Going Underground Hosted by Afshin Rattansi

On this episode of Going Underground, we speak to Brandon Weichert, former US Air Force Consultant, Senior National Security Editor of 19FortyFive, and Author of ‘Fortress Americas: A New Monroe Doctrine’. He discusses how the New Monroe Doctrine differs from the ‘Donroe Doctrine’ of Donald Trump, the emergence of a US-Russia-China tripolar world order, the sanctity of the democratic process in the Western hemisphere for a continental system, the need to rely on American economic attractiveness over military force and covert operations, his opposition to any US attack on China in favour of cooperation and an abandonment on the US’ policy of defending Taiwan, how China views the outcome of the US midterm elections, how the US war on Iran has super-charged China instead of hurting it, why nuclear war remains a nightmare scenario for him with nuclear war on Donald Trump’s mind, the possibility of Donald Trump resigning by April next year, who Brad Cooper is: the man tipped to take over the War Department from Pete Hegseth, how Donald Trump’s relationship with Gadi Eisenkot will differ from his relationship with Netanyahu should Eisenkot become Prime Minister, the upcoming potential trilateral Trump-Putin-Xi Summit and its potential ramifications, how the CIA continues running rogue and continuing the Ukraine proxy war, and much more.

Chapters

(00:00:00) - Opening Headlines and Global Precarity
(00:01:40) - Introducing Brandon Weichert and Fortress Americas
(00:02:16) - Origins of the Book and Trump's Policy Reversal
(00:03:52) - Multipolar World and Geo-Economics Over Hegemony
(00:05:16) - Spheres of Influence vs Imperialism Debate
(00:07:16) - Continental System and Latin American Cooperation
(00:08:16) - Nationalization, Oil, and US Global Power Questions
(00:09:25) - Monroe Doctrine vs Brzezinski's Grand Chessboard
(00:10:26) - China Policy and Avoiding Confrontation
(00:11:57) - Midterms' Impact on China Strategy
(00:13:35) - China Winning the Silent Race
(00:14:43) - Return from Break and Iran War Reflections
(00:16:21) - Midterms, Trump's Future, and Nuclear Fears
(00:18:52) - Trump's Legal Worries and Possible Early Exit
(00:19:30) - Brad Cooper and Pentagon Power Struggles
(00:20:55) - Netanyahu, Eisenkot, and Israeli Influence
(00:22:50) - JD Vance's Political Failures and Future
(00:23:43) - Trilateral Talks and Democrats' War Stance
(00:27:10) - Closing Remarks and Upcoming Shows

On this episode of Going Underground, we speak to Bo Loudon, Trump insider and Turning Point USA Ambassador. He discusses what he considers the risk of the Democrats winning the midterm elections, Donald Trump’s achievements and why he believes the Democrats are unable to handle war, how Trump will respond if the Republicans lose the midterms, the need for more civil conversations and debate in American politics, the war on Iran and its consequences, the effect of the loss of Charlie Kirk on the Republican Party, why Donald Trump has done nothing to prosecute the likes of James Clapper, Hillary Clinton, Adam Schiff and others who propagated the Russiagate hoax, ongoing threats to Donald Trump’s life, Trump’s handling of the Ukraine proxy war, Zelensky, and Vladimir Putin, the Epstein Files scandal and his defence of Donald Trump, his view of the polling which paints a dismal picture for the Republicans ahead of the midterms, and much more.

On this episode of Going Underground, we speak to Joel Rubin, Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Obama Administration. In a heated debate with challenges from Afshin Rattansi, he discusses how he thinks the Democrats will fare in the upcoming midterms in taking the House of Representatives and the Senate, his argument for why the people should vote for the Democrats, what the Democrats’ position on the war on Iran is and if they will do anything to stop the war, how AIPAC has destroyed its reputation with the Democratic Party, why the US continues to send military aid to Israel despite the Gaza genocide and Israel’s wars of aggression, why the Democrats continue to support more military aid for Ukraine while a majority of Americans oppose continued aid for Ukraine, his opposition to ‘isolationist’ American foreign policy, his defence of the Democrats’ foreign policy as Afshin challenges him on the US’ foreign policy record while the American people suffer, and much more.

On this episode of Going Underground, we speak to Prof. Richard Wolff, Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He discusses the causes of the mass protests in France and the rest of Western Europe and the drive by Europe’s leaders to gear up for war against Russia, Europe’s hypocrisy in buying hundreds of billions of euros worth of Russian energy while funding Ukraine’s Zelensky, the solution to Europe’s terminal decline and loss of power, China’s and Russia’s goal being to stay on the sidelines while the US’ unipolar world implodes, whether the US working class can trust progressives and ‘democratic socialists’ ahead of the midterms, what socialism actually means for progressive politicians in the US, how socialism is likely to evolve in the US in the future, how the Israel lobby’s and military-industrial complex’s power over Congress is ultimately their downfall, the two scapegoats in the US being immigrants and Russia, and much more.

Chapters

(00:00:00) - Introduction and global context
(00:01:25) - Western Europe's war mistakes and loss of empire
(00:03:27) - Russian energy funding the war and European economic decline
(00:05:04) - Military Keynesianism and the end of colonial empires
(00:08:37) - Churchill, decolonization, and China/Russia's anti-imperialism
(00:12:06) - China's economic rise and strategic patience
(00:13:35) - US progressives, socialism, and the midterms
(00:16:21) - Mamdani, Sanders, and new American socialism
(00:20:12) - Military-industrial complex and medical industry parallels
(00:22:51) - AIPAC, Israel lobby, and shifting US politics
(00:24:09) - Democratic Party, Russia scapegoating, and closing remarks

On this episode of Going Underground, we speak to Paul Craig Roberts, former US Assistant Treasury Secretary for Economic Policy under Ronald Reagan and former Associate Editor of the Wall Street Journal. He discusses why the US under Donald Trump continues to supply intelligence to Ukraine despite pursuing an end to the NATO-Russia proxy war, the grip of the neoconservatives on American foreign policy, why he believes Ukraine’s Zelensky is ‘finished’, the US-Russia diesel deal and why it was struck, how Iran handed Trump a midterm victory on a silver platter only to be met with rejection and more bombing threats, why he believes Benjamin Netanyahu orchestrated October 7th, how Ronald Reagan defied the Israel lobby, the ongoing protests in France and Western Europe, the prospect of the Democrats sweeping the midterm elections, and much more.

Chapters

(00:00:12) - Introduction: UN Day, Global War and Economic Crisis
(00:01:09) - Trump, Russia and the Military-Industrial Complex
(00:03:17) - Trump's Appointments and Washington Capture
(00:04:02) - Zelensky's Decline and Russian Pressures
(00:05:25) - The Diesel Deal and Global Oil Prices
(00:09:13) - Political Messaging and Manipulation of Perception
(00:10:23) - Iran Strike Risk and Trump's Missed Opportunity
(00:13:04) - Israel's Influence Over Trump and October 7th Theories
(00:14:58) - Comparisons to 9/11 and Reagan's Israel Defiance
(00:19:05) - Reagan's Assassination Attempt Speculation
(00:20:50) - Unrest in France and European Immigration Crisis
(00:25:19) - Democrats, Revolution, and Risk of Nuclear War
(00:27:41) - Closing Remarks and Show Wrap-up