Another great conversation on THE LEFT HOOK with Wajahat Ali! Such a pleasure to get to speak with Waj, and it makes my mother — a big Waj fan — happy, too.
We covered a lot of ground, including:
The domestic economic fallout from the Iran war — 55% of Americans say their financial situation is getting worse, which is the highest percentage in 25 years
The Trump administration’s failure to achieve any of the war’s goals — while making us all worse off
The illegality of the war and the Republican-controlled Congress’ refusal to uphold the Constitution & the War Powers Resolution — for more, see my podcast with former State Department lawyer Brian Finucane, of which here’s a taste:
How the tactics of the Israeli occupation in the West Bank are increasingly impacting Israelis who are not aligned with the Netanyahu regime (you can read about Dr. Alex Sinclair, who was detained and had his kippah adorned with Israeli and Palestinian flags desecrated here)
Israel’s new death penalty law for Palestinians only (see The Debrief’s podcast on that here), and Ben-Gvir’s depraved 50th birthday cake with the golden noose
Israel’s war in Lebanon, occupation of territory in Lebanon and Syria, and the potential for Israeli perpetual control and settlements in both countries
Israel’s upcoming election, Netanyahu’s fortunes, and the need for the Israeli opposition to embrace predominantly Palestinian Arab political parties
Saudi Arabia’s refusal to let the US use bases and airspace for “Project Freedom” and the Iran war’s fallout for the Gulf Cooperation Council countries
Like I said, we covered a lot! I’d love to hear what you all think.
Friends, if you appreciate the insights The Debrief brings you, I hope you’ll pitch in to help me continue this work. Please consider becoming a paid subscriber now. You can also leave a one-time donation in any amount. Thank you.
TOMORROW (Friday, May 8) at 12pm Eastern: Gulf States Under Pressure
Waj and I touched on Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in our discussion today — and if you want to take a deeper dive into this topic, please join me and Dr. Dania Thafer tomorrow at 12pm Eastern.
We’ll examine the Saudi-US fight over “Project Freedom,” the Saudi-UAE rift and UAE’s departure from OPEC, and whether the GCC might actually collapse.
Dr. Dania Thafer (bio) is the Executive Director of the Gulf International Forum and professorial lecturer at Georgetown University’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies.
Hope to see you tomorrow and/or Friday!
Warm regards,
Debra
