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Latest Featured Reports | Saturday, April 18, 2026
U.S. Middle Eastern 'War Crimes' Then and Now: 'BradCast' 4/16/26
Guest: Attorney, former U.S. Army Captain Keith Barber; Also: Eastman disbarred; ICE official charged in MN...
'Green News Report' 4/16/26
  w/ Brad & Desi
Big Oil reaping $30m/hr thanks to Iran War; More flooding for Hawaii; Super Typhoon slams U.S. Pacific islands; PLUS: AZ voters oust pro-fossil fuel candidates...with help from Turning Point!...
Previous GNRs: 4/14/26 - 4/9/26 - Archives...
Trump's USDA Takes Chainsaw to U.S. Forest Service: 'BradCast' 4/15/26
Guest: Conservationist Jim Pattiz; Also: Judge blocks Indiana law barring Student IDs for voting; More U.S. ground troops headed to Iran...
Midterm Elections Reality Check: 'BradCast' 4/14/26
House, Senate and Gerrymandering War updates; Also: Super typhoon slams U.S. territories; China calls Trump's blockade bluff in the Strait...
'Green News Report' 4/14/26
  w/ Brad & Desi
Iran War deepening global poverty while Big Oil rakes in big profits; New France, Britain policies to reduce fossil fuel dependence; PLUS: Turns out birds are smart enough to avoid wind turbines...
Previous GNRs: 4/9/26 - 4/7/26 - Archives...
Another Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Weekend: 'BradCast' 4/13/26
Vance fails in Iran; Hungary defeats its autocratic leader; Trump attacks the Pope, depicts himself as Jesus; Swalwell crashes and burns...
Sunday 'Mission Accomp...' Toons
THIS WEEK: So Much Winning! ... Melania's Helpful Reminder ... J.D. on the Job! ... It's our latest collection of the week's best toons!...
MAGA Buckles:
'BradCast' 4/9/26
Iran War, broken promises, growing failures turning MAGA media elite, social network supporters, red state Republicans against Trump; Also: Majority now support impeachment; More insider Polymarket paydays...
'Green News Report' 4/9/26
  w/ Brad & Desi
Global oil and gas still locked up in Strait amid 'ceasefire'; Damage to the ag sectoralready done; PLUS: 'Super' El Nino is brewing in the Pacific Ocean that will boost extreme weather...
Previous GNRs: 4/7/26 - 3/26/26 - Archives...
'Victory'?: Chaos, 'Ceasefire' Politics and Iran With the Upper Hand: 'BradCast' 4/8/26
Guest: Univ. of IL's Nicholas Grossman; Also: Another huge night for Dems in WI, GA...
Bye Bye Bondi (and It's TACO Tuesday Again!): 'BradCast' 4/7/26
Guest: Randall Eliason, formerly of DOJ; Also: Trump pulls Iran 'civilization will die' threat as MAGA Bigs call for his removal...
'Green News Report' 4/7/26
Trump threatens war crimes against Iran's civilian power infrastructure; War boosting global demand for renewables; PLUS: U.S. West snowpack's early melt raises fire season fears...
Trump Unhinging: 'BradCast' 4/6/26
Dangerously unbalanced 'Escalator-in-Chief' unleashes new war crime threats in profane Easter rant; seeks $1.5T for DoD; has already lost to Iran; Also: Callers ring in!...
Easter Sunday 'Very Bad Bunny' Toons
THIS WEEK: He is Rizz ... Golden vs. Stone ... Bondi Redacted ... Known Your Noems ... and more in our latest festive holiday Sunday toons!...
Potential Disaster for Democracy in Deep 'Blue' CA
Less than 1/3 of primary voters could eliminate the right to cast a vote for a Democratic Governor in the Golden State this November...
Sunday 'Fog of Limited Military Operation' Toons
THIS WEEK: So Much Winning ... ICEy Reception ... And Still No Kings ... and more! In this week's toon collection!...
'Green News Report' 3/26/26
Iran War fallout expands; Admin relaxes smog rules to moderate gas prices; PLUS Three US offshore wind farms survived Trump, now delivering clean electricity....
BARCODED BALLOTS AND BALLOT MARKING DEVICES
BMDs pose a new threat to democracy in all 50 states...
VIDEO: 'Rise of the Tea Bags'
Brad interviews American patriots...
'Democracy's Gold Standard'
Hand-marked, hand-counted ballots...
Brad's Upcoming Appearances
(All times listed as PACIFIC TIME unless noted)
Media Appearance Archives...
'Special Coverage' Archives
GOP Voter Registration Fraud Scandal 2012...
VA GOP VOTER REG FRAUDSTER OFF HOOK
Felony charges dropped against VA Republican caught trashing voter registrations before last year's election. Did GOP AG, Prosecutor conflicts of interest play role?...

Criminal GOP Voter Registration Fraud Probe Expanding in VA
State investigators widening criminal probe of man arrested destroying registration forms, said now looking at violations of law by Nathan Sproul's RNC-hired firm...

DOJ PROBE SOUGHT AFTER VA ARREST
Arrest of RNC/Sproul man caught destroying registration forms brings official calls for wider criminal probe from compromised VA AG Cuccinelli and U.S. AG Holder...

Arrest in VA: GOP Voter Reg Scandal Widens
'RNC official' charged on 13 counts, for allegely trashing voter registration forms in a dumpster, worked for Romney consultant, 'fired' GOP operative Nathan Sproul...

ALL TOGETHER: ROVE, SPROUL, KOCHS, RNC
His Super-PAC, his voter registration (fraud) firm & their 'Americans for Prosperity' are all based out of same top RNC legal office in Virginia...

LATimes: RNC's 'Fired' Sproul Working for Repubs in 'as Many as 30 States'
So much for the RNC's 'zero tolerance' policy, as discredited Republican registration fraud operative still hiring for dozens of GOP 'Get Out The Vote' campaigns...

'Fired' Sproul Group 'Cloned', Still Working for Republicans in At Least 10 States
The other companies of Romney's GOP operative Nathan Sproul, at center of Voter Registration Fraud Scandal, still at it; Congressional Dems seek answers...

FINALLY: FOX ON GOP REG FRAUD SCANDAL
The belated and begrudging coverage by Fox' Eric Shawn includes two different video reports featuring an interview with The BRAD BLOG's Brad Friedman...

COLORADO FOLLOWS FLORIDA WITH GOP CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION
Repub Sec. of State Gessler ignores expanding GOP Voter Registration Fraud Scandal, rants about evidence-free 'Dem Voter Fraud' at Tea Party event...

CRIMINAL PROBE LAUNCHED INTO GOP VOTER REGISTRATION FRAUD SCANDAL IN FL
FL Dept. of Law Enforcement confirms 'enough evidence to warrant full-blown investigation'; Election officials told fraudulent forms 'may become evidence in court'...

Brad Breaks PA Photo ID & GOP Registration Fraud Scandal News on Hartmann TV
Another visit on Thom Hartmann's Big Picture with new news on several developing Election Integrity stories...

CAUGHT ON TAPE: COORDINATED NATIONWIDE GOP VOTER REG SCAM
The GOP Voter Registration Fraud Scandal reveals insidious nationwide registration scheme to keep Obama supporters from even registering to vote...

CRIMINAL ELECTION FRAUD COMPLAINT FILED AGAINST GOP 'FRAUD' FIRM
Scandal spreads to 11 FL counties, other states; RNC, Romney try to contain damage, split from GOP operative...

RICK SCOTT GETS ROLLED IN GOP REGISTRATION FRAUD SCANDAL
Rep. Ted Deutch (D-FL) sends blistering letter to Gov. Rick Scott (R) demanding bi-partisan reg fraud probe in FL; Slams 'shocking and hypocritical' silence, lack of action...

VIDEO: Brad Breaks GOP Reg Fraud Scandal on Hartmann TV
Breaking coverage as the RNC fires their Romney-tied voter registration firm, Strategic Allied Consulting...

RNC FIRES NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION FIRM FOR FRAUD
After FL & NC GOP fire Romney-tied group, RNC does same; Dead people found reg'd as new voters; RNC paid firm over $3m over 2 months in 5 battleground states...

EXCLUSIVE: Intvw w/ FL Official Who First Discovered GOP Reg Fraud
After fraudulent registration forms from Romney-tied GOP firm found in Palm Beach, Election Supe says state's 'fraud'-obsessed top election official failed to return call...

GOP REGISTRATION FRAUD FOUND IN FL
State GOP fires Romney-tied registration firm after fraudulent forms found in Palm Beach; Firm hired 'at request of RNC' in FL, NC, VA, NV & CO...
The Secret Koch Brothers Tapes...


With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 1/6/2026 10:32am PT  
Follow and stream @GreenNewsReport!...

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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: While we were out: Donald Trump deposed Venezuela's president to gain control of the country's oil reserves; Trump Administration halted five offshore wind projects already under construction; PLUS: The U.S. saw its warmest Christmas on record, thanks to fossil fuels... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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GNR's now celebrating 17 YEARS of independent green news, politics, analysis, snarky comment and connecting climate change dots over your public airwaves!Click here to help us celebrate with a donation!...

Got comments, tips, love letters, hate mail? Drop us a line at GreenNews@BradBlog.com or right here at the comments link below. All GNRs are always archived at GreenNews.BradBlog.com.

