FEATURING PATRICK WOODALL – President Donald Trump late last week signed the new version of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) at the G-20 summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, along with the leaders of Mexico and Canada. He announced on Saturday that he would be terminating the original agreement in 6 months, setting a deadline for the US Congress to ratify the new agreement. Trump threatened that if they did not ratify the deal, the three nations would return to pre-1994 trade rules.

Trump has referred to the new NAFTA as the USMCA or the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement. However, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has refused to use that term. In the new version of the trade agreement are some labor provisions, access for American farmers to the Canadian dairy markets, and new requirements for auto manufacturers among other things.

Patrick Woodall, Research Director with Food & Water Watch and Food & Water Action.

FEATURING FRED PEARCE – Donald Trump has promised to revive the US’s nuclear capabilities, both in terms of upgrading weapons systems, and more recently in offering government subsidies to nuclear power plants that are going bankrupt. But the track record of nuclear power – whether through weapons or power plants – is simply not well understood.

Now, a new book by Fred Pearce takes us on a global tour of the nuclear age going back decades to the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, US nuclear testing inside the country and outside, the Soviet Union’s nuclear activities, and disasters like Chernobyl and Fukushima.

Fred Pearce, has reported on environmental, science, and development issues from 85 countries over the past 20 years. He was the environment consultant at New Scientist from 1992-2018 and writes regularly for The Guardian newspaper and Yale University’s e360 website. His books include The New Wild, When the Rivers Run Dry, With Speed and Violence, Confessions of an Eco-Sinner, The Coming Population Crash, and The Land Grabbers. His new book is called Fallout: Disasters, Lies, and the Legacy of the Nuclear Age

**This interview was originally broadcast on June 7, 2018.

The White House and lawmakers are wrangling over a deal for a stopgap measure to fund the government for two weeks while being consumed by the funeral services for the late President George H. W. Bush. In light of the funeral Congress agreed on Monday to postpone discussions until December 21st – which could mean a fight over spending right before Christmas. The original deadline was December 7th. There will be no votes this week. The political battle between President Donald Trump and Congress is funding for his border wall. The President wants $5 billion while Congress has agreed to $1.6 billion.

On Monday Trump inexplicably tweeted a complaint about the bloated military budget. He wrote, “I am certain that, at some time in the future, President Xi and I, together with President Putin of Russia, will start talking about a meaningful halt to what has become a major and uncontrollable Arms Race. The U.S. spent 716 Billion Dollars this year. Crazy!” First, the amount he cited is not the amount spent on weapons this year. It is the entire Defense Department budget. Second, it has been Trump who led the push for spending vast amounts of tax dollars on the US military, and boasting of his support for a huge budget. For example in March, he tweeted, “Because of the $700 & $716 Billion Dollars gotten to rebuild our Military, many jobs are created and our Military is again rich.”

Incoming House Democrats have signed on to a letter to their party’s leadership urging them to place their focus on passing bills rather than investigating the President in the new year. About three quarters, or 46 newly elected Democrats signed the letter, asking that leaders like Nancy Pelosi “prioritize,” bills on issues like healthcare, immigration reform, gun control, climate change and criminal justice. According to Associated Press, “The letter calls on leaders to hold monthly meetings with freshmen and to appoint them to highly sought committees like Appropriations and Ways and Means. And it requests changes in some congressional procedures, such as prioritizing bills that have at least 290 co-sponsors — which means significant bipartisan support.”

Senator Bernie Sanders in a town hall meeting on Monday hosted newly elected New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other speakers. Carried live on C-SPAN, the town hall addressed the issue of climate change in particular. Ocasio-Cortez answered Sen. Sanders’ question of the fear-mongering argument against transitioning to a green economy.  Also on Monday Ocasio-Cortez tweeted about the health insurance options she gets to choose from as a freshman lawmaker. “As a waitress, I had to pay more than TWICE what I’d pay as a member of Congress. It’s frustrating that Congressmembers would deny other people affordability that they themselves enjoy. Time for #MedicareForAll,” she posted.

The media outlet Quartz reported on Monday that Trump’s travel costs during the campaign season for the midterm races ran into the tens of millions of dollars – costs that tax payers may be on the hook for. According to the outlet, “Trump flew to more than 40 political rallies in the months leading up t...

FEATURING DR. STEPHEN ZUNES – The 41st president of the US, George H. W. Bush has died. He was 94. The BBC described him as, “a war hero, a congressman, an ambassador, the head of the CIA, Ronald Reagan’s number two and, between 1989 and 1993, the most powerful man in the world.” But that description does not capture the President’s ugly legacy, particularly in Middle East foreign policy.

