Loud & Clear

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Israel Chooses to Massacre Unarmed Palestinians as New US Embassy Opens May 14, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Palestinian rights activist Arab Barghouti, son of imprisoned activist Marwan Barghouti; Dan Cohen, whose new film is “Killing Gaza;” Richard Becker, author of the book “Palestine, Israel, and the US Empire,” and Bob Schlehuber, the producer of By Any Means Necessary.
At least 52 Palestinians were killed today and more than 2,400 wounded as Israeli soldiers opened fire on demonstrators in the Gaza Strip. The violence came as the US opened its embassy in Jerusalem today, a move which has infuriated Palestinians.
Firebrand nationalist Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s party took a surprise lead in Iraqi elections today, making him the kingmaker in the decision to choose a new Prime Minister. Sadr has led two uprisings against the US in Iraq and is seen as an enemy of both the United States and Iran. Mojtaba Masood, an Iraqi journalist and a filmmaker whose films include “Islamophobia: Cause & Effect” and “ISIS: Islamic Extremism?,” joins the show.
Former CIA officer, peace activist, and frequent guest on this show Ray McGovern was thrown to the ground and arrested last week for allegedly disrupting the Senate Intelligence Committee’s hearing on Gina Haspel’s nomination to be CIA director. Haspel has a past history as a high-level CIA officer who was integral to the Agency’s torture program. Prosecutors have now charged Ray with felony resisting arrest. Brian and John speak with Ray McGovern, a CIA analyst under seven presidents who was also the personal morning briefer for President George H. W. Bush, and whose work is at www.raymcgovern.com.
Monday’s regular segment “Education for Liberation with Bill Ayers” looks at the state of education across the country. What’s happening in our schools, colleges, and universities, and what impact does it have on the world around us? Today focuses on the dangers of privatizing education. The hosts speak with Bill Ayers, an activist, educator and the author of the book “Demand the Impossible: A Radical Manifesto.”
The hosts cover the continuing prosecution of those who were arrested on Jan 20, the day trump was inaugurated. More than 200 people were arrested facing heavy felony charges, including charges that could get up to decades in prison. Jury selection is beginning in the first J20 trial today. Chip Gibbons, a journalist and policy and legislative counsel for Defending Rights & Dissent, who has contributed to the Nation, Jacobin, and the book The Henry Kissinger Files, joins Brian and John.
Catalonia has a new premier after five months of political deadlock. Quim Torra was handpicked by ousted leader Carles Puigdemont. Torra urged unity among Catalonians and promised to find common ground across the political spectrum. Dick Nichols, the correspondent for Spain and Catalonia for Green Left Weekly, joins the show.

War with Iran? Peace with Korea? The Topsy-Turvy Politics of Empire May 11, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Dan Kovalik, a human rights and labor lawyer who is the author of “The Plot to Attack Iran” and Ted Rall, an award-winning editorial cartoonist and columnist.
It’s been a big week of news, and today the hosts go back and review the biggest stories this week, including the burgeoning war on Iran, the upcoming US-DPRK summit, the hearing on Gina Haspel, and the recent news that early on in the Trump administration, companies paid his personal lawyer for access to the president.
On today’s regular Friday segment covering the upcoming midterm elections, Brian and John examine the results from this week’s primaries and take a look at the overall direction of the midterms. Jacqueline Luqman and Abdus Luqman, the co-editors-in-chief of Luqman Nation, join the show.
Parliamentary elections will take place in Iraq tomorrow, and that will serve as the basis for the next government. The race this year is splintered by intra-sectarian divisions and fragmented Shia, Sunni, and Kurdish factions. This is the fourth election in Iraq since the US-led invasion of that country. Brian and John speak with Mojtaba Masood, an Iraqi journalist and a filmmaker whose films include “Islamophobia: Cause & Effect” and “ISIS: Islamic Extremism?”
Researchers in China and the United States have figured out a way to send commands to smart devices Alexa and Siri that are undetectable to the human ear. They can make the devices dial a phone number or access a website. But in the wrong hands, they can open the door to your house. Wire money, or buy things online, all while embedded in music. Web developer and technologist Chris Garaffa joins Brian and John.
Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahatir Muhammad will be Prime Minister again after pulling off a major upset in this week’s election in that country. Mahatir, at 92, will be the world’s oldest leader. Even more importantly, he came out of retirement, switched parties, and defeated the incumbent Prime Minister, a man he had mentored. Nile Bowie, a writer and journalist covering Singapore and Malaysia with the Asia Times, joins the show.
The opioid epidemic raging across the country continues making headlines, as politicians and grassroots activists debate the way forward. Access to housing has become a central issue in the crisis. Karla Martin, a social worker who works primarily with homeless people suffering from the opioid epidemic, joins the show.
The hosts continue the regular segment of the worst and most misleading headlines. Brian and John, speak with Steve Patt, an independent journalist whose critiques of the mainstream media have been a feature of his blog Left I on the News, which you can find at lefti.blogspot.com, and Loud & Clear producer Nicole Roussell.

The US/Israeli War with Iran Has Begun: It’s Starting in Syria May 10, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Mark Sleboda, an international Affairs and Security Analyst, and Rick Sterling, an investigative journalist and member of the Syria Solidarity Movement.
Syria responded to Tuesday’s Israeli missile strikes with missiles of their own today, firing at least 20 targets in Golan Heights, the Syrian territory that Israel seized in 1967. Israel then attacked almost all Iranian infrastructure in Syria. Germany, France, and Russia have called on both sides to exercise restraint, but Middle East observers say this is just the beginning of what could be major hostilities between Iran and Israel.
On the regular Thursday series “Criminal Injustice,” about the most egregious conduct of our courts and prosecutors and how justice is denied to so many people in this country, the hosts discuss how to organize a prison strike. Kevin Gosztola, a writer for Shadowproof.com and co-host of the podcast Unauthorized Disclosure, and Paul Wright, the founder and executive director of the Human Rights Defense Center and editor of Prison Legal News and Criminal Legal News, join the show.
The state of Louisiana is set to evict about 37,000 elderly and disabled people from nursing homes after the state legislature slashed the budget for Medicaid. Rolling back the Medicaid expansion implemented under the Obama Administration has been a longtime goal of the Republican Party. Notices are being mailed out starting today, and this will literally kick the elderly out on the street. Brian and John speak with Leo Cuello, an attorney and the director of health policy for the National Health Law Program.
A group of senators have filed a discharge petition in an effort to reinstate net neutrality regulations. The move aims to force a vote that could lead to the reversal of the FCC’s decision in December to repeal net neutrality. Tim Karr, the senior director of strategy and communications at Free Press, joins the show.
Donald Trump’s decision to pull out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action is a major setback for Iranian leaders who put their reputations and political careers on the line to negotiate the deal. Has the president doomed any liberal or internationalist bent in Iran? Mohammad Marandi, an expert on American studies and postcolonial literature who teaches at the University of Tehran, joins Brian and John.
Former CIA officer, peace activist, and frequent guest on this show Ray McGovern, as well as Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin and several others, were arrested yesterday for allegedly disrupting the Senate Intelligence Committee’s hearing on Gina Haspel’s nomination to be CIA director. They were protesting Haspel’s past history as a high-level CIA officer who was integral to the Agency’s torture program. Medea Benjamin, an anti-war and anti-torture activist who is the co-founder of Code Pink, joins the show.
Pakistan’s parliament has passed a law guaranteeing basic rights for transgender citizens and outlawing discrimination in employment, a move hailed by activists as “historic” for the conservative South Asian country. Brian and John speak with transgender activist Morgan Artyukhina.

CIA’s Torture Program Takes Center Stage At Hearing for “Bloody Gina” May 09, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Chip Gibbons, policy and legislative counsel for Defending Rights & Dissent and a journalist, who has contributed to The Nation, Jacobin, and the book “The Henry Kissinger Files.”
Gina Haspel appeared in open session before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence today in her much-anticipated confirmation hearing. Haspel said that on her watch, the CIA will not reinstate a detention and interrogation program, and also noted that she has a strong moral compass. She did not express any regret for her role in the George W. Bush Administration’s torture program, despite being asked.
Wednesday is Loud & Clear’s regular segment Beyond Nuclear, looking at nuclear issues including weapons, energy, waste, and the future of nuclear technology in the United States. Today, the hosts concentrate on fallout from Trump leaving the Iran deal. Kevin Kamps, the Radioactive Waste Watchdog at the organization Beyond Nuclear, and Nicole Roussell, producer for Loud & Clear, join the show.
Mainstream Republicans and Democrats won most of their races in primaries yesterday in West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, and North Carolina. Don Blankenship, the mining company CEO jailed for a year for his role in the deaths of 29 miners, lost his race for US Senate in West Virginia. Former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau director Richard Cordray beat Dennis Kucinich in the Democratic nomination for governor in Ohio, Vice President Pence’s son won the Republican nomination for a Congressional seat in Indiana. And incumbent Republican Congressman Robert Pittinger of North Carolina lost his race to a far-right wing former pastor. Brian and John speak with Travis Boothe, an organizer with the Morgantown Tenants Union, and Jacqueline Luqman, the co-editor in chief of Luqman Nation.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is on his way back from Pyongyang with three Americans who had been in prison in North Korea. Pompeo was in for meetings that would lay the groundwork for President Trump’s upcoming meeting with Kim Jong Un. Meanwhile, Kim was in Beijing consulting with the Chinese for the same reason. Jude Woodward, the author of the new book “The US vs China: Asia's new Cold War?,” and Chris Black, an international criminal lawyer who is on the List of Counsel before the International Criminal Court, join the show.
Stormy Daniels’ attorney is alleging that Trump attorney Michael Cohen received $500,000 from a company controlled by a Russian oligarch, with the money being deposited into an account for a company that was then used to pay off the adult film actress. And CNN is reporting that Robert Mueller’s investigators questioned an unnamed Russian oligarch about payments into that account. But AT&T, a subsidiary of Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis, and Korea Aerospace Industries also made big payments to the account. Isn’t the bigger question about paying for presidential access? Daniel Lazare, a journalist and author of “The Frozen Republic,” “The Velvet Coup,” and “America's Undeclared War,” joins Brian and John.
Yesterday, a global trending hashtag on twitter was #Tamam, or “enough,” in response to Turkish President Erdogan. Erdogan has called snap presidential elections on June 24, and polls show he may be in jeopardy. Nevzat Evrim, a journalist with the Turkish newspaper SoL, joins the show.
As Donald Trump pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal yesterday, Israel sent missiles into Syria, targeting an Iranian base. This morning there are reports of 15 dead, including eight Iranians. Israel’s military, the Israeli Defense Forces, announced that they were opening bomb shelters in anticipation retaliation from Iran. Brian and John speak with Bob Schlehuber, producer of Radio Sputnik show By Any Means Necessary, who is in Jerusalem.

Trump Sets the Stage for War with Iran: Israel Troops On High Alert May 08, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Gareth Porter, a historian, investigative journalist, an analyst specializing in U.S. national security policy, and the author of “Manufactured Crisis: The Untold Story of the Iran Nuclear Scare.”
In dramatic fashion, Donald Trump took to the airwaves to announce that the US was leaving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, also known as the Iran Nuclear Arms Deal. Trump had been signaling his decision for many months. The speech was filled with bellicose and threatening language. What comes next? Is the Trump administration gearing up for military conflict and another war in the Middle East?
Tuesday’s weekly series “False Profits—A Weekly Look at Wall Street and Corporate Capitalism with Daniel Sankey” continues looking at the top economic issues of the day, today focusing what unemployment numbers really mean and how the price of oil is affecting geopolitics. Financial policy analyst Daniel Sankey joins the show.
Senate candidate and former mining company CEO Don Blankenship, who spent a year in prison for his role in the deaths of 29 miners, appears to be surging in the West Virginia senate race in light of an overtly racist television ad his campaign has been airing this week. Blankenship says that, if elected, he will create jobs for Americans, not for “China people” and he excoriates Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, whose wife is Chinese-American, as “Cocaine Mitch.” Brian and John speak with community organizer Frank Ariet and Sputnik news analyst Walter Smolarek.
Oliver North, the central figure in the Iran-Contra scandal of the 1980s, and now a Fox News contributor, was named president of the National Rifle Association yesterday. It was North who illegally arranged for arms sales to Iran during the Iran-Iraq war, and then used the proceeds to illegal purchase weapons for the Contra rebels, who were fighting to overthrow the Nicaraguan government. Joe Lauria, the editor-in-chief of Consortium News, founded by the late Robert Parry, who broke the Iran-Contra scandal, joins the show.
Peace and anti-torture groups have begun arriving on Capitol Hill to protest the nomination of Gina Haspel to be CIA director. Haspel was integral to the CIA’s torture program during the George W. Bush Administration. She headed a secret prison, oversaw torture sessions, and later destroyed videotaped evidence of the torture. Jeremy Varon, a professor at the New School in New York and an anti-torture activist who is helping to lead those protests, joins Brian and John.
A new report in the Observer newspaper and New Yorker Magazine says that unidentified people connected to the Trump Administration hired an private Israeli intelligence company last year to dig up embarrassing information—primarily sexual in nature—on Democrats who had supported the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, all in an effort to discredit it. This Israeli firm is the same one allegedly hired by movie mogul Harvey Weinstein to discredit women who accused him of sexual improprieties. Whitney Webb, a journalist and a staff writer for MintPress News, joins the show.
President Trump is sending a plan to Congress that calls for cutting $15 billion in previously-approved spending. Almost half the cuts would come from two accounts within the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), while another $800 million would come from a program within Obamacare. Brian and John speak with Mary Gerisch, an organizer and member chair of the Rights & Democracy health care justice team.

Mueller Suffers Court Setback; A Russiagate Defendant Demands Documents May 07, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Ted Rall, an award-winning editorial cartoonist and columnist, and Jim Kavanagh, the editor of ThePolemicist.net.
Presidential attorney and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani got himself deeper into trouble over the weekend, challenging the narrative of the president’s other attorneys on the Stormy Daniels affair, the Mueller investigation, and anything else that happened to pop into his mind. Also, one of the defendants named in the Mueller indictment of Russian entities for alleged interference in the 2016 election surprised the Mueller team by actually appearing in court Friday, announcing that it will plead not guilty, wants many documents from the prosecution in discovery, and asked for a speedy trial. A judge rejected Mueller’s pleas for delay. This is a surprising twist in the Russiagate story.
President Trump will announce tomorrow afternoon whether the United States is pulling out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or the Iran nuclear deal. Most observers believe that he will. But the fallout could be monumental. US allies who do business with Iran would face massive sanctions, as would banks and individual companies. Trump’s action could turn the entire economy of Europe on its head. But does he really care? Ann Wright, a retired United States Army colonel and former U.S. State Department official in Afghanistan, who resigned in protest of the invasion of Iraq and became an anti-war activist, and Sputnik news analyst Walter Smolarek join the show.
President Trump today expressed strong support for Gina Haspel, his nominee to head the CIA. Her nomination hearings begin on Wednesday. Haspel faces an uphill climb because of her central role in the CIA’s torture program during the George W. Bush Administration. CNN reported over the weekend that Haspel offered to drop out of consideration for the job, but was convinced to stay in. Brian interviews his co-host John Kiriakou, a former member of the CIA who was sent to prison for blowing the whistle on the Bush-era torture program which Haspel was a part of, and has become one of the leading figures in the fight to stop her appointment as CIA Director.
Lebanese voters went to the polls yesterday to choose a new government for the first time since 2009. Although official tallies won’t be known until this evening, early results indicate a decline in support for the western-backed Future Movement, led by Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri, and gains for Hezbollah and its allies. Jana Nakhal, an independent researcher and a member of the central committee of the Lebanese Communist Party, joins the show.
Monday’s regular segment “Education for Liberation with Bill Ayers” looks at the state of education across the country. What’s happening in our schools, colleges, and universities, and what impact does it have on the world around us? Today focuses on John Brown’s birthday and the importance of his anti-slavery work. The hosts speak with Bill Ayers, an activist, educator and the author of the book “Demand the Impossible: A Radical Manifesto.”
The most vulnerable Republicans in the House of Representatives are talking less and less about the tax cuts they championed late last year, realizing that Americans don’t seem to care about the issue. And this is after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said, “If we can’t sell this to the American people, we ought to go into another line of work.” Dr. Wilmer Leon, a political scientist and author and host of a nationally broadcast talk radio show on Sirius/XM channel 126, joins the show.
Banks in Argentina on Friday raised interest rates to a whopping 40 percent, just two days after raising them to 30.25 percent. A week ago they were 27.25 percent. The rises are aimed at supporting the peso, which has lost a quarter of its value over the past year, but could wreak havoc for ordinary people. Brian and John speak with Steve Keen, the author of “Debunking Economics” and the world’s first crowdfunded economist at patreon.com/ProfSteveKeen.

Trump Legal Woes Get Worse: Cohen Phone Log Monitored, Giuliani's Gaffe May 04, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, John Kiriakou and Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek (sitting in for Brian Becker) are joined by Coleen Rowley, a former FBI agent who in 2002 was named Time Magazine person of the year, and Dan Kovalik, a human rights and labor lawyer who is the author of the soon to be released book “The Plot to Attack Iran.”
NBC News yesterday broke a story that the FBI has been monitoring the phones, email, and text messages of President Trump’s personal attorney Michael Cohen and that the monitoring began months before the press ever got wind that Cohen was the subject of any investigation. Civil libertarians are decrying what appears to be the blatant and wanton disregard of attorney-client privilege.
Economic and political turmoil continue in Venezuela ahead of the crucial May 20th presidential election, but the causes and consequences are misrepresented in the mainstream U.S. media. The hosts are pleased to be joined by two Venezuelan human rights activists to help us separate fact from fiction. You’ll hear the voice of interpreter Leonardo Flores. Eugenia Russián, president of the Latin American Foundation for Human Rights and Social Development, the oldest human rights organization in Venezuela, and a nun with the Missionaries of Christ, and Desiree Cabrera, a member of the Committee of Victims of Violent Protests whose 19-month-old baby was in a nursery attacked by right-wing protesters in 2014, join the show.
Thousands of Palestinians staged a sixth weekly protest today against Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands, with some throwing stones and burning tires, while Israeli soldiers fired live rounds. More than 170 people were wounded today. Since late March, 39 Palestinians have been killed and more than 1,700 wounded by Israeli fire during the protests. Walter and John speak with Miko Peled, the author of “The General’s Son - A Journey of an Israeli in Palestine” and the newly released "Injustice: The Story of the Holy Land Foundation Five."
The United States warned China yesterday that there would be “consequences” for its growing militarization of disputed islands in the South China Sea amid reports that it has deployed missiles to the area. The threat comes amid continued talks between the two countries to try to solve a major trade dispute and follows a formal complaint to Beijing over Chinese lasers being used to blind US pilots in the Horn of Africa. Dr. Jack Rasmus, a professor of economics at Saint Mary's College of California, author of “Central Bankers at the End of Their Ropes: Monetary Policy and the Coming Depression,” and whose additional writings are at jackrasmus.com, joins the show.
A delegation of members of Veterans for Peace has carried out massive civil disobedience demonstrations in front of the main gate at Camp Schwab, the U.S. military base on the island of Okinawa. The group is showing its resistance to the base by blocking truck traffic into and out of the gate. Bruce Gagnon, the coordinator of the Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space, a contributor to Foreign Policy In Focus, and one of the participants in the action in Okinawa, joins Walter and John.
Some states are turning to a supply and demand based system for toll roads, with skyrocketing costs for the consumer. The Wall Street Journal and others have been reporting on this change, asking the question, "What is the best mechanism for reducing congestion?" But is that the right question to ask about our infrastructure needs? Katy Lang, a North Carolina transit advocate and organizer, joins the show.
The hosts continue the regular segment of the worst and most misleading headlines. John and Nicole speak with Steve Patt, an independent journalist whose critiques of the mainstream media have been a feature of his blog Left I on the News, which you can find at lefti.blogspot.com.