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): 'Trump's EPA' in 2025: A fossil fuel-friendly approach to deregulation; Pollution from coal plants was dropping. Then came Trump and AI; EPA says it will propose drinking water limit for perchlorate, but only because court ordered it; Trump Has Left The US Less Prepared For Natural Disasters, Experts Say... PLUS: Trump says cost was behind his water pipeline veto, but some say it's retribution... and much, MUCH more! ...

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Johnson kills House vote on ACA subsidies; Hegseth refuses to release boat strike video; Trump declares fentanyl 'WMD'; Repubs push back at his remarks on Reiner murder; Wiles goes off script...
By Brad Friedman on 12/16/2025 6:26pm PT  

Today on The BradCast: It's difficult to notice --- or trust your own eyes --- when it all happens in slow motion. At least until it happens quickly. But, yes, the wall continues to crack. Day by day. Brick by brick. [Audio to full show follows this summary.]

Among the many stories covered on today's program...

  • One of the worst headwinds that House Speaker Mike Johnson and his Congressional Republicans will be facing next year, in their hopes of hanging on to their narrow majority in the lower chamber, is their cuts to Affordable Care Act (ACA, or Obamacare) subsidies that are set to expire at year's end. It will skyrocket the cost of premiums for millions of Americans beginning on January 1. Today, Johnson announced his own caucus in the House could not agree on a fix, all but guaranteeing there will be no such fix until next year earliest. Congress will be recessing until 2026 at the end of this week.
  • On yesterday's Rachel Maddow Show, she was somewhat misleading in her suggestion that last night at midnight, December 15th, was the last chance to sign up for a health care policy under the Affordable Care Act to ensure health care coverage next year. In fact, the Open Enrollment period for Obamacare --- for both new policies or to change a current one --- continues until January 15th next year in most states. Though, depending on which state you are in, coverage may now not begin until February under a new policy. In several states, however, which run their own exchanges (rather than forcing resident to purchase policies via the federal exchange), including California, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Washington D.C., you can still sign up for policies (or change current ones) before the end of the year to see them take effect as of January 1. Costs are going to go up either way for millions of Americans, thanks to Republicans in Congress refusing to extend subsidies that would prevent monthly premiums for policies purchased via the Obamacare marketplaces from doubling or tripling in many cases from what they were this year.
  • Donald Trump and the U.S. Military's murder spree on the high seas continued on Monday with three new attacks on three supposed drug boats near the coast of Venezuela, bringing the number of people killed by our completely unlawful attacks to at least 95. In related news on Monday, Trump signed an Executive Order "designating fentanyl as a Weapon of Mass Destruction", in hopes of adding some --- any --- legal justification to both his murder strikes on boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, and a promised eventual attack on supposed "narco-terrorists" in Venezuela (even though fentanyl is not produced or trafficked from there.) Also relatedly, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday said he will not release video of the unlawful second strike on an alleged drug boat from September 2nd, when the U.S. fired on two shipwrecked survivors following an attack earlier in the day, a huge violation of both U.S. and International law.
  • Trump's not-insane, very powerful, and very low profile White House Chief of Staff, Susie Wiles, had a whole bunch of pretty shocking things to say about Trump, his policies (both foreign and domestic), his top appointees (from Vance to Bondi to Vought), his retribution campaign against political foes, and much more in some ten interviews reportedly given over the past year to an author who has written a book about WH Chiefs of Staff over the years. A number of Wiles' eyebrow raising remarks from those interviews were published by Vanity Fair today and D.C. is abuzz trying to figure out what it all means.
  • As still more bricks in the wall appear to be falling out, a number of Republicans, including MAGA loyalists past and present, have seemingly turned --- gently or otherwise --- against Donald Trump's deranged, repulsive remarks on Monday about the murder of Hollywood legend Rob Reiner, who was killed just hours earlier on Sunday along with his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, in their Los Angeles home.
  • Finally, Desi Doyen is here with our latest Green News Report as climate change-fueled torrential rain, flooding and levee failure plague the Pacific Northwest; Trump continues his very selective and political approval for federal disaster aid; and as New York City's congestion pricing program (which Trump opposes, natch) continues to clear the air in Midtown...

CLICK TO LISTEN OR DOWNLOAD SHOW!...

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With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 12/16/2025 10:50am PT  
Follow and stream @GreenNewsReport!...

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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Torrential rains trigger historic flooding across western Washington State; Trump Administration has rejected disaster aid requests from at least 12 states; PLUS: NYC's congestion pricing program has dramatically reduced traffic and air pollution... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

Click here to listen or download MP3 (6 mins)...

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GNR's now celebrating 17 YEARS of independent green news, politics, analysis, snarky comment and connecting climate change dots over your public airwaves!Click here to help us celebrate with a donation!...

Got comments, tips, love letters, hate mail? Drop us a line at GreenNews@BradBlog.com or right here at the comments link below. All GNRs are always archived at GreenNews.BradBlog.com.

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Ford will take $19.5 billion write-down as it rolls back EV plans; Costa Rica, famous for marine conservation, is bankrolling its own destruction; Wyoming ranchers wanting solar say utilities and state stand in their way; Trump's anti-climate policies are driving up insurance costs for homeowners, say experts; Denied federal disaster aid, a town in Maryland's Trump Country feels forgotten ... PLUS: Climate change, new mining may push Alaska's Arctic past the brink... and much, MUCH more! ...

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Guest: Dr. Micheal E. Mann of Univ. of Pennsylvania; Also: Tish James beats Trump yet again, this time on wind energy...
By Brad Friedman on 12/9/2025 7:22pm PT  

Today on The BradCast: For years, we've called out the authoritarian petrostates working to block the fight against fossil fuels and our existential battle against climate change that has been exacerbated by them. Even as the U.S. has long been the world's worst per capita emitter, I think today, under this particular President, is the first time we've had to include the U.S. government itself as one of those "authoritarian petrostates." [Audio link to full show follows this summary.]

FIRST UP... It's another win for New York Attorney General Letitia James against Donald Trump. As you know, she successfully oversaw several fraud cases (both civil and criminal), against him and his company in the Empire State last year. Since re-taking office, Trump has weaponized his Justice Dept. to try and exact his revenge against James. He continues to fail. Hilariously.

First he had to find someone willing to seek an indictment against James after his own U.S. Attorney in Virginia refused to do so. He appointed his personal insurance lawyer, Lindsey Halligan, to the job. She was able to obtain a grand jury indictment related to supposed mortgage fraud. But two weeks ago, a judge tossed out the indictment after finding Halligan was unlawfully serving as U.S. Attorney. Last week, Trump found a federal prosecutor from Missouri who was willing to re-indict James. But the grand jury rejected the indictment! (In an amusing side note, yesterday ProPublica found that Trump himself appears to have committed the very same "crime" that he has been trying to indict James for!)

Then, on Monday night, a federal judge in Massachusetts found in favor of a group of some 18 state Attorneys General, led by James, who had sued to block Trump's "Day One" Executive Order shutting down virtually all wind farm projects on federal lands and waters. The EO was tossed out by the judge as "arbitrary and capricious" and a violation of U.S. law. James wins again! So do the residents of those states and all the rest of us who pay the price for dangerous, climate killing fossil fuel energy, rather than clean, cheap renewable energy like wind power.

SPEAKING OF PAYING THE PRICE FOR FOSSIL FUELS... The 30th annual U.N. Climate Summit (COP30) wrapped up in Brazil a couple of weeks ago. For the first time, the United States, under the Trump Administration, didn't even bother to send a delegation. Ultimately, progress toward the world's transition away from fossil fuels to meet the 10-year old Paris Climate Agreement targets --- to keep temperatures from rising more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial times --- was stymied by fossil fuel industry lobbyists and authoritarian petrostates like Saudi Arabia, Russia and now, sadly, the U.S. The conference's final statement, which must be agreed upon by all parties, did not even mention fossil fuels.

Today, as the European Union's climate change service announced that 2025 would be either the second or third-hottest year ever recorded globally, after 2024 smashed all previous records, we are joined by one of the world's premier climate scientists.

Dr. MICHAEL E. MANN is the Presidential Distinguished Professor of Earth & Environmental Science and Director of the Penn Center for Science, Sustainability and the Media at the University of Pennsylvania. He is a member of the group awarded the 2007 Nobel Peace Price, author of some 160 peer-reviewed and published papers, and of more than half a dozen books on climate science. His latest, with vaccine scientist Dr. Peter J. Hotez, is Science Under Siege: How to Fight the Five Most Powerful Forces That Threaten Our World.

Today, Mann joins us to share, among many related things, his thoughts on the disappointment of COP30 in Brazil, and how that "Bad COP" suggests that it may be time for a new format for the annual climate conferences. "The U.N. needs to show some backbone," he urges today.

As to the U.S. under Republican/Trump rule, he tells me: "The problem is that you have a small number of bad actors, authoritarian petrostates, leading among them, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and now the United States. We have to view the United States as part of what I sometimes call the 'Coalition of the Unwilling.' A small number of fossil fuel-driven countries that are doing everything they can to block a global agreement."

Mann warns, during our broad discussion, that the time for action to prevent the worst effects of climate change is now quickly running out. "It is sometimes said that 'Nature bats last,'" he quips today. "The Earth's system, the global climate, doesn't care about the politics of fossil fuel countries, and the bickering between the petrostates and the rest. The climate system doesn't care. It will continue to warm up as long as we burn fossil fuels. And all of these impacts will continue to get worse."

"We have a finite budget, a finite amount of carbon that we can burn and keep the planet below 1.5 Celsius --- for Americans, it's 3 degrees Fahrenheit, basically --- a level of warming beyond which we will see far worse consequences than we've already witnessed," Mann explains. "We can actually calculate, with some uncertainty, how much carbon is left in that budget. The calculations show that three years of business as usual --- if we don't begin to ramp down those carbon emissions dramatically, if we just continue with business as usual for three or more years --- then we burn through that budget."

"What's so tragic is if we had acted decades ago, if politicians around the world, governments around the world, had listened to the scientists decades ago, we could have fairly gently decarbonized our societal infrastructure. A fairly gentle reduction of carbon emissions, and a relatively slow, steady move away from fossil fuels towards renewable energy. We could have afforded that, if we had started acting decades ago. We can't afford that now. We have got to undergo that transition in a matter of years. Right now, we are clearly not meeting the moment when it comes to these annual climate summits. Something's gotta change."

We also discuss his continuing feud with Microsoft founder turned philanthropist Bill Gates, who Mann charges with now spreading climate disinformation at an alarming rate by suggesting that somehow a 'technological fix' will be found to solve these problems; how climate scientist Mann found common ground with virus scientist Hotez to co-write their new book, Science Under Siege on "the Five Most Powerful Forces That Threaten Our World" (and what those forces now are); and how --- and if --- he remains optimistic that the world can overcome the quickly worsening climate challenges we now face with so little time left before impacts become irreversible.

"This is Tolkien-esque battle. It's a battle not for Middle Earth, but for Earth itself," he tells me, referencing the Lord of the Rings novels. "There are so clearly forces of good and evil that are involved. I think framing it in those terms can be helpful and clarifying. There's a line...'There's some good in this world, and it's worth fighting for.' It's about fighting the good fight. Even if the odds don't seem in your favor, and the forces against which you are fighting seem overwhelming, the only way you're going to prevail is if you fight the good fight. And that's what we've got to do."

Tune in for much more worth hearing from Mann today...

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With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 12/9/2025 10:18am PT  
Follow and stream @GreenNewsReport!...

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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: New study warns that climate impacts are accelerating across the volatile Middle East; Congressional Republicans give another big gift to Big Oil in Alaska; Feud between MAGA and MAHA grows over Trump EPA's rollbacks of toxic chemical rules; PLUS: Despite Trump, U.S. utility-scale solar deployment hits new record... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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Got comments, tips, love letters, hate mail? Drop us a line at GreenNews@BradBlog.com or right here at the comments link below. All GNRs are always archived at GreenNews.BradBlog.com.

IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Deadly Asian floods are no fluke. They're a climate warning; Days after COP30, Brazil weakened Amazon safeguards; Federal judge strikes down Trump's anti-wind directive; Science journal retracts widely cited study that claimed Monsanto's Roundup is safe; States push to end secrecy over data center water use; Plastic pollution could more than double by 2040, report finds... PLUS: Trump climate policies are driving up insurance costs for homeowners... and much, MUCH more! ...

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Guest: Dan Becker of the Center for BioDiversity on the gutting of U.S. fuel efficiency standards; Also: Cutting Social Security and Medicare; Another bailout for Trump-tariffed farmers...
By Brad Friedman on 12/8/2025 6:30pm PT  

Today on The BradCast: Don't let our ridiculous, sociopathic President's absurd antics and unspeakable corruption prevent you from losing sight of the relentless, damaging effects of his simple, terrible, policy-making decisions, and the increasingly high costs Americans are paying for them. Even regarding policy-making decisions that Trump previously vowed he would not make. [Audio link to full show follows this summary.]

As you know, Donald Trump ran in 2024 on a promise to decrease costs for consumers on "day one", vowing to "make American affordable again." Now he claims the word "affordability" has been made up as part of another "Democrat hoax", and that his policies --- including massive tariffs which serve as a tax on every American --- are actually lowering prices. They aren't.

Similarly, he repeatedly vowed to never touch Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid. He is now gutting all three of them in various ways, as even Fox "News" pointed out today, believe it or not, noting that "Trump broke his promise to protect a lifeline for 71 million Americans." Not to mention his massive cuts to the Affordable Care Act (ACA, or Obamacare) that go into effect on January 1, increasing the cost of health care for everyone, even those with employee health care plans.

Back in October, after Trump's tariffs pushed away the world's largest soybean customer, China, Trump claimed to have made a "deal" with them their purchase of 12 million metric by the world's largest customer by year's end. Instead, China has purchased a quarter of the amount that the Administration claimed the Great Deal Maker had secured. American farmers are now facing bankruptcy while consumers are paying more everything, including for beef, the price of which has spiked thanks, in no small part, to climate change-fueled drought. (Climate change, as Trump will tell you, is just another "Democrat hoax," of course.)

In hopes of mitigating the damage his policies have caused for farmers, on Monday, Trump announced another new bailout for the ag industry. (The Administration is, euphemistically, calling it a "bridge payment".) The latest aid package is for some $12 billion to farmers as overseas customers, especially China, have fled, while prices for fertilizer and seed are up (also thanks to Trump's tariff tantrum) and the labor market is scarce, thanks to Trump's immigration policy thuggery. The new aid package follows on two similar farmer bailouts during Trump's first term --- when he originally began his trade war against China --- for $22 billion in 2019 and a whopping $46 billion in 2020.

As if all of that isn't bad enough, last week Trump announced a new rule to reverse money- and life-saving fuel efficiency standards enacted by Joe Biden for cars and trucks. He claimed that encouraging the manufacture of more polluting cars and cutting $7,500 incentives for clean electronic vehicles would somehow make the purchase of new cars $1,000 cheaper in the U.S. than they would have been under the Biden rules.

All of that is nonsense. It is as absurd as Trump's years-long bluster about ending a "Biden EV mandate" that never actually existed, as explained by our guest today, DAN BECKER, Director of the Safe Climate Transport Campaign at the Climate Law Institute of the nonprofit Center for Biological Diversity. Becker has worked for years at the Campaign, developing the strategy and fight for the biggest single step any nation has taken to fight global warming: The Barack Obama Administration's ground-breaking program to cut deadly greenhouse gas emissions and other pollution in half from cars, SUVs and pickup trucks. Biden furthered that program with additional efficiency standards. And, last week, Trump announced he was doing away with them.

"In one stroke," Becker told AP, "Trump is worsening three of our nation's most vexing problems: the thirst for oil, high gas pump costs and global warming." Today, Becker joins us to dive into the details.

The previous CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standard enacted by Obama and then Biden "saves gas. And by saving gas, you save money at the pump because you don't have to fill your tank with as much gas, or go as often. And when you burn less gas, you pollute less," Becker tells me today. "In fact, every gallon of gas burned pumps 25 pounds of carbon dioxide pollution into the atmosphere. And we burn a lot of gallons. So this is a major source of global warming pollution. And the US, because we drive a lot more than other folks, we drive more gas guzzlers than other folks, and we drive them further. We are the biggest auto polluter on the planet. And Trump is only going to make that much worse."

The Obama/Biden rules "represent the biggest single step that any nation has ever taken to cut use of oil --- saving you money at the pump --- cut pollution that is a result of burning that gas in your car," Becker explains. "And it's really unjustifiable to watch the President of the United States tear up this very valuable protection for consumers, for the environment, cutting our dependence on foreign oil, and at the same time lie, and say 'Oh, it's actually a good thing for you because you will save money.' Because, in fact, it will cost you much more at the gas pump than you would save upfront with a dirtier car."

All the while, China is expanding their sale of Electric Vehicles around the world at a massive pace --- even while they, essentially, aren't allowed to be sold in the U.S. (unless you are willing to pay a 100% tariff). "They're selling like hotcakes in Asia, Europe, South America, and Africa. But we don't buy them here," says Becker. In the bargain, however, U.S. automakers --- including those who joined Trump at the White House last week for his announcement --- are, shooting themselves in the foot. "The reality is that the auto companies are working with Trump to create their own grave," warns Becker.

Why are they doing this? Tune in today for an explanation of that and much more, as Trump's policies --- never mind his bluster and daily sociopathy --- are costing Americans a fortune...and even their lives...

CLICK TO LISTEN OR DOWNLOAD SHOW!...

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With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 12/4/2025 10:21am PT  
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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Trump Administration proposes rolling back fuel economy standards, making you pay more for gas; Trump's threats against Venezuela are all about the oil; Youth climate activists sue Utah to stop new fossil fuel development; PLUS: Seed Bombs for SoCal... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Electricity Should Be Free at Noon, and other ideas for lowering electricity costs; The rapid approach of the 1.5°C global warming threshold since the Paris Agreement; As Countries Set Trade Rules at CITES, Animal and Plant Trafficking Rages On; Trump Dismantles Programs Designed To Cut Electricity Demand ... PLUS: Rare Win for Renewable Energy: Trump DOE Funds Geothermal Network Expansion

... and much, MUCH more! ...

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Also: Degenerate President spews racist invective against U.S. Somali community ahead of planned federal immigration thuggery...
By Brad Friedman on 12/3/2025 6:39pm PT  

Not that I hope to tip off our degenerate authoritarian oligarchy on today's BradCast. But if the Republican Party still believes in math (and it's unclear if they do), there was more very bad news for them in Tuesday's elections this week. [Audio link to full show follows this summary.]

Unapologetically progressive Democratic candidate Aftyn Behn appears to have lost the Special Election race for the U.S. House in Tennessee's very "red", GOP-gerrymandered 7th Congressional District to stalwart Trump Republican Matt Van Epps on Tuesday. Unofficial numbers suggest she lost by about 9 points.

Sounds like a rout. But, in fact, it really wasn't. Trump won the district last year by 22 points, meaning there was a 13 point shift toward Democrats on Tuesday, precisely the average shift that we have seen toward Dems in all of the Special Elections for U.S. House this year. There are 14 counties in TN's 7th CD. Everyone of them shifted towards the left on Tuesday. That, after Republicans were forced to dump a lot of money into what should have been an easy contest on Tuesday.

While House Speaker Mike Johnson pretended not to be concerned about any of this --- "They were really trying to set the scenario that there's some sort of wave going on. There's not. We just proved that there's not." --- actual math really does suggest trouble ahead for the GOP in next year's critical 2026 midterm cycle.

With that average 13 point shift toward Democrats in special elections this year, we do a little bit of mathing on today's show. For example, last year, in the 2024 U.S. House general elections...

  • 28 Republicans won their races by 10 percent or less.
  • 64 of them won by 12 points or less.
  • And a whopping 92 Republicans won by just 15 percent or less last year.

With a razor-thin 3 vote advantage heading into the new year, no wonder several GOP-controlled states are attempting panicked mid-decade gerrymanders, and that the corrupt Republicans on the U.S. Supreme Court are likely to help them. But new maps may ultimately make their problems worse, not better, if this year's elections are any indication. Safe Republican districts made less safe with new gerrymanders to steal districts from Democratic voters may end up backfiring. Of course, I won't dismiss Democrats' ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory between now and next year. But when Johnson says, "This doesn't concern me at all," he is either lying, in denial or incredibly stupid. And he's not all that stupid.

"This is one of the biggest flashing red light warning signs we've seen yet for Republicans," a far more realistic GOP strategist observed last night. Much more on today's show.

As if that's not enough, in a stunning runoff election on Tuesday in Georgia, the Democratic candidate easily unseated the incumbent Republican Mayor in the suburban city of Roswell, outside of Atlanta. She will be the previously deep "red" city's first Democratic Mayor in nearly 30 years. But don't worry, Mike. All's well!

Also today, our disgusting racist President said a whole bunch of disgusting racist things at the White House on Tuesday about Somalia and the American Somali population in Minnesota and elsewhere, repeatedly describing them as "garbage", "people who don't work," and people who should "go back to where they came from." Where many of them came from is a war-torn nation in Africa, with thousands seeking refuge here in the 90s. Most of them are now American citizens, with many living in Minnesota, where Trump's degenerate federal jack-booted immigration thugs will reportedly be targeting them, specifically in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region, with upcoming raids.

State Governor Tim Walz --- who Trump last week described as "retarded" --- as well as the Minneapolis Mayor, its Chief of Police and many other officials and immigration advocates are vowing not to roll over to Trump's racist immigration hooliganism. Similar raids are reportedly being launched this week in New Orleans, where residents are also hoping to push back against Trump's increasingly unpopular thuggery however they can.

Finally today, Desi Doyen has our latest Green News Report (after we had to preempt yesterday), with news on the end of disappointing U.N. climate talks in Brazil; the rising death toll following two simultaneous climate change-fueled typhoons in Southeast Asia; and the Trump Administration's latest plans to pollute your air and poison your drinking water...

CLICK TO LISTEN OR DOWNLOAD SHOW!...

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With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 12/2/2025 10:02am PT  
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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Death toll climbs in Southeast Asia after simultaneous typhoons; U.N. COP30 climate summit ends with sharp divide over phasing out fossil fuels; PLUS: While you were out on holiday, the Trump Administration got busy bringing back dirty air and contaminated water... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Pthalates: How these chemicals went everywhere and threaten our health; BLM Lets Ranchers Renew Grazing Permits With Little Environmental Scrutiny; Regulator Stopped Enforcing Gas Flaring Limits After Alberta Pressure; Exxon Halts Plans For Massive Low-Carbon Hydrogen Facility In Texas; Murdoch Media Wrongly Pinned NJ High Rates on Clean Energy, Says Watchdog... PLUS: Is Trump going after Venezuela's largest oil reserves?... and much, MUCH more! ...

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With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 11/18/2025 10:52am PT  
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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Trump's embattled Acting Director of FEMA resigns; U.N. COP30 climate summit in Brazil finally tackles climate disinformation; PLUS: Speaking of disinformation, documents reveal Exxon funded climate denial campaigns across Latin America... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): An Amazon climate summit built on contradiction, creating unease for California delegates; Nepal village has survived for 1,000 years but now recurring floods threaten its future; Nearly 47 million Americans at risk of health hazards from fossil fuel infrastructure; Television "Landman" skips the facts on West Texas wind energy; What policies can help solve Iran's climate-driven water shortage?... PLUS: Disaster and insurance costs are rising. The middle class is struggling to hang on... and much, MUCH more! ...

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With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 11/4/2025 10:44am PT  
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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Humanitarian disaster looms in Jamaica, following monster Hurricane Melissa; Extreme rainstorm shatters records in New York City; Shocking glacial retreat in Antarctica; PLUS: Trump Administration used mob-like tactics to scuttle first-ever emissions rules for international shipping... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Jamaica rushes to prepare for peak tourism season as it digs out from Hurricane Melissa; RFK backs down on Tylenol, moves on to wind turbines; Bill Gates: Climate "super-important" but not "super bad"; Major American LNG exporters habitually break air pollution laws: report; Exxon-funded think tanks to spread climate denial in Latin America, documents show; Dept. of Energy directs $100 million to modernize declining coal plants; After decades, green sea turtles have been saved from extinction --- for now... PLUS: How Alabama Power kept bills up and opposition out to become one of the most powerful utilities in the country... and much, MUCH more! ...

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With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 10/23/2025 10:36am PT  
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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Groundbreaking report reveals powerful link between poverty and the climate crisis; The world is not on track to meet the Paris Climate Agreement's 2030 targets; The U.S. government is shut down, but not for the fossil fuel industry; PLUS: Endangered Right Whales bouncing back!... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Ten years of the Paris Agreement: the present and future of extreme heat; Trump policies gutting US oil production; Super-warming methane gas is being tackled too slowly, UN says ahead of COP30; Biggest meat producers unleashing more methane than biggest oil firms; Anti-science bills hit statehouses, ending public health protections; Tropical Storm Melissa expected to become major hurricane... PLUS: American e-waste is causing a 'hidden tsunami' in Southeast Asia... and much, MUCH more! ...

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With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 10/7/2025 10:56am PT  
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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Massive oil refinery fire in Southern California set to spike gasoline prices; FEMA halts $300 million in emergency preparedness grants to states; PLUS: Trump Administration blocks billions in transit and clean energy funding to blue states... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): How shutdown gridlock could impede disaster preparedness; How Big Agriculture got its way in the latest MAHA report; Fracking waste in a landfill again poses a pollution problem in PA; Rising sea levels threaten over 100m buildings. Where does Europe stand?; Climate change is disrupting global wind speeds, impacting planetary health... PLUS: MAGA or Markets? Who will win the war on solar?... and much, MUCH more! ...

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With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 9/30/2025 10:42am PT  
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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Hurricane season wakes up, as National Weather Service struggles with staffing amid Trump layoffs; Trump Administration unveils plans for taxpayers to bail out Big Coal; PLUS: Energy Department orders staffers: 'Don't say climate change'... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): Trump is doing everything he can to raise your energy bills; Hurricanes swerve: Disaster response might avoid a stress test; 'Ludicrous': Bureau of Land Management to sell off federal coal reserve leases in Wyoming; UNESCO designates 26 new biosphere reserves amid biodiversity challenges and climate change; Indigenous land defender killed as Ecuador cracks down on activists... PLUS: World ocean acidity crosses critical threshold for marine life: study... and much, MUCH more! ...

--- Click here for REST OF STORY!... ---

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With Brad Friedman & Desi Doyen...
By Desi Doyen on 9/23/2025 10:51am PT  
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IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Historic U.N. treaty protecting the High Seas comes into force; Coral reefs won't survive a warming planet, study warns; PLUS: The Trump Energy Department's climate science deniers group has been disbanded... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

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IN 'GREEN NEWS EXTRA' (see links below): UN chief warns 1.5C warming goal at risk of 'collapsing'; Judge says work on wind farm off Rhode Island can proceed, for now; Defense Department delays cleanup of 'forever chemicals' nationwide; PA governor threatens to pull the state out of the region's power grid; National parks remove signs about climate, slavery and Japanese detention; FOIA records reveal EPA leaders' frequent meetings with industry lobbyists; Communities around the world find plastic pellets in their local waterways... PLUS: The people behind America's disaster recovery... and much, MUCH more! ...

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