Trump Watch

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The amazing news from Korea about the prospects for peace and de-nuclearization: historian Bruce Cumings of the University of Chicago comments, warning that the Washington consensus opposes a treaty. His books include “The Korean War: A History” and “North Korea: Another Country.”
Plus: Trump’s greatest political vulnerability may not be Russiagate, but rather his financial and tax crimes. David Cay Johnston has been investigating and reporting on Trump’s finances for nearly 30 years. He won a Pulitzer Prize at The New York Times, and now he’s editor-in-chief of DCReport.org.  (Trump Watch 5/10/18)

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Full Employment is emerging as a key component of Democratic platforms — Harold Meyerson talks about the history and the prospect of a new “Jobs for All” program–and the current support for it, not just with Bernie Dems, but with onetime centrists Corey Booker and Kristin Gillibrand.
Plus, the Trump re-election nightmare could come true — Tom Frank talks about why (it’s the economy!) and how we can stop it.
Lastly, Mueller’s Questions and Trump’s Answers: Bob Dreyfuss of the Nation comments on the changing story about paying Stormy Daniels, and about Trump’s options in the face of the release of Mueller’s questions for him.
Trump Watch podcast, 5/3/18

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On Wed. April 25 the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the Travel Ban 3.0 case (Trump v. Hawaii) — David Cole, National Legal Director of the ACLU, for comments.
Plus, the legendary Washington political journalist and author of “Washington Journal: Reporting Watergate and Richard Nixon’s Downfall,” Elizabeth Drew, reviews “A Higher Loyalty,” by James Comey.
Lastly, it has been 50 years since Columbia ’68 — Mark Rudd, political organizer, mathematics instructor, anti-war activist and onetime member of the Weather Underground, shares his lessons for the left: “build the base!”  4-26-18

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Viet Thanh Nguyen, MacArthur genius and Pulitzer prize winner, talks about being a refugee in the US, and writing about refugees—his collection, The Displaced: Refugee Writers on Refugee Lives,  is out now.
Plus, Harold Meyerson comments on California’s legal battle against Trump–29 lawsuits and counting, plus the teacher’s strikes around the country and their significance for the labor movement.
Lastly, the great Margaret Atwood talks about her book, The Handmaid’s Tale, and its significance in the Age of Trump: it’s now a TV series—season two premieres on April 25th.  (originally broadcast in April, 2017)  4-20-2018

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Paul Ryan calls it quits: Why now? John Nichols comments: it’s devastating for Republican candidates on the ballot in November.
Plus, Adam Winkler on how the corporations won civil rights–free speech, the right to unlimited political contributions, and what corporate “rights” mean in this time of Trump; his new book, We the Corporations: How American Businesses Won Their Civil Rights, was published earlier this year.
Lastly, Mark Hertsgaard on how big wireless concealed the cancer risks in cellphone use, and why the 5G rollout presents unpredecented dangers. His new article for The Nation is “How Big Wireless Made Us Think That Cell Phones Are Safe: A Special Investigation.”  4/13/2018

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Adam Hochschild talks about his visit to a gun show, the NRA, the Koch brothers, and gun laws in America — his new piece, “Bang for the Buck,” is in the latest issue of the New York Review of Books.
Next, Trump made his first statement on Stormy Daniels today — we turn to Joshua Holland of The Nation (our Chief Stormy Correspondent) for the update, and an answer to the question, “Why do 41 per cent of Republicans believe Trump’s version of the Stormy Daniels story?”
Lastly, yesterday was the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. — Tavis Smiley talks about King’s final year, which began with his Riverside Church speech denouncing the Vietnam War, and ended with his plans for a Poor People’s March on Washington.  (originally broadcast in 2015)  4/5/2018

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Harold Meyerson comments on Trump’s attack of Amazon, the prospect of a Trump re-election, the new model for unions after the Janus v. AFSCME case.  His new article, “What Now for Unions,” is out now at Prospect.org.
Also, we ask Amy Wilentz whether Ivanka should be indicted — she describes the “grotesque abuse of power” that is the Trump kleptocracy.
Lastly, Katha Pollitt says, it’s time to “get real about Russiagate.”
3/29/18

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John Nichols reports on breaking news from Wisconsin: a victory for voting rights — in a special election that had been blocked by Gov. Scott Walker.
Plus: Chris Hayes talks about Trump, crime, and his new book, “A Colony in a Nation,” out now in paperback from W. W. Norton & Company.
Also today is the 10th anniversary of “Men Explain Things To Me.”  We hear the backstory from the author, Rebecca Solnit.
3/22/18

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Why is there no Trump Tower in Moscow?  David Corn talks about Trump, Putin and his new book, “Russian Roulette: The Inside Story of Putin’s War on America and the Election of Donald Trump.”
Plus: Is Disneyland really the happiest place on earth? Peter Dreier says, “no, not for the workers.” Dreier, Professor of Political Science at Occidental College, was also part of the research team that produced an Economic Roundtable report, “Working for the Mouse: A Survey of Disneyland Employees,” released February, 2018.
Also: March 16 marks the 50th anniversary of the My Lai massacre; we talk with Hugh Thompson, the pilot who stopped the killing fifty years ago.   3/15/2018

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The mass shooting at that high school in Parkland, Florida is still in the news, because of the brilliant political work being done by the students there. George Zornick analyzes the big picture: the decline of the gun industry, the growth in support for an assault weapons ban, and campaigns to shame companies that support the NRA.
Plus: Last week the supreme court heard a case that could cripple public-sector unions, some of the last strong unions in America. Jane McAlevey talks about Janus v. AFSCME and what the unions need to do to recover the ground they have lost. 3/8/18