Markus Auer, Koch von Marlene Dietrich

What Shapes US Foreign Policy in the Middle East? | Inside Story

Qatar hosts a two-day conference on US policy and the Gulf crisis. From the crisis in the Gulf to the war in Syria, the decisions made in Washington have long-lasting consequences.

US president Donald Trump has taken a 'hands-off' approach to foreign policy while pushing his 'America First' strategy. He has long promised to find a solution to the conflict in Palestine with what he calls the 'deal of the century'. But there hasn't been much detail on what that deal contains.

Now, with an election year coming up in the US, and an ever-changing political dynamic in the Middle East, what will be America's policy in the region? And are we heading towards more uncertainty?

Presenter: Peter Dobbie | Guests: Mahmoud Jabara - Visiting Lecturer, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg; Seyed Mohammad Marandi - Dean at the Faculty of World Studies, University of Tehran; Omar Ayasra - Researcher in Religious Sociology and Political Transformation; Mohammed Cherkaoui - Senior Fellow, Al Jazeera Centre For Studies

Nicola Sturgeon Interview on Brexit, Scottish Independence and the Euro

First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon discusses her time frame for a second Scottish referendum - and is challenged on whether Scotland would have to commit to adopting the Euro if an independent Scotland were to join the EU.

Will Macron's Promises End Yellow Vests Protests? | Al Jazeera English

President Emmanuel Macron responds to months of riots by vowing to 'transform France'. They are the results of the so-called 'great debate'. After months of hearing complaints from the length of and breadth of France, Emmanuel Macron has told TV viewers that he has listened to the cries for change.

He's responded to the biggest challenge to his presidency by offering some concessions to the Yellow Vest protesters. They've brought Paris - and other cities - to a standstill every Saturday for months demanding cuts to the cost of living.

Macron is proposing lower taxes for some, pensions reform, stopping the closure of schools and hospitals - and making it easier to hold a referendum on vital issues. There are other proposals too. But are they enough to stop the riots and revolt against his ideas for the future of France?

Presenter: Adrian Finighan | Guests: Renaud Girard - Chief Foreign Correspondent, Le Figaro newspaper; Charles Lichfield - European Affairs Analyst, Eurasia Group of consultants; Jacques Reland - Head of European Research, Global Policy Institute

Marlene Dietrich's Daughter, Maria Riva, Speaking at the William J. Donovan Award® Dinner

Loneliness Epidemic As Deadly As Smoking | 60 Minutes Australia

In Australia, and around the world, loneliness has become a massive health epidemic. In fact, researchers say being lonely is just as detrimental to our wellbeing as smoking and excessive drinking. And that means loneliness can be deadly. Just as worrying, it doesn’t discriminate. Loneliness can strike anyone, young, old, male, female, rich or poor.

Brazil Governed by ‘Lunatics’ and US ‘Lackeys’, Says Ex-president Lula

THE GUARDIAN: Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Brazil’s president from 2003 and 2011, is in jail over corruption charges that he disputes

Brazil is being governed by “a bunch of lunatics” and United States “lackeys” who have shattered its international reputation, former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has claimed in his first interview since being jailed one year ago.

Lula, Brazil’s president from 2003 and 2011, surrendered himself to police last April after being convicted on corruption charges he disputes.

The 73-year-old leftist had been forbidden from giving face-to-face interviews until Friday, when two Brazilian journalists were allowed to visit him at his prison in southern Brazil following a lengthy legal battle.

Lula told them Brazil needed to undergo period of “self-reflection” after what he described as the “crazy” fake news and hate-filled election of far-right populist Jair Bolsonaro last year. “What we can’t have is this country being run governed by a bunch of lunatics. The country doesn’t deserve this and above all the people do not deserve this.” » | Anna Jean Kaiser in São Paulo and Tom Phillips | Saturday, April 27, 2019

Trump Withdraws from UN Arms Treaty as NRA Crowd Cheers in Delight

THE GUARDIAN: Democrats condemn Trump’s ‘myopic’ decision to withdraw / President at NRA summit vows to defend second amendment

Donald Trump has announced that the US will withdraw its support for a United Nations treaty regulating the multibillion-dollar global arms trade.

