DeProgram with Ted Rall and John Kiriakou: “Sanctions Are WMDs. Interview with Francisco Rodríguez”

On the “DeProgram show” with political cartoonist Ted Rall and CIA whistleblower John Kiriakou, we interview Francisco Rodríguez, a distinguished economist and senior research fellow at the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR).

Rodríguez, a Venezuelan opposition economist and Rice Family Professor at the University of Denver’s Josef Korbel School, brings unparalleled expertise from his roles as head of the Venezuelan National Assembly’s economic advisory (2000–2004), chief Andean economist at Bank of America (2011–2016), and research team leader for UN Human Development Reports (2008–2011). His frequent contributions to outlets like the Financial Times, Foreign Affairs, and The New York Times cement his authority on global economic policy.

We dive into Rodríguez’s groundbreaking Financial Times op-ed, coauthored with CEPR’s Mark Weisbrot, based on their Lancet Global Health study estimating that U.S.-led sanctions cause 564,000 excess deaths annually, particularly among children under five, with an 8% mortality spike in affected nations.

Rodríguez calls these sanctions an “economic weapon of mass destruction,” a view echoed by Rep. Ilhan Omar’s fiery denouncement at the Pan American Congress in Mexico City last week, where she condemned their humanitarian toll. Weisbrot’s Los Angeles Times op-ed underscores the “invisible” devastation, arguing sanctions’ political unsustainability once exposed.

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