Explore every episode of the podcast WPKN: Politics, Policy, and Planet Podcast

Interview with Jon Copeland, an organizer with Hold the Line, conducted by Melinda Tuhus.

Two companies, Oracle and Open AI, have plans to build a huge artificial intelligence data center in southern New Mexico, near its border with Texas. To power the center they call Project Jupiter, the companies plan on using methane, which is 100 times more damaging to the climate than carbon dioxide emissions over the short term.  Between The Lines’ Melinda Tuhus spoke with Jon Copeland, an organizer with Hold the Line, that's fighting to stop the pipeline, about the state of play of the project and what comes next.

Interview with John Miksad, a member of Veterans for Peace and World Beyond War, conducted by Scott Harris.

John Miksad talks about a coalition of groups sponsoring two events in Norwalk, Connecticut on Memorial Day, May 25 to promote peace, honor the fallen and support our current troops by keeping our soldiers out of harm’s way in endless disastrous wars, including Trump’s disastrous war on Iran; Trump’s deployment of the U.S. military to attack civilian boats in the Caribbean and Pacific and his oil blockade of Cuba.

Interview with Melanie D'Arrigo, executive director with the Campaign for New York Health, conducted by Scott Harris.

Melanie D’Arrigo talks about the campaign dedicated to passing and implementing universal, single-payer health care in New York state. Supporters of the New York Health Act say that New Yorkers will pay less and get more by cutting out waste and using the negotiation power of 20 million New Yorkers. New Yorkers will save billions of dollars by not paying rising premiums, deductibles, co-pays, out-of-network charges and long-term care costs.

Interview with Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-founder and co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation and author of three books including, Woe to Women: The Bible Tells Me So," conducted by Scott Harris.

Annie Laurie Gaylor talks about the taxpayer-funded Trump regime religious rally in Washington, D.C., “Rededicate 250,” that featured white Christian nationalist rhetoric from speakers including House Speaker Mike Johnson, Franklin Graham, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and others that the Freedom from Religion Foundation criticized as an “unprecedented and shocking mix of church and state.” 

Interview with Dan Vicuña, senior policy director for Voting and Fair Representation at Common Cause, conducted by Scott Harris.

Dan Vicuña talks about the consequences of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the Louisiana v. Callais case that eviscerated the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the disenfranchisement of millions of people of color, and ways in which our nation can work toward achieving a multiracial democracy.

I made this piece as a gift to myself and to you. It is so tough right now-- so I called in some big friends. You will especially like this offering if you have a sweet spot for the amazingness of horses.

What is it like to be a queer religious leader in Florida right now? Isabelle follows up on her March 2023 piece, There’s a Bright Spot in Florida with a March 2026 interview with the incomparable Bishop Dr. Durrell Watkins. 

Interview with Thomas Meyer, strategic organizing projects director for Food & Water Watch, conducted by Melinda Tuhus.

Data centers require enormous amounts of energy and water, create noise and air pollution depending on how they’re powered—and create very few jobs. Between The Lines’ Melinda Tuhus spoke with Thomas Meyer, strategic organizing projects director for Food & Water Watch and Food & Water Action. Here he talks about the fight to stop or at least slow down the building of AI data centers in Maine and other states across the nation.

Interview with Robert Greenwald, founder and president of Brave New Films, conducted by Scott Harris.

Robert Greenwald talks about his important new documentary film, “ICE: No One Is Safe at Work,” which highlights how ICE immigration raids affect workers’ and their family’s lives and how listeners can view the film and support Brave New Film’s important work.

Brave New Films is a nonprofit production company that creates and distributes investigative political and social justice documentaries.

Interview with Dr. Henry Abraham, professor of psychiatry emeritus at Tufts University School of Medicine and co-recipient of the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize, conducted by Scott Harris.

Dr. Henry Abraham talks about a group of 36 leading physicians and other doctors with expertise in mental health, who he’s acting as a spokesperson for, “who issued a statement calling for President Donald J. Trump’s immediate, lawful removal from office for medical reasons. His mental instability, coupled with his sole, unchecked authority to launch nuclear weapons, makes him a clear and present danger to the safety of all Americans.”

Dr. Abraham is co-recipient of the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize for his role as the co-author of the Constitution of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and author of After the Genocides: Immigration, Education and the Prevention of Nuclear War.

Interview with Martin O'Malley, former commissioner of the Social Security Administration in the Biden administration and former governor of Maryland and mayor of Baltimore, conducted by Scott Harris.