Addressing the National Rifle Association (NRA) in Indianapolis, the president said he would revoke America’s status as a signatory of the arms trade treaty regulating conventional weapons including small arms, battle tanks, combat aircraft and warships.

“My administration will never ratify the UN arms trade treaty,” Trump said. “We’re taking our signature back. The United Nations will soon receive a formal notice that America is rejecting this treaty.”

Trump added: “Under my administration, we will never surrender American sovereignty to anyone. We will never allow foreign bureaucrats to trample on your second amendment freedom. I’m officially announcing today that the United States will be revoking the effect of America’s signature from this badly misguided treaty.” » | David Smith in Indianapolis | Friday, April 26, 2019

UN Condemns Saudi Executions, US Barely Reacts

Amnesty International and members of the US Congress are expressing outrage over the mass execution of 37 prisoners in Saudi Arabia. While their trials failed to meet international standards of fairness and their deaths have drawn worldwide rebuke, the US State Department has refused to condemn them. RT America’s Dan Cohen reports for News.Views.Hughes.

37 Men Were Executed and Court Filings Show Some Protested Their Innocence

Saudi Arabia says 37 men have been executed after being convicted of terror-related crimes, but documents reviewed by CNN show that many said they were totally innocent and their confessions had been written by the same people who had tortured them.

Brazil Must Not Become a 'Gay Tourism Paradise', Says Bolsonaro

THE GUARDIAN: LGBT campaigners say Brazilian president’s comments risk inciting hatred

Brazil’s far-right president, the self-declared homophobe Jair Bolsonaro, has been accused of inciting hatred towards LGBT people after declaring the South American country should not become a “gay tourism paradise”.

“If you want to come here and have sex with a woman, go for your life,” Bolsonaro reportedly told journalists in the capital, Brasília. “But we can’t let this place become known as a gay tourism paradise. Brazil can’t be a country of the gay world, of gay tourism. We have families,” Bolsonaro added, according to the Brazilian magazine Exame.

The comments – made during a breakfast meeting with Brazilian reporters – sparked an immediate reaction from LGBT campaigners. » | Tom Phillips and Anna Jean Kaiser in São Paulo | Friday, April 26, 2019

Simon Schama on the Lessons of History for Brexit and Donald Trump

Historian Simon Schama is probably best known for his television documentaries on the history of Britain, America and art. His new book, Wordy, is a collection of his writings covering everything from interviews with rock musicians to food and the future of liberal democracy.

Should Trump Be Committed to a Mental Health Facility?

Donald Trump's campaign opened with shouts of "Lock Her Up" from his followers and supporters. Two years into his presidency calls for impeaching Donald Trump are using that phrase against him. Now Dr. Justin Frank, Psychoanalyst, and author of 'Trump on the Couch' joins the Thom Hartmann program to call for locking Donald Trump up in a Mental Health facility, Is it time to put Donald Trump in the funny farm? Is the President's mental health out for lunch?

Elizabeth Drew On 'The Danger in Not Impeaching President Donald Trump' | The Last Word | MSNBC

Watergate reporter Elizabeth Drew explains why even though Democrats might face political danger in impeaching Trump, the bigger danger may be doing nothing.

Sri Lanka: After the Attacks, Muslims Fear a Backlash

Sen. Warren Wants to Jail Those Who Caused 2008's Meltdown

BIll Black examines the historical context of Warren's bills for easier prosecution of banks and corporate leaders

Kim - Putin Summit: What's Different from Meetings with Trump? | DW News

Russian President Vladimir Putin has welcomed North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un to a summit in the far eastern city of Vladivostok. The meeting is the first between the two leaders, and is a chance for Pyongyang to seek support from Moscow, especially when it comes to ending international sanctions imposed over North Korea's nuclear program. Just two months ago a summit with US president Donald Trump broke down over that topic. Before Kim and Putin went in to their private meeting, they talked about one of their major points of discussion, peace on the Korean Peninsula.

