WPKN: Politics, Policy, and Planet Podcast

A conversation with Medea Benjamin, co-director of Code Pink, and Francesca Rheannon, host of A Writer's Voice, a podcast which airs nationally and on WPKN-CT.Our guests cover topics from the ramped up oppressive measures against women's rights under Trump 2.0; to the possibilty of an end to the war in Ukraine; and the assault on DEI, free speech and public education.Hosts:  Ruthanne Baumgartner, Scott Harris and Richard Hill

This month the Labor Report focuses on the rapid devolution of the American political system into an authoritarian fascist oligarchy.Michael Zweig, economist and labor historian, provides an overview of these dangerous developments and the type of resistance needed to combat them.Special guest Sultana Hossain, recording secretary for tha Amazon Workers Union, reports on the "holiday strike" against Amazon last December; and then discusses the on-going fight by the AWU to force Amazon to negotiate a fair contract.Host: Richard Hill

Interview with Mike German, a fellow with the Liberty and National Security program at the Brennan Center for Justice, conducted by Scott Harris.Mike German talks about his new book, “Policing White Supremacy the Enemy Within,” a former FBI agent’s urgent call for law enforcement to prioritize far-right violence and end tolerance for police racism, and an increasingly dangerous situation where Donald Trump and his administration have embraced white supremacist and armed militia groups committing political violence on his behalf.

Interview with Nicole Carty, Executive Director of Get Free, a youth-led progressive activist movement, and Carson Delia, a Temple University student and Get Free member, conducted by Scott Harris.Nicole Carty and Carson Delia talk about confronting the Trump regime’s attempt to eliminate DEI policies in higher education and censor curricula that don’t conform to their white supremacist ideology. They’ll also discuss a recent incident at Temple University where students attempting to deliver a letter to the university president addressing their concerns regarding: Trump’s anti-DEI policies, were blocked by police.

Interview with Katherine Jacobsen, Canada, and Caribbean program coordinator with the Committee to Protect Journalists, formerly worked for The Associated Press in Moscow and as a freelancer in Ukraine, conducted by Scott Harris.Katherine Jacobsen talks about CPJ’s call on the Trump administration to restore Associated Press access to the White House, and the Trump regime’s removal of the White House Correspondents’ Association from their decades-long role assigning reporters to cover White House press pool events, where the President’s staff will itself select reporters who will cover the presidency.

Interview with Norman Solomon, co-founder of RootsAction.org and executive director of the Institute for Public Accuracy, conducted by Scott Harris.Norman Solomon discusses his recent article, “Democrats Irritated by Voters Who Elected Them Need an Attitude Adjustment.” where he warns that Democratic legislators who are “perceived as wimps who failed to put up a fight against President Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Elon Musk, risk facing primary challenges propelled by grassroots anger.

Excerpt of Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, Senate floor speech on Feb. 4, 2025, edited and produced by Scott Harris.In this Feb. 4, 2025 excerpt of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ speech, he addresses the Trump-Musk coup, describing it as a dangerous movement toward oligarchy, authoritarianism and kleptocracy.

Interview with Elizabeth Jacobs, professor emeritus, epidemiology at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health at the University of Arizona, conducted by Scott Harris.Elizabeth Jacobs discusses rising concern about newly confirmed Health and Human Services Secretary RFK Jr.’s agenda at this sprawling agency and the damage his anti-science views could inflict on the federal health response to contagious diseases such as measles and bird flu, federally-funded research on new drugs and food safety, as well as supervision of Medicare, Medicaid, CHIPS and the ACA.

Interview with Maria J. Stephan, author of the award-winning book, "Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict," conducted by Scott Harris.Maria Stephan talks about her recent article, “We are Stronger Than We Think,” and issues related to the rising protest movement opposing the Trump/Musk agenda, the power of collective defiance and how to make cruelty backfire. Stephan, co-lead and chief organizer of the Horizons Project, is the author and editor of five books on authoritarianism and civil resistance.

Interview with Alex Lawson, executive director of Social Security Works, conducted by Scott Harris.Alex Lawson discusses the House GOP budget resolution that calls for $880 billion in cuts to Medicaid to help pay for extending the 2017 tax cuts for billionaires and multinational corporations, primarily benefiting the wealthiest Americans. He also talks about the group’s campaign to educate and mobilize Americans to oppose this proposal that will eliminate millions of Americans’ access to affordable health care.