Dr. Yolandra Hancock, board-certified pediatrician and obesity medicine specialist, joins us to discuss Britain rolling out the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to its citizens, becoming the first nation in the West to begin such a campaign. A report prepared by the White House coronavirus task force tells a different story about US vaccination efforts, warning that the shots that will be available for US citizens will not alter the pandemic's course in the country until well into next year. "The current vaccine implementation will not substantially reduce viral spread, hospitalizations, or fatalities until the 100 million Americans with comorbidities can be fully immunized, which will take until the late spring," notes the report, sent to US governors.
Kevin Gosztola, journalist, author and documentary filmmaker, joins us to talk about US President-elect Joe Biden's choice of retired Army Gen. Lloyd Austin for secretary for defense. Austin was the first African American general to "command an Army division in combat and the first to oversee an entire theater of operations," according to Politico. If confirmed, Austin would be the first African American to hold the position.
Elisabeth Myers, lawyer, former editor-in-chief of Inside Arabia and democracy lead for Democrats Abroad joins us to discuss the sentencing of Dr. Walid Fitaihi in Saudi Arabia. Fitaihi, who holds dual American and Saudi nationality, was sentenced on Tuesday to six years in prison on "charges that included obtaining US citizenship without official permission and posting messages on Twitter supporting the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings, according to the person close to the family, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case," reported the Washington Post.
Jack Rasmus, professor in economics and politics at St. Mary's College of California, returns to discuss the fate of renters in the US. "Nearly 12 million renters will owe an average of $5,850 in back rent and utilities by January," the Washington Post reported, citing Moody's Analytics. "Last month, 9 million renters said they were behind on rent last month, according to a Census Bureau survey."
Scott Ritter, former UN weapons inspector in Iraq, joins Dr. Wilmer Leon to discuss a report saying that the US and its allies are spreading misinformation about Iran possibly trying to retaliate for the killing of nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh. According to an article in AntiWar.com, "Despite Iran's clear desire to make it to January 20 without a military confrontation with the US, anonymous officials are hyping the threat of Iranian retaliation for Fakhrizadeh's death."
Daniel Lazare, investigative journalist and author of "The Velvet Coup," joins us to discuss the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's statements that Britain may leave the European Union without a trade deal. Reuters reported Tuesday that "with just three weeks left to break a deadlock in trade negotiations," Johnson said that there may be no deal forthcoming.
Latin American Coordinator of CodePink Teri Mattson joins us to discuss a Grayzone report outlining Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the US corporate media's continuing propaganda war against Venezuela. Pompeo and the media "declared Venezuela's legislative elections a 'sham' before results were even announced," the outlet noted.
Ted Rall, political cartoonist and syndicated columnist, returns to talk about a report from Geopolitics Alert that says large media outlets will not acknowledge Yemeni forces' success in battling Daesh and al-Qaeda. According to the report, media organizations have failed to report this information because Yemeni military sources have detailed "extensive cooperation between the US-backed Saudi coalition and terror groups."
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