Irans Präsident nennt Trump einen „Halbstarken“

FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE: Iran will auf die Öl-Politik von Donald Trump reagieren, Präsident Rohani schließt auch militärische Optionen nicht aus. Die Revolutionsgarde droht mit einer Blockade der wichtigsten Öl-Handelsroute im Persischen Golf.

Der iranische Präsident Hassan Rohani hat den amerikanischen Präsidenten Donald Trumpals einen „Halbstarken“ bezeichnet. „Diplomatie ist nur dann möglich, wenn gegenseitiger Respekt herrscht und kein Druck ausgeübt wird“, sagte Rohani in einer Kabinettssitzung am Mittwoch. Verhandlungen mit einem „Halbstarken“ seien in dieser Phase auch nicht möglich, so der iranische Präsident laut dem Webportal des Präsidialamtes.

Trumps Entscheidung, bei Sanktionen gegen Öl-Importe aus Iran keine Ausnahmen mehr zuzulassen, führte in Iran zu unterschiedlichen Reaktionen. Die Revolutionsgarden (IRGC), die Eliteeinheit der Streitkräfte, drohten sogar damit, die Straße von Hormus im Persischen Golf zu blockieren. Sie gilt als die wichtigste Öl-Handelsroute, durch die fast ein Drittel aller Öl-Exporte verschifft wird. Eine Blockade dieser Route würde nach Meinung vieler Beobachter zu einem militärischen Konflikt am Persischen Golf führen. » | Quelle: dpa/AFP | Mittwoch, 24. April 2019

La première ministre écossaise appelle à un second référendum sur l’indépendance

LE FIGARO: La cheffe du Parti national écossais, Nicola Sturgeon, a déclaré devant le Parlement sa volonté d’introduire «prochainement» un projet de loi visant à faire de nouveau appel au peuple d’ici 2021.

Le gouvernement écossais va introduire «prochainement» un projet de loi visant à organiser un nouveau référendum sur l’indépendance de l’Écosse d’ici 2021, a déclaré ce mercredi la première ministre écossaise Nicola Sturgeon. «Nous allons prochainement présenter un projet de loi fixant les règles pour tout référendum relevant actuellement ou à l’avenir de la compétence du parlement écossais», a déclaré la cheffe du Parti national écossais (SNP) au Parlement écossais à Édimbourg, espérant que ce texte serait voté d’ici à la fin de l’année. » | Par Le figaro.fr et AFP agence | mercredi 24 avril 2019

UK Condemns Saudi Arabia over 'Repulsive' Mass Executions

THE GUARDIAN: Foreign Office minister criticises country’s human rights after 37 people killed

Britain has issued its sharpest condemnation of the direction of Saudi Arabian human rights policy, describing its mass executions as “repulsive” and “utterly unacceptable in the modern world”.

The remarks came after further details emerged of the Saudi government’s execution on Tuesday of 37 people, including three who were minors at the time of their alleged offence.

One of those executed was then crucified, according to Saudi state media.

The Foreign Office minister Sir Alan Duncan, answering an urgent question in the Commons, spurned the usual diplomatic niceties, saying the mass executions were “a deeply backward step which we deplore”. He added it was “deplorable and totally unacceptable” that at least one of those executed had been a minor at the time of the arrest.

He highlighted reports that one of those executed was displayed on a cross, saying that anyone in the House, just two days after Easter, would find “more repulsive than anything we could picture”.

He added: “Any country needs to realise that when it uses methods like this they will eventually backfire. The practical benefit is entirely negative.” » | Patrick Wintour, Diplomatic editor | Wednesday, April 24, 2019

Democracy Now! Top US News & World Headlines — April 24, 2019

Chris Hedges - The American Empire Will Collapse Within a Decade, Two at Most | November 19, 2018)

Here, Chris speaks with CBC Radio about his new book and predicts that the US empire will collapse within the next 20 years, probably within the next 10.

