donald trump threatens to will move the security clearance of several former intelligence officials they're accused of politicizing and mother ties that the information they had access to. a former trump advisor comes under fire after he announced his a new foundation to foment a right wing revolution in europe and we got the reaction from a member of the european parliament. to fully remind you where the money was going to be sure. but could that argument not be made to george soros as well vision of the boy. brazil in southern england is divided over how a seventeenth century slave trade is remembered in this city. the old post what the

plot is going to be saying because you've got to put things into context of what was up you know so i know your guess is this money is already granted us what up like i'm really. a very good morning to you with eight am here in moscow and you're watching r.t. international with me thank you erin the top story this hour donald trump is considering revoking the security clearance of several of former top intelligence officials the white house press secretary said they had been making political and financial gains from the information they had access to but the announcement didn't go unchallenged. big speech doesn't like that he wants to punish them for no i think you are creating your own story there isn't the president doing exactly what

you just said the president doesn't want all these people doing politicizing matters of national security by going after his political enemies people are politicizing agencies and departments that are specifically meant to not be political and not to be monetized off of security concerns or. six people were named including former heads of the cia f.b.i. and n.s.a. most of them in their own for being critics of donald trump's policies the officials themselves safe their clearances revoked it won't really change anything . well here security clearance is not the do. you know are you ready to see a little bit corsi i don't go back for classified briefings won't have any effect on what i say or write from the u.s. intelligence officials have a history of speaking out once they leave office kadam open reports. the former heads of u.s. intelligence agencies are now dabbling in politics the fired f.b.i.

director james comey just advised the democrats to steer clear of socialism. democrats please please don't lose your minds and rush to the socialist left this president and his republican party accounts no need to do exactly that now this comes just after his recent tweet in which he said that the only way to support american values was to go democrat. all who believe in this country's values must vote for democrats this fall policy differences don't matter right now history has its eyes on us now james komi fits in with a big cast of characters these are former intelligence officers who are now telling us what we should be thinking about politics i know we're not nazi germany all right but there is a commonality there and a fear on on my part that we have standards we have to live up to having some

understanding of the levers of power that or available to a president if. he chooses to bear to resize them from those. downright scary and disturbing there's a big question first of all in terms of those who are on mr trump's nasty team whether they can continue to serve in good conscience an individual who basically pre-treat his nation now it hasn't always been like this former cia top boss george tenet became a private investment banker he left the public eye after leaving office and former f.b.i. director louis spray he launched a private consulting firm here's why it's kind of a big deal it turns out that former intelligence officials usually keep their security clearance. he's john brennan monetizing his security clearance is john brown and making millions of dollars they volunteered secrets to

the mainstream media with his attacks on donald trump so even after leaving office they've still got power and connections that they could use to further their agenda . so whatever happened to a quiet retirement now in the air pockets around the new forces of emerging former top spies were turning to political activism tabletop and art see new york at his her off defense on foreign affairs magazine gregory copley says that in any other country such behavior would be considered treasonous. but what we've seen lately and the last two years is. the situation where people like director of national intelligence clapper and the like brennan from cia and so on be making it stream leak partisan comments designed deliberately to undermine

the current us government now this is this would be treason of all under most governments around the world there are profound cases of damage to the united states' image to the united states' ability to function in a national security sense from what we've seen from this range of officials commenting in the last eighteen months to two years. president transformer advisor steve bannon has announced plans to spark a right wing revolution in europe he wants to create a new foundation promoting the ideology of tons of revealed in an interview with news websites the daily beast and says he aims to rival the impact of open society foundations set up by liberal billionaire george soros balance foundation is called the movement and is expected to have headquarters in brussels the organization would offer polling think tank or search and advice on targeting european right

wing groups these plans sparked outrage among some members of the european parliament an attack on freedom and democracy in europe will not stand idle we will respond we have to fight now with good arguments confident and true it's a frontal attack on the e.u. and european values. george soros is has spent over thirty two billion dollars on largely liberal causes in europe for example funding pro e.u. campaigns as a back to second breaks it referendum we asked any piece tell your school or glue from this series of party what he thinks of balance initiative. what is wrong with promoting an alternative does it not to challenge views so you get debate you get conversation instead of name calling people in the united states. to pull their money so where the money was going to finance the. movement which

so movement rather for the division of europe and not core of the unit you're right could that argument not be made to george soros says well why shouldn't these parties and groups who have support of large swathes of the population get some help from the outside the same way that the left has been getting help from soros and other like minded billionaires this is not the point where yes we know where that money comes from because of the fighting there's themselves but they have their financing there of sim's for what they are in favor of the reefs. you know call the previous variable for be your priest yes well that's not really on the working class tell us is that there's a lot of working class people who fear that their jobs are being taken by possibly by immigrants possibly by other forces at play and they are voting for who they think will be able to solve those concerns and at the moment across europe in many

countries it's not the left they need an alternative well yes this is. a program sir come to the left of course so you admit that there is no you know it's but it's very easy to be a democrat you don't use a. scapegoat whether. mr soros or the scapegoat is the recruiters there are you white workers that are going to be excluded right we showed you. in britain we breakfasted but now that that's true that's the reason. people in bristol in southwest england are divided over a plan to a plaque to a statue. that commemorate his seventeenth century merchant involved in the slave trade edward colson is a prominent figure in the city's history for his philanthropy however and the child his wealth was acquired through the royal african company which was involved in the

slave trade whereas in say people need to be more aware of colston's past and they're demanding a plaque mentioning his role in the slave trade with many now also calling for the statue to be removed altogether we spoke to racial equality campaigner lee jasper and stephen morris from the english democrats why have we got the statue of a man who sold millions of africans into bondage and slavery ripped operate them babies from their mothers breast separated families killed maimed and murdered millions of africans but he gave money to charity so we should have a statue of him in our town square we have to look at the full history of the of the slave trade this was going on for thousands of years before europeans arrived africans were enslaved africans and selling them to the arabs way before we got there and it's actually quite unfair to judge the past by today's standards and today's models so for me it's part of the history but it really got to be shown in

the full history of what was going on at the time and not just to be a scene until european issue actually the fifty million people is a lot more than a ransom. for what we know a redesign. that the historians of the tie or all consensual around that figure so i think is you need to get your facts straight all depends what the plots going to be saying because you've got to put things into context of what we. know your guess is this man is already. so that's what i. want to be trying to put forward i'm going to pluck there then you have. to make sure that you put it into context of what was happening around the world we shouldn't be imagining and celebrating colton it should be either a bristol museum of show you which you can go in and all you order of colonial aspects and relic of the past can go in but i don't worry it should be called

sexualize as the bookstore rip it period in bristol's history you cannot george historical events by today's standards you have to look at what was going on at the . north stream to a pipeline which is currently under construction is set to deliver natural gas from russia to germany the project has been widely criticized by the u.s. which sees it as a competitor to its liquid natural gas trade trampas also warns that the pipeline will make burn in two dependent on moscow but according to a recent poll it seems the majority of germans don't see it that way i think it's a horrible thing that you have a pipeline coming from russia and i believe the german is going to be getting fifty sixty or even i've heard numbers of seventy percent of their energy coming in from russia. and how can you be working for peace and working from strength

when somebody has that kind of power of your country i don't think it's good you're not working for the strike you've given up all of your strength i think it's very bad for germany very bad for the german people the pipeline will be about one thousand two hundred kilometers long it's a multi billion euro venture between russia and five international companies it's ones next to the original nord stream pipeline and will double the amount of gas being transferred north stream two is set to be fully operational by next year economist ica harmer says the project is the best way for germany to meet its growing demand for natural gas. this is a matter of a great opportunity for germany to have another infrastructure that supplies us with natural gas which is needed in germany without being able to be blackmailed by the countries in between every american foreign policy is one of the duty

they have to bid a closer relationship between russia and germany the us is not in the position anymore to make a race because germany now after the sanctions and after the not appealing behavior of america against germany we have to look for better opportunities or other of the two needed that the forest fires are raging across greece and that story for you after this very quick break. i've been saying the numbers mean something they matter the u.s. has over one trillion dollars in debt more than ten white collar crimes happen each

day. eighty five percent of global wealth you longs to be old for rich eight point six percent market saw thirty percent rise last year some with four hundred to five hundred three per second per second and bitcoin rose to twenty thousand dollars. china is building a two point one billion dollar a i industrial park but don't let the numbers overwhelm. the only number you need to remember is one one business shows you can't afford to miss the one and only boom but. still do. a local stay it is a city you. must must. find nothing.

to. do in a cool walk. doesn't go to the religiously naive you know. i'm. all for school it's all about the work i want and the going forward to one of them i mean my colleagues i'm all. for a. cut. you'll . join me every thursday on the alex i'm unsure and i'll be speaking to us of the world of politics or business i'm sure i'll see you then.

welcome back a devastating wildfire has killed at least twenty people near the greek capital after. the. chinese president xi jinping is in rwanda as part of a four nation trip to africa to establish deeper trade ties here earlier visited

sanogo which is the first west african country to be involved in china's belt and road infrastructure projects beijing has been expanding its presence at africa and recent years two thousand and sixteen alone china invested thirty nine billion dollars in the continent bringing the total to more than two hundred billion. but the initiative hasn't been without its critics the u.s. thinks the countries are not prepared for such huge investment and may end up deeply in debt to china however recent offensive remarks from donald trump have strained relations with the continent. the president of the united states is racist he really is the devil this is an actual quote from the actual president this is the gift that he decided to give the american people they're not. for one donald trump isn't their president. i know johnson from the new site viewpoint africa

believes countries are looking to china because of u.s. government policy the united states influence on africa was already doing be well before don't want to sean came into the play and it will continue to do because of some of his comments he's attitude towards africans and he's position on africa in general he's only interested in an issue basis and africans i'm afraid very much interested in partnership and those that take them seriously. because like a liberalized continent it's voting with his feet and it's changing the united states in every sector that i know of in favor of the chinese are of course china already had a huge presence and influence and that influence i've just grown to levels for which even if the americans were to try now likely to ever catch the the chinese in my lifetime. i german football star of turkish descent has

retired from the national team saying he feels unwanted in his own country now such as il was subjected to widespread criticism after posing for a photo with the president of turkey in the run up to the faithful world cup. he refuses to chant our national anthem. to one president and not to sound. from the. muslim congress someone that is not german and someone who does that should not play football for the germans national team such a photograph has a symbolic value and it is definitely not what is needed at the moment this clear when you play for germany you represent the county the german values. which i have

also without a plan was a mistake it is still a mistake to say the reason as it also gave did not convince me so he speaks of respect but that raises the question of how is respect for the victims about a policy of respect for journalists who are imprisoned because they have done their job. just as you know the chance to hold mr percivale in high stevens. is a great he has done a lot for the national football team and he has now made a decision that must be respected and i don't sleep turned on any case the truth is on the pitch faster the jump is not well call it has little to with mr russell

having his picture taken the for instance i don't. mesut ozil said his decision was down to the abuse he received off to germany was knocked out of the world cup in the group stage german football chaves have denied his claims of racism but admits it's they could have done more to help and protect the footballer international relations professor pape the scheldt says the case reflects broader trends in german society what what we have seen here at the german team is basically. reflection of what is going on. german politics we have we have to live you kates on the the impact. because thrillers multiculturalism was basically the. elements of the media of the green party off the establish our source. on this is visited with the rain away it is getting slimmer and slimmer especially after two thousand and fifteen after we have set the influx of one point

four million. refugees migrants from north africa items from sub-saharan africa and white males. that is now how you feel about that story and everything house by following us on social media i'll be back at the top of the hour with all the latest headlines you know. join me every thursday on the alec simon show and i'll be speaking to guest on the world of politics sports business i'm show business i'll see you then. people criticize us or they question us and they want to know why we're not more books critical of russia i think the real question is how come we're not tooting russia's horn more because they are been genius during this crisis but that would be i think a little bit you know over the top to simply point out all the good things that

they're constantly doing so we just try to take a more balanced middle of the road approach that's you know the fact is that they're making all these other economies look stupid like. this is going both broadcasting around the world as you can see from washington d.c. were important policy and money decisions are made there on capitol hill i'm bart chilton and thanks for joining us for what is the first installment of our infrastructure deficit special we're glad you're on board what will focus on the u.s. this time we'll have a few comparisons with other places around the world there's so much to cover much of the things that you would expect like roads bridges airports and rail but we also take a more complete and comprehensive look at other important infrastructure critical

to not only commerce but to national security will look at energy including pipelines and the electrical grid and communications including broadband and even specifically how trucking fits into our deeply textured transportation network there's so much that we couldn't do it all just us in one program and i'm pleased that will be doing so with a little help from our friends some of the arctic correspondents and others who are lending their expertise to it for most of all i'm really looking forward to it and i hope you are too. so we're going to jump right in and start. a bit of an infrastructure place setting and then look at rail for that we turn to our to correspondent manila chan. president truck campaign for months and months on repairing america's crumbling infrastructure from the roadways to waterways railways to the airwaves and has

recently unveiled a plan to bring america up to speed we're here today to discuss the critical need to rebuild america's crumbling infrastructure and one understands and the people in this room really understand better than most probably hopefully better than anybody that the problem the states have and local leaders have with funding the infrastructure is horrendous and we will build we will maintain and the vast majority of americans want to see us take care of our infrastructure. infrastructure is the backbone of the u.s. economy and a necessary input to every economic output those are the opening lines in the most recent report from the american society of civil engineers their study aptly called the failure to act a report minces no words in their frustration with the budget shortfalls in

infrastructure and highlighted that america is consistently at about a two trillion dollar short ball when it comes to infrastructure according to the a.s.c. if this investment gap is not addressed by the year two thousand and twenty five the economy is expected to lose almost four trillion dollars in total g.d.p. which can result in a job loss of about two point five million people across the country u.s. railways once connected the entire country from sea to shining sea much of america's goods are still pulled along by rail millions of cargo loads of coal chemicals paper goods new cars agricultural goods all the way down to other consumer goods like the i phone you may be watching on all get moved as train car go every year every day tens of millions of americans rely on public transportation to get to and from work without it america's economy would come to a crashing halt but without proper repairs to america's infrastructure the country

stands to fall behind to places like china tens of millions of passengers use various forms of rail transit every year from amtrak to their local metro but with frequent delays electrical failures and in several extreme cases both amtrak and local commuter rails have experienced deadly human error catastrophes and although president trump promised to fix infrastructure problems such as these former congressman jim moran is doubtful that he'll keep his campaign promise. and washington really believes that it will have a that's gonna happen is going to have to be done by states and localities and he just took away the money from theirs from the states. that needed that state local tax deductibility p.t.c. or positive train control was mandated by congress back in two thousand and fifteen following a deadly amtrak wreck which killed eight in philadelphia but after lobbying efforts by train companies congress pushed that requirement by three years to twenty eighteen places like europe and japan have not only had p.t.c.

on their tracks for more than a decade providing a safer more secure ride but now china has launched their most ambitious bullet train project that will also cut commute time by nearly seventy percent will america be able to catch up if we bring the private ingenuity like you know a mosque and other private businesses they can build a rail systems faster than the public can. we're still dealing in the public in rail with an eighteen thousand nine hundred century model and we're still trying to think about how to do it the way we did in the old days of standard and poor in the early parts of the twentieth century but we're in a twenty first century and we're talking about the rest of the world having high speed rail systems for years and they're benefiting from that this is a short list of some of the world's fastest trains on the left side is the trains

operational speed on the right the best recorded test speed for each chain is currently running maglev train barrels through a swift three hundred fifty kilometers an hour and there are soon to launch a train will have maximum speeds of up to four hundred kilometers an hour america certainly has a long way to go before seeing such technology on its tracks stateside especially since infrastructure spending in the u.s. has remained flat since one nine hundred seventy nine so with constant lobbying efforts congressional easement of safety requirements and bureaucracy that stifles innovation america's railways may remain a relic of the twentieth century manila chan r.t. . americans are always on the move and mass public transportation is an incredibly important interview part of our infrastructure system especially in the more urban areas the nation but is the u.s. transit system up to par archies ceremony.