Podcast appearances and mentions of ben norton

To justify war on Iran, the Donald Trump administration is repeating the same disinformation used by George W. Bush to justify the illegal invasion of Iraq in 2003, based on false claims it had "weapons of mass destruction" (WMDs). US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard went from condemning Trump as a warmonger and liar in 2020 to helping him manufacture consent for this war, even after admitting in March 2025 "that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon". Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_EsEQ-1yp8 The real reasons for the US-Israeli war on Iran, explained: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwH780cEcEQ Topics 0:00 Trump admin pushes for war on Iran 0:58 Reports: Trump approved attacks on Iran 1:50 USA wants regime change in Iran 3:10 Regurgitating Iraq War "WMD" propaganda 5:24 No evidence of Iranian nuclear weapons 6:36 (CLIP) Trump criticizes his own intel 6:53 US spy agencies: Iran not building nukes 7:41 Tulsi Gabbard helps Trump sell Iran war 9:11 (CLIP) "Iran is not building a nuclear weapon" 9:21 Tulsi Gabbard helps Trump sell Iran war 9:49 Trump White House pushes Iran war 12:00 When Tulsi Gabbard condemned Trump 13:14 (CLIPS) Gabbard: Trump wants Iran war 14:38 Gabbard: Trump wants regime change 16:24 Iran nuclear deal 18:44 Negotiations with Iran 20:02 Propaganda war 20:47 Déjà vu: George W Trump's war 21:09 Reasons for US-Israeli war on Iran 22:03 Outro

The war on Iran seeks "US global dominance" and to "weaken China", said Donald Trump's former national security advisor, General Michael Flynn. He admitted that the US is giving Israel intelligence, weapons, and training. Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuNHt1-uWjE The real reasons for the US-Israeli war on Iran, explained: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwH780cEcEQ Topics 0:00 (CLIPS) US-Israeli war on Iran 0:41 Trump advisor Michael Flynn 1:56 Steve Bannon interview 2:43 (CLIP) US support for Israel 3:33 (CLIP) Fight for "Western civilization" 3:51 Mike Flynn's Christian nationalism 4:15 Pete Hegseth's "American crusade" 5:04 Germany: Israel does West's "dirty work" 5:48 Trump: US "controls" Iran's skies 6:22 Trump approved attack on Iran 6:38 Trump demands "surrender" 7:02 CIA coup in Iran in 1953 7:55 (CLIP) Install pro-US Iranian regime 8:13 Targeting China 8:28 (CLIP) To "focus on China" 8:42 Targeting China 8:57 (CLIP) Pivot to Asia 9:05 Pivot to Asia 9:33 (CLIP) "China, China, China" 10:33 Allying with India 11:05 (CLIP) India's role 11:47 Israel-India relations 13:04 Shanghai Cooperation Org (SCO) 14:42 US divide-and-conquer strategy 15:30 (CLIP) "US global dominance" 15:41 Goals of US-Israeli war on Iran 17:16 Outro

The United States and Israel are waging war on Iran, but why? What are their real goals? Ben Norton explains the imperial strategy to impose US hegemony on West Asia (aka the Middle East), destroy the Axis of Resistance, colonize Palestine, destabilize the revolutionary Iranian government, preserve the petrodollar system, prevent de-dollarization, divide BRICS, and break up the Iran-Russia-China partnership. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwH780cEcEQ How Israel's war on Iran was made in USA: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/06/14/israel-war-iran-us-trump-support/ US pressures Saudi Arabia to sell oil in dollars, not Chinese yuan: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2023/08/10/us-saudi-arabia-sell-oil-dollars-chinese-yuan/ Topics 0:00 US support for Israeli attacks 4:38 Goals of US-Israeli war on Iran 10:13 Israel: outpost of US empire 14:35 US imperial strategy 16:28 Geopolitics of West Asia (Middle East) 17:50 Oil and gas 21:11 Geostrategic chokepoints 24:53 Axis of Resistance 28:33 Syria: Fall of Assad government 31:44 US plan to overthrow 7 countries 33:54 Iranian Revolution 35:53 Anti-colonial movements 39:14 Dedollarization 41:49 Petrodollar and OPEC oil embargo 47:05 Super Imperialism 49:36 Petrodollar challenge 52:43 BRICS 55:55 Shanghai Cooperation Organization 58:53 Iran-Russia-China partnership 1:04:05 US divide-and-conquer strategy 1:06:03 Outro

Israel attacked Iran in an aggressive act of war. The US government supported the strikes, providing intelligence and planning with Netanyahu. Donald Trump cynically used nuclear negotiations with Tehran as cover, as he oversaw the joint US-Israeli operation. Ben Norton reviews the evidence. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0s7O8RU9V0 Topics 0:00 USA supported Israeli attacks 1:38 Trump's fake "peace talks" with Iran 3:13 USA provided Israel intelligence 3:49 Trump gave Israel green light 5:07 US military helped Israel 6:01 Marco Rubio's lies 6:40 Israel: unsinkable US aircraft carrier 7:15 Netanyahu is an American 8:07 USA arms Israel 8:45 USA protects Israel at UN 9:37 ICC charges Netanyahu 10:34 Trump threatens Iran 12:41 Trump's 60 day deadline 13:37 Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA) 15:24 Lessons from Libya 17:24 Israel's nuclear weapons 18:37 Nuclear weapon free zone 19:20 Alliance with apartheid South Africa 20:26 Germany condemns Iran 21:37 Western neo-colonialism 22:20 France's Macron criticizes Iran 23:07 Iranian civilian victims 24:11 Human shields 27:29 US & Israel: imperial bullies 28:44 Iran hits back 29:13 US military aid to Israel 29:55 Outro

Donald Trump deployed the US military to repress protesters in Los Angeles, California, as people flooded the streets to denounce the abuse of immigrants by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement). Ben Norton discusses how the oppressive tactics used by the empire eventually return home. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYcRBkB2KCw Topics 0:00 LA protests 0:28 California government rebukes Trump 1:10 Police shoot journalists 1:48 Empire's tactics come home 2:11 Militarization of US police 2:59 Private prison corporations 3:43 Trump wages war inside his country 4:43 Foreign flags and Israel 5:27 Trump deports pro-Palestine protesters 6:13 Mahmoud Khalil, political prisoner 7:05 Lawlessness of ICE 8:26 ICE targets children 8:50 ICE's criminal behavior 12:54 ICE targets migrants with tattoos 14:11 Trump's police state budget 15:24 Scapegoating immigrants 16:26 Unemployment 17:14 Essential workers 18:03 Taxes 18:47 Crime rates 19:34 US imperial hypocrisy 19:46 Hong Kong riots 21:02 US coups in Latin America 22:18 US guns in Mexico 23:38 Obama, Biden, and Trump 24:12 Imperial boomerang 24:38 Outro

Everywhere you look, you can see the decline of Western hegemony, as the world is increasingly multipolar. Ben Norton analyzes the rise of China, development of Global South economies, and increasing unity in Asia. A symbol of this was the historic ASEAN-GCC-China Summit held in Malaysia, which supplements BRICS in pursuit of dedollarization, South-South economic integration, and infrastructure construction. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRGkCw-Sqk0 Topics 0:00 Weakening US dominance 0:22 Industrial production 0:46 China is world's largest economy 1:22 Decline of Western hegemony 1:53 Rise of Global South 2:45 Global South is Global Majority 3:44 Trump is accelerating US decline 4:28 BRICS expansion 5:46 ASEAN-GCC-China Summit 7:21 ASEAN 7:41 Southeast Asia's population 8:54 Southeast Asia's economy 9:41 GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) 10:50 ASEAN-GCC-China Summit joint statement 11:26 ASEAN's trade with China 11:47 RCEP 12:22 Palestine 12:54 Opposition to Trump's tariffs 13:44 De-dollarization 14:57 Petroyuan challenges petrodollar 16:09 Infrastructure 16:32 Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) 16:57 New Silk Road 17:32 Railroads linking China to SE Asia 18:59 Energy 19:54 China: world leader in renewable energy 20:08 China's solar power capacity 20:44 China's affordable green energy tech 24:38 Nuclear power 27:16 Other issues discussed 27:55 Multipolarity 28:41 The ASEAN Way 29:35 Cautious optimism 30:31 Global South-led alternatives 31:05 Outro

