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Updated 2024-11-24 12:30
Headlines for November 26, 2019
Judge Rules Trump Can’t Stop Officials from Testifying in Impeachment Inquiry, Supreme Court Temporarily Halts Disclosure of Trump’s Financial Records, U.S. Troops Resume Combat Mission Against ISIS, U.N.: Greenhouse Gas Emissions Surged to Record-High Levels in 2018, 56 Killed in Landslides in Kenya, Leaked Documents Reveal China’s “Brainwashing” of Uyghur Muslims, Duque Calls for “National Dialogue” as Protests Continue to Rock Colombia, Global Protests Mark International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, Argentine Catholic Priests Sentenced to Prison for Raping Students, Water Protectors Blockade Enbridge Line 3 Tar Sands Pipeline, 3 Men Wrongfully Jailed for 36 Years Walk Free from Prison in Baltimore, Google Fires Four Employees Active in Labor Organizing, Barr Announces Plan to Address Crisis of Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women
The President is a Domestic Enemy of the Constitution: Ellsberg Slams Trump For Pardoning War Crimes
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper demanded the resignation of Navy Secretary Richard Spencer, one week after President Trump overruled military leaders and cleared three U.S. servicemembers accused or convicted of war crimes. The men included Navy Seal Eddie Gallagher, who has been accused of multiple war crimes, including shooting two Iraqi civilians and fatally stabbing a captive teenager in the neck. Gallagher was convicted of posing with the teenage corpse but was acquitted of premeditated murder. Trump criticized the Navy on Thursday for moving toward holding a review hearing to decide if Gallagher should be ousted. The New York Times reported Navy Secretary Spencer then threatened to resign after Trump’s backlash but there are also reports that Spencer attempted to reach a backroom deal with Trump that would have allowed Gallagher to keep his Trident Pin. In a statement on Sunday, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said he was “deeply troubled by this conduct." We speak with Daniel Ellsberg, one of the world's most famous whistleblowers. In 1971, he was a high-level defense analyst when he leaked a top secret report on U.S. involvement in Vietnam to The New York Times and other publications that came to be known as the Pentagon Papers and played a key role in ending the Vietnam War.
Pope Francis Calls Nuclear Weapons Immoral as Catholic Activists Face Jail For U.S. Nuke Base Action
Over the weekend, Pope Francis visited Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where the United States dropped the first atomic bombs in 1945, killing more than 200,000 people. Pope Francis said, “A world without nuclear weapons is possible and necessary.” The leader of the Cathoilc Church met with survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings and declared the possession of nuclear weapons to be immoral. The Pope's visit comes as a group of seven Catholic peace activists are awaiting sentencing for breaking into the Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base in Georgia on April 4, 2018. The activists, known as the Kings Bay Plowshares 7, were recently convicted of three felony counts and a misdemeanor charge for entering the base armed with hammers, crime scene tape and baby bottles containing their own blood. We speak with Martha Hennessy, one of the Kings Bay Plowshares 7. She is the granddaughter of Dorothy Day, the founder of the Catholic Worker movement. We are also joined by Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg. His most recent book is titled, "The Doomsday Machine: Confessions of a Nuclear War Planner." Daniel Ellsberg was blocked from testifying in the recent trial of the Kings Bay Plowshares 7.
Police Raid Egypt's Last Independent News Outlet Mada Masr Amid "Increasingly Hostile" Media Climate
Egyptian security forces raided the office of Mada Masr, the country’s last independent media outlet, and arrested three of its journalists this weekend. The raid began Sunday afternoon, when nine plainclothes security officers entered the Mada Masr office in Cairo, seizing phones and laptops and holding the staff in the building for more than three hours. They then arrested editor-in-chief Lina Attalah, managing editor Mohamed Hamama and reporter Rana Mamdouh. It came just a day after security forces arrested senior editor Shady Zalat at his home. All four journalists were released from detention Sunday night. The raid and arrests mark a sharp escalation in Egypt's attack on press freedom under Egyptian president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who came to power after the 2013 overthrow of former President Mohamed Morsi. We go to Cairo where we're joined by Mada Masr reporter Sharif Abdel Kouddous. He's also a Democracy Now! correspondent and was detained with his colleagues on Sunday.
Headlines for November 25, 2019
Navy Secretary Ousted amid Dispute over Accused War Criminal Eddie Gallagher, Released State Dept. Emails Implicate Pompeo in Giuliani Ukraine Plot, Bloomberg Jumps into 2020 Race by Buying Millions in Campaign Ads, Sen. Graham Blocked Armenian Genocide Resolution at White House Request, Ruth Bader Ginsburg Released from Hospital in Good Health, Hong Kong: Pro-Democracy Candidates Win Nearly 90% Seats in Local Elections, Security Forces Raid Offices of Egypt’s Last Independent Media Outlet, Iraqi Security Forces Kill 13 Protesters amid Anti-Government Demonstrations, Israel Deporting Head of Human Rights Watch’s Israel & Palestine Office, Bolivia Moves Toward New Elections that Would Bar Evo Morales from Running, Chilean Photojournalist Albertina Martínez Burgos Killed in Santiago, Coal Industry Knew Burning Fossil Fuels Causes Climate Change as Early as 1966, Students Demand Fossil Fuel Divestment at Annual Yale & Harvard Game, London Refuses to Renew Uber’s License, More than 60 Doctors Warn Assange Could Die Inside London Prison, 58 Arrested in NYC Protesting Militarization of Subway System
"In Defense of Julian Assange": Why WikiLeaks Founder's Case Threatens Press Freedom
This week Swedish prosecutors dropped an investigation into sexual assault allegations against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, stemming from 2010. Assange, who has always denied the allegations, took refuge inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London for over seven years to avoid extradition to Sweden on the charges. British authorities dragged him out of the Ecuadorian embassy in April and he has since been jailed in London's Belmarsh prison on charges related to skipping of bail in 2012, when he first entered the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden over the now-dropped sexual assault charges. The United States is still seeking Assange’s extradition to the U.S., where he faces up to 175 years in prison on hacking charges and 17 counts of violating the World War I-era Espionage Act for his role in publishing U.S. classified military and diplomatic documents exposing U.S. war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan. A full extradition hearing will take place in February. We speak with the co-editors of the new book "In Defense of Julian Assange": Tariq Ali, historian, activist, filmmaker, author and an editor of the New Left Review, and Margaret Ratner Kunstler, civil rights attorney in private practice.