The Guardian View on Donald Trump’s UK Visit: A Mistake

THE GUARDIAN: The US president is no respecter of democracy or Britain. He should be held at a distance, not given dinner with the Queen

Rolling out the red carpet for a US president ought to be easier than this. Britain and America share a “special relationship” which rests on a common language, histories and ideals. Yet Donald Trump makes building on this impossible. He is no friend of this country. The president has repeatedly attacked leading British politicians, singling outLondon’s mayor, Sadiq Khan. He retweets fascists. On the day news emerged that Mr Trump would be accorded a state visit to Britain, he was threatening to veto a UN resolution against the use of rape as a weapon of war. America has been taken over by a demagogue who sees Brexit as an opportunity for a rabble-rouser to rise here too. He is a dangerous liar whom racists and misogynists think of as one of their own. Mr Trump ought to be held at a distance, not invited for dinner with the Queen. » | Editorial | Tuesday, April 23, 2019

Donald Trump's Comments About Princess Diana Will Definitely Give You The Creeps »

Stop Buying Iranian Oil or Face Sanctions? | Inside Story

Oil prices are on the rise after the United States announced a new crackdown on Iran's oil exports aiming to reduce them to zero.

Iran is threatening retaliation by blocking the Strait of Hormuz - the world's lifeline of oil from all Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq. The move has brought America's rivals and allies on the same page.

China and Turkey have condemned the decision; and India and Japan, major buyers of Iranian oil, are scrambling to meet the shortfall.

Many countries would now feel the pinch of sanctions Washington re-imposed after pulling out from Iran nuclear deal last year.

Will the development stoke tensions in the Gulf? And does Donald Trump risk alienating friends and antagonizing rivals?

Presenter: Imran Khan | Guests: Adolfo Franco, Republican strategist & Former Adviser to President George W. Bush and Senator John McCain; Mohammad Marandi, Head of the North American Studies Graduate Program at the University of Tehran; Dan Wang, China Analyst, The Economist Intelligence Unit

Trump's Latest Iran Sanctions Show an Unraveling of US Foreign Policy

Col. Lawrence Wilkerson says unilateral sanctions against Iran are illegal, and show the ascendancy of John Bolton; they intensify tension with China and threaten our international position

Is Zelensky Up to the President's Job? | Inside Story

Comedian Volodymyr Zelensky wins a landslide victory in Ukraine’s election. He played a fictional president for years. Now he is going to play it for real.

But stand-up comedy is one thing, standing up to Russia and the myriad other problems facing Ukraine is another thing altogether.

Outgoing president Petro Poroshenko says Zelensky's too naïve for hard politics, but it is dissatisfaction with old faces like Poroshenko that has probably benefitted the comedian.

He's campaigned on an anti-establishment, anti-corruption platform; and that seems to have resounded with his supporters.

Zelensky won with more than 70 percent of the vote. But with no previous political experience how will he tackle the many challenges ahead? What's the punchline?

Presenter: Imran Khan | Guests: Valentin Yakushik, Professor of political science at the National University of "Kiev-Mohyla Academy"; Uly Brueckner, Jean Monnet Professor in European Studies at Stanford University, Berlin; Dmitry Babich, Political Analyst at Rossiya Segodnya news agency

Brunei Defends Death by Stoning for Gay Sex in Letter to EU

THE GUARDIAN: Kingdom’s mission to bloc calls for tolerance and understanding over penal code

Brunei has written to the European parliament defending its decision to start imposing death by stoning as a punishment for gay sex, claiming convictions will be rare as it requires two men of “high moral standing and piety” to be witnesses.

In a four-page letter to MEPs, the kingdom’s mission to the EU called for “tolerance, respect and understanding” with regard to the country’s desire to preserve its traditional values and “family lineage”.

The new penal code, which also provides for the amputation of thieves and whipping of people wearing clothes associated with the opposite sex, was brought in on 3 April, despite international condemnation.

But in the letter, the kingdom claimed the outcry is due to a misconception that it wanted to clarify.

“The criminalisation of adultery and sodomy is to safeguard the sanctity of family lineage and marriage to individual Muslims, particularly women,” it said.

