Former Governor of Alabama, Don Siegelman, who was convicted on dubious corruption charges and spent five years in prison joins us to talk about his chronicle of those events in his book “Stealing Democracy: How the Political Assassination of a Governor Threatens Our Nation.” And old friend and constitutional scholar, Bruce Fein, makes the case that Congress has once again abdicated its responsibility during the Covid-19 crisis.
Dr. Michael Osterholm on Covid-19
May 2, 2020
Trump Death Clock/Saving the Post Office
May 16, 2020
Don Siegelman was the 51st Governor of Alabama, serving from 1999 to 2003. He is the only politician in Alabama history to hold all of the state’s top constitutional offices: governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, and secretary of state. He was the longest-running Democrat in the Southeast. He was convicted in 2006 of federal bribery charges, in what many think was a wrongful conviction brought about by Republican politicians. Mr. Siegelman wrote about this in his soon to be released book “Stealing Our Democracy: How the Political Assassination of a Governor Threatens Our Nation”.
“The heart of my story: It’s not about me. It’s about saving our democracy. And exposing what has been going on in our court system. There’s a reason why the majority of people behind bars are young men and women of color.”
Don Siegelman, former Governor of Alabama
“Bill Barr on April third said, ok we got to release these non-violent inmates, who are not a threat to public safety. Well now they’re releasing thousands of inmates, who are not a threat to public safety, which raises the question why in the world are they in there in the first place?”
Don Siegelman, former Governor of Alabama
“There’s no deterrent. You steal an election and you get away with it. And even if you’re caught, nobody goes to jail. I mean this happens again and again in this country. It’s like, ‘Oh you know, it’s just politics as usual.’”
Ralph Nader
Bruce Fein is a Constitutional scholar, who was Associate Deputy Attorney General under Ronald Reagan. Mr. Fein has been a visiting Fellow for Constitutional Studies at the Heritage Foundation and an adjunct scholar at American Enterprise Institute. He has advised numerous countries on constitutional reform, including South Africa, Hungary and Russia. He is the author of “Constitutional Peril: The Life and Death Struggle for Our Constitution and Democracy,” and “American Empire: Before the Fall”. Mr. Fein did a special edition show with Ralph where they lay out the articles of impeachment of President Donald Trump.
“Presidents have run virtually hundreds of wars without congressional declarations. Certainly, beginning with Korea and for the ensuing seventy some years, Presidents have just gone to war on their own, and Congress has simply sat there.”
Bruce Fein, author of “Constitutional Peril: The Life and Death Struggle for Our Constitution and Democracy”
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9 Comments
Wait, hold on… A LOTTERY system to fund education? Did I hear that right? This is supposed to be somehow progressive… ? Lotteries are what you do when you’re too feckless to tax the rich and powerful in your state. Lotteries are a bread and circus stunt to divert attention from this fecklessness. Lotteries to fund a public service essentially function as the most regressive, predatory tax there is. It’s even more evil than funding everything with sales tax because every transaction is tricking poor people to gamble away their money instead of use it productively. Also gotta say I’m not at all impressed to hear someone praised by John Lewis, a three-decade traitor to the progressive cause who’s been coasting off identity politics for ages while he votes down every working-class measure in Congress and tows the Democrat Party line.
Fair points, however, he was only billed as progressive by the standards of the south. Very hard to imagine a 1998 Alabama candidate winning on a platform of tax increases, even on the wealthy.
Great InterViewS. I wish to have clarification why Senate & House GRANT or L0AN $ 2 billion dollars/per DAY to PENTAGON. Is there a Spread Sheet how the PENTAGON spends this money & what the Balance is ? Where the Balance is Kept or what into is Marked for $$$$
Please wRite or suggest book or booklets that we may begin organizing for TorT Law$uits ASAP.
Everyday there is War BomBs falling into our 8,000 mile diameter Home Planet.
Why is their no connection to the State of Health of R Home Planet’s Water, food & “nuclear radiation Fallout” (quoting Linus Pauling & Yourself).
How can People maintain a state of health when R Planet we Live From
is NOT KEPT HEALTHY.?.😢🌪🌎🌎💨😢
Bruce Fein nail it when he said, this congress does not have the character and courage to do the right thing.
Great job as always!
Seems like a great time to have Michael Moore and those who made Planet of the Humans, recently viewed
by 6 million world wide on how to save the planet and environmental group complicity through selling out to big
billionaire donors..
Timely and necessary
Speaking of “Stealing Our Democracy”(by Don Siegelman), Greg Palast recently published “How Trump Stole the 2020 election.” May i suggest inviting Greg Palast to the show?
THE OLDER I GET, THE MORE I REALIZE: WE AMERICANS ARE SIMPLY TOO STUPID AND TOO COWARDLY TO OPERATE JUST, DEMOCRATIC COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT. When real grassroots leaders emerge, we do everything we can to poo-poo, malign and castigate them, and thereby escape from attending to the factual information they present. What can possibly be done? I dont know of any nearby residents who would be willing to begin to talk about organizing a “Citizen Summons” (Ramparts pp 45-47).
If i did: my issues are not even on the radar, are dismissed or never reported on by the most “progressive-liberal-left” news sources. The “conservatives” have signed over the deed to the farm to the most radical fascist rascal to ever come down the pike, and think nothing of having dolts with machine guns at public rallies. When it comes right down to it: i notice that EVERYBODY believes dictatorship is right and inevitable… people wont do whats right unless forced to. New Deal policies cant work well when every independent thinker is automatically guilty till proven innocent; and only politically correct popular people who always agree with the authorities, get the insurance coverage or programs help they were forced to buy.
Not sure where to go with this; but if anybody has any ideas, please make your comments here. What can we do to un-brainwash average citizens who believe in dictatorship for everybody else except themselves? And probably dont respect themselves much, either.
Sad to see no comments or replies about my comments. My own answer to my own comments: when i’m in my saner moments, i KNOW: acts of love for ourselves/for others, actions of loving kindness, must surely be the key to the solutions we need. Which can involve FIRM BOUNDARIES against those who would harm us, whether with good intent or bad. Good stewardship of our lives and advocacy of good stewardship for our community management (such as: evicting fascist ideologues from employment in the Social Security Administration) IS “loving kindness” by my definition.
Here is one concrete item of reform i can recommend with respect (a form of love), if anyone actually reads this: using more accurate language to talk about overcoming evil in government. Please use the words “community management” (“comanplex” for short) if that is what you really mean; and NOT “politics”. Use the P word ONLY when you mean “the insane polarization designed to steal democracy and true republican government from average people”, which is its most notable attribute. thanks for reading me
Thank you for opening my eyes about our imbalanced justice system, weighted in favor of the prosecutions. I agree with one commenter who opposes lotteries as a system of funding education. I agree. Lotteries are regressive. It would be fantastic if Ralph Nader could do an episode on education funding in the various states. I’ll also note that Mr. Siegelman presided over many executions in Alabama. Ick! In my state, California, our current governor has imposed a moratorium on executions. Since Mr. Siegelman is now so well-acquainted with the imbalance in our justice system, I hope he puts some effort into ending this barbaric practice.