Takeaways From COP26; The FBI, Surveillance, and State Secrets; Democrats Vs. Progressives

Rishika Pardikar, freelance journalist writing from Bangalore, India covering wildlife, climate change & free speech, joins us to discuss the COP26 conference, which is wrapping up today, with reports of a walkout by a number of civil society delegates, and whether any significant proposals and commitments were reached in the conference. We talk about the intense debates over wording in joint texts involving phasing out coal versus phasing out “unabated coal power,” and what other disagreements ensued. We also discuss whether any progress was made toward a loss and damage fund, which would benefit developing countries, the debate about the financing mechanisms for this initiative and how it’s being set up, the role of the US at the conference, and the allegations of “greenwashing.”

Coleen Rowley, a retired FBI agent, joins us to talk about a case that the Supreme Court heard on Monday to consider whether the FBI could be sued for discrimination after it engaged in a mass surveillance campaign against Muslims in the US, where it planted informants in mosques and collected troves of personal information from congregants. We talk about how the government and the courts have continuously invoked the state secrets defense in cases such as these, how this has been abused, and whether this is used as a cover to shield them from charges of discrimination, excessive surveillance, and repression.

Ted Rall, award-winning political cartoonist, columnist, co-host of the DMZ America podcast, and author, his latest book is "The Stringer," joins hosts Michelle Witte and Bob Schlehuber to talk about Amy Klobuchar being forced to leave the stage at a fundraiser for Connie Bernardy on November 11 after being confronted by protesters calling for Line 3 in Minnesota to be stopped, the hand wringing over the appropriate “etiquette” for protestors, the passage of the slimmed-down bipartisan infrastructure bill, and how workers have to make do with crumbs within a bill awash with corporate handouts and as military budgets keep soaring, and Anthony Blinken’s upcoming trip to Kenya, Nigeria, and Senegal, where Ethiopia will be high up on the list of topics.