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Impeachment “Drama” Ends with a Yawn: Trump’s Approval Rating Goes Up

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou discuss the final impeachment vote.
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The Senate today voted to acquit President Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, putting an end to the impeachment drama. The vote was predictable and along party lines, with only Republican Senator Mitt Romney voting to acquit on one of the charges. Pundits are saying that the President comes out of the experience stronger politically, with Democrats the ones taking the hit.

The results of the Iowa caucuses are still not completely in. The real news here, though, is that the Democratic Party has fallen flat on its face when it comes to actually carrying out one of the most important elections in a presidential campaign. Lee Camp, a writer, comedian, activist, journalist, and host of the television show “Redacted Tonight,” on RT America, whose latest book is called “Bullet Points & Punch Lines,” and whose work is at leecamp.com, joins the show.

Joshua Schulte is a 31-year-old former CIA computer engineer who today will go on trial, accused of leaking what’s known as the Vault 7 documents, the most highly classified computer hacking secrets that the CIA possessed. When the documents went public in May 2017, Wikileaks said in a statement that the whistleblower “wanted to raise policy questions that need to be debated in public, including whether the CIA’s hacking abilities exceeded its mandated powers.” And his supporters allege that authorities even set him up on fake child pornography charges. Brian and John speak with Bill Binney, a former NSA technical director who became a legendary national security whistleblower.

President Trump last night delivered his State of the Union address, turning the traditionally dull event into a re-election spectacle pushing far-right politics from every angle. Ted Rall, an award-winning editorial cartoonist and columnist whose work is at www.rall.com, joins the show.

A new report published by the National Center for Homeless Education has found that there are more than 1.5 million public school students who were homeless at some point during the 2017-2018 school year. It’s the highest number in 12 years, and it points to the ongoing failure of local, state, and federal governments to address housing affordability. And just as importantly, homelessness has a ripple effect among children, causing developmental delays and poor health. Derek Ford, an assistant professor of education studies at DePauw University and a community organizer whose latest book is “Education and the Production of Space,” joins Brian and John.

Wednesday’s weekly series, In the News, is where the hosts look at the most important ongoing developments of the week and put them into perspective. Sputnik news analysts Nicole Roussell and Walter Smolarek join the show.

Wednesday’s regular segment, Beyond Nuclear, is about nuclear issues, including weapons, energy, waste, and the future of nuclear technology in the United States. Ian Zabarte, Principal Man of the Western Bands of Shoshone, and Secretary, Native Community Action Council; Kevin Kamps, the Radioactive Waste Watchdog at the organization Beyond Nuclear; and Sputnik news analyst and producer Nicole Roussell, join the show.

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