Former Seattle City Councilor and socialist Kshama Sawant is now running against Washington Democrat Adam Smith in the state’s 9th Congressional District. Smith, who has held the seat since 1997, is a big supporter of the military industrial complex. Sawant spoke to Pacifica’s Steve Zeltzer about the developments in Minneapolis and the growing threat of world war.
Kshama Sawant,The Fight For Socialism & Lessons Of The Seattle City Council Victory For Today
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The US Congress has voted to appropriate $315 million dollars to the National Endowment For Democracy in 2026. The NED has been giving roughly $70 million a year to the AFL-CIO Solidarity Center which has 400 employees and operates in 62 countries. Pacifica’s Steve Zeltzer interviews Frank Hammer, retired UAW Local 909 president, about the resumption of funding of the NED and Solidarity Center and why the AFL-CIO is now accepting money from Trump for the AFL-CIO’s international operations.
Trump & Republicans Refund NED & AFL-CIO “Solidarity Center” In 2026 Budget
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Next, we share Michael Parenti’s lecture, “The Functions of Fascism”, recorded on November 30, 1990 as part of the Real History series. This lecture analyzes the historical and economic underpinnings of fascist movements and explores the often-overlooked class dynamics behind fascism.
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We thank all of Pacifica’s sister stations and affiliates who contribute to the production of this show. Today’s program was produced by the Capitalism, Race & Democracy collective, with contributions from Steve Zeltzer, Thomas O’Rourke and Polina Vasiliev.
You can find this and all previous episodes at our website “capitalism race and democracy dot ORG”. Make sure you click the subscribe button. Follow us on X, formerly Twitter, @PacificaCRD.
Thanks for listening.
Music:
Gil-Scott Heron, “Work for Peace”
Fearless Against ICE, from the Teamsters
