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Nov 16, 2018
The death toll from the Camp Fire in California has risen to at least 63, with 631 people reported missing. As California continues to battle the deadliest fire in the state's history, we turn to the hidden heroes on the front lines the raging climate-fueled wildfires: prisoner firefighters. At least 1,500 of the 9,400 firefighters currently battling fires in California are incarcerated. They make just a dollar an hour battling on the front lines but are rarely eligible to get jobs as firefighters after their release. In September, the Democracy Now! team traveled to the Delta Conservation Camp about an hour north of San Francisco, a low-security prison where more than 100 men are imprisoned. We interviewed incarcerated firefighters who had just returned from a 24-hour shift fighting the Snell Fire in Napa County.
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Nov 16, 2018
A New York Times investigation has revealed that Facebook fought critics and a growing number of scandals following the 2016 election by launching a PR offensive backed by a dubious Republican opposition-research firm: Definers Public Affairs. We speak with Rashad Robinson, president of Color of Change, one of the organizations targeted by Definers Public Affairs. We also speak with Siva Vaidhyanathan, the author of "Antisocial Media: How Facebook Disconnects Us and Undermines Democracy." He is a professor of media studies and director of the Center for Media and Citizenship at the University of Virginia. Vaidhyanathan's new article for Slate is titled "Facebook Is a Normal Sleazy Company Now."
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Nov 16, 2018
"Delay, Deny and Deflect." That's the name of a new bombshell investigation by The New York Times revealing that Facebook executives, including CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, were aware of a Russian misinformation campaign on the social media network and took a series of extraordinary private actions to preserve the company's reputation, launching an aggressive lobbying campaign to combat critics and spread misinformation. The New York Times investigation reveals that Facebook hired the Republican opposition-research firm Definers Public Affairs to discredit critics of Facebook, linking them to the billionaire liberal donor George Soros. Facebook also allegedly lobbied the Anti-Defamation League to condemn criticism of the company as anti-Semitic. Since the publication of the investigation, Facebook has announced it will cut ties with Definers. We speak with Rashad Robinson, president of Color of Change, one of the organizations targeted by Definers Public Affairs. We also speak with Siva Vaidhyanathan, the author of "Antisocial Media: How Facebook Disconnects Us and Undermines Democracy." He is a professor of media studies and director of the Center for Media and Citizenship at the University of Virginia. Vaidhyanathan's new article for Slate is titled "Facebook Is a Normal Sleazy Company Now."
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Nov 16, 2018
The Justice Department has inadvertently revealed that it has prepared an indictment against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. In an unusual development, language about the charges against Assange was copied and pasted into an unrelated court filing that was recently unsealed. In the document, Assistant U.S. Attorney Kellen S. Dwyer wrote, "Due to the sophistication of the defendant and the publicity surrounding the case, no other procedure is likely to keep confidential the fact that Assange has been charged." The news broke on Thursday night just hours after The Wall Street Journal reported the Justice Department was planning to prosecute Assange. Assange has been living since 2012 in the Ecuadorean Embassy in London where he has sought refuge and political asylum. It's unclear what charges may be brought against Assange; the Justice Department has previously considered prosecuting him over his role in the release of hacked DNC emails during the 2016 presidential campaign, as well as over the release of the so-called Iraq and Afghanistan War Logs, shared by U.S. military whistleblower Chelsea Manning. The Assange case has been closely followed by advocates for press freedom. Kenneth Roth of Human Rights Watch tweeted, "Deeply troubling if the Trump administration, which has shown little regard for media freedom, would charge Assange for receiving from a government official and publishing classified information—exactly what journalists do all the time." We speak with human rights attorney Jennifer Robinson, who has been advising Julian Assange and WikiLeaks since 2010.
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Nov 16, 2018
Deadly NorCal Wildfire Kills At Least 63; 631 Reported Missing, Wildfire Smoke Creates Hazardous Air Quality in NorCal, DOJ Accidentally Reveals Indictments Against WikiLeaks' Assange, Florida Senate Race Heads to Manual Recount, Democrats Score House Wins in Maine, California, U.S. Sanctions 17 Saudis over Khashoggi Murder, White House Weighing Extradition of Exiled Turkish Cleric, Central American LGBTQ Migrants Face Additional Hurdles on Journey to U.S. Border, North Korea Deports U.S. Citizen as Kim Jong-un Oversees Weapon Test, Bangladesh Delays Plans to Repatriate Rohingya to Burma Amid Uproar, Renowned Bangladeshi Photographer Granted Bail After Political Arrest, DRC: Seven U.N. Peacekeepers Killed in Ebola-Stricken Region, Women Sue Dartmouth, Accuse 3 Male Professors of Sexual Misconduct, Racist Kentucky Gunman Charged with Hate Crimes, FDA Announces Restrictions on Vaping Products, Maryland Journalists Move to Unionize, Housing Rights Activists March in NYC To Demand Universal Rent Control
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Nov 15, 2018
A major new federal lawsuit claims that immigration agents are targeting undocumented organizers for their activism in Vermont. The suit accuses Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Department of Homeland Security and the Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles of carrying out a multiyear campaign of political retaliation against members of the group Migrant Justice. According to the lawsuit, Migrant Justice was infiltrated by an informant, and its members were repeatedly subjected to electronic surveillance. At least 20 active members of Migrant Justice have been arrested and detained by ICE. We speak with Will Lambek, an organizer with Migrant Justice, a Vermont-based group founded and led by immigrant farmworkers.
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Nov 15, 2018
Community members are demanding answers for the police killing of a black security guard in the Chicago suburbs, after 26 year-old Jemel Roberson was shot and killed by a white policeman Sunday. Roberson jumped into action early Sunday morning when a shooting broke out at a bar where he was working as a security guard. He was restraining a shooting suspect when several police officers arrived on the scene, and a white police officer from the Midlothian Police Department shot and killed Roberson. Witnesses said the police officer opened fire even though people at the bar were screaming that Roberson was a security guard. Roberson was armed and held a valid gun owner's license. We speak with Avontea Boose, the partner of Jemel Roberson and mother of his 9-month-old son Tristan. She is currently expecting their second child. We also speak with Lee Merritt, a civil rights attorney representing the children of Jemel Roberson.
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Nov 15, 2018
House Republicans have quashed debate on a resolution that aims to end U.S. military support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen, by sneaking a single line into an unrelated resolution about wolves. The House voted 201 to 187 on the bill Wednesday, approving a provision that blocks the Democrats from forcing a vote on the U.S. role in Yemen under the War Powers Act. For nearly four years the United States has played a key role supporting the Saudi-led invasion, which has devastated Yemen, creating the world's worst humanitarian crisis. The U.N. is warning 14 million Yemenis are on the brink of famine. One new study has estimated the war has killed at least 57,000 people since the beginning of 2016. We speak with Congressmember Ro Khanna, who introduced the resolution in the House.
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Nov 15, 2018
GOP Halts Debate on Ending U.S. Support for Saudi-Led War in Yemen, Eleven Saudis Indicted in Murder of Journalist Khashoggi, Deadly Wildfires in California Kill At Least 59, Another 300 Missing, Two Prisoner Firefighters Among Those Injured Battling Wildfires, Report: Climate Change Could Intensify Hurricane Rainfall by 30%, Florida Recounts in Question as Multiple Counties Report Issues, NJ Elects First Democratic Korean-American Congressmember, Georgia: Voting Activists Arrested for Holding Balloons, Trump Claims Democratic Voters Put on Disguise to Vote Twice, Trump Threatens Violence Against Anti-Fascist Protesters, Pentagon Chief Admits No Long-Term Plan for Border Troop Deployment, "Sanctuary Caravan" to Assist Migrants at U.S.-Mexico Border, Sentencing Reform Package Draws Broad Early Support, Deputy Nat'l Sec. Adviser Reassigned in WH After Clashing with FLOTUS, Michael Avenatti Arrested on Suspicion of Domestic Violence, NY: Queens Cab Driver Becomes 8th Driver-for-Hire to Die by Suicide in Past Year, NYT: Facebook Hired Conservative Firm to Protect Image by Discrediting Critics, Senate Republicans Block Bill to Protect Special Counsel Mueller, British Deal to Leave EU in Crisis as Brexit Secretary Quits, Israeli Defense Minister Resigns over Gaza Ceasefire, Calls for Elections, CIA Considered Administering "Truth Serum" to 9/11 Detainees
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Nov 14, 2018
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis is traveling to McAllen, Texas, today to visit some of the thousands of troops deployed at the U.S.-Mexico border by President Donald Trump. Nearly 6,000 active-duty troops are currently stationed in Texas, California and Arizona, following Trump's escalating attacks against the Central American caravan heading toward the border. Trump has warned that that number could swell to 15,000—more than the U.S. forces in Afghanistan and almost triple the number of troops in Iraq. According to some reports, the border deployments could cost $220 million, despite the fact the Pentagon does not see the caravan as a risk. Mattis's visit comes just days after the Trump administration announced new immigration rules to deny asylum to anyone who enters the country outside of a port of entry, a move the American Civil Liberties Union has called "illegal." We speak with Fernando Garcia, the founding director of the Border Network for Human Rights, an advocacy organization based in El Paso. We also speak with Liz Castillo, immigration reporter and managing editor with Neta, a community news outlet in the Rio Grande Valley.
