Unauthorized Disclosure

Hosts Rania Khalek and Kevin Gosztola are joined by author Jeremy Kuzmarov, who discusses his forthcoming book, Obama's Unending Wars: Fronting the Foreign Policy Of The Permanent Warfare State.

Kuzmarov highlights how President Barack Obama developed a brand and came up with a story that could be marketed to the masses to help him rise to prominence in politics.

As Kuzmarov argues, "Obama was especially perfect for an age when diversity was being celebrated as an exemplification of American progress, marginalizing critiques of capitalism and American imperialism."

During the episode, Kuzmarov compares Obama to President Woodrow Wilson, who Obama seemed to be influenced by when it came to foreign policy.

Kuzmarov calls attention to how Obama sold the war in Libya and the way in which he patronized populations throughout the continent of Africa. That helped pave the way for the proliferation of United States military bases and neo-colonialism.

From Somalia to the Congo to Djibouti, Obama presided over military action that further destabilized and ruined impoverished countries. He opened countries up to corporate predators that could exploit people.

The legacy of Obama looms over U.S. politics, with nearly every progressive politician unwilling to critique his foreign policy. But that record must be confronted in order to truly resist President Donald Trump. 

Direct download: S626.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:42am EDT

Hosts Rania Khalek and Kevin Gosztola interview Charlotte Kates, who is the international coordinator for the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network. She's American and Canadian, and she lives in Germany.

Her husband, Khaled Barakat, was banned by German authorities from giving a speech on President Donald Trump's so-called "deal of the century," as well as the Arab and Palestinian responses to this proposal.

Barakat received an eight-page document that informed him he was not "allowed to give speeches in person or over video, participate in political meetings or events or even attend social gatherings of over 10 people." If he did, he could be put in prison for up to a year.

The attack on freedom of political expression is part of a series of attacks, which Kates describes, as she recounts how police stopped Barakat and her to block them from holding an event.

Kates addresses how the German government sought to tie Barakat to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) to justify repressing him.

Later in the interview, Kates describes how the repression against individuals who support Palestinians or the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israeli apartheid extends beyond activists to include artists and entertainers.

Direct download: S6E25.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:02am EDT

This week, hosts Rania Khalek and Kevin Gosztola discuss the new charges brought against Jeffrey Epstein, a former financial manager who socialized with prominent figures, like Bill Clinton, Donald Trump, Prince Andrew, Larry Summers, and Woody Allen.

Both address how the U.S. establishment press should have been more diligent in covering this case, especially as the #MeToo movement spread in 2017. Even though the Miami Herald published a major feature on disgraced former labor secretary Alex Acosta's role in shielding Epstein, there was not much interest in the case, even as survivors of his crimes pushed prosecutors to correct the injustice they had done in Florida.

Later in the show, the hosts talk about further evidence of a possible mass extinction event as a result of ocean acidification. They highlight about the casual indifference toward the very real threat of climate disruption.

The show ends with a discussion about past guest and friend Aaron Maté, who appeared on Tucker Carlson's show on Fox News and was shamed for it on Twitter.

Direct download: S6E24.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:44am EDT

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