09/27/18 09/27/18 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from pacifica this is democracy now! pres. trump: i had a woman sitting in an airplane and i attacked her while people were coming onto the plane and have a number one bestseller out? stotory.totalal phony there are many of them. so when you say does it affect me in terms of my thinking, with respect to judge kavanaugh, absolutely because i have had it many times. amy: president trump lashes out at the women who have accused

him and his supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh of sexual assault, saying democrats are running a con game. we'll speak with jessica leeds, the woman in the plane trump referred to, one of 16 women who have accused trump. she says he gropeded h in n the first-class cabin of a commercial flight in the 1980's. >> it was a real shock when all of auddeden s handndwere all over me. when he started puttg g his nd up my skirt, that was it. that wasas it. amy: we will also speak with lili bernard, artist and actress who has accused bill cosby of drugging and raping her in the -- raping her whehen he mentored her in preparation for her guest starring role on "the cosby show." cosby was just sentenced to 3 years to 10 years in prison. then we go to yale university where students at the law school wore black monday and protested their alumnus kavanaugh's nomination. >> we want these allegations to be taken fully serious. we're urging them to give us

much p process as individuals as possible. amy: finally, venezuelan president nicolas maduro arrives at the united nations general assembly just one day after trump accused him of corruption and announced new sanctions. >> despipite all of the differences, which could be considered abysmal, the president of venezuela, and it was maduro, would be williling - i i am willing to reach out my hand to the president of the united states to sit down and talk about the issues of bilateral differences and issues of our region. amy: we will speak with vijay prasashad, author of "thehe poor nationons: a pblblblossible hisf the globalal south." all that and more, coming up. welcome to democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. dr. christine blasey ford, the professor who has accused supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when they were teenagers, is

set to testify today, ahead of a confirmation vote set for friday by the senate judiciary committee, even as new allegations continue to emergeg. in dr. blasey-ford's prepared testimony released wednesday, she calls kavanaugh "the boy who sexually assaulted me" and describes the night of the assault, stating -- "i believed he was going to rape me." she adds, "i don't have all the answers, and i don't remember as much as i would like to. but the details about that night that bring me here today are ones i will never forget." kavanaugh has denied dr. blasey ford's accusation, as well as other allegations of sexual misconduct made public by two other women this week. on wednesday, a new accuser, julie swetnick, came forward with help from lawyer michael avenatti, and alleged in a sworn declaration that she observed kavanaugh at high school parties in the participating in efforts 1980's to inebriate girls so they could be gang raped.

she says kavanaugh was present at a party in which she herself was the victim of a gang rape. speaking from the united nations at the second solo news conference of his presidency, trump did not once mention the names of k kavanaugh's s accuse. instead, he attatacked julie swetnick's lawyer michael avenatti and accused democrats of running a con game aimed at derailing the nomination. pres. trump: people are going to have to make a decision. 36 years, no charge. all of the sudden, the hearings are over and the rumors start coming out. then you have this other con artist, of a naughty, , come out with a another beauty today. i only say you have to look at the facts. amy: senate judiciary committee chair, republican chuck grassley, , has scheduled a vote on kavanaugh's confirmation for friday. on wednesday, democratic senator jeff merkley of oregon said he's seeking a federal court -- saying he is suing and

seseeking a federal coururt injujunction to stop kavanaugh's confirmation process, saying republican leaders have obstructed senators' constitutional duty to advise and consent on supreme court nominees. today's hearing comes as right-wing dark money groups have spent h heavilyly in suppof kavanaugh's nominatition. the judicial crisis network spent $1.5 mlilion lt weweekn a 30-seconadad fearing kananaugh's s lo-time e iend louisa garry. but since thadad air, gagarr has thdrawn r supporfor kavanah amid ausationsy deboraramirez,ho says kavanah exposehimself d thru his genals in h face duri a colle party ia dorm room when theyerere bo studts at ya universy. meanile, on pitol hi, protts again kavanau's nomition echd througthe halls congresagain on dnesday. outsidmaine reblican sator susan collins' office,olice leproteste away inlastic handcuffs as they chanted, "we believe survivors!"

>> we believe survivors! we believe survivors! amy: among those protesting on capitol hill wednesday was actress alyssa milano, who responded to president trump's attacks on dr. christine blasey ford this week by saying for the first time that she, too, had been sexually assaulted -- twice -- as a teenager. in an essay for vox, milano wrote -- "the courage of survivors will always be stronger than donald trump's misogyny. the lives of survivors will always be more important than brett kavanaugh's career." cnn reports that hours after wednesday's protests, senator susan collins said in a private meeting she is concerned over the latest allegations against judge kavanaugh, questioning why the senate judiciary committee had not subpoenaed kavanaugh's long-time friend mark judge, an alleged witness to crimes committed by kavanaugh. republican senator lisa murkowski -- another crucial

vote on kavanaugh's nomination -- has also expressed concerns over the allegations. at the united nations, president trump gaveled in a meeting of the security council wednenesda, as the u.s. took over the rotating position of council presidident. in preparered remarks, trump one again attacked iran over its alleged nuclear ambitions. he also singled out china for allegedly meddling in the upcoming u.s. midterm elections. later, trump held in 81 minutes solo news conference, just the second of his presidency, in which he railed against kavanaugh's accusers and dismissed reports he was being laughed at when he addressed the general sibley tuesday as fake news. we will have more on truck at the united nations later in the podcast. trump's appearance at the un security council came as critics administration took to the floor of the general assembly wednesday. in a fiery address, able morale us said the u.s. was uninterested in supporting democracies, pointing to its

long history of financing coups and supporting dictators morales cited the case of iran. >> in 1953, the united states financed, plan, and it permitted acoup d'etat against democratically elected government, which in exercise of its legitimate sovereignty, nationalized its oil production, wresting it from the hands of an anglo u.s. company. after that, for many decades, the united states supported and author terry and government which allow the profits from oil production to line the pockets of transnational companies. endured theon revolution of 1979. announced that iran has retaken control resources, it is once again the victim of a u u.s. siege. amy: president trump said wednesday he has no immediate plans to fire deputy attorney general rod rosenstein, who's

overseeing special counsel robert mueller's investigation into russian meddling in the 2016 election. earlier this week, "the new york times" reported rosenstein had suggested secretly recording president trump in the white house and recruiting cabinet members to invoke the 25th amendment to remove trump from office for being unfit. trump was due to meet rosenstein today to discuss his future at the justice department, but the president said at wednesday's news conference at the u.n. he may delay that meeting until after today's senate hearing after today's senate hearing with judge kavanaugh and christine blasey ford. pres. trump: i would much prefer keeping rod rosenstein - -- much preferer. any people say i havave the absolute right. he said he did not say it. he said he doesn't believe that. amy:y: in oregon, students at portland state university are callining on administrators to disarm campus police, three months after a pair of officers fatally shot 45-year-old jason

washington as he tried to break up a bar fight on campus. police body cam video of the killing shows campus police officers shawn mckenzie and james dewey opening fire on washington with nine bullets after a handgun washington was wearing on his hip fell from its holster during a tussle. earlier this month, the grand jury declined to indict the officers over the killing. portland state university's boarard of trustees voted d in 5 to arm campus police officers. students at psu have set up an occupy-style encampment outside the campus security office demanding they reverse the popolicy. in southern mexico, federal and state police have disarmed the entire police force of the resort city of acacapulco, issug arrest warrants for a pair of police commanders accused of carrying out killings on behalf of drurug cartels.s. soldiers, marines, and state

police will take over sesecurity in the city of 800,000 people. last year acapulco had one of , the highest murder rates in the world. and in mexico city, friends and relatives of 43 students who vanished from the ayotzinapa teachers' school in 2014 met with mexico's president-elect andres manuel lopez obrador wednesday, on the 4th anniversary of the students' disappearance. the students were attacked byy local police in 2014 and are presumumed dead. international experts say the mexicacan military and federal police also playeded a role in their disappearance. this is epepifanio a alvarez, ,r of missing student jorge alvarez. >> you been fill with ragee beuse we he e not d aa governme that t s cared about disappearf the3 students, thyoung bo w who w arwaitininfor inches leave

anxious to hugug and cassette meant to say "i love you, son." this is what we are e waiting f. amy: lopez obrador, who's set to bebe inaugurateds s mexico's prpresident on december 1, , on reaffirmed his promiseo o crea weesday y truth commission to investigate the otzinapa disappeances. >> my mmitments that we will carry through with the instigatiothat wilbring us to the truthndnd jusce. during my campai,, i made a campaign thehelp crifyfy a thth has happened with this ryry fortrtune case of the disaeaearancof t theoungoys. we wilkeep to r promis y: and tse are se of the headline thiss democry now!, democrynow.orgthe war d pee report. i'm amy odman. neeen: and'm rmeen shkh. welcome all o oour listers anviewers om arounthe untry anaround t world. todadr. chriine blas ford, thprofesesr who has accused the preme cot nominebrett kavaugh of sually asulting her en they were tnagers, t to tesfy beforthe sena

diciary mmittee,ven asew alletions coinue to erge and confirmaon vote set for frid. in prepad testimy releas wednday, dr.lasey fo calls kavanaug"the boyho sexuay asulted meand descbes the night ofhe assau, statin-- "ielieved was goi to rape me." e adds, don't have a the aners, and don't rememb as muchs i woullike to. buthe detas about at night at bringe here tay are ones i will never forget." speaking of the second solo news conference of his presidency from the united nations, trump did not once mention the names of kavanaugh's accuserss. instead, he attacked julie lawyer, parsley is michael of a naughty, and accused democrats of running a "con game" and that derailing the nomination. president, you have daughters. can you understand why it victim of sexual assault would not

reported at the time? don't you understand -- ," by the way, i only say this, 36 years, no charge, no nothing. >> but that happens often. pres. trump: people are going to have to make a decision. 36 years, no charge. all of a sudden, hearings are over and the rumors start coming out. then you have this other con aventatti. i only say you to look at the facts. nermeen: meanwhile, kavanaugh has denied dr. blasey ford's accusation, as well as other allegations of sexual misconduct made public by two other women this week. on wednesday, a new accuser, julie swetnick, came forward with help from lawyer michael avenatti, and alleged in a sworn declaration that she observed kavanaugh at high school parties in the participating in efforts 1980's to inebriate girls so they could be gang raped. she says kavanaugh was present at a party in which she herself

was the victim of a "gang rape." in a statement released by the white house, kavanaugh said called swetnick's claims "ridiculous and from the twilight zone." on wednesday, trump called the allegations against kavanaugh a big, fat con job and said he, too, had faced false allegations. pres. trump: i had a woman sitting in an airplane and i attacked her while people were coming onto the plane and i've a numberer one bestseller ouout? i mean, it was a total phony story. there are many o of them. so w when you say d does it afft me in terms of my thinking, with respect to judge kavanaugh, absolutely because i have had dt many times. amy: well, for more, we're joined by jessica leeds, the woman trump just referred to in hihis news conference, one of te 16 trump accusers who decided to speak out as donald trump was running for president. jessica leeds is that he groped her in the first class cabin of a commercial flight.

she has recently retired after working 30 years as a stockbroker. she's the mother of two, grandmother of eight. welcome back to democracy now! it is great to have you with us. before i get you to respond to donald trump, explain what happened to you. for people who aren'n't familiar with what h happened when you gt on a commercial flight -- when was it? >> it was around 1980. at t this point, i would think everybody has heard abouout it. amy: assumee nothing. >> to some degree, sounds like an old story. i was traveling and on an airplane coming in from either dallas or atlanta. i don't remember which one. but it was a long flight. me stewardess came back to in the business section and asked me what i'd be interested in coming up to first class. worked for me. so i came on up. it was the first two seats in the section, right against the

bulkhead. there's a young man sitting therei, blondesh. he stuck his hand out and introduced himself as donald trump. the name meant nothing to me. w was working out off coconnecticut, new york, and new york politicics, new york sociey was totally out of my realm of knowledge. dinner when truly all of t the sudden, without a socialithout any kind of conversation, he started groping me. amy: what did he do? >> his hands were -- he was trying to kiss me. his hands were on my breasts. we were kind of wrestling. i did not say anything. he did not say anything. so it was like this kind of kabuki theater in the silence.

i remember thinking, why doesn't the guy across the aisle say something? why doesn't the stewardess come back? buteemed to go on forever, it didn't. amy: he put his hand up your skirt? >> he started putting his hand up my skirt. i, with effort, managed to wiggle my way out, grabbed my purse, and i went to the back of the airplane. and i sat there until the planee landed and was completely cleared because i did not want to run into him. that is what happened. amy: you did not tell a flight attendant? >> i did not tell the flight attendant. i did not tell the airlines. i did not tell my boss or my fafamily -- i did not tell anybody. i really kind of chopped it off to you was a jerk and those were kind of the things that could happen on the road. amy: you bumped into him after in new> four years later

york city. by that time, i knew who he was. i knew his family -- i was working for charities, and was very important to them to have the trump come. i was assigned to give the table numbers. in trump and his wife ,ivanaa -- she was very pregnant at this point. evening.gala i got to meet all of the designers. but here comes trump. now i am remembering that whole -- that isnd flashing through my mind, but i'i'm not saying anything. i hand him his table assignment. he looks at me and he says, "i remember you. you are that woman from the airplane." and then he called me a very obscene name. amy: starting with a c. four letters. >> yes.

it was like i was suddenly all alone. it was a crowded room, but suddenly i felt so alone. it was like everybody sort of disappeared. nothing more was said. took and went off his merry way. i left as soon as i possibly could. nermeen: jessica, if you could respond to trump referencing this incident yesterday and calling it phony? >> well, it was a long time e a. and i am, frankly, of the opinion, especially with trump and his age, because men like that, that for them, it means nothing. it is like scratatching an itch. it means nothing. they forget about it two seconds after it happens. and women don't. amy: i want to go back to trump during the c campaign trail.l. thisis is the first time -- is't

the first time he mentions you. going back to the campaign trouble for he was president. >> the only way they figure they can slow it down is to come up with people that are willing to say, "oh, i wawiwith donaldd trumump inn 1980. i was sitting with him on an he went after me on the plane. yeah, i'm going to go after you. myieve me, she would not be first choice. that i can tell you." amy: their work donald trump's disgusting comments. >> he cannot see past the age. he can't see past which is why sometimes pictures of me at that time, are brought up becauau i am a a 76 rolled woman. the hairn't see pasast and the wrinkles. but the fact remains, when he -- i wasn't pretty enough

amy: we know what he said because we have the video of him in the bus talking about how he cannot help himself -- which -- what he groups women's genitals, which is exactly the description that you gave of what happened to you. i want to also go to this issue that he keeps raising with dr. blasey ford saying, we're talking -- and deborah ramirez, decades ago he says. you, too. whatat do you remember and what don't you? how do you respond to that issue of memory? let me go to trump speaking at the news conference, disparaging -- respond to o the cbs reporter questioning him. >> you said that if what she said were as bad as she claims, surerely her or her parents woud have reported it. and just today you said -- pres. trump: there is a chance that her parents could have reported it 36 years ago. >> so my question is --

pres. trump: it doesn't mean they have to reported because in some instances people keep it quiet. it is a very tough situation for a woman. there's no queuestion about it. in some cases they do report it. frankly, have they reported it, it would've have been pretty amazing, would net? i guess they didn't and that is ok. i'm not saying they have to reported because it is a very big problem, no question. amy: this issue of memory and also why you wait. how long did it take you to reveal this? >> i did not s start telling anybody, my family included, realized thathen i trump was really going to run for president t pulls up a makes over 3 35 years. almost the same amount of time as dr. blasey ford. >> i had dismissed it. as i said, he was a jerk. when i reaealized he was sears league running for president i thought, well, i want people to told my family.

it's all my friends, i told my book club. when iere several groups would tell my story that i could tell. some of them did not believe me. amy: and what you remember and what you don't. >> people have a perfect right to say, well, that was a long time ago and maybe your memory is flawed. i respect that. still needs to be acknowledged because how many women now in this #metoo movement? how many women have i talked to? m, i wente firstscru over the story so often of how myself saying, "oh, i can't tell it again." tellingmyself reporters, so people who would come with them, i would say, tell me about your story?

every single one of them had a story. some of them minor, but they remembered. they got outs, how of it. some of them was, it was as simple as "i did not get a promotion because i would not go out to lunch with this." innocents in a innocence, dr. blasey ford's story parallels yours. she said the experience drastically altered her life. and for a very long time, she was afraid and ashamed to tell anyone the details. would you say that is true of you as well, that it drastically altered your life? >> no. well, yes. i stopped wearing skirts. i cut my hair exextremely shshot and kept it short because i did not want to draw attention to my

femininity as i was working. you make all of these adjustments. i would not go to a bar by myself. that was stupid. but you learn those things. a 15-year-old kid who probably did not tell her parents she was going to the party. she was thrilled to be asked. i can project what was going on. i haven't asked my daughter what happened to her, but i'm sure it has. i have not asked my granddaughter, who is a waitress, what she has had to tolerate. we have been so infiltrated over the years, and i'm so afraid he we have been so inculturated and so controlled that it just recently i t think we're making a move. i know we're asking a lot.

amy: and your comment, finally, oneresident trump being the to despair it the accusers of brett kavanaugh. trump, the one who chose brett kavanaugh, not that he knew this at the time. >> basically, trump is incoherent. he is all over the ballpark. amy: but on this issue. >> on this issue, he cannot because he has no introspection for himself, fathom what the problem really is. amy: i'm going to leave it at that we're going to go to break. we are also going to be joined once again by lili bernard, who is just back from pennsylvania where e she was in the courtroom when b bill cosby was sentenced. she is one of more than 60 women who accused cosby of sexual misconduct and rate. this is democracy now! jessica leeds, one of 16 women

who have accused president trump of sexual misconduct. she recently retired after working 30 years as a stock broker. back in a minute. ♪ [music break]

this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman with nermeen shaikh. amy: disiscussion ofur what has taken place now with judge kavanaugh, the news that broke this week of bill cosby. let's just talk about this week and what happened in a pennsylvania courtroom. this week in penennsylvania, bil cosby is behind bars after a pennsylvania judge sentenced him to t three to 10 years in priso. in april, he was found guilty of 3000 aggregated indecent assault for drugging and sexually assaulting andrea constand, the

former director of operations for the women's basketball team at temple university. 2004,by''s home in constand is one of more than 60 women who have accused cosby of sexual assault dating back decades. cosby have an out on bail since his conviction last spring and on tuesday, the montgomery county judge stephen o'neill ordered him to be jailed medially. undergoll have to monthly counseling and register as a sex offender with police for the rest of his life. neighbors and schools will be notified of his address and crimes. so we're joined right now by lilili bernard. she was in the courtroom this week when cosby was sentenced. is a visual artist. she is an actor. she accused bill cosby of drugging and raping her in the early when he mentored her in 1990's preparation for her guest starring role on "the cosby

show." she was our guest yesterday where we talk quickly about what had taken place. of remembering. talk about what happened to you and when you revealed it to people and the effect it had on you. you are not the reason bill cosby was in court. >> that's right. never in my life what i had imagined the same week in which mr. hill rapist, who happens to be a mega-mogul celebrity, entered into state penitentiary for years, that supreme court justice, nominated justice -- sorry, the nominated supreme court justice, would be in a hearing, would have to face questions about sexual assault. i never thought that would happen. ofing the mentoring stages preparation and my guest starring role on "the cosby show," bill cosby come he drugged and raped me.

forwardme years to come , to find the strength and fortitude to come forward for multiple reasons, that i would like to address. this question which intern at harassers, hired even family members frequently just shakes me to the core, why did you wait so long? there are a plethora of reasons. i would like to ramble through them really quickly to school people. when donald trump said, in some instances people keep quiet -- he would been more accurate if he is said in most incidents is people keep quiet because government research shows less than 30% of victims of sexual assault do not reported. and why? rape is such an intimately

invasive violent crime where you have the sexual organ of a perpetrator piercing the reproductive organ of the victim or the rectum, and this can result in life-threatening disease, sexual transmitted disease, procreation, abortion, shame. then you have victims often stating when they go to the police in the rare occasions they do go to the police, when one out of -- less than one out of three go to the police, yet the police now just badgering the victim with a battery of -- blaming questions were the victim feels she is being re-raped. courtroom,oed in the the three ring circus for courtroom were victims our selection and and blamed -- are slut shame and blame. amy: you just gone for an open call on the bill cosby show. >> that is where important

point. 1492,rchy, at least since they had relied upon that silence to sustain patriarchy. they have relied upon -- they have shafted dominant culture into believing rape myths. myths in which people believe of how a rape victim should act. amy: you go for the "andy bill cosby. >> i thank you for the opportunity to addition this audition. he called me quickly thereafter and he injured himself to me. this is another tactic that perpetrators use. he injured himself to me not only to me, but to my extended family and spoke with my father in person, my mother on the phone, my cousin, my brother, and told them how much he loved

me as a daughter and how he cared for me as a kid. he stood, "you're one of my kids, bernard." craftily, he weaponize my own family against me, which often perpetrators do. because then they look at you with doubt. amy: you go on to the "bill cosbsby show" after you allegede raped you and has drugged and raped you. let's go to this moment on tv, lili bernard, your guest during appearance on "t"the bill cosby show" in the eighth and final season. >> when the contractions reach eight minunutes apart, that isis when y you call me. what did i just say? >> call you every eight minutes. >> dr. huxtable, your lab reports are waiting. >> thank you. >> i guess i'm off. once. more wayays than wan

i told you to calling when the contractions are eight minutes apart. four.y jumped from 10 to >> they jumped? theyst time i checked, were 10 minutes. now they're coming every four minutes. listen to me carefully. is your husband there? he is running errands, but i can leave him a note.e. amy: there you are, about to give birth, supposedly come on "the cosby show." raped, youready been claim, by bill cosby. this tried innot have court because of the statute of limitations. >> prevented the prosecutor from even considering to press charges because the incident, to thech i spoke atlantic city police department, occurred just a few months outside of the statute of limitations. so all of the evidence, the compelling evidence i saved, all

of my victim testimonies were for not. amy: what was it like three to be on the set with bill cosby? >> we talk about the riva commiseration -- re- victimization i feel viscerally -- my heart is racing right now. it is racing because looking at that is a very difficult thing to do. it reminds me of the deep betrayal. he had mentored me for quite a while before he drugged and raped me. so i viewed him as a father figure. that week of work was the most difficult week that i ever endured. he was violently abusive to me. there was a huge blowout the night before and during the dress for her so that production .ssistants witnessed at the end of the taken when the hundreds of people in the audience were applauding and i was feeling like a was about to faint because of what had just

happened a couple of months ago, where i had come home after being drugged and sexy assaulted, to my boyfriend, who is to my husband, we confronted cosby and he threatened us. i'm standing there is the audience is plotting, and tripling and weak. he said to me with a smirk -- in the courthouse, he laughed so heartily while the victims cry that you could see his shoulders bouncing up and down. with that same kind of sardonic unapologetic scorn, he said to me, "fooled them again." as in the audience, because they did not know what i knew, that this phony philanthropy, this isalizing that dr. huxtable not bill cosby, and i knew that bill cosby is nothing but a lying, duplicitous serial rapist. i knew that.

they do not know that. that is what he meant by "full them again." nermeen: will you be watching today's hearing with kavanaugh? >> yes. it is in a few minutes, right? i will be watching through different days. itselfchy has empowered right by disempowering women. they have duped society in lensng women through a that women lack credibility. justlooking forward to being terribly disappointed at all of the rape myths that will be flung around. it is going to be another duplicity of the duplicity of the which is the disempowerment of women. amy: we want to thank you for being with us, lili bernard, visual artist and actor. she accused bill cosby of drugging

and raping her in the early 1990's when he mentored her in her guest starring role on "the cosby show." we want to thank jessica leeds who accused donald trump of attacking her decades ago on a plane as he sat next to her in first class.. this is democracy now!, democracynowow.org, the e war and pepeace report. i'm amy goodman with nermeen shaikh. we turn right now to new haven, connecticut. nermeen: one of my cap must renamed sexual assault accusers is deborah ramirez, who says he exposed himself to her, thrusting his genitals in her face, at a drunken dorm party in 1983-1984 school year when she and kavanaugh were both freshmen at yale university. other alumnae include supreme court justice sonia sotomayor and anita hill. more than 2200 yale women have signed a letter of support for ramirez

and men have signed a similar report. on monday, yale law school faculty canceled 31 classes to help allow more than 260 of their students to join a protest in support of ramirez -- that's nearly 40% of the school's student body. they began with a moment of silence to recognize assaults that go unreported. amy: among those to address the protest was demomocratic richard blumenthal of connecticut, who is also an alum. dean heather gerken releaseded a statement saying the accusations against kavanaugh are "righthtly causing d deep concern at yale law school and across the country." meanwhile, a yale law school professor who wrote a new york times op-ed in support ofof kavanaugh's nomination when it was first announced has now called for an investigation of the sexual assault claims. in a new op-ed in the yale daily news monday titled "second thoughts on kavanaugh,"

professor akhil amar wrote -- "i believe that these accusations deserve the best and most professional investigation possible -- even if that means a brief additional delay on the ultimate vote on judge kavanaugh, and even if that investigatory delay imperils his confirmation." this is amar on cnn. >> i have secondnd thoughts becacause a second issssue has s arisen, anand it is s an issue abobout , frfrankly, i d don't have the f. i don't thinanany americanan yet has the factcts. amy: f for more, we go to yale university where we're joined by samantha peltz, a second year yale law school student who helped organize monday's protest there. welcome to d democracy now! samantha, it is greatt to have you with us. talk about what you are doing at yale. brett kavanaugh, a yale alum. >> as you previously said on monday, we hosted a sit in, the first 30 minutes we sat in silence, took in the silence that diffuses women whose allegations go unreported, sometimes for decades.

