Background Briefing: August 3, 2023

 

Trump’s Arraignment Today and Why His Defense Won’t Work

 We begin with today’s indictment of Donald Trump before a Federal Magistrate in Washington DC where he pleaded not guilty to four counts of conspiracy to overthrow the US government, of denying US citizens their right to vote and obstructing the handover of the presidency to its rightful winner. Joining us is Frederick Baron, who formerly served as associate deputy attorney general, special assistant to the attorney general, and director of the Executive Office for National Security in the Department of Justice. He also served as Assistant U.S. Attorney in the District of Columbia U.S. Attorney’s office as well as Counsel to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.

 

The Commanding Role Trump Plays Over the Press as the Top Fox News Executives Dine With Him on the Evening of His Indictment

Then we look into the commanding role Trump plays over the press which follows his antics and outrages breathlessly as this pathological narcissist demands attention and gets free advertising for his campaign. We discuss how on the evening of Trump’s latest indictment, he had dinner with the top executives at Fox News who came begging as their network parrots his talking points that Biden has weaponized the government against Trump’s free speech rights. Joining us is Timothy Karr, who is the Campaign Director for Free Press and the SavetheInternet.com Coalition. He also writes for the Huffington Post and on his personal blog, MediaCitizen.com, and he has an article at Common Dreams, “Elon Musk Is Absolutely an Enemy of Free Speech.”

 

What is Behind the Coup in Niger Where Putin and Wagner Are Seen as Heroes and the French Villains

Then finally we get an update on the coup in Niger as the deadline for the general who led the coup to release the democratically-elected leader by Sunday approaches. Joining us is Dr. Olayinka Ajala, a senior lecturer in Politics and International Relations at Leeds Beckett University in the UK where he teaches in the areas of peace and security, terrorism and counter-terrorism, formation of insurgent groups, climate change and sustainable development especially in West Africa and the Sahel. In working with communities in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria, his work focuses on how insurgencies are formed and how addressing human security issues could reduce violent conflict. He consults for the Ministry of Defence of the United Kingdom and we discuss his article at The Conversation, “What caused the coup in Niger? An expert outlines three driving factors.”