Sue's Daily Stack, The Thom Hartmann Program 02/19/26
Your daily homework - links to everything discussed on today's show
Thursday’s Daily Stack
Hour One: The British arrested a Royal, and we can’t even investigate a reality TV show host. Prince Andrew has been arrested in connection with Epstein - No British royal has been arrested since the 17th century in the time of Charles the first.
Article: “Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor arrested in Epstein connection“ by Nigel Peacock.
Article: “Watergate scandal“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “Pam Bondi Falls Apart at the Seams After Tough Epstein Question“ by Hafiz Rashid. “The DOW is over 50,000 dollars“
Article: “Wexner ‘just not credible,’ gave Epstein $1 billion, House Dems say“ by Bethany Bruner, Max Filby.
Video: ‘Outrageous’: Les Wexner claims he was not contacted by DOJ, FBI about Epstein ties, Garcia says .
Article: “South Korea’s ex-president jailed for life for masterminding an insurrection“ by Ayeshea Perera, Jake Kwon, Hosu Lee and Leehyun Choi.
Article: “Kakistocracy“ by Wikipedia.
Case: “Buckley v. Valeo“, 1976.
Case: “First National Bank Of Boston V. Bellotti“, 1978.
Case: “Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission“ (2010).
Article: “Powell Memo“.
Article: “First day of Ukraine-US-Russia peace talks ends in Geneva“ by Valentyna Romanenko, Alona Mazurenko.
Silencing Dissent Without a Single Raid: The Billionaire Capture of America’s News
Article: “Silencing Dissent Without a Single Raid: The Billionaire Capture of America’s News“ by Thom Hartmann.
Article: “Who controls the media in Brazil?“ by Media Ownership Monitor.
Article: “Who owns the media? - Colombia“ by Media Ownership Monitor.
Article: “Media ownership matters - Ghana“ by Media Ownership Monitor.
Article: “Serbia: State Influence on Media Ownership: Igor želj and Telekom Srbija“ by Balkan Free Media Initiative (BFMI).
Article: “The Media in Indonesia: Journalism Between the State and Oligarchs“ by Sofie Syarief.
Article: “Who runs the media in Peru?“ by Media Ownership Monitor.
Article: “Media ownership means information control: Philippines“ by Media Ownership Monitor.
Article: “Slovene media owned by oligarchs, corrupt politicians“ by RSF_en.
Article: “Returning Fairness to the Broadcast Media“ by Milda K. Hedblom.
Article: “Musk and Bezos Get Their Billion-Dollar Federal Contracts After Sucking Up to Trump“ by Amethyst Martinez.
Article: “Media Ownership Matters - Tunisia“ by Media Ownership Monitor.
Article: “Media ownership matters: MOM updates are now online - Turkey“ by Media Ownership Monitor.
Article: “When Billionaire Government Contractors Are Also Media Moguls“ by Richard W. Painter.
Article: “Media in the Balkans: the rise of oligarchs“ by Majlinda Aliu, Serbeze Haxhiaj.
Article: “Trump enters Warner Bros. fight, says it’s ‘imperative that CNN be sold’“ by Brian Stelter.
Article: “EXCLUSIVE: Elon Musk’s business empire is built on $38 billion in government funding“ by Desmond Butler, Trisha Thadani, Emmanuel Martinez, Aaron Gregg, Luis Melgar, Jonathan O’Connell and Dan Keating.
Article: “How oligarchs seized Central Europe’s media“ by Ben Knight.
Article: “Larry Ellison and the Illusion of Free Markets“ by Ajey Grandhem.
Article: “Why Shapiro Appearing On ‘The Late Show’ Did Not Trigger FCC’s Equal Time Rule“ by Steve Ulrich.
Article: “Corporate titans warned of ‘tsunami’ of Trump-related probes if Dems seize House control“ by Tom Boggioni.
Article: “Media Oligarchs go Shopping“ by Reporters Without Borders.
Article: “Meta Gains Approval To Supply AI Services to US Government Departments“ by Andrew Hutchinson.
Article: “Paramount Has a Secret Plan to Buy Hollywood Before the Cops Arrive“ by Matt Stoller.
Article: “Viktor Orbán tells CPAC the path to power is to ‘have your own media’“ by Flora Garamvolgyi.
Article: “Trump is ‘deeply committed to your success’, Rubio tells Orbán during Hungary visit – as it happened“ by Tom Ambrose, Yohannes Lowe.
Article: “Viktor Orbán tells CPAC the path to power is to ‘have your own media’“ by Flora Garamvolgyi.
Iran: Is Trump About to Start a War?
Article: “War clouds over Tehran? Is US preparing to attack Iran this weekend?“ by FP Explainers.
Video: Breaking: Trump on the Verge of War with Iran. - Raw America (Thom Hartmann)
Article: “Trump ‘Murder Spree’ Continues With 11 More People Killed in US Boat Strikes“ by Julia Conley.
Article: “U.S. Moves to Withdraw Some Middle East Personnel as Iran Tensions Rise“ by Nancy A. Youssef, Ryan Dezember.
Article: “Amid Iran tensions, Rubio to meet with Netanyahu in Israel on Feb. 28 — US official“ by Jacob Magid.
Book: American Kompromat: How the KGB Cultivated Donald Trump, and Related Tales of Sex, Greed, Power, and Treachery by Craig Unger.
Article: “The Supreme Court’s Next Chance to Rule on Trump’s Tariffs Comes Friday“ by James Romoser.
Article: “Supreme Court says Trump has absolute immunity for core acts only“ by Nina Totenberg.
Article: “Appeals Court Upholds E. Jean Carroll’s $83 Million Win Against Trump“ by Alison Durkee.
Site: KPFK.
Article: “Trump signs executive order directing federal funding cuts to PBS and NPR“ by AP.
Site: Progressive Caucus.
Article: “Ratchet effect“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “Girl, 13, claimed she bit Trump’s penis during oral rape, according to Epstein Files email“ by Falyn Stempler.
Article: “Attack on Paul Pelosi“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman, husband killed in attack“ by Minnesota House of Representatives.
Article: “The Sturmabteilung: Hitler’s Unofficial Army Of Thugs“ (brownshirts) by Gina Dimuro.
Article: “Bob Fitrakis“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “Harvey Wasserman“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “The Shapiro Murder File“ by Bob Fitrakis.
Site: Free Press.
Hour Two: Ukraine Briefing
- Phil Ittner, Veteran War Correspondent based in Kiev, Ukraine & host of the ‘On the Edge‘ podcast @PhilipIttner Youtube
Article: “Kremlin Envoy Pitches $14 Trillion in Potential U.S.-Russia Projects“ by Moscow Times.
Article: “The Russian economy is finally stagnating. What does it mean for the war – and for Putin?“ by Alex Clark.
Article: “Northeast Passage“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “Russia GDP (2025)“ by Worldometer.
Article: “Kyiv 14 Day Extended Forecast“ by timeanddate.
Article: “Putin doesn’t want peace. He wants more time“ by Bloomberg.
Article: “Putin readies hidden draft in 2026 amid heavy losses“ by Liliana Oleniak.
Article: “Casualties of the Russo-Ukrainian war“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “‘Difficult’ Russia-Ukraine peace talks end without breakthrough“ by Laura Gozzi.
Article: “Exclusive: Top European spies sceptical US will clinch Ukraine peace deal this year“ by Tom Balmforth, Gram Slattery and Jonathan Landay.
Article: “What could happen if the US strikes Iran? Here are seven scenarios“ by Frank Gardner.
Stephen Miller Wants to Keep Warrantless Surveillance Alive - who will pay the price?
Article: “Stephen Miller pushing to extend spy program under ‘national security’ threat“ by Cheyenne Ubiera.
Article: “Iran shuts Strait of Hormuz for military drills amid growing US tensions“ by Frankie Elliott.
Article: “China’s YLC-8B Radar Transfer to Iran Could Rewrite Middle East Airpower and End Stealth Dominance“ by Defence Security Asia.
Quote: “Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.“ - Benjamin Franklin.
Article: “Photos put Tuberville in Trump’s hotel on Jan. 5 despite denying meeting“ by Eddie Burkhalter.
Law: “Patriot Act“, 2001.
Quote: “Dank Ihrer Führung wird Deutschland sein Ziel erreichen, Heimat zu sein. Heimat zu sein für alle Deutschen der Welt.“ by Rudolph Hess, 1934 Nuremburg rally.
Crazy Alert! Good news for Trump before midterms: he’s still more popular than cockroaches
Article: “Good news for Trump before midterms: he’s still more popular than cockroaches“ by Adam Gabbatt.
Article: “Anthony Summers“ by Wikipedia.
Book: Official and Confidential, The Secret Life of J. Edgar Hoover by Anthony Summers.
Article: “Who Owns the Wall Street Journal? Inside Its Ownership Journey“ by Justin Walton.
Book: “Legacy of Secrecy: The Long Shadow of the JFK Assassination“ by Lamar Waldron with Thom Hartmann.
Book: “Ultimate Sacrifice“ by Lamar Waldron with Thom Hartmann.
Article: “Epstein files reveal Israeli officers installed and controlled security equipment in Manhattan apartment“ by Kushal Deb.
Article: “The U.S. dollar just fell to its lowest level in 4 years. Here’s why.“ by Aimee Picchi.
Article: “Hyperinflation“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “Pennies are being canceled and the US Mint won’t make any more. What does that mean?“ by Mike Snider.
Article: “Resurfaced 2014 Video Of Pam Bondi Comes Back To Haunt Her“ by Kelby Vera.
Article: “Pam Bondi’s Brother Under Scrutiny as DOJ Drops Charges Against His Clients“ by Kate Plummer.
Article: “Schiff, Durbin Raise Concerns about Epstein Files Tampering, Demand Audit of DOJ’s Handling of Files“ by Adam Schiff.
Article: “Hoarding disorder“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “JB Pritzker“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “What We Know About Bill Gates’ Connection To Jeffrey Epstein—As He Denies ‘False’ Allegations“ by Alison Durkee.
Article: “Largest Countries in the World (by area)“ by worldometer.
Quote: “All power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely.“ - Lord Acton.
Article: “Helicopter parent“ by Wikipedia.
Hour Three: Not in My Backyard: Trump Voters Resist Concentration Camp Centers - But wit there’s more - DOF admits to violating court order over 50 times just in NJ. Say what!?
Article: “MAGA voters furious as kids may now see Trump’s brutal crackdown up close“ by Matthew Chapman.
Article: “‘This job sucks,’ DOJ lawyer asks judge for contempt charge so she can get sleep in jail“ by Troy Matthews.
Article: “DOJ Lawyer Who Melted Down In Court Offered Terrifying Peek Into ‘Broken System’“ by Brandi Buchman.
Article: “Disabled, autistic woman details alleged abuse by ICE, centers Black communities historically abused by police“ by Gerren Keith Gaynor.
Article: “Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Munich Security Conference“, February 14, 2026.
DOJ Admits to Violating Court Orders in Immigration Cases Over 50 Times Since December - Just in New Jersey
Article: “DOJ Admits to Violating Court Orders in Immigration Cases Over 50 Times Since December - Just in New Jersey“ by Sarah Rumpf.
Article: “Courts have ruled 4,400 times that ICE jailed people illegally. It hasn’t stopped.“ by Nate Raymond, Kristina Cooke and Brad Heath.
Article: “US attorney begs judge for jail just to sleep — and loses her job“ by August M.
Article: “ICE Begins Buying ‘Mega’ Warehouse Detention Centers Across US“ by Sophie Alexander and Fola Akinnibi.
ICE routine routinely lies to people, claiming that observers are committing a crime, and then smashes their cars, beats them, and arrest them he’ll illegally
Article: “Trump’s ICE routinely lies that observers are breaking federal law: report “ by Daniel Hampton.
Article: “Rep. LaMonica McIver must face federal charges over ICE incident, judge rules“ by Aaron Katersky.
Bill: “H.R.7296 - SAVE America Act“ by Rep. Roy, Chip [R-TX-21] (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act).
Bill: “H.R.22 - SAVE Act“ by Rep. Roy, Chip [R-TX-21] (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act).
Law: “24th Amendment“ “The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President, for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax.”.
Case: “Harper v. Virginia State Board of Elections“ (1966).
Article: “Texas Rep. Tony Gonzales’ staffer burned to death after dousing herself with gasoline, setting her body ablaze“ by Alex Oliveira.
Article: “Tony Gonzales had affair with aide who set herself on fire, ex-staffer says“ by Bayliss Wagner, Nancy M. Preyor-Johnson.
Article: “Breaking: Talarico Raises Millions in Response to CBS’ Censorship“ by Thom Hartmann .
Site: Raw America.
Article: “Tax Cuts Are Primarily Responsible for the Increasing Debt Ratio“ by Bobby Kogan.
Article: “National debt of the United States“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “Trump cabinet official Howard Lutnick discusses visit to Epstein’s island“ by Bart Jansen and Josh Meyer.
Article: “Q&A: What does Trump’s repeal of US ‘endangerment finding’ mean for climate action?“ by Ayesha Tandon, Cecilia Keating, Daisy Dunne, Giuliana Viglione, Josh Gabbatiss, Molly Lempriere.
Book: “The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight: Revised and Updated: The Fate of the World and What We Can Do Before It’s Too Late“ by Thom Hartmann.
Article: “Permian-Triassic extinction event“ by Wikipedia.
Site: The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell.
BlueSky: “Rachel Maddow“.
Site: “Velshi“.
Article: “Gavin Newsom“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “Andy Beshear“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “J. B. Pritzker“ by Wikipedia.
Article: “Josh Shapiro“ by Wikipedia.
Book: A People’s History of American Empire: A Graphic Adaptation by Howard Zinn, Mike Konopacki, Paul Buhle.
Book: A Resistance History of the United States by Tad Stoermer.