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth delivered an extremely hawkish speech in which he demonized China as a "threat" and said, "We are preparing for war". Ben Norton analyzes the top Trump admin official's aggressive remarks at the Shangri-La Dialogue 2025 summit. He explains the geopolitics of the Asia-Pacific region, and Washington's unsuccessful attempt to pressure countries to join its new cold war on Beijing. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLOTTVI_LAA US defense secretary declared 'holy war' on China, left & Islam: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/03/07/us-defense-secretary-hegseth-overthrow-china-crusade/ Is war on China coming? The US military is seriously preparing: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/04/28/us-military-war-china-silicon-valley/ Topics 0:00 (CLIPS) US defense secretary speech 0:30 US military prepares for war 1:05 (CLIP) "We are preparing for war" 1:25 Trump admin's war threats 1:55 (CLIP) Trump "will never hesitate to" use force 2:13 (CLIP) "Deterrence" and war 2:24 Shangri-La Dialogue 2025 summit 2:41 Asia-Pacific region 3:59 (CLIP) USA is "here to stay" in "Indo-Pacific" 4:19 US empire seeks hegemony 4:50 (CLIP) Pentagon says China is a "threat" 5:11 Pete Hegseth, extremist US "crusader" 6:31 Myth of Chinese "hegemony" 7:24 (CLIP) Hegseth on China "threat" 8:01 China opposes hegemony 9:34 China doesn't want hegemony 10:33 US pressures Asia to cut ties with China 11:17 (CLIP) USA opposes "economic cooperation" 11:47 Taiwan 13:05 (CLIP) Hegseth on Taiwan 13:32 Hegseth's hawkish rhetoric 13:56 (CLIP) US "warfighters" and "warfighting" 14:31 US military budget of $1 trillion 14:40 (CLIP) Trump boosts US military spending 15:02 Military interventions 15:32 (CLIP) USA tells Asia: Join us against China 15:48 US divide-and-conquer strategy is failing 16:23 China, Japan, South Korea cooperate 16:47 Trump's tariff threats 17:25 RCEP trade deal 17:55 ASEAN-GCC-China summit 18:36 India 18:43 (CLIP) Hegseth on US-India partnership 19:00 India-China relations 20:24 Philippines volunteers to be Ukraine of Asia 21:21 US military bases and missiles in Philippines 21:51 Militarization of first island chain 22:48 Regional non-alignment 23:19 Philippines and Australia 24:40 Colonialist Monroe Doctrine 25:03 (CLIP) Hegseth threatens Panama Canal 25:31 US imperialism is bipartisan 26:03 Biden official praises Trump's China policy 27:02 Republicans vs Democrats 27:39 US empire says war is peace 28:32 (CLIP) USA doesn't seek encirclement? 28:45 US "grand encirclement plan" for China 29:34 Biden admin's China policy 30:02 (CLIP) Antony Blinken on China containment 30:15 Imperial hypocrisy 31:05 Cold War Two 31:54 Silicon Valley profits from war preparations 32:15 Outro

Donald Trump claims his tariffs will bring back good manufacturing jobs and help to reindustrialize the United States, but all the evidence suggests this will fail, because he has no coherent industrial policy, is gutting the state's capacities, and refuses to challenge Wall Street. Ben Norton explains how the US economy was financialized, and what it would take to truly revive industry. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxWBnA_bQN0 Topics 0:00 (CLIPS) Intro 1:07 Trump's tariffs 2:09 Wells Fargo study 3:23 Industrial policy 3:51 China's industrial policy and planning 6:49 Biden's half-baked attempt 8:00 Survey: US manufacturing is not coming back 11:08 Tariff revenue was paid as subsidies 11:43 US government debt and deficit 12:28 Contradictions in tariff policy 13:25 Data on deindustrialization of US economy 15:45 The American System 18:44 Abraham Lincoln 19:13 Henry Clay 19:26 (CLIP) Trump on Henry Clay 19:59 (CLIP) Trump invokes the American System 20:22 Trumpism = Reaganism + protectionism 20:47 Financialization of US economy 21:20 Trump's tax cuts on the rich 21:55 Corporate incentives 22:43 GE and Boeing 23:28 Wall Street 24:24 US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick 25:41 (CLIP) Howard Lutnick on factory jobs 26:46 Manufacturing jobs 27:33 Views on manufacturing in USA 28:22 Lack of skilled labor in USA 29:01 Apple 29:42 (CLIP) Apple CEO Tim Cook on China 32:09 Wages in China 33:50 Vietnam and market socialism 35:37 Elon Musk and Tesla 36:57 US oligarchs 37:39 Policy proposal for reindustrialization 39:52 Challenging capital 40:38 Neoliberal globalization 42:31 Trump's tax policy helps rich, hurts poor 44:52 Outro

US Vice President JD Vance revealed the Trump administration's "generational shift in [foreign] policy", emphasizing "great power competition" and preparation for war with China. They're abandoning soft power and focusing on "hard power" and "overwhelming force", in a return to blatant, 19th century-style imperialism. Ben Norton reports. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2Yqc-8uVHc The US military is seriously preparing for war on China: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/04/28/us-military-war-china-silicon-valley/ Topic 0:00 (CLIP) JD Vance speech highlights 0:23 US VP declares "new era" of foreign policy 1:59 (CLIP) End of US unipolar dominance 2:24 Preparing for war 2:51 (CLIP) A "new and very dangerous era" 3:01 Emphasizing hard power 3:17 (CLIP) Hard power vs soft power 3:22 Containing China 3:31 (CLIP) Targeting China 3:43 Shifting priorities 4:17 (CLIP) Great power competition 4:37 Redirection of foreign policy 4:48 (CLIP) A "generational shift in policy" 4:59 Rise of China 5:46 (CLIP) Era of US hegemony 6:37 USA wants China regime change 7:07 This is not isolationism 7:35 (CLIP) "When we send you to war" 7:58 Taking the mask off US empire 8:49 (CLIP) "We throw a punch hard" 9:07 Trump boosts US military spending 9:28 (CLIP) Trump: $1 trillion military budget 9:49 US foreign military bases 10:19 19th century-style imperialism 10:39 William McKinley, imperialist 11:30 (CLIP) Trump vows "enlarged country" 11:54 Expanding US territory 12:18 (CLIP) Trump: expand US empire 12:56 Monroe Doctrine 13:51 Training "war fighters" 14:07 (CLIP) JD Vance on "war fighters" 14:10 Pete Hegseth 14:25 (CLIP) Hegseth on "war fighters" 14:39 A "peacemaker" for war 14:58 US war on Yemen 15:18 (CLIP) Vance boasts of bombing Yemen 15:33 Future war threats 15:51 (CLIP) US "red lines" for war 16:12 US "ideological crusades" 16:33 (CLIP) Vance on "ideological crusades" 16:46 Pete Hegseth, self-declared "crusader" 17:34 US empire rebrands 18:37 The main target is China 19:34 (CLIP) Marco Rubio on China "threat" 20:17 Preparing for war on China 20:36 Outro

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged to colonize Gaza, saying, "We will take control of all the territory of the Strip". US President Donald Trump is trying to expel Palestinians to Libya or other countries. Trump imposed sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC), and, like Joe Biden, he is selling Israel billions of dollars of weapons. Ben Norton reports. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzG98YklawA Why the US supports Israel, explained: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2023/11/12/why-us-support-israel-geopolitics-michael-hudson/ Topics 0:00 USA backs Israel's crimes 0:56 Netanyahu: Israel will control all of Gaza 1:34 Trump gave Israel green light 2:17 Trump wants to expel Palestinians to Libya 3:47 Israel's goal: total colonization 4:38 Mass hunger in Gaza 5:41 Israeli minister: "We're destroying Gaza" 6:50 Netanyahu's "aid" PR 8:10 Israel's strategy: Use hunger as a weapon 10:27 Bezalel Smotrich 11:19 "Voluntary" migration 11:59 "Total annihilation" of Gaza 12:52 Starvation 13:39 Israel vows to annex West Bank 15:02 Trump sanctions ICC 15:56 Biden admin threatened ICC 16:22 USA attacks ICC 17:51 Microsoft aids Israel 18:23 Impact of sanctions 18:52 Is Trump really "frustrated"? 19:52 (CLIP) Trump is Israel's "best friend" 20:07 Trump wants to colonize Gaza 20:44 (CLIP) Trump: US will take over Gaza 20:59 Trump gives Israel weapons 22:49 Netanyahu thanks "greatest friend" Trump 23:05 (CLIP) Netanyahu praises Trump 23:12 Biden's support for Israel 23:46 Obama's support for Israel 24:26 Israel can't wage war without USA 25:02 Israel is US unsinkable aircraft carrier 25:36 Netanyahu is American 26:15 Israel is an outpost of US empire 26:39 (CLIP) Biden: US would create Israel 27:05 Geopolitics of Israel 27:22 Outro