Commissioner O’Malley talks about the impact of the Trump administration’s downsizing of the Social Security workforce on customer service; how to fairly address the projected shortfall in the Social Security Trust Fund by 2032 and the current Trump regime attack on democratic institutions and the rule of law.

Interview with James Zogby, co-founder and president of the Arab American Institute and director of Zogby Research Services, conducted by Scott Harris.

James Zogby discusses the dire situation in Lebanon, the West Bank and Gaza under continuing military attack by Israel—critically important news that’s been lost or ignored by most corporate media coverage during the Iran war. Zogby is also director of Zogby Research Services, a firm that conducts public opinion surveys across the Middle East.

Interview with Vernon Haltom, executive director of Coal River Mountain Watch, conducted by Melinda Tuhus.

There was a small victory against the powerful coal companies operating in West Virginia, when on April 21, a federal judge blocked the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ decision to grant a Clean Water Act permit for valley fills associated with a mountaintop removal site on Coal River Mountain. Between The Lines’ Melinda Tuhus spoke with Vernon Haltom, the longtime executive director of Coal River Mountain Watch, who talks about the status of coal extraction in southern West Virginia and the significance of the recent federal court ruling.

Interview with Liz Dupont-Diehl, associate director of the Connecticut Citizen Action Group (CCAG), conducted by Scott Harris.

Liz Dupont-Diehl discusses the people who will lose health care coverage this year and in 2027 include those losing Access Health CT financial help, enrollees in the Covered TCT program, and whose coverage will be impacted by new work requirements and other bureaucratic obstacles designed to discourage enrollment in these programs.

Connecticut Citizen Action Group is part of a statewide coalition that’s advocating for urgent legislative action to prevent an estimated 250,000 Connecticut residents from losing access to affordable health insurance resulting from last year’s deep Trump-GOP federal budget cuts to Medicaid, Medicare and other social safety net programs.

Interview with Micah Sifry, Journalist and editor of the Connector newsletter, conducted by Scott Harris.

Micah Sifry talks about his recent Substack piece, “MayDay: The Pro-Democracy Movement Structure Test.” He comments on the results of this year’s nationwide May Day actions that called for “no work, no school, no shopping” and how this tactic, if effective, could impact future resistance plans to disrupt business-as-usual to counter Trump’s expected interference in the November 2026 midterm election.

The Connector Newsletter focuses on the intersection of politics, movements, organizing and technology, with an emphasis on how we make our democracy healthier.

Interview with Phyllis Bennis, director of the Institute for Policy Studies’ New Internationalism Project and author of Understanding Palestine & Israel, conducted by Scott Harris.

Phyllis Bennis, examines the dire situation in the West Bank with a rising number of murders of Palestinians and land seizures by Israeli settlers — and ongoing deadly Israeli attacks in Gaza that’s been lost in most of the corporate media coverage, overshadowed by the Iran war. She also discuses the important issues raised in her recent article, “The U.S.-Iran War is Illegal. Here’s Why That Matters.”

Interview with Marjorie Cohn, professor emerita at Thomas Jefferson School of Law, dean of the People’s Academy of International Law and past president of the National Lawyers Guild, conducted by Scott Harris.

Marjorie Cohn, author of the books, “Drones and Targeted Killing: Legal, Moral and Geopolitical Issues” and “The United States and Torture: Interrogation, Incarceration and Abuse,” takes a critical look at the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the Louisiana v. Callais case that’s decimated what was left of the Voting Rights Act, as examined in her commentary, “The US Supreme Court, Race & the Right to Vote.”

Interview with Pam Garrison, West Virginia tri-chair of the Poor People's Campaign, conducted by Melinda Tuhus.

Between The Lines’ Melinda Tuhus spoke with her about the campaign’s work and mission. Here Garrison reflects on battles against the coal industry and construction of fossil fuel pipelines across her state — and how poor people are faring today where many of the gains of recent years have been lost to powerful corporate interests under the Trump administration.

Interview with Greg Palast, filmmaker, journalist and author of several New York Times bestsellers including The Best Democracy Money Can Buy, conducted by Scott Harris.

Greg Palast talks about his recent article, “Mr. Colbert, I’m not laughing anymore.” Palast investigates far right activist Gregg Phillips, recently appointed as associate administrator of FEMA’s Office of Response and Recovery, who claims he was tele-transported to a Waffle House. Phillips is the discredited conspiracy theorist behind the group True the Vote, whose film, “2,000 Mules” claims that Jewish billionaires paid black men to stuff ballot boxes in Atlanta, Philadelphia and Detroit—causing Trump to lose the 2020 presidential election. True the Vote challenged over 300,000 voters in the 2024 election and is preparing to do the same in the 2026 midterm election this November.

Interview with Cameron Landin, executive vice president of College Democrats of America, and a student at the University of Chicago, conducted by Scott Harris.

Landin discusses his views on some of the Democratic party’s positions on issues including the Trump-Netanyahu war on Iran, U.S. aid to Israel and proposed progressive legislation such as Medicare for All. He also talks about some of the Democrat’s internal issues including the role of AIPAC in campaigns, as well as RootsAction and other progressive activists’ call for the release of the Democrat’s 2024 Election Autopsy Report.

Interview with Steve Ellner, associate managing editor of Latin American Perspectives and retired professor of Venezuela's Universidad de Oriente, conducted by Scott Harris.

Steve Ellner talks about his recent commentary, “U.S. Imperialism Enters a New Stage: The Left Needs to Take a Close Look at It,” which examines Donald Trump’s rhetoric and actions against Iran, Venezuela and Cuba which have few parallels in modern history.

Interview with Lindsay Koshgarian, program director with the National Priorities Project at the Institute for Policy Studies, conducted by Scott Harris.

Lindsay Koshgarian talks about her group’s recent report, “Tax Day 2026: Taxpayers Are Paying More than $4,000 for War.” The report notes that while more than half of Americans are struggling to afford basic necessities, Donald Trump and the GOP passed the “Big Ugly Bill” that cut taxes for the wealthiest Americans, cut health insurance and food assistance for millions of Americans, and added billions in new spending for war and mass deportations

Interview with Osprey Orielle Lake, founder and executive director, Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network, WECAN, conducted by Melinda Tuhus.

Many of WECAN's members, including frontline women leaders from around the world, have participated in previous UN climate summit meetings and will be involved in this conference as well. They will be participating in discussions to propose solutions to the climate crisis, such as the need for investments in reforestation, renewable energy and food sovereignty.

Interview with Steve Phillips, host of the Democracy in Color podcast and author of Are White Men Smarter than Everybody Else?, conducted by Scott Harris.

Steve Phillips, the best-selling author of Brown Is the New White and How We Win the Civil War, talks about his new book, Are White Men Smarter Than Everybody Else? observing that just six years after the racial reckoning that followed the murder of George Floyd, America is witnessing a full-scale assault on equality unparalleled since the overthrow of Reconstruction, while offering a powerful offensive strategy to combat resurgent white supremacy.

Interview with Saru Jayaraman, co-founder and president of One Fair Wage, director of the Food Labor Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley and author of One Fair Wage: Ending Subminimum Pay in America, conducted by Scott Harris.

Saru Jayaraman talks about the #Next250 national mobilization coinciding with the U.S. 250th anniversary, where a massive gathering is planned in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, June 27, grounded in a Declaration of Interdependence to elevate historically excluded voices and build a forward-looking civic agenda rooted in shared responsibility and democratic participation.

Interview with Rebecca Roberts, a member and organizing manager of About Face: Veterans Against the War, conducted by Scott Harris.

National Guard veteran Rebecca Roberts discusses the work she and others do at About Face providing guidance and advice to active-duty U.S. military servicemen and women navigating their rights of conscience and seeking conscientious objector status during the current illegal U.S. war on Iran.

Interview with Kevin Martin, president of Peace Action and the Peace Action Education Fund, the nation’s largest grassroots peace network with chapters and affiliates in states across the U.S., conducted by Scott Harris.

Kevin Martin talks about what his and other anti-war groups are doing to oppose Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu’s illegal war in Iran and Lebanon, action being taken to pressure Congress to invoke the War Powers Act, and how listeners can get involved. 

Excerpt of press conference by Bishop William Barber, founding director of the Yale University Divinity School's Center for Public Theology and Public Policy, recorded and produced by Melinda Tuhus.

The Center held a three-day conference, April 12-14, titled: “What are the Moral and Spiritual Issues of the 2026 Elections?” On the last day of the conference Bishop Barber's press conference responded to the U.S. and Israeli war on Iran and President Trump’s social media posts threatening to annihilate Iran’s civilization and attacking Pope Leo, a critic of the war.

Interview with Steve Posner, an adjunct assistant professor of writing at the University of Southern California, conducted by Scott Harris.

Steve Posner talks about his recent San Francisco Chronicle commentary, “How Trump Can Keep the House Without Winning the Midterms,” describing a possible anti-democratic scheme where Trump’s election deniers in GOP-led states slow walk recounts and stall certification of Democratic wins, creating a situation where Republicans retain their House of Representatives majority.

Interview with Michael Albert, co-founder of South End Press, Z Magazine, the Z Media Institute and host of the podcast Revolution Z, conducted by Scott Harris.

Michael Albert assesses Trump’s murderous war on Iran, fascist repression at home and a growing pro-democracy resistance movement—while envisioning a transformative “long march” progressive agenda that discards major elements of the decaying status quo system.  Albert is author of 21 books on economics, politics and socialism.

Z Network
https://znetwork.org/

All of US A Directory to Connect, Care, and Build
https://allofusdirectory.org/

Interview with Julie Hollar, senior analyst with the group Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR), conducted by Scott Harris.

Julie Hollar discusses her recent commentary, “Who Will SAVE America From Misleading Coverage of Voter Suppression?” and the importance of calling out the disinformation in Trump and GOP talking points regarding their false claim that millions of non-citizens are voting and discrediting U.S. election outcomes.

Interview with Brandon Carr, Studies Associate with the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, and Kevan Harris, Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of California,  Los Angeles, conducted by Scott Harris.

Carr and Professor Harris discuss their views on the five-week U.S.-Israeli bombing campaign against Iran that many call a strategic disaster, the future of negotiations to end the war, Israel’s continued destabilizing attack on Lebanon and the dangerous erosion of international law.

April's Organic Farm Stand line-up:

•    Diane's Hot Topics
•    Small Farms Report with Steve Munno
•    Honey Bee Update with Vincent Kaye
•    Legislative Update with Kim Stoner, Director of Advocacy for CT NOFA

Hosted by Richard Hill and Diane Lauricella

Interview with Ann Froines, an activist with the group Back from The Brink, conducted by Melinda Tuhus.

Between The Lines’ Melinda Tuhus spoke with Ann Froines, an activist with the group Back from The Brink, which works to reduce the danger of nuclear war. Here she discusses the threat of nuclear catastrophe and provides information on how individuals can take action.

Interview with Daniella Hobbs, a member of the Hartford Jewish Organizing Collective, conducted by Scott Harris.

Daniella Hobbs, a member of the Hartford Jewish Organizing Collective, talks about her group organizing a Passover seder on Tuesday, April 7 outside the ICE regional field office in Hartford, Connecticut “to demand ICE out of Connecticut.” The seder will include music and ritual elements adapted to modern times, including a recitation of 10 modern-day plagues and 4 cups dedicated to collective liberation. In observing this year’s Passover, the group is demanding freedom for our neighbors held by ICE.

Interview with Jeff Hauser, executive director of the Revolving Door Project, conducted by Scott Harris.

Jeff Hauser discusses the multiple and unprecedented instances of Trump administration corruption that the Revolving Door Project has been investigating during the president’s second term. He addresses the need for accountability and what government reforms will be necessary to prevent such blatant executive branch abuses in the future, similar to what followed the Nixon-era Watergate scandal.

Interview with David Daley, senior fellow in communications at Fair Vote and author of Antidemocratic: Inside the Far Right's 50-Year Plot to Control American Elections, conducted by Scott Harris.

David Daley discusses the ongoing efforts by Donald Trump and congressional Republicans to implement voter suppression laws and policies, including Senate debate on the “Save America Act,” and the president’s most recent executive order that instructs the federal government to compile a list of eligible citizens who can vote in each state, and as well as ordering the U.S. Postal Service to only transmit mail-in ballots to people on that list.

Interview with Naghmeh Sohrabi, Charles Goodman professor of Middle East History and director for Research at the Crown Center for Middle East Studies at Brandeis University, conducted by Scott Harris.

Professor Sohrabi discusses the impact of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, and average Iranian people not generally discussed in U.S. media, as explored in her blog, “These Are the True Things,” which focuses on stories written by Iranians coping with life inside the Islamic Republic.

Sandra Levinson, executive director of the Center For Cuban Studies (www.centerorcubanstudies.org), reports on her recent trip to Cuba, focusing on the island nation's struggle survival under the yoke of the Trump regime's total oil embargo.
Interview by Richard Hill

Resistance Round Table is broadcast on WPKN the 3rd Thursday of each month where hosts Ruth Anne Baumgartner, Scott Harris, and Richard Hill engage in conversation about local and nationwide organizing for a more just and democratic America during this pivotal and dangerous moment in our nation's history.

On our March 19, 2026 program we first talk about the U.S. Israeli war on Iran with Jennifer Loewenstein, a former associate director of Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.  Jennifer has a newsletter comprehensively covering many different Middle East issues from perspectives difficult to find on mainstream news outlets. 

In our 2nd segment we discuss the upcoming 3rd No Kings Day anti-Trump, pro-democracy protest on March 19th with Carol Rizzolo, a Board Member of the Tri-State Maxed-Out Womens PAC,  CT Coordinator of the Center for Common Ground, and Team Leader of the CT Shoreline chapter of Indivisible, and Ambassador with The Campaign School @Yale University.

Interview with Xavier de Janon, an attorney representing an anti-ICE activist in the Prairieland Texas terrorism trial, conducted by Melinda Tuhus.

Between The Lines’ Melinda Tuhus spoke with Xavier de Janon, co-founder of the People’s Law Collective, which represents political defendants across the South. De Janon, a member of the National Lawyers Guild, represents one of the defendants, Elizabeth Soto in her state case and provided support to defense attorneys in the federal case. Here, de Janon explains why he believes this prosecution represents an escalation in the Trump regime’s attack on people’s right to protest and free speech.

Interview with Tom Alter, a tenured professor of history at Texas State University, conducted by Scott Harris.

Texas State University history professor Tom Alter talks about his termination from the university without due process for remarks he made at a socialist conference in his capacity as a private citizen. Alter also talks about his legal battle defending free speech and academic freedom important to all educators and citizens — as well as his national speaking tour, including events in Connecticut in April.

Interview with Kica Matos, the president of the National Immigration Law Center and the Immigrant Justice Fund, conducted by Scott Harris.

Kica Matos discusses her critical work at National Immigration Law Center, the recent Senate confirmation of Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, what if any changes may be made in DHS/ICE policies, and her view of what Senate Democrats are doing to negotiate reforms in ICE operations.  Matos is distinguished practitioner at Yale University’s Brady Johnson Program in Grand Strategy.

Interview with Gerry Condon, a Vietnam-era veteran and war resister, former president and current national board member of Veterans For Peace, conducted by Scott Harris.

Gerry Condon assesses the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran from the perspective of veterans and active-duty service members, some of whom are now seeking advice on how to follow the protocol to disobey illegal orders and apply for conscientious objector status.  Condon is a Vietnam-era veteran and war resister, former president and current national board member of Veterans For Peace.

Interview with former U.S. Marine Capt. Matthew Hoh, associate director of the Eisenhower Media Network, conducted by Scott Harris.

Former U.S. Marine Capt. Matthew Hoh assesses the current state of the illegal U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, including allegations that the U.S. lacks a coherent strategy and made inadequate preparations for this conflict — as well as prospects that the Trump regime may soon deploy U.S. troops for a ground war inside Iran.  Hoh is a Iraq War combat veteran and Afghanistan State Department officer who resigned in protest over U.S. war policy in 2009.

Interview with Andy Shallal, owner of the Busboys and Poets bookstores and progressive political cultural hub in Washington, D.C., conducted by Scott Harris.

Andy Shallal talks about the Trump regime’s blockade of oil to Cuba, the impact on the Cuban people and the Nuestra América Convoy to Cuba, which recently delivered a shipment of 6,300 pounds of critical humanitarian aid to the island nation by air and sea.

Interview with Lois Parshley, climate research director with Public Citizen’s Climate Program, conducted by Scott Harris.

Parshley examines the spike in energy prices and interruption in the delivery of energy supplies due to Trump’s Iran war, creating hardship for vulnerable populations. She also discusses strategies for the world escaping this cycle of endless oil wars that has caused so much violence and destruction — and the catastrophic contribution to the climate crisis.

For more information read her article, “Memo: The Strait That Runs Through Everything.”

Interview with Katherine Spillar, executive director of the Feminist Majority Foundation and Ms. Magazine executive editor, conducted by Scott Harris. 

Katherine Spillar discusses her Ms. Magazine article, “Project 2026 Declares Open War on Women’s Rights,” with a focus on Trump administration policies’ impact on women and the SAVE Act—voter suppression legislation designed to disenfranchise millions of women across the country in the 2026 midterm election.

Interview with Raed Jarrar, advocacy director with Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), conducted by Scott Harris.

Raed Jarrar discusses the current state of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, escalation of the regional conflict destroying fossil fuel infrastructure and disrupting energy supplies, the prospect of the deployment of U.S. troops to Iran and the consequences for international law. 

Jarrar is advocacy director with Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), founded by Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi before his assassination.

Interview with Sarah Ganong, state director of the Connecticut Working Families Party, conducted by Scott Harris.

Sarah Ganong discusses the Working Families Party’s Connecticut legislative agenda, which includes standing up for immigrant rights, advocating for an equitable state budget with higher taxes on the wealthy and demanding fair schedules for workers in hospitality, retail and food service jobs. She also talks about statewide groups organizing for the March 28 anti-Trump, pro-democracy No Kings Day protests in Connecticut and nationally.