Ted Rall, political cartoonist and syndicated columnist, joins us to talk about reports of a massive hacking operation involving US government websites. Nearly all mainstream Western media outlets are repeating the claims that the Russian government is involved in the hack, but the US government has not provided evidence. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) in a Thursday speech before the Senate called the hacking operation a "virtual invasion by the Russians into critical accounts of the federal government," and Biden has promised to impose "substantial costs" on those responsible, according to Fox News.
Dr. Linwood Tauheed, associate professor of economics at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, returns to The Critical Hour to discuss the state of the US economy as jobless claims remain elevated and Congress squabbles over a stimulus package. Recent negotiations point to a final deal that will not include money for state and local governments despite projections that over 5 million workers will face layoffs without such funds.
Dr. Jehan "Gigi" El-Bayoumi, professor of medicine and founding director of the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences' Rodman Institute; and Dr. Yolandra Hancock, board-certified pediatrician and obesity medicine specialist, return to discuss reports that a panel of independent experts recommended overwhelmingly that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) grant Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine an emergency use authorization. Our panel discusses the efficacy and safety issues that have so many people apprehensive about taking the vaccine. Are their fears valid, and will these fears complicate the use of vaccine therapy to overcome the deadly pandemic?
Daniel Lazare, investigative journalist and author of "The Velvet Coup"; and Ray McGovern, former CIA analyst and co-founder of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, come together to discuss several of the most important stories of the week. Chief among these stories is one that involves recordings that recently surfaced from James O'Keefe's Project Veritas, revealing that WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange contacted the State Department in 2011 and notified it that 250,000 diplomatic cables had been stolen from WikiLeaks and may be released soon. Assange advised the department to take mitigating actions to protect personnel because the necessary redactions and precautions may not have been taken by the thief.
Dr. Gerald Horne, professor of history at the University of Houston, author, historian and researcher; and Danny Haiphong, author and contributor to Black Agenda Report, team up to review another group of major stories from the week. They address growing concerns Biden is building a political team chock full of notorious Wall Street operatives. Reports show that Biden has grown his transition team with new additions, such as 18-year Goldman Sachs employee Eric Goldstein; Monica Maher, vice president for cyber threat intelligence at Goldman; and Josh Zoffer, who was formerly an engagement manager at McKinsey and now works at private equity firm Cove Hill Partners.
We'd love to get your feedback at radio@sputniknews.com
