Beneath The Surface with Suzi Weissman

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This is the last day in the historic 2008 election – the best in memory with so many firsts. Expect very high voter turnout- more than 130 million are predicted in a race that has been hard fought, long, and features firsts in race, gender, money and time spent. We take a final look at the race with Harold Meyerson, Bruce Shapiro and Marc Haefele.

Harold Meyerson says that should Obama win tomorrow the Democratic Party will return to Chicago’s Grant Park, the place where, 40 years ago, its last governing coalition ingloriously died. The primary goal of Obama's new-model Democrats is to implement a 21st-century version of Franklin Roosevelt's reforms. Should he win next Tuesday, Obama will proclaim the birth of this new era on the very ground that Roosevelt's coalition split apart.

Bruce Shapiro joins us to look at what kind of judicial appointments we could expect from either Obama or McCain, and he’ll also pay tribute to Studs Terkel who died on Friday.

Finally, Marc Haefele joins us to go over the state and local races, especially the Propositions on your ballot tomorrow.

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It’s all about Goldman Sachs.

John R. MacArthur, publisher of Harpers and the author of the new book You Can't Be President: The Outrageous Barriers to Democracy in America, reminds us that Obama’s number one bundler is Goldman Sachs. So what can we expect from an Obama Presidency? With the Bush administration forsaking ideology for pragmatic fixes to a rapidly sinking economy, the word socialism has entered into ‘respectable’ discourse, even if its meaning is wildly distorted. Rick MacArthur is counting what is missing in this discussion, including serious consideration of Marx’s contradictions of capitalism, as well as a general decline of democracy as well as the economy. He joins us from New York.

Continuing on the theme, UCLA economic historian Robert Brenner, author of the acclaimed Economics of Global Turbulence and The Boom and the Bubble joins us to go beneath the surface on the origins of the current crisis, and he says “What is Good for Goldman Sachs is Good for America.” Wait, wasn’t that General Motors? Tune in for a comprehensive and in depth look at the current crisis, its origins, and what we can expect as a way out from this acclaimed economic historian.

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Consumer confidence is at an all time low as housing prices continue to fall, stock portfolios disappear and job losses mount. The pundits think socialism has arrived and the candidates talk about tax cuts. A rescue operation isn’t socialism and it doesn’t address the underlying causes, but it seems likely to concentrate the control of credit in a few giant banks newly subsidized by generations of public debt. We go beneath the surface with Nomi Prins and talk about what is ahead -- assuming the bailout plan will work.

Then, Richard Lichtman joins us for critical comment on the fascinating documentary The Century of the Self (our thank-you gift today for subscribing to KPFK). The documentary is about how those in power have used Freud’s theories to engineer consent, promote consumption and manipulate consumer choices. Richard Lichtman promises to elucidate the relationship between the nature of our economic system and the structure of consumer manipulation.

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Wall Street plunged 777 points today as the bailout package was rejected by Congress in a stunning defeat for Bush and the Congressional leaders of both parties. We’ll spend the hour talking about the economics, politics and drama of the day. Thomas Ferguson and Robert Johnson called the package the Bridge Loan to Nowhere, and they say the plan is not only the most expensive way to solve the problem, it is also the most likely to fail. With all the gloom, Ferguson and Johnson point to one silver lining: if a single payer economic policy is the prescribed solution, what’s to stop demanding it for health care too? They join us today to explain.

We then turn to the question of leadership: Do the candidates for President fill the bill? Harold Meyerson joins us from Washington and has a lot to say about the state of the campaign, the debates the kind of leadership we need and what is on offer.

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Tonight we talk to three great authors about their books, politics and the current charged political-economic crises. Robert Fisk joins us in studio to talk about his new book The Age of the Warrior which brings together his trenchant, eloquent and wide-reaching articles on international politics in a single volume, ranging from the London bombings to the streets of Lebanon, from war-torn Iraq to the horrors of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. For 32 years Fisk has reported on and been an eyewitness to the blood spilled in our battle-scarred world. We’ll set him talking and see where it takes us.

Thomas Frank is back to talk some more about his new book The Wrecking Crew: How Conservatives Rule, especially in light of the stunning economic collapse of the last week that has seen a gigantic ideological flip flop from some of the wreckers in the wrecking crew: or has it? Tom Frank says that it is no coincidence that the same politicians who ridicule the idea of effective government have installed a regime in which incompetence is the rule. Frank catches the essence of Washington's last eight years – and we’ll ask him whether the obstruction, incompetence and destruction for profit will grab hold of whoever occupies the White House come January.

And last, but certainly not least, Larry Beinhart gives us a crash course in economic crashes and talks about his new book Salvation Boulevard, a page-turning thriller that takes on the most critical issues of contemporary politics: faith, freedom and power. In our bizarre, surreal and dangerous time Larry Beinhart uses fiction to get to the truth, as he did in his previous books Wag The Dog and The Librarian, this time alerting us to the excesses our government has foisted on us and graphically showing to what depths our government has sunk.

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The news has been all Sarah Palin, and it’s mostly about her family, her experience or her hawkish ignorance. Patriotism and military prowess define national security in our headline news, rather than economic stability. Charlie Gibson didn’t ask Sarah and the View didn’t ask McCain how strong a country can be if its citizens’ financial security is under attack, immigrant workers are being jailed and repressed, and all around the financial system is crumbling.

We begin tonight’s Beneath The Surface with Tom Hayden. He says that the McCain/Palin foreign policy is a mortal threat to America, from the same neoconservatives who brought us Iraq wrapped in lies. And Tom has just reviewed Woodward’s new book revealing secret extra-judicial killings in Iraq. McCain and Palin promise more of the same – they profess patriotism and military prowess but their policies would risk more dangerous wars, further isolate the US and weaken the already crumbling economy with a higher deficit, lower dollar, fewer jobs and reductions in Social Security, Medicare and Education. We’ll ask Tom what he thinks the Obama-Biden campaign should do and what alternative they offer.

Wall Street tumbled more than 500 points today, as did European and Asian markets. We continue our coverage of the US economic financial collapse and it has been a stunning weekend. Lehman Brothers files for bankruptcy, Bank of America buys/takes over ailing Merrill Lynch, WAMU looks for Government assurance, GM and Ford get Federal cash and as Max Wolff, one of our guests tonight says, “I can’t satirize this decision pattern,” while our other guest Jack Rasmus shows how statistics are trying to hide the declining economy and jobless "epic" recession. Both our guests believe there is more bad news to come as the underlying structural problems and insolvency of the US economy spread to the rest of the world. You won’t want to miss this.

And finally on tonight’s Beneath The Surface, Matt Gonzalez remembers Peter Camejo, who died this weekend.

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Dispensing with dogma as the US economic situation deteriorates -- with worldwide repercussions -- the Fed is trying to contain the insolvency crisis by bailing out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac: a capitalist nationalization funded by US taxpayers. Michael Hudson sheds light on the nature of our ongoing economic crisis.

We follow with the escalating tension between the US and Russia: the Bush-Cheney administration’s last act appears to be a dangerous confrontation with Russia over Georgia. Russia came out ahead in the conflict that Georgia provoked, and the US was humiliated in the process. Revealing Washington’s weakness is unforgiveable and has given rise to a consensus that Russia is the aggressor and must be punished. But Boris Kagarlitsky insists that the fundamental reason behind the new heightened US-Russia confrontation is not over Georgia’s territorial integrity, but is actually about the crisis in the global economic system. We’ll ask him to explain.

Then Joshua Kors joins us. His continuing investigation into the treatment of injured veterans is the cover story of the current issue of the Nation. It tells the story of a group of soldiers who were wounded in Iraq, denied medical care and disability pay – and then decided to sue the government. The suit forced some top Washington officials to take the stand in federal court and defend the VA’s denial of care to American ill and injured soldiers.

And finally on tonight’s Beneath The Surface: Mark Levine has a new book called Heavy Metal Islam, Rock, Resistance, and the Struggle for the Soul of Islam. On Wednesday September 10 he will appear with Reza Aslan for an evening of music and culture sponsored by the Levantine Cultural Center: “After September 11, A Culture Jam for Peace.” They will have an old-fashioned rap session on everything from Islam in America to globalization and heavy metal in the Middle East, as well as insightful arguments on why the proverbial “clash of civilizations” discourse is bogus. Mark LeVine joins us tonight for a preview of that discussion.

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We begin tonight with an update and a trenchant analysis on the Russia-Georgia conflict (or the way it has been brought to you by our media) by Gary Brecher a.k.a. the War Nerd. His writing on the conflict is like no other – Brecher titled his piece “Georgia Tries out the Bush War Doctrine, Loses Badly.” We’ll ask him to elaborate.

Then we talk to the Media King of analysis, Robert McChesney. He has a new mega book out from Monthly Review Press, called (appropriately) The Political Economy of Media: Enduring Issues, Emerging Dilemmas. We talk to McChesney about the deeper reasons the media trivializes, ignores or distorts the issues we all face. What’s wrong with the coverage of the elections, the candidates, the economy, the world and more. Danny Schechter, who also joins us, says about McChesney’s book: “As Chomsky is to linguistics, Ben & Jerry’s to ice cream and Elvis to shaking one’s hips, McChesney is to media analysis. He is the King: there is no one more definitive.”

And finally on tonight’s Beneath The Surface, Danny Schechter, News Dissector has a new book project – it’s called Plunder. He says, “A plummeting economy, failing banks, rising unemployment, rocketing inflation just does not seem to engage the way the partisan wars do. We live in a sports crazed country, and a celebrity obsessed culture. We want to debate personalities, not problems. We like red carpets and balance sheets in the red. Anything else is a bummer, man. Tips on how to make millions sell; arguments on how we are all losing don't.” Well we don’t shy away from the economic analysis on BTS so we’ve asked Danny back to give us the news.

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While the world watches the Olympics in China, Russia and Georgia are at war -- over Georgia’s two breakaway regions Abkhazia and South Ossetia, Georgia’s ‘Western” orientation and future entry into NATO, gas and oil pipelines, and Putin’s resolve to prevent any continued disintegration of Russian territory. Ron Suny has written extensively on the national question in the South Caucasus and joins us live.

Beneath the spectacle in China, Martin Hart-Landsberg, author of China and Socialism: Market Reforms and Class Struggle, says: "China is ostensibly communist, but it has more billionaires than any country except the United States. There's been a demonization of China as the primary cause of world economic problems. In fact, Chinese workers, like workers everywhere, are facing hard times. The economy has become export oriented and dominated by foreign multinational corporations. Chinese manufacturing employment has actually declined in absolute numbers. Decent jobs are scarce, social services are disappearing, and competitive pressures demand ever greater sacrifices. At the same time, a small but significant percentage of the population is growing fabulously wealthy. China isn't the problem, our global economic system is."

Thomas Frank joins us to talk about his new book The Wrecking Crew: How Conservatives Rule, and he says that it is no coincidence that the same politicians who ridicule the idea of effective government have installed a regime in which incompetence is the rule. Frank catches the essence of Washington's last eight years. He concludes: "As we make our rounds of conservative Washington, we glimpse something much greater than single acts of incompetence or obstruction. We see a vast machinery built for our protection reengineered into a device for our exploitation. We behold the majestic workings of the free market itself, boring ever deeper into the tissues of the state. Ultimately, we gaze upon one of the true marvels of history: democracy buried beneath an avalanche of money."

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As the election season starts getting down and dirty the consequences of the Bush disaster are ever more apparent. Chalmers Johnson joins us to talk about what privatization has done to our ability to get reliable intelligence. The CIA has become the President’s private army and Congress has stood by as more functions have been turned over to the private sector, increasing the CIA’s incompetence and unscrupulousness, heightening the risk of war by accident, presidential whim and surprise attack. Johnson says it is the worst of all possible worlds as information is no longer accurate but open to manipulation, pressure and penetration of every kind.

Greg Denier from Change to Win tells us about Wal-Mart’s latest assault on its workers, using mandatory meetings to intimidate and discourage them from voting for Obama. We’ll ask him whether this time Wal-Mart’s anti-unionism has crossed the line into illegality,

And finally we look at Russia – awash in cash from soaring oil and gas prices, yet its banks are in trouble because of the US mortgage debacle. Simon Pirani talks to us about Russian politics and the economy today as well as his new book The Russian Revolution in Retreat 1920-1924, a fascinating account of the relations between Soviet workers and the new communist elite. The story he tells helps us understand how the Russian Revolution, a mass uprising for justice and democracy ended in a single Party dictatorship.

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