Loud & Clear

Latest Episodes:

Guilty! The US, UK & France Commit Gross Violation of International Law Apr 16, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and Walter Smolarek and Nicole Roussell, sitting in for John Kiriakou, are joined by Rick Sterling, an investigative journalist and member of the Syria Solidarity Movement, and Francis Boyle, a professor of international law at the University of Illinois College of Law.
On Friday night, as Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons investigators were headed to Syria to examine evidence of an alleged chemical attack, the U.S., UK, and France bombed Syria with more than one hundred missiles. The Syrian air defenses shot down much of the barrage, but the damage done was still intense. What will the consequences be of this major escalation in an already dangerous and complex war.
For decades, the U.S. Navy used the Puerto Rican island of Vieques as a testing and dumping ground for highly dangerous weapons and materials. Huge protests and brave acts of civil disobedience alongside a determined battle in the courts led to victory in 2003, and this struggle is remembered as a key part of the broader struggle for freedom for Puerto Rico. Scott Edwards, co-director of the Food & Water Justice project at Food & Water Watch and an attorney who has prosecuted U.S. energy companies for contamination of waterways and worked against factory farms in both North Carolina and the Chesapeake region, joins the show.
Seven people have died and at least 17 are injured inside a South Carolina prison that has been plagued with dire problems. One inmate reported to the Associated Press that the officers did nothing to stop the violence and let bodies “literally stack on top of each other.” Brian and Nicole speak with Paul Wright, the founder and Executive Director of the Human Rights Defense Center and editor of Prison Legal News and Criminal Legal News.
Former FBI Director James Comey is releasing a book tomorrow, though excerpts have leaked out and are enraging Trump as Comey embarks on a media blitz. What comes next in the battle between the former FBI Director and the sitting president? Dan Kovalik, a human rights and labor lawyer who is the author of the soon to be released book “The Plot to Attack Iran,” 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 a recent report on discriminatory racial discipline disparities and the teacher strikes across the nation with Bill Ayers, an activist, educator and the author of the book “Demand the Impossible: A Radical Manifesto.”
According to reports released this afternoon, contrary to expectations, the announcement about planned sanctions against Russia will be postponed at least temporarily. Nikki Haley, US ambassador to the United Nations, had promised that new sanctions would be announced today. Earlier this afternoon the hosts spoke with Professor Steve Keen and Dmitri Babich about what a new sanctions regime against Russia might look like, what its’ impacts might be on the Russian economy and how it could impact global trade. Dmitry Babich, journalist and commentator with Sputnik International, and Steve Keen, the author of “Debunking Economics” and the world’s first crowdfunded economist, whose work is at patreon.com/ProfSteveKeen, join the show.
The Justice Department Inspector General issued a report that paints former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe as having released information to the press against FBI practices and having lied to and misled investigators about the Clinton email scandal. Brian and Walter speak with Ted Rall, an award-winning editorial cartoonist and columnist.

Trump and the War Hawks—Will US Strikes in Syria Ignite a Wider War? Apr 13, 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 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.
The United Nations Security Council held an emergency session this morning at the request of Russia to try to head off a US, UK, and French attack on Syria. Meanwhile, Secretary of Defense James Mattis is trying to walk President Trump back from provocative statements he made threatening such an attack. And the British press is reporting that Prime Minister Theresa May is awaiting further instructions from the US.
House Speaker Paul Ryan announced his retirement this week, setting off a scrum to replace him in the Republican caucus. On the same day, though, Republican Rep. Dennis Ross announced his retirement, bringing the total number of Republican Congressmen retiring to 59--the most in history and nearly a quarter of all Republicans in the House. Jacqueline Luqman and Abdus Luqman, the co-editors-in-chief of Luqman Nation, join the show.
More than 900 Palestinians were wounded today and at least one was killed on the third Friday of uprisings in Gaza; the dead man was a journalist working with Chinese artist Ai Weiwei on a documentary. At least 34 Palestinians have been killed since March 30. They are protesting Israel’s occupation of Palestinian land and are demanding the right to return to their ancestral lands. Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated the Israeli Army for using force against the Palestinians. Brian and John speak with Richard Becker, an expert on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and author of the book “Palestine, Israel and the US Empire,” and Sputnik News analyst Walter Smolarek.
Former FBI Director James Comey is preparing for a nationwide media blitz in advance of his new memoir, which will be published on Wednesday. Pre-orders have already made it #1 on the New York Times bestsellers list. The book is a tell-all in which he compares President Trump to a mob boss. The President tweeted today that Comey is “an untruthful slimeball.” Jim Kavanagh, the editor of ThePolemicist.net, joins the show.
Four men are being accused of carrying out a hate crime against a gay couple who were walking near the beach in Miami following a gay pride event. The four beat the couple and a good Samaritan who tried to intervene after shouting anti-gay slurs. Stratton Pollitzer, the deputy director of the LGBTQ rights organization Equality Florida, joins Brian and John.
A new treatment for Hepatitis C that costs $300 for a 12-week course has proven to be just as effective as two other treatments that cost $84,000 and $94,500. In clinical trials, 97 percent of Hepatitis C sufferers were cured. Tahir Amin, co-founder and co-executive director of I-MAK, an organization that works to increase global access to affordable life-saving medicines, 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 Nicole Roussell, a producer of this show.

Opposition to Trump’s War Grows—Pentagon Having Second Thoughts? Apr 12, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Professor Alfred de Zayas, a retired high-ranking UN official and the UN Independent Expert on the Promotion of a Democratic and Equitable International Order. He has been a leading voice against indefinite detention, torture, and nuclear pollution.
Officials from organizations ranging from the Pentagon to the United Nations to the British Parliament have backtracked on earlier statements that the Syrian government was responsible for a recent chemical attack on civilians. The hosts look at the evidence—or lack of evidence—and what it means for a possible military strike on Syria.
To address the urgent need to stop a war on Syria, Cindy Sheehan, an anti-war activist and journalist whose son Casey was killed during the Iraq War, and Gerry Condon, the president of Veterans for Peace, a Vietnam-era veteran, and a war resister who spent six years in Sweden and Canada after refusing orders in Vietnam, join the show.
Confirmation hearings for CIA Director Mike Pompeo to become Secretary of State began today on Capitol Hill. The right-wing hardliner is attempting to soften the public perception of his record as the hearings go forward. Brian and John speak with Medea Benjamin, the co-founder of Codepink and author of the book “Kingdom of the Unjust: Behind the U.S.-Saudi Connection.”
Although he’s presented himself as a leader of the anti-Trump resistance, California Governor Jerry Brown has announced that he’s going along with the Trump administration’s border militarization and will be deploying 400 members of the state’s national guard. Juan José Gutiérrez, the executive director of the Full Rights for Immigrants Coalition, joins the show.
The first half of our weekly series Criminal Injustice, which is about the most egregious conduct of our courts and prosecutors and how justice is denied to so many people in this country, focuses on the police shooting in Portland of a mentally ill man who was stabbing himself with a knife in a homeless shelter. 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, join Brian and John.
The second half of today’s Criminal Injustice addresses new information about prison phone call exploitation. 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, join the show.
Republican former House Speaker John Boehner has a new job. He’s a lobbyist for the marijuana industry. Brian and John speak with Kevin Zeese, the co-coordinator of Popular Resistance, you can check out their work at popularresistance.org.

War in Syria Looms: Trump’s Tweets “Our Missiles are Nice, New & Smart” Apr 11, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Massoud Shadjareh, the founder of the Islamic Human Rights Commission, and Shabbir Razvi, an economist and political analyst.
In an outrageous and provocative tweet this morning, President Trump warned Russia that it should get ready for missiles to be fired at Syria, adding that the missiles “will be nice and new and smart.” Trump also called Syrian President Bashar al-Assad “a gas killing animal.” Syria denied that it used chemical weapons and called the event a staged provocation designed to draw the US military into the conflict in a major way. Russia, which has troops in Syria, warned of severe repercussions. Meanwhile, the US, UK, and France have all prepositioned fighter jets in the eastern Mediterranean. Almost 15 years to the day when the US waged war against Iraq using chemical weapons and weapons of mass destruction as a false pretext—we appear to be on the verge of the next US war in another Middle Eastern country.
Wednesday is the regular segment looking at nuclear issues, including weapons, energy, waste, and the future of nuclear technology in the United States. Today is focused on myths and facts around nuclear power, and how to make a reality that is both low-carbon and nuclear-free. Kevin Kamps, the Radioactive Waste Watchdog at the organization Beyond Nuclear, joins the show.
House Speaker Paul Ryan said today that he would retire at the end of his term. The announcement was not unexpected, and it set off a race between House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Majority Whip Steve Scalise. Political observers say that Scalise, who was shot and severely wounded last year on an Alexandria, Virginia baseball field, is the more conservative of the two and is more likely to win Ryan’s job. Will anyone miss Paul Ryan? Brian and John speak with Dave Lindorff, an investigative reporter, a columnist for CounterPunch, and a contributor to Businessweek, The Nation, Extra! and Salon.com.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg spent a second day on Capitol Hill today, testifying about his company’s use of—and security related to—personal data. Zuckerberg apologized to legislators yesterday for not protecting Facebook users’ data, and he admitted today that some sort of federal regulation of Facebook was a near certainty. Ted Rall, an award-winning editorial cartoonist and columnist, joins the show.
President Trump today signed an executive order that would strengthen the requirements that all welfare recipients be required to work in order to continue receiving public assistance. The requirement makes no provisions for single mothers or the disabled. Dr. Margaret Flowers, a medical doctor and the co-coordinator of Popular Resistance at PopularResistance.org, joins Brian and John.
Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro will boycott the Summit of the Americas, which will be held later this month in Peru. The summit already has been the source of controversy, with Peruvian President Pedro Kuczynski, who has since resigned in a corruption scandal, initially revoking Maduro’s invitation, and Trump skipping out as well. Jeanette Charles, a writer, editor and Solidarity Liaison with VenezuelaAnalysis.com, joins the show.
A week ago, a friend of John’s visited the new Bible Museum in Washington. He was there to meet another friend, who didn’t show up, so he waited in the lobby. Because he was sitting in the lobby and not entering the museum, John’s friend, an Egyptian Christian, was detained and questioned by museum security. Then two days ago, two FBI agents from the Joint Counterterrorism Task Force showed up at his house. The hosts take a look at the realities of America in the age of terrorism.

