On Sunday, Defense Secretary James Mattis said in a press conference that the US military would remain in Syria for the long haul, “as long as there are ISIS who want to fight” he said. He falsely claimed that the US operates in Syria with UN permission. According to a blockbuster BBC report, however, the US government was part of a secret deal to allow thousands of ISIS fighters and their families safe passage from Raqqa — with their weapons! What’s going on here? Join us for today’s Liberty Report:

The neocon interventionists run Washington foreign policy. Even a Donald Trump, whose foreign policy positions during the campaign infuriated the neocons, has had his administration infiltrated with neocons. According to recent press reports, the Koch Foundation plans to spend a few million dollars promoting the “realist” school of foreign policy at major US universities. While such a move is to be welcomed there is also danger, as “realism” and neocon interventionsm do not disagree fundamentally on principles but only on the application of those principles. Cautious optimism in today’s Liberty Report:

The US media (and some neocon politicians) are furious that President Trump didn’t lecture Philippine President Duterte on human rights and that he dared speak with Russian President Putin. How dare he listen to Putin on meddling our elections and raise doubts about the US intelligence community’s conclusions! They would never lie to us…would they? All in all, however, there are more positives than negatives, as we discuss in today’s Liberty Report:

The Saudi crown prince is rumored to soon take over as king. He has moved against possible rivals within his own family and seized billions of dollars. Meanwhile he’s threatened Lebanon and his government has ordered Saudi citizens to leave Lebanon. This while blaming Iran for a Yemeni missile that hit near an airport in Riyadh. The US is backing Saudi moves against Yemen and Lebanon to the hilt. Is something big about to happen? We suspect it is. More today in the Liberty Report:

Both firms used to push the story that the Russians hacked the DNC and John Podesta’s emails were in the pay of the DNC. The FBI was blocked from examining the DNC servers that the Democrats claimed were hacked. The Russia-Gate story hinges on some very sketchy and highly compromised objective facts that a little mainstream media scrutiny would likely demolish in short order. But the MSM has no interest in looking for truth. Fortunately international correspondent Joe Lauria is not afraid of where his inquiries into Russia-Gate take him. He shares some astonishing information with us in today’s Liberty Report…

Why has President Trump’s son-in-law/top advisor Jared Kushner been spending so much time with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman? Last month was his third trip this year? The visit occurred right before Bin Salman purged his political rivals, claimed that Lebanon had declared war on his country, and cited a Yemeni missile strike as a pretext to ramp up tensions with Iran. Are the US, Saudi Arabia, and Israel preparing for a major war with Iran, Lebanon, and Hezbollah? We look at the troubling trends in today’s Liberty Report:

Will President Trump’s lengthy visit to Asia signal the beginning of a more diplomatic approach to Washington’s disputes in the region? Will President Trump have a face-to-face with Russian President Putin? Trump has signaled a willingness to sit down with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un. Any chance that will take place? Our hopes and concerns so far in today’s Liberty Report:

Horrible events like yesterday’s attack in New York capture our attention. The mainstream media focuses non-stop on every imaginable aspect of such events. Unfortunately there is little attention to tragedies of a far greater magnitude in places like Yemen which are largely due to our interventionist foreign policy. The US government has partnered with Saudi Arabia to completely flatten Yemen, with thousands of innocents killed in the process. We should pay attention to tragedies at home, but also tragedies overseas that are being perpetrated by Washington in our name. More in today’s Liberty Report:

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) challenged the Defense Secretary and Secretary of State yesterday, asserting that no one of intellectual honesty would believe that the 9/11 war authorization had anything to do with ISIS or Niger. He has a good point. But the White House does not want its war wings clipped and insists that things are fine as they are. We are militarily active in some 19 countries now. Does the 9/11 resolution really encompass all of these wars? Tune in to today’s Liberty Report:

Turkey’s decision to purchase a Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile system has raised more than eyebrows at NATO headquarters. Top brass in Brussels has warned Turkey that its system would not be interoperable with NATO’s US-made system. Is Turkey turning away from its Western alliance? Hedging its bets? What do Syria and the Kurds have to do with the decision? Tune in to today’s Liberty Report:

On Tuesday, all but two Members of the US House voted in favor of the “harshest” sanctions on North Korea yet. As we know from past practice with sanctions — in Iraq and elsewhere — they never achieve their goals, but they do punish civilians and turn them against the US. This time is no different. Will the Senate take up the bill and move us closer to a war that will kill millions? Tune in to today’s Liberty Report:

Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) told the Senate yesterday that he would not seek another term in the US Senate because he could no longer be part of the “discord and dysfunction” of Washington, DC. “[W]e have given in or given up on the core principles in favor of a more viscerally satisfying anger and resentment,” he complained to his colleagues. But does Senator Flake’s complaint about the tone of Washington discourse really get to the bottom of what’s wrong with Washington? Isn’t it more than tone? Isn’t it that there is too much agreement among politicians rather than too much disagreement that is our biggest problem? We look at what’s really wrong in today’s Liberty Report: