The Socialist Program

On today's episode Walter Smolarek and Prof. Richard  Wolff discuss how Europe has plunged into an even deeper energy crisis  as Russia cuts off imports through the Nord Stream pipeline in response  to western sanctions. While US and European leaders pledged that  sanctions would quickly bring the Russian economy to its knees, is the  reality in fact the opposite? Professo...

In this August 2022 patrons-only seminar, Brian discusses the legacy of Mikhail Gorbachev, the last president of the Soviet Union before its dissolution, who is being lionized by the capitalist media after his death on Tuesday. Brian also discusses the 1-year anniversary of the U.S. withdrawal of from Afghanistan, the drying up of the Colorado River due to climate change, education under capitalis...

In this special crossover episode, Rania Khalek of Dispatches sits  down with Brian to talk about the impact of severe repression on the  socialist, communist and Black Liberation movement in the United States  during the past decades. Rania Khalek’s Dispatches program is on  BreakThrough News, and is available on video at  YouTube.com/BreakThroughNews and as a podcast on...

On today's episode Walter Smolarek and Prof. Richard Wolff discuss the student debt crisis. With an announcement expected imminently on the fate of the national freeze on student debt payments, pressure is mounting on the Biden administration to not only extend the moratorium, but also cancel a substantial amount of the crushing debt burden tens of millions of people in the United States are under...

A political, social, economy, and class struggle has been intensifying in Turkey. What are the demands of the people and the progressive forces like the   TKP, the Communist Party of Turkey? Brian is joined by Kemal Okuyan, who is the secretary general of the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP), for an inside look. Please make an urgently-needed contribution to The Socialist Program by joini...

A second congressional delegation went to Taiwan this week, less than two weeks after Pelosi visited. These trips have sparked a sense of outrage among many Chinese people, who demand respect for their sovereignty and for their impressive social and economic achievements. This includes massive poverty reduction and surpassing the United States in key indicators like life expectancy. How is U.S. ag...

On today's episode Walter Smolarek and Prof.  Richard Wolff discuss the housing market as the Federal Reserve-induced  economic downturn takes shape. The situation is rapidly deteriorating  for both renters and prospective home buyers, with  evictions on the rise, prices rising and interest rates spiraling out  of control. Professor Richard Wolff is an author & co-foun...

The month of Black August  focuses on the importance of the continued struggle for Black liberation  and honors the lives and struggle of political prisoners—and calls for  their freedom. While many have been released, like Albert Woodfox, who  was released in 2016 and passed away earlier this month, many still  linger behind bars, even in solitary confinement and in their...

A massive fire in Matanzas, Cuba, is coming under control after five days due to tireless efforts by firefighters and specialist crews. But the U.S. blockade, which worsened under Trump with 243 additional coercive measures, and which Biden has largely kept in place, has deprived Cuba of the equipment and resources necessary to handle this disaster. Brian is joined by Manolo De Los Santos, a centr...

On today's episode Brian and Prof. Richard  Wolff analyze the Senate's spending bill entitled the "Inflation  Reduction Act" for the effect it could have on inflation. It falls far  short of what’s desperately needed to address the overlapping crises  causing so much suffering for working people. Professor Richard Wolff is an author  & co-founder of the organizati...

A deadly fire broke out over the weekend in Cuba from a lightning storm  that struck near an oil storage facility and caused an explosion. At  least one person has been confirmed dead, and dozens more are injured  and missing. This tragic natural disaster could have happened in any  country, but is even harder on Cuba due to the U.S. war against  them...including many of T...

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the island of Taiwan this week, in an unprecedented escalation toward China. What will the fallout be? Could Pelosi have made this trip without the administration’s blessing? Will this surprise visit anger US allies in the region? Brian is joined by Dr. Ken Hammond, professor of East Asian and Global History at New Mexico State University, founding director of th...

On today's episode Walter Smolarek and Prof. Richard  Wolff discuss a leaked memo written by a top Bank of America economist  that reveals in explicit terms the strategy of the capitalist class:  cause as much suffering among workers as possible  to rebalance the economy in favor of the rich. As the U.S. begins to  experience an intentionally-caused recession, it is n...

In a huge moment for the state and for the country, Kansas is voting today on a constitutional amendment that would effectively ban abortions if passed. Kansans are mobilized and fighting against this attack on women. In this edition of The Socialist Program, we air three presentations from a convening at The People’s Forum in New York called Free, safe, legal abortions now! Justice is ours to mak...

Texans revolted against Mexico’s rule in 1836—because Mexico was moving to abolish slavery. The fascist element in the state has links into modern day, and the history of Texas is crucial as this decade unfolds. Brian is joined by Dr. Gerald Horne, who holds the Moores Professorship of History and African American Studies at the University of Houston and is the author of many books. His newly publ...

Despite the horrendous heat wave that’s been hitting Europe and parts of the US, the Biden administration has yet to take truly meaningful action, and reports of his possible announcements this week don’t appear to meet the gravity of the climate crisis. What could the government be doing and how do we get there? Brian is joined by Tina Landis, an organizer in the environmental and social justice...

The Biden administration is turning up the heat against China yet again, as news leaks that Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is traveling to Taiwan in August—another in a series of majorly escalatory acts. Brian is joined by Dr. Ken Hammond, professor of East Asian and Global History at New Mexico State University, founding director of the Confucius Institute at New Mexico State University, and a...

On today's episode, Brian Becker and Prof. Richard  Wolff break down the real cause of inflation. Inflation is  rising prices, which is something the working class doesn't control.  Businesses—and the Fed when it raises prices for borrowers by increasing  interest rates—do control prices. Why do businesses do this since  inflation is bad for the economy? Can the gover...

Biden just landed from a multi-day tour in the Middle East where he  spectacularly failed at his goals, including bringing more Arab  countries into an alliance with Israel and bringing the price of oil  down. This week, Russian President Putin is meeting with Iranian &  Turkish leaders including Supreme Leader Khamenei and President  Erdogan--showing that Iran and Rus...

In an escalation in the cold war against China, the heads of the U.S. FBI and UK MI5 spoke jointly in London on the “serious threat“ that they say the Chinese government poses to Western businesses. Meanwhile, New York City released a PSA on what to do in a nuclear war, where the main recommended tactic is to go inside. What is behind the sensationalist language and where have we seen it before? B...

On today's episode Walter Smolarek and Prof. Richard  Wolff discuss how the leaders of the wealthy G7 nations gathered in  Germany this week for a summit focused on isolating Russia from the  world economy. The summit discussed attempts to  impose a “price cap” on Russian oil exports and a prohibition on  trading Russian gold, but is this sanctions regime backfiring on the...

The Supreme Court – an unelected group of nine millionaires with  lifetime appointments – have overturned Roe v. Wade, which guaranteed  the right to abortion at the federal level. Tens of thousands have been  in the streets all over the country since the Dobbs  decision was announced on Friday, and in the weeks prior to that in  response to the draft decision leak. Biden...

In a true show of intercontinental solidarity, words from Cuban President Miguel Diaz Canel joined the speeches of Native activist and Co-Director of the International Leonard Peltier Defense Committee Jean Roach, National Director of BYP100 D’atra Jackson, and host of this show, Brian Becker, at the final plenary of the three-day-long People’s Summit for Democracy in early June. Please make an ur...

On today's episode, Brian Becker and Prof. Richard  Wolff discuss the elections in France's legislature that led to  a large upswing in   seats won by the progressives and current President Macron's  center-right party losing their governing majority. What does this  energy behind the left in France tell us? Professor Richard Wolff is an author &  co-founder...

Anti-China news and disinformation dominate the mainstream press in Western countries. When the pandemic hit, several researchers, mainly in the Global South, decided that they needed a news source for the facts of what is going on in China day to day. Tings Chak, based in Shanghai, and others founded Dongsheng News, which covers national policies like the campaign that eradicated extreme poverty...