Dr. Colin Campbell, a Washington, DC, news correspondent joins us to talk about domestic politics: "Neera Tanden's hopes to head the Office of Management and Budget fade as bipartisan opposition to her nomination grows. Also, in hindsight, Joe Biden's numerous calls for unity and cooperation seem unrealistic as GOP leaders reject a number of his proposals and progressive Democrats blow up over the plan by Democrat Senator for West Virginia, Joe Manchin, to slash the minimum wage to $11 from $15."
Ray McGovern, former CIA analyst and co-founder of the Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity, joins us to discuss the Biden administration's policies towards Russia and China: "The Biden team has rejected a Chinese plea for improved relations. US State Department spokesman Ned Price responded by saying, 'You’ve heard us speak before about the way we will approach China, through the prism of competition from a position of strength.' Also, the Biden team is rumoured to be preparing a large suite of sanctions for the Navalny sentencing and a number of other dubious claims against Russia."
Dan Lazare, investigative journalist and author of The Velvet Coup, joins us to discuss Iran: "The Washington Post is reporting that a number of former Obama officials were negotiating with Iranian diplomats while President Trump was in office. They are rumored to have met the Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif a number of times, setting the scene for a new round of negotiations after Trumps' departure. Also, US Secretary of State Tony Blinken has said he plans to 'strengthen' the Iran nuclear deal but Iran has firmly pledged that it will only return to the agreement in its original form."
Laith Marouf, a broadcaster and journalist based in Beirut, Lebanon joins us to discuss Israel: "A recent Saturday Night Live skit has received international attention for pushing back against Israel's failure to provide equal access to Palestinians for the COVID vaccine. A new Mintpress article argues that the massive pressure campaign on those who call out Israeli apartheid should really be addressed towards the Israeli government's unfair policies. Also, the Biden administration is demonstrating that the Democrats are as dangerous as Republicans to peace in Palestine."
Scott Ritter, a former UN weapons inspector in Iraq joins us to discuss NATO: Ritter's latest article suggests that the US is increasing its engagement with NATO in an attempt to hide that the empire is in a steep decline. In a futile attempt to maintain global hegemony, the US is confronting a plethora of global and regional powers while facing massive pressure from homegrown disasters. Ritter also argues that NATO's plans for defence of the Baltic States are unrealistic and poorly conceived. And last, former US ambassador to Russia from 2012 to 2014, Michael McFaul, has been caught in a lie, claiming never to have met Alexei Navalny even as pictures of the two of them together surface.
Caleb Maupin, journalist and political analyst joins us to discuss electoral interference in Latin America: "The EU is imposing additional sanctions on Venezuela arguing that the 6 December elections were rigged for the party of president Nicolas Maduro. Also, many in Ecuador are greatly concerned that there is mischief afoot as the Moreno government works to undermine the integrity of the upcoming run-off between popular leftist Andres Arauz and western imperialist favorite Guillermo Lasso."
Ted Rall, a political cartoonist and syndicated columnist, joins us to discuss the expanding COVID scandal involving the administration of New York governor Andrew Cuomo: "Governor Cuomo is being compared with an authoritarian crime boss as he is alleged to have threatened politicians who are looking into his actions during the Spring COVID lockdown. In March, Cuomo signed an executive order requiring nursing homes to accept patients who were presumed to have the virus. This action seems to have been a catalyst for a quick and massive outbreak in those facilities statewide. He is also accused of making political decisions to benefit one of his top donors."
Elisabeth Myers, lawyer, former editor-in-chief of Inside Arabia and democracy lead for Democrats Abroad, joins us to discuss the Middle East: "The UN is pushing for an end to hostilities as a recent report shows that hundreds of fighters have been lost in the Ma'rib area of northern Yemen. Weeks of fighting have produced a reported standstill, with sources describing a “blood bath” and both sides reporting massive losses. Also, US moves to stop the Yemen War are proving fruitless as the UK continues to supply Saudi Arabia with the arms necessary to continue the slaughter. Some analysts are questioning whether coordinated actions by the US and UK to give a false appearance of trying to end the conflict while fueling it with British war material."
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