The Critical Hour

DNI Ratcliffe Claims Iran is Attempting to Interfere in US Election

Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe on Wednesday accused Iran of being behind emails intended to intimidate and deceive US voters.
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Alexander Mercouris, editor-in-chief of The Duran, joins us to discuss US officials accusing Iran of targeting American voters with phony but threatening mails. According to an article in CNSNews, the emails demanded that the recipients vote for US President Donald Trump, "or we will come after you." Our host confers with our esteemed guest to determine if the Russiagate narrative is being used to create an atmosphere of xenophobia, paranoia and confusion.

Alexander Mercouris joins us again and raises the question of Hunter Biden’s hard drive issues as he continues to stay in the news. The Washington Examiner reported on Wednesday, "Allegations that Hunter Biden stored photos of child pornography on his laptop computer have been forwarded to the FBI for investigation." Also, Fox News host Tucker Carlson argued Tuesday that America's most powerful people don't want the public talking about Hunter, the son of Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

Danny Haiphong, author and contributor to The Black Agenda Report, talks about statements from Luis Arce, the newly elected president of Bolivia, who "says he will restore ties with friend countries" such as Russia, China, Cuba, Venezuela, and Iran, according to a Tuesday Mehr News Agency article. The outlet quoted Arce as saying, "We are going to reestablish all relations. This government has acted very ideologically, depriving the Bolivian people of access to Cuban medicine, Russian medicine, and advances in China. For a purely ideological issue, it has exposed the population in a way unnecessary and harmful.”

Dan Lazare, investigative journalist and author of "America’s Undeclared War," joins us to discuss the fact that the US seems to be sanctioning both allies and adversaries alike. A Monday article in the Washington Examiner said, "Despite an overwhelming rejection two months ago by the UN Security Council of the American proposal to 'snapback' all sanctions on Iran, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo insists that ... the embargo is back on." In a statement, Pompeo "threatened retaliation for anyone who defies the US," the outlet noted.

Dr. Linwood Tauheed, associate professor of economics at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, takes on the subject of unemployment, as the "number of laid-off Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell last week to 787,000, a sign that job losses are still running at historically high levels," the Associated Press reported Thursday. That figure from the US Labor Department was down from 842,000 the week prior.

James Carey, editor and co-owner of Geopolitics Alert, discusses a recent story carried by his outlet and penned by Ben Norton at The Grayzone, which states, "Leaked documents show how UK government contractors developed an advanced infrastructure of propaganda to stimulate support in the West for Syria’s political and armed opposition." According to the story, "the leaked files reveal how Western intelligence cutouts played the media like a fiddle, carefully crafting English and Arabic-language media coverage of the war on Syria to churn out a constant stream of pro-opposition coverage."

Scott Ritter, former UN weapons inspector in Iraq, joins us to discuss US Defense Secretary Mark Esper's visit to the notorious Atlantic Council think tank, an organization that is "funded by a who’s who of weapons makers and despotic regimes," MintPress News reported Wednesday. Ritter discusses the think tank's funding and influence on US foreign policy. 

Laith Marouf, broadcaster and journalist based in Beirut, Lebanon, examines how the country of Libya has been far worse for the intervention of NATO in 2011, and he forecasts the consequences of a direct European Union intervention in the near future. He also updates us on the dynamics behind Saad Hariri returning as prime minister of Lebanon a year after stepping down.

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