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Nov 14, 2018
Amazon has selected a pair of cities to host its new, expanded headquarters: Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia, and Long Island City in Queens, New York. Amazon's decision came after a 14-month search that saw cities around the U.S. promise tax breaks, taxpayer-funded infrastructure and business-friendly ordinances in an effort to win what Amazon says will be $5 billion in new investment and thousands of jobs. Democratic Virginia Governor Ralph Northam called the Amazon headquarter "a big win for Virginia," and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has similarly applauded Amazon's decision. But many local politicians have openly criticized authorities in New York and Virginia for backing the deals, which will create a total of 50,000 jobs. We host a roundtable discussion about Amazon and corporate welfare. In New York, we speak with Ron Kim, member of the New York State Assembly. He recently co-wrote an opinion piece for The New York Times headlined "New York Should Say No to Amazon." In Washington, D.C., we speak with Greg LeRoy, executive director of Good Jobs First, a watchdog group on economic development incentives. And in Portland, Maine, we speak with Stacy Mitchell, co-director of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. She is the author of "Big-Box Swindle: The True Cost of Mega-Retailers and the Fight for America's Independent Businesses."
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Nov 14, 2018
After a months-long PR campaign, Amazon has officially announced it will split its so-called second headquarters between New York and Arlington, Virginia, outside Washington, D.C., after being offered more than $3 billion in tax breaks and other incentives. The news prompted protests at the site of Amazon's future office complex in Long Island City, New York, to condemn the city and state governments for showering Amazon with massive tax breaks and other giveaways to entice the company to expand into the city. As part of the deal, New York taxpayers will even build a helipad for Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, who is the richest man in the world. Many local politicians have openly criticized authorities in New York and Virginia for backing the deals, which will create a total of 50,000 jobs. We speak with New York Assemblymember Ron Kim, who is introducing legislation to block the deal and redirect taxpayer money away from Amazon subsidies and toward student debt relief. He recently co-wrote an opinion piece for The New York Times headlined "New York Should Say No to Amazon."
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Nov 14, 2018
California Wildfires Kill 50 Across State as Blazes Rage On, Police Arrest 51 Activists Demanding Climate Action from Pelosi, Landmark Climate Lawsuit by Young Activists in Legal Limbo, Pentagon Chief Mattis to Visit 6,000 Troops at U.S.-Mexico Border, Congressional Progressives Appear to Downplay Plans to Abolish ICE, Congressional Race Results Still Uncertain One Week After Midterms, Georgia: Black Woman State Senator Arrested at Peaceful Voter Protest, Fates of Senior Trump Advisers in Doubt After Clashes with FLOTUS, Trump Lawyers Prepare Answers in Mueller Probe, CNN Sues Trump over Acosta Ban, Chicago: Police Shoot and Kill a Black On-Duty Security Guard, FBI: Hate Crimes Up for Third Consecutive Year, Viral Photo of Wisconsin Students Giving Nazi Salute Draws Fire, Audio Reveals Iowa Rep. Steve King Calling Immigrants "Dirt", U.N. Calls for Halt to Forced Repatriation of Rohingya Refugees, Gaza: Ceasefire Halts Palestinian Rockets and Israeli Airstrikes, German Chancellor Backs Plan to Create a European Union Army
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Nov 13, 2018
Controversy is growing over President Trump's selection of Matt Whitaker to serve as acting attorney general following the ousting of Jeff Sessions. The state of Maryland is heading to court today to challenge the legality of Whitaker's appointment. The state contends that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein should have been named acting attorney general instead of Whitaker, who was not confirmed by the Senate for his previous post—chief of staff to Sessions. Meanwhile, pressure is growing on Whitaker to recuse himself from overseeing special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. We speak with Ian Millhiser, senior fellow at the Center for American Progress Action Fund and the editor of ThinkProgress Justice.
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Nov 13, 2018
The death toll in Gaza has risen to at least six after Israel launched its heaviest airstrikes on the region since 2014, targeting scores of buildings, including the TV station Al-Aqsa TV. Israeli airstrikes also reportedly hit dozens of homes. Militants in Gaza responded by launching hundreds of homemade rockets into Israel. One person in Israel, a Palestinian man in Ashkelon, was reportedly killed. Some 16 others were injured, including at least two critically. The escalation began after a team of Israeli commandos drove into the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis Sunday in a clandestine raid that killed seven Hamas members, including a commander. Israel said one of its soldiers had been killed in an exchange of fire before Israel called in tank fire and airstrikes while the commandos escaped back to Israel. We speak with Muhammad Shehada, a writer and activist from the Gaza Strip and a student of development studies at Lund University, Sweden. He writes for Haaretz, The Forward and other publications.
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Nov 13, 2018
On Thursday, a federal judge in Montana temporarily halted the construction of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, which would carry oil from Canada's tar sands region in Alberta to refineries as far away as the Gulf of Mexico. The court's decision will require the Trump administration to review more thoroughly the potential negative impacts of the pipeline on the surrounding environment and climate change. President Obama halted the construction of the pipeline, which is being built by TransCanada, in 2015 following mass public protests, but Trump reversed the order shortly after he came into office. Environmental and indigenous groups hailed the decision Thursday. Sierra Club attorney Doug Hayes said in a statement, "The Trump administration tried to force this dirty pipeline project on the American people, but they can't ignore the threats it would pose to our clean water, our climate, and our communities." We speak with May Boeve, executive director of 350 Action, the political arm of the climate organization 350.org.
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Nov 13, 2018
California's Camp Fire has become the state's deadliest fire on record, decimating the town of Paradise, killing 42 people and destroying 7,200 structures. The fires in California are so large they can be clearly seen from space. Smoke and ash have left millions of Californians exposed to air quality rated at "unhealthy" or "very unhealthy" levels, with residents of Los Angeles, Sacramento and the Bay Area warned against spending time outdoors. We speak with May Boeve, executive director of 350 Action, who says, "We are really daunted by the reality of the climate impacts that are facing us."
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Nov 13, 2018
At least 44 people are dead and more than 200 remain missing as two massive wildfires, fueled by easterly winds and a historic drought, continue to rage in California. In Northern California's Butte County, the Camp Fire has become the state's deadliest fire in history, after the blaze swept through the town of Paradise, killing 42 people and destroying nearly 6,500 homes. In Southern California, a quarter-million residents of Los Angeles and Ventura counties were ordered to evacuate the Woolsey Fire—including the entire city of Malibu and parts of the San Fernando Valley. Governor Jerry Brown said Sunday that the fires were driven by climate change and that California needs to learn to adapt. We speak with climate expert Glen MacDonald, John Muir memorial chair of geography, director of the White Mountain Research Center and a UCLA distinguished professor. He was forced to evacuate his Thousand Oaks home due to the Woolsey Fire.
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Nov 13, 2018
California's Record-Breaking Wildfires Kill At Least 44 Across State, Arizona's U.S. Senate Seat Flips Blue as Sinema Declares Victory, Trump Falsely Claims Voter Fraud in FL, Says Races Should Go to Republicans, Mississippi Senator Under Fire for "Public Hanging" Comment, Daily Beast: ICE Imprisoning Record High of 44,000 People, Audio of Khashoggi's Murder May Implicate Saudi Crown Prince, Amnesty Int'l Withdraws Top Honor from Burmese Leader Aung San Suu Kyi, Gaza: Israeli Airstrikes Kill 6 Palestinians as Fighting Intensifies, DRC: Ebola Outbreak Worst in Country's History, Kills Almost 200, NYT Investigation Accuses North Korea of Expanding Missile Program, Vatican Orders U.S. Bishops to Halt Vote on Stopping Child Sex Abuse, Roger Stone Associate Jerome Corsi Expects to Be Indicted by Mueller, In New Memoir, Michelle Obama Slams Trump's Sexism and Bigotry, Amazon Selects Queens, NY and D.C. Suburb for Headquarters Expansion, Trump Blames Democrats as Stock Market Falls 600 Points, Legendary Comic Book Creator Stan Lee Dies at 95
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Nov 12, 2018
On November 7, 2018, a former marine opened fire at a country music bar in Thousand Oaks, California, killing 12 people, mostly college students. Police have identified the gunman as 28-year-old Ian David Long, a Marine veteran who had deployed to Afghanistan and had a history of mental health issues, including possible PTSD. The shooting has reignited a national discussion over mental healthcare for veterans returning from war. Earlier this year, Ian Long was evaluated by mental health professionals after police responded to a disturbance at his home, where he lived with his mother—and was cleared by the specialists. For more, we talk with Suzanne Gordon, whose new book probes the history of the Veterans Health Administration providing healthcare to U.S. veterans, generating medical innovations and healing the wounds of war.
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Nov 12, 2018
On the federal observance of Veterans Day, we take a closer look at the issue of veterans' healthcare. On Sunday, Vice President Mike Pence wrote an article for Fox News touting Trump's record on veterans' health and the passage of a policy known as "Veterans Choice," which is seen by veterans' advocates as an attempt to drain the Veterans Health Administration of needed resources and eventually force privatization of the system. We're joined by award-winning journalist and author Suzanne Gordon. Her new book is "Wounds of War: How the VA Delivers Health, Healing, and Hope to the Nation's Veterans." She recently wrote an article for The New York Times titled "By Protecting Veterans' Health, You May Protect Your Own."
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Nov 12, 2018
Between 1914 and 1918, about 10 million civilians perished in World War I, and almost 10 million soldiers were killed. Another 21 million were wounded. This week marks the 100th anniversary of the celebrated armistice credited with ending the war. But the agreement, which signified German surrender, was a shock to the people of Germany, says journalist and author Adam Hochschild—and it guaranteed the continuation of a brutal wartime naval blockade that saw over 400,000 Germans die of malnutrition. A right-wing backlash in Germany followed after the armistice, leading into World War II and the Holocaust. Hochschild says WWI, like the Iraq War, holds important lessons for today's leaders to avert another war. "Wars almost always cause more problems than they solve," he says. "Anybody at any time should take that lesson from this first of the terrible wars of the 20th century."