Exposing the Chemical Weapons Lie: Experts Address Syria War Crisis Apr 10, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Ambassador Peter Ford, the former British Ambassador to Syria, and Ajamu Baraka, a longtime human rights activist, organizer, and political activist, and the 2016 Green Party nominee for Vice President of the United States.
President Trump yesterday promised a “forceful response” to the alleged chemical attack in Syria, adding that the United States has an array of military options available to it. The President also said he would skip this week’s Latin American summit so that he could focus on Syria. Meanwhile, Russia called for a United Nations investigation of the chemical attack and warned the US that a military response against Syria would be met with “severe repercussions,” while members of Congress began beating the drums for military intervention in Syria.
Tuesday’s weekly series continues, looking at the top economic issues of the day, focusing on Trump’s criticism of Amazon. A new report is out confirming that raising the minimum wage raises workers’ paychecks and doesn’t result in fewer people working. Financial policy analyst Daniel Sankey joins the show.
FBI agents yesterday raided the offices of President Trump’s personal attorney, Michael Cohen, apparently seeking any and all documents related to the payment of $130,000 to Stormy Daniels, a former pornographic film star who allegedly had a relationship with the President. Brian and John speak with Coleen Rowley, a former FBI special agent who in 2002 was named Time Magazine person of the year along with two other whistleblowers.
Yesterday was Black Monday for Russian oligarchs subject to the Trump Administration’s latest sanctions, with those on the sanctions list losing $16 billion in just one day. Russian stocks tumbled on both the Moscow and Hong Kong exchanges, and the ruble fell to its lowest level against the dollar in two years. Dimitri Babich, a journalist and commentator with Sputnik International, joins the show.
The Puerto Rico Department of Education announced yesterday that it would close 283 school all over the island in response to a drastic drop in enrollment following the devastation last year of Hurricane Maria. The move would save Puerto Rico $303 million, but the island is $120 billion in debt. Camilo Punsoda, spokesperson for Juventud Trabajadora, the youth wing of the Working People’s Party of Puerto Rico, joins Brian and John.
One of the top leaders of Colombia’s former rebel group, the FARC, was arrested today on drug charges at the request of the United States. Jesus Santrich, a peace negotiator, is charged in a federal court in New York with drug trafficking. But the arrest may deal a death blow to the Colombian peace process. James Jordan, a member of the Alliance for Global Justice who is currently on tour with the leader of Colombia’s largest farmworkers’ union, joins the show.
A federal court ruled last week that the Environmental Protection Agency violated the Civil Rights Act by delaying investigations into environmental discrimination complaints for years, and in some cases for decades, including complaints in Flint, Michigan. How can a state agency get away with extended racism for so long? Brian and John speak with Karen Monahan, a Senior Organizer with the Beyond Coal campaign for the Sierra Club in Minnesota who has provided racial equity and diversity training for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and served as the co-Chair of the Sierra Club North Star Chapter’s Diversity Council.

Bombs Away: Trump Prepares for War Against Syria As Democrats Applaud Apr 09, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Rick Sterling, an investigative journalist and member of the Syria Solidarity Movement, and Jana Nakhal, an independent researcher and a member of the central committee of the Lebanese Communist Party.
President Trump over the weekend threatened to make Syria “pay a big price” in response to a chemical weapons attack outside Damascus that killed at least 70 people, most of them women and children. Russian President Vladimir Putin countered that any attack on Syria would be considered an attack on Russia. French President Macron said that his country would “do its duty” in Syria and said it would go to the United Nations Security Council today. Meanwhile, Israeli jets attacked an airbase outside Palmyra, killing 14 Syrian troops.
About 10 billion land animals are raised for food in the United States every year. Many of those animals are raised on factory farms. That industrial method of farming produces vast amounts of pollution. It includes 37 percent of methane emissions, which is more than 20 times the global warming impact of carbon dioxide. Manure, along with its heavy metals and toxic chemicals, leeches into the soil. And waste lagoons not only contaminate our drinking water, they deplete it as well. Scott Edwards, co-director of the Food & Water Justice project at Food & Water Watch, joins the show.
The Department of Homeland Security is creating a database to monitor journalists, bloggers, and what it calls “media influencers.” The database would track 290,000 news sources (both foreign and domestic), writing, and speaking in 100 languages. Media observers see the database as nothing less than a frontal attack on freedom of the press. Brian and John speak with the senior director of strategy and communications at Free Press.
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 a recent report on discriminatory racial discipline disparities and the teacher strikes across the nation with Bill Ayers, an activist, educator and the author of the book “Demand the Impossible: A Radical Manifesto.”
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban was reelected yesterday on a strongly anti-immigrant platform. His party is projected to win 133 of the 199 seats in parliament. This will be Orban’s fourth term. During that time, he was transformed his Fidesz Party from a liberal party to a right-wing populist party. Sputnik news analyst Walter Smolarek joins Brian and John.
French rail workers continue intermittent strikes that are expected to last three months. These strikes are a major challenge to President Emmanuel Macron’s pro-business plans to reshape the French economy. Alex Gordon, former president of the National Union of Rail, Maritime, & Transport Workers, 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 Nicole Roussell, a producer of this show.

