Since the end of March, the Turkish military has quietly been building outposts inside Iraqi territory to attack the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, in the nearby Qandil Mountains. The move is, of course, a violation of Iraqi sovereignty. And it points to Turkey's obsession with fighting Kurds no matter where they are.
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 systematic abuse of prisoners across the system. 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, join the show.
In March, Loud & Clear reported about the case of Alejandra Pablos, a prominent local reproductive health activist. Alejandra is a permanent resident of the United States. But when she went to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Arizona for a routine check-in, she was arrested and held incommunicado. She has been released, but is now facing deportation. Brian and John speak with Alejandra Pablos, an organizer with the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, a member of the immigrant rights organization Mijente, and a delegate to the People's Congress of Resistance held last year in Washington, DC.
French President Emmanuel Macron said last night that he did not believe he changed President Trump's mind on the Iran nuclear deal and that he expects the US to pull out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action next month. He added that doing so would be bad for everyone--Iran, the European Union, and the United States. Catherine Shakdam, a political commentator and analyst focusing on the Middle East, and the author of "A Tale Of Grand Resistance: Yemen, The Wahhabi And The House Of Saud," joins the show.
Teachers in Arizona walked out today in nearly 100 school districts across the state. The teachers are striking to reestablish education funding to the level where it was years ago (it has dropped 14% just since 2008 in Arizona, measured per student) and to stop passing tax cuts on the backs of public education. Nathalie Hrizi, a teacher and librarian and a teachers union organizer, joins Brian and John.
The CIA is actively tweeting its support for deputy director Gina Haspel's elevation to lead the Agency. It routinely retweets articles supporting or endorsing Haspel, while ignoring those that don't. This would seem to be an ethical violation. Isn't any federal agency supposed to be neutral on who may or may not lead it? Ray McGovern, a CIA analyst under seven presidents who was also the personal morning briefer for President George H. W. Bush, joins the show.
President Trump told the hosts of Fox & Friends this morning that CIA Director Michael Pompeo was not supposed to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un when he traveled to North Korea over the Easter weekend. But Kim walked into the room and the two spoke for more than an hour. Pompeo later said that Kim was very smart, a revelation for US policymakers. Why does the US really know nothing about the North Korean leader?
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