Reese Erlich joins Scott to discuss Saudi Arabia and their new de facto King, Mohamed Bin Salman, the story behind Lebanon prime minister Saad al-Hariri’s resignation and subsequent un-resignation, and the deep discord in Trump’s state department over it all. Erlich and Scott then discuss Trump’s heightened tension with Iran, how the Iraq War was a major gift to the Iranians, and why the concern for control of the global oil supply has determined much of U.S. foreign policy. Lastly, Erlich discusses the situation in Yemen.
Reese Erlich is a nationally syndicated columnist and the author of Inside Syria: The Backstory of Their Civil War and What the World Can Expect. Erlich’s revised edition of his book ”The Iran Agenda” will be published in 2018. In the meantime read his work at his website and follow him on Twitter.
Discussed on the show:

• Mohammad bin Salman
• Confessionalism
• “The Unresignation of Saad al-Hariri” (Slate)
• Hassan Nasrallah
• “Did Kushner Keep Tillerson in the Dark on Saudi-Lebanon Move?” by Mark Perry (The American Conservative)
• “Jared Kushner, Mohammed bin Salman, and Benjamin Netanyahu Are Up to Something” (Foreign Policy)
• “Long Divided, Iran Unites Against Trump and Saudis in a Nationalist Fervor” (New York Times)
• “How Ahmed Chalabi conned the neocons” (Salon)
• “The Redirection,” by Seymour Hersh (The New Yorker)
• Target Iraq: What the News Media Didn’t Tell You by Rees Elrich & Normon Solomon
• New York Times Helene Cooper: Saudis have been backing the Taliban in Pakistan
• Strait of Hormuz
• “Dick Cheney Was for the Iran Deal Before He Was Against It” (Foreign Policy)
• “Defending Liberty in a Global Economy,” by Dick Cheney (CATO)
• “Saudi Crown Prince’s Mass Purge Upends a Longstanding System” (New York Times)
• “Saudi Crackdown Targets Up to $800 Billion in Assets” (Wall Street Journal)
• “The ’28 Pages’ Explained,” by Larisa Alexandrovna (Facebook)
• “How Yemen’s Civil War Is Starving Its Children” (60 Minutes)
• “US generals: Saudi intervention in Yemen ‘a bad idea’,” by Mark Perry (Al Jazeera)
• People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen

Today’s show is sponsored by: NoDev, NoOps, NotIT, by Hussein Badakhchani; The War State, by Mike Swanson; WallStreetWindow.com; Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Inc.; LibertyStickers.com; TheBumperSticker.com; 3tediting.com; ExpandDesigns.com/Scott; and Darrin’s Coffee.
Check out Scott’s Patreon page.

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