The Intercept Briefing

As Democrats continue to debate whether to initiate an impeachment inquiry, Trump seems to be going nuts from the Democrats’ continuing probe into his possible obstruction of justice, corruption, and abuse of power. The Intercept’s Ryan Grim explains Nancy Pelosi’s rise to power within the Democratic Party, her political origins, and what her possible end game strategy is for Trump. Grim also weighs in on the large 2020 Democratic candidate field and talks about his new book, “We’ve Got People: From Jesse Jackson to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the End of Big Money and the Rise of a Movement.” Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For the first time in U.S. history, the government is criminally prosecuting a publisher for printing truthful information. Whether Assange is extradited or not, this case casts a dangerous cloud over aggressive national security reporting and means criminalizing journalism is on the table. Jameel Jaffer, director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and former top lawyer at the ACLU, analyzes the indictment and explains why he believes this case represents a grave threat to a free press. As Democrats continue to debate whether to initiate an impeachment inquiry against Trump, Nancy Pelosi seems to be getting under The Donald’s skin. The Intercept’s Ryan Grim explains Pelosi’s rise to power within the Democratic Party, her political origins and what her possible end game strategy is for Donald Trump. Grim also discusses his new book “We’ve Got People: From Jesse Jackson to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the End of Big Money and the Rise of a Movement.”If you like what we do, support our show by going to TheIntercept.com/join to become a member. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

National Security Adviser John Bolton is more powerful than ever and is obsessed with regime change in Tehran. His boss is threatening to bring the “end of Iran” as some news outlets help spread the administration’s unveiled attempt to gin up a Gulf of Tonkin-style justification for war. Iranian author and analyst Hooman Majd explains how we got here and how Iran’s leaders view the Trump administration. Trump loves to talk about locking up his political opponents and with William Barr as his attorney general, it may not be unthinkable. That is precisely what the former President of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, is charging happened to him. Lula, the once popular leftist president of Brazil, is serving a 12-year prison sentence on corruption charges. But, in an exclusive prison interview with The Intercept’s Glenn Greenwald, Lula says his prosecution was an attempt to destroy him and the Workers Party he built. Greenwald discusses his interview and plays highlights of his conversation with Lula. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Trevor Timm, executive director of the Freedom of the Press Foundation, talks about the weaponization of this law for use in stopping investigative journalism and the case of Air Force veteran Daniel Hale, who is facing 50 years in prison. Organizer Bill Fletcher Jr. discusses the Trump administration’s intensifying military threats against Iran, the ongoing coup attempt in Venezuela and offers strategic thoughts on how to view the 2020 Democratic primary field. Dr. Krystal Redman, executive director of SPARK Reproductive Justice Now in Georgia, talks about the spate of new laws being implemented in several states that seek to criminalize abortion and women’s health care providers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Intercept’s Murtaza Hussain discusses Trump’s motley crew of regime change warriors, what war with Iran would look like, and the strategy behind the economic sanctions. At nearly 90 years old, former Senator Mike Gravel may be the oldest candidate for president, but he also has the dankest social media memes. Gravel discusses his insurgent run for the Democratic nomination led by his campaign volunteers who are teenagers.The Intercept’s Jordan Smith talks about her latest reporting on abortion. In honor of the 100th anniversary of Pete Seeger’s birth, we hear some never before released recordings and talk with Jeff Place, the curator and senior archivist of The Smithsonian Folkways Collection’s career-spanning anthology of Seeger’s work.If you like what we do, support our show by going to TheIntercept.com/join to become a member. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Intercept’s editor-in-chief Betsy Reed, investigative journalist Matthew Cole, and national security editor Vanessa Gezari discuss how Erik Prince went from exile in the United Arab Emirates to a shadow player in Trump world. Famed Pentagon Papers lawyer James Goodale, former counsel to the New York Times, discusses the dangerous precedent the prosecution of Julian Assange would set and criticizes “establishment” media outlets for not speaking out. War reporter Dahr Jamail, who reported inside Fallujah during the first U.S. siege, has now deployed to the frontlines of the war to save the climate. He reads from his new book, ”The End of Ice: Bearing Witness and Finding Meaning in the Path of Climate Disruption." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’d like to introduce you to Running from COPS — a new podcast from our sister company Topic Studios and the team behind Missing Richard Simmons.After 30 years on television, COPS has evolved into a constant messaging machine about policing in America. Running from COPS is the result of an 18-month investigation and delves deep into how the show actually gets made, how much control police departments really have over the final product, and the harrowing stories of the people who have ended up on camera.If you like what you hear, the show is out now on all podcast platforms. Just search for “Running from COPS.”Intercepted will be back with new episodes next week. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ryan Grim, the Washington DC bureau chief of The Intercept, discusses the departure of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Neilsen and the historic War Powers Resolution vote that just passed Congress.Investigative reporter Aura Bogado, of Reveal, discusses the Trump administration’s current immigration policies, the ongoing family separations and Bernie Sanders rejection of the concept of “open borders.” The Intercept’s Micah Lee discusses the bizarre case of the Chinese national who talked her way onto Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort with a bunch of cash, USB drives with malware and some counter surveillance equipment. Two Catholic Worker peace activists explain why they snuck onto a US military base, poured their own blood and attempted to deliver an indictment of President Trump. Carmen Trotta of the New York Catholic Worker and Martha Hennessy, the granddaughter of Dorothy Day, discuss their legal strategy, why they acted, and the history of the Plowshares movement. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Intercept’s Alice Speri discusses her investigation into the FBI’s creation of the term “black identity extremist” and explains why this label is so dangerous. Science fiction author Cory Doctorow walks us through the dystopian yet highly plausible futures in his new book “Radicalized.” Plus, Katie Alice Greer of the band Priests describes how history and mythology influenced their new record, “The Seduction of Kansas.” Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Naomi Klein analyzes the epic media failure on Trump-Russia and discusses the agenda for change and resistance that should have been. Rolling Stone’s Matt Taibbi details how on Trump-Russia the media failed to do its job.Ali Abunimah, of the Electronic Intifada, lays out the scandal in plain sight: Israeli collusion with Trump and the broader U.S. political power structure. The Intercept’s Jon Schwarz tells the bizarre tale of China’s illegal influence over the presidential campaign of Jeb Bush. And Alison Klayman talks about her film "The Brink," a look at the past year of Steve Bannon’s project to bring his white nationalist agenda global. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.