after that, we did a teach-in and we were joined by senator blumenthal. we discussed kavanaugh's jurisprudence, educating ourselves, and as law students and other students who had joined us about what the stakes are in this confirmation process. a bit later, we did a walk out and discussed sexual assault allegations in our community and throughout american society as a group. it was probably one of the most powerful things i have ever witnessed in my time at yale law school. nermeen: can you talk about what you think the significance is of this at yale university, where brett kavanaugh is in alum? >> as you said, , a yale law degree is a stamp of approval. it is a position of power. it is a piece of paper that you can take into the world

and show people, i am qualified to do things. and we really, really want to appeal to the highest values of our institution, to the highest -- we want our alumni took up to the highest values. we are attempting to hold both our school and our alumni accountable for the power that they hold. we believe that power has a corresponding responsibility. and we want to broadcast to the world that we understand that responsibility, that we are interrogating a responsibility, and we demand our alumni take that responsibility as well. amy: what are you calling for now? >> our protest on monday was primarily about three issues. the first was to support dr. christine blasey ford. as well as the other accusers that have come forward. these women are incredibly brave. as you have spoken about, this echoes in the hearing 27 years ago with anita hill.

we want the senate to get it right this time. we are opposing the hasty and incomplete hearing process that is going on now. in law school, we learn one of the final middle principles of the legal system is to the best of your abilities, you engage with and investigate the facts before you come to any decision. and we're demanding our senators do that in this instance. do that in this instance. , will you be peltz watching today? then what are the plans s of the stududents, alalso staff -- the latest news we have, 2800 women have signed the l letter in support of brett kavanaugh's accuser, deborah ramirez. they were both freshmen at you -- when she said he

said he thrust his genitals and her face at a drunken party. >> we will be watching hearings all day today at yale law school and we will continue speaking to the press until we feel like there is a full and fair investigation of these allegations. aett kavanaugh is not in criminal court. he is being vetted to be arisen to the highest court in the land. and wewe feel like his qualification stand to be thoroughly examined before -- or if that happens. amy: samantha peltz, thank you for being with us second year , yale law student who helped organize a protest monday there to demand a full, fair, and impartial investigation of the allegations against the school's alum, supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh. deborah ramirez is also a student at yale. when we come back, president trump spentnt the weeeek at the united nations. he called for sanctions -- more

sancnctions against venezuela. we will talk with vijay prashad. stayay with us. ♪ [music break]

amamy: this is dememocracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman with nermeen shaikh. nermeen: we end the hour with venezuela. president nicolas maduro arrived the address the united general assembly wednesday just one day after trump accused him of corruption and announceded new sanctions against members of his inner circle, including maduro's wife cilia flores. this is trump speaking to the un general assesembly tuesday. pres. trump: not long ago, venezuela was one of the richest countries on earth. today, socialism has bankrupted driven-rich nation and

its people into abject poverty. in that spirit, we asked the nations gathered here to join together and calling for the restoration of democracy in venezuela. today we're announcing additional sanctions against the repressive regime, targeting maduro's inner circle and close advisers. nermeen: trump said wednesday that he would be willing to meet with maduro and that all options are on the table to help end the political, economic and humanitarian chaos in venezuela. this is maduro speaking at the official responding to trump wednesday night. >> desespite all of the difffferences, which could be considered abysmal, the president nicolas maduro, would be willing -- i amam willing t o reach h out my hand to the president of the united states and sit down to talk about the issues of bilateral differences

in the issues of our region. visitit comes nearly two months after maduro survived a coup attempt when two drones detonated above him as he gave a national televised speech at a military event. it was the first known attempted assassination against a sitting head of state. earlier this month, "new york times goes reported that trump administration officials held multiple secret meetings with rebel venezuelan military officers last year to discuss plans to overthrow venezuelan president nicolas maduro. the secret meetings about a possible coup included a venezuelan military commander who is on a u.s. government sanctions list of corrupt venezuelan officials. the times reports the discussions stalled after trump administration officials reportedly decided not to assist in a military coup in venezuela. well, for more, we are joined by vijay prashad in studio, director of tricontinental institute for social research, and chief editor of leftword books. he's also the chief correspondent of globetrotter. author of "the poooorer nationsa

possible history of the global south," and co-editor of "land of blue helmets: the united nations and the arab world." welcome back to democracy now! you were, last time, at an event at riverside church. thousands of people. right click, i could not get in. you were inside. there was a surprise appearance by preresident maduro.o. you just address it united nations and said what we heard him say. trump was there and said he is imposing more sanctions against venezuela. this all comes after the coup attempt. talk about the significance of what is happening, why the u.s. is taking the approach it does to venezuela and maduro's response. >> let's bring a ran into the conversation. it is great to be back. there have been two attacks on to military parades. in august in venezuela and this month in iran. the united states government has not said anything of simply, even though people were killed in the attack in iran.

rudy giuliani rid raided a call of the overthrow of the iranian government on that day. what we're seeing is quite curious. suggestedapparently that state sovereignty, and other words, the integririty ofa state, a member state of the united nations, should be the main principle by which governments take care of their policies. there defending what some call internationalism. when it comes to places like iran or venezuela, the principle of state sovereignty is not respected at all. what we see instead is a kind of gunboat diplomacy, but really without diplomacy. it is gunboat. that has been the attitude toward -- it has been so harsh. ableas maduro has not been a come and address the u.n.

simile since 2013. this is the first i maduro, under immense pressure from the united states, was able to come to the opening of the u.n. general simile and speak to the parliament of nations, as it were. nermeen: can you talk about what are the conditions in venezuela today? >> the conditions are quite difficult for lots of people. it has been under immense sanctions. sanctions that are as harsh as -- at the worst time. commodity prices have decreased drastically. particularly oil prices. in this situation, the venezuelan government has had much of its options reduced. so the situation is bad. there is inflation and so on. itit is highly exaggererated ine media, particularly in the united states. just two months ago, there was a march from around the world to caracas. they come with a set of domains.

the government met the farmers. they made some provisions about how to tackle the agricultural crisis inside venezuela. it is global. there was a march of farmers in india at the same time. the government was not able to act upon the proposals. farmers went on hunger strike. the government met with them again and they came to an agreement. what i'm try to say is of course there is difficult to. let's not duck that. but it is not entirely coming from inside venezuela. venezuelan socialism is the culprit, as trump said. this is a country that is under a kind of wall. we have to see it like that. we have to understand the situation in iran as a place under siege. this is not unfamiliar to what is happening even in argentina where the peso has collapsed against the dollar. there's a focus will we talk

about places like venezuela, iran, not seeing there is a global hit against countries like turkey, argentina, south africa, india, as thehe u.s. interest rates -- for a series of reasons, there's a real problem in these countries. amy: is the u.s. working with latin american countries against venezuela, like colombia, where it will be building a number of bases, like honduras, brazil? are they forming a bloc? >> they are ready have. it is called alima group.. it was s set up in lima, peru. it is interesting u united stats has been pushing, not just trump, but also obama, for a kind of military solution. trump is far more aggressive in his language post up again yesterday in the u.n. him he said the the lee terry option is not off the table. he said that in the quarters was the amy: five conservative latin aerican governments signed complaint with the international criminal court asking to investigate maduro on charges of

crimes against humanity. >> it is the first some governments -- just to finish about the lima group, it is despite the fact the united states is been pushing for a military option, the lima group this week released a statement where they sign on to the statement saying t they are opposed to a military didrvention, even columbia not send the statement said it agrees with the spirit of the statement. it is true that five of these countries have approroached thee icc, a and internationalal criml court. look at the hypocrisy. mr. trump has just attacked the icc, question jurisdiction, and a couple of days later, his close latin american allies and the canadians put this complaint forward. it is so hard to take the word -- world that face i use these days. amy: let's go to truck speaking about the criminanal court durig his address on tuesday. pres. trump: the united states will provide no support and recognition to the international criminal court.

as far as america is concerned, the icc has jurisdiction. authority.cy, and no your universal jurisdiction over the citizens of everyry country. it violates all principles of justice, fairness, and due process. we will never surrender america's sovereignty to an unelected, unaccountable, global bureaucracy. nermeen: that is trump speaking just on tuesday about the international criminal court, saying he will not language american sovereignty to global bureaucracy. >> we're in a situation now where the united states government is becoming increasingly isolated. i think americans need to understand that. whether it is the peace agreement inquiry up where the united states played honest no role, or it is the issue of isolating iran and venezuela, there is immense respect against

u.s. policy, not only from the europeans, but where i think it is important to say, they are very disheartened iran by the iran policy, but also by other countries associated with the non-allied movement. even clolose allies. trump named sasaudi arabia, pold as friends of the united states. extraordinarily small list. even india is not entirely given to the idea that there should be amy: andicy will stop saudi arabia? >> let's talk about saudi arabia. that we can go on for at least half an hour. it is such a complicated place. i don't see what we take it so seriously. and ago that is good because we will do a post show and we will post this online with vijay prashad, whose director of tricontinental i institute for social r research, and chief editor of leftword books. chief correspondent of globetrotter. author of "the poorer nations: a possible history of the global

global south." that does it for our broadcast. 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!]