ok. a defense budget that's through the roof all taxpayers over money for wars critics say cannot be won over some lawmakers finally ready to take a blow to the military budget. hole we're going to do this and we're going to do that in our food out the door has been slammed in a lot of people streamed says whatever happened to hope and change as he kicks off the two thousand and twelve campaign will president obama's broken promises speak louder than the words this time around. spain portugal c i refuse working with

your view the thirty's and a lot of these critters are not going to recover for as much as ten years as the international monetary fund meets a question that might not be on the agenda are institutions created to promote economic growth doing more harm than good. evening it's friday april fifteenth five pm here in washington d.c. i'm lauren list during your botching r.t. now though the united states spends more money on defense than any other country six times more than china close to fifty percent of the globe sending it seems to be the elephant in the room when it comes to budget cuts but with skyrocketing debt and three wars adding up to trillions of dollars is that going to have to change our cheese christine takes a look. it's clear that we need to cut spending cutting slashing

reducing you could say it's in this season so this is my approach to reduce the deficit by four trillion dollars over the next twelve years it's an approach that achieves about two trillion dollars in spending cuts across the budget it's no secret our government has a spending problem the problem will now be passed along to community health centers . infrastructure the closing of schools. and libraries but what's been mostly absent from this battle over the budget bolds is trimming on defense spending. the elephant in the living room in that state nor by both republicans and democrats is the national security but bruce fein is the former associate deputy attorney general under president reagan and now the president of the american freedom agenda he says those peddling the war use former defense secretary donald rumsfeld's concept of anticipatory self-defense with

strong rhetoric and talk of the need for war makes americans think might know saddam hussein is about to attack as are some of bin laden in a little cave now in afghanistan is about to overthrow the government because politicians and the defense department it's weight that fear and when they do the defense contractors win big. now a handful of lawmakers are calling this seemingly endless cycle into question both republicans who spent a trillion dollars in iraq that was a trillion dollars of waste and democrats we're going to have health care for all or we can have war. we can ever education for all. we're going to war the budget bill before the house this week calls for the complete elimination of mortgage counselors those people that help the five million americans facing foreclosures the price tag the same as funding eight hours of u.s.

operations in afghanistan a four hundred million dollars cut in heating assistance for low income homeowners the cost of one and a half days of the war in afghanistan and a five hundred million dollar cut in nutritional assistance to women infants and children the cost of two days of that war a war with an increasingly devastating impact also on its troops the suicide rate is at a record level of. course the divorce rate among the list of rights is more than eighty percent and there are a crow with we think afghanistan says it's the result of deployment after deployment and of seeing horrible things year after year and if you're going to say you support the troops continuing to send them into this meat grinder in afghanistan and even iraq so of troops there that's really a fallacious argument this kid lost his father. look at the pain of war look in his eyes and think about his date in the coffin right behind him and

a lot of american flag he's got folded just because the war we are now in year ten and what has become the longest war in american history and sunday after the war is over there will be a memorial built if it were built today there would be six thousand names on it already nearly double that if you count of those men and women who took their own lives after returning home from war but how mike roadwork to which is the memorial where i'm standing now it is unclear the lift the reason that will be given for why we went to afghanistan why all that money was spent in washington christine for the out party. and joining me now for more take a look bear tell our team blogger and member of rethink afghanistan and jake you were part of that hearing yesterday the christan president covered in her report i'm curious if you think that the dialogue is changing in washington because this was a bipartisan member of lawmakers are both sides really starting to get serious and actually look at cutting defense budget they are and they have to be there or their

establishment members the of the conservative movement the sort of pro hawkish military folks they won't say a thing about this but this far as the freshman class the tea party class it is at the forefront of their agenda to balance the budget because that's what they got elected to do so if it includes slashing difference in wars and military bases except it is there the republican base of the tea party class is very serious about cutting the spent these budgets if that's the case the tea party is the conventional wisdom has played a major role in this budget debate with the republican party yet we don't see any calls for cuts to defense spending and paul ryan's budget why is that he explained well i think one of the one of the major reasons was paul ryan didn't want to go too far at the beginning he did want to put everything on the table that needed to be cut but there's nothing cut from defense that's true well it was or seventy billion dollars in cuts which basically stops growth of spending that is stopping growth and spending a cut no and there needs to be cuts that there needs to be drastic cuts and one of

the reasons that we haven't raised the defense cutting issue is because people don't know how to cut we can actually keep the military at this a current size that is and keep the exact same fire power and save two hundred billion dollars if there was simply a reorganization of the military the way the officer rank the officer corps structured how many officers are just going example we have one hundred flag officers in afghanistan right now that's one hundred colonel and above. officers this isn't a normal expense the amount of fuel that we use we use five it costs five hundred dollars a gallon of gas in afghanistan these all of these things are being brought up and unless well the republican base certainly is challenging their constituents to cut those those wasteful spending now those are all things that you mentioned that don't really tap into the plains the equipment and minds of things that defense

