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U.S.-Funded Counterterrorism Efforts in West Africa Aren't Helping
Temi Ibirogba quoted
“It’s clear that the U.S. counterterrorism plan for Africa in the wake of 9/11 is a foreign policy failure,” said Temi Ibirogba, the Program and Research Associate for the Africa Program at the Center for International Policy. “These trends mean we need to think about racism within U.S. foreign policy. American exceptionalism has caused the U.S. to believe that their involvement in arming and supporting local security forces is what Africa needs.”
It is essential, Ibirogba told VICE World News, to replace the counterterrorism security model with one rooted in holistic peacebuilding measures. “What is needed is a human security approach that addresses the multidimensional root causes of issues,” she said. “One that focuses on investing in African nations’s infrastructures, health care systems, mental health services, social welfare programs, businesses and more, rather than investing in their militaries and police forces who are guilty of gross human rights violations.”
Biden’s Young Hawk: The Case Against Jake Sullivan
by Danny Sjursen
The appointee to National Security Advisor has a history of casual evasion of responsibility for his role in a series of disastrous foreign policy adventures.
Biden Pick Oversaw Flood of Foreign Money Into Liberal Think Tank
Foreign Influence Transparency Initiative report mentioned
Over the years, [the Center for American Progress] has assembled a list of heavy-hitting donors not just in the United States, but abroad as well. Among foreign donors CAP has taken money from is the United Arab Emirates – a country known for its poor human rights record.
Between 2014 and 2018, CAP received between $1.5 million and $3 million from the UAE, according to a report from Center for International Policy, a foreign policy research thank tank. But early last year, the group said it was no longer accepting UAE’s money.
Bill Astore – Ep 86
co-hosted by Danny Sjursen
Bill Astore, a retired Lieutenant Colonel (USAF), professor of history, one of TomDispatch’s regular contributors, and a senior fellow at the Eisenhower Media Network, stops by the podcast to discuss his career in the Air Force as an engineering officer, his family history of military service, the inherent problems in the American ideals of exceptionalism and hero worship, and the powerful, but often forgotten anti-war history of George McGovern.
U.S. arms sales to UAE draw fire from 29 rights groups
Center for International Policy letter sign-on mentioned
Twenty-nine arms control and human rights organizations have signed a letter opposing the sale of $23 billion worth of missiles, fighter jets and drones to the United Arab Emirates and asking the U.S. Congress to block the deal. The letter, which will be sent to lawmakers and the U.S. State Department, said, “The planned arms sales to the UAE, a party to the conflicts in Yemen and Libya, would fuel continued civilian harm and further exacerbate these humanitarian crises.”
History of the IRA with Danny Sjursen
Danny Sjursen interviewed
Danny Sjursen joins us today to discuss the history of the Irish Republican Army and how they compare to modern resistance movements.
Congress Is Deadlocked on Covid Relief But Came Together to Fund the Pentagon for $740 Billion
William Hartung quoted
Writers Mandy Smithberger and William Hartung discussed last year, “There are at least 10 separate pots of money dedicated to fighting wars, preparing for yet more wars, and dealing with the consequences of wars already fought.” As a result, the cost of war easily exceeds $1 trillion per year, Smithberger and Hartung conclude.
Biden and the Lost Art of Political Cabinetry
by Melvin Goodman
The worst president in U.S. history and the worst Cabinet in U.S. history will soon be succeeded by Joe Biden and the promise of the best and most effective Cabinet in recent time. Biden’s success will ultimately be determined by the political posture of Senator Mitch McConnell, but the initial appointments to his administration point to a strategy designed for political success.
Biden Under Pressure to Pick Black Pentagon Chief
Center for International Policy letter sign-on mentioned
Some 80 antiwar and human rights groups are calling on Biden to immediately end military support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen, as he promised during the campaign.
Among their demands: “End all war-related U.S. logistical support, targeting assistance, spare parts transfers, and intel to the Saudi-led coalition” and “stop all sales of weapons to members of the Saudi-led coalition that could be used in the war and encourage U.S. allies and other countries to do the same.”
Will a Biden Administration Mean a Smaller Military Budget?
by William Hartung and Mandy Smithberger
The arms makers and their allies in Congress and the executive branch won’t give up without a fight when it comes to the pandemic of Pentagon spending. You can count on that. A crucial question of this moment is: Will fear, exaggerated threats, and pork-barrel politics be enough to keep the Pentagon and its contractors fat and happy, even as the urgent priorities of so many of the rest of us are starved of much-needed funding?
Shrinking the Pentagon: Will the Biden Administration Dare Cut Military Spending?
by William Hartung and Mandy Smithberger
Now that Joe Biden is slated to take office as the 46th president of the United States, advice on how he should address a wide range of daunting problems is flooding in. Nowhere is there more at stake than when it comes to how he handles this country’s highly militarized foreign policy in general and Pentagon spending in particular.
Let's Understand What's Done in Our Name with Major Danny A. Sjursen
Danny Sjursen interviewed
Senator Turner and Maj. Danny A. Sjursen (author, historian, anti-war progressive) break down the very real and very alarming state of how our government defines safety and how toxic masculinity fuels it. These two are both done being polite as they discuss the impending threat of current-day civil war, because as Major Sjursen says, "The veneer of civilization is very thin."