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Nov 12, 2018
This weekend marked 100 years since the armistice that ended World War I. In a speech commemorating the anniversary, French President Emmanuel Macron cautioned against the dangers of nationalism, in comments widely viewed as a rebuke of U.S. President Trump, who has recently identified himself as a "nationalist." Just before the summit, Macron also called for the formation of a European army that would operate without the United States. Journalist and author Adam Hochschild argues that the 100th anniversary of the war's end is an opportunity to honor the dissenting voices against the war, including anarchist political activist and writer Emma Goldman, socialist and trade unionist Eugene V. Debs and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Jane Addams.
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Nov 12, 2018
The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month—that's when World War I ended in 1918, 100 years ago this weekend. On Sunday, world leaders gathered in Paris to pay tribute to the dead, marking the anniversary of the armistice of what had been described as the "war to end all wars." Following the formal ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe, Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel attended a peace conference with dozens of heads of state, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Trump was reportedly the only one among 72 leaders to skip the meeting. Trump also faced widespread criticism for his decision to cancel a visit to a U.S. military cemetery in France on Saturday because it was raining. To find out more about the significance of the war and its commemoration, we speak with Adam Hochschild, lecturer at the Graduate School of Journalism at the University of California at Berkeley. His most recent book, published last month, is titled "Lessons from a Dark Time and Other Essays." His article for The New Yorker earlier this month was headlined "A Hundred Years After the Armistice."
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Nov 12, 2018
Over 30 Killed and 200 Missing in California Wildfires, Trump Blames "Forest Management" for Fires and Threatens to Cut Aid, Thousand Oaks Evacuated for Wildfires Days After Deadly Mass Shooting, Florida Recounts Underway in Contested Senate and Governor Races, Senate Race in AZ Still Uncalled as CA District Flips to Democrats, MS Senate Candidates Head to Runoff as GOP Incumbent Under Fire for Racist Joke, FBI Probing "Scam Company" Where Acting AG Matt Whitaker Once Served, Trump Continues Attacks on Women Reporters of Color, Sessions Limits Power of Consent Decrees Hours Before Firing, Trump Skips Paris Peace Forum During WWI Commemoration, Yemen: U.S.-Backed Assault Threatens Supplies to Millions Facing Famine, NYT: Saudi Intelligence Officials Discussed Iran Assassinations, Somalia: Al-Shabab Attack Kills 39 as U.S. Ramps Up Airstrikes, Gaza: Israeli Raid Kills Seven Palestinians, Gaza: Israel Allows Qatar to Pay Palestinians' Back Salaries, Aetna Ordered to Pay Family of Cancer Patient Denied Treatment
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Nov 09, 2018
We turn now to the crisis in Yemen, where the U.S.-backed, Saudi-led coalition has drastically escalated its assault on the Yemeni port city of Hodeidah. The Guardian reports there have been at least 200 airstrikes in the past week, killing at least 150 people. One Saudi airstrike destroyed a home in Hodeidah, killing a father and his five children. The increased fighting comes as calls grow for a ceasefire to the 3-year war, which has devastated Yemen. On Thursday, a group of Yemeni and international organizations called for "immediate cessation of hostilities" in Yemen, warning that 14 million people were now "on the brink of famine." UNICEF has warned that the Saudi assault and blockade on Hodeidah is increasing shortages of food, drinking water and medicine. The group says a Yemeni child now dies from a preventable disease every 10 minutes. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis have both called for a ceasefire in Yemen. Meanwhile, The Washington Post reports that the Trump administration is considering designating the Houthis a "terrorist organization." We speak to newly elected Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Kathy Kelly, co-coordinator of Voices for Creative Nonviolence, a campaign to end U.S. military and economic warfare. She took part in Thursday's protest.
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Nov 09, 2018
On Tuesday evening, Palestinian American Rashida Tlaib in Michigan and Somali American Ilhan Omar in Minnesota became the first two Muslim women ever elected to Congress. Rashida Tlaib is a Democratic Socialist who supports the Palestinian right of return and a one-state solution. She also supports Medicare for all, a $15 minimum wage and abolishing ICE. The child of immigrants, Tlaib has spoken out against the Trump administration's travel bans.
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Nov 09, 2018
Days after the midterm elections, Florida's contests for U.S. Senate and governor appear to be heading for recounts. Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum said he is prepared for a possible recount, as his margin with Republican opponent Ron DeSantis narrowed to less than half a percentage point Thursday. A recount is triggered in Florida if the winning candidate's margin is less than half a percentage point. Incumbent Democratic Senator Bill Nelson and Republican Governor Rick Scott will likely also head to a recount in the Senate race, with Scott leading by less than a quarter percentage point as of Thursday. Republican Florida Gov. Rick Scott is also suing the Democratic election supervisors of Broward and Palm Beach counties, accusing them of trying to steal the election. Andrea Cristina Mercado, executive director of The New Florida Majority, joins us to discuss the group's grassroots organizing to expand the electorate in Florida. She also details reports of widespread voting problems on Tuesday, including confusion over ballot design and problems with accessing polling sites and navigating Florida's voter ID law.
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Nov 09, 2018
The city of Thousands Oaks, California, is mourning after a former marine opened fire at a country music bar Wednesday night, killing 12 people, mostly students. It was the deadliest mass shooting in the United States since the Parkland, Florida, school shooting in February. Police have identified the gunman as 28-year-old Ian David Long, a Marine veteran who had deployed to Afghanistan and had a history of mental health issues, including possible PTSD. The dead include 27-year-old Telemachus Orfanos, who survived the deadly Las Vegas massacre at a country music festival last year, only to be gunned down Wednesday night. We speak with Sarah Dachos, a Navy veteran and volunteer with the D.C. chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America and a founding member of the Everytown Veterans Advisory Council.
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Nov 09, 2018
SoCal Mass Shooter Was Veteran with History of Mental Health Issues, Wildfires Rage In Northern and Southern California, Judge Halts Construction of Keystone XL Pipeline, Congressional Responses to Sessions Firing Seek to Protect Mueller, Protesters Take to the Streets to Call for Protection of Mueller Probe, Trump to End Asylum for Migrants Entering U.S. Outside of Ports of Entry, Court Rules Trump Cannot End DACA, Key Midterm Races Still Uncalled, FL Races Likely Headed to Recounts, WH Press Secretary Shares Doctored Video of CNN Reporter Acosta, North Korea-U.S. Talks Postponed, Gaza: Israeli Forces Shoot and Kill Palestinian Man, U.S. Imposes New Sanctions over Russian Annexation of Crimea, Google to Overhaul Policy for Responding to Sexual Misconduct, SCOTUS Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Hospitalized with Fractured Ribs
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Nov 08, 2018
Two Native American women have made history in the midterms, becoming the nation's first Native congresswomen. Democrat Sharice Davids won the 3rd Congressional District in Kansas, unseating Republican Kevin Yoder. In New Mexico, Democrat Deb Haaland won in the 1st Congressional District, defeating Republican Janice Arnold-Jones. They will join more than 100 women in the U.S. House of Representatives—another historic first. We speak to Deb Haaland about her plans for Congress, the crisis of missing and murdered Native American women around the country, and whether she'll attempt to impeach Donald Trump.
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Nov 08, 2018
Democrats have seized control of the House of Representatives, flipping more than two dozen seats in a historic midterm election that gives Democrats subpoena power for the first time since President Donald Trump was elected two years ago. A day after the election, Trump fired Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Trump's firing of Sessions has led to many comparisons between Trump and former President Richard Nixon. On Wednesday, CNN's Jake Tapper called Sessions's ouster another chapter in "a slow-motion, multi-monthed Saturday Night Massacre." He was referencing the infamous Saturday Night Massacre in 1973, when then-Attorney General Elliot Richardson and his deputy resigned after President Richard Nixon ordered Richardson to fire the special prosecutor investigating the Watergate scandal. We speak with Elizabeth Holtzman, former U.S. congressmember from New York who served on the House Judiciary Committee that voted to impeach Richard Nixon. Her new book, "The Case for Impeaching Trump," is out on Monday. And we speak with David Cole, the national legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union and professor of law and public policy at Georgetown University Law Center.
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Nov 08, 2018
President Donald Trump has fired Attorney General Jeff Sessions, replacing him with a Trump loyalist who has called special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation a "witch hunt." Matthew Whitaker, formerly Jeff Sessions's chief of staff, will now take charge of the Russia inquiry, prompting questions about the future of the Russia investigation and whether Trump will target Robert Mueller next. Some experts are raising questions about the legality of putting Whitaker in charge rather than Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who had been overseeing the Russia probe. The ACLU wrote in a statement, "Jeff Sessions was the worst attorney general in modern American history. Period. But the dismissal of the nation's top law enforcement official shouldn't be based on political motives." We speak with David Cole, national legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union and professor of law and public policy at Georgetown University Law Center. His most recent book is "Engines of Liberty: The Power of Citizen Activists to Make Constitutional Law."
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Nov 08, 2018
California: Mass Shooter Kills At Least 12 at Student-Filled Bar, Trump Fires AG Sessions, Puts New Loyalist in Charge of Mueller Probe, WH Bans CNN Reporter Acosta as Trump Spars with Reporters, At Least 15 Midterm Races Still Uncalled, GOP Congressmembers Facing Indictments Re-elected, Voters Weighed In on Abortion Rights Measures in WV, AL, OR, Philippines: Lawyer Fighting Duterte's Drug War Shot Dead, Poland: Warsaw Mayor Bans Annual Far-Right March, Cameroon: Almost 80 Kidnapped Students Released
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Nov 07, 2018
At least 1.4 million people have regained the right to vote in Florida, following the passage of Amendment 4, a statewide initiative to re-enfranchise people with felony convictions who have completed their sentences, excluding people convicted of murder or sex offenses. The amendment passed overwhelmingly, with 64.5 percent of the vote. It needed 60 percent to pass. The win will permanently alter politics in a state that elected Republican Ron DeSantis as Florida governor by just over 55,000 votes, according to the latest numbers. DeSantis defeated Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum, who was vying to be the first African-American governor in Florida's history. We speak with Desmond Meade, who spearheaded the fight for Amendment 4. Desmond Meade is the president of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition. He's also chair of Floridians for a Fair Democracy. He is one of some 1.4 million people who has just regained his right to vote.
