Navy SEALs who witnessed their platoon chief commit war crimes in Iraq were encouraged not to speak out, and told they could lose their jobs for reporting him at a private meeting with a superior officer last year, according to new reports from The New York Times. A confidential Navy criminal investigation obtained by the Times reveals that the commandos saw Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher stab and kill an unarmed teenage captive, shoot to death a young girl and old man, and fire indiscriminately into crowds of civilians. But when the men on Gallagher's team called a private meeting with their troop commander and demanded an investigation, they were told to stay quiet on the matter, and no action was taken. The group of seven SEALs eventually were able to force an investigation, and Chief Edward Gallagher was arrested in September on more than a dozen charges, including premeditated murder and attempted murder. The court-martial centers on a charge that Gallagher stabbed to death a teenage member of the self-proclaimed Islamic State while the unarmed youth was being treated by a medic. The trial begins May 28. If convicted, Gallagher could face life in prison. We speak with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and national correspondent for The New York Times Dave Philipps. His latest piece is headlined "Navy SEALs Were Warned Against Reporting Their Chief for War Crimes"

Former Vice President Joe Biden has entered the 2020 race for the White House, becoming the 20th Democrat to seek the nomination in the largest and most diverse field of Democratic candidates ever to run for president. Biden will face scrutiny for his long and checkered record in the coming weeks, including his 1994 crime bill, that helped fuel mass incarceration with financial incentives to keep people behind bars, and his handling of Anita Hill's sexual harassment allegations against Supreme Court justice nominee Clarence Thomas in 1991. Biden is also known for close ties to the financial industry and voting to authorize the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. In the weeks before Biden announced his bid for the presidency, at least seven women stepped forward to accuse him of inappropriate touching. We speak with Andrew Cockburn, Washington editor for Harper's magazine, about Biden's record. His recent piece is headlined "No Joe! Joe Biden's disastrous legislative legacy."

A major new investigation by Amnesty International and Airwars has revealed the U.S.-led military coalition killed more than 1,600 civilians during the 2017 offensive to oust ISIS militants from the Syrian city of Raqqa. The coalition launched thousands of airstrikes and tens of thousands of artillery strikes on the city. U.S. troops fired more artillery into Raqqa than anywhere since the Vietnam War. At the time, the United States claimed it was the "most precise air campaign in history." We speak with Donatella Rovera, lead investigator with Amnesty International. She is calling on the U.S. and coalition nations to fully investigate the mass civilian casualties. Rovera is senior crisis response adviser at Amnesty International. The new investigation is titled "Rhetoric versus Reality: How the 'most precise air campaign in history' left Raqqa the most destroyed city in modern times."

President Trump Vows to Fight "All the Subpoenas" from Congress, U.S. Forces and Allies Killed More Afghan Civilians in Early 2019 Than the Taliban, U.S.-Led Coalition Killed 1,600 Syrian Civilians in Raqqa, Syria, China Jails Hong Kong Activists Who Led 2014 Pro-Democracy Rallies, Wealthy Sri Lankan Spice Trader Among Those Arrested over Easter Bombings, U.N. Condemns Saudi Arabia's Mass Execution of 37 Prisoners, Texas Executes White Supremacist Behind 1998 Lynching of James Byrd Jr., Joe Biden Enters 2020 Presidential Race, Kirstjen Nielsen Warned Against Discussing Russian Election Meddling with Trump, Thousands of Indigenous People Protest Bolsonaro's Deforestation Policies, U.K., Irish Politicians Join Funeral for Murdered Journalist Lyra McKee

Program Date:  04/25/2019 mp3audio:  Full Program

Program Date:  04/24/2019 mp3audio:  Full Program

Program Date:  04/23/2019 mp3audio:  Full Program

Program Date:  04/22/2019 https://www.backgroundbriefing.org/2019/04/22/background-briefing-april-22-2019/ mp3audio:  Full Program

FEATURING JEFFREY C. ISAAC – The billion-dollar question emerging from Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report is whether or not members of Congress should impeach President Donald Trump. Although the House of Representatives is where impeachment proceedings begin, it is the Senate where the process would complete. Democrats could start impeachment but unless Senate Republicans were on...

FEATURING NAOMI BURTON AND NICK HAYES – Television entertainment and media has entered a new hey-day. The advent of digital streaming technology has made it cheaper and easier for content creation and distribution. Now a crowd funding campaign for a new digital video streaming venture has a tantalizing message to set itself apart from its competitors....

Former Vice President Joe Biden has formally announced his candidacy for President, ending months of speculation. In a 3-minute video posted to social media on Thursday Biden made the case that the 2020 election was about “the battle for the soul of the nation.” He centered his announcement around the neo-Nazi and white supremacist gathering...

FEATURING PETER BALAKIAN – Tens of thousands of people marched to the Turkish Consulate in Los Angeles on Wednesday April 24th, the day that Armenians commemorated the 104th anniversary of the genocide. The yearly March for Justice is organized by LA’s Armenian community – the largest group of Armenians outside Armenia, and this year, as in...

We've got a lot of news and notes of concern --- both good and bad --- about the 2020 elections on today's BradCast. [Audio link posted below.] Among the many stories covered today... Former Vice-President Joe Biden finally announces that he's getting into the crowded 2020 race for the Democratic Presidential nomination. His "stirring" announcement video takes [...]

IN TODAY'S RADIO REPORT: Mozambique, already facing a humanitarian crisis, braces it's second monster cyclone in one month; Loss of Arctic permafrost could cost the global economy trillions; More than a thousand arrested as massive climate protests end in London; PLUS: Los Angeles moves ahead with its own Green New Deal to combat climate change... [...]

On today's BradCast, Donald Trump's Administration is now barreling the nation towards one or more unprecedented Constitutional crises as he panics about the possibility of impeachment. But the fruits of the GOP's labor in violating Constitutional norms to steal a majority on the U.S. Supreme Court may now finally be set to pay off for [...]

Accountability and respect for the rule of law and Constitution are at the center of just about every story we cover on today's BradCast --- (and on most days...but especially today) --- particularly with an absolutely lawless Administration and criminal President becoming seemingly more lawless and criminal by the day. [Audio link to show is [...]