The Bottom Line

Historically, the United States punished nations that tried to trade oil using currencies other than the US dollar. But recently it has not been able to stop countries from branching out and making deals in other currencies.

Russia and China are leading the charge, but more countries may be jumping on the bandwagon, including Brazil and Saudi Arabia.

So, are we witnessing the beginning of the end of the dollar’s supremacy?

Host Steve Clemons puts this question to renowned energy market expert, Daniel Yergin, the vice chairman of S&P Global and author of The New Map: Energy, Climate, and the Clash of Nations.

The district attorney of New York alleged that former United States President Donald Trump falsified his business records to conceal hush money payments to an adult film star, Stormy Daniels, in 2016.

At the heart of the lawsuit is whether this amounts to a “conspiracy to undermine the integrity of the 2016 presidential election”, according to prosecutors. Trump has denied all allegations.

Host Steve Clemons asks Yahoo News investigative journalist Michael Isikoff and Republican strategist Michael Ricci about the possible scenarios facing Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, and how it affects the political landscape in the US.

Paul Rusesabagina is considered a hero by many for sheltering hundreds of Rwandans during the 1994 genocide. His story inspired the 2004 Hollywood film, Hotel Rwanda.

But in Kenya, his membership in an armed group landed him a 25-year sentence on terrorism charges, and he spent more than two years in jail in his homeland.

Diplomatic intervention by the United States resulted in a commutation of his sentence this month, and now Rusesabagina - who is a US legal permanent resident - is back with his family in Texas.

On The Bottom Line, host Steve Clemons asks Joshua Geltzer, the deputy Homeland Security Advisor, about the Biden administration's efforts to assist dozens of Americans jailed abroad.

It was supposed to be quick, and the invading American forces would be “greeted as liberators”, according to the neoconservative architects of the Iraq war in 2003.

But, in fact, that war would become a turning point for the United States and the world.

Historian Andrew Bacevich and journalist Jonathan Landay tell host Steve Clemons that the war’s consequences continue to unfold today, challenging the credibility of the “rules-based world order”, exposing the limits of what can be achieved through military force, and making people wonder what Washington means when it talks about “democracy promotion”.

In the last election, the Democratic Party in Florida lost hundreds of thousands of voters, while the Republican Party continues to grow.

Promising to fight against “woke” politics in the United States, Governor Ron DeSantis has attacked a high school programme teaching African American history and enforced a “Don’t Say Gay” policy in schools, among other initiatives to reinforce his conservative credentials in the expected lead-up to announcing his candidacy for president in 2024.

Host Steve Clemons asks Democratic politician Val Demings, a former police chief and congresswoman from Florida, about what her party is learning from what’s happening in her state.

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Economists call it “pandemic epiphanies".

During the first year of the COVID-19 lockdowns, people started questioning their life choices. Millions quit their jobs and pivoted to new fields.

When the economy started to open up in late 2021, companies in the United States had to pay more than pre-COVID salaries to recruit workers. American workers gained bargaining power in dealing with their companies.

But attempts to organise into unions are still met with ferocity by the biggest corporations.

Host Steve Clemons discusses the future of work with journalist Liz Hoffman, ZipRecruiter chief economist Julia Pollak and Indeed economist Nick Bunker.

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In a world faced with threats and challenges, many cynical politicians would rather kick the can down the road - and win votes - than make the tough decisions needed now.

At the same time, billions of people would happily trade globalisation for their old way of life, with nations embracing a “me first” attitude and eschewing inter-country cooperation and compromise for the collective good – even in dealing with pandemics and natural disasters.

Economist Nouriel Roubini, nicknamed "Dr Doom" for predicting the 2008 crash of the United States economy years before it happened, tells host Steve Clemons how a US "debt trap", artificial intelligence and deglobalisation are part of the bleak future that awaits humanity within the next 20 years.

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In this special episode on the first anniversary of the war in Ukraine, host Steve Clemons gets two different takes on the conflict: from Moscow and Washington.

White House official John Kirby said that the United States wants to put Ukraine in a better position if and when it comes time to negotiate. The Biden administration understands that funding the war is becoming less popular, but believes that Americans are still willing to sacrifice for Ukraine's independence.

In Moscow, political scientist Andrey Kortunov argues that the West must learn that it cannot force all countries to play by Western rules.

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The killing of Tyre Nichols by a group of police officers in Memphis, Tennessee, has renewed the debate on reforming the police.

Some Americans argue that the institution should not be indicted just because there are a few “bad apples” in a local police force here and there. But others argue that the entire system has racism and inequality baked into it.

The question of how to change the culture across thousands of local police forces and communities is a thorny one.

Host Steve Clemons asks former Memphis police officer Thaddeus Johnson about the prospects for fixing law enforcement in the United States.

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From the outset of the war in Ukraine, French President Emmanuel Macron warned the West that Russia must not be "humiliated".

France was berated by its allies for its relatively low support for the war, as Macron argued that France needed to differentiate itself from the rest of the West in case it was needed as a go-between for the two sides.

More recently, Paris stepped up the pace of military support for Ukraine and joined Germany in its “change of course”.

Host Steve Clemons asks the French ambassador to the United States, Philippe Etienne, about the latest in Franco-American relations.