U.N. Rapporteur: Julian Assange Has Faced Psychological Torture; He Should Not Be Extradited to U.S.
This week Swedish prosecutors dropped an investigation into sexual assault allegations against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, stemming from 2010. Assange, who has always denied the allegations, took refuge inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London for over seven years to avoid extradition to Sweden on the charges. British authorities dragged him out of the Ecuadorian embassy in April and he has since been jailed in London's Belmarsh prison on charges related to skipping of bail in 2012, when he first entered the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden over the now-dropped sexual assault charges. The United States is still seeking Assange’s extradition to the U.S., where he faces up to 175 years in prison on hacking charges and 17 counts of violating the World War I-era Espionage Act for his role in publishing U.S. classified military and diplomatic documents exposing U.S. war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan. A full extradition hearing will take place in February. We air remarks by U.N. Special Rapporteur on Torture Nils Melzer, who says his initial position of skepticism toward Assange's case changed as he began to look more deeply at the evidence and charges against him. "As I scratched the surface a little bit, immediately, things did not add up with the images I had in my mind of this man," Melzer said in a recent talk at Columbia University. "The deeper I got into this, the more fabrication I saw."
Hundreds of Thousands Join National Strike in Colombia in Rebuke to Right-Wing President Iván Duque
In Colombia, hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets Thursday in the largest national strike the country has seen in years. Labor unions, students, teachers, Indigenous and Afro-Colombian activists joined in peaceful marches across urban and rural Colombia as anger mounts against right-wing President Iván Duque and his cabinet. The protests were triggered by Duque's proposed labor reforms and cuts to the pension system, as well as a recent military airstrike against a camp of alleged dissident rebel drug traffickers, which killed eight children. Police responded to the movements with repressive tactics and tear gas in the cities of Bogotá, Cali and Medellín. Colombia's borders with Venezuela, Ecuador, Brazil and Perú were shut down in response to the national strike. Indignation against Duque's government has brewed since the U.S.-backed president took office in August 2018 and social activists have continuously denounced Duque's sabotage of Colombia's historic peace accords, which were signed in 2016 after half a century of war. We speak with long-time activist Manuel Rozental, who joins us from Cali, Colombia. He has been involved with grassroots political organizing with youth, Indigenous communities, and urban and rural social movements for four decades.
Headlines for November 22, 2019
Ex-White House Adviser Warns Impeachment Probe of GOP's "Fictional Narrative" on Ukraine, Senate Republicans May Limit Trump's Impeachment Trial to Two Weeks, Mass Protests in Colombia Oppose Right-Wing Government, Bolivian Soldiers Tear Gas Funeral Procession for Slain Protesters, Iran Continues Internet Blackout After Violently Repressing Protests, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Indicted on Corruption Charges, Protesters Confront Joe Biden Over Obama-Era Deportations, Over 100 Lawmakers Call on President Trump to Fire Stephen Miller, Seven Arrested at UC Berkeley Protest of Ann Coulter Speech, Syracuse University Suspends Four Students Amid Rash of Racist Incidents, Indiana Police Officer Fired Over Viral Video Showing Racist Harassment, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Peter Thiel Had Secret White House Dinner with Trump, Wisconsin Governor Signs Bill Criminalizing Pipeline Protesters, More Women Accuse Jeffrey Epstein of Rape, Sex Trafficking
Bernie Sanders Criticizes U.S. Relationships with Saudi Arabia and Israel at Democratic Debate
Ten Democratic candidates took the stage in Atlanta, Georgia, Wednesday for the party's fifth presidential debate, co-hosted by MSNBC and The Washington Post. Toward the end of the evening, Senator Bernie Sanders criticized former Vice President Joe Biden's support for the 2003 invasion of Iraq and laid out his foreign policy vision, including strong criticism of traditional U.S. allies Saudi Arabia and Israel. "It is no longer good enough for us to be pro-Israel — I am pro-Israel — but we must treat the Palestinians with the dignity they deserve," he said. We speak with Phyllis Bennis, a fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies. She says the Democratic Party is undergoing a major shift on foreign policy. "There's a growing recognition among the candidates that … the discourse has changed dramatically across the board on the Middle East," she says.
2020 Candidates' Focus on Inequality Shows "Shift in the Conversation" Within Democratic Party
Ten Democratic candidates took the stage Wednesday for the party's fifth presidential debate, held in Atlanta, Georgia, and co-hosted by MSNBC and The Washington Post. One of the most memorable moments of the night was a disagreement between Senators Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker over Warren's proposed tax on the wealthiest Americans. Her proposed wealth tax would kick in on assets of $50 million and higher. Both candidates agreed that inequality is a major issue in the U.S., but Booker said wealth taxes in other countries have not been effective and that there are better ways to raise revenue. The issue of economic inequality was a major theme throughout the debate. We speak with Gabriel Zucman, professor of economics at UC Berkeley. He is co-author of the new book, "The Triumph of Injustice: How the Rich Dodge Taxes and How to Make Them Pay."
Joe Biden's and Pete Buttigieg's Records on Race Come Under Scrutiny at 5th Democratic Debate
Presidential candidate Joe Biden claimed on the Democratic debate stage Wednesday that he has broad support from black voters and the only black woman elected to the Senate, seemingly forgetting that 2020 candidate Kamala Harris is a California senator. Biden's comment came amid multiple blunders during the debate, hosted by MSNBC and The Washington Post in Atlanta. For more on the 2020 candidates' discussion of race in their campaigns, we speak with Rashad Robinson, executive director of Color of Change, and Ryan Grim, D.C. bureau chief for The Intercept.
