Parallax Views w/ J.G. Michael

Recorded: 6-12-26 👉 Pitch in on Patreon and fuel the future of free-thinking conversations. https://www.patreon.com/parallaxviews Also visit our returning sponsor Mike Swanson's Wall Street Window for the best financial and trading newsletter around:https://wallstreetwindow.com/ On this edition of Parallax Views, former CIA intelligence officer and Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft Non-Resident Fellow Paul R. Pillar joins us to discuss his recent Responsible Statecraft article, “Senate wants to force US to share sensitive intel with Israel,” and the implications of Section 622 of the Senate Intelligence Authorization Act. The provision, championed by Sen. Tom Cotton, would require the executive branch to expand and enhance intelligence sharing with Israel while making it significantly more difficult for any administration to limit or suspend such cooperation. Drawing on his 28-year career in the U.S. intelligence community—including service as National Intelligence Officer for the Near East and South Asia, Deputy Chief of the DCI Counterterrorist Center, and Executive Assistant to the Director of Central Intelligence—Pillar explains why he considers the proposal highly unusual and potentially dangerous. He argues that intelligence-sharing relationships are complex arrangements normally managed by intelligence professionals and the executive branch, not dictated by congressional mandate. Pillar also discusses the often-overlooked world of intelligence liaison relationships, the risks associated with sharing sensitive intelligence, Israel's history of espionage against the United States—including the Jonathan Pollard affair—and concerns that intelligence provided by Washington could be used in ways that conflict with broader U.S. interests in the Middle East. He further contends that the legislation reflects a broader effort to deepen U.S.-Israeli integration through mechanisms that receive less public scrutiny than direct military aid. Among the topics explored in this conversation: What Section 622 would actually do and why it has received relatively little attention How intelligence-sharing relationships are normally managed Why Pillar calls congressional mandates on intelligence liaison "bizarre" The history of Israeli espionage against the United States The Jonathan Pollard case and its continuing significance Intelligence sharing, executive authority, and congressional oversight U.S.-Israel relations in the lieu of the Iran war Whether American and Israeli interests are increasingly diverging in the Middle East The broader push toward deeper U.S.-Israeli military and intelligence integration Paul R. Pillar is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, a Non-Resident Senior Fellow at Georgetown University's Center for Security Studies, and a retired 28-year veteran of the U.S. intelligence community. He is the author of several books, including Intelligence and U.S. Foreign Policy: Iraq, 9/11, and Misguided Reform and Why America Misunderstands the World: National Experience and Roots of Misperception.

THIS IS A SPECIAL TWO-HOUR EDITION OF PARALLAX VIEWS!PLEASE CONSIDER DONATING ON PATREON TO KEEP THIS SHOW GOING FORWARD IF YOU APPRECIATE THE WORK I DO! 👉 Pitch in on Patreon and fuel the future of free-thinking conversations. https://www.patreon.com/parallaxviews Also visit our returning sponsor Mike Swanson's Wall Street Window for the best financial and trading newsletter around:https://wallstreetwindow.com/ On this special edition of Parallax Views, J.G. and a slew of top-notch guests delve into the antiwar movement and the attacks, past and present, on antiwar voices and dissidents. First up, Code Pink founder Medea Benjamin makes her Parallax Views debut! Code Pink is one of the most well-known antiwar, pro-peace groups in America today and have been protesting since the days of the Iraq War. Found by grassroots feminists, Code Pink seeks to counter the War Party with on-the-ground activism. Recently, Medea and Code Pink along with political streamer Hasan Piker were targeted by the Trump administration for their activism related to Cuba, a country currently being starved by U.S. sanctions. Medea and I talk about her recent, highly publicized run-in with Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, who claimed that Medea had assaulted her. The video footage, however, tells a different story and Medea. We'll also talk about the recent attempt by Bari Weiss' Free Press to whip up a deportation campaign against the Quincy Institute's Trita Parsi. Medea will also offer her thoughts on how to overcome the War Party's intimidation tactics and how the peace movement can give people young and old a sense of community. In the second segment of this special edition, Chip Gibbons, Policy Director of Defending Rights and Dissent, dives deep into how the second Trump administration, with help from foundations built by previous administrations of both the Democratic and Republican stripe, is cracking down on antiwar voices and dissidents more broadly. Learn about NSPM-7 and how its broad language poses a grave threat to free speech as well as how previous administrations helped pave the way for the Trump administration's current moves against dissenting voices. Chip lays it all out in informative fashion, connecting past to present and overing some hope at the end by discussing the at-least-for-the-moment defeat of a FISA Section 702, which allowed for warrantless wiretapping. In segment three, longtime peace activist David Swanson of World BEYOND War joins the show to offer his perspective on the antiwar and pro-peace movements in the age of Trump. We delve into the challenges faced by activists today, including the insidious practice of debanking, as well as why dissent is more necessary than ever. We also discuss the attacks on Palestine Solidarity in the U.K., David's book offering commentary on the antiwar works of Gen. Smedley Butler, and more! In the fourth and final segment of this special edition presentation, Angela Keaton of Antiwar.Com makes her Parallax Views debut! We delve into the need for antiwar voices on the left and right to oppose the War Party's machinations. We also discuss Mayor Karen Bass' activities in LA against pro-Palestinian activists and why the wars abroad always come back home with civil liberties suffering domestically. Angela also tells the story of how Antiwar.Com's editors, specifically Justin Raimondo and Eric Garris, were spied on by the FBI.