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Nov 07, 2018
Twenty-nine-year-old Democratic Socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has become the youngest woman ever elected to Congress. Ocasio-Cortez rose to national prominence in June, when she unseated 10-term incumbent Representative Joe Crowley, the fourth-ranking Democrat in the House. She was elected to represent New York's 14th Congressional District by a landslide last night, defeating Republican candidate Anthony Pappas with 78 percent of the vote. Ocasio-Cortez celebrated her victory in Queens last night. Democracy Now! was there with The Intercept for our special election broadcast. We spoke with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez about her plans for Congress.
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Nov 07, 2018
As Democrats retake the House of Representatives for the first time in eight years, we speak with Katrina vanden Heuvel, editor and publisher of The Nation, about the future of the Democratic Party. The Democrats picked up more than the 23 seats they needed to flip the House, but the Republican Party expanded its grip on the Senate in Tuesday's midterm elections. Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi is poised to reclaim her gavel as speaker of the House, barring a leadership challenge.
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Nov 07, 2018
Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp is holding a slim lead over Democrat Stacey Abrams in the race to be governor of Georgia. Abrams is vying to be the first black woman governor in U.S. history. Despite Kemp's slight lead, Abrams is refusing to concede because thousands of absentee ballots have not yet been counted. Kemp is currently at 50.5 percent. If he dips below 50 percent, the race will go to a runoff. The Georgia race was marred by widespread allegations of voter suppression carried out by Brian Kemp. We speak with Carol Anderson, chair of the African American Studies Department at Emory University and author, most recently, of "One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression Is Destroying Our Democracy."
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Nov 07, 2018
In a historic midterm election, Democrats have seized control of the House of Representatives, flipping more than two dozen seats. This gives Democrats subpoena power for the first time since President Donald Trump was elected two years ago. While the Democrats will control the House, the Republicans picked up two more seats in the Senate. The midterms were a groundbreaking election for women. At least 100 women will serve in the U.S. House for the first time in U.S. history, including the first two Native American women and the first two Muslim women. We speak with Katrina vanden Heuvel, editor and publisher of The Nation, and Rashad Robinson, executive director of Color of Change.
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Nov 07, 2018
Democrats Take the House of Representatives as GOP Gains in Senate, Democrat Stacey Abrams Refuses to Concede Georgia Governor's Race, Republican Ron DeSantis Defeats Andrew Gillum in Florida Senate Race, Maryland GOP Gov. Larry Hogan Defeats Former NAACP Head Ben Jealous, Democrat Beto O'Rourke Falls Short of Upsetting Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Incumbent Senate Democrats Lose in North Dakota, Indiana and Missouri, Democrats Win Governor's Races in Maine and Midwestern States, Wave of Women Voters Brings Historic Firsts in Midterm Elections, Florida to Restore Voting Rights to 1.4 Million with Felony Convictions, Colorado Anti-Fracking Proposition Defeated, Washington Voters Reject Fee on Carbon Dioxide Pollution, Texas: Border Patrol Cancels Drill Amid Voter Intimidation Accusations, Yemen: Dire Warnings of Famine Amid Saudi-Led Assault on Port City, U.N. Warns of Ecosystem Collapse Without Swift Action on Biodiversity, Accused Pipe Bomber Cesar Sayoc Denied Bail at First Court Appearance, Death Row Prisoner Tells High Court Lethal Injection Would Be "Cruel and Unusual", Wisconsin: Foxconn Recruits Chinese Workers for Taxpayer-Subsidized Factory
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Nov 06, 2018
Florida voters are preparing to vote on Amendment 4, a measure that would restore voting rights to 1.4 million people with nonviolent felonies who have fully completed their sentences. One in five African Americans in Florida and 10 percent of the state's adult population are ineligible to vote because of a criminal record. Across the United States, more than 6.1 million people with felony convictions are not eligible to vote. Florida is one of just four states that bar them from voting for life. In October, Amy Goodman traveled to Melbourne, Florida, and spoke with Desmond Meade, the president of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, who is a formerly homeless returning citizen who is leading the fight to re-enfranchise people with felony convictions in Florida.
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Nov 06, 2018
Colorado voters have managed to get a statewide anti-fracking measure on the November ballot. Proposition 112 would require companies to place new wells at least 2,500 feet from homes, schools, waterways and other areas designated as "vulnerable." This distance is two-and-a-half to five times the current state regulation. The initiative is unprecedented in its scope because it potentially bars new wells on 95 percent of land in top-producing counties. Industry executives are watching with concern, fearful that Proposition 112 could encourage similar measures across the nation. In response, the oil and gas industry has spent millions to defeat Proposition 112, while at the same time putting millions of dollars behind a different measure on the ballot that would amend the constitution to allow property owners to sue their local governments for regulating industries like fracking. We are joined by David Sirota, investigative reporter for Capital & Main.
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Nov 06, 2018
A historic number of women of color are running for public office in today's election. At least 255 women are on the ballot as congressional candidates, including a record number of women of color. In Georgia, Stacey Abrams hopes to become the state's first black governor—and the country's first black woman governor. Meanwhile in New Mexico, Deb Haaland could become the nation's first Native American woman to serve in Congress. Amid a rash of racist ads by Abrams's opponent Brian Kemp, there is something "deeply transformational about the electoral organizing and the campaign that Stacey Abrams represents," says Aimee Allison, president of Democracy in Color and founder of She the People.
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Nov 06, 2018
We look at a federal trial underway in New York City that could overturn the Trump administration's plans to put a citizenship question on the 2020 census. Voting rights activists fear the question will deter immigrants from participating in the census, leading to a vast undercount in states with large immigrant communities. This could impact everything from the redrawing of congressional maps to the allocation of federal funding. The citizenship question was announced in March by U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, who touted it as a way to enforce the Voting Rights Act and protect minorities against voter discrimination. But on Sunday evening, the plaintiffs released a deposition that seems to contradict the Trump administration's stated purpose for adding the citizenship question to the census. We speak with reporter Ari Berman, who has been following the case and says, "The fix was in from the very beginning. This was done by Kris Kobach, Steve Bannon, Jeff Sessions—the most anti-immigrant figures in the Republican Party." Berman's newest story is headlined "Trial over Census Citizenship Question Kicks Off Amid Revelation of Trump Administration Deception."
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Nov 06, 2018
Millions of voters head to the polls today for a midterm election that's widely seen as a referendum on Donald Trump's presidency, with both houses of Congress and 36 governor's races in the balance. In fact, millions have already voted: A record 36 million Americans voted early this year, with participation high among young people and people of color. That's up from 27 million four years ago, leading many to predict a record turnout for a midterm election. "If you look at the numbers, early voting is shattering records among young people, among people of color," says Ari Berman, senior writer at Mother Jones. "We're seeing a lot more people that typically sit out midterm elections going and showing up because they believe these races are so important."
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Nov 06, 2018
Huge Turnout for Early Voting in Midterms as Technical Issues Surface, Trump Attacks Democrats and Migrants on Eve of Midterm Elections, Fallout from Racist Trump Campaign Ad Continues as Networks Pull Ad, Georgia Dem. Gov. Candidate Abrams Responds to Kemp Hacking Probe, Racist Robocalls Attack Georgia Dem. Gov. Candidate Abrams, Students Across Country Walk Out of Class to Cast Ballots in Midterms, NYC: Trial Begins over 2020 Census Citizenship Question, Coloradans to Vote on Divisive Oil and Gas Ballot Measures, Washington State Voters to Vote on Fee for Large Carbon Polluters, NYC: Local Leaders Decry Racist Graffiti at African Burial Ground, Cameroon: At Least 79, Mostly Children, Kidnapped by Rebels, Ukraine: Anti-Corruption Activist Dies 3 Months After Acid Attack, Brazil: Ex-President Lula Challenges Conviction, Citing Judge's Bias
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Nov 05, 2018
Just weeks after the United Nations warned that humanity has only a dozen years to mitigate global warming and limit the scope of global catastrophe, we speak with world-renowned political dissident, linguist and author Noam Chomsky. He says, "We have to make decisions now which will literally determine whether organized human life can survive in any decent form."
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Nov 05, 2018
Just weeks after the United Nations warned that humanity has only a dozen years to mitigate global warming and limit the scope of global catastrophe, we speak with world-renowned political dissident, linguist and author Noam Chomsky. He says, "We have to make decisions now which will literally determine whether organized human life can survive in any decent form."
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Nov 05, 2018
President Donald Trump recently announced plans to pull the United States out of a landmark nuclear arms pact with Russia in a move that could spark a new arms race. President Ronald Reagan and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty in 1987. The INF banned all nuclear and non-nuclear missiles with short and medium ranges. The treaty helped to eliminate thousands of land-based missiles. We speak to world-renowned political dissident, linguist and author Noam Chomsky about the significance of the INF treaty and the impact of Trump's plan to pull out.
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Nov 05, 2018
In the run-up to the U.S. midterm elections, we speak with world-renowned linguist, dissident and author Noam Chomsky. "What are the domestic policies of the Trump administration?" Chomsky says. "Very straightforward: lavish gifts on the rich, powerful corporate sector and try to undermine and destroy anything that might be of benefit to the general population."
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Nov 05, 2018
Two women were shot and killed at a yoga studio in Tallahassee, Florida, on Friday when a far-right extremist and self-proclaimed misogynist entered a yoga class and opened fire. Forty-year-old gunman Scott Beierle murdered 61-year-old Nancy Van Vessem, a medical doctor and a faculty member at Florida State University, and Florida State University student 21-year-old Maura Binkley in the deadly shooting. He critically injured four other women, including one woman who was shot nine times. Beierle also pistol-whipped a man in the rampage before turning the gun on himself. Police say Beierle was found dead at the yoga studio from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Beierle had a track record of attacking women, black people and immigrants via online videos and songs and had previously been investigated for harassing women and arrested at least twice, once on allegations of battery against women. We speak with Soraya Chemaly in Washington, D.C. She is a longtime writer and feminist activist and author of the new book "Rage Becomes Her: The Power of Women's Anger." She is also director of the Women's Media Center Speech Project.
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Nov 05, 2018
U.S. Reinstates Harsh Sanctions on Iran After Nuclear Deal Withdrawal, Florida: Self-Proclaimed Misogynist Kills 2, Injures 5 in Tallahassee, Georgia Secretary of State and GOP Candidate Launches Probe into Dem. Party, Obama Campaigns for Vulnerable Senate Democrats Ahead of Midterms, Kansas Republican Kris Kobach Took Donations from White Nationalists, Trump Praises "Beautiful" Razor Wire as Soldiers Deploy to Border, NBC Airs Racist Anti-Immigrant Trump Campaign Commercial, Nigerian Military Tweets Trump Video to Justify Shooting Protesters, U.N.: A Yemeni Child Dies Every 10 Min. from War-Caused Disease, Hunger, Khashoggi's Sons Call on Saudis to Repatriate Slain Father's Remains, Pakistan: Protests Erupt After Woman Accused of Blasphemy Set Free, Egypt: ISIS Kills 7 Coptic Christians, Gov. Forces Kill 19 Fighters in Response, Afghan Commando Kills Utah Mayor, New Caledonia Rejects Independence from France, SCOTUS Rules Youth Climate Trial Against U.S. Gov. Can Proceed, Judge Denies DOJ Bid to Halt Emoluments Lawsuit Against Trump, NYC: Suspect Arrested in Brooklyn Synagogue Anti-Semitic Vandalism
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Nov 02, 2018
A political event hosted by Ilana Glazer of Comedy Central's "Broad City" at the Union Temple Synagogue in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, was canceled Thursday night after anti-Semitic and racist messages were found scrawled on walls throughout the building. Among the messages were "Jew Better Be Ready" "Insert Oven Here" "End is now," "Hitler," "Free Smoke for [N-word] Jews" and "FPEE PR." The graffiti comes amid a surge in anti-Semitic hate crimes nationwide, including Saturday's massacre of 11 Jewish worshipers at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. Amy Goodman was scheduled to speak at the event about coverage of the midterm elections. We speak with Ilana Glazer in New York City. She is the co-creator and star of the hit Comedy Central show "Broad City."
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Nov 02, 2018
A political event hosted by Ilana Glazer of Comedy Central's "Broad City" at the Union Temple Synagogue in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, was canceled Thursday night after anti-Semitic and racist messages were found scrawled on walls throughout the building. Among the messages were "Jew Better Be Ready" "Insert Oven Here" "End is now," "Hitler," "Free Smoke for [N-word] Jews" and "FPEE PR." The graffiti comes amid a surge in anti-Semitic hate crimes nationwide, including Saturday's massacre of 11 Jewish worshipers at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. Amy Goodman was scheduled to speak at the event about coverage of the midterm elections. We speak with Ilana Glazer in New York City. She is the co-creator and star of the hit Comedy Central show "Broad City."
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Nov 02, 2018
The nation is continuing to grieve the 11 Jewish worshipers who were gunned down at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh Saturday in what is being described as the worst anti-Semitic attack in U.S. history. Funerals were held Thursday for three more victims of the shooting: husband and wife Sylvan and Bernice Simon, and Richard Gottfried. Robert Bowers, who is accused of the mass shooting, pleaded not guilty Thursday. Bowers is charged with 44 counts, including murder and hate crimes. We speak with Noam Chomsky, the world-renowned professor, linguist and dissident, about the synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh and other recent white supremacist and right-wing attacks.
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Nov 02, 2018
As President Trump escalated his attacks and threats against the Central American migrant caravans making their way to the U.S.-Mexico border, the Trump administration unveiled new sanctions against Venezuela and Cuba on Thursday. National security adviser John Bolton declared Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua to be part of a "troika of tyranny" and a "triangle of terror." We speak with world-renowned professor, linguist and dissident Noam Chomsky about U.S. foreign policy in Central America. He joins us in Tucson, Arizona, where he now teaches at the University of Arizona. Chomsky is also institute professor emeritus at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he has taught for 50 years.
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Nov 02, 2018
Trump Ramps Up Migrant Attacks, Says Soldiers Can Shoot Migrants, Funerals for Victims of Pittsburgh Shooting Continue; Gunman Pleads Not Guilty, Trump to End Program Fighting Hate Groups, Trump to Nominate State Dept. Spokesperson Nauert as U.N. Ambassador, Report: Oceans Warming Much Faster Than Previously Thought, WaPo: Saudi Crown Prince Told Kushner & Bolton Khashoggi Was a Terrorist, U.S. Imposes Sanctions on Venezuela and Cuba, U.N. Adopts Resolution to End U.S. Embargo on Cuba for 27th Time, Brazil: Bolsonaro Confirms Appointment of Anti-Corruption Judge, Nigeria: Boko Haram Attacks Kill At Least 15, Google Workers Walk Out to Protest Sexual Misconduct, Oprah Winfrey Campaigns with Gubernatorial Candidate Stacey Abrams, Rep. King Erupts After Constituent Questions His Anti-Semitic Ties, NYC: Event Canceled After Anti-Semitic Tags Found on Walls of Synagogue
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Nov 01, 2018
The 2018 U.S. midterm elections mark a critical point in the era of President Donald Trump, as the potential Democratic takeover of the House of Representatives has unleashed a torrent of white supremacist vitriol in the run-up to November 6. In the past week alone, a militant Trump supporter was accused of mailing three pipe bombs to CNN and 12 bombs to people Trump frequently criticizes; two African-Americans were murdered by a white supremacist outside Louisville, Kentucky; and 11 Jewish worshipers were massacred in a Pittsburgh synagogue by a white supremacist who railed on social media against Jews who help refugees. Both the gunman and Trump have called immigrants "invaders." Meanwhile, Trump has sharply escalated his attacks on immigrants, threatening to send as many as 15,000 U.S. troops to the U.S.-Mexico border and to rewrite the Constitution to revoke birthright citizenship. We speak with investigative journalist Allan Nairn, who says that fascism is on the rise in the U.S. Nairn has been a fierce longtime critic of the Democratic Party and its support for war and neoliberal policies, but he is calling for the public to mobilize to elect Democrats in the midterm elections.
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Nov 01, 2018
In the wake of a series of hate-fueled gun attacks in the United States, we speak with Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter Jaime was killed by a gunman at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history this February. As the nation reels from the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre and the Kentucky grocery store killing of two African Americans, Guttenberg is calling on voters to elect politicians who stand for gun control in next week's midterm elections.
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Nov 01, 2018
Pittsburgh Funerals Continue as Trump Focuses on Protests and "Fake News", Racist Kentucky Shooter Indicted for Murder, Trump Threatens to Send 15,000 Troops to U.S.-Mexico Border, Trump Attacks Paul Ryan for Birthright Citizenship Rebuke, Trump Tweets Racist Campaign Ad Ahead of Midterms, Multiple Caravans Head to U.S. Border as Humanitarian Concerns Grow, Trump Tells Reporter "When I Can, I Tell the Truth", Native American Tribe Sues over North Dakota Voter ID Law, Judges Order Ohio to Let Purged Voters Cast Midterm Ballots, Turkey Says Khashoggi Strangled in Consulate as International Fallout Continues, U.S. Calls for Yemen Ceasefire as U.K. Supports "De-escalation", U.N. Votes to Extend Peacekeeping Force in Western Sahara, Brazil: Governor-elect Proposes Escalating Military Role in Rio, N. Korea Prepares for Nuclear Inspectors as Formal Halt to Hostile Activities Starts, Colombia: Feminist Activist Kidnapped and Killed, Google Workers Walk Out to Protest Sexual Harassment, Seattle: Activists Protest Amazon's Relationship with ICE, Newark City Officials Say Tap Water Not Safe, Questions Remain in Death of Drowned Saudi Sisters Found in NYC, Watergate Documents Released After Lawyers Argue Relevance for Mueller Probe
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Oct 31, 2018
Brazil is continuing to reel from the election of far-right leader and President-elect Jair Bolsonaro, the former Army captain who won 55 percent of the vote Sunday, easily defeating Fernando Haddad of the leftist Workers' Party. As Bolsonaro prepares to take office in January, many fear Brazil's young democracy is now at risk. Bolsonaro, who has often praised Brazil's former military dictatorship that ended just 33 years ago, has promised to appoint many military officers to his Cabinet. We speak with Bruno Torturra, founder and editor of Studio Fluxo, an independent media outlet based in São Paulo, and James Green, professor of Brazilian history and culture at Brown University, about how the election will affect social movements, the environment and democracy across Latin America.
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Oct 31, 2018
President Trump claimed that he can rewrite the Constitution and end birthright citizenship in the United States in an interview released Tuesday, sparking widespread outrage. Trump told the news outlet Axios that he planned to sign an executive order ending citizenship for children of noncitizens born on U.S. soil. Civil rights groups, legal experts and politicians on both sides of the aisle are blasting Trump for his comments, including the false claim that the U.S. is the only country with birthright laws. In fact, at least 30 other countries have similar laws, including Canada, Mexico and Cuba. We speak with Martha Jones, author of "Birthright Citizens: A History of Race and Rights in Antebellum America," about the history of the 14th Amendment. Martha Jones is the Society of Black Alumni presidential professor and professor of history at Johns Hopkins University.
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Oct 31, 2018
As President Trump claims that he can end birthright citizenship in the United States, we speak with professor Martha Jones about the history of the 14th Amendment, which states, "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside." Martha Jones is the author of "Birthright Citizens: A History of Race and Rights in Antebellum America." She is the Society of Black Alumni presidential professor and professor of history at Johns Hopkins University.
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Oct 31, 2018
Pittsburgh: 1000s March as Trump Visits Site of Anti-Semitic Mass Shooting, Trump Birthright Citizenship Plan Blasted as "Unconstitutional", GOP Campaigning Head Calls Out Rep. King's White Supremacist Links, Kansas Men Convicted of Anti-Muslim Terror Plot Influenced by Trump, Pastors Protest Sessions's Religious Freedom Talk, Brazil: Bolsonaro Attacks Newspaper over Reports of Misinformation Campaign, WWF: Humans Have Destroyed 60 Percent of Wildlife in Last 50 Years, Yemen: Saudi-Led Coalition Expands Assault on Port City of Hodeidah, Sri Lankans Protest Ouster of Prime Minister, Okinawa Governor Calls U.S. Base "Disrespectful to Our Democracy", Special Counsel Mueller Asks FBI to Look Into Scheme to Discredit Him, Justice Department to Investigate Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, Notorious Boston Mobster Whitey Bulger Beaten to Death in Prison
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Oct 30, 2018
Shortly before gunman Robert Bowers opened fire at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, killing 11 worshipers, he attacked a Jewish organization with a history of aiding millions of refugees: HIAS. Bowers wrote on a far-right social media site, "HIAS likes to bring invaders in that kill our people. I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I'm going in." We speak with Melanie Nezer, the senior vice president for public affairs for HIAS, formerly known as the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society. HIAS has provided assistance to refugees for more than 130 years.
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Oct 30, 2018
Domestic terror swept the country last week, when a white gunman stormed a peaceful synagogue in Pittsburgh, killing 11 peaceful worshipers in what has been described as the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in U.S. history. The attack came a day after an avid Trump supporter in Florida was arrested and charged with mailing bombs to more than a dozen of the president's prominent critics, and three days after a white gunman fatally shot two African Americans at a grocery store shortly after trying and failing to enter a black church. We speak with Lois Beckett, a senior reporter for The Guardian covering gun policy, criminal justice and the far right in the United States. "The shooter in Pittsburgh was not just anti-Semitic," Beckett says. "He had been radicalized by white supremacist ideology."
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Oct 30, 2018
Just days before a domestic terrorist entered a Pittsburgh synagogue and shot 11 worshipers dead, a white man gunned down two elderly African-American customers at a Kentucky grocery store Wednesday in what many are calling a hate crime. Fifty-one-year-old Gregory Bush opened fire and killed Maurice Stallard and Vickie Lee Jones at a Kroger supermarket in Jeffersontown, Kentucky, shortly after trying to enter a predominantly black church. Bush reportedly then told an armed bystander that "whites don't kill whites." As the community mourns, we speak with Kentucky Rep. Attica Scott and Reverend Vincent James, chief of community building for the city of Louisville and pastor of Elim Baptist Church.
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Oct 30, 2018
Trump to End Birthright Citizenship in Violation of Constitution, Trump Continues Attacks on Caravan, Sends 5,200 Troops to Border, Advocacy Groups Raise Alarm over Sick Kids in Central American Caravan, 220 Immigrant Children in U.S. Still Separated from Families, Pittsburgh Leaders Oppose Trump Visit, WH Denies Trump Rhetoric Responsible for Recent Extremist Violence, Fifteenth "Suspicious Package" Found in Atlanta in Mail Bomb Campaign, Fiancée of Murdered Saudi Journalist Demands Justice, Gaza: Israeli Forces Kill 1, Injure 25 at Separation Barrier Protest, Tunisia: Suicide Bomber Injures Nine, Air Pollution Blamed for 500,000 Premature Deaths in Europe Each Year, Italy: At Least 6 Dead as Floods Leave Most of Venice Underwater, Jimmy Carter Calls on Georgia GOP Candidate to Resign as Secretary of State, Trump Calls African-American Candidate for Florida Governor a "Thief", Lawsuit Charges Trump Family Misled Investors Through Sham Businesses, David Wise, Journalist Who Exposed "Invisible Government," Dead at 88, Ntozake Shange, Pioneering Black Feminist and Author, Dies at 70
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Oct 29, 2018
The massacre of 11 worshipers at a Pittsburgh synagogue Saturday capped a hate-filled week in America, following the shooting of two African Americans at a Kentucky grocery store by a white man and the arrest of avid Trump supporter Cesar Sayoc for allegedly mailing 13 bombs to CNN and political opponents of President Trump. We speak with Glenn Greenwald, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and one of the founding editors of The Intercept.
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Oct 29, 2018
Far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro has been elected Brazil's next president, marking the most radical political shift in the country since military rule ended more than 30 years ago. Bolsonaro, a former Army officer, openly supports torture and dictatorships, has a history of making racist, misogynistic and homophobic comments, and has threatened to destroy, imprison or banish his political opponents. He defeated Fernando Haddad of the leftist Workers' Party with 55 percent of the vote. His ascendance to power is leading many to fear the future of democracy in Brazil is in danger. We speak with Glenn Greenwald, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and one of the founding editors of The Intercept, in Rio de Janeiro. He says that Bolsonaro is "by far the most extremist leader now elected anywhere in the democratic world."
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Oct 29, 2018
Cecil Rosenthal, David Rosenthal, Melvin Wax, Irving Younger, Daniel Stein, Joyce Fienberg, Richard Gottfried, Rose Mallinger, Jerry Rabinowitz, Bernice Simon and Sylvan Simon. Those are the names of the 11 worshipers who were gunned down Saturday in Pittsburgh, when a 46-year-old white man named Robert Bowers entered the Tree of Life synagogue and opened fire, yelling "All Jews must die." It is believed to be the worst anti-Semitic attack in U.S. history. We speak with Ari Lev Fornari, a rabbi at Kol Tzedek Synagogue in West Philadelphia who has worked with HIAS, a Jewish agency that aids refugees that the gunman targeted online. We also speak with Dr. David Glosser, a retired neuropsychologist who has volunteered with HIAS in Philadelphia. Glosser is the uncle of Stephen Miller, a key political adviser to President Trump who has pushed for a crackdown on immigrants. Glosser speaks directly to his Stephen Miller, saying, "It is absolutely unacceptable to utilize hatred, bigotry to advance your political ends. This is a shallow, shabby expression of ambition. It's poisonous to the country, destructive to society, and a complete repudiation of your own background and your own past."
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Oct 29, 2018
A gunman opened fire at the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill, Pittsburgh, on Saturday, killing 11 worshipers. The massacre is being described as the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in U.S. history. The victims have been identified as Cecil Rosenthal, David Rosenthal, Melvin Wax, Irving Younger, Daniel Stein, Joyce Fienberg, Richard Gottfried, Rose Mallinger, Jerry Rabinowitz, Bernice Simon and Sylvan Simon. They ranged in age from 54 to 97. Six others were injured, including four policemen. They were gathered on Saturday morning for Shabbat services when a 46-year-old white man named Robert Bowers entered the synagogue armed with an AR-15 and three handguns. He yelled "All Jews must die" as he opened fire on worshipers. We speak with Dr. David Glosser, a retired neuropsychologist who has volunteered with HIAS in Philadelphia helping refugees. He is also the uncle of Stephen Miller, a key political adviser to President Trump who has pushed for a crackdown on immigrants.
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Oct 29, 2018
Anti-Semitic Shooter Kills 11 Jewish Worshipers in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Gunman Held Anti-Semitic, Racist and Xenophobic Views, Jewish Leaders to Trump: "Massacre Is Not the First Act of Terror You Incited", Trump, Conservatives Continue Attacks on George Soros, Kentucky: Shooter Kills Two Black People at Supermarket After Targeting Black Church, Trump-Supporting Suspect of Mail Bomb Campaign to Appear in Court, Brazil Elects Far-Right Candidate Jair Bolsonaro President, Indonesia: 189 Feared Dead After Lion Air Passenger Jet Crashes, Saudis Reject Turkish Demand to Extradite Khashoggi Murder Suspects, Israel Bombs Gaza After Israeli Soldiers Kill 5 at Friday Protests, India Raids Amnesty International Office in Latest Crackdown on NGOs, German Chancellor Angela Merkel Won't Run for Re-election After Losses, Tennessee: Court Rules Memphis Police Illegally Spied on Activists
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Oct 26, 2018
As Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urges Saudi Arabia to disclose who ordered the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, we end today's show looking at how U.S. universities are facing new scrutiny over their close ties to Saudi Arabia in the wake of Khashoggi's murder. In Connecticut, activists are calling on the University of New Haven to cut ties to King Fahd Security College in Saudi Arabia. According to news reports, the Saudi forensic doctor who allegedly dismembered Khashoggi's body served on the editorial board of a publication tied to King Fahd Security College. Dr. Salah Muhammed al-Tubaigy's name was removed from the publication's website this week. A forensic scientist from the University of New Haven served on the editorial board with him. We speak to Stanley Heller, executive director of the Middle East Crisis Committee, and Harvard Medical School fellow Yarden Katz.