Donald Trump claimed he would "un-unite" Russia and China, but the US divide-and-conquer strategy is failing. In a meeting in Moscow celebrating the 80th anniversary of their nations' victory in World War Two, Presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin reaffirmed that "China-Russia relations have reached the highest level in history" and will "jointly resist any attempts to interfere with and disrupt the traditional friendship and deep mutual trust between China and Russia". Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLJ6K_95uWk Topics 0:00 USA tries to contain China 0:49 (CLIP) Trump vows to divide Russia & China 1:05 Marco Rubio targets China 1:34 (CLIP) Marco Rubio on China "threat" 2:17 Trump admin's Russia strategy 2:33 (CLIP) Rubio wants to "partner" with Russia 2:41 China & Russia are "friends of steel" 3:43 80th anniversary of Victory Day 4:05 Soviet Union defeated Nazi Germany 5:23 China's sacrifice in World War II 6:21 Vietnam resisted Japanese empire 6:50 Putin reaffirms "highest level" China ties 10:23 China-Russia trade 11:52 USA can't offer Russia much 12:36 NATO expansion 13:34 Xi compares US imperialism to fascism 14:38 China-Russia relations 15:16 Xi Jinping on Russia ties 16:46 Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) 17:42 Reverse Nixon? 19:08 China's economy 20:31 Kissinger plan to divide Russia & China 23:05 Obama-Clinton "Russian reset" attempt 26:00 China-Russia joint statement 27:29 World Anti-Fascist War 29:09 Closest China-Russia relations in history 31:17 Multipolarity 34:07 BRICS 35:08 Russia joins the Global Majority 36:17 Brazil 36:49 Venezuela 37:27 Cuba 38:18 Burkina Faso leader Ibrahim Traoré 39:08 Palestine 40:14 Vietnam 41:40 US hegemony is declining 42:55 Outro

Donald Trump's tariff threats, trade war, and other aggressive policies are uniting the world against the United States. Meanwhile, China is deepening its cooperation with Europe, Southeast Asia, Russia, and even South Korea and Japan. Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4soTzm9uMQ Trump's tariffs turbocharge de-dollarization: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/05/05/trump-tariffs-dedollarization-sell-us-dollar/ Topics 0:00 Trump's contradictory policies 0:15 (CLIP) Trump vows to be "peacemaker" 0:45 (CLIP) Trump promises imperial expansion 1:23 Massive US war budget 1:44 (CLIP) Trump's $1 trillion military budget 2:04 Ukraine peace talks failed 2:18 Trump bombs Yemen, threatens Iran 2:36 Trump backs Israel's crimes 3:13 Neocon hawk Marco Rubio 4:09 Crusader Pete Hegseth 4:53 Trade war 5:31 China talks 6:20 Dedollarization 7:00 Trump isolates USA 7:29 (CLIP) Trump: USA will be "strongest" 7:50 Blowback 8:25 Poll: Trump is very unpopular 10:01 Fox News poll: Trump is unpopular 10:56 Global anger at US aggression 11:58 US "encirclement" plan for China 13:49 China, Japan, S Korea, ASEAN cooperate 14:53 China, Japan South Korea coordinate 16:15 Japan pushes back against Trump 17:40 China & Vietnam deepen relations 18:28 ASEAN prefers China 19:38 ASEAN's trade with China 20:04 China diversifies its trade 21:50 China-Russia partnership 22:21 (CLIP) Trump: Divide Russia & China 22:37 Xi Jinping's trip to Russia 23:53 China & Russia commemorate WWII 25:13 Europe & China improve relations 27:11 Trump unites the rest of the world 27:43 Poll: China more popular than USA 29:48 US imperial decline 30:09 China: world's no 1 trading partner 30:28 China: world's no 1 economy 30:51 China: world's no 1 manufacturer 31:36 USA: world's no 1 oil producer 32:24 Canada's election 34:12 Australia's election 35:25 The Trump effect 36:14 Outro

Donald Trump said he wanted to save the dominance of the US dollar as the global reserve currency, but his aggressive tariff threats and trade war are accelerating dedollarization. Countries and foreign investors are selling US stocks and bonds (Treasury securities, ie, US government debt), seeking alternative reserve assets. Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnWnyL3WGjg Topics 0:00 Donald Trump's plan 0:24 (CLIP) Trump on dedollarization 0:51 (CLIP) Trump on dollar dominance 1:23 Dedollarization 2:00 BRICS 2:48 Financial markets are de-dollarizing 4:11 Blowback 5:06 Trump's "Liberation Day" tariffs 5:25 Trade war on China 5:49 US "grand encirclement" plan 6:35 China & Vietnam deepen ties 7:11 China, South Korea, Japan cooperate 7:56 Japan pushes back against USA 9:16 US bond market problems 10:43 Foreign holders of US Treasuries 11:13 China's US Treasury holdings 12:17 China is de-dollarizing 12:46 US asset seizures 14:03 China's dedollarization 15:17 Mar-a-Lago Accord means default 16:58 China de-dollarizes its reserves 19:00 Central banks buy gold 20:53 Gold price skyrockets 22:05 USD falls against yen & euro 23:21 Japanese & European bonds 24:35 Exchange rate risk 25:22 Japanese investors sell US assets 27:26 Dedollarization accelerates 28:37 Multipolar currency world 29:46 US current account deficit 30:40 Foreign holdings of US Treasuries 31:57 Scott Bessent fails to lower yields 32:30 Interest payments on US debt 33:20 Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell 33:58 Dedollarization will continue 34:52 Outro

Will 125% tariffs on China bring jobs back to the US or they a nonsensical escalation of the trade war with China? What's really going on? Hear journalist and founder of the Geopolitical Economy Report, Ben Norton.

The US military is preparing for war on China, and has missile systems in the Philippines aimed at major Chinese cities. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the USA is making "Japan into a war-fighting headquarters". Ben Norton discusses the extremely aggressive policies of Trump, Biden, and beyond. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4f43dPOWgo Trump's nuclear trade war targets China - but will blow back on USA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9k7132Iyeo US Defense Secretary Hegseth wants to overthrow China's government, in ‘crusade' against left (and Islam): https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/03/07/us-defense-secretary-hegseth-overthrow-china-crusade/ Topics 0:00 USA prepares for war on China 0:54 US missile systems in Philippines 2:01 Cuban missile crisis 2:59 Bipartisan warmongering 3:47 Economic war 4:51 Trump boosts military budget 5:05 (CLIP) Trump: $1 trillion military budget 5:36 Deficit, DOGE, & Elon Musk 6:24 Pete Hegseth: an imperial "crusader" 7:04 (CLIP) Hegseth promises "lethality" 7:18 Hegseth's "American crusade" 8:16 Pentagon memo on war with China 9:01 Heritage Foundation 9:46 Pentagon memo on war with China 11:57 Trump's goal with Ukraine 12:27 (CLIP) Trump: divide Russia & China 12:42 Pentagon dubs China top "threat" 14:37 China's challenge to US hegemony 16:40 Taiwan as US imperial outpost 18:25 US troops & weapons in Taiwan 18:53 US-China three communiqués 20:47 USA backs Taiwan separatism 21:16 (CLIP) Marco Rubio on Taiwan 21:49 Taiwanese authoritarianism 22:56 Polls on Taiwan separatism 24:17 Taiwan's semiconductors 25:47 Hegseth's trip to Japan 27:16 USA promises peace through war 28:03 Trump admin's top 3 military goals 28:18 US aggression 30:31 Hegseth's trip to Philippines 31:26 (CLIP) USA has "real war plans" 32:12 Philippines as US imperial proxy 34:31 Silicon Valley prepares for war 35:11 Billionaire Palmer Luckey 38:54 Pentagon contractor Anduril 39:35 CIA-backed Palantir 40:02 Oligarch Peter Thiel 40:57 Venture capital & military-industrial complex 42:35 USA is an oligarchy 43:45 US war on China 45:02 Outro

Donald Trump's tariffs are benefiting rich elites at the expense of the majority of the population, argues economist Michael Hudson. He explains how the US trade war on China is isolating the United States and encouraging countries to seek alternatives. Ben Norton hosts the interview. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGsLDQQuzU0 Read Michael Hudson's report "Return of the robber barons – Trump's distorted view of US tariff history": https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/04/14/michael-hudson-robber-barons-trump-tariffs/ Topics 0:00 Intro 1:11 Michael Hudson highlights 2:09 Interview starts 2:41 Replacing income tax with tariffs 5:40 Government industrial policy 9:22 Reaganomics 2.0 11:29 Gilded Age 14:54 China's model 17:50 (CLIP) JD Vance calls Chinese "peasants" 18:12 Public finance 22:57 Trade war on China 25:12 (CLIP) Trump demands tribute 25:42 US attempt to isolate China 26:30 USA doesn't have many cards 28:55 Import substitution 30:16 Trump is isolating the US 34:58 US dollar system in crisis 38:03 Reindustrialization 40:06 Trump's bullying strategy 43:26 Destroying the post-WWII system 49:06 Global South vs the West 50:58 Democracy or oligarchy? 56:05 Billionaire oligarchs 56:56 Corruption 58:25 Outro

Ben Norton joins us to discuss the potential of a global recession following Trump's disastrous tariff implementations.

Welcome to this week's episode of Scheer Intelligence, where host Robert Scheer dives deep into the compelling and complex world of international relations. In today's episode, we are joined by Ben Norton, a distinguished journalist based in China, and editor at Geopolitical Economy Report. With a profound understanding of the intricacies of China's economy, Ben offers invaluable insights into the ongoing trade tensions under the Trump administration and the shifting sands of global power dynamics. As we discuss everything from tariffs and trade wars to the implications of a multipolar world, prepare to gain a clearer picture of the challenges and realities facing not just the U.S. and China, but the global community at large. Join us for an enlightening conversation that goes beyond the headlines!

After Donald Trump imposed 145% tariffs on China, he was forced to issue exemptions for Chinese made cellphones, computers, semiconductors, and other electronics, because the deindustrialized US can't make them. Trump's huge trade war immediately failed, demonstrating that China is much stronger economically than the USA thinks. Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6t1oQ5G668 Topics 0:00 Trump's trade war 0:45 Exemptions for Chinese electronics 1:56 China's trade with USA 2:27 Myth of US reindustrialization 3:26 Goals of tariffs 4:40 Lack of industrial policy 5:49 Trump's tariff exceptions 9:14 Trump begs Xi Jinping to call him 9:56 (CLIP) Howard Lutnick on China 10:12 China and Vietnam boost ties 11:28 China's economic strength 13:51 Airliners 16:05 Semiconductors 19:15 AI 20:47 China's technological development 22:43 Backfiring on US economy 23:43 Luxury goods 25:09 China's exports 27:13 China holds more cards than USA 29:22 US Treasury securities (bonds) 30:35 US unipolarity is over 31:20 Multipolarity 32:24 Outro

Donald Trump's trade war went nuclear, hitting China with 145% tariffs, aimed at economic decoupling. This is already backfiring on the US economy, which is heavily reliant on Chinese imports. The volatility also fueled a crisis in the bond market, with Treasury yields rising. Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9k7132Iyeo Trump advisor reveals tariff strategy - Force countries to pay tribute to maintain US empire: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnajhDMAWVA Topics 0:00 Economic war 0:51 Tariffs of 145% on China 1:56 China defends itself 2:41 Decoupling 3:49 (CLIP) Howard Lutnick attacks China 4:14 Scott Bessent on China 4:48 US trade with China 7:05 USA will lose trade war 8:02 China's manufacturing dominance 9:47 China's trade 10:33 High risk 11:35 Trump's arrogance 12:06 (CLIP) Trump: countries are "kissing my ass" 12:18 Mafia behavior 13:02 US empire demands tribute 13:35 (CLIP) Stephen Miran: US demands tribute 13:59 Threatening the world 15:55 China stands up 16:34 Trump admin's China hawks 17:47 (CLIP) Marco Rubio on new cold war 18:30 Biden admin targeted China too 20:01 US bond market shock 21:39 Treasury note yields 25:01 Interest payments on US national debt 26:05 Hedge fund margin calls 28:35 Trump's billionaires 28:53 Elon Musk 29:42 Bill Ackman 29:59 Jamie Dimon 30:35 Market manipulation? 32:21 Trump meme coins 32:58 Outro

US President Donald Trump wants to use tariffs as part of a plan to save the dominance of the dollar as the global reserve currency. His top economic advisor Stephen Miran outlined the Trump administration's strategy to force other countries to pay the USA to maintain its imperial financial and military order. Ben Norton explains the idea behind the hypothetical "Mar-a-Lago Accord". VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnajhDMAWVA Topics 0:00 Trump's top economic advisor 0:42 Trump wants to save dollar hegemony 1:04 (CLIP) Trump on US dollar 1:21 Dedollarization 2:01 BRICS 2:46 (CLIP) Trump threatens BRICS 3:15 Tariffs 3:50 Bretton Woods system 4:38 Keynes' Bancor proposal 5:07 US exorbitant privilege 5:39 Nixon shock, gold standard, petrodollar 6:43 Financialization 7:35 Billionaires 8:01 Deindustrialization 8:10 Current account deficit 8:33 Trump advisor Stephen Miran 9:17 Overvaluation of US dollar 10:30 Stephen Miran's plan 11:16 Mar-a-Lago Accord 12:59 Economic nuclear war 14:07 Trump admin's goals 15:20 Paying for US empire 17:30 Trump admin's 5 demands 20:25 (CLIP) Sharing costs of US empire 21:13 China 21:32 (CLIP) Decoupling from China 21:55 Hudson Institute 23:58 US financial crisis of 2008 25:42 Manufacturing 26:02 Trump hits China with 104% tariffs 27:23 Economic game of chicken 27:50 Can USA win trade war? 30:04 (CLIP) Miran: US has leverage over China 30:59 China vows "to fight to the end" 32:00 US economic dependence on China 33:00 Chinese exports 34:01 China's top export destinations 34:36 ASEAN is China's top trading partner 35:16 Indonesia 36:08 China is world's top trading partner 36:54 China's trade with Russia 38:34 Can USA reindustrialize? 38:52 (CLIP) "We can make stuff at home" 39:09 Reindustrialization is very difficult 41:40 Trade war will hurt Americans 42:17 Moving taxes from rich to poor 43:15 Do other countries pay US tariffs? 43:34 Dollar falls 44:38 Yield on US Treasury securities 46:10 Mortgage rate spread 46:42 Credit card interest rate 47:14 Interest payments on US national debt 48:37 Backlash on US economy 49:51 Danger of blowback 50:31 Plaza Accord revisited 51:16 Changes in global economy 52:50 China learned from Japan crisis 54:33 Imperial hubris 55:12 Vietnam in a multipolar world 58:07 Outro

In what he called "Liberation Day", Donald Trump imposed heavy tariffs on countries around the world, falsely claiming they were "reciprocal". In reality, the taxes on imports were based on the US trade deficit with other nations. Ben Norton explains how the Trump administration's economic policies are contradictory and will backfire hard on the US economy, fueling inflation while failing to re-industrialize. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nv5ZkxQvsz8 Topics 0:00 Trump imposes heavy tariffs 0:27 (CLIP) Trump's "Liberation Day" 0:52 Trump's global trade war 1:18 (CLIP) Tariff is most beautiful world 1:41 New tariff rates 3:20 Backfiring 4:04 How the tariffs were calculated 7:08 Retaliation 8:45 Role of US dollar dominance 9:30 (CLIP) Trump on de-dollarization 9:48 (CLIP) Trump threatens BRICS 10:17 US balance of payments 12:37 Alternative to US dollar 13:14 Dumbest trade war in history 13:42 Reindustrialization 14:32 Financialization 17:53 Inflation 20:00 Coffee, fruit, & vegetables 22:06 Imports from China 24:02 Imports from Vietnam 25:26 Imports of electronics 27:51 Industrial policy 33:41 Moving tax burden from rich to poor 37:02 Outro

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, a billionaire hedge fund manager who worked for George Soros, insists, “Access to cheap goods is not the essence of the American dream”. The Donald Trump administration knows its tariffs will result in higher inflation. Products will become more expensive as the US tries to economically decouple from China. Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DOCZjS_MVc Topics 0:00 Inflation is coming back 0:41 US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent 1:57 Billionaires 2:34 (CLIP) Bessent: no more cheap goods 2:49 Stagnant real wages 3:54 How China exported deflation 6:20 Myth of the "American Dream" 6:55 End of income mobility in USA 8:04 US life expectancy falls 9:13 Trump's billionaire-filled administration 9:39 Inflation rises 10:11 Richest 10% drive US economy 11:07 Corruption 11:35 Scapegoating 12:15 Recession risks 13:39 Housing is unaffordable 15:40 Elon Musk 16:13 Blackstone 17:13 Fake populism 18:00 Outro

The US is waging an economic war on China while threatening Chinese students here on student visas. But China has maintained huge economic and social growth, in spite of severe economic sanctions and new tariffs. Brian Becker is joined by Ben Norton, an investigative journalist currently based in Beijing, and the editor of the independent news website Geopolitical Economy Report, at geopoliticaleconomy.com.Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joining our Patreon community at https://www.patreon.com/TheSocialistProgram. We rely on the generous support of our listeners to keep bringing you consistent, high-quality shows. All Patreon donors of $5 a month or more are invited to join the monthly Q&A seminar with Brian.

Donald Trump is portrayed as a "populist" committed to average working-class people, but his policies benefit wealthy elites at the expense of everyone else. His administration includes 13 billionaires -- including Elon Musk, the world's richest oligarch -- and he is cutting taxes on the rich and corporations while imposing a consumption tax on the poor through tariffs. Ben Norton explains how Trump is waging a class war. VIDEO with charts here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eL8cg-wWBO8 Check out our related video on JD Vance's speech on reindustrializing the US: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywmpea6vvOE Why Donald Trump won the US election: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/11/08/donald-trump-us-election-kamala-harris-economy/ Topics 0:00 Intro 0:09 (CLIP) Trump at McDonald's 0:33 Billionaires in Trump admin 1:36 Big Tech oligarchs 2:36 Corruption and bribery 3:17 Trump meme coin 4:20 Tax cuts for the rich 5:20 Tariffs are a tax 6:45 Trump's tax law benefited rich 8:25 Billionaires avoid taxes 10:01 Historical tax rates 11:44 Corporate tax rate 12:50 Progressive taxation 15:02 Why Trump won: inflation 16:43 Election turnout 18:02 Trump's low approval rating 20:20 Why people are angry 21:03 (CLIP) Obama on Wall Street 21:19 BlackRock CEO 21:48 Elon Musk 22:12 (CLIP) Trump on Tesla 22:21 US economy relies on rich 24:05 Unemployment rate is misleading 25:36 Stagnant real wages 29:34 Inflation is sticky 30:31 No more cheap goods 31:14 Scott Bessent & George Soros 33:25 (CLIP) Scott Bessent on American Dream 33:40 Cheap goods & China 36:51 Tariffs & reindustrialization 38:22 Myth of American Dream 40:07 US life expectancy is falling 41:17 Scapegoating 43:37 Recession warnings 45:01 Housing 47:02 Elon Musk buys White House position 47:35 Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman 48:34 Trump's fake "populism" 49:22 Hopeful examples 50:15 Mexico: AMLO 51:43 Mexico: Claudia Sheinbaum 53:11 Learning from Mexico 54:50 China's poverty reduction 57:54 US oligarchy 58:37 Outro

US Vice President JD Vance gave a speech about globalization that inadvertently revealed the truth about the US empire, the goal behind the new cold war on China, the economics of imperialism, and how the Trump administration is serving billionaire Big Tech oligarchs in Silicon Valley at the expense of the working class. Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywmpea6vvOE US Big Tech CEOs admit they want AI monopoly: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/02/03/us-ai-monopoly-unipolar-world-china/ Topics 0:00 (CLIP) JD Vance excerpt 0:38 US vice president speech 1:03 Preparing for war on China 3:15 Summary of Vance's speech 3:56 (CLIP) Marco Rubio on China "threat" 4:39 Deindustrialization 5:02 (CLIP) JD Vance vows "industrial comeback" 5:41 Uniting billionaires and "populists" 6:26 Neoliberalism 7:01 JD Vance's patron Peter Thiel 8:22 Trump recruits Big Tech billionaires 9:34 For monopoly, against competition 10:21 (CLIP) Peter Thiel loves monopolies 10:35 Elon Musk and Trump 11:05 Billionaire Marc Andreessen 11:47 (CLIP) Trump admin loves Silicon Valley 12:08 Trump coalition: billionaires & workers? 13:37 (CLIP) Techno-optimists vs populists? 14:21 Big Tech manifesto 15:56 Scapegoating China 17:13 (CLIP) JD Vance scapegoats China 17:34 JD Vance calls China "biggest threat" 18:53 (CLIP) JD Vance scapegoats China 19:12 Neoliberal globalization 20:07 (CLIP) JD Vance on globalization 21:18 Neoliberal globalization 22:07 Imperialism & dependency theory 24:11 China's development 24:35 US bans Chinese competitors 26:15 (CLIP) JD Vance on China's AI 26:40 US Big Tech monopolies 27:23 (CLIP) "Competition is for losers" 27:38 Trump's tariffs 28:36 Jake Sullivan's industrial policy speech 29:16 (CLIP) Jake Sullivan on Washington Consensus 31:36 Industrial policy 32:45 Tech war on China 33:31 Trump's strategy 34:01 (CLIP) JD Vance on US shipbuilding 34:53 China's Shipbuilding 35:46 State-owned enterprises 38:07 US government-owned factories 40:32 Industrial policy 43:41 (CLIP) Tax cuts on rich & deregulation 44:07 Reaganism 2.0 44:28 Historical tax rates on rich 45:48 Oligarchs avoid taxes 46:52 Trump boosts deficit & debt 47:38 Fake industrial policy 49:09 (CLIP) JD Vance is "fan" of Big Tech 49:28 Andreessen Horowitz investments 50:30 S&P 500 stock buybacks & dividends 51:03 Reaganomics 51:59 Trumponomics 53:21 Tariffs & wealth transfer 53:55 Outro

Donald Trump has threatened to colonize Greenland and make it a US territory, even though 85% of people there oppose this. Ben Norton explains the geopolitical and economic reasons: the USA wants to block China from the Arctic region and to profit from the territory's natural resources, especially critical minerals. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjXzhd4GVzE Topics 0:00 Greenlanders don't want to join USA 0:58 (CLIP) Trump threatens Greenland 1:10 Targeting China 1:58 Natural resources 2:59 Independence from Denmark 3:40 Why they oppose US annexation 4:32 Protests in Greenland 5:57 Greenlandic political parties 7:25 (CLIP) Trump threatens Greenland again 7:59 Imperialism 8:44 (CLIP) Trump's Manifest Destiny 9:16 Expand US territory 9:29 (CLIP) Trump wants to "enlarge" US 9:59 Monroe Doctrine 10:45 Geopolitics of the Arctic 11:32 Map distortions 12:44 Geopolitics of Arctic Circle 13:52 (CLIP) Trump: divide Russia & China 14:15 (CLIP) Marco Rubio on China "threat" 14:41 China 15:25 (CLIP) Trump on Greenland 16:02 (CLIP) NATO chief Mark Rutte 16:21 NATO imperialism 17:48 (CLIP) Trump on US troops 18:41 NATO imperialism 19:00 JD Vance 19:16 (CLIP) Vance on China 19:45 US war with China 20:58 Supply chains 21:37 Ukraine's minerals 22:11 Greenland's minerals 22:29 (CLIP) Vance on natural resources 22:50 (CLIP) Vance on Greenland 23:20 Greenland's critical minerals 24:28 Red, White, and Blueland 25:11 US imperialism 26:51 Outro

The United States is the biggest arms dealer on Earth, responsible for 43% of the world's weapons exports from 2020 to 2024. The US transferred seven times more than China, and five times more than Russia. Ben Norton explains how the military-industrial complex profits from war. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVFvEmhey_k Sources and links here: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/03/13/us-top-weapons-exports-china-russia/ Credit to Stephen Semler for some charts: https://www.stephensemler.com Topics 0:00 China "threat" claims 0:43 US military spending 1:34 US foreign interventions 2:40 USA is no. 1 arms dealer 3:57 Top weapons exporters 5:08 Growth in arms exports 5:56 Israel's suppliers 6:23 Top weapons importers 7:16 Europe doubles arms imports 8:32 Trump demands more NATO spending 10:47 Replacing welfare with warfare 12:56 Top military spenders 14:39 Real US military budget 15:40 DOGE ignores Pentagon fraud 17:00 Outro

Donald Trump's Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is a self-declared “crusader” who believes the USA is in a “holy war” against China, the left, and Islam. “Communist China will fall”, he vowed in his 2020 book “American Crusade”, promising, “Israel and America will form an even tighter bond, fighting the scourge of Islamism and international leftism that will never fully abate”. Ben Norton reports on his extremist record. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOg-dqGd6Jk Sources and links here: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/03/07/us-defense-secretary-hegseth-overthrow-china-crusade/ Topics 0:00 Trump's cabinet of hawks 0:42 Pete Hegseth's "American Crusade" 2:02 Hegseth: "Communist China will fall" 3:26 Make the Crusades Great Again 4:38 Fox News 6:10 (CLIP) US "prepared" for war with China 7:02 Fearmongering about China 7:29 (CLIP) Trump on China "threat" 7:37 Fearmongering about China 8:42 (CLIP) CIA lies, cheats, & steals 8:58 Fearmongering about China 11:31 US military is "most lethal" 12:04 (CLIP) Hegseth: "most lethal" military 12:10 Culture war 13:23 (CLIP) Hegseth on "lethality" 13:28 Conservative identity politics 13:45 (CLIP) Hegseth's "warfighters" 13:59 Media pundit criticizes media 14:20 (CLIP) Hegseth on the media 14:36 (CLIP) Hegseth on Fox News 15:14 Israel 18:17 Hegseth wants war on Iran 18:44 (CLIP) Hegseth calls to bomb Iran 19:55 War with Iran? 20:39 (CLIP) Trump: US will "own" Gaza 20:46 War with Iran? 21:03 Pete Hegseth's elite background 21:41 (CLIP) Hegseth Harvard diploma stunt 22:30 Wall Street 22:55 Neocon 23:35 Guantanamo Bay 24:43 Book "American Crusade" 25:45 Hegseth declares "holy war" 26:33 US Civil War II? 31:05 War on secularism 33:18 (CLIP) Trump on the Bible 33:53 War on secularism 34:16 Hegseth's war on Islam 37:44 Extremist loses friends 38:52 Outro

BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, is buying the ports on both sides of the Panama Canal, after Donald Trump threatened the Latin American country and forced it to pressure a Hong Kong company to sell its stake. Ben Norton discusses how the US government is trying to weaken China -- and strengthen Wall Street oligarchs. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANqHCejgUTM Check out our related video on Trump's attempt to divide Russia and China: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRJIymzuRGU Topics 0:00 Goals of US foreign policy 1:08 BlackRock buys Panama Canal ports 2:08 (CLIP) Trump threatens Panama 2:32 BlackRock 3:26 US empire fears China 4:03 (CLIP) Marco Rubio on China "threat" 4:46 CIA targets China 5:42 (CLIP) CIA director on China 6:34 CIA threats 6:50 Trump attacks China 7:06 (CLIP) Trump on Panama Canal 7:17 BlackRock takeover 7:43 Monroe Doctrine 8:40 Greenland 9:27 Marco Rubio 11:09 (CLIP) Rubio on US "backyard" 11:46 (CLIP) Rubio on "dangerous" China 12:24 (CLIP) Rubio on Taiwan 12:56 New cold war 13:39 Panama Canal geopolitics 14:59 BlackRock buys ports around world 15:54 Biden's infrastructure scheme 16:09 Belt and Road Initiative 16:33 Partnership for Global Infrastructure 17:53 BlackRock, Microsoft, and AI 18:06 Stargate Project with OpenAI 18:26 USA is an oligarchy 19:39 G7 summit starred BlackRock 20:16 (CLIP) CEO Larry Fink at G7 summit 21:11 BlackRock backs both US parties 22:15 Asset managers invest $128 trillion 23:06 Blackstone: Largest US landlord 24:33 USA: best "democracy" money can buy 25:13 Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman 26:45 Elon Musk: biggest US donor 27:51 Trump's trickle-down economics 31:37 Class war 33:24 Trump's Russia strategy 33:51 Outro

Donald Trump's fight with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky in the White House reflected how the US treats Ukraine as a colony. Trump is demanding control of the country's rare earths and critical minerals, to weaken China, re-industrialize, and make new technologies. Trump wants to be paid $350 billion, roughly twice Ukraine's GDP. Ben Norton discusses Washington's economic colonialism, and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham's comments that "this war is about money" and the USA will "enrich ourselves with rare earth minerals". VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zxxv2IEfU_c Trump wants US to ‘partner' with Russia to weaken China: Divide-and-conquer strategy - https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/02/24/trump-divide-russia-china-us-strategy/ Topics 0:00 (CLIP) Trump fights with Zelensky 0:21 Trump treats Ukraine like a colony 1:07 (CLIP) Trump: Ukraine has no cards 1:51 Throwing Ukraine under the bus 2:14 Economic colonialism 3:36 (CLIP) Trump wants Ukraine's rare earths 4:43 Lindsey Graham says quiet part loud 4:58 (CLIP) Ukraine has trillions in minerals 5:34 US wants minerals 6:03 (CLIP) Graham: "This war is about money" 6:53 Colonialism 7:05 Toxic effects of rare earth elements 8:42 US attacks China in supply chains 9:54 Dividing Russia & China 10:22 (CLIP) Trump: split Russia from China 10:40 Making weapons 11:10 (CLIP) Trump: make tech & weapons 11:43 USA targets China 12:31 Trump's Ukraine mineral demands 14:20 Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent 14:48 US-Ukraine fund 16:57 How much will USA be paid? 18:03 Zelensky proposed mineral stake 19:01 US Fed oversees Iraq's oil revenue 20:07 Billionaires run Trump admin 20:36 Kissinger: fatal to be US ally 21:10 What does Ukraine get? 22:32 (CLIP) Trump on military support 23:29 Trump boasts of arming Ukraine 24:20 (CLIP) Trump on Ukraine aid 24:36 False $350 billion aid claim 26:41 Why Zelensky was angry 27:08 JD Vance, Peter Thiel puppet 27:39 (CLIP) JD Vance: thank the US empire 28:06 Ukraine "card game" 28:26 (CLIP) Trump gives orders to Ukraine 28:38 Trump erases US culpability 29:37 (CLIP) Trump: thank US military 29:55 Trump boasts of Javelin missiles 30:27 (CLIP) Trump vs Obama on Ukraine 31:00 NATO fought to the last Ukrainian 31:19 (CLIP) The last Ukrainians 31:30 US hypocrisy 31:56 Lindsey Graham attacks Zelensky 32:37 (CLIP) Graham on Zelensky 33:01 Ukraine as a US "investment" 33:47 (CLIP) US tells Zelensky to resign 33:54 True face of USA 34:07 WWII UK debt with US 35:11 It's fatal to be a US "ally" 36:26 Outro

The US government's talks with Russia are more about China than Ukraine. Donald Trump admitted he wants to "un-unite" Russia and China, in a reverse of the divide-and-conquer strategy used by Nixon and Kissinger in the 1970s. Can Trump do it? Ben Norton explains why the United States sees China as the main threat to its global imperial dominance. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRJIymzuRGU Topics 0:00 (CLIP) Trump: divide Russia & China 0:18 US-Russia talks 1:01 USA says China is 'greatest threat' 2:11 (CLIP) Trump on Russia & China 3:31 US dollar dominance 4:14 Divide & conquer 5:23 Nixon in China 6:06 Kissinger strategy 6:59 Trump's neocons 7:57 (CLIP) Marco Rubio: partner with Russia 8:20 Ally with Russia against China? 9:37 (CLIP) Tucker Carlson on Russia 11:01 (CLIP) Marco Rubio on Russia 11:42 Marco Rubio on Ukraine & China 12:34 Rubio: China challenges US-led order 13:05 Rubio: China wants to displace USA 13:40 Rubio: China is "greatest challenge" 14:20 China more powerful than Russia 14:40 Population 14:54 Economy 15:31 Manufacturing 15:58 Technology 16:56 Research 17:19 China's alternative 18:08 Competition to Silicon Valley 18:55 Russia's strengths 20:02 Brzezinski's warnings 20:49 BRICS & SCO 22:21 (CLIP) CIA director John Ratcliffe 23:21 CIA on China "threat" 25:07 (CLIP) Blinken on China "challenge" 25:31 Mike Pompeo on China 26:14 US imperialism & Panama Canal 27:15 Monroe Doctrine 27:46 Europe 29:03 JD Vance 30:04 US colonialism in Ukraine 32:41 (CLIP) Trump wants to expand USA 33:10 Imperial expansion 33:44 European right wing 34:45 Can Trump divide Russia & China? 35:09 Putin's rise to power 35:55 (CLIP) Bush on Putin 36:30 Russia tried to join the West 37:31 Russia's fall out with the West 38:07 Ukraine war context 38:39 Russia-China relations 39:41 Sanctions relief? 40:28 Security guarantees? 41:56 Can USA be trusted? 43:25 Is there a possibility? 46:36 Outro

Argentina's President Javier Milei, a self-declared libertarian and "anarcho-capitalist", is promoting crypto scams and overseeing rapid deindustrialization. Manufacturing and construction are collapsing, while the financial sector, mining, and agriculture grow. Donald Trump and Elon Musk praise Milei, as the majority of Argentines live in poverty. The real economy is in crisis, but rich foreign investors rejoice as the stock market booms. Ben Norton explains how Argentina is being turned into a resource colony. VIDEO with charts here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3qgYZMYkj0 Topics 0:00 Who is Javier Milei? 0:40 Elon Musk & Donald Trump 1:08 Crypto pump & dump scheme 2:34 Trump & Melania meme coins 3:18 Economic destruction 5:06 BRICS 5:47 Israel 6:27 CIA 6:48 Spanish colonialism 7:11 Ukraine 7:48 Stock market 10:06 Poverty 11:27 12-hour work day 12:46 72% are worse off 13:39 Income distribution 14:38 Extreme austerity 15:28 Government spending 16:47 Colonialism 17:11 Brain drain 18:39 No toilet paper 19:22 Social spending cuts 20:43 Bicicleta financiera scheme 23:04 Cost of living 23:55 Job loss 24:50 Construction collapses 25:17 Housing costs 26:05 Taunting the poor & hungry 28:45 Luis Caputo 31:36 Billionaire sponsors 32:04 Bondholders 32:30 Inflation & debt 39:48 Manufacturing collapses 47:07 Deindustrialization 49:18 Neoliberalism 50:39 Stock index composition 52:09 Privatization 54:13 Plantation economy 56:39 Gold in London 57:56 Financial colonialism 58:19 Outro