The eulogies so far have mostly focused on his affable nature and Presidential demeanor. President Barack Obama called him, “a humble servant,” and President Bill Clinton said he was, “Honorable, gracious and decent.”

However critics remember his actions during the First Gulf War in Iraq, and his role in the Iran Contra affair among other things.

Dr. Stephen Zunes is a Professor of Politics and International Studies at the University of San Francisco, where he serves as coordinator of the program in Middle Eastern Studies. He also serves as a senior policy analyst for Foreign Policy in Focus, a project of the Institute for Policy Studies. He is also an associate editor of Peace Review.

FEATURING MORRIS PEARL – House Democrats, fresh from their victory in the midterm elections, are gearing up an ambitious new bill as one of their first acts in the new Congressional year: an anti-corruption bill. H.R. 1 is an ambitious and multi-part piece of legislation that tackles the influence of wealthy corporate donors on our elections, puts in place generous public campaign financing, holds the executive branch to high ethical standards, and restores parts of the Voting Rights Act.

Representatives John Sarbanes, Nancy Pelosi, and Terri Sewell introduced the details of the anti-corruption package on Friday morning. They were joined by a number of newly elected Democrats including Veronica Escobar, Ilhan Omar and others.

Morris Pearl, Chair of the Patriotic Millionaires, a group of hundreds of high-net-worth Americans committed to progressive financial policies.

The United Nations climate conference has opened in Katowice, Poland, the heart of the Polish coal-industry. The meeting will continue until December 14th and is focused on progress in implementing the 3-year old Paris Accord. But Poland’s President Andrzej Duda vowed in his opening remarks that Poland would never fully stop mining and burning coal – highlighting the continued resistance to efforts to curb global warming. Also addressing delegates was Sir David Attenborough, the internationally renowned British natural historian, who warned that human civilization could be facing a collapse. 

Ahead of COP24, an estimated 65,000 people marched in Brussels, Belgium, the heart of the European Union, to push for swift action on climate change. Climate protest called “Claim the Climate” in Brussels. An estimated 65,000 people marched ahead of the COP24 in Poland to demand action on climate change.

The G-20 summit wrapped up on Saturday in Buenos Aires, Argentina where the leaders of 20 wealthy nations met and discussed their continued collaboration on various issues. One of the more awkward topics of discussion was Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman’s role in the brutal murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. According to Associated Press, “French President Emmanuel Macron was captured on video seemingly lecturing bin Salman, at one point being heard saying, ‘I am worried,’ ‘you never listen to me,’ and, ‘I am a man of my word.’ Macron said the crown prince only, ‘took note’ of his concerns.”

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin was captured on film giving the Crown Prince a high five while smiling broadly. Reuters described the conundrum of G-20 leaders like this:  “How to deal with the crown prince, who is dogged by controversy over the murder of a Saudi journalist but is also de facto leader of a rich, oil-producing kingdom that is a major global investor.” The outlet also reported, “while leaders appeared to ignore Prince Mohammed on stage during the ‘family photo,’ many went on to have closed-door bilateral meetings with him during the two-day summit.”

Also at the G-20 summit the US and China agreed to a ceasefire of sorts in their on-going trade war – a war that was prompted by President Donald Trump. According to the New York Times, “The temporary truce, forged over a working dinner on Saturday night in Buenos Aires, does little to resolve the deep differences between the two nations and is more a political agreement than a substantive one.” What is known so far about the deal is that it leaves in place US tariffs of 10% on about $250 billion worth of Chinese goods and halts for now the plan to increase tariffs to 25%. The two nations plan to commit to a trade deal by March 1st.

Trump signed the new version of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) at the G-20 along with the leaders of Mexico and Canada. He announced on Saturday that he would be terminating the original agreement in 6 months, setting a deadline for the US Congress to ratify the new agreement.

FEATURING MARIANA VITURRO – Senator Kamala Harris of California and Representative Pramila Jayapal of Washington have just introduced a federal Domestic Workers Bill of Rights. There are already eight states and one city – Seattle – that have passed similar bills.

Harris and Jayapal, together with Ai Jen Poo of the National Domestic Workers Alliance.

