DeProgram with Ted Rall and Jamarl Thomas

Ted Rall and Jamarl Thomas

Editorial cartoonist Ted Rall and political analyst Jamarl Thomas "deprogram" the latest domestic and international news and trends so you can see through the spin in the headlines to the raw truth you need to know.

Ted's immersion in the media—prize-winning cartoonist and columnist, radio host, editor at Forbes and United Media, and the veteran of bruising First Amendment legal battles—informs analysis that cuts through the spin.

Jamarl's experiences as a podcaster who has broadcast from around the globe grounds his international, humanist perspective as he helps you break down what's happening, what it means, and what's coming next.

"DeProgram" offers fast-paced, entertaining analysis you can't get anywhere else.

LIVE Monday - Friday, 9 AM - 10 AM Eastern Time:

Streaming on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@DeProgramShow

Streaming on Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow

Subscribe Listen in podnod RSS feed Show website

283 episodes
Updated Friday

Episodes283

Newest first

March 19 · 58 min
Gabby Tulsi | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • Tulsi Gabbard, Director of National Intelligence, rats out Trump’s big Iran lies. The president said the Iran was rebuilding its nuclear enrichment capabilities—but that’s not what the CIA and other intel agencies told him, she tells Congress. Trump also said Iran was “two weeks away” from ICBMs that could reach the US, but Tulsi said Iran hasn’t even tried and, if it started now, couldn’t achieve them until at least 2035. • Is the Iran War running out of gas? Israel’s strike against Iran’s South Pars gas field, which Iran shares with Qatar and is the largest such facility in the world, was approved by Trump—but he denies it, even while threatening to blow it up entirely if Iran strikes Qatar—which Iran just did. Qatar’s foreign ministry called it a “dangerous and irresponsible step.” After stocks fell to a record low for the year and oil prices soared to $119/barrel—a 67% increase—and France called for a moratorium on attacks against energy facilities, Trump changed his mind and does not want any ‌further strikes on Iran’s energy infrastructure. • Israel blows up bridges crossing the Litani River in Southern Lebanon. Is this a prequel to annexation? • AG Pam Bondi stonewalls Democrats at a closed-door hearing over the Epstein Files, half of which still haven’t been released. MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
March 18 · 58 min
Blue Glove Blues | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • If the Homeland Security Dept. shutdown continues, some smaller airports may have to shut down entirely within weeks due to a shortage of TSA security screeners. Typically, under 2% of TSA workers call in sick or do not report to work. At Atlanta, JFK and Houston, no-show rates are about 20%. • In public, Israel is urging Iranians to revolt against their government. Privately, senior Israeli officials are telling the U.S. that Iranians will “get slaughtered” if there’s an uprising, according to a leaked State Department cable. • Israel and the U.S. are relying on targeted assassinations in their war against Iran. But decapitation strikes against figures like Ali Larijani, Iran’s de facto leader, and Esmail Khatib, intelligence minister, has its limits, and may even prove counterproductive by radicalizing the government and marginalizing moderates. Iranian missiles are flying all over the Middle East. • Israel has ordered a mass evacuation of southern Lebanon and is subjecting central Beirut to heavy bombing in its attacks against Hezbollah. • Democrats are turning against AIPAC. Only two out of four AIPAC-backed candidates won special elections yesterday. • The Strait of Hormuz shutdown has several countries on the ropes. Myanmar, Vietnam and the Philippines, according to the SocGen commodities team, 80%+ of their oil via Hormuz, and only have about a month of oil in storage before they run out. Singapore has 40 days of inventory. Thailand has 50 days. Taiwan can last about 100 days. Bangladesh can last about 100 days, and has already instituted fuel rationing and shuttered fertilizer plants. MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
March 17 · 1 hr
With Allies Like These | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • Trump didn’t consult with European allies before attacking Iran. Now he wants their help reopening the Strait of Hormuz. They’re rejecting him—and now Trump is seriously annoyed. Meanwhile, Iran denies Israel’s claim that it killed security chief Ali Larijani. • More registered voters view Israel negatively than positively in, driven by change among independents and especially Democrats. “This is unrecognizable in terms of where America was, and the Democratic Party was, for a 20-, 30-year history,” said Republican pollster Bill McInturff. The 2028 Democratic primary is “going to be fought on very, very different terrain in regards to the issue of Israel,” he says. • In an echo of the U.S. bombing of the Iranian elementary school, Pakistan claimed it was targeting a Taliban ammunition depot but instead killed at least 400 people in a drug rehabilitation center in Kabul, Afghanistan. Pakistan’s war aims are unarticulated. • Cuba plunged into a total electricity blackout as Trump muses he can “take” the island if he wants. MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
March 16 · 1 hr 8 min
Boat Buddies | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • Trump didn’t talk to European allies before going to war against Iran. Now he’s asking them to help him reopen the Strait of Hormuz and claims some countries have agreed. Details are sketchy. When does he call it quits? • As the Middle East war enters its third week, it’s clear that the main U.S.-Israeli war aim, regime change, will not be achieved any time soon. Meanwhile, there are reports that Mojtaba Khamenei lost one leg and was treated in Russia. • As the DHS shutdown enters its second month, are unpaid TSA workers vulnerable to being corrupted by terrorist groups? JOIN US LIVE ON RUMBLE https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow FOLLOW TED: https://rall.com/ https://x.com/tedrall FOLLOW JOHN: https://www.instagram.com/realjohnkiriakou https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LISTEN ON SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu LISTEN ON APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall
March 13 · 59 min
$11 Billion a Week | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • Pentagon officials told Congress that they estimated the cost of the war against Iran had exceeded $11.3 billion in the first six days alone. • Trump tells the G7 Iran is about to “surrender.” But Arab diplomats say Iran, emboldened by its ability to rattle the global economy by choking oil shipments, has laid out steep preconditions for any return to talks. Iran is demanding that the airstrikes stop before a cease-fire, and firm guarantees that it won’t be attacked again, reparations for damages and the removal U.S. forces from the region. • Four of six crew members died after a U.S. military KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed into another plane in Iraq. A Michigan synagogue and Old Dominion University came under terrorist attack. Dubai’s financial center is under drone attack. • Afghanistan’s Taliban government accused Pakistan of targeting civilian homes, killing four people in the capital and two in the east, as fighting between the two nations entered its third week. JOIN US LIVE ON RUMBLE https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow FOLLOW TED: https://rall.com/
March 12 · 59 min
A Super Dumb Mass Murder | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • Outdated DIA targeting data—dating back at least 10 to 13 years—probably resulted in the Feb. 28 U.S. bombing of the Shajarah Tayyebeh elementary school mistaken missile strike that killed at least 175 people in Iran, mostly children. Is recklessness the norm for America’s “high tech” warriors? • As oil futures surge over $100/barrel and tankers are attacked by Iran, 400 million barrels to be released from International Energy Agency oil reserves as Iran effectively blocks the Strait of Hormuz. • As John Thune battles conservatives for refusing to alter Senate rules and mandate a traditional “talking” filibuster that would force Democrats to hold the floor to block the Save America Act, Trump trolls the Senate majority leader: “He’s got to be a leader.” Does Trump know Save would hurt him and the Republicans? TO ASK QUESTIONS BEFORE WE GO LIVE AT 9 AM ET: https://ahaslides.com/4UJWT JOIN US LIVE ON RUMBLE https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow FOLLOW TED: https://rall.com/ https://x.com/tedrall FOLLOW JOHN: https://www.instagram.com/realjohnkiriakou https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LISTEN ON SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu LISTEN ON APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall
March 11 · 58 min
Death Valley | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • In the Strait of Hormuz, the Trump administration is trapped between the specter of a global economic recession and a naval catastrophe. Energy arteries are constricting to a point of “nonlinearity,” where every day the Strait of Hormuz remains closed multiplies the economic pain exponentially. Iran will bomb Liquefied Natural Gas tankers first—vessels that could “explode like the Beirut bomb”—followed by oil tankers to maximize environmental and economic chaos. But there’s also a huge risk in sending US naval assets as escorts into a war zone. White House analysts call the Strait their “Death Valley.” • Iran has begun laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important energy chokepoint that carries about one-fifth of all crude oil, according to CNN. Despite US claims of having destroyed 14 Iranian minelayers, Iran still retains upward of 80% to 90% of its small boats and mine layers, so its forces could feasibly lay hundreds of mines in the waterway. • Iran attacked commercial ships across the Persian Gulf. Two Iranian drones hit near Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest. Iran’s joint military command announced it would start targeting banks and financial institutions in the Middle East. • San Francisco’s iconic mass transit system, BART, has entered a death spiral. Ridership cratered during the pandemic and remains less than half of what it was. The very future of the familiar white and blue trains, which have zipped around the Bay Area since 1972, is in doubt. BART says that only Bay Area residents can rescue the system by passing a new sales tax in November to cover its $400 million annual loss. Absent that, the board recently warned that it would take eye-popping actions out of desperation in 2027: Fewer trains. Higher fares and parking fees. Ending service at 9 p.m. instead of midnight. Laying off a quarter of its work force. And shrinking the system almost back to its original footprint by shuttering 15 stations. All of which will further reduce ridership. Meanwhile, the Iraq War costs $2 billion a day. MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
