Scott is joined by Brad Pearce to discuss some of the recent developments around the world that he’s following and writing about. They start with what’s happening in Somalia and how the Trump administration will likely affect the dynamics in that region. They then move on to Yemen, where Trump’s first term was defined by continuing Obama’s support for the Saudi war on the Houthis, and his second term has—so far—been defined by a continuation of Biden’s policy of direct strikes on the Houthis. They also discuss Romania, the revelations about USAID and Washington’s meddling in the country of Georgia.

Discussed on the show:

“Will Donald Trump Make Somaliland Great Again?” (The Wayward Rabbler)
Broken Camel Bells: Somalia: Age of Terrorism 2006-2022 by Abukar Abdo Arman
“Yemeni Civil War Unleashes a Plague of Locusts” (Antiwar.com)

Brad Pearce is a writer focused on international relations and politics. He writes at The Wayward Rabbler. Follow him on Twitter @WaywardRabbler

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

Get Scott’s interviews before anyone else! Subscribe to the Substack.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjY

4/9/21 Hassan El-Tayyab on Yemen’s Dire Humanitarian Crisis

Scott interviews Hassan El-Tayyab from the Friends Committee on National Legislation about the effort to end the humanitarian crisis in Yemen. Although the Biden administration announced an end to support for “offensive operations” in Yemen, thanks to the Saudi blockade of the Hodedah port, the country is still experiencing the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. The UN has estimated that 400,000 children could starve to death in 2021—it’s entirely in the power of the U.S. government to stop it.

Discussed on the show:

“UN Warns 400,000 Yemeni Children May Starve To Death In 2021” (Forbes)
“3/18/21 Scott Paul on the Millions of Innocent Lives at Stake in Yemen” (The Libertarian Institute)
EndTheBlockade.com
“Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media (1992)” (IMDb)
“Advocates and Celebrities Call for Immediate End to Saudi Blockade of Yemen” (Friends Committee On National Legislation)
“What’s the one thing that Arabs, Turks and Iranians can all agree on?” (Al Monitor)

Hassan El-Tayyab is a musician and peace activist, who works as the lead lobbyist on Middle East policy for the Friends Committee on National Legislation.

This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; Photo IQ; Green Mill Supercritical; Zippix Toothpicks; and Listen and Think Audio.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

4/9/21 Jay Schweikert: New Mexico Ends Qualified Immunity for All Public Officials

Scott talks to Jay Schweikert about the promising developments in New Mexico, where a new state-wide law has been enacted that repeals qualified immunity as a legal defense for any public official. This is a similar move, says Schweikert, to legislation adopted recently in Colorado and New York City, but whereas in those places the new measures apply only to police officers, the New Mexico law covers all government employees. Scott and Schweikert consider this a great first step in eliminating the unjust privileges that protect public figures from being held accountable for their actions.

Discussed on the show:

“New Mexico Enacts Landmark Qualified Immunity Reform Legislation for All Public Officials” (Cato Institute)

Jay Schweikert is a policy analyst with the Cato Institute’s Project on Criminal Justice. Follow him on Twitter @jay_schweikert.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

4/9/21 Jesselyn Radack on the Latest Victim of America’s Draconian Espionage Act

Scott interviews national security attorney Jesselyn Radack about her work in the protection of whistleblowers. Daniel Hale, the man who leaked the so-called “drone papers” to the Intercept in 2014, has just pleaded guilty to violations of the Espionage Act in what Radack calls yet another travesty of justice. Because the Espionage Act, of course, has nothing to do with espionage. It’s never used to go after spies—or any real threat to the well-being of the American people—but only to prosecute people who bravely risk their livelihoods and freedom to expose secrets that Americans have a right to know.

Discussed on the show:

“Former intelligence analyst Daniel Hale pleads guilty to leaking classified information” (The Washington Post)
“The Drone Papers: Secret documents detail the U.S. assassination program.” (The Intercept)
The Assassination Complex: Inside the Government’s Secret Drone Warfare Program
“Citizenfour (2014)” (IMDb)
“National Bird (2016)” (IMDb)

Jesselyn Radack is a national security and human rights lawyer who heads the Whistleblower and Source Protection Program at ExposeFacts. She is the author of TRAITOR: The Whistleblower and the “American Taliban”. Follow her on Twitter @JesselynRadack.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

4/8/21 Trita Parsi on Biden’s Willingness to Negotiate With Iran

Trita Parsi talks about the state of negotiations between the U.S. and Iran. President Trump, of course, made a point of withdrawing from the JCPOA and increasing hostilities with Iran, deliberately parting ways with one of President Obama’s signature issues. But the Biden administration, says Parsi, seems serious about reestablishing diplomatic relationships with Iran, especially as they continue to demonstrate advanced nuclear capabilities. Contrary to the common narrative, Parsi explains, it isn’t America’s cruel and futile sanctions regime that brings the Iranian government to the negotiating table, it is the Iranian nuclear program that brings America to the table. Naturally, peace between any nuclear armed countries is good for global safety.

Discussed on the show:

“Biden Team Seeks a Way Out of Nuclear Standoff With Iran” (Foreign Policy)
Going to Tehran
“To Save the Iran Nuclear Deal, Think Bigger” (Foreign Affairs)

Trita Parsi is the president of the National Iranian American Council and the author of Losing an Enemy: Obama, Iran and the Triumph of Diplomacy. Parsi is the recipient of the 2010 Grawemeyer Award for Ideas Improving World Order. Follow him on Twitter @tparsi.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

4/2/21 Peter Lee on China’s Treatment of the Uyghur Muslims

Scott talks to Peter Lee about the ongoing Uyghur controversy in China. The Chinese government, he says, is trying to integrate their minority Uyghur Muslim population, as part of their larger project to urbanize and centralize China. There is growing concern, especially on the American right, that these efforts represent an outright genocide, with claims of mass forced birth control and up to a million people in detention centers. These fears, Lee says, tend to be exaggerated—though what the Chinese government is doing might be something more like cultural genocide. He stresses that it is important to acknowledge the horrors faced by many citizens of China’s authoritarian government, without using something like this as an excuse to advocate war.

Discussed on the show:

“Peter Lee’s China Threat Report” (Patreon)
China Matters
Sterilizations, IUDs, and Mandatory Birth Control: The CCP’s Campaign to Suppress Uyghur Birthrates in Xinjiang
“2/19/21 Gareth Porter on the Misleading Data Behind Uyghur Genocide Claims” (The Libertarian Institute)
“US State Department accusation of China ‘genocide’ relied on data abuse and baseless claims by far-right ideologue” (The Grayzone)
“4/2/21 Larry Wilkerson on the Global Struggle for Power in Asia” (The Libertarian Institute)
“G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009)” (IMDb)

Peter Lee writes on East and South Asian affairs and their intersection with US global policy. Follow his work on Patreon and on Twitter @chinahand.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

4/2/21 Lyle J. Goldstein on the American Military’s Disastrous Indo-Pacific Strategy

Lyle J. Goldstein discusses the terrifying possibility of war between the U.S. and China. There are plenty of hawks in the U.S. government, he says, who might try to fight China were they to attack Taiwan or exert their influence elsewhere in the region. But even leaving aside the potential catastrophe of a nuclear war, Goldstein says American strategists don’t give enough credence to the possibility that China could now defeat the U.S. even in a conventional war. The entire doctrine of trying to be the dominant military power in the world forever is foolish, wasteful and dangerous—instead, America should make clear that it would defend its major allies against unreasonable Chinese aggression, but otherwise not try to govern the other half of the planet under the threat of military force.

Discussed on the show:

“Beijing has a plethora of military options against Taiwan after 2022” (The Hill)
“The Indo-Pacific Strategy Is a Recipe for Disaster” (Lawfare)
1992 Draft Defense Planning Guidance
“The Longest Telegram: A Visionary Blueprint for the Comprehensive Grand Strategy Against China We Need” (War on the Rocks)
Meeting China Halfway: How to Defuse the Emerging US-China Rivalry
“The Rise of the Rest” (Fareed Zakaria)

Lyle J. Goldstein is Research Professor in the China Maritime Studies Institute (CMSI) at the United States Naval War College in Newport, RI. He is the author of Meeting China Halfway: How to Defuse the Emerging US-China Rivalry. Follow his work at The National Interest.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

4/2/21 Immortal Technique on Slavery, Israel-Palestine and the Politicization of American Society

Scott interviews rapper Immortal Technique in a wide-ranging conversation covering the legacy of slavery in America, the false narrative about Palestine fed to most Americans and the ways that politics has become entwined in daily life like never before. He and Scott agree that the powerful have always deliberately played up the petty differences that divide us, hoping to separate and embitter people who should be natural allies. Social change is possible when regular citizens unite against those who perpetuate the evils of war, colonialism and oppression.

Discussed on the show:

Immortal Technique is a Peruvian-American rapper and activist, best known for his albums Revolutionary vol. 1, Revolutionary vol. 2, The Martyr and the upcoming Middle Passage. Follow him at Viper Records or on Twitter @ImmortalTech.

Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

4/2/21 Larry Wilkerson on the Global Struggle for Power in Asia

Scott talks to Larry Wilkerson, former army Colonel and Chief of Staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell, about America’s involvement in Asia, both during his time in the federal government and today. Wilkerson calls America’s exploits over the last few decades a part of “The Great Game,” a reference to the conflict between global powers like the British and Russian Empires over territory in the Middle East and the rest of Asia. This competition for hegemony never really ended, he says, although the players and stakes have changed to some extent. These days, the U.S. competes with China and Russia for control over fossil fuel supplies, trade routes and access to the nuclear stockpiles of smaller powers like Pakistan. But he and Scott agree that we have no business whatsoever trying to be the dominant power halfway across the world, and should pull our focus back to our own problems.

Discussed on the show: