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Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST.

Today we discuss:

• The death from exposure to a rare, military-grade nerve agent called a Novichok in Britain of Dawn Sturgess, 44 and a British mother of three, seven years ago, illustrates the consequences of letting spies run amok. A perfume bottle containing the poison had been discarded by a pair of Russian operatives after using it in an attempted assassination months earlier. A new report blames Putin.

• Zelensky’s government systematically sabotages oversight, creating the perfect opportunity for corruption. Ukraine has stacked oversight boards with loyalists, leaves seats empty or stalled them from being set up at all. Leaders in Kyiv even rewrote company charters to limit oversight, allowing hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars to be stolen.

• Congress is focusing on two deaths in one boat strike. But 9 other people died in that same attack, and the United States has killed 87 in all. Were any of those killings legal?

• 55% disapprove/42% approve of Trump’s job performance. Much of his loss is among political independents; 31% approve, down from 41% in July. The president has also lost support among men, particularly white, college-educated men. Can he right the ship?

Chicago Tribune cartoonist Scott Stantis fills in for John today.

Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST.

Today we discuss:

• Admiral Mitch Bradley tries to explain himself to Congress today. As Trump claims each boat bombing saves 25,000 American lives, the man Hegseth blames for the double-tap strike is on the hot seat. Meanwhile, Signalgate is blowing up. Will this weekend mark the end of the former Fox News Weekend host?

• Israel is opening the Rafah border crossing to Egypt. Egypt says it doesn’t know anything about it. It will help sick and injured Gaza’s get medical care. But is this the beginning of Israel’s plot to ethnically cleanse and annex Gaza?

• Vladimir Putin to visit Narenda Modi in India to boost trade.

Political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou deprogram you from mainstream media every weekday at 9 AM EST.

Today we discuss:

• Pressure is building against Pete Hegseth. The Defense Department claims it was trying to destroy the rest of the boat, not the crew, while Hegseth blames Admiral Bradley for murdering helpless seamen. Is this the end of the line for Hegseth, or do the new neocons win again?

• Republicans are gambling that voters won’t resent them in next year’s elections for allowing Obamacare subsidies to expire, sending insurance prices to the stratosphere. Incumbents weigh the risk of a primary challenge for helping Democrats vs. the general election.

• Belgium, which holds most of the Russian assets being targeted for seizure as reparations to Ukraine, says its requests to the EU to be indemnified against Russian lawsuits and legal losses, and that other EU nations also agree to participate, are being ignored.

• Deep fake “Nudifying” software is out of control in schools around the world, where girls and female teachers are being humiliated by A.I.-generated phony nude images of themselves being passed around on smartphones by students. Schools are at a loss about how to handle it. Would cellphone bans solve the problem?