contractors build but they spend a lot of money in washington on campaigns and on lobbying to continue to get bill to continue to get those contracts which can be a major roadblock in terms of cutting defense spending according to most of the folks that i talked to so why are the things you're talking about more on the table a thing like easier cuts to make there are easier cuts to make we've got a lot of we've got a lot a lot u.s. lawmakers in bed with military defense contractors military defense contractors employ a lot of people across united states they're in every district in every state united states so in order to cut funds to those corporations that a ploy a lot of people is very tough for some just keep districts but even dana rohrbacher you saw well that's what i wanted to ask what brings these lawmakers together how are these ones that are beholden to these contractors and this campaign money well i would they not have you know raytheon or boeing plants in their district sure they do you saw walter jones in there is

a republican walter jones has to please you in his district walter jones was the freedom fries guy he was the one that said that we need to call french fries freedom fries he's had to come to jesus moment why because he was really motivating these people because they see what war does they see that war kills people they see that war kills freedoms here you can't be the mayor of baghdad and kabul and be the president united states and republicans are coming to see that we lost three trillion dollars as a result of bush's imperial foolish imperial delusions and weapons of mass to store . that we're sitting in that with their caucus in baghdad and now republicans are coming to wake up to see obama's child this notions of charge of of nation building in kabul and benghazi are the same thing that would say mistakes that bush made wealthy if that's the case do you think with obama's speech that he gave this week he's getting more tough on security because i think that there has been that report but then when i read his plan it's sensible are to paul ryan and he's calling for

growth it doesn't exceed inflation that doesn't really sound like really hacking into military spending yeah you know it's interesting about barack obama he him and him and paul ryan are doing this dance right they're doing a proverbial waltz and both seem like a step both on the same thing but they don't they fundamentally done on military spending well but on the budget and military spending it's a total different issue for both parties and they come apart i myself i'm a conservative and so i don't want military spending cut and then it's going to health care i think that's a fundamental mistake but it seems like they want the same thing on military spending in a sense that neither of them are really touching it in their plans and any kind of significant material. you know you're hammering me here no it's very good asking i wanted out i think our fear is that there is enough they do the viewers do deserve to know essentially this is it there has to be a balanced budget everybody recognizes that the biggest single national security threat is our debt our deficit spending and our fiscal crisis if we don't fix

that there's not going to be any money for military so everybody recognizes that we have to cut it everybody recognize that we could we can't balance the budget unless we cut defense spending and it's just a juggling match of who's going to go first we'll have to wait and see take deliberate how giving us his analysis these are key blog remember everything afghanistan. now it was obama who was the one who pledged to end afghan and iraq wars when he first ran for president now he's officially kicked off his reelection campaign in chicago housing tonight are now people still paid from one hundred to thirty eight thousand dollars to see him speak last night but without much of the promised change where's the hope coming in his bid for reelection artie's anastasio reports churkin excuse me two and a half years ago tears of joy as the reader can celebrate it could be career for president symbolizing the new american dream the long term problem. but tonight

just come to america the promise of change was met by an unprecedented frenzy of hope a president of transformation peace and economic research action had finally appeared very excited about this is this is history definition. what is broke obama launches his bid for a second term the mood has changed. with those tears of joy turning to tears of frustration i feel hurt because people voted for him and he said all we're going to do this and we're going to do after like the guy has been slammed in a lot of people's faces real wallace mother of two with years of homelessness behind her was among the people who brought obama to the white house with her vote it's not because he was the first african-american president to be in the stands but as more of a change he says yes. i do believe that yes we can for quite

a while then it's like. summer jobs for us is going down jobs are going down. gas is. four dollars now maria is one of many now wondering whether the campaign promises new jobs to be. used to build or nothing more. to do half of americans don't believe their president deserves a second term my heard the question change but i would not receive and i came to the realization actually middle actually help me understand what the democrats and the republicans are exactly the same working this weekend up to fifteen hundred people who were on to the streets of new york fueled by on kept presidential promises. from the middle of the kuantan emotion down. in the district you know they're listening to for.

