Topic: Hussein

The hosts ridicule Kristen Welker for verbal slips regarding "regime chain" and the history of Saddam Hussein's ousting. Lindsey Graham asserts that while the U.S. will not occupy Iran, it will continue to target any leadership that maintains a ballistic missile or nuclear program. He describes Iran as the primary impediment to peace in the Middle East.

Mahmoud Abbas has named Hussein Elsheikh as the first-ever Vice President of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). Elsheikh, a veteran politician who spent 11 years in an Israeli prison, is seen as Abbas's hand-picked successor to appease Western powers. The move comes as international pressure mounts for reform within Palestinian governance following the war in Gaza.

Despite high production levels, global oil prices remain above $70 a barrel, which some attribute to artificial market sentiment. Exxon Mobil's stock price has significantly increased since the 2020 election, benefiting from current energy policies. Additionally, it is noted that Iraqi oil revenue is held in U.S. accounts, giving the United States significant leverage over the Iraqi government.

A discussion ensues regarding the historical use of children in media to influence public opinion, referencing the debunked 1990 story of Iraqi soldiers removing babies from incubators in Kuwait. The hosts point out that many viral photos of "children in cages" circulating on Twitter in 2018 actually date back to the Obama administration in 2014.

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Hussein accused President Trump of inciting violence against journalists by labeling news organizations as "fake." The discussion argues that the First Amendment protects the President's right to criticize the press and that the U.N.'s claims are an overreach. The "transgender ban" is also noted as a recurring point of media attack against the administration.

The hosts reflect on the perceived naivety of US foreign policy, comparing current interventions to the failed expectations of the Iraq War. They argue that the American public is becoming increasingly skeptical of "Mainstream Media" (M5M) narratives regarding Russia and Trump. The show is presented as a "public service" to help listeners restore neural connections and resist media-induced fear.

MSNBC's Chris Matthews compares Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump to Saddam Hussein's sons, Uday and Qusay. The hosts find the comparison "pathetic" and indicative of the extreme rhetoric currently prevalent in mainstream political commentary.

MSNBC host Chris Matthews criticized the official roles of Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump in the White House. Matthews compared the couple to Saddam Hussein's sons, Uday and Qusay, suggesting they act as the President's "eyes and ears" to intimidate others. The hosts mock Matthews for his increasingly erratic and hyperbolic commentary.

The hosts claim a potential connection between providing a film screener to General Michael Flynn and his subsequent op-ed calling for the extradition of Fethullah Gulen. The discussion shifts to the battle for Mosul, noting that former Saddam Hussein officials are reportedly leading ISIS forces and sabotaging infrastructure.

CNN's Ashleigh Banfield criticized Trump supporters for cheering when the media is mocked, comparing the sentiment to her experiences reporting in Iraq under Saddam Hussein. She argued that a free press is essential to prevent a dictatorship, while the hosts suggest the public's distrust of the media is well-earned.

In a confused CNN segment, politician Bakari Sellers repeatedly attributes the actions of Saddam Hussein to Donald Trump, claiming Trump killed tens of thousands of his own citizens. The hosts use this as an example of "brainwashing" and the low quality of guests on mainstream news networks. They suggest CNN is simply rushing any available black commentators onto the air following the Dallas events.

Commentator Tariq Ali appeared on Democracy Now and agreed with Donald Trump's assessment that while Saddam Hussein was a "bad guy," he effectively killed terrorists. Ali noted that many Iraqis feel daily life was better under Hussein's regime than under the current occupation and rise of ISIS.

During an interview with Charlie Rose, Vice President Joe Biden makes a "Freudian slip" by saying the US needs to get "Saddam" out of power instead of "Assad." The hosts discuss the pattern of US intervention leading to the deaths of foreign leaders like Gaddafi and Hussein. A listener's comment comparing the host to Sean Hannity is addressed and dismissed.

While in Marfa, Adam Curry meets a Turkish rug merchant named Hussein who is afraid to return to Turkey due to his political posts on Facebook. They discuss the influence of Fethullah Gülen and the marginalization of the Kurdish population. The conversation shifts to the artistry of Turkish and Iranian rugs, including "war rugs" from Afghanistan that feature designs of tanks and Kalashnikovs.

The U.S. military used a drone strike to kill Junaid Hussein, a 21-year-old British ISIS member described as a senior propagandist and leader of the "Cyber Caliphate." Some counterterrorism officials criticized the move as targeting "low-hanging fruit" rather than actual leadership. The discussion questions the ethics of droning individuals primarily for their social media activity.

An interview with a former Iranian ambassador on Democracy Now! outlines mutual grievances between the U.S. and Iran. The ambassador cites U.S. support for dictators like the Shah, Mubarak, and Ben Ali, as well as the invasion of Iraq, as sources of instability. The segment concludes with a quote from Stevie Wonder urging world leaders to "cut the bullshit."

Iraqi forces and Shiite militias engage in a major offensive to retake Tikrit from Islamic State fighters. Reports indicate that Saddam Hussein's lavish tomb has been reduced to concrete rubble during the fighting. The hosts discuss the term "rubblization" as a deliberate military strategy to bomb regions back to the "Stone Age," noting the prevalence of such imagery in modern war reporting.

Senators John McCain and Patrick Leahy delivered notable speeches regarding the torture report, with McCain receiving rare praise for his principled stance against the practice. Senator Leahy shared a "House of Cards" style anecdote about being approached by mysterious joggers who provided him with classified reports contradicting the Bush administration's claims about Iraq. These reports confirmed that Saddam Hussein had no connection to 9/11 and possessed no weapons of mass destruction.

A New York Times report revealed that US troops discovered over 5,000 chemical warheads in Iraq after the 2003 invasion, a fact allegedly concealed by the Bush administration. The munitions predated 1991 and were reportedly developed with Western support during the Iran-Iraq War. The report also claims that soldiers exposed to these agents were denied proper medical care, drawing parallels to the treatment of veterans exposed to Agent Orange.

George Galloway reminded the House of Commons that Britain has been bombing Iraq for a hundred years, including the use of chemical weapons in the 1920s. He engaged in a heated exchange with former Home Secretary Jackie Smith, accusing her of having the "brass neck" to urge another war after the deaths of a million Iraqis. Galloway proposed strengthening the Peshmerga and regional powers like Iran and Turkey instead of Western intervention.