Background Briefing: October 23, 2023
The Continuing Paralysis of the Legislative Branch
We begin with the continuing paralysis of the legislative branch as nine Republican men, only two of whom accept the fact that Joe Biden won the presidency, offer themselves up as candidates to be the next speaker. Joining us is E.J. Dionne, a columnist for The Washington Post, a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, a visiting professor at Harvard University, and a professor at Georgetown University. He is the author of Why the Right Went Wrong and co-author of the New York Times bestseller One Nation After Trump and Code Red: How Progressives and Moderates Can Unite to Save Our Country. His latest book, co-authored with Miles Rapoport, is 100% Democracy: The Case for Universal Voting and we discuss his latest article at The Washington Post, “The GOP’s speaker chaos is a blessing in disguise.”
Instead of Doubling Down on Failed Policies, It’s Time to Reconsider Our Position in the Middle East
Then with two more hostages released today as the Israeli bombardment of Gaza intensifies, we examine the need to reconsider our position in the Middle East instead of doubling down on failed policies and speak with Jon Hoffman, a policy analyst in defense and foreign policy at the Cato Institute and a professor at George Mason University specializing in Middle East geopolitics and political Islam. He was recently awarded the “40 under 40” award from the Middle East Policy Council for his work on U.S. foreign policy in the region, and his work has been featured in Middle East Policy, Open Democracy, The Cipher Brief and Foreign Policy Magazine. We discuss his article at The National Interest, “Time to Change Course in the Middle East.”
Argentina’s Potty-Mouth Populist is Down But Not Out
Then finally we go to Argentina where a potty-mouthed populist came in second in Sunday’s election and speak with David Adler, General Coordinator of the Progressive International who previously served as foreign policy advisor to Senator Bernie Sanders in his campaign for the US presidency, policy director of the Democracy in Europe Movement 2025 and the co-founder of its Green New Deal for Europe campaign. He is currently part of an international delegation from the Progressive International to Buenos Aires to accompany the electoral process and to strengthen ties with trade unions, social movements, and parliamentary representatives on the frontlines of Argentine democracy.