i'm amy goodman. a car bombing in the lebanese capital of beirut has left at least five people dead. the victims included the attacks apparent target, the homage financelebanon's former minister. he was an age of former prime iri and a vocal critic of seared president bashar al-assad. a u.s. drone strike in pakistan has killed four people. the attack it a compound in the tribal region of north waziristan. pakistani officials described the victims as afghan members of a militant group. the strike human midst of ongoing protest against u.s. drone war. on thursday, demonstrators recently blocked nato supply route near the city of quetta. fighting continues in south sudan amidst mediation efforts by african countries. the leaders of ethiopia and kenya are in the capital juba in a bid to infighting between government forces and rebels loyal to the countries ousted former president. the u.n. says the violence has claimed over 1000 lives and displaced tens of thousands. rebels have captured half the capital

i'm amy goodman. has exposed a secret cia program in colombia that has helped to kill at least two dozen rebel leaders. the program relies on help from the national security agency and is funded through a multibillion dollar black budget each began under president bush but continues under president obama. up until 2010, the cia controlled the encryption keys that allowed homs to read gps data. the u.s.se, in 2008, and colombia discovered a farc leader hiding in ecuador. the attack killed the rebel leader and sparked a major flareup of tensions with ecuador and venezuela. the u.s. role in the attack had previously not been reported. we will do an extensive report on that tomorrow on democracy now! evacuated states has hundreds of people from fighting in south sudan on fear the country is on the brink of civil war. president obama warned he may take further action to secure persons and property. for u.s. troops were wounded saturday when the aircraft came under fire. meanwhile, the united nations missio

i'm amy goodman. a u.s. drone attack in yemen struck a group of people who were traveling to a wedding thursday, killing at least 17. a yemeni security officials said some of the dead may have been members of al qaeda, but most were civilians. the attack occurred in a remote area near the central town of rada. it was at least the second u.s. drone attack this week in yemen after a strike in an eastern province killed at least three people this week since an attack killed at least three people on monday. in ukraine, mass protests are continuing over the government's decision not to sign a trade pact with the european union. but speaking in brussels on thursday, ukraine's first deputy prime minister said ukraine will sign a deal soon. we listen to the ukrainian people and our negotiations will continue. ukraine will soon find its association agreement with the european union, taken into account the national strategic interest. military chiefs have agreed to meet with the leader of a mass protest movemen

i'm amy goodman with juan gonzalez. >> welcome to all our listeners and viewers from around the country and around the world. we begin today in russia where president vladimir putin has signed a decree pardoning the country's former richest man. honest international has khodorkovsky al prisoner of conscience. he spent more than a decade behind bars after he fell into disfavor with putin. the release comes as the russian parliament voted wednesday to approve a mass amnesty for thousands more. up to 22,000 people are such eventually be freed under an initiative vladimir putin says is meant to mark the 20th anniversary of the passage of russia's post-soviet constitution. could it say he also hopes to deflect international criticism of his human rights crackdown ahead of the 2014 sochi winter games. >> among the tens of thousands to be released are members of

i'm amy goodman. a white house-appointed task force has proposed a series of curbs on key national security agency surveillance operations following leaks by former nsa contractor edward snowden. on thursday, the panel recommended that hold its collection of billions of american phone calls, sending "the additional risks to public trust, personal privacy, and civil liberties." the phone records should be held by telecommunications providers or have a third party. underminings for its encryption and criticized its use of computer programming flaws to mount cyber attacks. at the white house, press secretary jay carney said the panel's findings will be reviewed. next several weeks, we will be reviewing the report recommendations as we consider the path forward, including sorting through which recommendations we will implement, which might require further study, in which we will choose not to pursue. >> the panel's report was released just two days after a federal judge ruled the bulk collection of teleph

i'm amy goodman. the united nations is warning the ongoing violence in south sudan has claimed thousands of lives in just over a week. hundreds of thousands have been forced to flee. on wednesday, the un security council approved a measure to nearly double the number of peacekeepers to around 15,000. oncretary-general ban ki mo pleaded for an end to the violence. >> this is a crisis which requires a peaceful, political solution. in this season apiece, i urge the leaders of south sudan to act for peace, stop the dialogue,stop the save your proud annual independent country. >> there have been reports of at least three mass graves and the fighting so far, including one or 34 bodies were found. a series of bombings in iraq has left at least 40 two beagle dead and dozens more wounded. the christmas day attacks mostly targeted christian areas. "the new york times" reports the u.s. has rushed a new shipment of hellfire missiles and low- tech surveillance drones to help the iraqi government fight al qaeda mil