March 11 · 59 min
A Small Price to Pay | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • Trump dismisses the economic costs of his war against Iran as a “very small price to pay” for—what, exactly, nobody knows. Fuel prices are soaring, and may stay high for months. That could make groceries and other goods more expensive. Consumers and businesses could spend less, triggering a recession. • Wary of low approval ratings, Trump calls his Iran War a “short-term excursion.” Will this be a walk in the park? Or will Iran become another Mideast quagmire? • America For Sale: 300 billionaires and their immediate family members donated more than $3 billion—19% of all contributions — in federal elections in 2024, directly or through PACs. Before Citizens United, the share of billionaire spending was almost 0.3%. Billionaire families gave an average total of $10 million each, an amount roughly equal to what 100,000 typical political donors gave, combined. And that does not count dark-money contributions. • Republicans want the SAVE Act “show your papers” law so badly they’re willing to consider a “talking filibuster.” Ted’s done the math—and the GOP should be careful what it asks for. MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
March 9 · 59 min
Ecocide in Iran | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • As oil prices rose 50% to $110/barrel and U.S. gas rose more than $1/gallon in a week, U.S. and Israel blew up four oil depots and a petroleum logistics site in and around Tehran, deliberately triggering an ecological disaster in a capital city of 9 million people. Thick black smoke rose, soot covered streets and cars, balconies filled with black gunk, and toxic air filled lungs. Toxic chemicals lead to acid rain and hurt the skin and lungs, contaminate food and water reservoirs. Next: a spike in asthma, pulmonary and heart disease, and cancers. • A report by the National Intelligence Council completed before the Iran War assessed that even a large-scale U.S. military assault on the country would be unlikely to topple the Iranian government. Mojtaba Khamenei, has been named to ‌replace his assassinated father as supreme ⁠leader. • Trump is trying to negotiate a deal that would turn Cuba into an U.S. vassal state, as it was before the communist revolution. Americans could travel to Havana, President Miguel Díaz-Canel would resign, the Castro family would remain on the island and ports, energy and tourism would be exploited by the U.S. MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
March 6 · 1 hr
ICEd! | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • ICE Queen Kristi Noem is out at Homeland Security. Not because she unleashed thugs on Americans or covered up their murders. Because she blamed Trump for her own self-aggrandizing ad campaign and got caught in her on-the-job affair. Senator Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma will replace her. And what’s this Shield of the Americas thing she’s going to do next? • 1,300 Iranians have been killed by the U.S. and Israel. The death toll from Israeli attacks on Lebanon rose to at least 123, as a new wave of strikes pounded the Lebanon and Hezbollah warned Israeli residents to evacuate towns within 3 miles of their northern border. Yesterday, Israel threatened residents that they should leave Beirut’s southern suburbs, prompting a huge exodus from a swath of the capital’s densely populated area known as Dahiyeh, home to half a million Lebanese. • Trump tells Axios he needs to be personally involved in selecting Iran's next leader—just as he was in Venezuela. Khameini Jr. is pre-nixed. Freedom, it seems, isn’t very free. • No money for high-speed rail, new schools, the homeless, or healthcare subsidies—but the U.S. government has $2 billion a day for the Iran War. MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
March 5 · 51 min
School’s Out | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss the US/Israeli War Against Iran: • The U.S. bombing of the Iranian elementary school that killed 165 people, many of them schoolgirls, included more targets near the school than has been initially reported. Satellite images suggest that the school was hit as part of an airstrike on a neighboring military complex — and that it may have been struck as a result of outdated targeting information. Satellite images show that the school and clinic buildings were both once part of the base. The school was separated from the base by a wall between 2013 and 2016. The clinic was walled off between 2022 and 2024. Did the U.S. ignore signs of scores of girls going to class? • Did the U.S. commit a war crime by torpedoing an uninvolved Iranian frigate, IRIS Dena, returning from a diplomatic visit to India, in the Indian Ocean, and failing to rescue its crew—something Nazi U-boat commanders did during World War II until the Laconia incident? • Europe is transferring assets from Ukraine to the Mideast as rising oil prices benefit Russia’s economy. Are the U.S. and Israel indirectly defeating Ukraine? • Likely 2028 presidential contender Gavin Newsom, criticized Israel, suggesting that the U.S. should reconsider its military support for the country, which he compared to an apartheid state. Also: • The House Oversight Committee subpoenaed attorney general Pam Bondi, to testify about the Epstein files. The 24 to 19 vote was a rebuke to the Trump administration. MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
March 4 · 59 min
Iran’s Plan: Outwit, Outplay, Outlast | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss the US/Israeli War Against Iran: • Iran's overriding goal is regime survival amid overwhelming military superiority from the United States and Israel. Rather than seeking outright victory, Tehran aims to impose high costs on President Trump—through American casualties, surging global energy prices, inflation, and economic disruption—to pressure him into declaring victory and withdrawing. Iran pursues asymmetric endurance by expanding the battlefield regionally: targeting oil/gas infrastructure in Gulf neighbors, attempting to close the Strait of Hormuz (disrupting ~20% of world oil/gas flows), limiting air traffic, and depleting expensive missile interceptors with cheap drones. • If war is good for business, what’s going on? The New York Times reported that Iranian operatives have sued for peace to the CIA. U.S. stock index futures edged higher after a major sell-off, but $75/barrel oil fuels worries about global inflation. Financial expert Aquiles Larrea joins us to discuss the economic impact of the war. • The son of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Mojtaba Khamenei, is the front-runner to rule Iran. Also: • Texas Two-Time? Aggressive Democrat Jasmine Crockett is claiming election cheating—credibly—as her huge 56-44 polling lead evaporated overnight into a 53-46 loss to moderate James Talarico. Why? The Supreme Court against her campaign's request to give voters from Dallas County an extension to sort out confusion about Republican-led changes to polling locations. The GOP side heads to a runoff. MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
March 3 · 1 hr
Regime Derange | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss the US/Israeli War Against Iran: • Once again, the U.S. has decapitated the leadership of a country without a reasonable plan to fill the power vacuum it created. Trump tells Iranians to “take over your government,” but there’s no organized opposition. “The plan,” a German official worries aloud, “is to have no plan.” • Escalation: Israel, the U.S. and Iran are poised to hit more targets with more powerful weapons. At least 787 Iranians and 6 Americans have died. • Iran threatens to blow up ships attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran, a major oil-exporting nation, watches oil prices soar. Gas prices are already rising. Today will be a rough day on Wall Street. Financial expert Aquiles Larrea joins us to discuss the economic impact of the war. • Marco Rubio explains the “imminent threat” behind the war: Israel, he says, was going to attack. Iran would have retaliated against US bases. Why didn’t he tell Israel not to attack, or notify Iran of the danger from Israel? Also: • In Texas John Cornyn, a four-term incumbent, is facing off against the state’s attorney general, scandal-plagued MAGA darling Ken Paxton. Democrats are facing a choice between Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who plays to the party’s base, and state representative James Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian preaching a blend of Christianity and liberal values. TO ASK A QUESTION FOR TED AND/OR JOHN BEFORE TODAY’S SHOW AIRS LIVE: https://ahaslides.com/4UJWT MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
March 2 · 59 min
The Republic Strikes Back | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss the US/Israeli War Against Iran: • Iran was more prepared for war than the Trump administration anticipated, U.S. officials admit. Three American service members were killed and five seriously wounded by Iran at Camp Arifjan in Kuwait. Flights across the Middle East came to a standstill after Iran struck at least four airports, including Dubai. Bahrain sustained minimal damage from a drone. Airports in both Kuwait and the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, Irbil, were also hit. Iran hit Zayed Port in Abu Dhabi, where the French navy has a base. Two drones struck a port in Duqm, a port town in Oman. An Iranian bomb struck a shelter in Beit Shemesh, west of Jerusalem, killing at least nine people. Residential towers in Bahrain were also hit. Kuwait accidentally shot down three F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets—$100 million each—down late last night. Six crew members ejected. • The war expanded into Lebanon after Hezbollah claimed a rocket and drone attack on Israel. Israel struck the group’s HQ in Beirut and targeted weapons storage facilities. PM Keir Starmer is reversing his decision to bar the U.S. from using U.K. bases. The war has only sped up the deterioration of the trans-Atlantic relationship. • Trump is publicly warning Americans to gird for a sustained, costly war.