Trump Imposes New Sanctions on Russia As Skripal Spy Story Unravels Apr 06, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Joe Lauria, a journalist, political commentator, and author of the book "How I Lost, By Hillary Clinton," and Alexander Mercouris, the editor in chief of The Duran.
This morning, the Trump administration issued sanctions on seven Russian oligarchs, and 12 companies they own or control, and 17 senior Russian government officials. The administration says this is due to Russian meddling in the 2016 election. But where’s the evidence about this meddling?
On L&C’s regular Friday segment covering the upcoming midterm elections, the hosts take a look at special elections in Wisconsin and Arizona, a Republican primary in West Virginia, and the crucial senate race in Tennessee. Jacqueline Luqman and Abdus Luqman, the co-editors-in-chief of Luqman Nation, join the show.
In a second Friday in a row, Israeli forces are killing Palestinians for protesting for the right to return to their land. At least eight Palestinians have been killed already today, with another 700 wounded. One dead is a 16-year-old boy and at least 31 children have been wounded, as Israel refuses to change its open-fire rules and pummels the protesters with live ammunition and high velocity bullets. That brings the total killing over the last week to 30 Palestinians dead and more than 1,600 wounded. Brian 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."
Saheed Vassell was well known to residents and police alike in his Brooklyn, NY neighborhood as a harmless mentally ill man who danced on the sidewalks and played with all types of items left on the street. But two days ago, newcomers to the neighborhood called 911 to report that Vassell pointing something that looked like a gun at passers-by. It wasn’t a gun. It was a shower head. Police arrived and, within six seconds, Vassell was shot and killed. The community is incredibly angry and has been rising up in protest. Kerbie Joseph, an activist and organizer deeply involved in the issues of human rights and social justice, joins the show.
Thousands of Arizona teachers took to the streets yesterday threatening to go on strike if the state legislature doesn’t improve teacher pay and working conditions, reduce class sizes, and purchase new textbooks and equipment. Teachers in Arizona are among the worst paid in the country. Noah Karvelis, a public educator in Phoenix who frequently publishes and speaks about public education and democracy in the United States, joins Brian and John.
3,100 employees of Google have signed a letter protesting the company’s involvement in a Pentagon program that uses artificial intelligence to interpret video imagery that could be used to improve the targeting of drone strikes, or what Defense Secretary James Mattis calls “the lethality of the US military.” Web developer and technologist Chris Garaffa joins the show.
Yesterday’s conversation continues about Facebook, Cambridge Analytica, and personal data. Did Cambridge Analytica impact the 2016 election? Brian and John speak with Dr. Robert Epstein, the Senior Research Psychologist at the American Institute for Behavioral Research and Technology, and Bill Binney, a former NSA technical director who became a legendary national security whistleblower.