i'm amy goodman. a federal judge has struck a historic blow to the national security agency's bulk collection of phone records. on monday, u.s. district judge richard leon ruled the program almost certainly violates the fourth amendment of the constitution. judge leon, who was appointed by former president george w. bush, --te "i cannot imagine a more indiscriminate and arbitrary invasion than is systematic and high-tech collection and retention of personal data on virtually every single citizen." more after headlines. or than 70 people died in a wave of attacks across iraq on monday, many of them shiites preparing for an annual pilgrimage. in baghdad, twin car bombs kill 25 shiites. the second blast happened as people rushed to the aid of the first-round victims. another dozen shiites on their way to baghdad from the city of mosul were pulled from their bus and shot dead. yemen's parliament has called for banning u.s. drone attacks just days after the deadliest u.s. strike there this year. thursday's

i'm amy goodman. nelson mandela was laid to rest as south africa laid to rest its leader. he was laid to rest in his home village at the age of 95. south african president jacob zuma said that his struggle for justice will carry forward. while the long walk to freedom has ended in the physical sense, our own journey continues. we have to continue building the type of society he worked tirelessly to construct. we have to take what is laid so wills and in doing continue drawing lessons from your very rich and extraordinary life. people visited his coffin in the lead up to the funeral. at least 125 people were killed when syrian government warplanes on rebel areas in the northern area of aleppo. dead included 28 children. the attack comes a month over -- before peace talks are set to take place in geneva. saturday marks the first anniversary of the massacre at .andy hook elementary school newtown residents held quiet remembrances after asking the news media for privacy. in his weekly address, president o

i'm amy goodman. the white house says enrollment in obamacare insurance plans continues to improve after a problem plagued first month. people signed up in november, double the month before. more than 800,000 people have also signed up for medicaid eligibility. health and human services secretary kathleen sebelius touted the improvements in an appearance before congress. >> as more americans give healthcare.gov a second look, they're finding the experience is night and day from where we were back in october. and they're responding by shopping for plants and enrolling in greater numbers. >> the white house says it still expects to meet a goal of 7 million enrollees by march. the pentagon has announced a media blackout on information about hunger striking prisoners a quantum on them obey. the latest wave began in february and grew to as many as 100 six prisoners over the summer. the pentagon now says it will stop disclosing how many prisoners are on hunger strike and will reject all media requests for i

i'm amy goodman. opposition activists are claiming over 500 people have died in weeks of syrian government airstrikes on the city of aleppo. the steering observatory for human rights has the debt children.51 syrian government helicopters have been hitting aleppo with highly destructive barrel bombs -- oil drums filled with explosives and sometimes with nails or scrap metal. at least 25 people were reportedly killed on saturday when government forces bombed a vegetable market. meanwhile, the al-assad regime has evacuated thousands of residents from the town of adra amidst heavy clashes with rebel fighters. at least 31 people have died in two consecutive days of bombings in the russian city of volgogr ad. 17 people were killed and 34 winded on sunday when a female suicide bomber hit a train station. another 14 people were killed earlier today when a bomber hit a packed bus. no group has claimed responsibility, but russia has faced repeated attacks from islamist militants in chechnya and north caucuses.

i'm amy goodman. up to 500 people have been killed and 800 wounded in fighting between rival soldiers in south sudan. the violence followed with the south sudanese government called a foiled coup attempt against president salva kiir. thousands of people have taken touge in u.n. facilities escape the fighting. six u.s. troops have died in an air craft hash -- aircraft crash in afghanistan. it was the deadliest incident for american forces in afghanistan this year. the military says the crash was an accident, but the taliban said it carried out an attack. the senate, intelligence committee has asked the cia to hand over an internal study said to be highly critical of its own program of secret detentions and torture. the study is said to echo the findings of the intelligence committee's report, which has yet to be declassified but reportedly documents extensive abuses and a cover-up by cia officials to congress. the study is also said to contradict the agency's own formal response to the senate report. -

i'm amy goodman. u n secretary-general ban ki- moon is calling for near doubling of the international peacekeeping force in south sudan amidst spiraling violence. on monday, he asked the security council to send up to 5500 more troops. watching, all sides in south sudan, attacked civilians and the u.n. keys peeping -- you in peacekeepers to protect the must sees immediately. those responsible at the senior level will be held personally accountable and face the consequences. even if they claim they had no knowledge of the attacks. >> the security council is due to vote on ban's proposal today. salsa dance violence erupted earlier this month when accused hislva kiir former deputy of mounting a coup. said the, riek machar release of opposition leaders is a precondition for talks. [indiscernible] these are the people we engaged in the dialogue. [indiscernible] >> hundreds have been killed and thousands have sought refuge at u.n. facilities to escape the fighting. a week of bombing by the al- assad regime

i'm amy goodman. president obama has commuted the sentences of eight prisoners serving lengthy terms for crack cocaine offenses, saying they were "sentenced under an unfair system or go to a system included a 100 to one sentencing cap for crack and powder cocaine offenses, which was eased by reform law in 2011. all eight people who received commutations have served more than 15 years in prison, six had been sentenced to life. more after the headlines. in the central african republic, gunfire rang out in the capital today as christian fighters attacked muslim neighborhoods. the country has faced a spiraling sectarian crisis since muslim rebels ousted the christian-led government in march. amnesty international has warned both sides are committing war crimes. >> this is a situation where you have neighbors killing each other and we have people who knew each other for a long, long to not makeachetes more noise when killing. ,e came across a lot of issues mutilation of bodies, in fact, people were not onl

i'm amy goodman. today in a democracy now! special, we look back at a decade of stories from the oral history project storycorps. in 2003, the first storycorps recording booth open in new york city's grand central station. since then, nearly 100,000 people have recorded interviews with their loved ones in storycorps booths across the country. their voices are burned into a cd for the people who do the interview and their loved one, and then preserved at the american folk like ray center elaborate congress. today, 10 years and some 50,000 interviews after its inception, storycorps stands as the largest collection of voices ever gathered in history. the leads of people have listened on public radio and online. today we will spend the hour with storycorps founder dave isay and air some of his favorite stories from the past decade. first, let's go to one of the stories. in january 28, 1986, nasa's challenger mission ended in tragedy when the shuttle exploded 73 seconds after takeoff. on board was this ass

i'm amy goodman. iraq is capping off its worst year of violence since the height of u.s. occupation. according to the united nations, civilians and 950 security forces have been killed this year, the highest annual total since 2008. on monday, at least 13 people were killed in clashes with iraqi police raided a sunni protest camp. protesters had been camped out for year to protest the marginalization of sunnis by the shiite-led government. more than 40 sunni lawmakers announced the resignations following the rate. separate attacks killed at least 11 other people. police in russia have rounded up dozens of people following the twin bombings of a railway station and trolley bus. the toll from the attacks has risen to 34. no one has claimed responsibility and it's unclear whether any of those to tame today were involved. rush is due to host the winter olympics in sochi in just over a month. rebels in south sudan are claiming to have retaken the key town of bor after a fierce battle with government forces

and amy goodman, host and executive producer. i like this year's person, i actually think it often precipitates really interesting discussions. i like this year's choices because it was not a copout like back in 2006, where it was -- >> i liked being person of the year. >> well, i think everybody did, times' person of the year. what is fascinating about this discussion and debate, these two people, edward snowden and the pope seemed very obvious. and there were like strong cases for them. you're in the pope's camp, josh? >> yeah, i think he created new focus on the poverty issues, the pope's position is you don't have to be accountable if you don't want to. you can't be fired. you're nominally chosen by god. he is allowed to address factors the church has issues with. the vatican bank, the refocus on poverty is actually a part of that. it is really like, we have to take the mission of the church and make it what it has to be, whether we want to or not. when there is a problem with accountability in all sorts of institutions, that

goodman was arrested and charged with conspiracy to riot even though she was just reporting. so ironically i was doing that you're right. right. there right there. right rice is under arrest. yet and just this summer nonviolent protesters at the annual alec conference in chicago or push out get arrested by chicago police officers take a look. thank you. guys said was saying they are saying protesters are getting gassed in oakland and hitting the pavement in chicago the free speech rights of corporations are being protected in all of us by police forces across america and by the conservative justices on the supreme court who gave us the disaster's citizens united decision. as long as the right wing corporatist continue to control the supreme court will continue to see protesters being gassed assaulted and arrested for no legitimate reason to move to amend or and help show justice scalia and his conservative cohorts that money is property not speech and the corporations are legal fictions not people. and that the first amendment matters. and that's the way it is tonight thursda

in minneapolis democracy now host amy goodman was arrested and charged with conspiracy to riot even though she was just reporting. so was ironic that he was doing that you were right. right right right there right there. was right it's all right if you are asked the governor there. was. any you or me yet and just the summer nonviolent protesters at the annual alec conference in chicago or push out get arrested by chicago police officers take a look. i was thinking that i. was saying earlier that the wall protesters are getting gassed in oakland and hitting the pavement in chicago the free speech rights of corporations are being protected at all costs by police forces across america and by the conservative justices on the supreme court who gave us the disaster's citizens united decision as long as the right wing corporatists continue to control the supreme court will continue to see protesters being gassed assaulted and arrested for no legitimate reason to move to a mandatory and help show justice scalia and his conservative cohorts that money is property not speech and the corporations are

