Gareth Porter, independent historian and journalist for IPS News, discusses the minimal impact Osama bin Laden’s death has had – or will have – on US foreign policy; how the Obama administration’s insta-bragging makes clear the operation was a domestic political ploy rather than a blow against terrorism or an intelligence bonanza; keeping US troops in Afghanistan long past 2014 through a strategic partnership with the Karzai regime; how the security situation in Afghanistan is getting worse,...
05/12/11 – Jason Ditz – The Scott Horton Show
Jason Ditz, managing news editor at Antiwar.com, discusses the latest news with Scott, who’s been on the road this week and missed that whole bin Laden story; the changing US government narrative on events before, during and after the bin Laden raid; the already-forgotten euphoria that gave Obama’s approval rating a temporary boost and had crowds chanting USA! USA!; the White House’s confident assertion that the raid sets a “precedent” that may well be repeated; renewed drone strikes and...
05/12/11 – Scott Horton – The Scott Horton Show
The Other Scott Horton (no relation), international human rights lawyer, professor and contributing editor at Harper’s magazine, discusses winning the National Magazine Award for Reporting for his article “The Guantanamo “suicides”: A Camp Delta sergeant blows the whistle;” the still-developing story, including more details on the infamous “Camp No”; why torture still isn’t justified and didn’t help find bin Laden (according to John McCain); the scope and severity of the torture programs under...
04/27/11 – Jason Ditz – The Scott Horton Show
Jason Ditz, managing news editor at Antiwar.com, discusses the sparse news coverage on the stalemate in Libya that may lead to partition; NATO’s “no assassination” policy in a conflict where every target can be defined as a military asset; decentralizing power in Yemen, where many provinces have become autonomous; the Saudi-dominated Gulf Cooperation Council troops in Bahrain that are staying for the duration of Shia protests; and the persistence of protesters in Syria, who turn out in...
04/27/11 – Gareth Porter – The Scott Horton Show
Gareth Porter, independent historian and journalist for IPS News, discusses his article “Why US and NATO Fed Detainees to Afghan Torture System;” ambiguous statements from Secretary of Defense Robert Gates on the July Afghanistan drawdown; perpetuating failure with the “long war” doctrine; how Gen. David Petraeus’s new role as CIA chief puts a damper on civilian oversight of military operations; the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden (sorry for the extreme delay in posting interviews the past...
04/27/11 – Coleen Rowley – The Scott Horton Show
Coleen Rowley, retired FBI agent and 9/11 whistleblower, discusses her Washington Times article (with Philip Leggiere) “Let the Patriot Act Die: Invasive provisions about to expire haven’t made us safer;” Senator Russ Feingold’s “Justice Act” designed to reign in the excesses of the Patriot Act; how war is making the US less safe and poorer; how the FBI’s uses National Security Letters to collect vast amounts of information on Americans with little oversight or accountability; and the many...
04/26/11 – Roi Maor – The Scott Horton Show
Roi Maor, blogger at 972mag.com, discusses his article “Preeminent Israelis to support Palestinian state, 1967 borders;” the wearing-thin pretend negotiations and “peace talks” that Israel has no interest in; the US and Israel fighting against world opinion on a Palestinian state; the forty four years of occupation and encroaching settlements since the 1967 War; Palestinians who are subject to Israeli government rule yet lack the ability to democratically participate in that government; and...
04/26/11 – Joey King – The Scott Horton Show
Joey King, board member of Veterans For Peace, discusses the pretenses and lies that got us into war in oil-rich Libya; laying odds on whether Obama will admit a mistake or send in ground troops to make it much worse; how veterans against war and Rep. Ron Paul show conservatives that being antiwar isn’t just for Lefties; and how Veterans For Peace is building up their membership and adding new chapters.
04/26/11 – Jason Leopold – The Scott Horton Show
Investigative reporter Jason Leopold discusses sometime-collaborator Jeffrey Kaye’s article “Guantanamo Detainee Files Hint at Psychological Research;” the great American hero Bradley Manning; the WikiLeaks Guantanamo files that reveal bad intelligence on detainees, many of whom were held for ten years without being suspected of terrorism; how Gitmo served as a propaganda and double-agent production facility; how antiamalarial drugs may have exacerbated the conditions of 100 mentally ill and...
04/26/11 – Jack Hunter – The Scott Horton Show
Jack Hunter, talk radio host and Charleston newspaper columnist, discusses his (sort of) tongue-in-cheek assertion that John McCain supports Al Qaeda; how a stronger case can be made for an Al Qaeda presence in Libya than in (pre-occupation) Iraq; McCain’s “we’re all Georgians now” maneuvering for war with Russia in 2008, proving he never saw a war he didn’t like; Ron Paul’s announced 2012 presidential run featuring liberty, peace and freedom; and how Paul’s message, formerly dismissed as...
04/25/11 – Andy Worthington – The Scott Horton Show
Andy Worthington, author of The Guantanamo Files, discusses the WikiLeaks Guantanamo documents that provide a window into the inner workings of US detention policy; unreliable witnesses who gave evidence against a great many innocent prisoners; the lack of a screening process to separate farmers, old men and boys from the very few actual terrorist suspects; an analysis of the first 200 released prisoners, many previously unknown; how Charlie Savage and the NYT accepted the three 2006 Gitmo...
04/25/11 – Alex Kane – The Scott Horton Show
Alex Kane, frequent contributor to the blog Mondoweiss, discusses his article “How Your Tax Dollars Fuel the Hatred of Muslims;” the Islamophobes “training” law enforcement agencies that Muslims are their enemies, Islam is a terrorist religion and Sharia law is coming to take over the US; the questionable involvement of local cops in fighting terrorism, which is essentially a foreign policy problem; Israel’s interest in perpetuating a negative view of Muslims and Arabs; and how the US...
04/25/11 – Alfred McCoy – The Scott Horton Show
Alfred McCoy, professor of history at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, discusses his article on the US empire of failed states at TomDispatch; the post-WWII breakup of European empires into 100 new countries, shifting the balance of world power; how empires require cooperative foreign elites to keep the natives under control; the transition from imperial Britain’s dominant naval power to US air supremacy, which requires many more military bases (which are slipping away as the US loses its...
04/22/11 – Kevin Zeese – The Scott Horton Show
This recording is from the KPFK 90.7 FM Los Angeles broadcast of April 22nd. The KPFK archive is here. Kevin Zeese, Executive Director and co-founder of VotersForPeace, discusses Obama’s declaration that Bradley Manning “broke the law” – despite awaiting a military trial ostensibly for the purpose of determining guilt or innocence – and how that makes a fair trial impossible; Obama’s bogus reasoning on why Manning is a criminal but Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg is not;...
04/22/11 – Rep. Ron Paul – The Scott Horton Show
Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) discusses his new book Liberty Defined: 50 Essential Issues That Affect Our Freedom; abandoning the stodgy inside-the-beltway style of campaign management in favor of youtube-style ads put together by his youthful and tech savvy supporters; why increased American pessimism reflects a popular awakening to our deep economic troubles; and why we should be wary of authoritarianism in the guise of “problem solving” politicians.