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Oct 26, 2018
Fifteen miles from Tyndall Air Force Base is Mexico Beach, Florida, which was practically wiped off the map after Hurricane Michael. On the beach just one house still stands—it is known as the Sand Palace. Over the weekend, Democracy Now traveled to the Florida panhandle. We spoke to Russell King, an attorney from Chattanooga, Tennessee, who owns the Sand Palace.
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Oct 26, 2018
On Thursday, Vice President Mike Pence traveled to the Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida, just over a week after the base was largely destroyed during Hurricane Michael. The base is home of a fleet of 55 F-22 stealth fighters. Before Hurricane Michael leveled the base, at least 33 of these jets were flown to safety. But at least 17 of the planes, costing $339 million each, were likely left behind and possibly destroyed. There are several air bases located right on the coast in storm-prone areas in states in the South where scientists anticipate that climate change induced hurricanes will grow more intense and more frequent. But on Thursday, Mike Pence vowed to rebuild the entire base. We speak to Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Dave Philipps of the _New York Times_.
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Oct 26, 2018
We begin today's show with the historic announcement by the Trump administration to approve a plan to drill for oil off the Alaska coast. On Wednesday, the Department of the Interior approved Hilcorp Energy's proposal to drill in the Beaufort Sea, six miles off the Alaskan coast. It would be the first oil and gas production facility in federal waters in Alaska. Hilcorp plans to build a nine-acre artificial island about 20 miles east of Prudhoe Bay, not far from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Dubbed the Liberty Project, the operation plans to extract about 70,000 barrels of oil per day on the state's North Slope. This latest move continues the Trump administration's targeting of the Alaskan Arctic. We're joined by Subhankar Banerjee, activist, photographer and professor of art and ecology at the University of New Mexico. He is the author of "Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: Seasons of Life and Land" and editor of "Arctic Voices: Resistance at the Tipping Point." His work is included in the exhibition "Nature's Nation: American Art and Environment," at the Princeton University Art Museum.
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Oct 26, 2018
Investigators Narrow in on Florida in Ongoing Mail Bomb Case, Turkish President Urges Saudis to Reveal Who Ordered Khashoggi Murder, U.N. Calls for International Investigation into Khashoggi Murder, Trump Sends Troops, Threatens to Close U.S.-Mexico Border over Migrant Caravan, Caitlyn Jenner Denounces Trump's Attacks on Trans Rights in Op-ed, Trump Administration Approves Plan to Drill off Alaska Coast, Officers Involved in Drowning Death of 2 SC Women Detainees Fired, Sen. Grassley Asks DOJ to Investigate Avenatti and Julie Swetnick over Kavanaugh Statements, Reporter Body-Slammed by Rep. Gianforte Tells Congressman to Stop Lying about Attack, NATO Launches Massive War Games as Poland Backs U.S. Withdrawal from 1987 Nuclear Treaty, Trump Imposes New Sanctions on Hezbollah, Ethiopia Appoints First Female President, Thousands Protest Planned Move of Franco's Remains to Madrid Cathedral, UK Fines Facebook for Cambridge Analytica Scandal, Connecticut Community Asks ICE to Stay Deportation of Ecuadorian Man, MOVE Member Mike Africa Sr. Released from Prison After 40 Years
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Oct 25, 2018
On November 6, California will be voting on a ballot initiative to expand rent control. Proposition 10 would repeal the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, a sweeping state law that permanently exempts some properties from rent control. The ballot measure has come under attack by landlords and private equity firms, including the Blackstone Group. We speak to Elena Popp, executive director of the Eviction Defense Network, one of the three organizations that put Proposition 10 on the ballot.
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Oct 25, 2018
Orange County, California, has become an unexpected battleground region that could determine who controls Congress after the midterms. The Southern California county between Los Angeles and San Diego has remained staunchly Republican for 80 years. Orange County produced President Richard Nixon—who was born here in Yorba Linda and retired to San Clemente—and Orange County last voted for a Democratic president in 1936 with FDR. But dissatisfaction with Donald Trump and changing demographics in the region have challenged Republican dominance in and around Orange County. Now Democrats are hoping that the midterm elections will turn Orange County blue. We speak to Gustavo Arellano, a columnist at the Los Angeles Times. He is the former editor of OC Weekly. He resigned from the publication last year in protest against budget cuts.
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Oct 25, 2018
The leader of California neo-Nazi gang the "Rise Above Movement" was arrested Tuesday in Los Angeles. Robert Rundo faces charges of plotting riots and inciting violence for his role in a range of attacks in 2017, including the deadly Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville last August. Three other members of the group were charged alongside Rundo. Robert Boman and Tyler Laube were apprehended at their homes in Torrance and Redondo Beach. A fourth suspect, Aaron Eason, is still at large. The men are accused of participating in violent attacks, as well as using the internet to incite violence ahead of various events. The group publicly documented their attacks as a recruitment tool. We speak to former FBI agent Mike German and Chapman University professor Pete Simi, who has studied political violence for decades.
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Oct 25, 2018
Federal authorities have launched an investigation after pipe bombs were sent to a number of prominent Democrats, all critics of President Trump. The targets identified include President Obama, Hillary Clinton, George Soros, former Attorney General Eric Holder, Congressmember Maxine Waters and former CIA Director John Brennan. The packages listed Democratic Congressmember Debbie Wasserman Schultz as the return address. Police are also investigating a suspicious package sent to former Vice President Joe Biden and a suspicious package found today at actor Robert De Niro's restaurant in New York. On Wednesday, CNN was forced to evacuate its New York office after it received what police described as a "live explosive device" along with a container of white powder. It came in a package addressed to Brennan. All of the targets have been vilified by President Trump in the past. Authorities said it remains unclear if the devices were operable bombs or designed to look like bombs. No one has been hurt by the devices. We speak to former FBI agent Mike German and Chapman University professor Pete Simi, who has studied political violence for decades.
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Oct 25, 2018
Authorities Investigating Mail Bombs Targeting High-Profile Democrats, Trump Attacks Media as NYC Mayor Says Hateful Rhetoric Fuels Violence, California Neo-Nazi Leader Arrested & Charged After Fleeing the U.S., Saudi Crown Prince Acknowledges Khashoggi Murder for First Time, CIA Director Gina Haspel Hears Audio Recording of Khashoggi Murder, Spanish PM Defends Decision to Sell Weapons to Saudi Arabia, French President Emmanuel Macron Vows to Continue Saudi Weapons Sales, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani Says U.S. Aided in Khashoggi Murder, Yemen: Saudi-Led Coalition Bombs Kill 16, Wound 12, Super Typhoon Yutu Devastates Northern Mariana Islands with 180 mph Winds, New York Sues ExxonMobil for Misleading Investors on Climate Risks, European Parliament Approves Ban on Single-Use Plastics, NYT: China and Russia Spying on President Trump's iPhone Calls, Judge Orders Georgia Officials to Stop Rejecting Mail-In Ballots, Megyn Kelly Apologizes After Questioning Why "Blackface" Is Racist
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Oct 24, 2018
A shocking new investigation by immigrant rights groups reveals how corporations like Amazon, Palantir and Microsoft are profiting from and expediting Trump's incarceration and deportation operations. Some 10 percent of the Department of Homeland Security's $44 billion budget is dedicated to data management. The report was published as new documents obtained by the Project on Government Oversight show Amazon is pushing Immigration and Customs Enforcement to start using its controversial facial recognition technology that could identify immigrants in real time by scanning faces in a video feed. We speak with Jacinta González, organizer with Mijente, a national political hub for Latinx organizing. The group partnered with the Immigrant Defense Project and the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild on the new "report":https://www.scribd.com/document/391448674/Who-s-Behind-Ice-The-Tech-and-Data-Companies-Fueling-Deportations#from_embed titled "Who's Behind ICE? The Tech and Data Companies Fueling Deportations."
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Oct 24, 2018
In Kansas, local officials are under fire for moving a majority-Latino city's single polling site outside of city limits, more than a mile from the nearest bus stop. Dodge City, Kansas, is 60 percent Hispanic, but the Associated Press reports that Hispanic turnout was just 17 percent in Ford County, where Dodge City is located, compared to 61 percent turnout for white voters in 2014. The ACLU reports that the city's lone polling site services more than 13,000 voters, compared to an average of 1,200 voters per polling site at other locations. We are joined by Johnny Dunlap, chair of the Ford County Democratic Party.
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Oct 24, 2018
During Tuesday's debate, Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams defended her actions in 1992 when she helped burn the Georgia state flag, which at the time contained a prominent Confederate battle flag. In a victory for civil rights advocates, the flag was later changed. We speak to Leah Wright Rigueur, professor at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
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Oct 24, 2018
A new investigation has found Georgia secretary of state and Republican gubernatorial candidate Brian Kemp has overseen the removal of more than 340,000 current Georgia residents from voting rolls. We speak with Greg Palast, a journalist who has been investigating Brian Kemp and voter suppression in Georgia. He has joined a lawsuit against Kemp over the purge.
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Oct 24, 2018
With the midterm elections less than two weeks away, we look at the governor's race in Georgia, where Democrat Stacey Abrams is attempting to become the first black woman governor in the country. Polls show Abrams and her opponent, Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp, are in a dead heat, but the race has been roiled with accusations that Kemp has used his power as secretary of state to suppress the vote. Earlier this month, Abrams called on Kemp to step down as secretary of state for placing 53,000 voter applications on hold. Seven out of 10 of the stalled applications are for African-American voters, in a state where less than one-third of the population is black. Voting rights activists have also sued Kemp for purging voters from the rolls. On Tuesday, Rolling Stone published an audio recording of Kemp privately telling Republican donors that he was concerned about too many Georgians exercising their right to vote. Hours later, Abrams and Kemp sparred in their first debate. We speak to Leah Wright Rigueur, professor at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. She is the author of "The Loneliness of the Black Republican: Pragmatic Politics and the Pursuit of Power."