“Sadly, there will likely be more [U.S. deaths] before it ends,” the president said. “America will avenge their deaths and deliver the most punishing blow to the terrorists who have waged war against, basically, civilization.” • Oil futures surged. Brent crude, the international benchmark, spiked 6.2% to trade at $77 a barrel, having briefly surpassed $82 earlier in the trading session. Meanwhile, stock futures fell. Futures for the S&P 500, the Nasdaq and the Dow were all down more than 1%. But Exxon and Chevron shares rose pre-market. Defense stocks, like Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin, were also up strongly. Also: • Pakistan bombed Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. The Taliban is firing at Pakistani fighter jets over Kabul. • A man who fatally shot two people and wounded 14 others at a popular bar on Austin’s Sixth Street, 53-year-old Ndiaga Diagne, wore a hoodie that read “Property of Allah” over a T-shirt bearing an Iranian flag. TO ASK A QUESTION FOR TED AND/OR JOHN BEFORE TODAY’S SHOW AIRS LIVE: https://ahaslides.com/3XL8G MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
March 1 · 1 hr 8 min
Extra: Mideast in Flames | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss the US/Israeli War Against Iran: • In the run-up to the U.S. and Israeli attacks, the CIA assessed that if Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was assassinated along with other top officials—which he was yesterday—he could be replaced by hardline figures from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, though its commander died yesterday. An interim council led by Ayatollah Alireza Arafi was announced today. • Insiders tell The New York Times the Trump Administration’s maximalist demands, along with constantly shifting priorities and Israel’s refusal to believe Iran on anything, doomed negotiations from the start. • Only 21% of Americans support the war. • Trump is largely in hiding. • Oil futures are soaring. • Key members of Congress are pushing a war powers resolution. “Has President Trump learned nothing from decades of U.S. meddling in Iran and forever wars in the Middle East?” said Sen. Tim Kaine. House Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie are demanding a public vote. Massie said: “This is not ‘America First.’” TO ASK A QUESTION FOR TED AND/OR JOHN BEFORE TODAY’S SHOW AIRS LIVE: https://ahaslides.com/T1S4E MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
February 28 · 1 hr 10 min
EXTRA! U.S. & Israel At War with Iran | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
The US and Israel launched strikes on Iran after what the Israeli military said was months of “close and joint planning.” Israel said its strikes targeted Iran’s supreme leader, president and head of the armed forces. The US is planning for several days of attacks. President Donald Trump described the US military campaign as “massive and ongoing,” warned American lives may be lost, and called on Iranians to “take over your government.” Iran launched an unprecedented wave of strikes toward Israel and US targets across the Middle East. Explosions were reported in the UAE, Bahrain and Qatar and in Dubai, where all flights to and from airports have been suspended. The attacks sparked global responses. The leaders of some US allies expressed concern, while some Arab nations condemned Iran’s retaliation.
February 27 · 57 min
Cold As ICE | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • America’s least popular government agency, ICE, is under fire after another wild day of brutality. Another Columbia student was illegally abducted from campus housing by agents, with no warrant, who used fake NYPD badges and a forged NYPD missing persons poster to lie their way past university security. Reuters reports that ICE is hiring career criminals and members of violent street gangs as they lower standards and skip vetting procedures, as the top federal judge in Minnesota threatened to jail ICE officers who routinely defy court orders. A nearly blind refugee from ethnic violence in Myanmar, a father of two, died after Border Patrol goons dumped him at a Buffalo doughnut shop and he tried to walk home five miles in arctic weather, after BCE confiscated the cane he needed to walk. • “Open War Between Us”: Pakistan bombed Kabul and Kandahar and assaulted Taliban border posts. • Anthropic, which created Claude AI, will not allow the Pentagon to use it for fully autonomous armed drones or AI-assisted mass surveillance that could track dissent. Pete Hegseth is giving Anthropic until 5 pm today to cave in, or he’ll take it for free under the Defense Production Act. • For the third year in a row, Israel is the top killer of journalists who have managed not to get laid off. • Texas airspace was closed after the DoD used a high-energy laser to shoot down a HomeSec drone near El Paso. • The Washington Post reports that activists with close ties to the White House are urging Trump to declare a national emergency to justify to placing midterm elections under his control, with mail-in voting canceled and ICE “protecting” polling stations. TO ASK A QUESTION FOR TED AND/OR JOHN BEFORE TODAY’S SHOW AIRS LIVE: https://ahaslides.com/T1S4E MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
