'BradCast' 6/14/2019 (Guest: Investigative journalist David Neiwert)
On today's 'BradCast':\xa0 The Trump Administration is making evidence-free allegations that Iran is behind attacks on shipping tankers in the Persian Gulf, but the Japanese owners of one of those ships has contradicted the administration's version of events. So far, no other country is backing up U.S. Sec. of State Mike Pompeo's charges or Donald Trump's vague accusations that Iran is the perpetrator of similar recent attacks. Award-winning investigative journalist David Neiwert has been "temporarily suspended" from Twitter because of a profile graphic from the cover of his 2017 book, 'Alt-America: The Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump', because it violates Twitter's "sensitive media policy" rules barring "symbols historically associated with hate groups" in profile or header images. Obviously, the graphic is part of reportage and commentary on those symbols, rather than in support of them. The recent de-platforming of conspiracy theorists like Alex Jones (InfoWars) and white nationalists like Richard Spencer from social media outlets such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube has been met with cheers from many on the Left. But should Neiwert's case give pause to progressives? Also today:\xa0 the Democratic National Committee announced the roster of which ten 2020 Democratic Presidential candidates will appear on each of the two nights of the first Presidential debates, set for June 26 and 27 in Miami. Finally, we close with an excerpt from candidate Bernie Sanders' recent policy address at George Washington University defining democratic socialism, in which he calls for a 21st Century Economic Bill of Rights, modeled on a similar proposal from FDR, that guarantees a living wage, affordable housing, health care and a complete education for all. Sanders makes the case that democratic socialism is the only way to offer "true freedom" from corporate oligarchy and rising authoritarianism...