

Scott Horton Show - Just the Interviews
Scott Horton
This 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.
Episodes
Mentioned books

May 3, 2022 • 59min
5/2/22 Douglas Macgregor on New Russia and “Hatred in the Plural”
Scott interviews Retired Colonel Douglas Macgregor about the war in Ukraine. Scott recently interviewed William Arkin who believes the Russians are actually losing this war. Macgregor has a very different take, and Scott gives him the opportunity to address Arkin’s argument. Macgregor shares his view of how the war has unfolded so far and how he expects it to evolve. He believes the Russians will pivot and attempt to occupy Eastern and Southern Ukraine. He thinks a battle for Odessa is looming and that the Russians will succeed in this endeavor. Scott then asks about reports about the Biden Administration’s new overt intentions to fund another color revolution in Belarus. Macgregor gives his take on how it may happen and then predicts that the Kremlin will respond with similar attempts in Latin America. Lastly, Scott and Macgregor talk about some of the institutional barriers facing those who want to change the foreign policy status quo in Washington. Discussed on the show:
Scott’s Interview with William Arkin
Manufacturing Consent by Noam Chomsky
Douglas Macgregor, Col. (ret.) is a senior fellow with The American Conservative, the former advisor to the Secretary of Defense in the Trump administration, a decorated combat veteran, and the author of five books.This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State and Why The Vietnam War?, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; EasyShip; Free Range Feeder; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt and Listen and Think Audio.Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

May 3, 2022 • 57min
4/29/22 Jordan Smith on Melissa Lucio and the Pitfalls of Capital Punishment
Scott is joined by investigative journalist Jordan Smith to discuss Melissa Lucio, a Texas woman awaiting execution. Smith walks us through Lucio’s case where the tragic death of her child was immediately assumed by police and prosecutors to be foul play. Smith’s reporting has uncovered the ways Lucio was misled and manipulated into falsely incriminating herself only hours after losing her child. Lucio narrowly avoided execution last week, but she still has a long fight ahead of her to avoid being killed by the State of Texas. Smith explains where things stand for Lucio going forward. Discussed on the show:
“Melissa Lucio’s Life Was Spared At The Last Minute, What Happens Now?” (The Intercept)
“How the flawed ‘science’ of bite mark analysis has sent innocent people to prison” (Washington Post)
Jordan Smith is an investigative journalist based in Austin, Texas. She has covered criminal justice for 20 years and is regarded as one of the best investigative reporters in Texas. A longtime staff writer for the Austin Chronicle, she now writes for The Intercept.This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State and Why The Vietnam War?, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; EasyShip; Free Range Feeder; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt and Listen and Think Audio.Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

May 1, 2022 • 32min
4/30/22 Nassar Arrabyee on Yemen’s Future
Nassar Arrabyee joins Scott for Antiwar Radio this week to discuss the ongoing ceasefire in Yemen. Arrabyee explains why he still considers this ceasefire to be different and he gives Scott an update on the effects on the ground. They then discuss the presence of ISIS and Al-Qaeda which Scott worries could dampen the prospects for peace. Lastly, they discuss the humanitarian cost of this war so far, which alone is enough of a reason to end the thing once and for all. Discussed on the show:
“Yemen’s New Leaders: Our First Option Is Peace” (Antiwar.com)
“US maintains intelligence relationship with Houthis” (Al-Monitor)
yemenfoundation.org
Nasser Arrabyee is a Yemeni journalist based in Sana’a, Yemen. He is the owner and director of yemen-now.com. You can follow him on Twitter @narrabyee.This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State and Why The Vietnam War?, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; EasyShip; Free Range Feeder; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt and Listen and Think Audio.Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apr 29, 2022 • 49min
4/22/22 Mitchell Plitnick on Israel, Iran and a Cold War in the Middle East
Scott interviews Mitchel Plitnick about Israeli politics and the Iran Nuclear Deal. Plitnick begins by filling us in on the political situation in Israel, where a new coalition government is working to agree upon a budget by the Fall of 2023. If they are unable to do so, the government will fall apart and new elections will take place. Next, they discuss the news about Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch labeling Israel an apartheid state due to their treatment of Palestinians. Plitnick and Scott give their theories for the abrupt change in tone. They then talk about the JCPOA, which is at risk of falling apart thanks to the Biden Administration’s reluctance to remove the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corp from the terrorist list Trump placed them on. Scott and Plitnick observe that actually, the destruction of the deal will leave Iran’s nuclear activity unmonitored. Plitnick worries that we are on the road to a Cold War in the Middle East between Israel and Iran. Discussed on the show:
“How the Israeli government shake-up will affect US-relations” (Responsible Statecraft)
Manufactured Crises by Gareth Porter
Mitchell Plitnick is president of ReThinking Foreign Policy. His writing has appeared in Ha’aretz, the New Republic, the San Francisco Chronicle, and many other outlets, and he has regularly offered commentary in a wide range of radio and television outlets including PBS News Hour and the O’Reilly Factor. Follow him on Twitter @MJPlitnick.This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State and Why The Vietnam War?, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; EasyShip; Free Range Feeder; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt and Listen and Think Audio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apr 29, 2022 • 41min
4/22/22 Mike Swanson on Inflation and Economic Bubbles
Scott interviews Mike Swanson about our current economic situation. Swanson starts by pointing out the historic nature of the economy in the middle of 2020 when interest rates and commodity prices were extremely low. Swanson explains how the inflation and volatility we are seeing today are the direct effects of early pandemic policies, not quick market reactions to the war in Eastern Europe as the Biden Administration wants us to believe. Swanson then focuses on the different sectors within the economy and gives his outlook on how they will act differently going forward. Scott and Swanson also discuss the political forces that are boxing politicians in while leaving everyday Americans confused and worried. Discussed on the show:
WallStreetWindow.com
Secrets of the Temple: How the Federal Reserve Runs the Country by William Greider
Mike Swanson provides investment advice at wallstreetwindow.com and is the author of The War State: The Cold War Origins Of The Military-Industrial Complex And The Power Elite. He also works with the Neopolis Media Group, a group of historians, educators, authors, researchers, and free speech advocates who endeavor to provide original and engaging content, including The Ochelli Effect, and The Lone Gunman Podcast.This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State and Why The Vietnam War?, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; EasyShip; Free Range Feeder; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt and Listen and Think Audio.Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apr 27, 2022 • 1h 3min
4/22/22 Peter Van Buren on the Elections of Post-Constitutional America
Peter Van Buren is back on the show to discuss a number of articles he published about Russiagate and the Hunter Biden Laptop coverup. He and Scott run through the history of the coordinated effort to keep Trump out of the White House in 2016, and detail how the effort shifted to removing him from office after he won before finally settling on an attempt to “rein him in” that proved successful. That brings them to the 2020 election where the shadowy tactics used to propel Biden to victory over Trump were clear to see and even bragged about in a Time Magazine article. Van Buren warns that the story is not over. And that unless the American public shows uncharacteristic concern about intelligence bureaucrats working to sway elections, the process is bound to repeat in 2024. Discussed on the show:
“The Russiagate Hoax Goes Deeper Than We Thought” (Libertarian Institute)
“Thoughts For The Dead” (The American Conservative)
“Revisiting Hunter Biden’s Laptop” (The American Conservative)
“The Secret History of the Shadow Campaign That Saved the 2020 Election” (Time)
“The Hunter Biden disinformation campaign” (Spectator World)
Peter Van Buren’s Soho Forum Debate on Taiwan
Peter Van Buren worked for 24 years at the Department of State including a year in Iraq. He is the author of We Meant Well: How I Helped Lose the Battle for the Hearts and Minds of the Iraqi People and the novel Hooper’s War. He is now a contributing editor at The American Conservative magazine.This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State and Why The Vietnam War?, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; EasyShip; Free Range Feeder; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt and Listen and Think Audio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apr 26, 2022 • 32min
4/22/22 Ryan McMaken on Capitalism and Peace
Scott talks with Ryan McMaken about free markets and free trade. They begin with a discussion about the role of the Mises Institute in the push for sound money. Scott then asks McMaken about the nuances of debating capitalism vs. socialism while living under a mixed economy. They then discuss the changing role of the United States in the world. McMaken does believe a “rules-based international order” existed after the fall of the USSR. But that the U.S. destroyed it by invading Iraq in 2003. McMaken argues that the best path forward is a commitment to the classical liberal ideals of free markets at home and nonintervention abroad. Discussed on the show:
Scott’s Kennedy Appearance
Mises.org
Creature from Jekyll Island by G. Edward Griffin
“The "Rules-Based International Order" Is Dead. Washington Killed It” (Mises Wire)
Ryan McMaken is a senior editor at the Mises Institute. He has degrees in economics and political science from the University of Colorado, and was the economist for the Colorado Division of Housing from 2009 to 2014. He is the author of Commie Cowboys: The Bourgeoisie and the Nation-State in the Western Genre.This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State and Why The Vietnam War?, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; EasyShip; Free Range Feeder; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt and Listen and Think Audio.Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apr 25, 2022 • 33min
4/22/22 William Arkin on Russia’s Failures in Ukraine
William Arkin joined Scott on yesterday's Antiwar Radio show to discuss the war in Ukraine. Arkin has spent the last two months following the war closely to try and get an accurate read on what’s happening on the ground. He shares his findings and latest analysis with Scott. Arkin believes that Russia’s military failures have exposed them as a paper tiger, invalidating all the money and resources that have been poured into NATO over the decades. At the same time, the absence of diplomacy and the apparent U.S. intentions to turn this conflict into a prolonged proxy war pose the greatest danger to Ukrainian civilians. Discussed on the show:
William M. Arkin’s Newsweek Page
“Putin's Iskander Missiles Are Battle-Tested—and Can Carry Nuclear Warheads” (Newsweek)
William Arkin is a military intelligence analyst, activist, author, journalist, academic and consultant. His award-winning reporting has appeared on the front pages of The Washington Post, The New York Times, and The Los Angeles Times. He is the author of American Coup: How a Terrified Government Is Destroying the Constitution and The Generals Have No Clothes: The Untold Story of Our Endless Wars. Follow him on Twitter @warkin.This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State and Why The Vietnam War?, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; EasyShip; Free Range Feeder; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt and Listen and Think Audio.Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apr 24, 2022 • 30min
4/22/22 Kevin Gosztola on the Next Steps in the Assange Extradition
Keven Gosztola returns to the show to give an update on Wikileaks founder Julian Assange’s legal situation. The British magistrate's court recently ordered Assange to be extradited to the United States. Gosztola walks us through how we arrived at this point and what the expected next steps are. Notably, the Assange legal team will get to appeal the U.S. government's near-certain acceptance of the extradition. The appeal will present Assange and his lawyers the opportunity to bring up a whole range of important issues that have so far gone unexamined. Chief among those issues is the concern for journalism and press freedom. Gosztola ends with an observation that even some organizations friendly to the U.S. national security establishment are beginning to express worry about the precedence this case may set. Discussed on the show:
“Dark Day for Press Freedom as British Court Orders Assange Extradition” (Shadowproof)
“Inside the CIA's secret war plans against WikiLeaks” (Yahoo! News)
Vault 7 Leaks
Kevin Gosztola is the managing editor of Shadowproof. He also produces and co-hosts the weekly podcast, “Unauthorized Disclosure.” Follow him on Twitter @kgosztola.This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State and Why The Vietnam War?, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; EasyShip; Free Range Feeder; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt and Listen and Think Audio.Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Apr 18, 2022 • 38min
4/15/22 Daniel Larison on the Deteriorating JCPOA Negotiations
Scott interviews Daniel Larison about his recent article on the Iran Nuclear Deal negotiations. Before getting to that, Scott asks Larison about his reaction to the ceasefire in Yemen. Larison points out that nearly all ceasefires to occur in Yemen so far have actually been excuses for forces to regroup. However, he agrees with Scott that this one appears different. Next Scott and Larison go through the confusing and frustrating lack of progress in the negotiations for the U.S. to reenter the JCPOA. They talk about what’s going on and why, even though neither are concerned about Iran developing and using a nuclear weapon, they believe reentering the deal is the right path forward. The two also tie this topic into a broader conversation about Washington’s Middle East adventurism and the strange political forces shaping America’s Iran policy. Discussed on the show:
“Biden’s Last Chance on the Nuclear Deal” (Antiwar.com)
Scott’s interview with Nasser Arrabyee
“Yemeni Civil War Unleashes a Plague of Locusts” (Antiwar.com)
Manufactured Crisis: The Untold Story of the Iran Nuclear Scare by Gareth Porter
Daniel Larison is a contributing editor at Antiwar.com, contributor at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft and former senior editor at The American Conservative magazine. Follow him on Twitter @DanielLarison or on his blog, Eunomia.This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: The War State and Why The Vietnam War?, by Mike Swanson; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; EasyShip; Free Range Feeder; Thc Hemp Spot; Green Mill Supercritical; Bug-A-Salt and Listen and Think Audio.Shop Libertarian Institute merch or donate to the show through Patreon, PayPal or Bitcoin: 1DZBZNJrxUhQhEzgDh7k8JXHXRjYu5tZiG. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices


