Category: Podcast

Ep 50 Bush DOJ Official: Deep State is Real

Dan and Joanne discuss Jack Goldsmith’s essay, “The ‘deep state’ is real. But are its leaks against Trump justified?”

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Recorded on April 24, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. “The ‘deep state’ is real. But are its leaks against Trump justified?”, Jack Goldsmith, The Guardian
  2. “‘Can It Happen Here? Authoritarianism in America’”, Jack Goldsmith, Lawfare (article, book announcement)
  3. “Can It Happen Here?: Authoritarianism in America”, Cass Sunstein (book)

Ep 49 Leaving Syria feat. Lt. Col. Daniel Davis, USA, Ret.

Joanne talks with Lt. Col. Daniel L. Davis, USA, Ret.about his recent article, “President Trump is right: Withdrawing from Syria strengthens US security,” and about the current precarious situation where Trump has changed his mind and is signalling an imminent attack on Syria and Russia, using an alleged chemical weapons attack in Ghouta as justification.

Col. Davis served for 21 years, including four combat deployments. He retired from the Army in 2015 and is now a Foreign Policy/Defense Analyst and a senior fellow for Defense Priorities. His areas of expertise are American foreign policy, Middle East policy, Asia policy, grand strategy, international relations, international security, and counterinsurgency.

In 2012, he wrote a classified whistleblower report for Congress about the war in Afghanistan and released an unclassified version to the public. Col Davis regularly appears on news shows and is published in national and international publications.

Follow Col. Davis on Twitter at @DanielLDavis1

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Recorded on April 11, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. President Trump is right: Withdrawing from Syria strengthens US security, Lt. Col. Daniel L. Davis, USA, Ret., CNBC
  2. Truth, lies and Afghanistan, Armed Forces Journal (2012), Daniel L, Davis
  3. Fools Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan, Scott Horton

Ep 48 Dispatch From Damascus: Syrian War Big Picture & Power Players feat Elijah Magnier


 

Joanne talks with veteran war correspondent Elijah Magnier, from Damascus, about recent developments in Syria and his recent three-part article about the big picture and power players in the Syrian war. We also talk about the new crowd-funded book that he is writing on the history of Hezbollah.

Elijah is a journalist and a senior political risk analyst with over 32 years experience covering Europe and the Middle East.

Follow Elijah at @ejmalrai and find his work (in multiple languages) at ejmagnier.com

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Recorded on April 2, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. “Will America Accept its Defeat or Will it Challenge the Russian Bear and the Chinese Dragon (Part 1)”, Elijah Magnier
  2. “Will America Accept its Defeat or Will it Challenge the Russian Bear and the Chinese Dragon (Part 2)”, Elijah Magnier
  3. “Will America Accept its Defeat or Will it Challenge the Russian Bear and the Chinese Dragon (Part 3)”, Elijah Magnier

Ep 46 Trump’s War Cabinet feat Tom Luongo

Joanne talks with economist and writer Tom Luongo about Trump’s cabinet shuffle and the possibility that it is part of a Middle East grand bargain, as Alastair Crooke recently wrote about in the online journal, Strategic Culture.

Tom is former research chemist and staunch libertarian, Tom currently publishes his blog, Gold Goats ‘n Guns along with a monthly investment newsletter focused on geopolitics, commodities and cryptocurrencies. He is a regular contributor at Russia Insider and Seeking Alpha. His work is also featured regularly on sites like Zerohedge, Lewrockwell.com and Investing.com.

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Follow Tom Luongo @TFL1728. Find his work on YouTube and at Steemit.com/@goldgoatsnguns.

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Recorded on March 27, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. Is the North Korea Deal a Stalking Horse for Trump’s Mid-East Makeover? Alastair Crooke, Strategic Culture
  2. Neoconning the Trump White House, Kelley Beaucar Vlahos, American Conservative

Ep 45: Ghouta, Afrin and Eastern Syria feat. Ehsani

Syrian analyst Ehsani returns to the show to talk about the latest developments in the Syrian war, with a focus on escalations in Eastern Ghouta, Afrin and Eastern Syria. Ehsani also shares his observations from a recent trip to Aleppo. This is a two-part interview originally recorded on March 8th. Due to delays in publishing and rapid developments in those regions, a second part was added on March 27th with updates on the situation.

Ehsani is a Syrian American originally from Aleppo. You can find his social media analysis and discussion about Syria on Twitter at @ehsani22. He has also written for the Syria Comment blog under the pseudonym, “Ehsani”.  

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Recorded on March 8 and March 27, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. “US Mulls Action as Pro-Syria Forces Mass Nearby,” Jason Ditz, Antiwar.com
  2. “Erdoğan accuses US of planning to form ‘terror army’ in Syria,” The Guardian
  3. “Trapped in Eastern Ghouta,” Patrick Cockburn, Counterpunch
  4. “Which rebel groups are fighting in Syria’s eastern Ghouta?” Wesley Dockery, Deutsche Welle
  5. “Nearly 6,800 militants, families leave E. Ghouta, head to Idlib” – Russian military, RT
  6. “Turkish, FSA forces close in on Tel Rifaat town in northern Syria,” Hurriyet
  7. “In face of Ghouta defeat, Syrian rebels blame each other,” Reuters
  8. “Turkey Seizes Full Control Over Syria’s Afrin District,” Antiwar.com

Ep 44 Mueller Unites American War Party

Dan and Joanne talk about the Mueller’s indictment of Russian internet trolls for defrauding the United States and meddling in the 2016 election by placing ads on social media (most of which ran after the election itself). While the indictments themselves seem absurd, they did bring about a significant change. Both the establishment Left and Right are now more united against Russia and around the War Party.  

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Recorded on February 23, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. Mueller Indictments, (via NPR)
  2. “Hyping the Mueller Indictment,” Aaron Mate, The Nation
  3. “Russian Espionage, or Clickbait?” Aaron Mate, Max Blumenthal, The Real News
  4. “A So-Called Expert’s Uneasy Dive Into the Trump-Russia Frenzy,” Adrian Chen, NewYorker
  5. “Is Donald Trump a Traitor?” James Risen, The Intercept
  6. “Confessions of a Russiagate Skeptic,” Blake Hounshell, Politico Magazine
  7. “Ex-NSA Hackers Worry China And Russia Will Try to Arrest Them,” Lorenzo Franceschi Bicchierai, Motherboard

Quote Montage:  Rod Rosenstein, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Joy Reid, Bernie Sanders, Thomas Friedman, Lawrence O’Donnell, Max Boot, Jerry Nadler, Laura Ingraham, James Woolsey, Jimmy Dore, Adrian Chen, Max Blumenthal

 

Ep 43 MemoGate

Dan and Joanne talk about the lead up to and the release of the House Intelligence Committee chairman Devin Nunes’ memo on the abuse of the FISA court related to Russiagate.

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Recorded on February 2, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. “Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act Abuses at the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation”, House Intelligence Committee
  2. “Read the Nunes Memo, Annotated,” Charlie Savage, New York Times

Quote Montage:

Donnie Deutsch, John Heilman, Chuck Shumer, Cory Booker, Adam Schiff, Tucker Carlson, Devin Nunes, Joe DiGenova, Donald Trump

Ep 42 Tillerson’s Way Forward on Syria

Dan and Joanne talk about Rex Tillerson’s unveiling of the Trump administration’s new Syria policy via a Stanford University speech and interview with Condoleeza Rice. The policy is named “The Way Forward” but ironically it seems more like a regression to the Bush/Cheney neoconservative foreign policy for the Middle East.  

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Recorded on January 23, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. State Dept. marketing video: “The Way Forward on Syria”
  2. Press Briefing Jan. 18, State Dept.
  3. Tillerson “Remarks on the Way Forward for the United States in Syria”, Hoover Institution/Stanford University (transcripts and videos)
  4. Follow up Tillerson interview with Condoleeza Rice, Hoover Institution, Stanford University
  5. “Tillerson tells the truth about Syria,” Washington Post Editorial Board
  6. “A New Decision To Go To War In Syria,” Paul PIllar, LobeLog

Episode 41 The Cost of Empire

Dan and Joanne talk about the cost of the Empire, the War on Terror aka “Empire Preservation Wars,” current events and the new “Costs of War Project” done by Brown University.

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Recorded on January 17, 2018. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. Costs of War Project, Brown University Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs
  2. Seeing Our Wars for the First Time, TomDispatch
  3. KBOO interview with Costs of War Project co-director Neta C. Crawford
  4. Where in the World Is the U.S. Military? Everywhere, US News & World Report

Ep 40 Lebanon Crisis feat. Sonia Mansour Robaey

Dan and Joanne speak with Middle East commentator Sonia Mansour Robaey. Sonia is a neuroscientist, Philosopher, Ethicist, Educator and she is a Lebanese francophone living abroad.

Follow Sonia at @les_politiques and find her work at Les Politiques.

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Recorded on November 24, 2017. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

The Shiites of Lebanon under Ottoman Rule, 1516-1788, Stefan Winter

Ep 39 Russiagate & Censorship feat Joe Lauria

Dan and Joanne talk with author and journalist Joe Lauria about Russiagate and the growing censorship of dissent.

Joe Lauria is an American journalist based in the Middle East, author of “How I Lost By Hillary Clinton,” and he has been a UN correspondent for 25 years. He now writes for Consortium News and has previously written for the Boston Globe and Wall Street Journal and numerous other publications.

Follow Joe at @unjoe and find his writing at Consortium News.

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Recorded on November 24, 2017. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. Huffington Post Pulls Down Article That Runs Afoul of DNC/HuffPost Guidelines on Russia-gate, Ray McGovern

PDF copy of Joe Lauria’s article “On the Origins of Russia-gate,” published on Nov. 4 and removed less than 24 hours later

Ep. 38 Middle East Wars, Lebanon & Saudi Arabia

Dan and Joanne discuss the Saudi purge, unrest in Lebanon, and the possibility of wars escalating in the Middle East.

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Recorded on November 10, 2017. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. “Senior Saudi figures tortured and beaten in purge” Middle East Eye
  2. State Dept. statement “On the Situation in Lebanon”
  3. Israel Channel 10 published leaked diplomatic cable (Twitter)
  4. Interview with Saudi foreign minister Jubeir, CNBC
  5. Interview with Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, CNBC
  6. “Yemeni rebels enhance ballistic missile campaign” Jane’s Intelligence Review (PDF)

“US Air Force official: Missile targeting Saudis was Iranian” AP News

Ep. 37 AFRICOM

Dan and Joanne discuss the War on Terror shift to the African continent and the recent loss of US troops in Niger.  

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Recorded on October 24, 2017. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. The U.S. military is conducting secret missions all over Africa, Nick Turse
  2. Where does the U.S. have troops in Africa, and why?, CBS
  3. The U.S. Military Moves Deeper into Africa, Nick Turse
  4. U.S. will expand counterterrorism focus in Africa, Mattis tells senators, Washington Post
  5. 2013 Interview with Emira Woods, The Real News
  6. Interview with Léonce Ndikumana, The Real News
  7. Interview with Horace Campbell and Mark Fancher Part 1, DemocracyNow
  8. Interview with Horace Campbell and Mark Fancher Part 2, DemocracyNow

Ep 36 New Axis of Evil, Eurasia Great Game feat Pepe Escobar

Dan and Joanne talk with correspondent Pepe Escobar about the new axis of evil. We discuss the geopolitical and economic importance of the New Silk Road and newly developing alignments on trade and security in Eurasia.

Pepe is the correspondent-at-large for Asia Times, author of several ebooks, and commentator. He is a frequent contributor to websites, TV and radio shows ranging from the US to East Asia. Born in Brazil, he’s been a foreign correspondent since 1985, and has lived in London, Paris, Milan, Los Angeles, Washington, Bangkok and Hong Kong.

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Recorded on October 2, 2017. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

 

Reference Links:

  1. “Unmasked: Trump Doctrine vows carnage for new axis of evil,” Asia Times, Sept., 2017

“Shadow play: the New Great Game in Eurasia”, Asia Times, Jan., 2017

Ep. 35 Afghanistan War, a Fool’s Errand feat. Scott Horton

Dan and Joanne talk with Scott Horton about his new book, Fool’s Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan.

Scott is an author, managing editor at the Libertarian Institute, editor at antiwar.com, host of Antiwar Radio for Pacifica, and the Scott Horton Show podcast.

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Follow @scotthortonshow, find his work at libertarianinstitute.org/scotthortonshow, foolserrand.us

 

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Recorded on September 15, 2017. Music by Fluorescent Grey.

Reference Links:

  1. The Grand Chessboard: American Primacy and Its Geostrategic Imperatives (Brzezinski) http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0465027261/counterpunchmaga
  2. “Toward a Global Realignment” (Brzezinski)  https://www.the-american-interest.com/2016/04/17/toward-a-global-realignment/
  3. “The Broken Chessboard: Brzezinski Gives Up on Empire” https://www.counterpunch.org/2016/08/25/the-broken-chessboard-brzezinski-gives-up-on-empire/
  4. Scott Horton interviews archive: https://scotthorton.org/all-interviews-2/

No Good Men Among the Living (Anand Gopal) http://anandgopal.com/