clues we're going to. and so on so really for the know he's going to be open for quite some years to wealth inequality caused by a broken economy the u.s. government's own statistics the richest one percent of the population owns more than the bottom ninety five percent of the population in this country too money being wasted on things people just can't fathom the way that you know the united states is being run into the ground with continued a war with all of these different tax cuts for the rich or a lot of people are really worried about what will happen to us or their six million fewer jobs in the u.s. but at the recession kicked off yet the u.s. military budget the largest in the world at over seven hundred billion dollars continues to grow. allowing for quick injections abroad like the six hundred million pumped into one week of workfare in libya but no significant changes that hold the president really is a. puppet. he's a puppet to. probably interests on the political campaign.

he's a property. to the military complex which wants for the profits as disenchantment grows to many the solution for broken promises is more visible than ever it's amazing stuff. for crafts and republicans for anyone else remember obama rival sarah feelings how is that going to change the stuff working out more than halfway through the presidency or sarcastic question has taken on a new level of cruelty for many americans it's not working out obama will have to work hard to convince voters that there will be change in that there is reason for hope is that he should come out archie you. join me now for more from northampton massachusetts david packman host of the david hartman show thanks for joining us now i'm curious what you think the impact will be of all that call for hope and

change back in the campaigning days as far as obama getting reelected are going to come to bite him in the butt. you know there's that there's also this question this narrative that we've seen from republicans about democrats are afraid to pull the trigger on military action democrats will hesitate to protect the country barack obama won the nobel peace prize and then shortly thereafter sent tens of thousand more troops to afghanistan he went into libya so i mean just as interesting as whether the homefront changed enough will come up again or whether it will hurt him will be what will be the republican there to about democrats being weak on defense and has its use the military i think it's too early to tell us though both are great questions when you think about the issue of the war as president obama said he would end the war in iraq and the war in afghanistan neither of them are over he hasn't closed get no and now he's bombing libya i mean there's reasons for republicans to support him. there are and i wonder when you will you know it's

a good it's a good question you bring up you know the thing about get motes for me was i actually want my politicians to be explicit promises during the campaign one of the biggest complaints is well there's just a lot of rhetoric and ideas and very general statements nothing specific barack obama actually made the specific promise and it completely just did not work strategically was it a mistake to be so specific i guess maybe at once and that's a good question do you think that this is a case of making promises that you can't keep because uganda opposite and you realize while the situation is much kept right that i thought when i didn't know what the reality was i can't do something like close get on we're just pull out of the war or do you think these are political calculations and you know why profit is the pens with which one i mean let's be let's think about the promise promise or statement that barack obama made during the campaign about if there are attacks on labor when i'm president i will be out there on the picket lines i mean this is

barack obama who said that and he not think he has any doubt about the power of corporations who we now have gotten cozy with you know there's no point the net what do you mean by now gotten cozy with i mean barack obama like almost every other member of the house senate and you know high political office across the country has has been cozy with those corporate interests whether that specifically why we didn't see him in wisconsin ohio tennessee i don't know the real question is he did say it and he didn't do it and as a progressive not as a democrat i get criticized a lot for being critical of the president but when he says something like that the same way that when donald trump goes on a bridge or frenzy i'll be critical of it that's that's just i call it the way i see it right what did you just say spoke about being a progressive do you think that the problem with this is the two party political system democrats and republicans both beholden to corporate interests and the same issues that you know reelection that and bipartisanship that eric sees may not bipartisanship but you know. a conflict among between the two parties you think the

solution is a bigger broader political system what is the solution it's what's clear is that the status quo is not working and as just even terrorists before the video that you rolled with and i talked to him last week democrats and republicans on a majority of issues are very very similar and we can pick individual politicians that are different and we can pick individual issues on which there is a difference but the reality is lobbyists health health insurance providers the oil companies media companies as we see these are the net neutrality they're donating to both sides and to say one side is going to be less influenced by those donations i think is pretty naive then when jesse ventura calls for at third party and to not vote for democrats and republicans what would keep a third party candidate from being beholden to same interests are going to have to get elected they're got any campaign contributions. it's campaign finance reform and it's the type of campaign finance reform dennis cousineau told me about just three weeks ago which i have asked other members of congress including leading my

representative richard neal from massachusetts and he said straight up no i just i would not be in favor of that so why would paul it's haitians who benefit from the system we have want to change and it wouldn't make any sense right now so you think this all boils down to a corporation is running the country it sounds like what does it boil down to money and politics at this point i can't think of anything there you have it that was david pacman host of the david pacman show. now the year obama won the nobel peace prize you may recall he did win that for what he would do the hoped for what he would do prominent american philosopher and activist noam chomsky wrote a column saying a truly worthy choice would have been our next guest an afghan activist champion of human and women's rights also an outspoken critic of the afghan war and government she knows both very well firsthand a former member of the afghan parliament she was suspended for her sharp critique of it now she dodges assassination attempts she's author of a woman among warlords

the extraordinary story of an afghan who dared to raise her voice yet she almost wasn't allowed to raise it in the u.s. earlier i spoke with her and asked why she thinks a country that supposedly champions women's rights in afghanistan first denied a visa to an afghan woman working so hard to defend them she was coming here for a book tour joya. i think it has a little because. the sponsor. closer excuse they made their. living and. i'm implying. do you know why i'm living underground in this with the us we know who you are it was the last response and that's why i believe that each time and western countries when i call him in the us and some other countries on behalf of my people when i turned into

a conference i exposed my scots wrong policies of the us government and these metal go dormant course who occupied my country and a beautiful woman those human dies and democracy and pushed as from the frying pan into the fire each country i am going to frame is between justice loving people of this crime truce between nations and the european. between and also between the wrong politicians warmonger of our main difference between the democratic mind of politician in their own politician who occupied my country and the stoat continued. in. supporting the soil in the midst of democracy of woman dies human rights and our country and now the people that you spoke about who are activists against the war their voices have gotten louder and more americans oppose

the war then ever before in the united states two thirds are opposed to it why you think the u.s. is still there. as a. country and their idea for your almost strategy includes you know economy and trust because we are in the heart of to afghanistan. and he's aloof and control. like. pakistan so truck there has been a number of reports of brutal civilian casualties and we've seen reports of the kill team which posed with photos of dead afghans what is the impact of this in your country. you know that the abusing this. argument of us in the top of troops ration forces tens of thousands softened since the violence has been called and they did

a massacre after all of these war crime. shows because this puppet regime. has it we feel are from listening to apologize and thank you all we want to engulf this occupation as soon as possible i think justice loving people of the us our own before we were. by a military invasion woman vice no human eyes never walked the walk receive never come by class the white phosphorus by conquering our wedding parties killing innocent civilians democracy never by supporting. so on enemies of loose taliban and also for the copy of the taliban these so miss sargent worse warlords saw. that it was not a military invasion it was invasion of a school clinic hospital it's a tribe you mentioned building schools helping the people those are reports you hear in the united states the u.s. government saying they are doing those things is that not accurate. they both few

schools and some big cities like in kabul you can see some woman have access is to drop an education and head off problems and most of problems so this situation especially for the woman is like her justification of the arc of patient reconstruction which is not enough. dollars and more than thirty billion dollars she would receive if there were critic mind of people and they were in power not corrupt and not his warlord to be afghanistan was like him for it was knowledge oir afghan activist and author. now it's not just a military intervention an international economic policies are coming under fire too as the international monetary fund meets in washington critics blame their policies for conditions that led to the unrest in the middle east all emerging countries call for a greater voice and i.m.f. decision making archies more important as more. yes. from smoke bombs

to probing glass austerity measures budget cuts and taxes have inflamed riots across europe and elsewhere aside from anger also connecting these cash strapped countries a heavy hand played by the international monetary fund and world bank global institutions meant to promote economic growth and reduce poverty yet critics say their priorities lie elsewhere looking after the interests of their creditors spain portugal greece the i.m.f. is working with the european authorities and a lot of these countries are going to recover as much as ten years. public first ration with branford unemployment high food prices and privatization deals is believed to have helped spark mass uprising in egypt. have a suggestion of the i.m.f. and world bank ousted president hosni mubarak's old companies to local and foreign investors forty percent of egyptians earn two dollars per day but it's definitely

a catalyst and the timing is very much related to what was tremendous financial deregulation and opening to the privatization by external banks of egypt in other countries and what has had dramatic negative. circumstances after that egypt may have actually go the way of latin america or socially. and that's really a little jealousy after decades of economic struggle and it was a huge failure and when america and africa are the places where the i.m.f. was most well you had one person today since their inception the world bank's president has always been an american the i.m.f. director always a european despite the one hundred eighty seven nation membership the world bank and the i.m.f. all located three blocks from the white house for a reason this is the structure of political and economic power in one thousand nine hundred forty six and that's the primary structure of power in the world today five

of the largest emerging nations in the world today are demanding an end to western monopoly over the global institutions. brazil russia india china and south africa say it's time for leadership of the i.m.f. and world bank to reflect changes of the global economy a transformation from club based to all inclusive growing up or ny artsy new york and ask him to do it for now for more on the stories we covered go to our t.v. dot com slash usa check out our youtube page it's youtube dot com slash r t america and also follow me on twitter at lauren lyster and please do and send me a message and let me know what you think of our shows and please stick around for the alone a show is going to start in a half hour followed by adam vs the man after that i will be right back at eight pm with more news until then i'm laurin lister a season. below in fact you may recall that is where you are saying she's. no she said she's

a star. the some. sleep.