Ralph Nader Radio Hour

Ralph invites back award-winning war correspondent and author, Chris Hedges, to discuss his new book “The Greatest Evil is War” in which he points out that war is not only a racket but - no matter what its causes - a moral obscenity. And Mark Green joins us to elaborate on “Winning America” a compendium of rhetorical strategies and concrete policies Democrats should be running on to win the midterm elections. Plus, we plug Tort Law Education Day!Chris Hedges is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, who spent nearly two decades as a foreign correspondent in Central America, the Middle East, Africa and the Balkans. He is the host of The Chris Hedges Report, and he is a prolific author— his latest book is The Greatest Evil Is War.Unchecked militarism is cancerous to a civilization. And it overreaches in the end. So, as it decays— as we have decayed — it engages in more forms of military adventurism in an attempt to reclaim a lost hegemony and a lost glory and a lost power.Chris Hedges, author of The Greatest Evil Is WarDemocratic administrations are wholly in lockstep with the Republicans on militarism. In some cases, even worse, because they provide more cover… So, we have to hold those who prosecute permanent war— Democrat or Republican— accountable. And I think that by surrendering to a Democratic administration in the idea that it's “the least worst,” we weaken our power and our credibility.Chris Hedges, author of The Greatest Evil Is WarBloodthirsty military action books sell far more than books that challenge the grizzly evil and crimes of war. It's books of aggression, violence, military prowess that gained the bestseller listRalph NaderMark Green is a former Nader’s Raider, who ran Public Citizen’s Congress Watch for ten years and was elected New York City’s first Public Advocate. He’s a prolific author, and has collaborated with Ralph Nader on Fake President: Decoding Trump’s Gaslighting, Corruption, and General B******t, and Wrecking America: How Trump's Lawbreaking and Lies Betray All. He is co-founder, with Ralph Nader of Winning America.To summarize, dangerous extremists are trying to steal our votes and our wallets. [Progressive candidates] have to get in both: “They’re destroying democracy,” and “That economically hurts our families.”Mark Green, co-founder of Winning AmericaTrump’s GOP— they want to be lawmakers to break the law, violate the Constitution and crush our democracy, and put the plutocrats in charge. Behind all these Trumpsters is the corporate state… turning the government against its own people.Ralph Nader Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

Ralph and Rhode Island Senator, Sheldon Whitehouse, dive into his new book “The Scheme: How the Right Wing Used Dark Money to Capture the Supreme Court.” And Ralph takes the opportunity with the Senator to pitch his "Winning America" strategy for the Democrats to use in the midterms.  In addition, our resident constitutional expert, Bruce Fein, stops by to argue that so many of the books about Trump and other American presidents emphasize personality and ignore the constitutional implications of their decisions. Plus, Ralph urges listeners to sign up for Tort Law Day, Saturday October 29th to celebrate our constitutional right to have our day in court.Sheldon Whitehouse represents Rhode Island in the U.S. Senate. He has served as his state’s United States Attorney and as the state Attorney General, as well as its top business regulator. He is the author of Captured: The Corporate Infiltration of American Democracy, and the new book The Scheme: How the Right Wing Used Dark Money to Capture the Supreme Court.We just had a vote on [the DISCLOSE Act] in the Senate, and every single Republican voted against it. They voted— to a person—to protect dark money. Despite not only 80% of Republican voters feeling opposed and hostile to dark money and all this corporate influence, but really angrily opposed to it. These are people that come in with a very high sense of frustration and fury. It's a very salient and even emotional issue, and yet they all voted— to a person— against it.  Because, in my view, they've become as dependent on dark money as a deep-sea diver is on an air hose.Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, author of The Scheme: How the Right Wing Used Dark Money to Capture the Supreme CourtImagine blaming Joe Biden for high gas prices when the fossil fuel industry actually sets the gas prices. If they actually let Joe Biden set gas prices when they were high, he could have knocked a dollar per gallon off like that. But of course, you can’t. We’ve got a market economy. But they blame him for it.Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, author of The Scheme: How the Right Wing Used Dark Money to Capture the Supreme CourtBruce Fein is a Constitutional scholar and an expert on international law.  Mr. Fein was Associate Deputy Attorney General under Ronald Reagan and he is the author of Constitutional Peril: The Life and Death Struggle for Our Constitution and Democracy, and American Empire: Before the Fall.There's only one oath that all of our members of Congress and the President and the judiciary take— the one oath to hold and support the Constitution of the United States. They don't take an oath to support their political party. They don’t take an oath to get re-elected. They don't take an oath for any other purpose other than to uphold and defend the Constitution.Bruce FeinThe crux of our Republic is process— following process as prescribed in the Constitution, and if you lose, you go back and you make a better argument, or if you think the Constitution is defective, you propose an amendment…that is what makes us different from other countries. And this preoccupation with personalities is leading us off of a cliff very fast.Bruce FeinYour broader point, Bruce, is truly being occluded by people who engage in the public press and Congressional activities. Your broadest point is that we are living in an age of massive serial violations of our Constitution by our elected representatives, and of course, by implication, government officials who are working under these elected representatives in the branches of government. And this breeds a culture of lawlessness all the way down to the corporate crime wave to violations of consumers’ rights, workers’ rights, civil rights, civil liberties.Ralph Nader Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

Ralph welcomes Marta Tellado, president and CEO of Consumer Reports and author of “Buyer Aware: Harnessing Our Consumer Power for a Safe, Fair, and Transparent Marketplace.” She and Ralph tackle many consumer related issues including how consumer rights are also civil rights. And previous guest Professor Michael Hudson rejoins us to forcefully rebut a listener comment about his view of the Federal Reserve, quantitative easing, and who runs the US Treasury. Plus, Ralph has some choice words about how we should be thinking about immigration.Marta Tellado is president and CEO of Consumer Reports, an independent nonprofit that works side-by-side with consumers to create a fair and just marketplace. She is the author of Buyer Aware: Harnessing Our Consumer Power for a Safe, Fair, and Transparent Marketplace.I believe that democratic freedoms can coexist and thrive with economic equity. And I wrote the book in part to tell a larger story about how our democracy can only thrive if we really have a marketplace that has opportunity that is fair and just across all populations. And so, it really is a way of engaging a broader audience in this idea that a fair marketplace is absolutely essential to a fair democracy. Economic freedom is a civil right.Marta Tellado, author of Buyer Aware: Harnessing Our Consumer Power for a Safe, Fair, and Transparent MarketplaceWith each individual [consumer] action, we really talk about some of the big changes we need to see in the marketplace. Particularly now, with the domination, lack of competition, and the concentration of the power that we have. How do we, as a collective force, drive a marketplace that is safer by design? That is private by design? That doesn't put all the burden on consumers?Marta Tellado, author of Buyer Aware: Harnessing Our Consumer Power for a Safe, Fair, and Transparent Marketplace[On harnessing consumer spending] All this money that Apple and Amazon make— all the money they use to lobby, all the money they use to propagandize— it all starts with consumer dollars that are given to them in return for services.Ralph NaderMichael Hudson is President of The Institute for the Study of Long-Term Economic Trends, a Wall Street Financial Analyst, and Distinguished Research Professor of Economics at the University of Missouri, Kansas City. He is the author of Super-Imperialism: The Economic Strategy of American Empire,  …and forgive them their debts – Lending, Foreclosure and Redemption from Bronze Age Finance to the Jubilee Year, and Finance Capitalism and its Discontents.When you realize that the purpose of quantitative easing was to raise real estate and stock market prices, why would they do it, if not to rescue the banks? It didn’t make the economy healthier. It raised the cost of living. It added to the debt deflation… So, by re-inflating the financial markets, this created a whole new business for banks— lending credit.Michael Hudson Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

Ralph does a deep dive into the commercialization of childhood with Dr. Susan Linn, psychologist, and author of “Who’s Raising the Kids? Big Tech, Big Business, and the Lives of Children.” Plus, Robert Weissman, president of Public Citizen, fills us in on their campaign to end the tenure of Louis DeJoy, the Trump-appointed Post Master, who is trying to dismantle the US Postal Service.Dr. Susan Linn is an author, psychologist, and award-winning ventriloquist. She was the Founding Director of Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (now known as Fairplay), and she is a world-renowned expert on creative play and the impact of media and commercial marketing on children. Her latest book is Who’s Raising The Kids? Big Tech, Big Business and the Lives of Children.The combination of this incredibly compelling and sophisticated and seductive technology and unregulated capitalism is already terrible for children— and it’s going to get even more terrible. And one of the things that I think it’s important for people to remember is that commercialism, or advertising and marketing— which is what all these devices we love so much were basically made for— that it doesn’t just sell products. It sells values and behaviors. And the values of commercial culture— “me first”, materialism, image is more important than anything else—those values are so harmful to society.Dr. Susan LinnIt’s enraging — at a time when books are being banned, teachers and librarians are being silenced and can’t talk to kids about important things— that the tech companies are pretty much unregulated and can say basically anything they want to children.Dr. Susan LinnEvery major religion in the world, thousands of years ago, warned their adherents not to give too much power to the merchant class. Because the commercial motive is relentless and all-encompassing. It will destroy or co-opt other civic values that are far more important for society to sustain.Ralph NaderRobert Weissman is a staunch public interest advocate and activist, as well as an expert on a wide variety of issues ranging from corporate accountability and government transparency, to trade and globalization, to economic and regulatory policy. As the President of Public Citizen, Weissman has spearheaded the effort to loosen the chokehold corporations and the wealthy have over our democracy.You can’t cut [the USPS] down to save it, you have to expand it and make it more robust. Its significance in American history and its future depends on it being a network that connects all of us and does so efficiently. So, the more you reduce it, the less chance it has to be relevant to the lives of Americans.Robert WeissmanSupport for the government and federal agencies is stronger than people realize, among the public. Most of the public supports most of what the federal government does— at least when they do it well. But support for the Postal Service is through the roof. And it’s in significant part, because it may be that a lot of the “elite opinion makers” themselves don’t personally rely on as much on the postal service and the post offices around the country as regular people do.Robert WeissmanDeJoy is playing the Republican game: You undermine public services as the reason to argue for corporatizing them.Ralph Nader Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

Do not sign-up for Medicare Advantage! We don’t care what Joe Namath tells you. That’s the message of healthcare expert, Kip Sullivan, who returns to remind us why Medicare Advantage is simply a further for-profit corporate takeover of Medicare. Plus, we rifle through the mailbag where Ralph answers your questions and comments on your feedback about past programs.Kip Sullivan is a Health Care Advisor with Health Care for All Minnesota, and has written several hundred articles on health policy. He is an active member of Physicians for a National Health Program, which advocates for universal, comprehensive single-payer national health insurance.With the original Medicare you know what you’re buying. The two parts of this scam that we’re talking about is United Healthcare puts out this brochure making it sound like because they’re so efficient that they can offer these extra services. It’s not true. They’re overpaid. We’re wasting money on them. And the other piece of the scam is when you get sick you may very well not get the coverage that is described in the policy.Kip SullivanYou can’t overstate the enthusiasm with which the Biden administration is promoting the takeover of Medicare by both Medicare Advantage plans and this new breed of parasite called the Accountable Care Organization, or ACO.Kip SullivanThere are multiple reasons to oppose the takeover of Medicare by these corporations. But the Democrats ought to be thinking about their own political future and looking ahead to this so-called crisis in 2028.Kip SullivanWe’re underinvesting in the consequences of global warming— the climate disruption, droughts, gigantic wildfires, floods, surges from the sea, hurricanes. But we’re overinvesting in blowing up countries overseas that do not threaten us… This is a sign of the collective insanity of the corporate state.Ralph NaderThis article by Diane Archer would be very useful for any listeners just turning 65 and trying to figure out whether to enroll in MA or stay in traditional Medicare:Four things to think about when choosing a plan to fill gaps in Medicare, a “Medigap” or Medicare supplemental insurance plan Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

“Everyone is entitled to a defense” contend large law firms when they represent notorious corporate clients, but many of these firms push the ethical envelope. That’s the crux of the discussion Ralph has with David Enrich as outlined in his book, “Servants of the Damned: Giant Law Firms, Donald Trump, and the Corruption of Justice.” Plus, we welcome Dr. Michael Jacobson, founder, and former director of Science in the Public Interest to tell us how we need to raise taxes on Science in the Public Interest to reduce alcohol-related deaths and mayhem.David Enrich is the Business Investigations Editor at the New York Times, and the bestselling author of Dark Towers: Deutsche Bank, Donald Trump, and an Epic Trail of Destruction. His latest book is Servants of the Damned: Giant Law Firms, Donald Trump, and the Corruption of Justice.There’s a lot of lip service that the leaders of the legal industry pay to being good corporate citizens and being public-spirited officers of the court. And you often scratch a little bit beneath the surface of these giant law firms, and you realize that is just not true.David Enrich, author of Servants of the Damned: Giant Law Firms, Donald Trump, and the Corruption of JusticeIt was very clear to me the vast power that these law firms were wielding, not only defending their clients in and out of court, but also shaping the public’s perception of how these fights were transpiring—  in large part through the media. It’s more or less taboo— in the mainstream media in particular— to really pull back the curtain on the way that those law firms are operatingDavid Enrich, author of Servants of the Damned: Giant Law Firms, Donald Trump, and the Corruption of Justice[Jones Day] is not a monolith, and it’s not a place that I regard as evil. But it’s really a classic example of a place where even well-intentioned lawyers go, and—to make a living or to repay their debts or whatever—and they sometimes end up really pushing the envelope.David Enrich, author of Servants of the Damned: Giant Law Firms, Donald Trump, and the Corruption of JusticeWhen they say “we believe in the position of the clients we represent…” it really isn’t true. They don’t believe in all the positions of their clients. And when you nail them on that issue, they say “Well, we’re required by the professional code of ethics of our profession to zealously represent these clients. It’s not up to us to expose their Achilles heel— that’s what the adversarial system is for.”Ralph NaderMichael Jacobson holds a PhD. in microbiology from MIT. He is well-known for his nutrition advocacy that helped eliminate artificial trans-fat from the food supply, expose the enormous calorie counts of movie theater popcorn and many restaurant foods and make Nutrition Facts mandatory on food packages. Dr. Jacobson is the author of Salt Wars: The Battle Over the Biggest Killer in the American Diet.There’s no doubt that raising alcohol taxes would raise the price of alcoholic beverages, and consumption would decline. For any kind of imaginable tax increase, alcohol problems and deaths would not go to zero. But there would be a significant decline in proportion to the increase in tax rates.Dr. Michael Jacobson Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

