US Debates How to Reopen While Trump Sends Mixed Messages

On this episode the The Critical Hour, Dr. Wilmer Leon is joined by
Ray Baker, political analyst and host of the podcast Public Agenda;
and Shermichael Singleton, writer, political consultant and former CNN
political commentator.

Some US states such as Alaska, Georgia, Tennessee, Texas and South
Carolina took tentative steps toward reopening from COVID-19-related
lockdowns over the weekend. Hair salons, tattoo parlors, retailers and
restaurants reopened as governors began easing restrictions in some
sectors in an effort to begin to repair the battered economy. How
risky is this, and will the public respond?

According to Politico, "Tens of millions of pounds of American-grown
produce is rotting in fields as food banks across the country scramble
to meet a massive surge in demand, a two-pronged disaster that has
deprived farmers of billions of dollars in revenue while millions of
newly jobless Americans struggle to feed their families." There’s been
an ongoing discussion in this country since its founding: what is the
role of government? Conservatives love to advocate for smaller
government, less government. Is this is an example of what happens in
a country when government fails?

A Saturday headline in The Grayzone reads: "US elites use Russiagate
playbook to blame China and promote hostility." The article states:
"The bipartisan US establishment has coalesced around increased
hostility to China in response to the coronavirus pandemic. China has
faced numerous allegations including that it covered up the pandemic
at the world’s expense, developed the virus in a lab, and has spread
disinformation." In the midst of a global pandemic, why has China
become the new bogeyman, and what are the methods being used to
perpetuate this narrative?

There’s a great piece in CounterPunch, entitled “Capitalism Can’t Be
Repaired, Coronavirus Shows Its Huge Weaknesses,” wherein the author
writes, “Consider this absurdity: The US government’s policy in the
face of the current capitalist crash is to 'return the economy to the
pre-coronavirus normal.' What? In that 'normal' system, private
capitalists maximized profits by not producing the tests, masks,
ventilators, beds, etc., needed when coronavirus hit. ... In
capitalism, a small minority — employers — makes all the key decisions
(what, how, where to produce and how to use the proceeds) governing
production and distribution of most goods and services. The majority —
employees and their families — must live with the results of
employers’ decisions but are excluded from making them." I thought the
market — or as Adam Smith termed it, the "invisible hand" — that
people acting in their own self-interest, will eventually help the
best interests of the greater public good. What's happening here?

GUESTS:

Ray Baker — Political analyst and host of the podcast Public Agenda.

Shermichael Singleton — Writer, political consultant, and former CNN
political commentator.

Rashid Nuri — Founder of the Truly Living Well Center for Natural
Urban Agriculture (TLW). TLW is Atlanta’s premier urban agricultural
organization, growing tons of chemical-free, nutritious food,
providing jobs and educating communities about food, nutrition and
self-sufficiency. His new book is titled "Growing Out Loud: Journey of
a Food Revolutionary."

Mark Sleboda — International affairs and security analyst.

Dr. Richard Wolff — Professor of economics emeritus at the University
of Massachusetts, Amherst, and founder of the organization Democracy
at Work, whose latest book is "Capitalism's Crisis Deepens: Essays on
the Global Economic Meltdown."