Both Parties Want to Give Trump Power to Indefinitely Detain Americans May 03, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Kevin Gosztola, a writer for Shadowproof.com and co-host of the podcast Unauthorized Disclosure, and Alex Friedmann, the Associate Director of the Human Rights Defense Center and managing editor of Prison Legal News.
On the regular Thursday series “Criminal Injustice,” about the most egregious conduct of our courts and prosecutors and how justice is denied to so many people in this country, the hosts discuss a new bipartisan bill in Congress that would expand the president’s ability to detain American citizens without a trial, and why “police union” is a misnomer.
For Loud & Clear’s regular weekly segment covering the upcoming midterm elections, Brian and John take a look at Senate races nationwide. Jacqueline Luqman and Abdus Luqman, the co-editors-in-chief of Luqman Nation, join the show.
Iowa’s state legislature yesterday passed the most extreme abortion ban in the country, eliminating women’s right to carry a child past the time when a fetus has a heartbeat, which can be as early as six weeks. Six weeks is often earlier than a woman knows she is pregnant. The bill now goes to the Republican governor, who has said she’s not yet sure whether she will sign it. Is the right trying to get abortion rights back into the Supreme Court, in the hopes the court will reverse Roe v. Wade? Brian and John speak with Danielle Norwood, a reproductive rights activist and a therapist specializing in treating adult and adolescent survivors of trauma.
Despite the Pentagon saying for years that the US was not fully involved in the Yemen war and did not have troops in Yemen, several top US and European officials told the New York Times today that the Green Berets actually arrived late last year on the Saudi/Yemeni border—a big escalation in military assistance. Why is the US assisting the egregious Saudi government in their war? Catherine Shakdam, a political commentator and analyst focusing on the Middle East, and the author of “A Tale Of Grand Resistance: Yemen, The Wahhabi And The House Of Saud,” joins the show.
Today is World Press Freedom Day, as proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly. In a media landscape dominated by a handful of corporations, what can be done to truly guarantee the free expression and communication of ideas? Tim Karr, the senior director of strategy and communications at Free Press, joins Brian and John.
Cambridge Analytica, the controversial data mining firm that has found itself in the middle of the Facebook data scandal, announced yesterday that it would close immediately. The company’s CEO said that rebranding the firm was “futile.” Dr. Robert Epstein, the Senior Research Psychologist at the American Institute for Behavioral Research and Technology, joins the show.
Dramatic developments have raised hopes for peace and reunification in Korea, but there is still much to be done. As the Chinese foreign minister visits North Korea, and the North agrees to release three detainees, how could this complex diplomatic process unfold? Brian and John speak with Sputnik news analyst Walter Smolarek.

Leaks Show Mueller Probe Is Fishing Expedition May 02, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Daniel Lazare, a journalist and author of The Frozen Republic, The Velvet Coup, and America's Undeclared War, and Ted Rall, an award-winning editorial cartoonist and columnist.
The Washington Post is reporting today that, in a tense meeting in March between Special Counsel Robert Mueller and President Trump’s attorneys, Mueller threatened to subpoena the president if he refused to answer questions related to the Russia investigation. That news broke just hours before it was confirmed that Ty Cobb, a key White House lawyer, was retiring. Meanwhile, Congressional Republicans are threatening to draw up articles of impeachment against Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein because of the scope of the Mueller investigation. And Republican strategist Michael Caputo told the Senate Intelligence Committee that he hoped God would “damn you all to hell” because of the financial toll the investigation has taken on him in the form of attorneys fees.
Wednesday is the regular segment looking at nuclear issues, including weapons, energy, waste, and the future of nuclear technology in the United States. Today, they discuss the public pushback against a massive and dangerous nuclear waste facility in New Mexico where residents have been speaking out over the past few weeks. Kevin Kamps, the Radioactive Waste Watchdog at the organization Beyond Nuclear, and Nicole Roussell, producer for Loud & Clear, join the show.
The Attorneys General of seven states, including Texas, have filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration over its failure to end the DACA program for undocumented youth. As the war on immigrant communities drags on, will this lawsuit finally lead to a Supreme Court hearing on DACA? Brian and John speak with Juan José Gutiérrez, the executive director of the Full Rights for Immigrants Coalition, and Bryan MacCormack, the Executive Director of the Columbia County Sanctuary Movement.
Comedian Michelle Wolf was the entertainment at the White House Correspondents Dinner this weekend. By the end of her routine, though, many people weren’t laughing. Perhaps her accusations of de facto media support for Donald Trump cut a little too close to the bone. Max Blumenthal, a journalist and bestselling author whose latest book is “The 51 Day War: Ruin and Resistance in Gaza,” the senior editor of Grayzone Project, and co-host of the podcast “Moderate Rebels,” joins the show.
A federal court in New York issued a multi-billion dollar default judgment against the government of Iran and in favor of the 9/11 families after those families sued Iran for alleged involvement in the 9/11 attacks. This is despite the fact that the 9/11 Commission found that there was no Iranian involvement in the attacks whatsoever. Rick Sterling, an investigative journalist and member of the Syria Solidarity Movement, joins Brian and John.
The United States has sent Javelin anti-tank missiles to Ukraine, according to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. Kiev and Washington believe the Javelin system will help Ukraine build its long term defense, but Moscow is warning that the sale will further destabilize the region. Mark Sleboda, an international Affairs and Security Analyst, joins the show.
The United States and France have deployed additional troops to the area northwest of the Syrian city of Manbij. At the same time, Kurdish troops have established checkpoints in and around the city. The move appears to be the culmination of French President Macron’s promise to support Kurdish military efforts in northern Syria. Brian and John speak with Ambassador Peter Ford, the former British Ambassador to Syria.

Tensions Flare After Netanyahu’s Theatrics: War with Iran on Horizon? May 01, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Jana Nakhal, an independent researcher and a member of the central committee of the Lebanese Communist Party, and Massoud Shadjareh, the founder of the Islamic Human Rights Commission.
In a theatrical presentation yesterday, Prime Minister Netanyahu claimed to have secured intelligence showing that Iran was secretly continuing elements of a nuclear weapons program. Is this part of a coordinated drive to war as tensions across the Middle East reach a boiling point?
Tuesday’s weekly series “False Profits -- A Weekly Look at Wall Street and Corporate Capitalism with Daniel Sankey” continues looking at the top economic issues of the day, today focusing on T-Mobile and Sprint’s potential merger and foreign investors losing interest in US debt. Financial policy analyst Daniel Sankey joins the show.
The first group of migrants in a much publicized caravan from Central America came across the border near Tijuana last night. Celebrations erupted as the group was allowed through. However, the first prosecutions were announced yesterday as well, with 11 people receiving criminal charges. Brian and John speak with Pedro Rios, the Director of the American Friends Service Committee’s U.S./Mexico Border Program and chairperson for the San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium.
In a shocking leak, the questions that Special Counsel Mueller planned to ask Donald Trump as part of the “Russiagate” investigation were released to the press yesterday. Who leaked them, why, and where else is this investigation headed? Jim Kavanagh, the editor of ThePolemicist.net, joins the show.
Protests are taking place across the country and the world to mark International Workers Day -- May Day. Demonstrators in the United States are focusing to opposition to the right-wing agenda of the Trump administration and support for immigrant rights. Carolyn Gomez, a labor and community activist who is involved in organizing today’s May Day protest in Los Angeles, joins Brian and John.
While much of the world was celebrating the historic steps made towards peace and reunification in Korea, war contractors saw their stocks plummet. Peace may be good for the people, but it’s bad for war business. Paul Dordel, the coordinator of the Stop Banking the Bomb campaign, at StopBankingTheBomb.org, joins the show.
President Trump extended the deadline for imposing aluminum and steel tariffs last night for several US allies, saying he had several deals in the works that needed more time. The deals the White House mentioned in a statement last night include the renegotiated NAFTA deal with Canada and Mexico, while other connected geopolitical issues like the Iran nuclear deal loom. Brian and John speak with Steve Keen, the author of “Debunking Economics” and the world’s first crowdfunded economist, whose work is at patreon.com/ProfSteveKeen.

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