“The penal sentences of had – stoning to death and amputation – imposed for offences of theft, robbery, adultery and sodomy, have extremely high evidentiary threshold, requiring no less than two or four men of high moral standing and piety as witnesses, to the exclusion of every form of circumstantial evidence.” » | Daniel Boffey in Brussels | Monday, April 22, 2019

Democracy Now! Top US News & World Headlines — April 22, 2019

Did Jesus Die On Cross? | BBC Four Documentary

Will Brexit Happen? Political Heavyweights Take On Debate | 60 Minutes Australia

In London, the parliament is a complete mess of chaos and confusion, all because of Brexit: the decision taken at a referendum three years ago for the UK to withdraw from the European Union. As Sarah Abo reports, the problem – an enormous one – is the politicians, who can’t agree on how to do it. While they’re being distracted by bickering and backstabbing, many others fear the “great” is being ripped out of Great Britain. Reporter: Sarah Abo; Producers: Joel Tozer, Stefanie Sgroi

Comedian Wins Landslide Victory in Ukrainian Presidential Election

THE GUARDIAN: Petro Poroshenko concedes defeat as Volodymyr Zelenskiy takes over 70% of votes, promising: ‘I won’t mess up’

Volodymyr Zelenskiy, an actor and comedian with no political experience other than playing the role of president in a TV series, has won a landslide victory in Ukraine’s presidential election, with near-complete counting showing he has won over 70% of the vote.

The incumbent, Petro Poroshenko conceded defeat on Sunday evening before results started coming in.

According to official results released on Monday morning, with 85% of the vote counted, 41-year-old Zelenskiy had won 73.4% of the vote, compared to Poroshenko’s 24.4%. » | Shaun Walker in Kyiv | Monday, April 22, 2019

Iraq's Oldest Christian Town Celebrates Easter without Isis

THE GUARDIAN: Hamdaniya has been reclaimed from the extremists who made it a hotbed of violence

The church ceiling was still scorched and some cherished relics missing, but after five years of war and exile, their tormentors were finally gone.

When the men and women of Iraq’s oldest Christian town gathered for Easter mass this weekend, they did so knowing that the Islamic State extremists who had chased them away were not coming back. Their battlefield defeat two months ago meant the people of Hamdaniya (also called Qaraqosh) could once again celebrate without fear.

A large congregation shuffled into pews that only two years ago lay in splintered ruin, both in the Church of the Immaculate Conception and every other church in Hamdaniya, which, like much of the rest of northern Iraq, had been overrun by extremists from Isis.

A priest in bright red robes holding a gold crosier in one hand and a small cross in the other spoke in Syriac only blocks away from where militants plotted chaos and even genocide for vulnerable communities. » | Martin Chulov in Hamdaniya | Sunday, April 21, 2019

Marlene Dietrich - Ein Engel in der Dämmerung

Dokumentation über Marlenes letzte Lebensjahre in Paris. Neben diversen Archivaufnahmen von Marlene, werden Maria Riva, Peter Riva, Werner Sudendorf (Filmmuseum Berlin), Marlene's Freund Louis Bozon ua. interviewt. Sehr zu empfehlen, um mal den Blick auf die etwas andere Marlene zu erhaschen.

Mayor Pete

Once a long-shot, Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of Indiana's fourth-largest city has been rising in the polls for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination, attracting dollars, attention, and name recognition (if not pronunciation). The Afghanistan War veteran, Rhodes scholar and trained pianist talks with CBS News' John Dickerson about the importance of narratives, coming out, what youth brings to public office, and reanimating his party's values for a new era, including a connection with faith.

(Un)Welcome: Sweden's Rise of the Right

In this installment of CBSN Originals’ ongoing examination at how migration is reshaping the world, Adam Yamaguchi travels to Sweden to examine how a record influx of migrants has coincided with the recently welcoming and politically progressive nation's swift shift to the right.

How Can Stateless People Cross Borders? | DW Documentary

After the end of the First World War, millions of people in Europe became stateless refugees. A newly devised passport created by the League of Nations’ High Commissioner for Refugees was their salvation.

In the aftermath of the First World War, more than two million people fled the Russian Revolution and the Armenian massacres. To prevent them from returning to their home countries, their respective governments revoked their citizenships. These permanent exiles had no choice but to start anew elsewhere and spread out around the world. To deal with this fraught situation, Norwegian diplomat Fridtjof Nansen, the League of Nations’ first High Commissioner for Refugees, worked hard to create a passport for these "stateless" persons. The so-called "Nansen Passport" was introduced on 5 July 1922. It was a symbolic document that made history as the first international legal instrument for the protection of refugees. This identity card and travel document allowed them to enter all the member states of the League of Nations at a time when many European states were closing their borders because of fascism, anti-Semitism and war and paying increasing attention to the legal status of both residents and foreigners. Famous artists such as Anna Pavlova, Vladimir Nabokov, Marc Chagall, Igor Stravinsky and Robert Capa, as well as more than a million other stateless persons, mostly refugees from Russia and the Ottoman Empire, received these precious passports. States have not used collective deprivation of citizenship as a weapon since 1945, but the UN General Assembly did not officially ban it until 2012.

The Princesses of Monaco – Intimate Portrait

When Hollywood queen Grace Kelly married Prince Rainer of Monaco, she brought elegance and class to the tiny principality previously known as "a sunny place for shady people." But the couple's daughters, Caroline and Stephanie, became known for rebellious, scandal-seeking behavior, seemingly designed to tarnish their mother's aura of dignity.

Ironically, it was through tragedy - Grace's 1982 death in a terrifying car accident, and later the death of Caroline's husband - that the family finally made peace with itself. Today, Caroline and Stephanie are Princesses on their own terms: out of the public eye and raising families of their own. THE PRINCESSES OF MONACO: the fairy tale faltered; the family endures.

THE GUARDIAN: Prince Rainier of Monaco » | Dennis Barker | Wednesday, April 6, 2005

Greece to Ask Germany for Billions in War Reparations

THE GUARDIAN: MPs vote to put pressure on Berlin as European parliamentary elections loom

Greece is poised to send Germany a formal diplomatic note detailing its demand for billions of euros in wartime reparations after MPs voted overwhelmingly for the emotive issue to be raised officially.

In a move bound to stir sentiment ahead of crucial European parliament elections, Athens vowed to pile pressure on Berlin, taking legal and diplomatic steps that will throw the spotlight on crimes committed during the brutal Nazi occupation.

“It is an open issue that must be resolved,” Greece’s deputy foreign minister, Markos Bolaris, told the Guardian, hitting back at German insistence that compensation claims had been conclusively settled.

“For matters of this kind there is international justice,” he said on Friday. “In all disputes the EU abides by it, on principle. Germany may say it has been resolved but what counts is international law.” » | Helena Smith in Athens | Sunday, April 21, 2019

On Contact: Russiagate & Mueller Report with Aaron Mate

Chris Hedges discusses with Nation reporter Aaron Mate how despite the categorical statement in Robert Mueller’s report that Donald Trump and his campaign did not collude with Russia, the conspiracy theories by the nation’s mainstream media show little sign of diminishing.

Sri Lanka Easter Attacks: Multiple Explosions Hit Churches, Hotels | Al Jazeera English

Sri Lanka was rocked by multiple explosions, including at churches, on Easter Sunday, a police spokesman said. One of the explosions was at St Anthony's Church in the Kochchikade district of the capital, Colombo. Another church in Negombo was also hit. Police also reported explosions at the Shangri-La, Kingsbury, and Cinnamon Grand hotels. Al Jazeera's Minelle Fernandez joins us by phone now from Colombo.

THE GUARDIAN: Sri Lanka imposes curfew after more than 150 killed in attacks » | Jason Burke and Benjamin Parkin in Delhi | Sunday, April 21, 2019

Millions for Notre Dame – But Nothing for Us, Say Gilets Jaunes

THE GUARDIAN: Yellow vest protesters angry over high taxes and inequality march in Paris days after blaze

Riot police and protesters have fought running battles in the centre of Paris as gilets jaunes anti-government demonstrators in fluorescent yellow vests led street marches over what they called “a crisis” of high taxes and economic inequality.

