On this episode of The Final Countdown, hosts Angie Wong and Ted Rall discuss a variety of current events, including Trump’s legal saga and Fani Wilis winning the Democratic primary.
DMZ America Podcast Ep 146: Biden Cuts Off Israel, Stormy Daniels Rages, Our Weird Economy
Political cartoonists Ted Rall (from the Left) and Scott Stantis (from the Right) debate the week in news and culture as friendly adversaries to bring you spirited debate and smart insight.
First up: President Biden’s patience with the war cabinet of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expired. After warning Bibi not to enter the southern Gaza city of Rafah, Bibi went ahead and did just that, cutting off aid trucks at the border to boot. For the first time in memory, the president put a “pause” on the delivery of 3,500 bombs that were set to be delivered to Israel for use against Gaza. How significant is this? Is this a rupture or just a temporary squabble between allies?
Second: Porn actor Stormy Daniels testified in the Donald Trump’s hush-money trial in Manhattan. It says a lot about the current state of politics that the first-ever criminal trial of a former President of the United States, in which he faces jail time, is not a huge story. Yet the implications, both legal and political, are significant.
Finally: American voters continue to be dissatisfied with the state of the economy. Scott and Ted dissect the good, the bad and the ugly in the current situation.
Watch the Video Version: here.
The Final Countdown – 4/30/24 – Trump’s Hush Money Trial Heats up as He Receives Fines for Violating Gag Order
On this episode of The Final Countdown, hosts Angie Wong and Ted Rall discuss a wide array of topics, including Trump’s hush money trial.
DMZ America Podcast #145: Mass Graves in Gaza, Imperial Presidency, Menthol Madness
Political cartoonists Ted Rall (from the Left) and Scott Stantis (from the Right) debate the week in news and culture as friendly adversaries to bring you spirited debate and smart insight.
First up: The Israel-Hamas War seems to be entering some sort of tipping point in terms of international public opinion. As the International Criminal Court weighs issuing an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over his government’s policy of blockade and mass starvation in Gaza and student protests over America’s support of Israel spread from Columbia University to college and university campuses around the nation, the disturbing discovery of a pair of mass graves containing the bodies of hospital patients and personnel apparently summarily executed in areas under IDF control prompt Scott to say that, if this is confirmed to be an Israeli war crime, he would be done with Israel after supporting the Jewish state for many years.
Second: The US Supreme Court hears oral arguments in a case with ramifications both for Donald Trump’s January 6th insurrection case and the separation of powers under the US Constitution. The court is asked to answer the question of whether a president enjoys absolute immunity for acts committed while in office, whether immunity might be partial, and whether it’s possible to separate those acts committed as an individual from those performed as an officeholder. At stake: the nature of the nation’s top political job.
Finally: In an act that appears to reek of cynicism, the Biden Administration has paused a long-planned ban on menthol-flavored tobacco products, which are popular among Black Americans, because of concerns that Black voters might be annoyed at the President when they go to the polls this November. Vote for us before you die, please.
Watch the Video Version: here.
DMZ America Podcast #144: USC Censors Its Valedictorian for Being Palestinian, Trump on Trial, Biden’s Weird Steel Tariffs
Cartoonists Ted Rall (from the Left) and Scott Stantis (from the Right) are back at their respective abodes in New York and Alabama. As always, Ted and Scott put friendship first in their spirited but civilized debates and discussions about the issues at hand.
First up: The University of Southern California denies this year’s valedictorian Asna Tabassum
her right to deliver the commencement address because she is Palestinian and might have had the audacity to call for Palestinians to stop being slaughtered en masse by Israel in Gaza. If ever there was cause for people of all ideological stripes to be appalled albeit for different reasons, here it is.
Next: Donald Trump becomes the first former president to face a criminal trial. Scott and Ted dissect the nature of the charges, related to the payment of hush money to Stormy Daniels, and explore the disturbing trend of prosecutors letting members of the public that they’re so out to get them that they’re willing to campaign on it.
Finally: Joe Biden imposes brutal tariffs to protect America’s steel industry, which is now owned by Japan, from China.
Watch the Video Version: here.
What Will Be Left of Gaza for Trump To Make Worse?
Democrats argue that Trump, who was very in favor of Israel during his presidency, would be even worse for the people of Gaza than Biden, who has totally enabled Netanyahu to do whatever he wants. However, by the time the election rolls around, there won’t be anything left of Gaza for Trump to make worse.