Mel Goodman: GOP-Nunes Memo Part of Unfolding Constitutional Crisis

Award-winning Investigative Journalist Robert Parry (1949-2018)

Award-winning investigative journalist and founder/editor of ConsortiumNews.com, Robert Parry has passed away. His ground-breaking work uncovering Reagan-era dirty wars in Central America and many other illegal and immoral policies conducted by successive administrations and U.S. intelligence agencies, stands as an inspiration to all in journalists working in the public interest.

Robert had been a regular guest on our Between The Lines and Counterpoint radio shows -- and many other progressive outlets across the U.S. over four decades.

His penetrating analysis of U.S. foreign policy and international conflicts will be sorely missed, and not easily replaced. His son Nat Parry writes a tribute to his father: Robert Parry’s Legacy and the Future of Consortiumnews.

Thank you for donating

If you've made a donation and wish to receive thank you gifts for your donation, be sure to send us your mailing address via our Contact form.

See our thank you gifts for your donation.

The Resistance Starts Now!

Between The Lines' coverage and resource compilation of the Resistance Movement

"The man who predicted Trump presidential win now says Trump impeachment could happen," AM Joy with Joy Reid, MSNBC, Jan. 21, 2018
"Sketchy Kazakh money finds its way into Trump dealings," The Rachel Maddow Show, MSNBC, Jan. 15, 2018
"Red flags seen in many Trump real estate deals," The Rachel Maddow Show, MSNBC, Jan. 15, 2018
"Secret Money: How Trump Made Millions Selling Condos To Unknown Buyers," BuzzFeed, Jan. 12, 2018
"The Scandals of Donald Trump: Presidential Edition," The Atlantic, May 15, 2017
"Here's what we know so far about Team Trump's ties to Russian interests," Washington Post's ongoing compilation
"What Comey Was Investigating, Explained," The Moscow Project, Center for American Progress

"Donald Trump's Financial Ties to Russian Oligarchs and Mobsters Detailed In Explosive New Documentary from the Netherlands," Dutch TV documentary, Alternet.org, May 12, 2017
Ongoing compilation of Trump's creeping authoritarianism," MotherJones.com
Full resource list ...

SPECIAL REPORT: "The Resistance - Women's March 2018 - Hartford, Connecticut" Jan. 20, 2018

Selected speeches from the Women's March in Hartford, Connecticut 2018, recorded and produced by Scott Harris

SPECIAL REPORT: "No Fracking Waste in CT!" Jan. 14, 2018

Jen Siskind Jennifer Siskind, local coordinator for Food and Water Watch, describes the campaign to stop fracking waste in Connecticut, which so far has led to fracking waste bans in 34 towns around the state. Interviewed by Richard Hill on Mic Check, WPKN Radio, Bridgeport, CT

SPECIAL REPORT: "Resistance Round Table: The Unraveling Continues..." Jan. 13, 2018

Lindsay Kanaly The panel discusses Trump's long history of racism and the Republican voter suppression juggernaut confronting Democrats leading up to the 2018 elections. Special guest: Lindsay Kanaly, a lead organizer of the Women's Marches planned for Jan. 20, 2018. Panel: Scott Harris, Ruthanne Baumgartner and Richard Hill on Resistance Roundtable, WPKN Radio, Bridgeport, CT.

SPECIAL REPORT: "Capitalism to the ash heap?" Richard Wolff, Jan. 2, 2018

Richard Wolff, Economics professor Richard Wolff declares U.S. capitalism to be beyond repair and suggests the need for a radical alternative. Interviewed by Richard Hill

SPECIAL REPORT: Maryn McKenna, author of "Big Chicken", Dec. 7, 2017

Maryn McKenna, investigative journalist and author of Big Chicken, talks about the widespread use and dangers of antibiotics in commercial poultry, beef and fruit production. Interview by Bill Duesing, Richard Hill and Guy Beardsly on WPKN's Organic Farm Stand.

