Podcasts about forced labor

Forced labor enforcement is re-gaining momentum with 43 new entities added to the UFLPA Entity List on top of the recently issued Section 301 tariffs. Importers should prepare for more scrutiny and enforcement.

Key Topics The details and potential consequences of the US-Saudi civil nuclear agreement and its departure from previous non-proliferation standards The strategic importance of the Iran war, nuclear proliferation in the Middle East, and regional reactions to new US policies The Trump administration's approach to tariffs aimed at combating forced labor and their impact on international trade UK's post-election foreign policy outlook under Prime Minister Burnham, focusing on relations with Europe, the US, and support for Ukraine NATO defense commitments, international defense spending, and how UK's role in security continues to shape global stability The influence of the UK's domestic political landscape on its foreign policy and international partnerships Links Hugh Tomlinson — https://x.com/hughtomlinson Felicia Schwartz — https://x.com/felschwartz?lang=en Robbie Gramer — https://x.com/robbiegramer Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs — belfercenter.org World Review with Ivo Daalder — belfercenter.org/world-review-ivo-daalder

Gregory Copley reports the Trump administration has imposed tariffs on Australia, alleging "forced labor" practices—a claim Copley describes as spurious. This move antagonizes a loyal ally that has fought alongside the US for over a century. Consequently, Australia and Canada are beginning to lessen their strategic dependence on the US. Copley warns that such unilateral protectionism could weaken the long-term structure of the Western alliance. (9)1971 IRAN

DOCKET ALERTS:   The Paramount-Warner Bros. merger is on hold well into next year. The parties stipulated that the merger would not go through pending trial in the antitrust case brought by twelve state AGs, despite massive financial penalties for Paramount if the deal is delayed. Meanwhile, the Writers Guild of America has filed a similar antitrust action, which has also been assigned to Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín.   Trump's newest tariff scheme, based on findings of anticompetitive use of forced labor by our trade competitors, drew multiple legal challenges. Learning Resources v. US, Take 3!    Fired US Attorney for the Western District of Washington, Roger Rogoff, is suing to get his job back.   MAIN SHOW:   In March, Trump put out an executive order instructing DHS to compile a list of voters. The states would then be forced to submit all mail-in ballot recipients to a portal and supply each with an individual bar code. The Post Office was instructed to refuse to deliver ballots to anyone not on the list. That order is now being litigated in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, the DC Circuit, the US District for Massachusetts, the First Circuit and, as of today, the Supreme Court.   James Comey has moved to dismiss the two-count federal indictment against him for posting an instagram photo of seashells that spelled out "8647." We discuss the "true threat" doctrine and the administration's larger war on freedom of speech when it comes to his critics and journalists.   Speaking of which, in the subscriber bonus, we discuss the case of Atlanta "Stop Cop City" protester Sam Tunick, who was charged with destroying evidence when he tricked CBP agents into bricking his phone. California v. Paramount-Skydance https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73606877/the-state-of-california-v-paramount-skydance-corporation/   Writers Guild of America, West, Inc. v. Paramount Skydance Corporation https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73614167/writers-guild-of-america-west-inc-v-paramount-skydance-corporation/   Fact Sheet: USTR Section 301 Action in Response to the Failure of 60 Economies to Ban Imports Produced with Forced Labor https://ustr.gov/about/policy-offices/press-office/fact-sheets/2026/july/fact-sheet-ustr-section-301-action-response-failure-60-economies-ban-imports-produced-forced-labor   Learning Resources v. US [Section 301 tariffs] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73668290/learning-resources-inc-v-the-united-states-of-america/   Burlap and Barrel v. Greer [Section 301 tariffs] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73667352/burlap-and-barrel-inc-v-greer-in-his-official-capacity-as-united-states/   Rogoff v. Trump https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73647676/rogoff-v-trump   California v. Trump [Mail-in ballots, First Circuit] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73568304/state-of-california-v-trump/?order_by=desc   League of Women Voters v. Trump [Mail-in ballots, D. Mass.] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73133197/league-of-women-voters-of-massachusetts-v-trump   NAACP v. US [Mail-in ballots, D.D.C.] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/17461792/national-association-for-the-advancement-of-colored-people-v-united-states   NAACP v. USPS [Mail-in ballots, DC Circuit] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73595574/naacp-v-usps/   Trump v. California [Mail-in ballots, SCOTUS] https://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=/docket/docketfiles/html/public26a124.html   US v. Comey [North Carolina criminal indictment for 8647; docket via CourtListener] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73256624/united-states-v-comey/?order_by=desc   US v. Tunick [Georgia criminal indictment for bricked phone; docket via CourtListener] https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71998357/united-states-v-tunick/ Show Links: https://www.lawandchaospod.com/ BlueSky: @LawAndChaosPod Threads: @LawAndChaosPod Twitter: @LawAndChaosPod  

00:00 Intro01:14 China: U.S. Forced Labor Tariffs Capped at 20%02:28 Trump Imposes Forced-Labor Tariffs on 60 Economies02:37 China's Forced Labor Faces U.S. Crackdown04:12 Low-Cost China Imports Hurt U.S. Business05:55 Tariffs May Pressure Countries to Reform Trade06:56 U.S. Leads New 6G Coalition to Counter China08:30 Trump Admin Builds Global Alliance for Secure 6G08:45 China's Influence Operations in U.S. Under Scrutiny10:07 Streets Flooded as Typhoon Noul Hits Southern China11:46 China Hits 14 EU Firms With Export Controls12:36 Ford, Chinese Automaker Geely to Partner in Europe13:05 Chinese Cars Raise Global Auto Industry Concerns16:13 U.S. Lawmakers Move to Block Chinese Cars17:11 Chinese Cars Collect Americans' Data Without Consent18:12 Calls Grow for Protections Against Car Data Risks19:50 France, Germany Seek to Revive EU Auto Industry

Richard Epstein analyzes the Trump administration's reintroduction of tariffs, now targeting allies like Australia and the EU under the guise of combating "forced labor." Epstein characterizes these moves as "lawfare" and "mindless isolationism," noting that these allies often have superior working conditions compared to the U.S. He warns that such policies alienate essential partners needed to counter global threats from Russia, Iran, and China, effectively driving allies to organize independently. (4)1903 LA

The United States government is implementing new trade tariffs ranging from 10% to 12.5% against 60 different trading partners. These measures, enacted under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, specifically target nations that have allegedly failed to prevent the importation of goods manufactured with forced labor. This policy shift serves as a more legally resilient replacement for previous duties that were recently overturned by the Supreme Court. While some nations face higher costs for failing to adopt strict labor standards, others have received specific exemptions or specialized quotas for essential materials and textiles. Expert analysis suggests this move aims to increase global accountability and protect domestic industry, though the complexity of the new rates may lead to further legal challenges and diplomatic friction.