Less than a week after the fire that destroyed the roof and spire of Notre Dame Cathedral, firefighters rushed to put out multiple small fires around the Place de la République, as motorbikes, bins, bicycles and cars were set alight on roads and pavements. Groups of masked men threw projectiles and police fired teargas. Some rioters in masks smashed the window of a sports shop and ran in to loot it, emerging with bags full of goods. » | Angelique Chrisafis in Paris | Saturday, April 20, 2019

How Mayor Pete’s Moments Are Translating Into Big Dollars | Deadline | MSNBC

The Daily Beast’s Sam Stein, Politico’s Anna Palmer, former DOJ spox Matt Miller, and WaPo’s Robert Costa on Mayor Pete’s powerful moments as he rises in the 2020 polls

Robert De Niro Calls Donald Trump a 'Wannabe Gangster'

THE GUARDIAN: Oscar-winning actor says US president has proven himself to be a ‘total loser’ with no morals

Robert De Niro has criticised Donald Trump again, calling the US president a “total loser” and “wannabe gangster”.

The actor has been involved in a long-running dispute with Trump, saying “fuck Trump” at the Tony awards last year.

Trump responded by saying De Niro was “a very low IQ individual”.

During an appearance on the Late Show With Stephen Colbert on Friday, De Niro told the host he had tried giving Trump a chance. “That’s what I said right after he was elected. Give him a chance. I give everybody the benefit of the doubt. This guy has proven himself to be a total loser.” » | Press Association | Saturday, April 20, 2019


THE GUARDIAN: Robert De Niro wins ovation for 'Fuck Trump' speech at the Tony awards » | Catherine Shoard | Monday, June 11, 2018

Julian Assange: Within Washington's Grasp? | The Listening Post (Full)

The Tobacco Conspiracy – Documentary

This France-Canada co-production goes behind the scenes of the huge tobacco industry, whose economic power has been expanding for five decades at the expense of public health. A gripping investigation covering three continents, Nadia Collot's film exposes the vast conspiracy of a criminally negligent industry that conquers new markets through corruption and manipulation. To confront the tobacco cartel, anti-smoking groups are organizing and scoring points, but the fight remains fierce. With ist diverse viewpoints, shocking interviews and riveting images, The Tobacco Conspiracy deftly defines the issues in a complex situation where private interests and the public good collide. Enlightening and engrossing, this documentary is a hard-hitting critique of an industry gone mad.

UKIP Launch EU Election Campaign amid Candidate Controversy

UKIP have launched their European election campaign with their leader insisting the party is the "true voice" of Brexit.

But just as Gerard Batten unveiled his top candidates, there were calls from some UKIP members to deselect one of them for offensive comments made online.

Carl Benjamin is one of the party's top listed candidates, but he's refused to apologise for a tweet he sent in 2016 to a Labour MP referring to rape. He said it was satirical. And Channel 4 News has learnt he made similar remarks at a comedy show, just last night.

Victoria Macdonald's report, does contain language you may find offensive.

What Does the Mueller Report Mean for President Trump? | Inside Story

U.S President Donald Trump is declaring "total victory" after the release of a censored version of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report on alleged collusion between his 2016 campaign and Russia. But outside Trump's inner circle, many are reacting very differently.

At a news conference shortly before the report's public release, Attorney General William Barr defended Trump, saying Mueller had cleared the president of any wrongdoing. But once the document was made public, many of Barr's assertions appeared, at best, questionable.

For example, Barr told reporters that the president "co-operated fully" with Mueller's investigation, but the report criticised Trump for refusing to agree to an in-person interview with the Special Counsel and for refusing "to provide written answers to questions on obstruction topics or questions on events during the transition".

Barr also said that Trump had done nothing to obstruct the investigation. But according to the report, Trump ordered a top White House official to fire Mueller and then, when that official refused, ordered him to lie about it.

Perhaps most importantly, Barr repeatedly said that the report showed there had been no collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. But it actually says the Russian government tried to help Trump's campaign and that the campaign "expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen and released through Russian efforts".

Congressional Democrats plan to subpoena the full, unedited report along with all of its supporting documentation.

So will the Mueller report change the discussion in Washington? Or has it already become just another partisan talking point?

Richelle Carey reports.

Guests: Joe Watkins, Republican Political Strategist and Former White House Aide to George H. W. Bush; Clyde Wilcox, Professor of Government, Georgetown University; Claire Finkelstein, Professor, University of Pennsylvania Law School