According to The Nation, the federal bill, “would ensure that domestic workers are covered by some basic labor laws: the right to overtime pay when they put in more than 40 hours a week, to the protections of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, to form unions, and to recourse against harassment and discrimination. It also extends new ones, such as the right to meal and rest breaks, paid sick days, advanced notice of scheduling, written agreements, and privacy and other protections for live-in workers.”

Mariana Viturro, Deputy Director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance.

FEATURING LETICIA GUZMAN – The situation at the California border with Mexico is the focus of international attention as thousands of refugees from the Central American caravan are awaiting entry to the US. Most still remain in Tijuana where they are stuck in encampments in desperate conditions. The US is processing asylum applications very slowly, creating a bottleneck.

Border Patrol’s use of tear gas across the border some days ago marked the potential for state violence as mothers and children await their fate. A small group of non-profit organizations has taken it upon themselves to provide aid to the refugees as best as they can.

Leticia Guzman, Communications Director of Border Angels in San Diego, California.

President Donald Trump has emerged in the Special Counsel investigation as a central subject around whom several pieces of a larger puzzle are falling into place. According to the Washington Post, “Investigators have now publicly cast Trump as a central figure of their probe into whether Trump’s campaign conspired with the Russian government during the 2016 campaign.” The President has even been found to have a legal code in the documents being filed by the Special Counsel: “Individual 1.” The investigators seem to have evidence showing that Mr. Trump was actively pursuing contacts with the Russian government and with Wikileaks.

On Thursday Trump spoke to press, repeatedly saying he didn’t end up making a deal on a project in Russia and that his former attorney Michael Cohen who pled guilty to lying about Trump’s contacts with Russia is, “a weak person.” 

Very early on Friday morning Trump posted two defensive sounding tweets: “Oh, I get it! I am a very good developer, happily living my life, when I see our Country going in the wrong direction (to put it mildly). Against all odds, I decide to run for President & continue to run my business-very legal & very cool, talked about it on the campaign trail…” followed by, “….Lightly looked at doing a building somewhere in Russia. Put up zero money, zero guarantees and didn’t do the project. Witch Hunt!”

During his first year in office Mr. Trump said often that he had absolutely no deals with Russia. Buzzfeed reported a story on Thursday that, “Trump’s company planned to give a $50 million penthouse at Trump Tower Moscow to Russian President Vladimir Putin as the company negotiated the luxury real estate development during the 2016 campaign, according to four people, one of them the originator of the plan.” Apparently two of the sources are “US law enforcement officials,” who revealed that Trump’s former attorney Michael Cohen spoke with Mr. Putin’s Press secretary about the idea.

And, FBI agents have apparently raided the offices of a man named Ed Burke, Alderman of Chicago, who used to be Trump’s property tax attorney. It is not yet clear if that raid has anything to do with the Special Counsel’s probe.

In other news, the US Senate’s sole Black Republican is opposing one of Trump’s judicial picks for a District judgeship in North Carolina. Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina has made public his discomfort at the nomination of Thomas Farr over accusations of anti-black racism in voting rights. Scott’s opposition effectively kills Farr’s nomination.

Eric Bauman, the chair of the California Democratic Party has resigned from his position over accusations of sexual misconduct. According to the Sacramento Bee, “One of Bauman’s deputies, Daraka Larimore-Hall, initiated the process to remove him last week after hearing from individuals who said Bauman had sexually harassed and assaul...

FEATURING KEVIN GOSZTOLA – President Donald Trump’s former attorney Michael Cohen appeared in court on Thursday morning and made a surprising guilty plea to a charge by the Special Counsel’s team. According to Associated Press he, “is pleading guilty to lying to Congress about work he did on a Trump real estate deal in Russia,” and, “admitted to making false statements in 2017 to the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence about a plan to build a Trump Tower in Moscow.” Earlier this year Mr. Cohen had pled guilty to charges that involved bank fraud and election interference.

The news comes a day after the New York Times reported that former Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort’s lawyers had briefed the President’s attorneys during the period that Manafort was being questioned. The breach of secrecy is likely the reason why Robert Mueller’s team made a court filing on Monday saying Manafort had broken the terms of his plea agreement. There is speculation that Manafort’s lawyers spoke to Trump’s lawyers in hopes of a Presidential pardon.

Trump has been increasingly jittery about the Special Counsel investigation, posting a barrage of incoherent and desperate-sounding tweets filled with lies and misinformation, indicating his fear over what may be revealed.

Kevin Gosztola, managing editor of Shadowproof.com. He also produces and co-hosts the weekly podcast, Unauthorized Disclosure.