US Prisons Are The Crime: A Cesspool Of Violence and Corruption Apr 05, 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 Paul Wright, the founder and executive director of the Human Rights Defense Center and editor of Prison Legal News and Criminal Legal News.
Today, the weekly series “Criminal Injustice” continues, where the hosts discuss the most egregious conduct of our courts and prosecutors and how justice is denied to so many people in this country, including the murder by NYPD of Saheed Vassell, a man known by cops and the community to be mentally ill.
Yesterday was the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. After he was killed, there were uprisings in dozens of cities, though these powerful rebellions have been falsely portrayed as opportunistic and materialistic looting and rioting. What were the social movements at the time of the assassination of Dr. King and what kind of oppression caused the Black community to rise up after this assassination? Malik Rahim, a former Black Panther and a longtime housing and prison activist in Louisiana who gained widespread attention as an important community organizer in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, joins the show.
Yulia Skripal, who last month was poisoned in the UK with her father, a Russian double agent, is finally recovering. She said she feels stronger each day, but is still disoriented. The British government has said the Skripals were poisoned with the nerve agent Novichok. Absent any proof, however, British scientists and politicians have backed off that claim. Brian and John speak with Dr. Piers Robinson, the chairman of the politics, society, and political journalism department at the University of Sheffield and the author of “Routledge Handbook of Media, Conflict and Security.”
The Brazilian Supreme Court ruled last night that former president Luiz Ignacio Lula da Silva can be sent to prison while he appeals his conviction on corruption charges. Lula said that the 6-5 ruling was an underhanded ploy to keep him off the ballot. He is currently leading in presidential preference polls. Earlier yesterday, a Brazilian general threatened a military coup if Lula was not imprisoned. Ada Siqueira, a member of Brazilian Expats for Democracy and Social Justice, joins the show.
Major teachers strikes continue in Oklahoma and Kentucky, even though the Oklahoma state legislature has agreed to increase teachers salaries. The teachers are striking due to pensions, class sizes, classroom supplies, up-to-date textbooks, and respect. Liz Davis, President of the Washington Teachers Union who has taught in DC public schools for 41 years, joins Brian and John.
Facebook executives announced yesterday that at least 87 million users had their personal data harvested secretly by data firm Cambridge Analytica. The number is far higher than Facebook had previously admitted. The company responded by saying that it would adopt Europe’s stricter privacy policies for the US. But Congress wants CEO Mark Zuckerberg to testify. Dr. Robert Epstein, the Senior Research Psychologist at the American Institute for Behavioral Research and Technology, and Bill Binney, a former NSA technical director who became a legendary national security whistleblower, join the show.
A group of retired veteran intelligence, law enforcement, and military professionals yesterday delivered a letter to the Ecuadorian Ambassador to the United States asking that his country allow Wikileaks founder Julian Assange to have internet access and permission for him to receive visitors. Assange has been cut off from the outside world for two weeks now after he commented on Twitter about Catalonian elections. Brian speaks with John about delivering the letter to the embassy yesterday.

War Against Black America Continues 50 Years After Killing of Dr. King Apr 04, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Dr. Jared Ball, a professor of communication studies at Morgan State University, the author of “I MiX What I Like: A MiXtape Manifesto,” and you can find his writings at www.IMixWhatILike.org.
Today is the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. We’ll take a look at Dr. King’s legacy, his fight for peace, for the poor, for education, and for economic integration for all. And what if Dr. King had lived? What would America look like today?
Wednesday is the regular segment looking at nuclear issues, including weapons, energy, waste, and the future of nuclear technology in the United States. Today is focused on the potential shutdown of several reactors in Ohio and Pennsylvania. Kevin Kamps, the Radioactive Waste Watchdog at the organization Beyond Nuclear, joins the show.
President Trump said repeatedly this week that he wanted to pull US troops out of Syria, only to have the Pentagon push back and the White House release a vague statement declaring their intent to withdraw at an undefined time. Meanwhile, the leaders of Russia, Turkey, and Iran are meeting in Ankara to talk about the future of Syria. Brian and John speak with Ambassador Peter Ford, the former British Ambassador to Syria.
China today announced an additional $50 billion in tariffs on US goods, in response to President Trump’s decision to impose an additional $50 billion in tariffs on Chinese goods two days ago. The tit-for-tat initiated by Trump two weeks ago caused the stock market to drop 480 points at the open today. Steve Keen, the author of “Debunking Economics” and the world’s first crowdfunded economist whose work is at patreon.com/ProfSteveKeen, and Pete Dolack, an activist and writer with Trade Justice New York Metro, who focuses on human rights, social justice, and environmental and trade issues, and the author of “It’s Not Over, Learning from the Socialist Experiment,” join the show.
Brazilian General Luis Gonzaga Schroeder Lessa told reporters today that if the Federal Superior Tribunal, the Supreme Court, did not give the green light to the imprisonment of former President Ignacio Lula da Silva, the only alternative would be military intervention. This is the clearest and most public threat of a military coup in Brazil in decades. As of 3:00 this afternoon, the Brazilian Supreme Court is in session and deliberating on the matter. Arnold August, a lecturer, journalist, and author of the book “Cuba and the US in the Age of Trump,” joins Brian and John.
Key provisions of the Clean Water Act are now under the control of one person at the Environmental Protection Agency--Administrator Scott Pruitt, according to a leaked memo. In the new memo, Pruitt says that he, and he alone, will make all final decisions over the protection of streams, rivers, ponds, and wetlands. Scott Edwards, co-director of the Food & Water Justice project at Food & Water Watch and an attorney who has prosecuted U.S. energy companies for contamination of waterways and worked against factory farms in both North Carolina and the Chesapeake region, joins the show.
The White House said Tuesday that President Trump will order the National Guard to the border with Mexico to confront what he calls a growing threat from immigrants, drugs, and crime. Trump also will ask Congress for new legislation to block immigrants and asylum seekers. Brian and John speak with Isabel Garcia, co-founder of Coalición de Derechos Humanos.