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Oct 24, 2018
U.N.: Half of Yemen's Population May Soon Face Famine, Majority of Global Leaders Refuse to Halt Arms Sales to Saudi Arabia, Trump on Khashoggi Murder: "Worst Cover-Up Ever", New Reports on Khashoggi Murder Emerge Amid Saudi PR Campaign, Saudi Crown Prince Gets Applause, Cuts Deals at Investment Summit, Bolton Confirms Nuclear Treaty Withdrawal After Meeting with Putin, Georgia Voter Suppression Crisis Dominates Gubernatorial Debate, Iraq: Car Bomb in Mosul Kills 6, Wounds 30, France: Police Evict Asylum Seekers from Grande-Synthe Refugee Camp, Trump Admits No Evidence of Middle Easterners in Migrant Caravan, Trump Falsely Accuses Puerto Rico of Spending Hurricane Aid on Debt, Trump Declares "I'm a Nationalist" in Texas Rally, White Nationalist Richard Spencer Accused of Abusing Wife, NYPD Arrests "Proud Boys" over Attack on Antifa Protesters, Brazil: Ex-Political Prisoners Warn of Dictatorship Under Bolsonaro
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Oct 23, 2018
President Donald Trump is lashing out at the Central American migrant caravan of some 7,000 people making their way through Mexico and toward the U.S. border. On Monday, he claimed without evidence that terrorists and members of the MS-13 gang had infiltrated the group. Trump has doubled down on his threat to cut aid to Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala and called out Democrats over U.S. border policy, in an ongoing attempt to turn the caravan into a main issue in upcoming midterm elections. We speak to two Central American-born activists, Patricia Montes of Centro Presente and Oscar Chacón of Alianza Americas.
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Oct 23, 2018
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has directly accused Saudi Arabia of the premeditated murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was last seen alive entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in Turkey on October 2. Erdogan said a team of Saudi officials had planned Khashoggi's murder days in advance, directly contradicting Saudi Arabia's claim that Khashoggi died after a fight in the consulate. Turkish officials have claimed that audio and video recordings show Saudi officials used a bone saw to dismember Khashoggi's body but Erdogan made no mention to the audio and video recordings of the killing. Fallout from Khashoggi's murder is being felt across the globe. We speak with Rula Jebreal, a journalist, author, and foreign policy analyst who conducted one of the last known interviews with Khashoggi. She says calling Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman a reformer is "like calling David Duke a civil rights activist." Her new cover story for Newsweek is titled, "Jamal Khashoggi Secret Interview: The Saudi Journalist's Views of Islam, America and the ‘Reformist' Prince Implicated in His Murder."
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Oct 23, 2018
Turkish President: Khashoggi Murdered in Premeditated, Political Act, Mnuchin Meets Saudi Crown Prince as Trump Sends CIA Chief to Turkey, Hackers Target Saudi Investment Conference Website, Yemen: Tropical Storm Kills 12, Exacerbating Cholera Crisis, Bolton Meets with Russians as U.S. Plans Nuclear Treaty Withdrawal, Central American Caravan Continues Toward U.S. Despite Trump Threats, Mexico: Tropical Storm Vicente Kills 12 as Hurricane Willa Approaches, Human Rights Watch: British Academic Jailed by UAE Denied Rights, Trans Rights Protests Target Plans to Narrow Definition of Gender, Trump Admin to Expand Religious Exemptions to Birth Control Coverage, Nigeria: Curfew in Kaduna State After Sectarian Violence Kills 55, 14-Year-Old Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Among the Worst in U.S. History, Supreme Court Shields Wilbur Ross from Questioning over 2020 Census, New York: Bomb Found in Mailbox of George Soros's Home, Kavanaugh Lobbied for Judge Reviewing Ethics Complaints Against Him, Graffiti on Yale Campus Quotes Christine Blasey Ford on Kavanaugh
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Oct 22, 2018
Shortly after Israel announced a new "zero tolerance" policy toward demonstrations in Gaza, some 130 Palestinians were injured Friday while protesting ongoing Israeli occupation and demanding the right of return. Four paramedics and 25 children were among the injured. Ten thousand protesters gathered along Israel's heavily militarized separation barrier with Gaza as part of the weekly Great March of Return protests that began March 30. Since then, Israeli forces have killed at least 170 Palestinians, including more than 30 children, and injured thousands more. We speak with Hagai El-Ad, the executive director of the Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem. He was in New York last week testifying before the U.N. Security Council officially for the first time.
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Oct 22, 2018
The New York Times reports that the Trump administration is attempting to eliminate the rights of transgender people by creating a narrow legal definition of gender. Citing a government memo, the Times reveals that the Department of Health and Human Services has undertaken an effort across several government agencies to establish a legal definition of sex under Title IX, the federal civil rights law that bans discrimination on the basis of sex. That definition would be either male or female, unchangeable, and determined by the genitals a person is born with. The Times reports that the memo says, "Sex means a person's status as male or female based on immutable biological traits identifiable by or before birth. The sex listed on a person's birth certificate, as originally issued, shall constitute definitive proof of a person's sex." If enacted, the proposal would reverse the expansion of transgender rights that took place under President Barack Obama. We speak with Chase Strangio, staff attorney at the ACLU.
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Oct 22, 2018
President Trump has announced plans to pull the United States out of a landmark nuclear arms pact with Russia, in a move that could spark a new arms race. President Ronald Reagan and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty in 1987. The INF banned all nuclear and non-nuclear missiles with short and medium ranges. The treaty helped to eliminate thousands of land-based missiles. On Saturday, Trump vowed to build new nuclear weapons. We speak with Daryl Kimball, director of the Arms Control Association. He previously led the Coalition to Reduce Nuclear Dangers. He has been advocating for the U.S. and Russia to preserve the INF Treaty.
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Oct 22, 2018
Trump to Withdraw from 1987 U.S.-Russia Nuclear Deal, Plans to Establish Biological Definition of Gender Threatens Trans Rights, Saudi Arabia Says Khashoggi Killed in "Fistfight" Amid Mounting U.S. Pressure, NYT: Saudi Troll Farm Targeted Khashoggi, Other Critics on Twitter, Afghanistan: 27 Killed, 100 Injured as Voters Head to Polls, Gaza: Israeli Forces Shoot and Injure 130 Palestinian Protesters, Israel Delays Plans to Evict Bedouin Village in West Bank, Central American Caravan Crosses into Mexico as Trump Threats Mount, Honduras: Lawyers for Victim Berta Cáceres Removed from Murder Trial, Florida: $339 Million Fighter Jets Damaged by Hurricane Michael, Supreme Court Temporarily Halts Landmark Youth Climate Lawsuit, 700,000 March in London Demanding "People's Vote" on Brexit
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Oct 19, 2018
Fears are growing as Israel escalates its military presence along its heavily militarized separation barrier with Gaza. Israel has deployed 60 tanks to meet Palestinian protesters gathering today to protest the ongoing Israeli occupation and demand the right of return for those displaced from their homes. Israel has announced it is implementing a "zero tolerance" policy towards protesters in Gaza, who have been staging weekly Friday protests since March 30 under the banner of the Great March of Return. Since then, Israeli forces have killed at least 170 Palestinians, including more than 30 children, and injured at least 18,000. We speak with Hagai El-Ad, executive director of the human rights group B'Tselem, who testified Thursday in front of the United Nations Security Council about the crisis in Gaza and the West Bank.
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Oct 19, 2018
As details continue to emerge about the disappearance and probable murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, we speak with Saudi dissident Madawi Al-Rasheed about Khashoggi's history as a Saudi journalist & government insider and the future of Saudi Arabia. She is a visiting professor at the London School of Economics Middle East Center. She was stripped of her Saudi citizenship in 2005 for criticizing Saudi authorities. Her new piece in the New York Times is titled "Why King Salman Must Replace M.B.S."
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Oct 19, 2018
Evidence is mounting that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is directly implicated in the assassination of Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. Turkish officials say Khashoggi was tortured and murdered by a squad of 15 Saudi hit men shortly after entering the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on October 2. Four of the men implicated in Khashoggi's death are reportedly linked to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's security detail. After weeks of defending Saudi Arabia, President Trump said Thursday that he believes Khashoggi is dead and acknowledged allegations against the Saudis. We speak with Madawi Al-Rasheed, a Saudi dissident and visiting professor at the Middle East Center at the London School of Economics. She was stripped of her Saudi citizenship in 2005 for criticizing Saudi authorities. Her new piece in the New York Times is titled "Why King Salman Must Replace M.B.S."
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Oct 19, 2018
NYT: Saudis May Blame Adviser to Crown Prince for Khashoggi Murder, Trump Says He Believes Khashoggi Is Dead, Trump Praises Body-Slamming Rep. Gianforte, Attacks Sen. Warren at Montana Rally, Report: Trump Family Lied About Real Estate Deals Around the World, Emails Show Trump Pushed for Keeping FBI HQ in Washington, D.C., Honduran Caravan Continues to U.S. as Trump Threatens Central American Leaders, Brazil: Haddad Accuses Far-Right Bolsonaro of Paid Online Smear Campaign, Taliban Claims Killing of Top Afghan General and U.S. Ally Gen. Raziq, Israeli Court Overturns U.S. Student's Deportation, DOJ Opens Investigation into Child Sexual Abuse in PA Catholic Churches, NYT: Former NY Doctor May Have Sexually Abused Huge Number of Young Patients, California: More than 400 Survivors Accuse USC Doctor of Sexual Abuse, Florida: Three Ex-Police Officers Plead Guilty to Framing Black Men, NOLA: Man Pleads Guilty to Shooting 3 Black Men After Hurricane Katrina, Water Protesters Arrested in TX for Disrupting Oil Co. Meeting
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