Press Freedom in America Under Attack by Trump and Plutocratic Press Owners Cowering Before the Dear Leader
We begin with press freedom in America under attack by Trump and the oligarchs who support him as the White House shuts out Reuters and The Huffington Post from the press pool which for over 100 years has been run by the White House Correspondents Association to have mainstream reporters replaced by Trump-friendly commentators and propagandists from Blaze Media and Newsmax. Joining us to discuss this and how the owner of the Washington Post appears to be bending the knee again to Trump by taking over the opinion page in a move that elicited a “bravo” from Musk is Paul Farhi, who was a reporter for the Washington Post for thirty-five years. He covered business, a presidential campaign, and the news media. He left at the end of 2023 and has been a freelance writer, contributing to The Atlantic, The Athletic, Nieman Reports, The Daily Beast, and the Columbia Journalism Review where he has an article we discuss, “Will Others Dive into the White House Press Pool?”
Republicans Vote Against Their Constituent’s Interests to Cut Taxes For Plutocrats
Then we assess the new budget the House Republicans just passed with a one vote margin after Trump had put the squeeze on wavering Republicans who did not want to vote against their constituent’s interests cutting, Medicaid in particular, to please plutocrats with another massive tax cut. Joining us is Mike Lofgren, who has spent twenty-eight years working in Congress, the last sixteen as a senior analyst on the House and Senate Budget committees. He is the author of the New York Times Bestseller, The Party Is Over: How Republicans Went Crazy, Democrats Became Useless and the Middle Class Got Shafted. His latest article at Common Dreams “The Last Taboo: Why Are Voters Never Held Responsible for Their Choices?”
Why Did Israel Vote With Russia and Iran Against Ukraine and Its Jewish Leader?
Then finally we look into why Israel voted with Russia and Iran against a UN resolution condemning Russia for its invasion of Ukraine three years ago. Joining us is Dr. Guy Ziv, a professor at the Department of Foreign Policy at American University’s School of International Service and Associate Director of the Meltzer Schwartzberg Center for Israel Studies where he teaches courses on U.S.-Israel relations, and Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking. He has worked in the U.S. Department of State, on Capitol Hill, and for leading non-profit organizations that promote American involvement in Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking and is the author of Why Hawks Become Doves: Shimon Peres and Foreign Policy Change in Israel. His latest book is Netanyahu Versus the Generals: The Battle for Israel’s Future.