P.M. Edition for July 24. Today an FDA committee voted to increase access to six of seven peptides. Those are substances that haven't undergone regulatory approval, but they're promoted on social media and promise physical transformations like better skin. We hear from WSJ health and wellness reporter Alex Janin about what the vote means and whether it paves the way for a peptide gold rush. Plus, new tariffs went into effect today intended to combat forced labor, and President Trump also threatened new tariffs on the European Union. Journal trade and economic policy reporter Gavin Bade discusses the future of President Trump's tariff agenda. And measles cases in the U.S. this year have already surpassed last year's number, reaching a three-decade high. Alex Ossola hosts. And for more on peptides, listen to our What's News Sunday episode. Sign up for the WSJ's free What's News newsletter. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Trump administration puts in place new tariffs ranging from 10% to 12.5% on 60 major trading partners, covering nearly 100% of U.S. imports, under the rationale of combatting forced labor; President Trump is asked about his comment this week that he is considering a "massive attack" on Iran because that country has not yet received "enough pain" in the war so far; President is asked about his reported frustration with Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) over the Senate not passing a bill to require proof of U.S. citizenship to vote, and Sen. Thune firing back that the White House needs to work to round up votes needed for passage instead of criticizing; Democratic National Committee's rules committee recommends South Carolina hold the first presidential primary in 2028, and five other states be allowed to hold primaries earlier than the rest of the states: Nevada, New Hampshire, Michigan, New Mexico and Virginia;; Race for U.S. Senator from Michigan this year is being talked about as a bellwether for the future of the Democratic party. We will hear from the two major candidates: progressive Abdul El-Sayed and moderate Haley Stevens; Jewish leaders in New York City criticize Mayor Zohran Mamdani's position on Israel after a double stabbing of a suspect who reportedly yelled in Arabic 'God in great'; preview of tonight's rescheduled White House Correspondent Association dinner, featuring a speech by President Trump, after the original event was called off when a gunman burst in allegedly trying to assassinate the president and other government officials. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Donald Trump will attend the rescheduled White House Correspondents' Dinner on Friday, nearly three months after a shooting abruptly ended the event. The suspect fired a shotgun outside the ballroom where Trump and members of his Cabinet were taking their seats. He pleaded not guilty in May to charges including attempting to assassinate the president.Trump has said the rescheduling of the dinner was “a sign of strength and fortitude.”The United States imposed new tariffs between 10 percent and 12.5 percent on Friday on imports from more than 60 trading partners, citing concerns that they had failed to prevent goods made with forced labor from entering U.S. supply chains. Countries around the world have pushed back.

A new set of Section 301 tariffs now affects nearly all U.S. imports.  For more information, listen to today's Two Minutes in Trade.  

P.M. Edition for July 23. The U.S. plans to impose new tariffs on most trade partners, replacing President Trump's temporary global 10% tariff. Plus, the threat of escalating conflict in the Middle East drove oil prices over $100, and concerns around higher inflation made bond yields surge. WSJ markets reporter Sam Goldfarb discusses how that ripples through the economy. Meanwhile, heavy AI spending from Alphabet and Tesla spooked investors, and the Nasdaq dropped more than 2%. And after IBM issued a rare profit warning last week, the company's earnings shed more light on what went wrong. We hear from reporter Anissa Gardizy about where its business goes from here, while tech columnist Christopher Mims spoke with IBM CEO Arvind Krishna. Alex Ossola hosts. Correction: New U.S. tariffs target 60 economies, or more than 80 countries. An earlier version of this podcast incorrectly said the tariffs target 60 countries. (Corrected on July 24.) Sign up for the WSJ's free What's News newsletter. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

P.M. Edition for July 22. WSJ special writer Theo Francis explains how startup founders, hedge-fund managers and Silicon Valley insiders are using IRAs to supercharge their wealth. Plus, trade uncertainty comes roaring back. WSJ trade and economic policy reporter Gavin Bade explains the Trump administration's new front on tariffs. And Journal reporter Sam Federman explains how the New York Mets turned baseball's highest payroll into its biggest waste of money. Danny Lewis hosts. Sign up for the WSJ's free What's News newsletter. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

#TMIT EU's forced labor portal is open and the risks are real. New laws effective soon means prepping now. Listen for more on Two Minutes In Trade. 

With key Section 301 decisions approaching, importers face three important dates: the July 15 Brazil 301 decision deadline, July 16 follow-on comments in the Forced Labor 301 investigation, and July 27 rebuttal comments for the proposed U.S.-China Board of Trade.

This Day in Legal History: Sandra Day O'Connor Nominated to the Supreme CourtOn July 7, 1981, President Ronald Reagan announced that he was nominating Sandra Day O'Connor to the Supreme Court of the United States. If confirmed, she would become the first woman ever to serve on the Court in its then-191-year history. The Senate confirmed her later that summer by a vote of 99 to 0, and she took her seat in September 1981.O'Connor's path to the Court was, in its own way, a commentary on the barriers women faced in the legal profession. She had graduated near the top of her class at Stanford Law School in 1952—ahead of, among others, William Rehnquist, who would one day be her Chief Justice—and yet law firms in California would not hire her as a lawyer. One offered her a job as a legal secretary. She built her career instead in public service and in Arizona politics, eventually rising to become the majority leader of the Arizona state senate, the first woman in the country to hold such a post, before moving to the bench as a state judge. When Reagan, who had promised during his campaign to appoint a woman to the Court, chose her, he was reaching past the federal appellate judiciary—which had almost no women on it—into state government.On the Court, O'Connor became famous as a pragmatic, case-by-case decision-maker who resisted sweeping rules, and for roughly a quarter century she sat at the ideological center, casting decisive votes on abortion, affirmative action, campaign finance, religion, and the limits of federal power. Her approach frustrated those who wanted bright-line doctrines from either side, but it made her, for a generation, arguably the most powerful jurist in the country—the swing vote whose reasoning lower courts and litigants had to anticipate.Her nomination matters in legal history not only because it broke a barrier that had stood since 1789, but because of what came after it. Once one woman had sat on the Court and served with distinction, the question was no longer whether a woman could do the job but why it had taken so long. O'Connor herself was characteristically understated about the symbolism, insisting that she wanted to be judged on the quality of her arguments rather than her place in history. But the two are not really separable. The fact that a brilliant lawyer could be turned away from every firm that interviewed her, and then go on to become the deciding vote on the highest court in the land, is a reminder of how much talent the profession wasted for how long—and of how quickly a barrier that seems permanent can fall once someone is finally allowed through it.Meta has disclosed that four states are seeking as much as $1.4 trillion in penalties heading into an August trial over claims that the company deliberately designed Facebook and Instagram to addict young users. The figure—close to Meta's entire market value of around $1.5 trillion—came out in a court filing in which Meta argued the number is wildly excessive and, in its words, “has no analog in the history of consumer protection enforcement.”California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey are among the states suing Meta, alleging that the company engineered features to keep teenagers compulsively engaged—infinite scroll, autoplay, manipulative notifications—while publicly downplaying the harm to young users' mental health. The case is set for trial in Oakland in August. The eye-popping penalty number comes from how state consumer-protection laws are structured: they typically set a fixed statutory fine per violation, and the states arrive at $1.4 trillion by multiplying that per-violation fine by an enormous number of alleged violations, one for roughly every affected young user, across years of conduct.Think about how that math works and why it produces such a staggering figure. If a law says you owe, say, a few thousand dollars per violation, that sounds modest—until the “violations” are counted in the tens or hundreds of millions because each affected teenager, each exposure, is its own violation. Statutes written to punish a corner store for mislabeling a product start to generate astronomical numbers when applied to a platform that touches nearly every teenager in a state. That's the tension at the heart of this filing: the states say they're simply applying the law as written, and Meta says applying it that way produces a number no legislature could possibly have intended.The significance here isn't really the trillion-dollar headline, which almost no one expects to be the actual outcome. It's what the fight over the number reveals. Penalty calculations like this are leverage—they shape settlement negotiations and signal how seriously a court might treat the underlying conduct. The case is one of the most important tests yet of whether decades-old consumer-protection statutes can be turned against the design choices of social media platforms, and whether “we built it to be addictive” can be treated as a deceptive or unfair business practice. However the penalty question resolves, the theory of liability is the thing to watch.Meta says US states are seeking $1.4 trillion in penalties in August youth safety trial | ReutersA coalition of twenty-two Democratic state attorneys general has come out against the Trump administration's plan to impose tariffs of up to 12.5% on 59 countries and the European Union, tariffs the administration justifies as a response to trade in goods made with forced labor. The attorneys general, led by California's Rob Bonta, call the levies unlawful and describe them as a pretext to resurrect tariff authority the Supreme Court has already rejected.Tariffs are taxes on imports, and the Constitution gives the power to levy taxes primarily to Congress. Presidents can impose tariffs, but only when Congress has delegated them that authority through a specific statute, and each of those statutes comes with its own conditions and limits. Earlier tariffs from this administration were struck down when courts found the President had stretched his delegated power past what the law allowed. Now the administration is invoking forced-labor concerns as the legal basis for a new round. The Democratic attorneys general argue that this is the same overreach in a new costume—that dressing tariffs up as a human-rights measure doesn't cure the underlying problem, which is that the President is claiming a taxing power Congress never handed him.Consider the practical reach of what's proposed. The attorneys general say these tariffs would hit roughly 99% of imports. A tariff, whatever its stated purpose, is ultimately paid by importers and passed along to consumers in higher prices. So the debate isn't only an abstract argument about the separation of powers—it's about who gets to decide to raise the cost of nearly everything Americans buy from abroad, and whether that decision belongs to one person in the executive branch or to Congress. The forced-labor rationale is genuinely important on its own terms; forced labor in global supply chains is a real and serious problem. But the attorneys general are making a structural point: even a good goal doesn't authorize a power the law doesn't grant.The significance is that this is another front in an ongoing constitutional struggle over how far presidential trade power extends. The attorneys general are signaling they will litigate, and the courts have already shown, in striking down the earlier tariffs, that they are willing to police the boundary. Watch for whether this dispute follows the same path to the Supreme Court, because the answer will shape not just this set of tariffs but how much unilateral economic power any president can claim by pointing to a sufficiently sympathetic justification.Democratic AGs oppose Trump plan to impose tariffs on forced labor concerns | ReutersThe U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has abandoned an unusual set of trademark applications it had filed to register the phrase “Board of Peace” on behalf of President Trump, walking away from the filings after sharp criticism from congressional Democrats and questions about whether the agency had any legal authority to file them in the first place. The government filed an express abandonment of the applications, ending what one member of Congress called an unlawful venture.A trademark protects a brand—a word or logo used to identify the source of goods or services in commerce. Normally, a person or company files their own application, or has their lawyer file it for them. What happened here is that the Director of the Patent and Trademark Office, the head of the very agency that examines and grants trademarks, filed applications to register “Board of Peace” on the President's behalf. And that raised an immediate legal problem: the Lanham Act, the federal trademark statute, generally forbids filing an application on behalf of another person unless you are that person's attorney—and the Director specifically was not acting as Trump's lawyer.Think about why that rule exists and why the arrangement looked so troubling. The agency that decides who gets a trademark is supposed to be a neutral referee. When the head of that agency personally files an application for the President, the referee has stepped onto the field to play for one team. Even setting aside the specific statutory bar, it collapses the distinction between the government official who grants rights and the private party who receives them. Critics questioned not just the legality but the transparency of the whole exercise—who authorized it, on what authority, and why the trademark office was branding a presidential initiative at all.The significance is less about the phrase “Board of Peace” and more about the guardrails around a powerful administrative agency. Trademark law has technical rules about who may file and on whose behalf, and those rules are part of what keeps the system credible. The abandonment—prompted by oversight from the House Judiciary Committee's Democrats—shows those guardrails still functioning: an irregular filing was flagged, its legal basis questioned, and the agency backed down before a court had to intervene. It's a small episode in the scheme of things, but a clean illustration of how ordinary statutory limits and legislative oversight can check an official who reaches beyond his role.US trademark office abandons ‘Board of Peace' branding rights applications | ReutersIn my column for Bloomberg Tax this week, I take on the administration's threat to hit countries that have digital services taxes with 100% tariffs. My argument, in short, is that this is an ill-advised response—it isn't really a defense of the U.S. tax system at all, but an attempt to use consumer-funded trade pain to shield big tech from foreign tax bills.Let me set up the problem. A digital services tax, or DST, is a levy some foreign governments impose on the local digital revenue of companies like Alphabet, Meta, Apple, Amazon, or Netflix. These firms can earn enormous revenue from users in a country without ever having the kind of physical presence that the traditional international tax system was built to tax. Netflix can stream into a jurisdiction, pull revenue out of it, and never owe local tax. So foreign governments invented DSTs to capture some of that. The U.S. response, apparently, is to threaten tariffs on that country's completely unrelated goods until the tax goes away. The logic is that if Google has to pay France a modest tax on its digital revenue, someone in Cleveland might have to pay more for their champagne.I want to be fair to both sides here, because I actually think both have a point. DSTs genuinely deserve criticism—they're blunt instruments that tax gross revenue rather than profit, which means they can overtax low-margin business, and they're often designed with revenue thresholds conveniently set to catch every big U.S. tech firm while sparing domestic companies. So the U.S. complaint that these taxes are tailored to skim revenue from American firms is not baseless. But foreign governments also have a legitimate grievance: the old international tax rules really do struggle to tax digital businesses that earn a fortune from local users without setting foot in the country.Here's where I think the tariff response falls apart. A blanket 100% tariff doesn't fix any of a DST's design flaws. It doesn't determine where digital value is actually created, it doesn't allocate taxing rights, and it doesn't even fall on the foreign government. Tariffs are paid by importers, and most of that cost gets passed along to consumers. With last year's tariffs, as much as ninety percent of the economic burden landed on domestic firms and consumers. So think about how strange this is as tax policy: the companies facing the foreign tax are the largest and richest technology firms in the world, but the companies and consumers who'd actually feel the tariff are unrelated domestic players. No one is literally cutting Meta a reimbursement check, but the effect is the same—American consumers and importers become the leverage used to protect Silicon Valley from foreign tax exposure.And the bilateral approach has a nasty structural problem. The administration seems emboldened by the Canada episode—Canada moved to collect its DST, the U.S. threatened trade consequences, and Canada backed down. The apparent lesson the administration drew is that a big enough threat can make any foreign tax disappear. But if the U.S. treats tariff threats as a standing veto over other countries' tax policy, then every DST becomes a bilateral confrontation—France, Spain, Italy, the UK, one hostage negotiation after another—and it invites everyone else to adopt the same playbook the moment U.S. firms need something from them.So what I argue for instead is a binding, multilateral framework, and I lay out three pieces it would need. First, countries with DSTs agree to repeal them once a replacement is in place—the goal is to swap the ad hoc levies for something coherent, not stack a new rule on top of them. Second, market jurisdictions get, and help design, a predictable formula for their share of taxing rights over digital multinationals—something administrable and tied to a defensible theory of where digital profits are earned. And third, the U.S. keeps its powder dry: retaliation stays in reserve for countries that refuse the framework or discriminate against U.S. firms, applied with due process and proportionality, not as a one-size-fits-all tariff bazooka every time a foreign tax annoys Silicon Valley. Until we build that kind of system, the DST fight is just going to keep coming back.US Tariff Threat Is an Ill-Advised Digital Services Tax Reaction | Bloomberg Tax This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.minimumcomp.com/subscribe

Host: Warrington Ellacott Guest(s): Yannick Trudel Published: June 29, 2026 Length: Approx. 21 minutes Presented by: Global Training Center Summary Canada is moving quickly on several legislative fronts that could reshape how importers, exporters, manufacturers, and distributors manage trade compliance. In this episode, Warrington Ellacott is joined by Yannick Trudel, Partner at McMillan LLP in Montreal, to unpack three bills recently tabled in Parliament: Bill C-35, Bill C-34, and Bill C-36. The main focus is Bill C-35, a proposed forced labor enforcement measure that could significantly expand the Canada Border Services Agency's powers and shift the burden of proof onto importers and owners of goods. The discussion compares Canada's approach with the U.S. UFLPA framework and highlights why supply chain documentation, supplier certifications, tariff classification consistency, and rapid response readiness are becoming more important than ever. The episode also touches on Canada's emerging digital safety and consumer data privacy proposals, including how data localization and cross-border data flow rules may create new trade tensions under USMCA. For companies trading into Canada, the message is clear: review the bills, prepare documentation, and be ready for a more enforcement-driven environment. Main Topic / Discussion This episode explores Canada's proposed shift from forced labor reporting obligations toward stronger border enforcement. Bill C-35 would introduce a more presumptive approach to forced labor risk, potentially relying on lists of countries, regions, entities, or commodities linked to forced labor. If enacted, the bill could require importers and owners to prove that goods were not produced with forced labor. Warrington and Yannick also discuss the broader compliance environment, including Canada's existing S-211 forced labor reporting obligations, the role of CBSA, potential appeal limitations under the proposed bill, and what U.S. and Mexican traders should expect when doing business with Canadian partners. The conversation closes with a look at Bills C-34 and C-36, especially the potential trade implications of consumer data protection, digital safety rules, data sovereignty, and cross-border data flows. Key Takeaways • Bill C-35 could shift the burden of proof from CBSA to importers and owners of goods. • Importers may need stronger supplier documentation, certificates, and proof of supply chain due diligence. • Canada may develop forced labor risk lists based on countries, regions, companies, or commodities. • Consistent tariff classification and customs declarations across borders will become increasingly important. • Proposed appeal limitations could make CBSA enforcement decisions harder to challenge. • Bills C-34 and C-36 may create indirect trade implications for companies operating online or handling consumer data in Canada. Resources & Mentions • Global Training Center • Canadian Association of Importers and Exporters Credits Host: Warrington Ellacott – LinkedIn Guest(s): Yannick Trudel – LinkedIn Producer: Mara Marquez

In proposing blanket, country-based tariffs, USTR risks ignoring or even undermining years of investment by the U.S. private sector to secure its supply chains against forced labor worldwide.  For more information on this issue, listen to today's TMIT.  

All of this week's episodes of It Could Happen Here put together in one large file. - How the United States Shaped the Dominican Republic’s Immigration Enforcement Machine - Settler Colonialism with Andrew - Anti-ICE Protesters in Minnesota Charged with Conspiracy - The Necessary War on Data Centers - Executive Disorder: Iran Deal, UFC at the White House, Dialog Hack You can now listen to all Cool Zone Media shows, 100% ad-free through the Cooler Zone Media subscription, available exclusively on Apple Podcasts. So, open your Apple Podcasts app, search for “Cooler Zone Media” and subscribe today! http://apple.co/coolerzone Sources/Links: How the United States Shaped the Dominican Republic’s Immigration Enforcement Machine Help Bring Ezra Home and Seek the Truth (https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-bring-ezra-home-seek-the-truth) More than a Massacre; Racial Violence and Citizenship in the Haitian-Dominican Borderlands by Sabine Cadeu Empire of Borders by Todd Miller Border Patrol Nation by Todd Miller From tierra de nadie to terre brulée – From Borderland to Border in Haiti and the Dominican Republic by Sabine Cadeu (https://www.histecon.magd.cam.ac.uk/barriers/July2022_papers/SabineCadeauPaper.pdf) Haitians, Magic, and Money: Raza and Society in the Haitian-Dominican Borderlands, 1900 to 1937 by Lauren Derby (https://www.jstor.org/stable/179294) Making the Dominican Republic Great Again? by Lorgia García-Peña (https://nacla.org/making-dominican-republic-great-again/) Marines in the Dominican Republic 1916-1924 (https://www.marines.mil/portals/1/Publications/Marines%20in%20the%20Dominican%20Republic%20PCN%2019000412600_1.pdf) US warns its ‘darker-skinned’ citizens of Dominican Republic’s migrant crackdown by Richard Luscombe (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/nov/22/us-warns-darker-skinned-citizens-crackdown-dominican-republic) Latinobarómetro 2024 Resultados por sexo y edad Informe de estudio #LAT-2024 v1 (https://www.latinobarometro.org/latinobarometro-2024#LAT-2024-selected-country-header) Ten Years After a Fateful Court Decision, the Dominican Republic Still Has a Statelessness Problem by Kevin Appleby (https://cmsny.org/dr-statelessness-problem-appleby-102323/) Addressing the Next Displacement Crisis in the Making in the Americas by Valerie Lacarte (https://www.migrationpolicy.org/news/haiti-next-displacement-crisis-americas) ‘They grabbed us like dogs’: deportation quotas tear Haitian migrants’ lives apart by Shandra Back (https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/sep/07/they-grabbed-us-like-dogs-deportation-quotas-tear-haitian-migrants-lives-apart) Federal Agents Investigate Sugar Exporter Over Allegations of Forced Labor (https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2023/10/central-romana-homeland-security-sugar/) “They Just Came and Started Breaking Houses” (https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/12/central-romana-sugar-hoyo-de-puerco-demolished/) Despite US Import Ban, Sugar Cane Cutters Still Face Abuse in Dominican Republic (https://unicornriot.ninja/2023/despite-us-import-ban-sugar-cane-cutters-still-face-abuse-in-dominican-republic/) 10 years fighting for nationality in the Dominican Republic (https://www.institutesi.org/news/10-year-anniversary-of-dr-court-ruling-stripping-nationality) LEA Training Schedule 2024 (https://sansalvador.ilea.state.gov/training-schedule?c=fr-FR) International students graduate from elite federal law enforcement program (https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/international-students-graduate-elite-federal-law-enforcement-program) Dominican Republic students graduate from elite US law enforcement program (https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/dominican-republic-students-graduate-elite-us-law-enforcement-program) El misterio de Ellen Frances Hulett | El Informe con Alicia Ortega (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKIg2np081M) How Far Will the Dominican Republic Go in Deporting Haitians? by Marius Loiseau (https://inkstickmedia.com/how-far-will-the-dominican-republic-go-in-deporting-haitians/) Fearing Deportation, Mothers Give Birth in Shadows by Hogla Enecia Pérez and Luis Ferré-Sadurní (https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/26/world/americas/dominican-republic-haiti-hospital-deportations.html) Dominican Republic and Haiti at the Crossroads of the Massacre River by Simón Rodríguez (https://nacla.org/dominican-republic-and-haiti-crossroads-massacre-river/) US team reveals weaknesses at the Dominican-Haiti border (https://web.archive.org/web/20110526044642/https://dominicantoday.com/dr/local/2006/8/7/16173/US-team-reveals-weaknesses-at-the-Dominican-Haiti-border) Dominican Republic begins building border wall with Haiti (https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/dominican-republic-begins-building-border-wall-with-haiti-2022-02-20/) A 101-Mile Wall Goes Up to Block Haitians Pouring Over Border by Danielle Balbi (https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2022-09-28/big-take-why-the-dominican-republic-is-building-a-border-wall-between-haiti?embedded-checkout=true#xj4y7vzkg) “A Veil of Legality” by Amelia Hintzen (https://www.sciencedirect.com/org/science/article/pii/S1382237316000234) Dominican border wall threatens environment, mangroves by Esteban ROJAS (https://phys.org/news/2023-03-dominican-border-wall-threatens-environment.html) Dominican Republic deports pregnant women in ‘inhumane’ migrant crackdown (https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/apr/29/pregnant-women-deported-dominican-republic-migration-crackdown-haiti) La muerte de Ellen Frances Hulett se debió a infartos agudos al miocardio, confirma autopsia (https://noticiassin.com/la-muerte-de-ellen-frances-hulett-se-debio-a-infartos-agudos-al-miocardio-confirma-autopsia/) La muerte de la estadounidense Ellen Hulett: una cadena de preguntas sin respuestas by Ana A, Elina M (https://www.diariolibre.com/actualidad/sucesos/2025/07/03/muerte-de-ellen-hulett-una-cadena-de-preguntas-sin-respuestas/3170413) Alert: Ongoing Dominican Migration Enforcement (https://do.usembassy.gov/alert-ongoing-dominican-migration-enforcement/) 87 Aniversario de la Dirección General de Migración (https://migracion.gob.do/87-aniversario-de-la-direccion-general-de-migracion/) Haitians displaced by violence face deportation after fleeing to Dominican Republic (https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/haitians-displaced-by-violence-face-deportation-after-fleeing-to-dominican-republic) Settler Colonialism with Andrew Settler Colonialism and the Elimination of the Native by Patrick Wolfe https://www.britannica.com/place/Liberia/History Liberia: The Violence of Democracy by Mary H Moran. The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine by Rashid Khalidi The Question of Palestine by Edward Said https://rpublc.com/story/2024/02/08/international-affairs/the-false-equivalence-of-liberia-and-israel Anti-ICE Protesters in Minnesota Charged with Conspiracy https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-it-could-happen-here-30717896/episode/everyone-vs-ice-on-the-ground-in-minnesota-319435576 https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-it-could-happen-here-30717896/episode/outlaw-criminalization-of-ice-watch-in-minneapolis-326372276 https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mnd.234418/gov.uscourts.mnd.234418.1.0_1.pdf https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQ0hYCF60og Executive Disorder: Iran Deal, UFC at the White House, Dialog Hack Short Stories: https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/spacex-ipo-makes-elon-musk-worlds-first-trillionaire-2026-06-11/https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-files-complaint-challenging-virginia-mask-ban-and-identificationhttps://x.com/DHSgov/status/2065442267502882838?s=20 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7rjZqvbMIkhttps://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/security-aviation/2026-06-11/ty-article/israeli-firm-blackcore-suspected-of-meddling-in-nyc-scotland-elections/0000019e-b7d1-d892-adde-f7df71710000 https://democrats-judiciary.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/democrats-judiciary.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2026-06-15-raskin-to-patel-fbi-re-bonuses.pdf https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/05/removing-unnecessary-and-counterproductive-restrictions-on-access-to-federal-lands/ https://www.energy.senate.gov/hearings/2026/6/business-meeting-to-consider-pending-legislation https://www.pew.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2026/02/18/an-update-on-the-roadless-rulhttps://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73486770/united-states-v-warrant/ Police Shooting: https://www.mississippifreepress.org/mississippi-police-officer-shoots-and-kills-1-year-old-child-in-response-to-senatobia-shoplifting-call/ https://capitalbnews.org/mississippi-police-shooting-kohen-kartier-wiley/ https://www.whsv.com/2026/06/17/family-identifies-1-year-old-killed-officer-involved-shooting-walmart-protests-break-out-store/?outputType=amp https://wreg.com/news/local/ms-town-looks-for-answers-after-walmart-shooting-that-killed-1-year-old/ https://wreg.com/news/local/mother-of-toddler-killed-in-walmart-shooting-speaks/ https://www.wapt.com/article/senatobia-officer-placed-on-leave-tear-gas-deployed-as-hundreds-protest-death-of-1-year-old-kohen-wiley/71608163 https://www.fox13memphis.com/news/watch-child-dead-another-person-critically-injured-after-officer-involved-shooting-at-senatobia-walmart-mbi/video_af5674d5-cfc5-5e9e-83cb-64f0beded36f.html https://wreg.com/news/mbi-investigates-shooting-at-senatobia-walmart-parking-lot/?ipid=promo-link-block1 https://www.actionnews5.com/2026/06/16/community-rally-planned-after-officer-shoots-kills-1-year-old-senatobia/ https://abcnews.com/US/officer-involved-shooting-walmart-killed-1-year-boy/story?id=133965022 Iran Deal: https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116743808155352167 https://edition.cnn.com/2026/06/17/middleeast/us-iran-war-mou-text-intl https://en.mehrnews.com/news/245340/Islamabad-says-Iran-US-reach-peace-deal https://en.mehrnews.com/news/245343/Iran-s-top-security-body-confirms-Iran-US-finalization-of-MoU https://x.com/CMShehbaz/status/2065467425408405712?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw https://x.com/CMShehbaz/status/2066268332832194810?s=20 https://x.com/itamarbengvir/status/2066392115027050781 https://farsnews.ir/Qaysar/1781530307974297749/Spokesman-Iran-Oman-to-Charge-Fees-for-Full-Services-in-Strait-of-Hormuz https://x.com/phildstewart/status/2066552634803155267?s=20 https://x.com/osinttechnical World Cup:https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/12/restricting-and-limiting-the-entry-of-foreign-nationals-to-protect-the-security-of-the-united-states/https://www.state.gov/fifa-world-cup-26-visas https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/blog/world-cup-ice-visas-iran/https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/49017941/iran-players-say-us-visa-policies-create-world-cup-tensionhttps://www.cbsnews.com/news/somali-world-cup-referee-omar-artan-talking-to-very-bad-people-andrew-giuliani/UFC Freedom 250:https://time.com/article/2026/06/15/ufc-fight-white-house-hokit-obama/https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/five-men-arrested-and-charged-plot-attack-and-kill-government-officials-and-others-attendinghttps://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1446021/dl?inlinehttps://cnycentral.com/resources/pdf/99a48b49-11dc-4b9c-a158-6487087ab779-Propercomplaint.pdfhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rSE1tw7lI0https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5927733-ufc-white-house-attack-plot/Dialog:https://www.wired.com/story/leak-exposes-members-of-peter-thiels-secretive-dialog-society/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gordon Chang and Charles Burton critique the Canadian government's failure to block Chinese products made with forced labor, specifically aluminum and electric vehicles. Burton warns that Canada's weak enforcement compared to US standards risks political friction and allows "spy machines on wheels" to enter the North American market. (6)

Preview for Later Today: Charles Burton discusses Canadian imports of Chinese EVs, highlighting concerns that components like aluminum and lithium involve forced labor from Tibet, violating prohibitions against products made with slave labor under a problematic trade agreement.1857

The window is closing for the Section 301 comment periods for Forced Labor, Vietnam, Brazil, and U.S.-China tariffs. Now is the time to speak up!

That new 79-page forced labor guidance issued by CBP? Looks like a warning, and you need to be ready. Listen for more on Two Minutes in Trade. 

Gordon Chang and Alan Tonelson review the re-imposition of U.S. tariffs on China following a Supreme Court ruling. They discuss specific trade laws, forced labor bans, and the public's perception of trade wars. (11)1936 CAPETOWN

What's going on in Global Trade this Week? Today Pete Mento and Doug Draper cover: 1:00 -IEEPA, CAPE, and Chaos with Refunds 6:34 - Halftime 15:47 -Forced Labor as a Basis for 301 Tariffs 20:55 -To Peak or Not to Peak   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBbdx3yCHsI www.capwwide.com/international-insights/6/9/26/gttw-podcast-episode-246  

Weeks after The World first reported on allegations of forced labor at BYD's new car factory in Hungary, authorities are cracking down on the car maker. Three companies associated with the Chinese EV giant's plant in Hungary have been sanctioned — and Hungary has launched an environmental investigation into the site. But labor advocates are skeptical that those actions will lead to any real change. The post Hungary cracks down on BYD plant over forced labor allegations appeared first on The World from PRX.

Weeks after The World first reported on allegations of forced labor at BYD's new car factory in Hungary, authorities are cracking down on the car maker. Three companies associated with the Chinese EV giant's plant in Hungary have been sanctioned — and Hungary has launched an environmental investigation into the site. But labor advocates are skeptical that those actions will lead to any real change. The post Hungary cracks down on BYD plant over forced labor allegations appeared first on The World from PRX.

00:00 Intro01:14 U.S. Plans Tariffs for 60 Countries Over Forced Labor02:41 Rubio Defends Taiwan Support, Warns About China04:41 Rubio Rejects Easing Pressure on Cuba, Iran05:44 NBA–China Ties Under Scrutiny After Stephen Curry Deal08:05 Solomon Islands to Review China Security Pact08:58 Jensen Huang: Taiwan an Incredible Strategic U.S. Partner11:16 Robot Dogs May Patrol Taiwan's South China Sea Islands13:59 Chinese Citizens on Why They Quit the Communist Party15:08 VOC President: June 4th 'A Living Memory' of CCP Abuse15:39 DC Vigil Marks Tiananmen Massacre Memory16:53 Tiananmen Memory Tied to American Values17:54 Beijing Influence in Education Under Scrutiny19:35 CCP vs. Chinese People: Drawing the Line21:00 Parents Warned on Toy Safety, Supply Chain Risks

① The Trump administration has proposed new tariffs on imports from 60 economies, claiming they fail to ban US imports made with forced labor. Is this a legitimate ground to rebuild the administration's tariff regime following domestic legal setbacks? (00:54) ② The US House of Representatives has passed a resolution to limit Donald Trump's war powers against Iran. Is the US president increasingly isolated on the Iran war? (15:11) ③ The World Health Organization says efforts to contain the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are gaining ground. We explore the remaining challenges for the mission. (24:56) ④ China has launched a national digital identity system to give every humanoid robot a personal identification number. How will the platform strengthen industry standards? (34:46) ⑤ Britain has ordered Google to allow news publishers to opt out of AI model fine-tuning for search summaries. How could Google's AI Overviews deal a blow to publishers? (44:37)

The U.S. wants to impose new tariffs on dozens of trading partners. AP correspondent Donna Warder reports.

(4) Josh Rogin examines upcoming Section 301 investigations that will address Chinese forced labor and dumping. Simultaneously, a critical shortage of magnets from China is impacting the production of U.S. defense technology and fighter jets.

Sam Shetler Case: Missouri Amish ‘Counselor' Accused of Abuse, Forced Labor, and Fraud Tonight we're taking a hard look at the Missouri case involving Sam B. Shetler, an Amish retreat operator now facing a long list of serious criminal charges. According to court records and reporting, investigators say Shetler ran a retreat called Mercy and Truth in Cooper County, Missouri, where Amish and Mennonite residents were sent for counseling, therapy, or help — but prosecutors now allege that many were instead abused, manipulated, sexually exploited, and forced to work for free. Shetler has pleaded not guilty. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

00:00 Intro03:07 U.S.–Philippines Drills Expand, Japan Boosts Deterrence03:58 U.S. Marines Down Drones Using MADIS System in Drills04:21 U.S.–Philippines Drills Signal Focus on Taiwan Strait05:13 Filipino Defense Chief Not Surprised by China's Move06:05 Philippines: Beijing Moves When Rivals Are Distracted06:44 Intensified China Military Activity Near Taiwan07:36 China Defense Spending Up 31st Straight Year: Report08:49 U.S. Arms Deliveries to Europe Delayed Amid Iran War09:40 FBI Hails Capture of Chinese Hacker as 'Historic Win'11:45 Unexplained Deaths Among Chinese Scientists: Report12:52 Beijing Ramps Up Anti-Corruption Campaign14:00 Xi Jinping Uses Corruption Cases to Sideline Rivals15:18 New DeepSeek Release Fails to Shake AI Market16:22 VOC President on Viral Labubu Dolls and Forced Labor16:45 Labubu Toys Tied to Forced Labor in China: Patterson18:05 Can U.S. Regulations Block Xinjiang Cotton Imports?19:05 When Cheap Goods Come at a Human Cost20:20 Rights Concerns Loom Over Expected Trump–Xi Talks21:55 Why Washington Misread China's Path: Patterson

What Happens when Section 301 and Section 307 collide - is that policy or paradox? Listen for more on Two Minutes in Trade. 

This Week on True Crime News The Podcast: Sexual empowerment or a new means of oppression? OneTaste's founder, Nicole Daedone, and head of sales, Rachel Cherwitz, were sentenced to federal prison after using their wellness-branded company to exploit followers. Prosecutors claim that the pair preyed on vulnerable victims looking for connection and community before weaponizing their fears and insecurities against them. Rachel Fiset joins host Ana Garcia. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

2. Turkel recounts his 1970 birth in a Chinese re-education camp, illustrating that Uyghur persecution is a long-standing continuum. He describes his mother's imprisonment and father's forced labor for "ideological" crimes. Turkel eventually moved to the United States, becoming a lawyer and prominent advocate for his people. (2)1793

4. Turkel details the bipartisan U.S. response to the genocide, including entity sanctions and the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. He highlights his work with U.S. officials to formalize the "genocide" determination. Despite being sanctioned by China, Turkel continues advocating through the Commission on International Religious Freedom. (4)1905 GUANGZHOU

A couple is charged with forcing migrants to work at senior care facilities in San Diego County. Plus, a new housing development in Poway is moving forward despite pleas from a tribal community. And, we have the reason gas prices won't likely return to pre-war prices anytime soon. NBC 7's Marianne Kushi has these stories and more, including meteorologist Sheena Parveen's forecast for Friday, April 3, 2026.

4. HEADLINE: Concerns Over U.S.-ChinaTrade Talks and Forced Labor Enforcement GUEST: Charles Burton, Gordon Chang SUMMARY: Analysts express skepticism regarding upcoming trade negotiations between President Trump and Xi Jinping. They also criticize Canada's failure to effectively block Chinese products manufactured using forced labor in Xinjiang. (4)1935 JUBAIL, ARABIA. CALIFORNIA-ARABIA STANDARD OIL EXPEDITION

Italy's failed referendum, trial by jury at risk in the UK, and elections in Denmark and France. Then: what a mutiny at high sea tells us about (un)freedom, North Korea's forced labor program, Central Asian migrants' exodus from Russia, and FC Barcelona's labor violations. + https://shorturl.at/iUMhD +?maca=en-podcast_inside-europe-949-xml-mrss

5. Guest Jack Burnham describes China's lukewarm support for Iran and focus on energy security. He also highlights the CCP's internal repression of ethnic minorities through forced labor and incentivized Han Chinese migration. (5)1909 BEHEADING ROBBERS

On today's episode, Andy sits down with Jonathan Pullen, Assistant Chief of Operations for the South Central Region of the DEA. They discuss the logistics of the modern drug trade, the international supply chain of fentanyl precursor chemicals, and cartel operations along both the northern and southern U.S. borders. Chapters: (00:00) Cold Open & Introduction  (01:16) What is the DEA's True Role? (03:05) China's Involvement in the Fentanyl Crisis (08:15) Smuggling Rings Beyond the Major Cartels  (11:31) The Northern Border Threat & Montana Pipelines  (17:02) How Drugs Move Across the U.S. (The Denver Hub)  (20:32) Cartel Smuggling Tactics & Forced Labor  (24:43) Money Laundering: Cash, Crypto, & MSBs  (29:07) The Epidemic on Native American Reservations  (34:59) Why Fentanyl is Deadlier Than Previous Drug Crises  (42:05)  Raiding an Underground TdA Nightclub in Denver  (50:49)  The DEA's Biggest Hurdle Right Now  (55:03)  A Final Warning to Parents Sponsors: Firecracker Farm Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/ GHOSTBED: Go to https://www.GhostBed.com/IRONCLAD and use code IRONCLAD for an extra 15% off sitewide. Norwood Sawmills: Learn more about Norwood Sawmills and how you can start milling your own lumber at https://norwoodsawmills.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Crises don't just knock out power—they unravel the safeguards that keep predators at bay. We dig into how traffickers exploit natural disasters, pandemics, and even major events by stepping into system failures with promises of food, shelter, and work that morph into coercion and control. From labor trafficking in post-hurricane rebuilds to targeted online recruitment of displaced single mothers, we connect the dots between vulnerability, policy loopholes, and criminal opportunity.Our guest, Benjamin Greer, a trafficking subject-matter expert who trains law enforcement and advises a state threat assessment center, breaks down real-world case studies and the modalities behind them: forced labor disguised as reconstruction, illicit adoption pipelines after the Haiti earthquake, and the way suspended wage protections can trigger a “gold rush” of poorly monitored contracts. We talk frankly about data gaps around big sporting events, why preparedness still matters, and how to turn these high-attention moments into training, service mapping, and smarter plans.We also shift to a public health lens. Pandemic closures revealed new disruption tools—like utility shutoffs and health code enforcement—that pushed illicit businesses out of the shadows. Then we widen the circle: code enforcement, utility workers, delivery drivers, rideshare drivers, shelter intake teams, and building inspectors can all be first identifiers with the right signals and anonymous reporting paths. In court, we unpack why expert witnesses on trauma and coercive control help juries make sense of texts, timelines, and victim behavior that seem contradictory but align with science.Finally, we go after the motive: money. Stronger fines, meaningful restitution, and modern asset forfeiture that targets the instrumentalities of coercion—homes, vehicles, farms, business premises—can make exploitation a losing proposition. Pair that with multidisciplinary task forces, shared intel platforms, and survivor-centered services, and communities can close the space traffickers rely on. 

Matthew Friedman joins Dr. Sandie Morgan as they explore how pig butchering scams work, why they're so effective, and how they're tied to forced labor and human trafficking, while explaining what prevention can look like from personal red flags to safeguards in financial systems.Matthew FriedmanMatthew Friedman is the Founder and CEO of The Mekong Club, a pioneering organization that mobilizes the private sector to fight modern slavery across Asia. A globally recognized expert on human trafficking, Friedman has spent over three decades working at the intersection of business, government, and humanitarian action to combat exploitation and promote ethical leadership. Before founding The Mekong Club, Friedman served as Regional Project Manager for the United Nations International Project on Human Trafficking (UNIAP/UNDP), overseeing a six-country initiative spanning China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam, and Thailand. He also served as Deputy Director for the USAID Office of Public Health (Asia Region), managing a $100 million annual portfolio. Friedman holds a Master's degree in Health Education from New York University and is a renowned keynote speaker who has delivered more than 900 presentations in 20 countries, inspiring individuals and organizations to take a stand in the fight against modern slavery.Key PointsPig butchering scams are sophisticated romance scams where criminals build trust over weeks before convincing victims to invest life savings in fake cryptocurrency schemes, with the metaphor referring to "fattening the pig before the slaughter."An estimated 300,000 to 400,000 young professionals have been trafficked into scam centers across Southeast Asia, where they are forced under extreme violence and coercion to run online scams targeting victims in wealthy nations.The Prince Group sanctions marked one of the most significant global crackdowns on forced-labor scam centers, with the UK freezing real estate assets and the US freezing $15 billion in cryptocurrency, signaling increased international cooperation.Financial institutions can help prevent pig butchering by monitoring unusual withdrawal patterns, such as when customers who haven't touched their accounts for 30 years suddenly liquidate everything, and by contacting clients before large transfers are completed.Victims in scam centers face brutal violence including being tasered, beaten, and in some cases tortured to death with videos sold as "hardcore" content, creating a level of violence unprecedented in modern slavery according to Friedman's 35 years of experience.Only 0.2% of the 50 million people in modern slavery receive assistance globally, not because counter-trafficking organizations don't care, but because the $236 billion generated by criminals vastly outweighs the $400 million available to fight it.Public education and awareness are critical for prevention, as people in North America remain largely unaware of pig butchering scams while Asian communities have become more informed through widespread media coverage and victim testimonies.The Mekong Club has developed multilingual e-learning tools including a three-and-a-half-minute video to help raise awareness about both human trafficking into scam centers and the scams themselves, emphasizing that prevention must be widespread.ResourcesThe Mekong ClubThe Mekong Club - Tools & ResourcesValid8 FinancialEnding Human Trafficking Podcast - Episode 269Matthew Friedman on LinkedInContact Matthew FriedmanEnding Human Trafficking Website

Nury Turkel discusses the plight of Guan Hang, a whistleblower facing deportation from the US despite documenting Uyghur concentration camps. Turkel criticizes the inconsistent enforcement of forced labor laws and highlights new evidence linking Uyghur slave labor to the excavation and processing of critical minerals. 1899 OPEN DOOR FROM THE US