SPECIAL REPORT: Nina Turner's address, Working Families Party Awards Banquet, Dec. 14, 2017

Nina Turner, president of Our Revolution, talks about the fight ahead for progressives as she receives the Working Families Organization Award for Exceptional Leadership Towards Advancing Progress. The event was held in Meriden, CT. Produced by Richard Hill.

SPECIAL REPORT: Mic Check, Dec. 12, 2017

Working Families Party of CT talks strategy and issues for 2018.
Lindsay Farrell, executive director of the Working Families Party of Connecticut, discusses the state's electoral landscape and lays out the issues and strategies that could lead to progressive victories in 2018. Interviewed by Richard Hill.

SPECIAL REPORT: Resistance Roundtable, Dec. 9, 2017

Disturbing developments in the Trump/Republican Agenda
Focus on the tax bill, destruction of our public lands, North Korea and Trump's private CIA. Panel: Scott Harris, Ruthanne Baumgartner and Richard Hill. Special guest: Jo Macallero of Rise and Resist.

SPECIAL REPORT: On Tyranny - one year later, Nov. 28, 2017

Professor Timothy Snyder, author of the highly acclaimed resistance manual On Tyranny, discusses his book and offers a fresh assessment of the state of our beleaguered republic. Timothy Snyder, history professor at Yale, is introduced by Stanley Heller, administrator of Promoting Enduring Peace, a Connecticut-based organization that sponsored this event at the United Church Parish House in New Haven on Nov. 28. A brief interview with Snyder conducted by WPKN radio producer, Richard Hill, follows his talk.

SPECIAL REPORT: Mic Check, Nov. 12, 2017

Lynne Ide, director of program and policy with the Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut, talks about the current state of health care coverage in Connecticut. Interviewed by Richard Hill, WPKN radio producer

SPECIAL REPORT: Resistance Roundtable, Nov. 11, 2017

Focus on the Republican tax plan, the just-released autopsy on the Democratic Party, and Internet censorship by Google, Facebook and Youtube. Including an interview with Hilary Grant, a lead organizer with Action Together Connecticut, who discusses the local results of the recent election, with hosts Richard Hill, Scott Harris and Ruth Baumgartner WPKN producers

SPECIAL REPORT: Rainy Day Radio, Nov. 7, 2017

Two leaders from Redneck Revolt, an anti-racist, anti-capitalist movement, talk about their work organizing with white working class people in Suffolk County, New York. Interviewed by Richard Hill, WPKN radio producer

SPECIAL REPORT: Rainy Day Radio, Nov. 7, 2017

Bruce Gagnon, coordinator for the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space, describes the extent of -- and motives underlying -- the vast US network of military bases around the globe. Interviewed by Richard Hill, WPKN radio producer

SPECIAL REPORT: Resisting U.S. JeJu Island military base in South Korea, Oct. 24, 2017

Joyakol, South Korean peace activist and singer, discusses the crisis on the Korean peninsula and focuses on the resistance to the U.S. huge military base being constructed on Jeju Island. The event was sponsored by the Greater New Haven Peace Council and this audio was recorded by Richard Hill, WPKN producer.
Joyakol discusses Americans' biggest misconceptions about the conflict between North and South Korea and the U.S., Interview by Richard Hill, WPKN producer.

SPECIAL REPORT: John Allen, Out in New Haven

John Allen, founding director of the New Haven Pride Center, Connecticut, talks about his new LGBTQ television show, Out in New Haven, which presents a range of political and cultural issues to the community. Interviewed by Richard Hill on WPKN's Rainy Day Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2018.

2017 Gandhi Peace Awards

Promoting Enduring Peace presented its Gandhi Peace Award jointly to renowned consumer advocate Ralph Nader and BDS founder Omar Barghouti on April 23, 2017.

Subscribe to our Weekly Summary & receive our FREE Resist Trump window cling

(Car window cling)

Email us with your mailing address at contact@btlonline.org to receive our "Resist Trump/Resist Hate" car window cling!

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE...

who helped make our 25th anniversary with Jeremy Scahill a success!

For those who missed the event, or were there and really wanted to fully absorb its import, here it is in video

Jeremy Scahill keynote speech, part 1 from PROUDEYEMEDIA on Vimeo.