February 27 · 58 min
In the Same Boat | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • Filet of Pigs: Four US-based Cuban nationals who entered Cuban waters on a US-registered speedboat have been shot dead by border patrol after the speedboat's armed passengers opened fire on a coast guard vessel. Six additional passengers were wounded. Secretary of State Marco Rubio denied the infiltration was a US covert operation. James Uthmeier, Florida's attorney general, said he would direct local law enforcement to investigate the incident. "The Cuban government cannot be trusted, and we will do everything in our power to hold these communists accountable," he said. • #EpsteinToo: Forced out of Harvard, Lawrence Summers became the latest public figure to be impacted but their implication in the Epstein Files. Others include Paul Weiss chair Brad Karp, longevity expert Peter Attia of CBS News, former Obama counsel Kathy Ruemmler, mind behavior scientist Richard Axel of Columbia, ex-Prince Andrew, UK ambassador to the US Peter Mandelson, as well as Slovak and Norwegian officials. Who’s next? Hillary testifies today at the House, Bill tomorrow. • Senate in Play: With just days until Texas’ primary, Republicans are alarmed that their increasingly vicious intraparty contest could cost them a must-win Senate seat. Sen. John Cornyn appears to be headed to an expensive and nasty 10-week runoff against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, with a strong chance that Paxton wins the nomination even after national Republicans spent months airing his filthy laundry all over the Texas airwaves in an effort to boost Cornyn. If Cornyn loses the primary, Senate Republicans could be forced to spend hundreds of millions of dollars that could otherwise go toward key battleground races in expensive states like North Carolina, Georgia or Michigan, complicating their path toward holding Senate control. TO ASK A QUESTION FOR TED AND/OR JOHN BEFORE TODAY’S SHOW AIRS LIVE: https://ahaslides.com/ZKWAI MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
February 25 · 59 min
Or-Ban Ukraine | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • Angry due to alleged Ukrainian disruption to the Druzhba pipeline, which delivers Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia via Ukraine, Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban blocked the EU’s big cash package to Ukraine and new sanctions against Russia. • SOTU: With his approval at 37%, Trump did what presidents shouldn’t do when the public is pissed off at them—he took a victory lap and told them everything is awesome. Blowing off the opportunity for a reset, Trump hammed the State of the Union Address like a gameshow host, cheering the olympic hockey team, pinned medals and ribbons on heroes, trolled Democrats, insulted the Supreme Court and presided over a Jerry Springer-like Venezuelan family reunion. • Trump also claimed Iran are developing ICBMs “that will soon reach the U.S.” MERCH STORE: https://www.deprogram.live https://x.com/tedrall https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LIVE ON RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/2kdFlw2w8sSPhKI8NRx8Zu APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall/id1825379504
February 24 · 59 min
Mideast on Alert | DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou
Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST. Today we discuss: • Mideast on Alert: As the US has gathered 150 planes and a dozen military ships in the Middle East and may be preparing for a bloody, extended attack against Iran, the US Embassy in Beirut evacuated dozens of personnel. The US has two destroyers in the Mediterranean, one in the Red Sea, four in the Persian Gulf, and an aircraft carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, accompanied by four destroyers, in the Arabian Sea. Another carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, arrived in the Mediterranean Sea on Friday, accompanied by warships. CJCS Gen. Dan Caine worries about high casualties and stockpiles depletion. • Is Afghanistan becoming a safe haven for Islamist terrorists? Pakistan carried out airstrikes against seven camps belonging to the Pakistani Taliban – also known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), as well as ISIS-K. • U.S. ambassador to France Charles Kushner has been banned from meeting members of the French ‌government after ghosting the Foreign Affairs ministry earlier, where he had been summoned over his comments on the killing of Quentin Deranque. JOIN US LIVE ON RUMBLE! https://rumble.com/c/DeProgramShow FOLLOW TED: https://rall.com/ https://x.com/tedrall FOLLOW JOHN: https://www.instagram.com/realjohnkiriakou https://x.com/JohnKiriakou LISTEN ON SPOTIFY: LISTEN ON APPLE MUSIC: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deprogram-with-john-kiriakou-and-ted-rall