Julián Castro: Gordon Sondland's Testimony Is "Nail in the Coffin" of Trump's Defense
During Wednesday's impeachment hearing, U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland told lawmakers that he was ordered by Trump to pressure the Ukrainian government to investigate Joe Biden and his son Hunter. Sondland also acknowledged there was a quid pro quo tying U.S. military aid to investigations, and said that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Vice President Mike Pence were aware of the Ukraine pressure campaign. Democratic presidential candidate Julián Castro joins us to discuss these latest developments in the impeachment inquiry, which he describes as "blockbuster testimony" that could serve as "a nail in the coffin" of Trump's defense. Castro was excluded from the Democratic presidential debate Wednesday because his campaign did not meet polling thresholds recently established by the Democratic National Committee.
Headlines for November 21, 2019
Gordon Sondland Says Trump Directed Ukraine Quid Pro Quo, Top 10 Democratic Candidates Hold Presidential Debate in Atlanta, Dozens of Guatemalan Migrants Freed from Locked Truck in Mexico, Humanitarian Volunteer Scott Warren Not Guilty of Felonies for Aiding Migrants, Ex-Border Patrol Agent Sentenced to Probation for Running Over Migrant, Syria: 22 Civilians Killed in Idlib; Israel Bombs Iranian Forces Near Damascus, Israel Headed for Another Election After Benny Gantz Fails to Form Government, U.S. Isolated at U.N. Security Council After Declaring Israeli Settlements Legal, U.N. Warns Planned Fossil Fuel Production Would Spark Climate Catastrophe, Sydney, Australia, Shrouded in Smoke as Unprecedented Wildfires Rage, North Dakota Says Keystone Oil Spill Was 10 Times Bigger Than First Reported, Haitian Protesters Demand Ouster of President Jovenel Moïse, Prince Andrew to Cancel Royal Duties over Ties to Sex Offender Jeffrey Epstein, Somali Peace Activist Almaas Elman Shot Dead in Mogadishu, Prominent Maltese Businessman Arrested in Criminal Probe of Journalist's Murder
Transgender Day of Remembrance: "Celebrate the Living" While Honoring Loved Ones Lost to Hate
November 20 is Transgender Day of Remembrance, a day that honors the thousands of transgender and gender nonconforming people who have been killed around the world. The Day of Remembrance is also a celebration of the community's resistance and a call to action to fight for policies and a shift in culture that protects trans lives. At least 22 transgender and gender nonconforming people have been killed in the United States this year, and over 3,000 transgender and gender nonconforming lives have been taken since 2008 around the world. We speak with LaLa B Zannell, longtime transgender rights advocate and the co-producer of the Womanity Project feature film "LaLa's World," an upcoming documentary series on the experiences of black trans women living in America.
Iran: Over 100 Feared Dead in Protest Crackdown as Authorities Impose Internet Blackout
In Iran, Amnesty International reports over 100 protesters have been killed in 21 cities by security forces during ongoing nationwide demonstrations sparked by a sudden hike in fuel prices last week. The death count may be much higher, the report warns, with some suggesting as many as 200 have been killed. According to Iranian state media, over 1,000 people have been arrested. On Thursday, Iran announced a rise in the cost of gas ranging from 50% to 300%. Soon after protests broke out on Sunday, Iran imposed an almost complete internet blackout, making it nearly impossible for protesters use social media to share images or information. From Washington, D.C., we speak with Negar Mortazavi, an Iranian-American journalist and the diplomatic correspondent for The Independent (U.K.).
Unusual. Improper. Inappropriate. Wrong: Officials Decry Trump's Pressure on Ukraine to Probe Bidens
"I couldn't believe what I was hearing." Those were the words of Army Lieutenant Colonel Alex Vindman during Tuesday's House impeachment inquiry hearings, describing his reaction to a July phone call between President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. During the call, Trump pressured Zelensky to investigate his political rival Joe Biden and his son Hunter, who served on the board of a Ukrainian natural gas company, Burisma. Vindman, who is the director for European affairs at the National Security Council, testified along with Jennifer Williams, a Russia adviser for Vice President Pence, in the first of two hearings on Tuesday. Former U.S. special envoy to Ukraine Kurt Volker and Tim Morrison, former senior director for European and Russian affairs on the National Security Council, also testified. Republican lawmakers repeatedly criticized the impeachment process, while Democrats defended it. From Washington, D.C., we speak to Andy Kroll, D.C. bureau chief for Rolling Stone.
Headlines for November 20, 2019
4 Key Witnesses Testify in Impeachment Hearings, Amnesty Says Iranian Security Forces Killed Over 100 Protesters, Bolivian Military Carries Out Second Massacre Against Morales Supporters, Senate Approves Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, U.N. Affirms It Still Considers Israeli Settlements Violation of International Law, Pentagon Says ISIS Is Rebuilding in Northern Syria, NYT: Navy SEALs Expected to Oust Gallagher, Despite Trump Restoring His Rank, Report: Mike Pompeo Planning to Resign as Secretary of State, Trump Administration Can Now Send Asylum Seekers to Guatemala, Sweden Drops Sexual Assault Investigation into Julian Assange, 29 Arrested Protesting Fracked Gas Power Plant in Dover, New York, 2 Prison Guards Face Criminal Charges over Epstein Death, New York Sues E-Cigarette Giant Juul, Transgender Day of Remembrance Honors Trans People Killed Around World
#PrimariesSoWhite: Why Do Two of the Whitest States Vote First for Presidential Candidates?
As the United States becomes increasingly diverse, the presidential nomination process remains heavily weighted by two states that are among the whitest in the nation: Iowa and New Hampshire. Candidates, in some cases, spend more than a year making frequent, extended campaign swings through both Iowa and New Hampshire, which, critics say, gives the concerns of the first states a disproportionate impact on the agenda for the entire race. During the first-ever Presidential Forum on Environmental Justice earlier this month in South Carolina, Senator Elizabeth Warren refused to criticize the primary schedule, saying, "I'm just a player in the game on this one." Fellow 2020 presidential contender Julián Castro, however, has been a vocal critic of the existing system, noting that the demographics of the country have shifted significantly in the last several decades. "I don't believe that forever we should be married to Iowa and New Hampshire going first," he told MSNBC last week. We speak with Gilberto Hinojosa, chair of the Texas Democratic Party, and Ian Millhiser, senior correspondent at Vox.
Noura Erakat: U.S. Recognition of Israeli Settlements Is "Entrenchment of an Apartheid Regime"
The Trump administration has announced it no longer views Israel settlements in the occupied West Bank to be a violation of international law, in another blow to possible Israel-Palestine peace negotiations. On Monday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced a reversal to the U.S. position, putting the U.S. at odds with the international community. A U.N. resolution in 2016 declared the settlements a "flagrant violation" of international law. Israel's embattled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed Pompeo's announcement as a historic day for Israel, but Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat condemned the U.S. decision. Soon after Mike Pompeo announced the new U.S. policy, the U.S. Embassy in Israel issued a travel warning to Americans in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. From Washington, D.C., we speak with Noura Erakat, a Palestinian human rights attorney and legal scholar. She is an assistant professor at Rutgers University and the author of "Justice for Some: Law and the Question of Palestine."
Bolivian U.N. Ambassador: "Racist Elite" Engineered Coup to Restore Neoliberalism in Bolivia
Thousands marched across Bolivia Monday to demand the resignation of Jeanine Áñez, the right-wing senator who declared herself president of Bolivia last week after longtime socialist President Evo Morales resigned under pressure from the military. The coup d'état has thrown Bolivia into crisis, with violence across the country leaving at least 23 dead. On Friday, the military gunned down nine pro-Morales protesters outside Cochabamba, where indigenous people took to the streets again on Monday. Thousands more marched to the presidential palace in La Paz. The wave of protests are condemning the spike in anti-indigenous violence under interim President Áñez and demanding the return of Evo Morales. Áñez has a history of using racist, anti-indigenous language, and last week she issued a decree protecting the military from prosecution for violent acts and said that Morales would face prosecution if he returned to Bolivia. Morales is Bolivia's first indigenous president, and Bolivia has a majority indigenous population. We speak with Sacha Llorenti, Bolivian ambassador to the United Nations since 2012. "We are going through not just a coup d'état, but a violent one," Llorenti says.
Headlines for November 19, 2019
U.S. Claims Israeli Settlements Are Not Illegal Under International Law, Four Witnesses Slated to Testify in Public Impeachment Hearings, U.N. Condemns U.S. for World's Highest Rate of Children in Detention, Political Crisis in Bolivia Continues After Military Pressure Ousts Evo Morales, American Professor Freed in Prisoner Swap in Afghanistan, 1,000 Students Arrested in Police Siege of Hong Kong University, Coal Mine Blast in China Kills 15; Pipeline Explosion in Bangladesh Kills 7, Deforestation of Brazilian Amazon Skyrocketed Since Bolsonaro's Election, Syracuse Suspends All Fraternity Activities After String of Racist Incidents, Columbia Students Launch 5-Day Hunger Strike to Demand Fossil Fuel Divestment, Colin Kaepernick Workout "Impressive" After Showdown with NFL, Hundreds of Farmworkers Demand Wendy's Sign onto Fair Food Program
After Texas Court Blocks Execution, Rodney Reed Has a Chance to Prove His Innocence in 1996 Murder
In a stunning decision handed down Friday, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals halted the execution of Rodney Reed, an African-American death row prisoner who was scheduled to be executed on Wednesday for a murder he says he did not commit. The appeals court ordered a review of the case to examine claims of prosecutorial misconduct. Millions of people around the country had joined Reed's cause in recent weeks amid mounting evidence that another man may be responsible for the 1996 murder of Stacey Stites, a 19-year-old white woman. In 1998, an all-white jury sentenced Reed to die for Stites's murder after his DNA was found inside her body. The two were having an affair at the time of her death. But new and previously ignored details in the case indicate that Stites's then-fiancé, a white police officer named Jimmy Fennell, may in fact be responsible for the killing. Fennell was later jailed on kidnapping and rape charges in another case. Last month, a man who spent time in jail with Fennell signed an affidavit saying Fennell had admitted in prison to killing his fiancée because she was having an affair with a black man. We speak with Rodrick Reed, brother of Rodney Reed; Uwana Akpan, sister-in-law of Rodney Reed; and Bryce Benjet, senior staff attorney at the Innocence Project, who has represented Reed for many years. "As we've investigated this case, evidence continues to mount that shows that Rodney didn't commit the crime, and implicates Fennell," Benjet says.
Massacre in Cochabamba: Anti-Indigenous Violence Escalates as Mass Protests Denounce Coup in Bolivia
In Bolivia, at least 23 people have died amid escalating violence since President Evo Morales, the country's first indigenous president, resigned at the demand of the military last week. Growing unrest quickly turned to violent chaos on Friday outside Cochabamba when military forces opened fire on indigenous pro-Morales demonstrators, killing at least nine people and injuring more than 100. The violence began soon after thousands of protesters — many indigenous coca leaf growers — gathered for a peaceful march in the town of Sacaba and then attempted to cross a military checkpoint into Cochabamba. Amid this escalating violence and reports of widespread anti-indigenous racism, protesters are demanding self-declared interim President Jeanine Áñez step down. Áñez is a right-wing Bolivian legislator who named herself president at a legislative session without quorum last week. She said that exiled socialist President Morales, who fled to Mexico after he was deposed by the military on November 10, would not be allowed to compete in a new round of elections and would face prosecution if he returned to Bolivia, which has a majority indigenous population. U.N. special envoy Jean Arnault on Sunday called for talks between Jeanine Áñez and leaders of Morales's political party Movement Toward Socialism, or MAS, though a date has not been set. From Cochabamba, we speak with Kathryn Ledebur, director of the Andean Information Network and a researcher, activist and analyst with over two decades of experience in Bolivia.
Leaked Cables Show Depth of Iranian Influence in Iraq After U.S. Invasion "Shattered" the Country
An unprecedented leak of secret intelligence reports from inside the Iranian government has shed new light on how Iran has taken control of much of the Iraqi government in the wake of the 2003 U.S. invasion. The documents from Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security were leaked to The Intercept, which then partnered with The New York Times on reporting the story. The leak includes 700 pages of intelligence documents from 2014 to 2015. The documents reveal that a number of Iraqis who once worked with the CIA went on to work with Iranian intelligence. We speak with Murtaza Hussain, a reporter at The Intercept who worked on the project. "The macro story here is that the United States shattered Iraqi society, and then Iran came in to pick up the pieces," he says.
Headlines for November 18, 2019
Bolivian Military Massacres 9 People at Indigenous Pro-Morales March, Leak of Secret Iranian Documents Reveals Iranian Influence in Iraq, Former Ambassador Yovanovitch Testifies in Impeachment Hearings, Trump Ally Roger Stone Found Guilty of 7 Charges, Trump Pardons 3 Soldiers Accused or Convicted of War Crimes, Trump's Unplanned Medical Visit Sparks Questions About His Health, Tens of Thousands Mark 1-Month Anniversary of Protests in Lebanon, Police Besiege Student Protesters at Hong Kong University, Fears Mount About Possible Disappearance of Nigerian Journalist Omoyele Sowore, Prince Andrew Grilled on Friendship with Epstein in BBC Interview, Trump Reversed Course and Refused to Sign Memo Banning Flavored E-Cigarettes, Louisiana Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards Wins Re-election, Arizona Sheriff Deputy Tackles, Pins Down Teenage Quadruple Amputee, Four Killed in Mass Shooting at Backyard Party in Fresno, California, Texas Appeals Court Halts Execution of Rodney Reed
Justice for Rodney Reed: Millions Urge Texas to Halt Execution Amid New Evidence of His Innocence
The Supreme Court considers Friday whether to take up the case of Rodney Reed, an African-American death row prisoner in Texas who is scheduled to be executed in less than a week for a murder he says he did not commit. On Thursday, Reed's family braved the cold to camp outside the Supreme Court for a vigil asking the justices to help halt the execution. Millions of people around the country have joined their cause in recent weeks amid mounting evidence that another man may be responsible for the 1996 murder of Stacey Stites, a 19-year-old white woman. In 1998, an all-white jury sentenced Reed to die for Stites's murder after his DNA was found inside her body. The two were having an affair at the time of her death. But new and previously ignored details in the case indicate that Stites's then-fiancé, a white police officer named Jimmy Fennell, may in fact be responsible for the killing. Last month, a man who spent time in jail with Fennell signed an affidavit saying Fennell had admitted in prison to killing his fiancée because she was having an affair with a black man. Despite this, Reed's execution is scheduled for November 20. We speak with Maurice Chammah, a staff writer at The Marshall Project.
Sen. Cory Booker on Environmental Justice, Nuclear Power & "Savage Racial Disparities" in the U.S.
The first-ever Presidential Forum on Environmental Justice, co-moderated by Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman and former EPA official Mustafa Santiago Ali, was held last Friday at South Carolina State University in Orangeburg. Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey was one of six Democratic candidates to share his plans to confront environmental injustices and the climate crisis. Booker spoke about racial disparities in the U.S., the creation of renewable energy jobs and the water contamination crises in cities across the country, including his hometown of Newark. "My community is not alone," Booker said. "Lead service lines should not be in the ground in a 21st century America, period."
"This Is My Home": Meet the Lead Plaintiff in the Supreme Court Case to Save DACA
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments from three lawsuits demanding the Trump administration preserve Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. The Obama-era program has granted protection from deportation and a work permit to at least 700,000 undocumented people who were brought to the United States as children. The court's conservative majority appeared poised to side with President Trump in ending the program, while some of the court's liberal justices seemed skeptical of Trump's efforts. In September 2017, the Trump administration announced it planned to terminate DACA, arguing the program was "illegal" and "unconstitutional," but three lower courts disagreed and have kept the program alive, thanks to lawsuits filed by California, New York and D.C. Immigrant rights activists have been pushing the Supreme Court to save DACA, with dozens of immigrants with DACA recently taking part in a 16-day, 230-mile march from New York to the steps of the Supreme Court. We speak with Martín Batalla Vidal, the lead plaintiff in the New York federal lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's attempt to terminate DACA, and Trudy Rebert, a staff attorney at the National Immigration Law Center, which also filed suit to block the Trump administration's cancellation of DACA.
Headlines for November 15, 2019
Two Killed as 16-Year-Old Student Opens Fire at L.A. County High School, El Paso Walmart Reopens, Three Months After Massacre by Racist Gunman, House Speaker Pelosi Accuses Trump of Bribery, an Impeachable Offense, Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine to Testify She Felt Threatened by Trump, Chile to Hold Referendum on Rewriting Pinochet-Era Constitution, Chilean Protesters Mark Anniversary of Police Killing of Indigenous Activist, Mon Laferte Holds Topless Protest Against Chilean State Violence at Latin Grammys, Indigenous Bolivians Protest as Interim President Orders Evo Morales Silenced, Israel Resumes Bombing as Ceasefire with Gaza Militants Breaks Down, Iraqi Soldiers Kill Four Anti-Government Protesters, Bringing Death Toll to 320, Analysis Finds U.S.-Led Wars Since 9/11 Killed 801,000 at a Cost of $6.4 Trillion, Kentucky Republican Incumbent Matt Bevin Concedes Governor's Race, European Investment Bank to Divest from Most Fossil Fuel Projects, Climate Activist Greta Thunberg Sets Sail for Europe, Benie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Unveil Green New Deal for Public Housing
CodePink Founder Medea Benjamin Threatened with Arrest After Protesting U.S. Foreign Interventions
CodePink co-founder and longtime peace activist Medea Benjamin was threatened with arrest in Washington, D.C., Wednesday and accused of assaulting a sitting congressmember after being forcibly removed from a press conference for opposing the U.S.-backed coup and U.S. sanctions in Venezuela. Benjamin vehemently denies the accusations and says she was in fact the one assaulted when she and other activists demonstrated at a press conference hosted by Florida Democrat Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Florida Republican Mario Díaz-Balart announcing the launch of a Congressional Venezuela Democracy Caucus. We speak with Medea Benjamin in Washington, D.C.
Chilean Activist: Same Elites Who Caused Social Crisis Can't Be Trusted to Write New Constitution
In Chile, protesters led a massive national strike Tuesday as they condemned the government's plans to rewrite the country's Constitution, which dates back to Augusto Pinochet's military regime. Chile's interior minister announced Sunday the government would draft a new constitution that Congress would then rewrite and put to a public referendum. But protesters say the people should be involved with the rewriting of the constitution from the beginning and that this is an attempt by Sebastián Piñera's government to delay political and social reforms in Chile. The Chilean authorities have killed at least 20 people and wounded thousands more since the protests erupted on October 19 in response to a subway fare hike and quickly grew into a revolt against austerity and economic inequality. Amnesty International has denounced the Chilean government for widespread human rights violations against protesters. From Santiago, we speak with Pablo Abufom, a member of the Solidaridad movement, an anti-capitalist and feminist organization in Chile.
"This Is Unacceptable": Ex-Congresswoman Who Voted to Impeach Nixon Says Trump Is a Rogue President
The public phase of the impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump began Wednesday, with testimonies from two witnesses: George Kent, a deputy assistant secretary of state, and William Taylor, a former ambassador and the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine. The hearing brought forth new details about a previously unknown phone call in July between President Trump and Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union. Both Kent and Taylor expressed concern over the role President Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani had in dictating U.S. policy on Ukraine. We speak with Elizabeth Holtzman, a former U.S. congressmember from New York who served on the House Judiciary Committee that voted to impeach Richard Nixon.
In First Public Impeachment Hearing, Trump Implicated in Effort to Pressure Ukraine to Probe Bidens
The first public hearing of the impeachment inquiry into President Trump was held Wednesday. Trump is just the fourth president in U.S. history to face impeachment. Two witnesses testified before the House Intelligence Committee: George Kent, a deputy assistant secretary of state, and William Taylor, a former ambassador and the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine. They both said President Trump withheld aid to Ukraine in an attempt to pressure the country to investigate Joe Biden and his son Hunter, who served on the board of a Ukrainian natural gas company. We play highlights from the hearing.
Headlines for November 14, 2019
U.S. Diplomats Testify Trump Pressured Ukraine to Dig Up Political Dirt on Bidens, Trump Claims He Was "Too Busy" to Watch Impeachment Inquiry, Trump Hosts President Erdogan at White House Amid Turkish Attacks in Syria, 34 Palestinians Killed in Two Days as Israel Bombs Gaza Strip, Exiled Bolivian President Evo Morales Calls for "National Dialogue", Protests Rage as Bolivia's Self-Proclaimed Interim President Swears In Cabinet, Lebanese Soldiers Shoot and Kill Man as Protests Enter Fifth Week, Zimbabwe: Millions at Risk of Starving Amid Climate Change-Fueled Drought, Hundreds of Elephants Die as Drought Grips Southern Africa, Wildfires Rage in Australia as Former Fire Chiefs Warn of Climate Crisis, Mayor of Venice, Italy, Blames Climate Crisis for "Apocalyptic" Flooding, Chad Wolf Becomes Fifth Person to Head Homeland Security Dept. Under Trump, House Resolution Would Clear Path for Adoption of Equal Rights Amendment, Ex-Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick Formally Enters 2020 Presidential Race, Hillary Clinton Refuses to Rule Out 2020 Presidential Run, Teachers in Little Rock Go on One-Day Strike, Could Colin Kaepernick Return to NFL After Being Blacklisted? Workout Scheduled for Saturday, Police Threaten to Arrest Medea Benjamin After Venezuela Protest
A Coup? A Debate on the Political Crisis in Bolivia That Led to Evo Morales's Resignation
In Bolivia, right-wing Senator Jeanine Áñez declared herself president Tuesday night despite a lack of quorum in Congress, amid a deepening political crisis in the country. Evo Morales, Bolivia's first indigenous president, left the country Monday after being granted asylum in Mexico. Morales announced his resignation Sunday shortly after the Bolivian military took to the airwaves to call for his departure. His Movement Toward Socialism party is refusing to recognize Áñez as president, calling her claim illegal and decrying Evo Morales's resignation over the weekend as a military coup. Last month, Morales was re-elected for a fourth term in a race his opponents claimed was marred by fraud. He ran for a fourth term after contesting a referendum upholding term limits. On Tuesday, the Organization of American States held an emergency meeting in Washington, where U.S. Ambassador Carlos Trujillo read a statement from President Donald Trump applauding Evo Morales's resignation and warning it should "send a strong signal" to Venezuela and Nicaragua. Mexico, Uruguay, Nicaragua and the president-elect of Argentina have all denounced Morales's departure as a coup. Morales's departure has sparked demonstrations and clashes across Bolivia. We host a debate on the political crisis in Bolivia with Pablo Solón, former ambassador to the United Nations under President Evo Morales until 2011, and Kevin Young, assistant professor of history at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and the author of "Blood of the Earth: Resource Nationalism, Revolution, and Empire in Bolivia."
Bill Moyers on Impeachment: All Presidents Lie, But Trump Has Created a Culture of Lying
We continue our conversation with legendary journalist Bill Moyers, who covered impeachment proceedings against Presidents Nixon and Clinton. The first televised impeachment hearings into President Trump begin today. Moyers says the current administration and the media have created a "culture of lying" that goes beyond what other presidents have done. "All presidents lie. It's a defense they use. But not all presidents lie systemically," Moyers says.
Democracy on Trial: Bill Moyers on Impeachment Inquiry & Why PBS Should Air Hearings in Primetime
Televised impeachment hearings begin today in the inquiry into whether President Trump withheld military aid from Ukraine to pressure the Ukrainian president to investigate his political rivals. Two witnesses are testifying today before the House Intelligence Committee: George Kent, a deputy assistant secretary of state, and William Taylor, a former ambassador and the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine. Both officials have privately told congressional investigators that Trump withheld aid to Ukraine in an attempt to pressure Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden and his son Hunter. Donald Trump is just the fourth U.S. president to face an impeachment inquiry. Bill Clinton was impeached in 1998. Andrew Johnson was impeached in 1868. Richard Nixon resigned in 1974 prior to an impeachment vote. We speak with the legendary journalist Bill Moyers, who covered the Nixon and Clinton impeachment hearings. In the 1960s, Moyers was a founding organizer of the Peace Corps and served as press secretary for President Lyndon Johnson. In 1971, he began an award-winning career as a television broadcaster that would last for over four decades. During that time, Moyers received over 30 Emmys and countless other prizes. He was elected to the Television Hall of Fame in 1995. Last week Bill Moyers took out a full-page ad in The New York Times urging PBS to broadcast the impeachment hearings live and to rerun them in primetime.
Headlines for November 13, 2019
Televised Impeachment Hearings Begin Today, Right-Wing Senator Declares Herself President of Bolivia, Turkish President Erdogan Visiting Trump at White House, Supreme Court Heard Oral Arguments over DACA Program, Supreme Court Hears Arguments in Case of Mexican Teen Killed by U.S. Border Agent, Supreme Court Clears Way for Sandy Hook Families to Sue Gun Manufacturer, Federal Court Rules Warrantless Searches of Phones at Airport Are Unconstitutional, HHS Probes Google's Program to Collect Healthcare Data of Americans, U.S. Government Detained Record Number of Migrant Children in 2019, SPLC: Stephen Miller Sought to Promote White Nationalism Ahead of 2016 Election, Afghanistan: 7 Killed in Car Bombing in Kabul, Major Protests & Disruptions Continue in Hong Kong, Chile: Protesters Demand More Participation in Rewriting New Constitution, Former McDonald's Worker Sues over Sexual Harassment, Salma Sikandar Wins Asylum, After Husband's Hunger Strike, Historian Noel Ignatiev, Who Aimed to Abolish Whiteness, Dies at 78
"Seattle Is Not For Sale": Voters Rebuke Amazon, Re-electing Socialist Kshama Sawant
In Seattle, Socialist City Councilmember Kshama Sawant has been re-elected in a race that pitted her against Amazon — Seattle's largest private employer and one of the most powerful companies in the world. Overall, Amazon poured $1.5 million into Seattle's City Council election and backed Sawant's opponent, Egan Orion, with nearly half a million dollars. Kshama Sawant is Seattle's first Socialist politician elected in nearly a century. She has successfully pushed a number of progressive policies, including making Seattle the first major American city to adopt a $15-an-hour minimum wage. Kshama Sawant joins us from Seattle. The re-election victory "has been a major repudiation, not only of Amazon and of Jeff Bezos himself, as the richest man in the world, but also it has been a referendum on the vision for Seattle," Sawant says. "The voters in Seattle have spoken, that Seattle is not up for sale."
Vowing to End Cash Bail & Reform Justice System, Chesa Boudin Wins San Francisco DA Race
In a stunning victory, public defender Chesa Boudin has been declared the winner of a hotly contested district attorney's race in San Francisco. Boudin ran on a platform to end cash bail and dismantle the war on drugs, and was endorsed by Democratic presidential candidate Senator Bernie Sanders. His win sends a pointed message to the Democratic establishment, which had mobilized in full force against his campaign. San Francisco Mayor London Breed, California Governor Gavin Newsom and Senators Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris all endorsed Boudin's opponent, Suzy Loftus. Boudin is the child of Weather Underground activists Kathy Boudin and David Gilbert, who were both incarcerated when he was still a toddler. He learned the news that he'd won the race by a razor-thin margin while he was on a plane flying back from visiting his father, who remains in prison in upstate New York. After four days of ballot counting, Boudin was declared the winner. From San Francisco, we speak with Chesa Boudin.
The Edge of Democracy: Lula Is Freed in Brazil in Victory for Movement to Resist Bolsonaro
In Brazil, former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was freed from prison Friday after 580 days behind bars. Lula's surprise release came after the Brazilian Supreme Court ruled to end the mandatory imprisonment of people convicted of crimes who are appealing their cases. He was serving a 12-year sentence over a disputed corruption and money laundering conviction handed down by conservative Judge Sérgio Moro, an ally of current far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, and has long maintained his innocence. Lula has vowed to challenge Bolsonaro in the 2022 elections. At the time of his imprisonment in April 2018, Lula was leading the presidential polls. A new documentary, "The Edge of Democracy," chronicles the imprisonment of Lula and impeachment of former Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff. It also looks at the aftermath of the rise of President Jair Bolsonaro — a former military captain who glorifies Brazil's past military regime, denies the climate crisis and celebrates misogyny, homophobia and racism. We speak with Petra Costa, a Brazilian filmmaker and the director of "The Edge of Democracy."
Headlines for November 12, 2019
Longtime Bolivian President Evo Morales Takes Asylum in Mexico, Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments on DACA Cases, Televised Impeachment Hearings to Start Tomorrow, Former MA Gov. Deval Patrick May Jump Into 2020 Race, NY Republican Congressman Peter King Retires, Donald Trump Jr. Heckled Off Stage by His Own Supporters, EPA to Restrict Scientific Research Used to Write Public Health Regulations, Israeli Military Kills Palestinian Commander in Targeted Assassination in Gaza, Afghan Government & Taliban Agree on Prisoner Exchange, Chilean Government Bows to Protests & Agrees to Rewrite Constitution, 260 Arrested in Mass Protests in Hong Kong, No More Deaths Activist Heads to Retrial in Arizona, Jimmy Carter Undergoes Operation to Reduce Swelling in His Brain, Father of Atatiana Jefferson Dies of Heart Attack After Daughter Killed by Police
Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Environmental Justice, Shutting Down Pipelines, Capitalism & Billionaires
Six 2020 presidential candidates — Senators Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker, and Tom Steyer, Marianne Williamson, John Delaney and Joe Sestak — participated in the first-ever Presidential Forum on Environmental Justice in Orangeburg, South Carolina, on November 8. Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman and former EPA official Mustafa Santiago Ali co-moderated the event, which took place at South Carolina State University in Orangeburg. We air highlights of Warren speaking about the climate crisis, public health, shutting down pipelines, capitalism, the order of primary states and more.
"This Is a Military Coup": Bolivian President Evo Morales Resigns After Army Calls for His Ouster
Bolivia is in a state of political crisis after longtime President Evo Morales resigned Sunday following what he described as a military coup. Weeks of protests have taken place since a disputed election last month. Morales announced his resignation in a televised address Sunday, shortly after the Bolivian military took to the airwaves to call for his resignation. Bolivia's vice president also resigned Sunday, as did the head of the Bolivian Senate and the lower house. Opposition leader Jeanine Áñez, who is the second vice president of the Bolivian Senate, is claiming she will assume the presidency today. Evo Morales was the longest-serving president in Latin America, as well as Bolivia’s first indigenous leader. He was credited with lifting nearly a fifth of Bolivia's population out of poverty since he took office in 2006, but he faced mounting criticism from some of his former supporters for running for a third and then a fourth term. For more on the unfolding crisis in Bolivia, we speak with Mark Weisbrot, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research. His latest piece for The Nation is headlined "The Trump Administration Is Undercutting Democracy in Bolivia." "This is a military coup — there's no doubt about it now," Weisbrot says.
Headlines for November 11, 2019
Longtime Bolivian President Evo Morales Resigns, Brazilian Former President Lula Freed from Prison, Haley Said Kelly and Tillerson Told Her to Work Against Trump, Syria: 8 Killed in Bombing in Tel Abyad, Iraq: Death Toll in Anti-Government Protests Rise to 319, Hong Kong: Police Shoot Student Protester at Close Range, Cyclone Kills 20 in Bangladesh & India; Wildfires Rage in Australia, Germans Mark 30th Anniversary of Fall of Berlin Wall, Hundreds Protest Construction of Trump's Border Wall in Sonoran Desert, Kshama Sawant Declares Victory in Seattle City Council Race, Chesa Boudin Wins San Francisco District Attorney's Race
Remembering the 1968 Orangeburg Massacre When Police Shot Dead Three Unarmed Black Students
The 1968 Orangeburg massacre is one of the most violent and least remembered events of the civil rights movement. A crowd of students gathered on the campus of South Carolina State University to protest segregation at Orangeburg's only bowling alley. After days of escalating tensions, students started a bonfire and held a vigil on the campus to protest. Dozens of police arrived on the scene, and state troopers fired live ammunition into the crowd. When the shooting stopped, three students were dead and 28 wounded. Although the tragedy predated the Kent State shootings and Jackson State killings and it was the first of its kind on any American college campus, it received little national media coverage. The nine officers who opened fire that day were all acquitted. The only person convicted of wrongdoing was Cleveland Sellers, a member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, known as SNCC. Sellers was one of the organizers of the protest. He was convicted of a riot charge and spent seven months behind bars. He was pardoned in 1993. From Orangeburg, South Carolina, we speak with civil rights photographer Cecil Williams, who photographed the scene in the aftermath of the Orangeburg massacre. He is also the founder of the Cecil Williams Civil Rights Museum here in Orangeburg.
"We Can't Afford to Wait for the DNC": Why Black Lawmakers Organized an Environmental Justice Forum
The first-ever Presidential Forum on Environmental Justice takes place tonight in Orangeburg, South Carolina, where six presidential candidates will take to the stage at South Carolina State University. African-American communities and people of color on the frontlines in South Carolina have been fighting for justice in the face of extreme environmental racism for years. We host a roundtable with local leaders and environmental justice advocates to talk about the significance of the event, the issues their communities face and the 2020 candidates' platforms on environmental justice. Gilda Cobb-Hunter, president of the National Black Caucus of State Legislators, Melanie Campbell, president of the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation and Mustafa Ali, former head of the EPA's Environmental Justice Program, join us in Orangeburg.
Warren, Booker & Steyer to Take Part in First-Ever Presidential Forum on Environmental Justice
We broadcast live from South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, where tonight the first-ever Presidential Forum on Environmental Justice will be held. Six presidential candidates — Senators Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker, Tom Steyer, Marianne Williamson, John Delaney and Joe Sestak — are participating. The forum is hosted by the National Black Caucus of State Legislators and leaders from frontline communities. South Carolina is a crucial state for the 2020 presidential race and one of the first that will have a Democratic primary, following New Hampshire and caucuses in Iowa and Nevada. The region has been repeatedly pummeled by climate-fueled hurricanes, including Hurricane Florence, which swept through the South in 2018, causing epic floods. Black residents and communities of color have faced disproportionate air and water pollution and exposure to environmental hazards, but South Carolina is also home to some of the most successful responses to environmental racism. Ahead of Friday's presidential forum, we speak with Mustafa Ali, the forum's co-moderator and the former head of the environmental justice program at the Environmental Protection Agency. "It's important that we have these conversations about climate change, but those are the symptoms of a disease," Ali says. "The disease has been the racism, the structural inequality, that continues to happen inside of communities of color."
Headlines for November 8, 2019
George Kent: Giuliani Carried Out Smear Campaign Against U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, U.S. and China Aim to Roll Back Some Tariffs, "A Warning": Anonymous Senior Official Slams Trump in New Book, Michael Bloomberg Preparing to Jump Into 2020 Race, Sanders Immigration Plan: Abolish ICE & Create Path to Citizenship, Undocumented Students to Stage Walkout to Support DACA, Report: DHS to Have Biometric Data on 260 Million People, Iraq: Security Forces Continue Bloody Crackdown on Anti-Government Protesters, Tensions Rise in Bolivia over Disputed Presidential Election, Brazil Sides with U.S. at U.N. Vote Condemning U.S. Embargo on Cuba, Brazilian Supreme Court Ruling Could Free Former President Lula, Hong Kong Student Dies After Clash with Police Days Earlier, Judge to Rule on Marco Saavedra's Asylum Case Next Year
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