Scott Horton Show - Just the Interviews
1,076 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 month ago - ★★★★★ - 850 ratingsThis podcast is for individual interviews on the Scott Horton Show. See the Q & A show feed to hear Scott answer listener questions and for the full show archives.
Scott Horton is the author of Fool's Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan, and is the host of the Scott Horton Show podcast. He has conducted over 5,500 interviews with authors, journalists, activists, and whistleblowers on the most important foreign policy issues since 2003.
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Episodes
8/2/19 Mike Swanson on the Coming Financial Catastrophe
August 03, 2019 23:24Mike Swanson discusses the recent announcement that the Federal Reserve will begin cutting interest rates again. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell has said this is a precautionary measure against a possible recession, of which there have been early signs over the last few months. The dangerous thing, says Swanson, is what happens if there is a recession even after this move—with rates already so close to zero percent, what more can the Fed do? Unfortunately it would probably mean huge inflationary m...
7/30/19 David Stockman on the End of the Mueller Probe
August 03, 2019 23:23David Stockman reminds us how flimsy the “Russiagate” case has been from the very beginning, and that we should really be focusing on how the investigation even got started in the first place. Stockman claims that President Trump’s idea that it would be better to cooperate with Russia rather than continue a new Cold War with them was intolerable to the ruling class, who want America to remain undisputed atop the world geopolitical hierarchy, which means policing the globe and flexing our mili...
7/30/19 Danny Sjursen on Trump Ending the War in Afghanistan
August 02, 2019 15:38Danny Sjursen explains why President Trump could end the war in Afghanistan if he wanted to. When it comes to foreign policy, the president is basically a dictator, and Trump in particular is pugnacious enough to cover his right flank at all times, just like Nixon was able to meet with Mao in the 1970s. Negotiations with the Taliban have also continued without falling apart, which is a good sign for the possibility of ending the war on agreeable terms. By the same token, Hillary Clinton felt ...
7/30/19 Tim Shorrock on the Democrats Attacking Trump from the Right
August 02, 2019 15:38Tim Shorrock joins the show to discuss U.S. negotiations with Korea and the status of the relations between North and South. Lately soldiers from the North and South have begun patrolling together, one of several important symbolic gestures in the process of reconciliation between the two nations. Recently Donald Trump became the first president to visit the North, and Shorrock thinks his willingness to participate in negotiations, which previous presidents have not, has been hugely important...
7/30/19 Gareth Porter on John Bolton’s Role in the Iranian Tanker Crisis
July 31, 2019 03:08Scott interviews Gareth Porter about John Bolton’s most recent efforts to raise tensions with Iran. He and Scott speculate about Iran’s ability to disrupt international trade in the region by shutting down the Strait of Hormuz, and the likelihood that they would do so given the risks of inciting more serious conflict as a result. Discussed on the show: “Did John Bolton Light the Fuse of the UK-Iranian Tanker Crisis?” (The American Conservative) “Britain Rejects Iran’s Offer to Swap Seiz...
7/29/19 Dave DeCamp on This Generation’s WMD
July 31, 2019 03:07Dave DeCamp discusses the latest in the Trump-Russia collusion conspiracy, which at this point has all but completely fallen apart. Democrats continue to cling to anything that will keep the narrative alive, and the mainstream media has fallen in line by putting out extremely misleading headlines. DeCamp explains one by one why the stories are incorrect. Discussed on the show: “MSM Coverage of Senate Intelligence Report Is Misleading” (Antiwar.com Original)”Senate Intelligence report: “ex...
7/26/19 Hassan El-Tayyab on Congress’ Unusually Good Antiwar Efforts
July 29, 2019 02:56Hassan El-Tayyab summarizes the efforts in congress to end America’s various wars in the Middle East, led mostly by democrats, but also with the support of some liberty-oriented republicans. Democrats have been accused of slashing the military because their proposed NDAA budget is smaller than the republicans’. But the critics leave out the fact that it too would mean an increase from last year, and is almost as large as the republican proposal. Scott theorizes that this multi-pronged campaig...
7/23/19 Pat Buchanan on America’s Endless Wars
July 24, 2019 16:22Scott interviews Pat Buchanan about his life in politics and the lessons we can apply to today. Buchanan was a committed cold warrior during the 1980s, but then advocated withdrawal of the U.S. from Europe after the Soviet Union collapsed, and urged that NATO not expand up to Russia’s border. Much of his advice has been ignored, and the consequences have been America’s catastrophic and endless wars. Today, he is optimistic that we will not have a war with Iran, since he believes that Presiden...
7/17/19 Lyle J. Goldstein on the Consequences of War with Russia
July 21, 2019 21:03Scott interviews Lyle J. Goldstein about what the "Russiagate" narrative means for America's relationship with Russia. Scott and Goldstein remind us that a hot war would probably mean the destruction of both American and Russian cities with tactical nukes, and possibly the devastation of human civilization all over the world. For that reason it's incredibly irresponsible of the media to push the narrative that the Russian government attacked our country during the 2016 election, and that any ...
7/17/19 Jason Ditz on Iran, Yemen, and Afghanistan
July 21, 2019 21:02Jason Ditz updates Scott on the news from the Middle East. Recently, a missing Emirati tanker that some claimed had been seized by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz was revealed to have simply been towed there voluntarily for repairs. In other news, the UAE has announced the withdrawal of its troops from Yemen, probably realizing it can't win a ground war there, at least not without stretching itself too thinly and becoming exposed at home. Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, seems content to keep fi...
7/17/19 Daniel McAdams on America’s Dangerous Posture Toward Iran
July 19, 2019 01:57Scott interviews Daniel McAdams about the influence of Mike Pompeo and John Bolton on President Trump’s foreign policy. Lately they’ve made sure to keep up a policy of maximum pressure through economic sanctions, and to avoid negotiations at all costs. It’s clear from their strategy that what they really want is a war. Trump’s good instincts on Iran may be the only thing that’s still keeping us at peace. Discussed on the show: “Rand Paul angles to become Trump’s emissary to Iran” (POLITIC...
7/17/19 Mark Perry on the Year America Didn’t Go to War
July 19, 2019 01:56Mark Perry talks about the history of America’s near misses on war with Iran, starting with the 1983 Beirut barracks attack that almost led to an American bombing campaign against the Iranians. According to Perry, President Reagan realized that such an attack would be both ineffective, and also beneath the “dignity” of the United States military. The point of a strong military, says Perry, is to not use it, except against major powers in extreme circumstances. The excessive use of our militar...
7/15/19 Reese Erlich on What’s Really Going On in Hong Kong
July 17, 2019 15:08Scott talks to Reese Erlich about the demonstrations in Hong Kong against the country’s proposed extradition law. After a Hong Kong man brutally murdered his girlfriend in Taiwan, and then fled back to Hong Kong, knowing he couldn’t be extradited to the country where he had committed his crime, lawmakers thought it might be time to enact new extradition treaties, of which Hong Kong has very few with any countries. Even though the proposed law is fairly moderate in what it allows, protestors f...
7/14/19 Gareth Porter Debunks Lies About Iran Killing US Troops in Iraq
July 17, 2019 15:07Gareth Porter explains the latest lie being used to promote a war with Iran. This time, the old story from the mid-2000s that Iran was responsible for a certain type of roadside bomb that killed about 600 U.S. soldiers in Eastern Iraq has new life, thanks to John Bolton and his allies. Gareth Porter and many other friends of the Scott Horton Show debunked this idea when it first arose more than ten years ago. An extra bit of irony is the recent Army study finding that Iran is the only country...
7/12/19 Suzie Dawson on Julian Assange’s Heroism on Behalf of Journalists
July 16, 2019 02:48Independent journalist Suzie Dawson joins the show to talk about Julian Assange’s continued plight for his freedom and credibility. Dawson details the many strategies that have been used to discredit and imprison him, including now-dubious claims of sexual assault and the ever-present charges of working for the Russians against the United States. Dawson herself had to move to Russia after relentless attacks on her privacy and safety by the governments of New Zealand and Germany that included ...
7/12/19 Daniel Lazare on the End of Russiagate
July 15, 2019 11:56Daniel Lazare gives an update in the indictment of the Russain Internet Research Agency, who actually showed up in American court, contrary to the expectations of Robert Mueller. In Mueller’s report, he alleges that the firm conducted their activity on American social media sites at the behest of the Putin Government. The first part of that allegation is true, but there is no evidence that the firm has any connection to the Russian government. The judge in the case recently issued an order sa...
7/12/19 Mike Maharrey on America Using SWIFT as a Foreign Policy ‘Billy Club’
July 14, 2019 01:51Mike Maharrey explains how the United States government uses the pressure of the dollar as the world’s reserve currency to get its way in foreign policy. One method is by forcing the global SWIFT payment system to lock out countries that don’t want to play ball with the American world order. For daring to utter this forbidden truth, Maharrey has been smeared by the mainstream media as an “isolationist”. In reality he just doesn’t want the U.S. military to intervene in everyone’s wars—a positi...
7/12/19 Stu Smallwood on the Trump-Kim DMZ Meeting
July 14, 2019 01:50Stu Smallwood discusses the latest meeting between President Trump and Kim Jong-un, which has resulted in the possibility that the United States may offer to temporarily reduce economic sanctions in exchange for the start of the denuclearization process on the part of North Korea. This is essentially the opposite of what John Bolton has called “the Libya model”, i.e. complete denuclearization before any concessions are made. The problem, of course, is that everyone—including Kim—knows that af...
7/5/19 Nasser Arrabyee on the UAE’s Withdrawal From Yemen
July 09, 2019 19:34Nasser Arrabyee discusses the news that UAE troops will soon be pulling out of Yemen. Arrabyee speculates that the Emirati government might realize the international stance on the war is finally turning against the Saudi coalition, and they want to get out in time to save some face. He also believes that Saudi Arabia won't be able to prosecute the war without the UAE, even with American support. Part of the shifting tide may have to do with the fact that the United Nations finally released an...
7/5/19 Arthur Holland Michel on the Government Surveillance Program Watching Us from the Sky
July 09, 2019 19:32Scott interviews Arthur Holland Michel about his new book on the emerging drone surveillance technology capable of watching entire cities at once. The technology was first developed to help prevent IED attacks on American soldiers in Iraq, but researchers and intelligence officers soon realized they could apply the same technology to domestic surveillance. Today several American cities already deploy this terrifyingly powerful system against their own citizens. Discussed on the show: - Adver...
7/3/19 Ali Abunimah on Kushner’s ‘Deal of the Century’
July 04, 2019 13:05Scott talks to Ali Abunimah of the Electronic Intifada about Jared Kushners “Deal of the Century” and the history of negotiations between Israel and Palestine. Some supporters of Israel have claimed that Kushner’s deal is just giving away free money to the Palestinians, but Abunimah points out that all the hardships addressed in the proposed deal are caused by the United States and Israel in the first place. If Israel simply ended its occupation, the Palestinians would be far better off than ...
7/3/19 Andrew Bacevich on George Soros and Charles Koch Teaming Up to End the Wars
July 04, 2019 00:43Andrew Bacevich talks about the Quincy Institute, a new think tank trying to bring support from the left and right together in opposition to foreign intervention. Funded by both George Soros and Charles Koch, the institute will seek to supplant the current bipartisan consensus that America must be the world’s police force with a more reasonable one that will not lead to the deaths of millions and the squandering of trillions of dollars from the productive economy. Discussed on the show: - Ad...
6/30/19 Elijah Magnier on the Danger of War with Iran
July 01, 2019 00:07Scott interviews Elijah Magnier about the growing tensions with Iran. He likens the U.S. to the lion from a Persian proverb, who “roars” (making threats of war) while really wagging its tail (working toward mediation and negotiation). Magnier believes Iran probably was responsible for the recent tanker attacks, not as a provocation of war, but as a demonstration of Iranian ability to asymmetrically affect the U.S. and its allies with little cost to themselves. He also thinks that enough peopl...
6/28/19 Benjamin Ladraa on His Walk to Palestine
June 30, 2019 07:45Benjamin Ladraa tells his story of walking from Sweden to Palestine, a journey of over 3,000 miles, to raise awareness for the conditions of the Palestinian living under Israeli occupation in Gaza and the West Bank. He describes children as young as 12 being arrested and interrogated, as well as families who are afraid to leave their homes all at once, knowing that they could be occupied by Israeli settlers when they get home. As always, Scott reminds us that the Israeli government couldn’t g...
6/27/19 Scott Horton on the Life and Death of Justin Raimondo
June 28, 2019 06:08Scott breaks the bad news about Antiwar.com co-founder Justin Raimondo's death from lung cancer, his legendary career in the libertarian movement, the importance of his 3,000 articles he wrote for Antiwar.com and the future of the site.
6/24/19 Trita Parsi on the Manufactured Threat of Iran’s Nuclear Program
June 24, 2019 23:44Trita Parsi assesses the current risk of America going to war with Iran, given all the recent pressure from President Trump’s advisers to do so. Parsi reminds us that America has no real reason to fear Iran’s civilian nuclear program, since they were already signatories to the Non-Proliferation Treaty long before President Obama’s JCPOA. The pressure to attack them simply comes from wanting to appease the strategic interests of Israel and Saudi Arabia. Discussed on the show: “Ret. Col. Ma...