Background Briefing: August 15, 2022
Trump Attacks the FBI Inflaming His Base While Warning the AG “Our Country is on Fire. What Can I do to Reduce the Heat”
We begin with Trump as both the arsonist and the fire brigade as he inflames his base with attacks on the FBI and their execution of a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago a week ago, describing it as “a sneak attack on democracy” which has caused a “great simmering anger” at the same time reaching out to the Attorney General to warn that “The country is on fire. What can I do to reduce the heat.” Joining us is Sarah Kendzior, the New York Times bestselling author of The View from Flyover Country. She is known for her coverage of the 2016 election, and her academic research on authoritarian states. The co-host of the acclaimed podcast Gaslit Nation with Andrea Chalupa, she was named by Foreign Policy as one of the “100 people you should be following on Twitter to make sense of global events.” Her latest book is Hiding in Plain Sight: The Invention of Donald Trump and the Erosion of America and her forthcoming book, out in September, is They Knew: How a Culture of Conspiracy Keeps America Complacent.
The Threat to Journalists in Mexico From Drug Cartels and in Nicaragua From the Ortegas
Then we examine the threat to journalists in our hemisphere in Mexico from murderous drug cartels and in Nicaragua from the dictator Ortega and his wife who have shut down the opposition press while jailing or forcing into exile hundreds of journalists. Joining us is Natalie Southwick, the Committee to Protect Journalists’ Latin America and the Caribbean program coordinator. Prior to joining CPJ, she was a member of Witness for Peace’s international accompaniment team in Bogotá, Colombia, a reporting specialist with the Afro-Colombian and Indigenous Program, and the editor of a website focused on Latin American news. Her work has appeared in the Boston Globe, the Chicago Reporter, InSight Crime, RioOnWatch, and elsewhere.