Day: March 4, 2024

Background Briefing: March 4, 2024

 

A Unanimous Supreme Court Ruling to Keep Trump on the Ballot Ignores the Constitution

We begin with the unanimous Supreme Court ruling against the Colorado, Maine and Illinois cases removing Trump from the ballot and speak with one of the signatories of an Amicus brief in the Colorado case who along with prominent historians, argued that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment applies to Trump who should be disqualified for leading an insurrection. Joining us is Allan Lichtman, a political historian who teaches at American University and has studied both the American right and the presidency. The author of The Keys to the White House: A Surefire Way to Predicting the Next President, his prediction system has correctly predicted the outcomes of all US presidential elections since 1984 including the 2016 election when against all odds, he predicted a Trump victory. His most recent books are The Embattled Vote in America, The Case For Impeachment, and Thirteen Cracks: Repairing American Democracy After Trump. He has a new weekly show at 9pm on Thursdays at @allanlichtmanyoutube and was recently a signatory to a Supreme Court Amicus brief in support of the attempt by Colorado to remove Donald Trump from the ballot under the 14th amendment.

 

Haiti’s Descent Into Anarchy as Gangs Attack Police and Free 3,700 Prisoners

Then we examine Haiti’s descent into anarchy as gangs that control much of the country attacked police stations as a distraction while they freed over 3,700 inmates from prisons. Joining us is Brian Concannon, a human rights lawyer and the Executive Director of the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti who lived in Haiti from 1995 to 2004, where he served as a Human Rights Officer with the United Nations and Co-Managing Attorney with the Bureau des Avocats Internationaux, a public interest law firm. We discuss his article at Responsible Statecraft, “From coup to chaos: 20 years after the US ousted Haiti’s president.”

 

The Cynical Political Strategy of Choosing the Opponent You Want to Run Against

Then finally we look into the cynical political strategy of spending campaign funds to bolster the primary election of the opponent you want most to run against and speak with Sasha Abramsky, who writes regularly for The Nation, and is the author of several books, including Inside Obama’s Brain, Breadline USA, American Furies, The American Way of Poverty, and, most recently, Little Wonder: The Fabulous Story of Lottie Dod, the World’s First Female Sports Superstar. We discuss his latest article at The Nation, “Adam Schiff’s Reverse Psychology Ad Campaign.”