The Socialist Program

On the heels of the Minnesota general strike on January 23rd, and a nationwide shutdown the following week in which millions participated, Professor Richard Wolff and Brian Becker discuss the general strike tactic. How has it been used in the United States and elsewhere? Can it tip the scales against the Trump administration's attempts to roll back the gains of the Civil Rights Movement? Profe...

One week ago, there was a general strike in Minneapolis against ICE Terror. The following morning, ICE agents executed ICU nurse Alex Pretti. They wanted to intimidate this new mass movement. But that failed. Today hundreds of thousands marched and millions participated in a nationwide shutdown against ICE; no work, no school, no shopping.  Brian Becker and Layan Fuleihan discuss, recording this e...

The United States may be entering a new era of labor militancy. A general strike led by labor, community organizations, small businesses, student groups, and faith-based leaders has shut down Minnesota, in protest against the terror campaign launched by thousands of ICE agents in recent weeks. Brian Becker and Layan Fuleihan discuss. This is a preview of a patrons-only episode. Subscribe at https:...

Imperialism in the 21st Century is starting to look like the imperialism of the early 20th century as Donald Trump ramped up his demand to seize Greenland from Denmark. Professor Richard Wolff and Brian Becker discuss how capitalist competition led to two catastrophic world wars in the first half of the 20th Century, and how similar competitive pressures are taking shape today. Professor Richard W...

As thousands of ICE agents continue their rampage in Minneapolis, the people are preparing for an even larger fightback that could reshape politics in the United States. Elon Musk endorses a call for martial law, and President Trump threatens the Insurrection Act to deploy the US military against the people of the United States. Brian Becker and Layan Fuleihan discuss. This is a preview of a patro...

Trump ordered the massive bombing of Iran in June. Next he bombed Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January 2026. Is Trump now setting his imperial sights on Cuba? Brian Becker is joined by Manolo De Los Santos, the executive director of The People’s Forum in New York. Join the The Socialist Program community at http://www.patreon.com/thesocialistprogram to get exclusi...

The United States is at a boiling point after the ICE killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis. Cities across the country are under attack from Trump’s federal ICE agent police force, and hundreds of thousands protested this ICE invasion this past weekend. Brian and Prof. Wolff discuss the struggle that is heating up. Professor Richard Wolff is an author & co-founder of the organization Democracy...

Masked ICE agents are on a rampage in Minneapolis, in Portland, and throughout the United States. The Trump White House and the Pentagon have seized the fifth oil tanker carrying Venezuelan oil. Brian Becker and Layan Fuleihan discuss. This is a preview of a patrons-only episode. Subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/TheSocialistProgram to hear the full episode, get access to all our patrons-only c...

After the January 3rd bombing of Venezuelan neighborhoods, military facilities and the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores, the Trump White House and Pentagon are still imposing a full scale naval blockade against Venezuela. The Trump administration is claiming they’ve fundamentally changed the Venezuelan government but the facts don’t bear this out. Many of the o...

Trump, Steven Miller, and other top administration officials are claiming that they are “running Venezuela,” taking over the country and its vast oil reserves. That’s not true, the Venezuelan government remains intact, but they are imposing a full naval blockade on the country in an effort to completely shut down Venezuela’s economy. The Trump admin also intends to conquer Greenland by one means o...

Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores appeared in a U.S. court in New York City earlier today following the illegal kidnapping of Venezuela's president. Donald Trump has now acknowledged that he consulted with U.S. oil monopolies before and after the attack on Venezuela. The U.S. Congress did not authorize this attack, and Trump, while consulting with the oil company executives, refused to...

Brian and Layan review the year of 2025 under the Trump regime – including his lies about being a ‘peace president’ – and what to expect in 2026. This is a preview of a patrons-only episode. Subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/TheSocialistProgram to hear the full episode, get access to all our patrons-only content, and help make this show possible.

Brian speaks with author and historian Aaron Leonard about his book "Menace of Our Time: The Long War Against American Communism.”  Leonard’s book is a riveting account of the extraordinary efforts by politicians. At the moment that the Trump White House is issuing Executive orders deeming people with anti-capitalist views as domestic terrorists it is important to learn about the history of a...

Donald Trump and the Pentagon are at war, once again, this time against Venezuela, and this war is widening. As the year 2025 comes to an end, Donald Trump is taking to the airwaves to talk about his “wonderful achievements.” But what really happened in 2025? And what’s next for the Trump administration and the people’s movement for social justice? This is a preview of a patrons-only episode. Subs...

Brian Becker is joined by Manolo De Los Santos of The People’s Forum to discuss Trump’s “total blockade” against Venezuela — an “act of war” targeting oil tankers and ports, according to members of Congress as they vote on a War Powers Resolution to prevent the president’s attacks from escalating even further. De Los Santos also reviews Venezuela’s response to Trump’s attacks, as well as its histo...

Economist Richard Wolff joins Brian Becker to discuss President Trump’s resurrection of the Monroe Doctrine and pivot to Latin America, aimed squarely at pushing China out of the Western hemisphere — and why the strategy will fail. Professor Richard Wolff is an author & co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work. You can find his work at rdwolff.com. Join the The Socialist Program commun...

The Trump White House engages in straight out piracy by seizing a Venezuelan oil tanker on its way to Cuba. Donald Trump says he’s giving the economy an “A+++++” grade under his administration. Millions of people are about to lose healthcare, and Trump’s approval rating is headed towards the basement. Brian Becker is joined by Layan Fuleihan to discuss. This is a preview of a patrons-only episode....

In the wake of the powerful Nationwide Day of Action for "No War on Venezuela" where over 65 cities mobilized to demand an end to the US war drive on Venezuela, we gather again to assess the current moment and chart the path forward. This is a podcast version of last night's webinar, providing a space to evaluate the impact of our mobilizations against a potential war with Venezuela...

Every four years, the U.S. government releases something called a ‘National Security Strategy’ (NSS). The Trump administration released its NSS in the last few days, and the media in the U.S. and all over the world is buzzing about what this strategy means. Today, we will talk about some of its key positions and answer the question: do they constitute a new foreign policy for the United States? Br...

Donald Trump this week went on an all-out racist tirade against Somali Americans as ICE agents descend on Minneapolis, New Orleans, and other cities to carry out mass arrests of immigrant workers. People all over the United States are taking to the streets on Saturday December 6 in protest against a new US war, this time in Latin America against the people of Venezuela. Brian Becker is joined by L...

Billionaire Jeff Bezo’s Washington Post published a jaw-dropping article this week with the headline: ‘Why you may not want lower prices as much as you think you do.’ Economist Richard Wolff joins Brian Becker to debunk this claim.  Professor Richard Wolff is an author & co-founder of the organization Democracy at Work. You can find his work at rdwolff.com. Join the The Socialist Program commu...

Following the targeted shooting of two National Guard members in Washington DC, Donald Trump pledges to end all immigration from the so-called “third world.” Trump has also declared Venezuela’s airspace to be off-limits to all airlines as the US threatens a new war, this time, in Latin America. Brian Becker is joined by Layan Fuleihan to discuss. This is a preview of a patrons-only episode. Subscr...

Karl Marx wrote in Capital that capitalism came into the world “dripping from head to foot, from every pore, with blood and dirt.” The Thanksgiving holiday is built around an insidious and false creation myth -- that the so-called “settling” of North America was a peaceful and amicable process. But in reality, the genocidal expansion of colonialism across the continent led to unspeakable suffering...

Millions of working class people in the  U.S. will lose their health insurance coverage in the coming weeks. Brian and Professor Wolff discuss how both ruling-class parties are acting as agents of corporate capitalism while  millions of people have been evicted from Medicaid and 22 million more are facing a doubling of their monthly premium costs which will leave 37 million Americans unable to see...

The Trump White House has pushed a new resolution UN Security Council hands control of Gaza to an international body that will be chaired—according to Donald Trump—by Donald Trump. Meanwhile, as winter approaches, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza remain without shelter and without food. Layan Fuleihan is joined by Taher Dahleh, an organizer with the Palestinian Youth Movement, to disc...