Ralph does a deep dive into the real purpose of the Federal Reserve and other aspects of the American economy with progressive economist, Michael Hudson. Plus, our resident constitutional scholar, Bruce Fein, joins us to talk about the elected official from New Mexico, who got removed from office because of his role in the Jan. 6th insurrection and what that possibly could mean for Donald’s Trump eligibility for office. And he also discusses a letter from retired Secretaries of Defense and Joint Chiefs about military leaders rejecting illegal presidential orders.Michael Hudson is President of The Institute for the Study of Long-Term Economic Trends, a Wall Street Financial Analyst, and Distinguished Research Professor of Economics at the University of Missouri, Kansas City. He is the author of Super-Imperialism: The Economic Strategy of American Empire, …and forgive them their debts – Lending, Foreclosure and Redemption from Bronze Age Finance to the Jubilee Year, and Finance Capitalism and its Discontents.The Federal Reserve was created to stop social purpose spending by the government, by essentially cutting the Treasury out of the monetary management process. And that’s true, not only of the Federal Reserve in America, but of central banks all over the world.Michael HudsonThe economy has never really recovered from Obama’s bailout of the banks in 2008. And government and the Federal Reserve have been keeping the financial markets afloat by quantitative easing, but they really haven’t helped the population at large.Michael HudsonIf money should be a public utility, just like the dollar bills in your pocket, the credit cards and the electronic payments should be a public utility. But instead, it’s privatized. It’s turned into a monopoly, and it’s a source of monopoly rents for the banks that really is unnecessary.Michael HudsonThe important thing about gambling is the casino always wins, and the second important thing is that there’s always a loser for every winner. And if you’re gambling on the stock market or on derivatives, the insiders— especially the crooks— always end up the winners. And the honest people… end up the losers.Michael HudsonThe drive is to get people not to use cash, check, or money order, and to do everything by credit card, debit card, and other multiplying payment systems. It impresses me as being a major controlling process. Once they suck you into the credit card gulag, they can penalize you, overcharge you, ruin your credit score… In effect, they strip you of control over your own money.Ralph NaderBruce Fein is a Constitutional scholar and an expert on international law.  Mr. Fein was Associate Deputy Attorney General under Ronald Reagan and he is the author of Constitutional Peril: The Life and Death Struggle for Our Constitution and Democracy, and American Empire: Before the Fall.[The decision to disqualify Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin from holding office] demonstrates that when [Trump], if he does try to run for the presidency in 2024, that he will confront a hurdle of having provided material assistance to the insurrection of January 6th— irrespective of whether he’s committed a crime or not.Bruce Fein Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

Ralph welcomes Washington Post columnist, Dana Milbank, who draws a direct line from Newt Gingrich’s ascendency to Speaker of the House in 1994 to the January 6th insurrection in his book “The Destructionists: The Twenty-Five Year Crack-Up of the Republican Party.” Plus, a new Capitol Hill Citizen is out!   Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

Ralph interviews North Carolina attorney, Mona Lisa Wallace, whose litigation team won more than $500 million in damages for the facility’s North Carolina neighbors against the hog production component of Smithfield Foods along with author Corban Addison who chronicled the gripping John Grisham-like tale in his book: “Wastelands: The True Story Of Farm Country On Trial.”   Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe

In a live Zoom recording, Ralph welcomes attorney Josh Koskoff, who tells us how he won a groundbreaking 73 million dollars from Remington and other gun manufacturers on behalf of the families of the Sandy Hook mass school shooting.  Ralph and Josh lay out the story then Josh takes questions from our virtual audience. Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe