4/17/18 Danny Sjursen on America’s support for Israeli and Saudi Arabian atrocities

Army major Danny Sjursen returns to the show to discuss his latest work for antiwar.com including “American Empathy Gap: Massacres in Gaza and US Silence.” Sjursen begins by breaking down the situation in Gaza and Palestine and makes the case that Israel-Palestine is the third rail in U.S. politics. Sjursen describes his experience on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan and the continual gripe against Israeli domination of Palestine. He then offers his solution that would allow Israel to...

4/17/18 Ramzy Baroud on his new book “The Last Earth” and the unbreakable spirit of the Palestinians

Editor-in-chief of the Palestine Chronicle Ramzy Baroud joins Scott to discuss his latest article “Why Israel Feels Threatened by Popular Resistance in Palestine,” and his new book, “The Last Earth: A Palestinian Story.” Baroud’s goal is to change the narrative about the Palestinian people, which has been divided only between the extremes of terrorist and victim—but in reality the Palestinian people existed long before the birth of Zionism, and they’ll exist long after as well, Baroud says....

4/17/18 Cindy Sheehan on the lies of the Iraq War and the Women’s March on the Pentagon

Antiwar activist Cindy Sheehan returns to the show to discuss the history of her son Casey’s death in Iraq in light of the new TV miniseries The Long Road Home. Sheehan recaps the story of her son’s life and death in Iraq and the fallout from her anti-war protests. Sheehan then describes her response to the Women’s March—the Women’s March on the Pentagon. Sheehan then discusses the dynamics of the antiwar movement and her disappointment with the factional character of the left. Cindy...

4/17/18 Daniel Lazare on Saudi Arabia’s Resource Curse

Journalist and author Daniel Lazare returns to the show to discuss the latest issues facing Saudi Arabia and his latest article for The American Conservative, “Will the Saudi Kingdom Collapse Under the Resource Curse?” Lazare compares the Saudi Arabian kingdom to 16th Century Spain, which discovered the new world and was overwhelmed with the sudden flow of gold and silver, which, despite its incredible resources was ruined and needed to file bankruptcy in order to limp along. Lazare then...

4/20/18 Ted Snider on the history of US intervention in Russian politics

Ted Snider returns to the show to discuss his recent article "Accusing Russia - Listening to History" about the recent history of US-Russian relations. Snider makes the case that most of the US's accusations against Russia, such as expansionary foreign policy and election meddling, accurately describe the US's own policy toward Russia since the end of the Cold War. This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Kesslyn Runs, by Charles Featherstone; NoDev NoOps NoIT, by Hussein...

4/17/18 Grant F. Smith on Americans’ overstated support for Israel

Grant Smith returns to the show to discuss his latest articles, “Why Gallup Overstates American Sympathy for Israel” and “Israel Advocacy Groups Demand Questionable Changes to Virginia Textbooks.” Smith explains the problems with Gallup’s polling methodology and why the real sentiments of Americans are less favorable to Israel than they’re made out out to be by Gallup. Smith then touches on his second article about how a group of pro-Israel groups are trying to pressure the Department of...

4/14/18 Gareth Porter on Trump’s bombing of Damascus

Investigative reporter and historian Gareth Porter returns to the show to discuss Donald Trump’s decision to bomb the Assad government in Damascus. Porter explains how the evidence has been repeatedly massaged to misconstrue what is ambiguous as what is clear—and that this case, of all the previous, might be the most egregious. Scott and Porter then discuss the ways in which Trump’s strikes differ from one another and how the Trump policy toward Syria compares with Obama’s. Finally they...

4/10/18 Rick Sterling on the supposed Assad chemical attack in Syria

Investigative journalist Rick Sterling joins Scott to discuss his latest article for Consortium News, “Taking the World to the Brink.” Sterling describes what he’s seen in his time in Syria and shares his perspective on the war and the most recent chemical attack in Douma. Sterling then explains why he’s very skeptical, once again, that the Syrian government is responsible for the latest chemical attack. Scott and Sterling discuss the failures of U.S. foreign policy generally, and then...

4/6/18 Daniel McAdams on Russian spies, Trump’s Syria policy, and Kosovo lies

Co-host of the Ron Paul Liberty Report Daniel McAdams returns to the Scott Horton Show. McAdams shares what he knows about the ex-Russian spy poisoned in London, how the details of the story have continually changed with one glaring exception—the certainty that the Russian government is responsible. Scott then transitions to Trump’s Syria policy and the ridiculous position many democrats and liberals hold that the United States will limit the sphere of its influence if it pulls its troops out...

3/30/18 Trita Parsi on how Trump is pushing Iran toward a nuclear bomb

Trita Parsi returns to the show to discuss his latest article for Foreign Policy, “Blame Trump When Iran Races for the Bomb.” Parsi says Trump is using the Iran Deal as a negotiating chip with North Korea and explains how the message might incentivize other countries—and Iran in particular—to further develop their nuclear programs in the future. Parsi then goes through the common misconceptions and the real consequences of the Iran Deal and how much good diplomacy could be undone if the deal...

3/30/18 David Collum on the poisoning of a Russian ex-spy in London and Austrian Business Cycle

Cornell professor of organic chemistry David Collum joins Scott to discuss the recent poisoning of a Russian ex-spy and his daughter in London. Collum explains why Theresa May’s initial comments about the chemical’s properties set off his skeptic alarms and what the alternative possibilities to the accepted narrative are. Collum then explains why he’s a believer in Austrian Business Cycle theory and argues that, had the criminals of the 2008 recession been justly prosecuted and imprisoned, the...

3/28/18 Gareth Porter on the history of Iraq War 2

Investigative journalist and historian Gareth Porter returns to the show to do a deep dive on the history of the Iraq War. Porter begins by detailing the role of the air force in propagating the neoconservatives’ goals and the behind-the-scenes struggle for power that took place between the army and the air force. Scott then asks Porter: how could the neoconservatives not realize that overthrowing Saddam Hussein would empower the Iranians? On their way through the history of the Iraq War Scott...

3/28/18 Nasser Arrabyee on the 3-year anniversary of the U.S.-Saudi war in Yemen

Yemeni journalist Nasser Arrabyee returns to the show to discuss the U.S.-Saudi war in Yemen, which is now entering its fourth year. Arrabyee describes the mood on the ground in Yemen, how things have changed since the beginning of the war, and what a political solution might look like. Scott then asks about the role of the UAE in the conflict and its alliance with the separatists of Southern Yemen and what Arrabyee’s thoughts are on the recent failed Senate resolution to invoke the War Powers...

3/23/18 Patrick Cockburn on the fighting in Afrin and Eastern Ghouta

Patrick Cockburn, Middle East reporter for the Independent, returns to the show to discuss the fighting in Syria, focusing on the conflicts in Afrin and East Ghouta where much of the killing of civilians has taken place. Cockburn details the tangled maze of allegiance in Syria and how the United States will likely deal with its warring allies. Cockburn then shares what he knows about where the surviving displaced ISIS fighters have re-surfaced. Cockburn says that despite considerable bias in...

3/21/18 Andrew Cockburn on how the United States boosts the Afghan opium trade

Washington editor of Harper’s magazine Andrew Cockburn returns to the show to discuss his latest article “Mobbed Up: How America boosts the Afghan opium trade.” Cockburn explains how Trump’s major contribution to the war in Afghanistan has been to take the existing restraints off the air force so they can, Cockburn says, “try to pacify Afghanistan from 20,000 feet.” Cockburn and Scott then discuss the war on drugs in Afghanistan and Cockburn outlines why the narrative that the Taliban relies...