04/13/18 04/13/18 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from pacifica, this is democracy now! >> what would be an objective of an attack on syria be and how does that serve the interests of the american people? >> i don't want to talk about a specific attack that is not yet thise offing knowing that would be pretty decisional. amy: is president from tweets in attack on syria over the alleged chemical weapons attack that could take place very soon or

not so soon at all, defense secretary james mattis says the u.s. is still investigating. meanwhile, syrian government courses have taken full control of the damascus suburb of eastern ghouta in a major victory for president bashar al-assad, where the u.n. says 100,000 people are in desperate need of food, water, and medicine. then president trump campaigned against the transpacific partnership. ," the transpacific partnership is another disaster. whoed by special interests rape ourate -- country. amy: in an unexpected reversal, trump told a group of state lawmakers he wants the u.s. to rejoin the controversial massive trade agreement. we will get response from lori wallach. finally, as nearly quarter of actions are filed in the united

turn tovery minute, we look at a new project called "the "eviction lab." has becomele housing so deep and entrenched in our community today that evictions, set of being rare, has become ordinary. the prevalence of eviction, how accommodative in most committees come is leaving a deep and jagged scar on the next generation. amy: we will speak with matthew desmond, princeton professor, author of the prize-winning book "evicted: poverty and profit in the american city." all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. syrian government forces have taken full control of the damascus suburb of eastern ghouta, in a major victory for president bashar al-assad. the capture of eastern ghouta followed a russian-brokered deal that saw the last remaining

rebel fighters granted safe passage to a rebel-held area in northern syria. human rights groups estimate some 1700 civilians were killed in heavy fighting after syrian forces -- backed by russia -- launched an offensive on eastern ghouta in february. the united nations says at least 100,000 people in douma remain low on food, water and medicine and are in desrate need of help. eastern ghouta's fall comes as the u.n. security council is set to meet in an emergency session today over the growing prospect of a war between russia and the u.s. after president trump threatened u.s. strikes in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack in douma last saturday. this is russia's u.n. ambassador vassily nebenzia speaking thursday. >> avert the dangers of war. >> you mentioned [indiscernible] is that a war between the u.s.

and russia? >> we cannot exclude any possibilities, unfortunately, because we sell messages coming from washington. there were very, very close. wish there was dialogue through proper channels. amy: those comments came a russian foreign minister servei lavrov said russia has evidence that saturday's alleged chemical attack in douma was fabricated. french president emanuel macron has said he has proof that syria's government carried out the attack. and nbc news cited two unnamed u.s. officials who said blood and urine samples taken from a victim and smuggled out of douma show signs of poisoning from a nerve agent and chlorine gas. on capitol hill, defense secretary james mattis said the u.s. is still investigating. this is mattis being questioned by hawaii democratic congressmember tulsi gabbard.

>> what would be the objective of an attack on syria be and how does that serve the interests of the american people yet go >> i don't to talk about a specific attack that is not yet in the offing, knowing these are decisions, this would be pretty decisional. the president has not made that decision. amy: we will have more on the crisis in syria after headlines with yazan al-saadi, syrian-canadian writer and researcher. the senate opened confirmation hearings thursday for cia director mike pompeo to replace former exxonmobil ceo rex tillerson as u.s. secretary of state. during five hours of testimony, pompeo faced protests from code pink demonstrators who objected to pompeo's long history of ties to islamaphobic organizations, his, change denial, and his hawkish views on syria, iran, north korea. former u.s. army colonel and retired state department official and right briefly disrupted the hearings.

>> please remove -- amy: new jersey democratic senator cory booker question pompeo over his opposition to past,ge equality in his take a sex is a "perversion." >> do you believe gay sex is a perversion? yes or no? that is what you said here. yes or no, do you believe gay sex is a perversion? >> i'm going to give the same answer i gave you previously. >> at a time that we have an increase in hate speech and hate actions against jewish americans, muslim americans, and in americans, hate acts are increasing in our nation and you're going to be representing this country and their values abroad. untoldividuals are under persecution and violence. your views do matter. amy: president trump unexpectedly reversed a signature campaign promise thursday, telling a group of state lawmakers he wants the

u.s. to rejoin a massive trade agreement known as the transpacific partnership, or tpp. as a candidate, trump frequently railed against the tpp, calling it a disaster and a horrible deal. the trade agreement has faced years of global public resistance by activists who say free trade deals benefit corporations at the expense of health and environmental regulations. later in the broadcast, we will speak with public citizen's lori wallach about trump's reversal on the global trade deal. james, compares donald trump to a forest fire that can't be contained. this in explosive new book due out next tuesday. a newly published excerpts, "a horrible to" coming compares them to mafia bosses he once worked with to send to prison. writing -- "this president is unethical, and untethered to truth and institutional values.

his leadership is transactional, ego driven and about personal loyalty." comey's book arrives 11 months after trump fired him, allegedly because comey refused to quash an investigation into trump's former national security adviser michael flynn. abc news through ports president trump has signed off on a presidential heart and for scooter libby. he served as chief of staff to former vice president dick cheney and 2011. during the cheney-bush years. in 2007, libby was convicted on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice after he lied to fbi agents in a federal grand jury over who blew the cover of cia agent valerie plame after her husband criticized the iraq war. president george w. bush immediately commuted libby's 30 month prison sentence, but did not grant him a full pardon. it raises the prospect of similar pardons for former trump

campaign officials, including michael flynn and rick gates, who have secured plea deals after lying to fbi agents carrying out special's investigation. reports theed press owner of the national enquirer former0,000 in 2015 to a doorman at trump tower to quash ae story that trump fathered child in the late 1980's. the ap reports the inquirer bought elusive rights to the story and refused to publish it in a process known as catch and kill. the national enquirer similarly quash the story on the eve of the 2016 election about trump's alleged extramarital affair with former model karen mcdougal. the national enquirer's parent company chief executive david packer is a close personal friend of president trump. the senate has approved a former coal industry lobbyist to become

second-in-command at the environmental protection agency. andrew wheeler, who's worked for nearly a decade on behalf of fossil fuel companies including the coal company murray energy, was approved in a 53 to 45 vote along party lines. wheeler has also worked as a senior advisor to republican senator james inhofe, a prominent climate change denier. wheeler's confirmation comes as president trump is under pressure to fire epa administrator scott pruitt over a series of ethics scandals, meaning wheeler could assume control over the epa if pruitt is ousted. in the gaza strip, israeli forces shot and killed a palestinian man thursday as he joined a mass protest near israel's heavily militarized border wall near the town. he was at least the 34th palestinian shot dead by israeli military since a wave of protests against israel's occupation began hundreds more march 30. have been injured by israeli

bullets. earlier thursday, another palestinian was killed in an israeli airstrike on gaza. the latest violence came as a palestinian stepped forward to say he was the unarmed man who was shot by israeli sniper in a gun sight video recorded last december that went viral this week. the video captures the sound of a gunshot, the palestinian man falling to the ground, and then a voice celebrating in hebrew and cursing the sniper's victim. tamer abu daka says he was shot in the leg without warning as he stood about 200 meters from israel's fortified border. he told al jazeera he posed no threat to israeli troops. >> some young people near the border were lying on the ground. they could not get out, so i can to protect them and asked them to go back. then the israelis shot me.

how am i danger to the israelis? we weron our ld. we did not cross. i was in the buffer zone. i had no weapons in my hands. i had nothing. amy: israel's military has criticized the soldiers who shot abu daka for cheering, but has defended the shooting itself, with defen aedal. meanwhile, employees of the palestinian authority in the gaza strip say they have not received salaries this month, causing further misery in the already-impoverished territory. it's the latest sign that a reconciliation agreement is fracturing between the west bank-based fateh movement and its gaza-based rival, hamas. in colombia, human rights groups are at announcing the assassination of activist alvaro perez in northern colombia near the border with venezuela last week. he's among an estimated 300 activists and community organizers who have been murdered in colombia since november 2016, when the historic peace deal was signed between the colombian government and farc rebels.

in france, police are trying to forcibly evict a group of anti-capitalist activists from their camp in notre-dame-des-landes in western france, where they've been fighting for 10 years against a proposal to build an airport. over the yrs, the tivists have built homes, a bakery, a brewer a piratradio station and a wely vegetable market on the land known as he zad." although the french government says it has dropped its plans to build an airport there, the activists say they are resolved to defend the land and the community they've built there. the trump administration has removed chad from its travel ban after declaring the central african country's government is sharing intelligence about labeled suspected terrorists. chad's removal leaves a travel ban in place for citizens from seven other countries, including somalia, libya, iran, syria, yemen, north korea, and venezuela. the supreme court is scheduled to hear a challenge to the travel ban this spring, with a decision expected in june. meanwhile, the former u.s. ambassador to vietnam told reuters that the trump administration is seeking to deport thousands of vietnamese

immigrants, despite a bilateral agreement that should shield most of them. ambassador ted osius says many of the immigrants being targeted were supporters of the u.s.-backed former government of south vietnam, making them likely targets for persecution if they're deported. osius says a small number of deportations have already happened, and that trump's policy contributed to his decision to resign as u.s. ambassador to vietnam last october. muslim activist, author, and tv personality yassmin abdel-magied has arrived back in london, after she was detained, had her smartphone seized, and was deported by customs and border protection officials after landing in minneapolis, minnesota, on wednesday. abdel-magied is a sudanese-born australian citizen who had been scheduled to speak at the pen world voices festival in new york at a panel titled "the m word: no country for young muslim women." she says she previously traveled to the u.s. on the same visa that was denied this week. in a statement, pen america wrote --

"the barriers for international writers and artists visiting the u.s. are growing, impairing the ability of pen america and other organizations to foster cross border dialogues that are so essential at this time." the incident came two days after journalist and activist shaun king and members of his family were detained here in new york at an airport by a customs and border patrol agent after returning from a vacation in egypt. on twitter, king said the agent asked about his support for the black lives matter movement. he added -- "family was shook up a bit at first. took us all to a secluded questioning room. what i know is that my muslim friends deal with this ugliness every single day. officer had clearly been reading my tweets and knew all about me." shaun king is a columnist at the intercept who writes about civil rights, mass incarceration, racial jtice, and police brutality. in chicago, no analysis of hundreds of thousands of drinking water samples finds

toxic lead was found in the water of nearly 70% of homes across the city -- with 3-in-10 samples exceeding the maximum level allowed by the food and drug administration. "the chicago tribune" reports the contamination is due to lead service lines used throughout the city until congress banned the practice in 1986. the office of chicago mayor rahm emanuel has said it's up to individual homeowners, not the city, to replace lead pipes bringing water to their properties. in sports news, the seattle seahawks have postponed a planned try out for former san francisco 49ers quarterback colin kaepernick after he declined to promise not to stop kneeling during the playing of the national anthem ahead of the games next season. although he is considered one of the league's most premier quarterbacks, he was not re-signed to the 49ers after the 2016 season after he sparked a movement against racism and police brutality across the nfl.

and new research shows two thirds of the world's wealth will be owned by the richest 1% of people by the year 2030. the report was produced by the british house of commons library. and those are some of the headlines. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. we begin today in syria, where syrian government forces have taken full control of the damascus suburb of eastern ghouta, in a major victory for president bashar al-assad. the capture of eastern ghouta followed a russian-brokered deal that saw the last remaining rebel fighters granted safe passage to a rebel-held area in northern syria. human rights groups estimate some 1700 civilians were killed in heavy fighting after syrian forces, backed by russia, launched an offensive on eastern ghouta in february. the u.n. says food, water and medicine are in short supply for those left behind. this is u.n. humanitarian advisor jan egeland. >> there is, by our account, still at least 100,000 people in

douma, and they need desperately our help. we have been prevented from going there. we've had very little supplies to their. and the hopefully, there is finally an agreement. amy: eastern ghouta's fall comes as the u.n. security council is set to meet in an emergency session today, over the growing prospect of a war between russia and the u.s. after president trump threatened u.s. strikes in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack in douma last saturday. this is russia's u.n. ambassador vassily nebenzia speaking . >> to avert the danger of war. wanted totioned you avert the danger of war. between the u.s. and russia? >> we cannot exclude any possibilities, unfortunately, because we saw messages coming from washington. they were very, very close.

they know we are there. dialogueere was through the proper channels on this to avert any dangerous developments. amy: this comes as president trump tweeted on wednesday -- "get ready russia, because will -- because missiles will be coming nice and new and 'smart!'" then on thursday, trump tweeted -- "never said when an attack on syria would take place. could be very soon or not so soon at all!" that last tweet came after trump missed a self-imposed deadline of 48 hours to announce major decisions on syria in the wake of an alleged chemical attack in douma on saturday. those comments came as russian foreign minister servei lavrov said russia has evidence that saturday's attack was fabricated. french president emanuel macron has said he has "proof" that syria's government carried out the attack. and nbc news cited two unnamed u.s. officials who said blood and urine samples taken from a victim and smuggled out of douma show signs of poisoning from a nerve agent and chlorine gas.

on capitol hill, defense secretary james mattis said the u.s. is still investigating the attack. this is mattis being questioned by hawaii democratic congressmember tulsi gabbard. >> what would an objective of an attack on syria be and how does that serve the interests of the american people? >> i don't want to talk about a specific attack that is not yet in the offing, knowing these are decisions -- this would be pretty decisional. again, the president has not made a decision. amy: for more on syria, we go to beirut, lebanon, where we are joined via democracy now! video stream by yazan al-saadi, a syrian-canadian writer and researcher. welcome to democracy now! your response to the latest developments in syria? >> thank you very much for having me. one thing i wanted to say is how surreal this is. even his interview. amy, the first time i was on democracy now! was almost a year ago.

this exact situation appearing itself. it just struck me and i feel i have to say that chrome marx was right, history repeats. it was a tragedy and even more of a concern. there's so much to say. my first comment i would like to really point out is this weird discussion happening at the u.s. as it in attack on syria hasn't happened by the u.s. and by others. let's remind everyone that the u.s. is striking syria already. you have more than 2000 soldiers on the ground. there are bases. for me as a syrian, i see it as an occupation, just like how i see be russians are in occupation on the country. i just find the whole discussion that is happening is so absurd. i feel like the hysteria that is being manufactured, in my opinion, by the politicians, are just distracng from the court

-- core issues. and as issues to me is accounbility for syrians. let's be honest. one of the u.s. strikes syria -- and i believe people mean the syrian military are there syrian regime. how is this going to bring justice? how is this accountability in any way? because it is not. even then, what is next? what is the plan? i think the biggest issue that is really driving all of this is that this is another example of the complete dysfunction and failure of the international, political, and accountability system. this is what we are witnessing again and again, and we are saying it in syria and we have seen it in so many places around the world. absurd.ecome very it is also, as human being, i mean, i am so personally

stressed as a human. i have to be empathetic because people are dying in the scheme of things. men, women, children are being killed predominately by the ones that have the most power, i.e. the regime and its allies, and they're also being killed and harmed and abuse by opposition groups backed by other superpowers. that is where we are at. and these theater plays, these things thatappenedver an alleged emicalttack -- persally belve it haen and i believe i he my thohts and concluons on w the culit arbased onhe edence th willave arod -- amy: w do you belve lauhed this attac tt is on the edence around, sed on tnds, bas on t historybased on contex i do thk it was t syan regim hower, what doeshis chan

anytng? , the op is currely vestigatg itheountry a theyhould stt on turday. i suppt that. i belie in investition. there hato be so sort o accotability i d't belve in a stern over his asian- wester invaonnd overtow. wever, h does th change anythi? saiin s alread prious reports that itas lied the sianegime to chlori attac, at lst three of the theyave poind out there a linkof ices ing mustd gas. whatre we aring here arwe auing thachemical weaponareappeningnyria? they are peop are usi checal apons, ung cmical agts, ether its chlori or ything ee. at changes thisoesotgnorehe fact the most dths are ppening througconvential mea.

people are dying because of airstrikes, bullets. so this idea of chemical weapons is absurd. amy: yazan al-saadi, for people who are not aware, opcw is the organization for the prohibition of chemical weapons. i want to go to russia's foreign minister rejecting allegations of the chemical weapons attack in douma. doctors, chemical defense specialists have been to douma were chemical weapons were allegedly used, but they found no traces of such use, no caps off these were victims of this mythic chemical attack. the west stubbornly refuses to listen to a heap of information. amy: france says it has evidence of was the syrian government. today come veteran foreign minister said western countries must increase pressure on russia in order to solve the crisis in syria. >> we want these people to be held criminally responsible internationally and there remains a lot to be done. the repeated use of chemical weapons cannot come without

consequences. you cannot continue the daily agenda. this needs to be discussed with our western partners. amy: germany says they would not get involved with britain and france and the united states with an attack. yazan al-saadi, your response to the russians saying it is not them? >> i am not surprised the russians would take this line, just like i'm not surprised about the western governments. a lot of people point to the example of what happen with iraq. i agree that what happen with iraq is criminal. and this idea of manufacturing evidence. that there are two things i want to point out. does this mean that if the u.s. was actually telling the truth and the were weapons of mass destruction anorak, does this justify the killing of over one million iraqis and the destruction of iraqi? this is what people are arguing.

that is what i'm hearing. secondly, the position of manufacturing or victim blaming is not new. all regimes, whether they are the russians, the syrians, the , americans,e saudis say the same thing and have said the same thing throughout history. a lot of people say, remember iraq. i say i agree. remember correct. where thehings like fascist government at the time jenna spanish civil war completely denied would happen is that it was fabricated in the anarchist from the leftists were bombing and burning themselves. this is the situation. let's all agree and be frank. they're all lying in many ways to us. amy: it is interesting you raise the famous painting by public across open what happened well over 75 years ago. thatanner of a tapestry of painting, famous painting that is known around the world hangs

outside the un security council. today, the un's security council will be meeting on syria. so what do you think is the solution? you are a syrian. you have seen your country destroyed. actually russian soldiers and u.s. soldiers on the ground in syria? >> it is a buffet. what do i think? and when to say this clearly. i am speaking for myself, not representing syrians or syria because there's a whole wide range of views. what i think i believe the solution is, accountability. i believe the only way we as syrians can move on and build a , coherent country is to move for accountability. accountability against every crime inflicted on every syrian

body over the course of seven years. -- i know the regime the regime has committed crimes. they should be taken to court and then they should be put in prison. the same thing with the armed opposition and with the americans who have devastated in thelike raqqa russians who have devastated places around russia. they should all be held to account. the only way to do that is not resorting to the international legal, political mechanism because they are failing. they are dysfunctional and they are nomade to help u citizens of the world. i believe or i think, i should say, the best thing we can do, and the and you and whoeverlse is listening or watching, is that we need to build a movement. because the movement today, whether it is stop the war or the so-called mainstream left, they are abysmal and they are

failing just as well as to because not only are they not stopping the wars, they're reproducing in narratives that are harming people on the ground in the end. no different from the neocons and the orientalists and anyone else that is a warmonger. is a bettermy mind discourse as well. for example, if one says that assad is a criminal, this does not mean automatically western intervention and we should not think that. at the same time, western intervention cannot be presented as the only solution to dealing with assad. neither are correct. both of them are terrible. and the syrian people, like many other communities in the world, deserve better discourse and movement. our bodies are being devastated, just like they are in iraq and palestine and yemen. we all nd help. and th requis, ally, an

inteational bilizati of people becauseverythinelse is hrendous. don't you think so? amy: let me ask you last question. president trump making this decision as he is embroiled in various sex scandals, accusations -- the special counsel robert mueller is moving 's homeim, his lawyer and offices and hotel are rated. reportedly there are recordings taken by the authorities. why raise this as you are dealing in syria with the possible chemical weapons attack, the number of people killed over these years is because this decision might not actually being made because of what is happening on the ground in syria. but the internal politics of what is happening here in the united states and wantinto stract attention. >> that could certainly be so.

whatever trump does come he can do. but let's not forget behind trump is a whole system in place, right? it is not just trump. we're talking about a political military system within the united states, just like within other countries, that makes these decisions. so i have no faith in that and i have no faith in trump. there is one thing the tweets trump has yesterday where he says people should say thank you to america. you know, i've something to say and i'm going to say it in rabic -- you can tell him it means "thank you." in the end, what trump is doing in all of this hullabaloo we're also from the france and the u.k. for no better and you are embroiled in a lot of crime and supportive of a refresher regime in the region -- repressive regime in the region, how kenexa

them to save me? they are no different from the russians, in my opinion. me selfy bring determination? are they actively working to help me and my society and our neighbors? no, they're not. let's not forget the three main countries that are gung ho to launch attacks are also the u.s., u.k., and france, are also the three main countries that denied the rights of sin refugees to enter their land. so how can i take them seriously? i cannot. amy: yazan al-saadi, thank you for being with us syrian-canadian writer and , researcher. when we come back, president trump railed repeatedly against the transpacific partnership. it was one of the first acts in office to pull out of any such agreement. he is now saying he wants to rejoin the tpp. we will speak with public citizen's lori wallach. stay with us. ♪ [music break]

amy: undefined by hawa dafi. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. we turn now to president trump's unexpected reversal on one of his signature campaign promises. on thursday, trump told a group of state lawmakers he wants the u.s. to rejoin a massive trade agreement known as the transpacific partnership, or tpp. as a candidate for president, trump frequently railed against the tpp, calling it a disaster and a horrible deal. this is trump at a republican presidential debate in november 2015. mr. trump: the tpp is a wearable deal. it is a deal that is going to lead to nothing but trouble. it is a deal that was designed for china to come and, as they always do, through the back door and totally take advantage of everyone. amy: that was 2015. this is trump in june, 2016,

during a campaign rally in st. clairsville, ohio. mr. trump: the transpacific partnership is another disaster. done and push by special interest who want to rape our country, just a continuing rape of our country. it is a harsh word. it is a rape of our country. amy: now here is trump again, later in 2016 during a debate with his rival hillary clinton. mr. trump: nafta is the worst deal and now you want to approve transpacific partnership. you are totally in favor of it and then you heard what i said in it was bad, and you knew you could not n the debate. then you know if you could win come he would approve that and it would be but as nafta. nothing will ever top nafta. amy: president trump sign an executive order, one of his first acts in office, to pull out of the transpacific

partnership. amy: president trump sign an executiveso many were, to say tt comes a price on thursday when trump responded to pressure from republican lawmakers from agricultural states like iowa, nebraska, north dakota, kansas and texas, and told them he has directed his economic adviser, former tv host larry kudlow, and his trade negotiator, robert lighthizer, to look into rejoining the tpp. later in the day, trump seemed to dial back his comments, tweeting that the u.s. -- "would only join tpp if the deal were substantially better than the deal offered to pres. -- president obama. we already have bilateral deals with six of the nations in tpp, 11 and are working to make a deal with the biggest of those nations, japan, who has hit us hard on trade for years!" speaking at a business event in lima, peru, on thursday, u.s. commerce secretary wilbur ross responded to questions about a change in the u.s. position on tpp. >> the president has made clear hein davos and before davos

was open to discussions about tpp. this is simply reinforcing existing views yet expressed earlier. amy: meanwhile, 11 nations -- that represent about a seventh of the world's economy signed the trade pact earlier this year. it is now called the comprehensive and progressive agreement for trans-pacific partnership. this comes as the agreement has also faced years of resistance by fair trade advocates who say it benefits corporations at the expense of health and environmental regulations. for more we go to washington, d.c., to speak with lori wallach, director of public citizen's global trade watch. are you surprised when you heard the news? >> from this president, you never know what is going to be said day today. but obviously, given the role, opposition to tpp played in the election, given the fact the president went out of his way to claim that he had done it in even though thanks to activists work across the country, the votes were not there in congress

and he had to celebrated as aowing he and delivered promise, regardless of whether or not he was responsible for it. the notion he would flip-flop on that was shocking. but the bottom-line of it is, i think it was just cynical. they're trying to have it both ways. they were trying to say what the audience of farm state senators and governors wanted to hear. they were at the white house to which of the president over the threat of tariffs with china. wanted to hear -- they are a bunch of tpp lovers. the guy who was a senator who told the president said this is the guy who is been beating on him over trade forever and a big fan of tpp. he was speeding on bernie againstfor also being tpp and nafta. at the same time, the reaction was harsh and deserved because it is outrageous. the afl-cio president talked

about how getting back into tpp ,ould be an enormous betrayal terrible agreement. bernie sanders, elizabeth warren from other democratic members of congress. i think the only people who are happy were democratic campaign operatives who were thinking, oh, my goodness, this is gold. i don't believe he actually set it out loud. it in the end, really, i don't think it is likely to happen. although, the fact there are even open to it shows a lot to principle. but i do think where the real fight is right now is nafta renegotiation. this kind of pandering on the tpp makes that nafta fight even more important. amy: an image on his facebook page called rogues gallery of major tpp supporters from otherwise don't is the trump cabinet that includes vice president mike pence, but through china to branstad, defense secretary james mattis, and former secretary of state rex tillerson, among others. talk about their position on tpp, as well as others in the administration, including those

like u.s. trade representative robert lighthizer and trade adviser peter navarro who don't support it. and what you think this is going to go. >> my sense is there is been an ongoing push by what is a big cabal of tpp supporters in the administration to try to keep the thing alive. to keep the hope alive, that somehow the u.s. would try to renegotiate the terms of it and enter were originally before the other countries took out some of the most egregious anti-access to madison stuff the u.s. have put in there and signed it, they had hoped the u.s. might reconsider, etc. there is a huge throng of tpp supporters in the high levels of the trump administration, no doubt. and by the way, the same folks are totally in love with the status quo of nafta. they would like to turn after into tpp 2.0. if they cannot get tbb through the front door, they would like to think it through the backdoor, basically injecting tpp into the nafta negotiation.

but the good news is, the person who is the chief trade negotiator, the us trade representative is a guy named robert lighthizer. .e is strongly against tpp he has been the guy in the nafta talks, though it seems improbable, he is a conservative republican, has been basically making the same demands -- by the way, been in a position for say the -- which is to nafta position is the absolute antithesis of the tpp. what the official administration official -- officially administration position being performed by the trade representative is, get rid of investor state dispute settlement because it helps outsource jobs and because it undermines domestic laws by letting corporations attack u.s. laws in front of three corporate lawyers, get rid of the ban on by local and by american, have

stronger rules of origin but now they're suggesting are related to the wage level of the workers making goods of the trade agreement basically only gives benefits to the products they are made under the rules. they're demanding of sunset clause -- sunset clause. every five years, nafta would have to be reviewed and only if it was actually doing what it was supposed to could be continued or taken affirmative vote to continue it. the place on nafta were they have not gotten to where they as labor standards, they're working on it. there are ways to go. but the point is, the position on nafta is the opposite of what is in the tpp. there is no way to fix the tpp. it is run to its core. so the notion the president would be open to discussing the thought of potentially may be the future negotiating the possibility is total trail. -- betrayal.

amy: do think that is what is happening here at home? i was talking about baca.com -- wag the dog, completely unpredictable. >> i think there may be an element to that but i think there is a cabal of farm state legislators, mainly these senators -- ben sasse from nebraska broke the story. i think his strategy was a bit of a hug you to death instead of screaming at your enemy because he is in a trade were with the president over trade. instead, his idea was, ok, i'm either going to cause the president a lot of mischief or back them into a corner saying the thing that he gratuitously said to us to try to get us to calml down. how many times of using any leader, much less trump, basically say whatever the audience in the room was to hear? the way he posited was, i'm going to have my guys look at whether or not we should relook

at that. we will see if we can get back into that. let's review that again. guys, get on that. months later they can say, they looked at it and we have to renegotiate the whole thing. but we will tell you in a year or two of that is doable. but the betrayal of even thinking about it, the betrayal to working americans, those people in wisconsin and michigan and pennsylvania and ohio, for many of whom had voted for obama twice, heard someone clear and loudly say "i am replacing nafta and getting out." a -- theyht him thought, a lot of the rest of them is extremely troubled maddock, but i have to stop the outsourcing. i a can have these wages so low anymore. they gave it a chance. this is just a slap in the face to all of those people to even contemplate it. the bottom line is, i don't think we have to worry about an immediate or even probably ever trump administration reemergence

into tpp. but i do think we really have a lot of work to do to make sure the nafta renegotiation is a kind of agreement that works for people in the planet and doesn't become a sideways tpp 2.0. amy: lori wallach, thank you for being with us director of public , citizen's global trade watch and author of "the rise and fall of fast track trade authority." four evictions every minute in the united states. stay with us. ♪ [music break]

amy: performing here at democracy now! to see their full performance, go to democracynow.org. at ad today's show looking new project called the "eviction lab." in 2016, alone there were nearly four evictions filed every minute. more than 6300 americans are evicted every day. studies show that being thrown out of one's home can lead to host of other problems, including deteriorating health, long-term depression, job loss, and shattered childhoods. having an eviction on one's record also makes it far more difficult to find decent housing in the future. well, now the eviction lab's database is being shared with the blic in an interactive website that allows people to better track and understand evictions in tir own communities.

to learn more, we go to washington, d.c., and we are joined by its founder matthew desmond, who runs project at princeton university where he's a professor of sociology. it grew out of his pulitzer prize-winning book, "evicted: poverty and profit in the american city." we welcome you to democracy now! the firstlk about national data set of court-ordered evictions and america? you have gone through seven researchers, more than 80 million records. talk about how many people are being evicted. what are the causes? what are the solutions? >> so we know in 2016, the most recent data we have because it is comprehensive, there are about 2.3 million people that received an eviction judgment. that is a giant number. that is twice the number of people they get arrested for drugs every year in america, for example. we heard a lot about the opioid crisis last year and for good reason. 63,000 overdosed jeff's last year.

about 2.3 mill you people evicted from their homes. so for every tragic overdose, there are 36 people that receive an eviction judgment. this is a problem of colossal importance and scope and it is affecting not only big cities and expensive cities on the coast, but midsized cities and small towns all across america. abouto if you can talk eviction itself as a cause of poverty. >> right. incomes have flatlined, housing costs have soared. the most people who need assistance don't get it. the majority of poor working families are sitting at least 50% other income on housing costs. one in four is getting 70% just and utilities. pushing millions of families to the brink of eviction. it causes loss. families lose not only their homes, but children often lose their schools, your things which are piled on the sidewalk were

taken by movers. eviction comes with an official mark or blemish that can prevent you from moving in to save housing in a good neighborhood. they can prevent you from moving a public using. evicted from often relocate into worse housing and worst neighborhoods. eviction can cause you to lose your job. for those viewers who have been evicted, you know exactly why this is. such a hard, consuming event. you can make mistakes at work. there are health effects like depression. the study shows mothers you get evicted expense high rates of depression two years later. you add that up, and it isn't just a conviction of poverty, it is a cause of poverty, too. amy: talk about the numbers. it is hard to understand. four every minute? filedr evictions are every minute. the number in 2016 is equivalent to the number of foreclosures

starts in 2009 at the height of the crisis. -- closure liberal creche foreclosure level crisis. we talked about it being the hotbeds of the affordable housing crisis. if you go to wilmington, delaware, when a 13 families are evicted every year. if you go to tucson, arizona or tolls are, oklahoma, albuquerque, new mexico, you see very high eviction rates. it meets the affordable housing crisis is much more deep, spread out than we originally thought it was. amy: i want to turn to a clip of a demonstration last organized october by alliance of californians for community empowerment to protest against blackstone group, a massive private equity firm that has become one of the nation's biggest landlords. the onestone group are of the investors backed by the

thatwall street finks cause the foreclosure crisis. they purchased thousands of foreclosed homes at a cheap price and began to rent them out. >> crooks. >> you will hear today that this business model is brutal. >> very brutal. >> these companies are about raising rent to the mamum that they can. >> making money. >> these companies charge tenant outrageous fees like $100 to renew your lease. >> boo! boo! >> shame on blackstone. >> do as ltle as they can to get away with maintenance, which means some serious health and safety problems often go unaddressed.

amy: if you could talk about, for example, the blackstone group some of these kind of organize protests making what often is invisible visible, matthew desmond? >> i spent a lot of time with tenants facing eviction and i've seen dozens and dozens of evictions. when i would go out with sheriff's in 2009, 2010, would say, what is happening? who is affecting you? there was a, mr. johnson, and this is what happened. inn i started going out 2014, 2015, i would ask a tenant, what is happening? what brought you to this situation? confused.ers are well, i got a letter from this company and i sent my check there and they sent it back. they said my property. it gave me the impression that property is flipping hands quickly and maybe being consolidated in fewer hands in some cities. we have ownehip information for the eviction records, and we're looking into that right now to give us a better sense of

which properties are responsible for the most evictions. are you evictions concentrated and housing authorities or larger or smaller landlords? these are questions we don't really know yet. amy: a tenant has no right to an attorney innovation court except in new york city? is that right? >> that's right. this is surprising. if i get arrested in this country for committing a criminal act, i have a right to an attorney if i'm in digit. no right exists for families facing eviction. if you go all around the country and you sit in eviction court, which i invite you to do if you have not done, you see hundreds and hundreds of people coming in with zero attorneys and try to defend themselves. most tenants who get evicted do not show up in court because they know they cannot afford an attorney and will not be provided for them. and after face-off with their landlord's attorney. i have a phd. i don't know if i would go to

eviction court if i had to face-off with someone who has a jd. new york city has decided to change that. just recently they pass the right to counsel in housing court, meaning every person that is facing eviction in new york city will have a lawyer by their side. i think that is an incredibly effective move will step it is investing upstream to prevent eviction so we don't face the file out for evictions -- fallout for evictions downstream. currently incur because of the crisis. amy: are evictions going up? in some places they have gone up and some are going down. constant in the last 15 years. there gone up and a longer perspective. if you read history books, they were weird and rare and skinless of people used to protest them. we went from a place where evictions were an odd thing to work convictions are transforming the lives of

families and community's are commonplace in the areas of america. amy: in the number of evictions in red versus blue states, enrolled versus city and the racial connection if there is one? raciallegacy of discrimination is connected deeply. dataf our findings for the we just released is the concentration of evictions in the southeast, eecially in counties that have large number's up african-americans in them. deeply connected to systematically dispossessing african-americans from the land which is a history that goes from slavery all the way to the recent subprime crisis. i think it is hard to disentangle what we're seeing in the present day from the very troubled past. the question of red states or blue states, big cities were little ones, it varies from state to state. this is one thing we're trying to get after. a big ring i heard when i was

talking about my book on the road were from service workers and politicians that were working in rural and suburban communities thing this is affecting my community, too. we did not know much because we don't have a national database of evictions -- which is pretty scandalous in and of itself. imagine if we did not know how many americans had cancer every are, for example. this database shines light on a problem that was in the dark so we could say, look, it is in rural and suburban communities, too. amy: matthew desmond, they could for joining us, professor of sociology. pills are prize-winning book "evicted: poverty and profit in the american city." that does it for our show. democracy now! is looking for feedback from people who appreciate the closed captioning. e-mail your comments to outreach@democracynow.org or mail them to democracy now! p.o. box 693 new york, new york 10013. [captioning made possible by democracy now!]

a very happy birthday to joe parker, and landmark bir