The Socialist Program

Imperialism in the 21st Century is starting to look like the imperialism of the early 20th century as Donald Trump ramped up his demand to seize Greenland from Denmark. Professor Richard Wolff and Brian Becker discuss how capitalist competition led to two catastrophic world wars in the first half of the 20th Century, and how similar competitive pressures are taking shape today.

Professor Richard Wolff is an author & co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work. You can find his work at rdwolff.com.

As thousands of ICE agents continue their rampage in Minneapolis, the people are preparing for an even larger fightback that could reshape politics in the United States. Elon Musk endorses a call for martial law, and President Trump threatens the Insurrection Act to deploy the US military against the people of the United States. Brian Becker and Layan Fuleihan discuss.

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Trump ordered the massive bombing of Iran in June. Next he bombed Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January 2026. Is Trump now setting his imperial sights on Cuba?

Brian Becker is joined by Manolo De Los Santos, the executive director of The People’s Forum in New York.

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The United States is at a boiling point after the ICE killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis. Cities across the country are under attack from Trump’s federal ICE agent police force, and hundreds of thousands protested this ICE invasion this past weekend. Brian and Prof. Wolff discuss the struggle that is heating up.

Professor Richard Wolff is an author & co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work. You can find his work at rdwolff.com.

Masked ICE agents are on a rampage in Minneapolis, in Portland, and throughout the United States. The Trump White House and the Pentagon have seized the fifth oil tanker carrying Venezuelan oil. Brian Becker and Layan Fuleihan discuss.

This is a preview of a patrons-only episode. Subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/TheSocialistProgram to hear the full episode, get access to all our patrons-only content, and help make this show possible.

After the January 3rd bombing of Venezuelan neighborhoods, military facilities and the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores, the Trump White House and Pentagon are still imposing a full scale naval blockade against Venezuela. The Trump administration is claiming they’ve fundamentally changed the Venezuelan government but the facts don’t bear this out. Many of the oil concessions they may now receive were long ago offered by Maduro himself. 

Brian is joined by Manolo De Los Santos, the executive director of The People’s Forum in New York, to discuss how the government in Venezuela is still mobilizing the nation in defense of its sovereignty.

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Trump, Steven Miller, and other top administration officials are claiming that they are “running Venezuela,” taking over the country and its vast oil reserves. That’s not true, the Venezuelan government remains intact, but they are imposing a full naval blockade on the country in an effort to completely shut down Venezuela’s economy. The Trump admin also intends to conquer Greenland by one means or another, and are declaring ownership of the Western Hemisphere.

Is the Trump administration’s open rejection of international laws – which were designed to prevent another World War – just rhetoric? Or does it represent a larger shift in U.S. and thus global politics?

Brian Becker is joined by Professor Richard Wolff, author & co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work -- find his work at rdwolff.com.

Join the The Socialist Program community at http://www.patreon.com/thesocialistprogram to get exclusive content and help keep this show on the air.

Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores appeared in a U.S. court in New York City earlier today following the illegal kidnapping of Venezuela's president. Donald Trump has now acknowledged that he consulted with U.S. oil monopolies before and after the attack on Venezuela. The U.S. Congress did not authorize this attack, and Trump, while consulting with the oil company executives, refused to even brief Congress. Brian Becker and Layan Fuleihan discuss.

Brian and Layan review the year of 2025 under the Trump regime – including his lies about being a ‘peace president’ – and what to expect in 2026.

This is a preview of a patrons-only episode. Subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/TheSocialistProgram to hear the full episode, get access to all our patrons-only content, and help make this show possible.

Brian speaks with author and historian Aaron Leonard about his book "Menace of Our Time: The Long War Against American Communism.”  Leonard’s book is a riveting account of the extraordinary efforts by politicians. At the moment that the Trump White House is issuing Executive orders deeming people with anti-capitalist views as domestic terrorists it is important to learn about the history of anti-communist witchhunting in the United States during the past century. 

Get the book here: https://www.rutgersuniversitypress.org/menace-of-our-time/9781978841802

See all of Aaron’s work here: http://aaronleonard.net/

Join the The Socialist Program community at http://www.patreon.com/thesocialistprogram to get exclusive content and help keep this show on the air.