The signs are everywhere for those with eyes to see and ears to hear. But precious few will heed the call. Now Liberty breathes its last gasp. All these are the beginnings of sorrows.
Amid the ongoing coalitional bombardment of Libya it turns out President Obama may have had no constitutional authority for ordering US military involvement. US Rep. from Ohio Dennis Kucinixh says the use of US armed forces is unconstitutional, explaining Obama had no authority to commit US resources without congressional approval. The US now finds itself involved into another war in addition to Pakistan, Iraq and Afghanistan. 'Bombing villages in order to save villages' -- that didn't work in Vietnam, Kucinich explained. In fact, he argued this time around the Libyan intervention could end up strengthening US enemies.
Friday on The Big Picture it was "Conversations with Great Minds." Thom Hartmann welcomed Ian Fletcher, Senior Economist at the Coalition for a Prosperous America. They discussed the major problems with free trade in America. And are you ready to rumble about the biggest stories of the week? Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker signed his union busting bill without any Democrats present. Will legal action follow? Also will mainstream corporate media ever talk about the problems of corporate control in America? Plus, did Peter King's witch hunt hearings accomplish anything? Thom hosted a panel discussion with Jamie Weinstein, Deputy Editor at the The Daily Caller, Jimmy LaSalvia, Executive Director of GOProud and Bill Press, Host of The "Bill Press Show".

Ian Fletcher is Senior Economist of the Coalition for a Prosperous America, a nationwide grass-roots organization dedicated to fixing America’s trade policies and comprising representatives from business, agriculture, and labor. He was previously Research Fellow at the U.S. Business and Industry Council, a Washington think tank founded in 1933 and before that, an economist in private practice serving mainly hedge funds and private equity firms. Educated at Columbia University and the University of Chicago, he lives in San Francisco. He is the author of Free Trade Doesn't Work: What Should Replace it and Why. | www.freetradedoesntwork.com