King Family Lawyer: FBI and Hoover Killed MLK Jr. “Without a Doubt” Apr 03, 2018

Show notes

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by William Pepper, an attorney who has worked for years to prove the role of the government in the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He and Dr. King allied around the anti-war movement and he continued to represent the King family after Dr. King’s death.
Tomorrow, April 4, marks the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. Recent polls show that a majority of Americans do not believe that his vision of a just society has been realized. Many Americans—including the King family—also question the official story about who was responsible for the assassination.
Tuesday’s weekly series continues, looking at the top economic issues of the day, focusing on Trump’s criticism of Amazon. Financial policy analyst Daniel Sankey joins the show.
Thousands of teachers across Kentucky and Oklahoma have entered the second day of their strikes for better pay, benefits, and working conditions in a movement that has spread rapidly since West Virginia teachers successfully struck earlier this year. Brian and John speak with Derek Ford, an assistant professor of education studies at DePauw University and a community organizer whose latest book is “Education and the Production of Space.”
A report published over the weekend by sports news website Deadspin showed dozens of television news anchors from local stations around the country owned by the conservative Sinclair Broadcasting Group reciting the exact same script warning against what they called “biased and false news.” The episode reveals the power of a company long criticized for pushing its conservative agenda into homes across the country. Tim Karr, the senior director of strategy and communications at Free Press, joins the show.
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Ankara today to launch Turkey’s first nuclear power plant with Turkish President Recep Tayip Erdogan and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to discuss Syria, energy, and defense issues. The Russian state nuclear energy agency will build the $20 billion nuclear power facility. The Russian state news agency also noted that Russia will expedite the delivery of the Russian S-400 air defense system to Turkey. Mark Sleboda, an international affairs and security analyst, joins Brian and John.
Prosecutors in the Russia probe revealed last night that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein authorized them in August of last year to investigate allegations that President Trump’s campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, was colluding with Russian government officials to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. The revelation comes amid a lawsuit filed by Manafort, which challenges the Special Counsel’s investigative authority and the indictments already issued. Jim Kavanagh, the editor of ThePolemicist.net who recently published “The Warm War: Russiamania at the Boiling Point” at Counterpunch, 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,” joins the show.
Yesterday, China announced an additional $3 billion in tariffs on US goods, and the stock market took a huge hit. The big spike in stock market volatility indicates that a full-fledged trade war between the US and China may be getting under way. The US is now expected to announce further tariffs on $50 to $60 billion in Chinese imports, to which the Chinese have already promised a response in the “same proportion.” Brian and John continue their conversation from yesterday with Jude Woodward, the London mayor Ken Livingstone's advisor on culture and creative industries and the author of the new book “The US vs China: Asia's new Cold War?”

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