It's now widely acknowledged we are in a multipolar world, but the definition of "multipolarity" is not clear. Donald Trump and Marco Rubio think it means a return to great power competition with imperial spheres of influence, whereas China and much of the Global South say "equality among all countries regardless of size". Ben Norton explains the geopolitical divide. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mg0Vur0SI-8 Topics 0:00 US unipolar moment 0:35 Multipolarity is here 1:24 Definition of multipolarity 2:39 (CLIP) Marco Rubio on unipolarity 3:14 US imperial sphere of influence 4:32 China's anti-imperialist view 7:37 Marco Rubio interview 8:52 (CLIP) Rubio on multipolar world 9:14 Rubio fearmongers about China 9:42 Greenland 10:55 (CLIP) Rubio on China 11:02 Neoconservativism rebranded 12:11 Trump's imperialism 12:30 (CLIP) Trump calls to "expand" USA 13:01 Chinese socialism vs US capitalism 14:46 Marco Rubio targets China 17:35 Rubio's fake "populism" 20:22 Nicaragua's anti-imperialist view 22:33 Outro

Why has the price of gold been increasing so fast, breaking records? Economist Michael Hudson explains the politics of the precious metal, and the dynamics of the US dollar system. He is interviewed by Ben Norton. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Bvr2SZm-NM Transcript: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/02/13/politics-gold-price-economist-michael-hudson/ Topics 0:00 Intro 1:49 Highlights 4:14 Interview starts 4:49 US dollar system & Super Imperialism 8:23 Dollar alternatives? 10:56 Why price of gold is rising 15:31 Gold market is political 21:10 Is gold an inflation hedge? 25:19 US military spending 27:33 Budget deficits & MMT 29:41 Gold standard critique 33:29 Politics of money creation 35:39 Commodity markets 38:01 Options trading 39:33 Central banks short selling gold 43:43 Gold leasing 48:01 How much gold is in Fort Knox? 51:03 Is there a run on gold? 1:02:50 Western central bank strategy 1:07:11 Outro

Donald Trump plans to ethnically cleanse Palestinians, saying, "The US will take over the Gaza Strip... We'll own it". His son-in-law Jared Kushner has invested in Israeli companies that profit from expanding illegal settlements. Trump and Kushner floated building luxury real estate in Gaza. Ben Norton reports. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMBwV8kL5NY Topics 0:00 Trump is Israel's "best friend" 1:04 US plans to "take over" Gaza 2:19 Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner 3:04 Rebuilding Gaza 3:45 Gaza's "phenomenal location on the sea" 4:24 Kushner eyes "Gaza's waterfront property" 5:05 Ethnic cleansing 5:52 Kushner's investments in Israel 6:51 Saudi Arabia invests in Kushner's firm 8:29 Israel proposes Saudi land for Palestinians 10:00 Trump pressures Jordan & Egypt 11:07 Plans to expel "all" Gazans 11:38 Gaza death toll 13:08 US-Israel made Gaza "Hell" 14:11 Biden vs Trump 15:01 Palestinians don't want to leave home 15:49 Netanyahu is an American 16:49 Netanyahu: Trump is Israel's "great friend" 18:11 Deportations of pro-Palestine students 19:06 IDF prepares to expel Palestinians 19:44 Gaza is an open-air prison 20:55 Bipartisan US imperialism 22:18 Outro

Donald Trump's tariffs could destabilize the global economy, warns economist Michael Hudson. US protectionist policies could cause financial crises, as many currencies depreciate and countries can't earn the dollars needed to pay their foreign debts. Ben Norton hosts the interview. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFyWatftnIM Transcript: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/02/04/trump-tariffs-global-crisis-economist-michael-hudson/ Here you can read Michael Hudson's article on how Trump's tariffs threaten the global economy: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/01/25/michael-hudson-trump-tariffs-global-economy/ Topics 0:00 Trump's tariff threats 3:10 Highlights of Michael Hudson 5:47 How to pay foreign debt 10:55 Austerity 14:48 Protectionism 17:19 US threats 21:11 Mexico 22:47 Defaulting on debt 25:46 Economic colonialism 28:18 Colombia 29:50 Greenland 30:23 Economic war 31:02 China's win-win approach 32:24 Trump's contradictions 35:20 US dollar & re-industrialization 37:06 Finance capitalism 41:00 Dollar exchange rate & inflation 44:34 Trump proposal at WEF/Davos 45:20 Investing in USA 47:18 US imperialism 49:17 Outro

Tariffs, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, electric cars: there is much to be said about the evolving relationship between China and the United States. While Donald Trump’s recent tariffs on the country are just the latest story, it is only a fraction of the news coming out of China that directly affects the U.S. and the future prospect for business and the government. Joining host Robert Scheer from China on this episode of Scheer Intelligence is Geopolitical Economic Report editor-in-chief and journalist Ben Norton. The two discuss what the incoming Trump administration represents for U.S.-China relations as well as the state of China from the ground. Norton reports on his experiences living there and the local reaction to the U.S. political scene.  

Ben Norton walks us through the impending economic crash.

Big Tech oligarchs in Silicon Valley fear competition from Chinese AI companies like DeepSeek, so they're working with the US government to cut off competitors. Billionaire Donald Trump backer Peter Thiel admits they want monopolies, arguing "competition is for losers". Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jniPAD2uoo Topics 0:00 (CLIP) "Competition is for losers" 0:17 China's DeepSeek AI breakthrough 1:46 US tech billionaire Peter Thiel 2:06 (CLIP) Peter Thiel praises monopolies 2:31 Peter Thiel backs Donald Trump 3:12 US government targets DeepSeek 4:23 US goal: stop Chinese innovation 5:40 China is developing 10 AI models 6:00 Senate hearing on China 7:15 (CLIP) "Let's steal [China's] engineers" 7:30 CIA testimony 8:24 (CLIP) Ban Chinese apps in USA 8:43 Is DeepSeek stealing from OpenAI? 10:40 OpenAI CEO Sam Altman 11:05 (CLIP) Sam Altman & Peter Thiel 11:24 Silicon Valley wants to cut off China 11:49 Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei 12:42 Chip restrictions on China 14:34 Big Tech wants US "unipolar world" 16:41 Who's authoritarian, USA or China? 19:03 US oligarchy 20:20 Capitalism vs competition 21:24 Peter Thiel employed JD Vance 21:54 PayPal Mafia 22:30 Robber barons 23:19 Capitalism creates monopolies 24:56 Chinese socialism vs US capitalism 29:38 Outro

The Chinese company DeepSeek shocked the West with a groundbreaking open-source artificial intelligence model that beats huge Silicon Valley Big Tech monopolies. The US government is already trying to ban it, using "national security" as an excuse. Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hRmK84_K7Q Topics 0:00 China's Sputnik moment 1:05 DeepSeek beats US Big Tech 2:20 Open source R1 model 3:18 US tech stocks crash 5:27 US stock market bubble 6:55 Magnificent 7 8:26 Billionaire oligarchs 10:48 USA bans Chinese competitors 13:34 Data privacy and spying? 15:35 Cyber attacks 16:33 US tech war on China 19:36 China "can't innovate" 22:02 China's rapid tech progress 24:49 Dancing robots in China 25:36 Tech race in new cold war 27:20 Outro

The world is changing rapidly, driven by the necessity of creating alternative institutions to counter US domination and aggression. As the multipolar world rises, it is a critical time for the United States to re-evaluate and change its policies and practices in order to remain an active member of the global community. Clearing the FOG speaks with Ben Norton of Geopolitical Economy about the ways that US policy, the Washington Consensus, have backfired and what the growing US deficit means. Norton outlines what can be done to counter the current path the US is taking. For more information, visit PopularResistance.org.