Jeremy Scahill keynote speech, part 2 from PROUDEYEMEDIA on Vimeo.

Between The Lines on Stitcher

Between The Lines Presentation at the Left Forum 2016

"How Do We Build A Mass Movement to Reverse Runaway Inequality?" with Les Leopold, author of "Runaway Inequality: An Activist's Guide to Economic Justice,"May 22, 2016, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, The City University of New York, 860 11th Ave. (Between 58th and 59th), New York City. Between The Lines' Scott Harris and Richard Hill moderated this workshop. Listen to the audio/slideshows and more from this workshop.

Listen to audio of the plenary sessions from the weekend.

JEREMY SCAHILL: Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker "Dirty Wars"

Listen to the full interview (30:33) with Jeremy Scahill, an award-winning investigative journalist with the Nation Magazine, correspondent for Democracy Now! and author of the bestselling book, "Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army," about America's outsourcing of its military. In an exclusive interview with Counterpoint's Scott Harris on Sept. 16, 2013, Scahill talks about his latest book, "Dirty Wars, The World is a Battlefield," also made into a documentary film under the same title, and was nominated Dec. 5, 2013 for an Academy Award in the Best Documentary Feature category.

Listen to Scott Harris Live on WPKN Radio

Between The Lines' Executive Producer Scott Harris hosts a live, weekly talk show, Counterpoint, from which some of Between The Lines' interviews are excerpted. Listen every Monday evening from 8 to 10 p.m. EDT at www.WPKN.org (Follows the 5-7 minute White Rose Calendar.)

Counterpoint in its entirety is archived after midnight ET Monday nights, and is available for at least a year following broadcast in WPKN Radio's Archives.

You can also listen to full unedited interview segments from Counterpoint, which are generally available some time the day following broadcast.

Subscribe to Counterpoint bulletins via our subscriptions page.

BTL Blog

[an error occurred while processing this directive]

Special Programming

[an error occurred while processing this directive]

Progressive Resources

A compilation of activist and news sites with a progressive point of view

Share this content:

|

Subscribe to BTL

Podcasts: direct or via iTunes

Subscribe to Program Summaries, Interview Transcripts or Counterpoint via email or RSS feed

If you have other questions regarding subscriptions, feeds or podcasts/mp3s go to our Audio Help page.

Between The Lines Blog

Stay connected to BTL

Learn how to support our efforts!

Tweets by @BTLRadioNews

GOP-Nunes Memo Part of Unfolding Constitutional Crisis

Posted Feb. 7, 2018

Interview with Mel Goodman, former Soviet analyst at the CIA and State Department, author and senior fellow at the National Security Project at the Center for International Policy, conducted by Scott Harris

For the last few weeks, Washington has been focused on the controversial memo written by Devin Nunes, former Trump transition team member and Republican chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, which described alleged bias against Trump and improprieties by the FBI and Justice Department in the process used to obtain a FISA surveillance warrant targeting Trump campaign advisor Carter Page. While the FBI, Justice Department, former intelligence officials and most Democrats condemned the decision by the House Intelligence Committee and White House to release the memo due to concerns regarding classified material, most of the information in the three-and-a-half-page document had already been published.

Although President Trump erroneously declared that the Nunes memo had vindicated him in allegations that he colluded with Russia to influence the 2016 presidential election, many observers have concluded that the memo had, in fact, backfired. In cherry- picking the information in his memo, Nunes misrepresented important facts, and failed to discredit Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Trump-Russia investigation.

House Democrats are now waiting for the White House to authorize release of their own 10-page memo which is said to refute the Nunes allegations point-by-point. Between The Lines’ Scott Harris spoke with Mel Goodman, former senior CIA analyst at the Office of Soviet Affairs and author who currently serves as a senior fellow at the Center for International Policy. Here, Goodman assesses the partisan conflict triggered by the Nunes memo, in what many fear is part of a growing and dangerous constitutional crisis.

MEL GOODMAN: The observation I have is based on 42 years of security clearances with CIA, the State Department, the Defense Department, the United States Army for that matter. And I've dealt with the military, I've spent time helping to train FBI officers, I did it at the CIA, Defense Department. These are very conservative individuals who lead these institutions. They are for the most part, Republicans. They're not Democrats. So the whole notion that somehow there's this deep state that's working within all these institutions to compromise and even overthrow the president of the United States is really just an absurd notion.

As for the Nunes memo itself, this is a very dangerous trend. It furthers the politicization of the intelligence committees on the Hill. And remember, these committees – like the FISA Court itself – came out in the mid- and late-1970s because of the crimes that were committed by the FBI and the CIA and the National Security Agency under the heading of COINTELPRO. These were the counterintelligence programs that were aimed at Americans who were in the antiwar movement, for example. So there were mail openings, there were illegal surveillance, there were wiretaps without warrants. So in the 1970s after the Church and Pike committee hearings, you've got the creation of the Senate and House Intelligence Committees and the creation with the FISA Act – the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act – the creation of the FISA Court, which had to approve any warrant, any surveillance of an American citizen.

So with the Nunes memo, and clearly Devon Nunes has demonstrated he's simply a stooge of the White House, a stooge of President Trump, he's trying to act as Trump's defense lawyer on the Hill, and he's doing a pretty miserable job of it. Remember his midnight to the White House to get documents that he claimed came to him from a secret source? It wasn't a secret source, it was someone in the White House giving him documents that the president's staff had already seen.

And with this Nunes memo, you get a very one-sided account of the warrant that was issued to monitor the activities of Carter Page. And that's why the House Intelligence Committee, voted, I believe unanimously to release now the Democratic memo. And this is an unfortunate trend to have these dueling memos. But I think the Democrats had to go ahead and get on record, their view of the evidentiary basis that's involved in the Nunes memo because the Nunes memo was so one-sided, and how these warrants were obtained.

Now the point that is really controversial in this memo is that without (former FBI Deputy Director Andrew) McCabe giving the Steele dossier to the FISA court, there would've been no FISA warrant. Well, that's a lie. I won't say it's false. It's a lie. The key issue in getting the warrant on Carter Page, who had been in the Trump campaign at some level, really that was the former campaign worker George Papadopolous who gave that information to an Australian diplomat and we're told that the Australian diplomat was so concerned about the information he got from Papadopolous that he gave this information to the FBI. I'm assuming that the FISA court had good reason to permit this warrant of an American citizen.

However, what we've seen since 1978 and 1979, when this court was created – and remember, it's a secret court without any way of challenging the court. They've received thousands of applications over the years and maybe a dozen of these applications were ever denied. So it raises certainly, the obvious observation that the FISA court to some degree, has become a rubber stamp for the FBI and the Justice Department. So I think we need to learn more about the FISA court.

BETWEEN THE LINES: Well, Mel, we only have time for one more comment and I wanted to get your take on this. There's a lot of concern out there about a coming constitutional crisis in the United States, where various branches of government will be pitted against one another in this attempt, it appears, by the White House to marshall all its forces to try and discredit the Mueller investigation and put off, for the moment, anyway, as they see it, some kind of event that will bring down this presidency. What are your concerns about a constitutional crisis?

MEL GOODMAN: Well, I think we're already in a constitutional crisis. You have a president of the United States who is not fit to serve, and he's surrounded himself with authoritarian figures, mostly from the military. So the crisis is already there. The problem is, I don't think Democrats know what to do about it. They've been in a crisis, frankly, since the Republicans said they weren't going to give Merrick Garland a hearing as a nominee to the Supreme Court – I think really, was the signal that the Democrats are in for a real battle and I don't think they're in a position to wage it with any great strength because they're a diverse coalition to begin with, the way a political party should be – and they're up against this old, white man Republican party from another time that I think over the long run run is going to fail, but in the short-term it's going to cause a lot of friction and tension in American political life.

For more information, visit Mel Goodman's website at melvingoodman.com and Mel Goodman's staff page at the Center for International Policy.