$16 Mil. Spent on Symbolic Election in Soon-to-Be-Disappeared District

Loud & Clear

On today's episode of Loud & Clear, Brian Becker and John Kiriakou are joined by Dr. Wilmer Leon, a political scientist and author, and he’s the host of a nationally broadcast talk radio show on Sirius/XM channel 126; by Daniel Lazare, a journalist and author of The Frozen Republic, The Velvet Coup, and America's Undeclared War; and by Dave Lindorff, an investigative reporter, a columnist for CounterPunch, and a contributor to Businessweek, The Nation, Extra! and Salon.com.
Democrat Conor Lamb came out of yesterday’s special election in Pennsylvania with a razor thin lead over Republican Rick Saccone, 49.8 percent to 49.6 percent, a difference of only 641 votes. Election officials are now counting absentee and provisional ballots, but most news networks already have called the race for Lamb. We’ll look at what this means for both parties as we approach the midterm elections.
Brian and John continue our regular segment where we look at nuclear issues, including weapons, energy, waste, and the future of nuclear technology in the United States. Greg Mello, the executive director of the Los Alamos Study Group, and Kevin Kamps, the Radioactive Waste Watchdog at the organization Beyond Nuclear, join the show.
British Prime Minister Theresa May announced this morning that she will expel 23 Russian diplomats in response to the poisoning of a Russian double agent in the UK. May declined to offer any evidence of Russian involvement in the poisoning during question time in parliament, and Scotland Yard has said only that a nerve agent was used. Brian and John speak with legendary anti-war activist and former British parliamentarian George Galloway.
President Donald Trump was in California yesterday to personally inspect prototype sections of what would be a new border wall. He also took the opportunity to insult Governor Jerry Brown and the people of California for not supporting him in his immigration crackdown. Carolyn Gomez, an organizer with the National Union of Healthcare Workers, joins the show.
Defense Secretary James Mattis arrived in Afghanistan yesterday to meet with senior US and Afghan officials and to discuss the possibility of peace talks with elements of the Taliban. Mattis told the press that the Taliban leadership has developed cracks in its unity in recent years and that now is the time to begin talking about the terms of peace. Brian Terrell, a long time peace activist and a co-coordinator of Voices for Creative Nonviolence, joins Brian and John.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said today that his country will immediately withdraw its ratification of the International Criminal Court’s establishing treaty. This move comes amid a wave of repressive violence targeting journalists, activists and the poor. Adrian Bonifacio, National Chairperson of Anakbayan-USA, joins the show.
Congressional legislation was considered this week based on so-called “right to try” laws in several states. These laws allow terminally ill patients to immediately access any experimental treatments that aren’t already approved by the FDA. However, over 99% of applications to the FDA are approved, usually within days of applications, and this dangerous idea will lead to human experimentation in addition to other harmful ills. Brian and John speak with Mark Harrington, the Executive Director of the Treatment Action Group.