The Rick Smith Show

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Four days before the midterms, Rick talks with American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten about what's at stake for public schools, teachers and the working families who depend on them. Then Social Security Works Executive Director Alex Lawson breaks down what Tuesday's elections mean for workers, why Social Security and Medicare are...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , with the election five days away, Rick Smith talks with Pamela Smith, president and CEO of Verified Voting, about how to make sure your vote is counted and how to spot election misinformation. Then Rick rips into Ted Cruz, who says "masculine" isn't a word for James Talarico. Is the guy who fled to Cancun while Texans froze and endorsed the man...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , with Election Day a week away, Rick talks with Labor journalist Steven Greenhouse to break down his Guardian piece, "Donald Trump Has Been a Disaster for Rural America," and why soaring diesel prices, trade wars and farm bankruptcies have deep-red Kansas in play. Then Jill Rosenthal, director of public health policy at the Center for American Progre...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , with Election Day a week away, Rick talks with David Janovsky, acting director of The Constitution Project at the Project On Government Oversight (POGO), about Trump's voter intimidation schemes and how to protect your vote. Then John Logan, professor and director of Labor and Employment Studies at San Francisco State University, breaks down labor's...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , with the midterms just days away, Rick talks with AlterNet senior editor Sarah Burris about the races that could decide who holds power in Washington and what's really at stake for working people. Then Gabe Hagen, co-owner of Brick Road Coffee in Tempe, Arizona, explains how Trump's tariffs nearly doubled his green coffee costs and why policies sold...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Alex Lawson, Executive Director of Social Security Works, about what's at stake for your benefits in the upcoming midterms and the Trump administration's massive overhaul of Social Security's records. Then Rushab Sanghvi, General Counsel for the American Federation of Government Employees, breaks down Trump's war on collectiv...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Saru Jayaraman, president of One Fair Wage, about the Trump Labor Department's new tipped-work guidance that lets employers pay $2.13 an hour while servers clean, stock and prep. Then Liz McElroy, General Vice President for Government Affairs at the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, talks Tradeswomen Build Nations in Hou...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with labor attorney David Borer, former general counsel of the American Federation of Government Employees, about the Trump administration's assault on federal workers' union rights and a Labor Department move that lets employers pay tipped workers $2.13 an hour for more side work. Then LIUNA Senior Policy Analyst Rebecca Rougier joins Ri...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Andrew Miller, Senior Fellow for National Security at the Center for American Progress, to break down Trump's war with Iran and his diesel deal with Vladimir Putin, and what both mean for working families paying at the pump. Then SMART journeyperson Samara Sampson of the SMART International Women's Committee discusses the recent Trad...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Can anything still bring a divided America back together? Rick talks with Tim Stretton, director of the Congressional Oversight Initiative at the Project On Government Oversight, about the issues that could actually unite working people across party lines. Then Celeste Drake, chief counsel at Demand Justice, joins Rick to break down "The Oligarchy's...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Trump cut a diesel deal with Vladimir Putin, and Beijing is cheering. Rick talks with Emily de La Bruyère, co-founder of Horizon Advisory, about why waiving sanctions on Russian diesel is a gift to China and what it means for American workers at the pump. Then Patriotic Millionaires chair Morris Pearl joins Rick to break down The Money Agenda and what's...

Don’t miss our daily TV show on Free Speech TV: www.freespeech.org Find us on: ·       DirecTV (Channel 348) ·       Dish (Channel 269) ·       Sling ·       Roku ·       Apple TV ·       Amazon Fire TV ·       Get the FSTV iOS app HERE Did you miss last night’s show? Miss part of the #RickShow on your local radio station? Want to listen at work, or around the house? Download the podcast on our we...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Alex Lawson, executive director of Social Security Works, about the leaked audio from the Texas Senate candidate's fundraiser and what it reveals about the GOP plan for your earned benefits. Ken Paxton told Washington lobbyists "we have to suck it up" and cut mandatory spending. That's Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid....

Don’t miss our daily TV show on Free Speech TV: www.freespeech.org Find us on: ·       DirecTV (Channel 348) ·       Dish (Channel 269) ·       Sling ·       Roku ·       Apple TV ·       Amazon Fire TV ·       Get the FSTV iOS app HERE Did you miss last night’s show? Miss part of the #RickShow on your local radio station? Want to listen at work, or around the house? Download the podcast on our we...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Dr. Katrina Gamble, founder and CEO of Sojourn Strategies, about defeating authoritarianism and building the collective power needed to defend democracy. Then Jonathan Fritz, senior fellow for China policy at the Center for American Progress, breaks down the Trump-Xi Summit Scorecard, examining the gap between diplomatic spectacle and real r...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Leonard Aguilar, President of the Texas AFL-CIO, about the Contract with America's Workers and the fight to build union power deep in the heart of Texas. Later, NewsGuild-CWA President Jon Schleuss brings the victory story every worker deserves: the Supreme Court refused to hear the Block family's last-ditch appeal, and the Post-Gaze...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick sits down with Don Bell, policy counsel with The Constitution Project at the Project On Government Oversight, POGO, to dig into AI and surveillance: who's watching, who's profiting, and why your rights shouldn't be the price of new tech. Then IUPAT General President Jimmy Williams Jr. joins Rick to talk about the Power to the People Festiva...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Bucknell economics professor Matías Vernengo about September's weak jobs report, just 29,000 jobs added and unemployment up to 4.2%, and the economic fallout from Trump's tariffs and war. Then Phil Glover, AFGE District 3 national vice president, joins to explain how his union keeps fighting and winning in court against Trump's a...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Laurel Kilgour of the American Economic Liberties Project about their Phoenix case study, which shows how Wall Street investors bought up homes, pushed up rents and ramped up evictions. Then Alex Lawson, executive director of Social Security Works, breaks down the Republican push for a closed-door commission to cut Social Security and Medica...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Guardian labor reporter Michael Sainato about the week's top labor stories and the union members and supporters running for office this fall. Then satirist and author Bruce Kluger joins to talk about his journey from serious op-ed writer to America's satirist songwriter, including his viral "MAGA Country" album and "The B...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Joe Spielberger, senior policy counsel at the Project On Government Oversight, about Trump's taxpayer-funded "public service" ads, including a recycled 2024 campaign spot, and whether they break federal propaganda laws. Then Mother Jones reporter Alex Nguyen joins to discuss his article "The Video Game Industry Is Brutal. Now...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Daniel Costa, director of immigration law and policy research at the Economic Policy Institute, about new EPI data showing immigrants grow every state's economy, deportations cost U.S.-born workers their jobs too, and the deportation drive is draining state tax revenue. Then author, educator and recovering ER doctor Keith Pochick joins R...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick sits down with AlterNet Senior Editor Sarah Burris to break down the top stories hitting America's working people. Then author John Hanson joins Rick to talk about his book, Fight & Win: Minneapolis Teamsters Strike, 1934, built on the stories his father passed down. How did truck drivers take on the bosses, the cops and City Hall, and win a un...

Don’t miss our daily TV show on Free Speech TV: www.freespeech.org Find us on: ·       DirecTV (Channel 348) ·       Dish (Channel 269) ·       Sling ·       Roku ·       Apple TV ·       Amazon Fire TV ·       Get the FSTV iOS app HERE Did you miss last night’s show? Miss part of the #RickShow on your local radio station? Want to listen at work, or around the house? Download the podcast on our we...

On this edition of The Rick Smith Show , Rick talks with Tony D. Cardwell, President of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division-IBT, about CSX raking in record profits while 1,100 workers get the axe. Then Matthew Hinkel, Assistant Professor of Economics at Alma College, joins Rick to break down a new study showing union labor delivers superior results. Proof again: when workers or...