliament’s surprising rejection of UK military action in Syria; why there’s no such thing as “limited” military strikes; the Swiss mind-your-own-business foreign policy; and recent polls indicating Americans have no interest in starting yet another war.

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Patrick Buchanan, author of Churchill, Hitler, and “The Unnecessary War,” discusses House Speaker John Boehner’s opportunity to “Stop Our Rogue President” from starting an undeclared war in Syria; why Congress has gradually ceded power to the Judicial and Executive branches of government; and how a “Nixon goes to China” approach could succeed in reaching an agreement on Iran’s nuclear program.

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Globetrotting Asia Times journalist Pepe Escobar discusses his recent article “‘War on chemical weapons’: Obama traps himself into Syrian combat;” Secretary of State John Kerry’s “Colin Powell moment;” the folly of Obama’s “red line” on chemical weapon use in Syria; why incompetent National Security Advisor Susan Rice should have been fired long ago; and why Saudi Prince “Bandar Bush” may be responsible for supplying Syria’s rebels with chemical weapons.

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Independent political journalist Joe Lauria discusses the United Nations’ surprising interference with the US/UK push for military strikes in Syria; shades of pre-war Iraq as UN ambassador Samantha Power insists weapons inspectors aren’t needed to investigate the Damascus chemical attack after all; and why the White House seeks only “to attack just strongly enough not to be mocked.”

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Eric Margolis, journalist and author of American Raj, discusses the imminent US entry into Syria’s civil war; the questionable evidence that Syria’s government used chemical weapons on civilians; parallels to the Bush administration’s propaganda campaign before the 2003 Iraq War; the possibility of Russia entering the conflict; and escalating violence in Lebanon including car bombs outside Sunni mosques.

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Major Todd E. Pierce, a former JAG defense attorney at Guantanamo, discusses the history of martial law (or rather, rule by military decree) in the US; why the First Amendment no longer guarantees citizen oversight of government; and why the war on terror and Civil War-era precedents don’t justify the presidential powers dreamed up by Bush and Cheney’s legal counsel.

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Andrew Cockburn, author of Rumsfeld: His Rise, Fall, and Catastrophic Legacy, discusses his article on “The ferocity and failure of America’s sanctions apparatus;” why US sanctions against Germany continued even after WWII was over; the decimation of Iraq’s economy due to 20 years of sanctions; how US domination of the world’s financial system prevents Iran from trading with other countries; and LBJ’s elephant-squashing-mosquito style of US foreign policy.

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