Last night the White House released a shock statement that the Syrian government was about to use chemical weapons “again” on its citizens and that the United States would launch a massive response. At the time, the AP reported that neither the State Department nor the Pentagon or intelligence agencies seemed to know anything about it. US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley warned that any attack on citizens of Syria would be automatically blamed on Assad (as well as Russia and Iran). It seems Trump is ready for a massive attack on the Syrian government — coincidentally just a day after a major piece by Seymour Hersh showed that the US intelligence community knew that the April “chemical attack” was no such thing but that Trump launched 59 Tomahawk missiles anyway. Trump constantly accuses CNN of purveying “fake news,” but he has shown himself to also be a master at fake news. Something they have in common. More in today’s Liberty Report:

Seymour Hersh’s shocking new investigative report shows that US intelligence knew there was no Assad chemical attack in April, but that President Trump was so influenced by media images (which may have been faked) that he fired 59 Tomahawk missiles into Syria anyway. Meanwhile, rank and file Democrat Members of Congress are growing frustrated over their leadership’s continuing obsession with Russia as public opinion shifts on the issue. Republican Members are pushing for more Russia sanctions. Political shifts, on today’s Liberty Report:

The Senate recently passed a new round of sanctions on Iran and Russia (98-2), with House concurrence likely by a similar margin. Then out of nowhere came concerns over a money/tax bill originating in the Senate instead of the Constitution-mandated House. Is Congress suddenly concerned about the Constitution? Don’t believe it. The delay in House action on the bill is being seized by Democrats as yet more proof that Trump and the Republican Party are in the pay of Putin and thus will not pass new sanctions. What’s really at play in the delay? Tune in to today’s Liberty Report:

House Speaker Paul Ryan delivered his “major” policy speech this week on the need to pass Republican tax reform. He promised it would be passed this year. As Dr. Paul points out in today’s Liberty Report, there’s virtually no chance tax reform will result in less government. The government will lower taxes on some people but to do so it will have to raise taxes on others. And the poor? They get hit with the most cruel tax of all: the inflation tax that comes with endless money-printing. And the military-industrial complex? They will not be tightening their belts. On the contrary…

What does former NSA analyst turned whistleblower Edward Snowden have to tell us about liberty? About trading a little freedom for government promises of security? Does he feel that his historic release of government documents showing how the NSA spies on all of us, constantly, without a warrant, has had a positive effect on freedom? Tune in to this very special episode of the Ron Paul Liberty Report, where we speak to Snowden on these and so many more issues:

A US Navy F-18 shot down a Syrian military aircraft over Syrian territory Sunday, marking the first time the US has engaged in air to air combat since the US attack on Yugoslavia in 1999. US claims that the Syrians were targeting US-backed rebels were undermined by reporting by the generally pro-rebel Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which stated that according to its sources on the ground the Syrian aircraft was not attacking US-backed anti-government forces. The Russians, who also had military aircraft near the shot down Syrian jet, claim the US did not provide warning via the hotline to prevent accidents between the US and Russia. As a result, the Russian defense ministry announced that it would track any flying object flying in its area of operations as potential targets. How high will this new tension rise? Tune in to today’s Liberty Report:

Defense Secretary James Mattis was grilled before the Senate yesterday, with Sen. McCain expressing his frustration that there is no new strategy yet to “win” in Afghanistan. Mattis promised a new approach by July, but the real question is that after the 2009 surge of 100,000 US troops, what kind of victory might be achieved by yet another surge, this time of perhaps 5-6,000? In today’s Liberty Report we point out that victory is not possible because Washington doesn’t even have a clear view of what it might look like. How many more billions of dollars wasted? How many thousands more lives lost?

Shortly after President Trump returned from his Middle East trip, Saudi Arabia and other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) broke diplomatic relations with fellow GCC member Qatar and established a blockade around the tiny country. The Saudi pretext was that Qatar supported terrorism and interfered in the affairs of other countries — something the Saudis do in spades. President Trump initially signaled support for the Saudi move, but his Secretary of State and Defense Secretary, likely understanding that the largest US military base in the Middle East is in Qatar, have urged the countries to patch up their differences. US interventionism has backed us into a corner in that corner of the world. We discuss options in today’s Liberty Report:

Will the Comey Senate testimony put an end to the “Russiagate” scandal and the issue of whether President Trump will continue to be hobbled by suggestions he pressured the FBI to drop investigations? Don’t count on it, but we break down today’s explosive hearing in today’s Liberty Report:

Yesterday marked the second time US military forces have attacked Syrian government-allied forces fighting ISIS inside Syria near the Iraqi border. The US government, which maintains an illegal base on Syrian soil, claims any Syrian encroachment within 50km of the facility will be met with US military force. The mostly Shia militia that the US attacked are the same groups fighting alongside the US in Iraq and in fact may Iraqi citizens allied with the Iraqi government (which the US is also allied with). Confusing yet? Add to this that the US Senate is passing new sanctions against Iran today for its completely legal ballistic missile program and to punish Iran for shipping weapons to militias in Syria fighting ISIS. We try to put it all together in today’s Liberty Report:

Memorial Day should not be a celebration of militarism. It is intended to be a day to memorialize those who have died in battle. What to memorialize? Watch today’s Ron Paul Liberty Report!

In October, 2016, the NSA was forced to admit that it had misused Sec. 702 of the FISA Amendments to spy on far more Americans than it should have. Even the normally very compliant FISA Court condemned the ramped up spying on Americans as raising serious Fourth Amendment issues. The NSA last month told us it would cease using Sec. 702 — which is supposed to be for foreigners — to spy in Americans. Should we trust the NSA to police itself? Today’s Liberty Report urges that Section 702 of the FISA Act be allowed to sunset at the end of the year. If the government wants to spy on us, let them get a warrant!