March 19 - A Report from Ukraine on Russian Political Thuggery; The Head of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters on Pacifica's Latest Turmoil; Dimming Prospects for the Democrats Holding the Senate

Full Program

Part 1

We begin and go to Kyiv, Ukraine and speak with Taras Kuzio, a leading international expert on contemporary Ukraine and post-communist politics at the Center for Political and Regional Studies in the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Alberta. The author of “Commissars into Oligarchs: A Contemporary History of Ukraine”, he joins us to discuss the confiscation of Ukrainian businesses in Crimea by the right wing thugs and gangsters Putin has installed in the new government and the continuing activities of so-called “political tourists” from Russia sent into Eastern Ukraine to provoke incidents that might be used to justify a Russian invasion.

Part 2

Then we speak with Sally Kane, the President and CEO of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters about the latest turmoil at the Pacifica Radio network, whose headquarters in Berkeley, California are being occupied by the recently-fired Executive Director of Pacifica, Summer Reese, who broke into the Pacifica Foundation’s office which she is occupying and defiantly refusing to leave. We discuss some of the history of the recent turmoil at Pacifica outlined in a new article at the LA Weekly and the role that Pacifica plays in the broader public and community radio spectrum that is important for media diversity in the country, a role which may be in jeopardy if the network’s viability and listenership can not be revived.

Part 3

Then finally Jennifer Duffy, a Senior Editor for The Cook Political Report, who is responsible for U.S. Senate and Governor’s races, joins us to discuss why she moved three Democratic incumbents from the “leaning Democrat” column to the “tossup” column that could spell more bad news for the Democrats, already facing an uphill battle to retain control of the Senate in the upcoming midterm elections.