Donald Trump threatened Colombia with sanctions and tariffs after it rejected his abuse of immigrants. Colombian President Gustavo Petro hit back against the US attacks, declaring, "We are not a colony!" Ben Norton analyzes Latin America's resistance to meddling by Trump and his neoconservative Secretary of State Marco Rubio. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZ8YZEecJgE Topics 0:00 Trump admin's hawkish foreign policy 0:30 Neocon Marco Rubio 1:30 Colombia: from US puppet to target 2:24 Marco Rubio's attacks on Gustavo Petro 3:51 Israel-Palestine 5:21 US attacks on Latin America 5:58 Trump sanctions & tariffs Colombia 7:31 Humiliation of immigrants 9:10 Colombia responds with tariffs on US 10:25 US meddling fuels immigration 12:42 (CLIP) Trump on 'taking over' Venezuela 12:54 Latin America fights back 14:02 Honduras threatens to close US military base 14:40 Illegal US immigration in Colombia 15:22 China's relations with Latin America 16:49 Latin American right bows down to USA 19:30 Ecuador's US puppet president 20:40 Petro's open letter to Trump 32:23 Global South stands up 33:12 (CLIP) Trump wants to 'expand' US empire 33:43 US imperialism 34:24 Outro

At his inauguration, US President Donald Trump promised to "expand our territory", invoked the colonialist "Manifest Destiny", and vowed to forcibly take over the Panama Canal (falsely claiming China runs it). He later threatened BRICS with 100% tariffs. Trump has hinted at use of military force to colonize Greenland as well. Ben Norton reports on Trump's foreign policy. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HKc1uQpUFs Topics 0:00 Donald Trump's inauguration threats 0:56 (CLIP) Trump vows to 'expand our territory' 1:28 Mask off imperialism 1:59 Panama rejects Trump's threats 2:55 (CLIP) Trump hints at military force 3:27 Geopolitics of Panama Canal 4:01 Why Trump wants to colonize Greenland 5:18 Greenland's minerals 6:25 Trump threatens BRICS 7:09 (CLIP) Trump attacks BRICS... and Spain 8:18 Trump wants to make Canada 51st state 9:32 Trump threatens Mexico 10:31 Trump attacks Cuba 11:44 Politically motivated US 'terror' list 14:04 Trump strongly supports Israel 15:19 Marco Rubio, extreme warmonger 17:28 Summary of Trump's foreign policy 18:49 Outro

BRICS added as a new partner Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, with the 6th-biggest population on Earth. BRICS+ now has 10 members and 9 partners, which make up 54.6% of the world population and 42.2% of global GDP (PPP). Ben Norton explains the importance of this expansion. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNNrMP_1E9g Sources and more information here: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/01/19/brics-expands-population-nigeria-africa/ Check out our related video on BRICS' plan to challenge US dollar domination by creating a multi-currency financial system: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/10/19/brics-russia-multi-currency-system-us-dollar/ Topics 0:00 BRICS expansion 0:58 BRICS' two main goals 1:52 De-dollarization 3:36 Map of BRICS membership 4:00 Indonesia joined BRICS 5:01 List of members & partners 5:37 BRICS is 54.6% of world population 6:57 Fastest growing countries by population 7:59 Africa's population growth 9:05 BRICS is 42.2% of global GDP (PPP) 9:47 Africa's biggest economies 11:37 Nigeria is Africa's top oil producer 12:05 BRICS+ & OPEC+ 13:04 Shared economic interests 14:27 Outro

India has the world's largest population, but can it be the next global economic superpower? Or will extreme poverty, inequality, unemployment, and lack of industrialization and manufacturing capacities hold it back? Why is the Western media so eager to portray India as a pro-Western alternative to China? Ben Norton is joined by economic historian Jyotishman Mudiar to explore these questions and more. VIDEO with charts here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXU42fqJ6g4 Check out Jyotishman's channel India & Global Left: https://www.youtube.com/c/IndiaGlobalLeft Topics 0:00 Intro 4:32 Is India the next economic superpower? 12:37 Technology 16:39 Geopolitics 20:27 Indian stock market 22:37 Quality of life 34:21 Billionaire oligarchs like Adani & Ambani 42:09 China controls its billionaires 44:42 China's state-owned enterprises (SOEs) 46:22 Manufacturing in India vs China 49:24 Privatization in India 54:37 India's manufacturing stagnation 56:58 Can services replace manufacturing? 1:08:02 India's dependence on US Big Tech 1:18:43 AI, automation, & population growth 1:29:50 Agriculture in India 1:43:09 Outro

BRICS keeps expanding. As a new full member, it added Indonesia, the 4th most populous country with the 7th largest economy on Earth. BRICS now has 10 members and 8 partners. Together they make up 41.4% of global GDP (PPP) and roughly half the world population. Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIDWOWHW-cU Sources and links here: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2025/01/07/brics-adds-indonesia-member-economy/ Check out our related report on BRICS' plan to challenge US dollar domination by creating a multi-currency financial system: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/10/19/brics-russia-multi-currency-system-us-dollar/ Topics 0:00 BRICS expansion 0:51 Map of BRICS membership 1:11 List of BRICS members & partners 1:47 BRICS share of world economy 2:27 BRICS vs G7 3:44 Indonesian economy bigger than UK & France 4:41 Indonesia's BRICS invitation 6:05 Global South cooperation 6:56 China supports Global South 7:29 Non-Aligned Movement & Bandung Conference 8:31 US-backed coup against Sukarno 8:58 CIA-sponsored massacres 9:53 ASEAN prefers China over USA 11:07 Philippines allies with USA 12:08 Indonesia calls China & Russia friends 13:52 China is Indonesia's largest trading partner 14:17 China is ASEAN's largest trading partner 14:39 Nickel production 15:32 Indonesia industrializes with China's help 21:53 BRICS cooperation 23:43 De-dollarization 24:46 Outro

The US stock market is in "the mother of all bubbles", with the market capitalization of publicly traded companies at 206% of GDP. This is higher than the dot-com bubble of 2000, and even the peak of the crash of 1929. Meanwhile, just 25 companies make up over half of the weight of the S&P 500, and the Magnificent 7 Big Tech monopolies are 35% of the market cap of the index. However, the US economy was built upon this financial house of cards, and politicians are profiting from it. Ben Norton explains the dangers. VIDEO with charts here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rguHublkxCQ Topics 0:00 American exceptionalism 0:53 US stock market is over 60% of world 1:16 USA is 74% of MSCI World Index 2:10 Top 25 companies in world 3:29 Exorbitant privilege of US dollar 4:59 S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices 6:07 Magnificent 7 6:50 Just 25 companies make up 50.3% of S&P 500 8:26 Tesla is insanely overvalued 12:03 Big US companies are really financial firms 13:11 How to measure a bubble 14:15 Buffett Indicator (market cap to GDP) 15:57 Public & private equities to GDP 17:00 How the US government inflated the bubble 21:10 Richest 10% of Americans own 93% of stocks 22:23 Warren Buffett's warnings 23:56 Berkshire Hathaway dumps stocks 26:32 Jeff Bezos sells Amazon shares 27:22 Mark Zuckerberg sells Meta stocks 27:40 Elon Musk sold Tesla shares 28:08 The "greatest bubble in human history" 30:27 Alan Greenspan and "irrational exuberance" 31:16 Fears of "pent-up exuberance" 32:19 P/E ratios 33:41 Irrational investing 34:54 Donald Trump's tax cuts help the rich 37:54 Trump and Ronald Reagan 39:04 Trickle-down economics 41:16 Wall Street fills Trump's cabinet 42:02 Financialization of US economy 43:44 Will Trump reverse de-industrialization? 45:38 Real estate & homelessness 46:38 US dollar 47:34 Wall Street vs Main Street 49:06 Outro

The United States spent decades trying to overthrow the Syrian government, before succeeding in 2024. A declassified CIA document from 1986 outlined US plans for regime change. The blueprint was almost exactly what happened in the proxy war that started in 2011. Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKXxKCm1psU How the US military supported the Syrian rebel offensive that toppled the Assad government: https://geopoliticaleconomy.com/2024/12/23/us-military-syria-rebels-assad/ Topics 0:00 Overthrow of Syrian government 0:38 CIA document from 1986 2:25 CIA exploited religious sectarianism 3:58 Installing a pro-Israel regime 5:17 Arab nationalist government had "grudging respect" 5:57 Syria's state-led economic model 7:11 Rebels pledge neoliberal shock therapy 8:09 Muslim Brotherhood 9:45 US wanted "business-oriented" regime 10:43 Proxy war on Syria 12:15 Outro

While Donald Trump's supporters falsely claim he is an "isolationist", he is threatening to colonize the Panama Canal, annex Canada, and seize Greenland (and its rare earth elements). The Trump team also plans to invade Mexico, bomb Iran, and wage proxy war on China. Ben Norton explains. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MG_UzMTh82w Topics 0:00 Trump's warmongering foreign-policy record 1:35 Trump threatens Panama, Greenland, Canada 2:59 Colonial Christmas threat 3:49 Trump followers revive Manifest Destiny 4:41 Top Pentagon official invokes Monroe Doctrine 5:42 US interventions are not jokes 6:32 Seizing the Panama Canal 8:45 Elon Musk backs colonialism in Latin America 10:29 China defends Panama's sovereignty 11:44 US colonial Monroe Doctrine 13:29 History of US imperialism in Panama 16:07 Panamanian revolutionary Omar Torrijos 18:03 CIA and Manuel Noriega 19:10 US invasion of Panama in 1989 20:20 Trump wants Greenland's rare-earth minerals 22:37 Annexing Canada 23:51 Pro-Trump influencers promote colonialism 26:08 Plans to invade Mexico 27:56 Bombing Iran 28:50 Cold war on China 30:30 DOGE will cut social programs, not military 31:51 Cabinet full of billionaire oligarchs 32:27 Bipartisan imperialism 34:19 Outro