thank you to amy goodman, always brilliant at my at my table and put up with man explaining today. joel berg, thank you and mark porterman for his international example and global awareness in the world. up next, i have a letter. i just work here. up next, my letter. my asthma's under control. i get out a lot... except when it's too cold. like the last three weekends. asthma doesn't affect my job... you missed the meeting again last week! it doesn't affect my family. your coughing woke me up again. i wish you'd take me to the park. i don't use my rescue inhaler a lot... depends on what you mean by a lot. coping with asthma isn't controlling it. test your level of control at asthma.com, then talk to your doctor. there may be more you could do for your asthma. >>> normally when i send an open letter it's with the expectation it will come to the inattention of the intended reyip sent. today, i know the person i feel most compelled to directly address will not be there on the receiving end. i believe a note of thanks is one of the best ways to show genuine appreciation for a gift. i'm

and i had never heard of this woman called amy goodman, and i heard her one day on the radio, and she's taking on newt gingrich, the speaker or of the house, and taking on rebels this the congo and talking about social justice struggles in the united states, on immigration issues, and i said i want to be a part of that. some of the young folks who might be familiar with the terms i'm about to use, but i used a pen and what was called paper, and i wrote her something we used to call a letter and put it inside of what's called an envelope, and i licked this thing called a stamp -- anyway,. [laughter] i want to do anything for you if i can. if you have a dog, i'll walk your dog or feed your camp. and then i started going to events. she never responded. i was stalk her, basically, not in a creepy way, and i think she had to decide whether to get a restraining order or let me volunteer. so she let me volunteer, and i learned journalism as a trade. real reporters would ask me to help them edit their pieces, so i learned by p watching journalists who i really admired engage in the trade. and o

and amy goodman, thank you all, that is all for this evening. >> good evening, thank you, my friend, thank you for joining us this hour. up all night! and apparently it is not just tonight. they're going to be up all night tonight, which is only wednesday. and then they're going to be up all night tomorrow and then they will be up all night the night after that. they are going to be up all night all the way from now until saturday. that is the plan. they are doing it again. except this time it is not just one guy, it is not just rand paul misunderstanding drone policy or ted cruz on green eggs and ham. it is not just one republican senator that is picking a pet issue that keeps them up all night. this time it is the whole republican party. and the thing for which they are taking a stand. the thing for which the senate is still in session right now, and they're going to stay in session tomorrow night and the night after that, all the way until saturday night. the hill they have decided to die on in the senate is that they want to take a long time to vote on these nominees, none of who

and amy goodman, thank you all, that is a all for this evening. >> good evening, thank you, my friend, thank you for joining us this hour. up all night! and apparently it is not just tonight. they're going to be up all night tonight, which is only wednesday. and then they're going to be up all night tomorrow and then they will be up all night the night after that. they are going to be up all night all the way from now until saturday. that is the plan. they are doing it again. except this time it is not just one guy, it is not just rand paul misunderstanding drone policy or ted cruz on green eggs and ham. it is not just one republican senator that is picking a pet issue that keeps them up all night. this time it is the whole republican party. and the thing for which they are taking a stand. the thing for which the senate is still in session right now, and they're going to stay in session tomorrow night and the night after that, all the way until saturday night. the hill they have decided to die on in the senate is that they want to take a long time to vote on these nominees, none of wh

he canceled it eventually because amy goodman, my mentor from democracy now confronted him on live national television about his purported use of the word to describe hillary clinton, who at the time was the first lady. the "washington post" did a piece on it and the catalyst gingrich can't ditch bitch comment. we are in a moment right now, not just in this country, but globally where there's an emerging war against journalists in an country is there's a direct work and struggle us. in mexico, almost every week journalists are gunned down, either by narco cartels or by force is associated with mexican government. there are several dozen journalists missing right now and area. austin tice, a young american who went to georgetown law school and was a marine who then went on to be quite a good reporter for mcclatchy newspaper has been missing for over a year. james foley and other independent reporters just passed the one-year anniversary of his eduction somewhere in syria. journalists are regularly murdered in amalia. in yemen. i tell the story of my book. there is a german missing of the del

it's not too late apparently. >> amy goodman, the senior style editor for the nest.com has good ideas you can find at your local drugstore or grocery store. is that a fact? >> merry christmas. even on christmas eve you can find things at your local grocery store, the 711. we believe at the net.com you can get great gorgeous gifts even as the countdown begins. >> are they lower priced? >> you can get many good deals. >> let's pretend we have a friend who is a movie buff. they love the movies. >> this is called the real ticket. i got these videos at 711 if you can believe it or not. you get the movies, the traditional candies, some drinks and gourmet popcorn you get at your store. then a little subscription to netflix. you can do this electronically, send it to somebody who you're not going to spend christmas day with or print it out as we have here. >> what about for the mom or dad who is always carting their kids around. >> you want to give them good juice here, the caffeinated kind, coffee beans, the four pack and make their car like an inviting home. we have febreeze. i like the itu

here is the piece by amy goodman in the albuquerque journal this morning. calling snowden an amendment hero. also, some news on edward .nowden, and i'm the ap yesterday edward snowden will speak directly to britain and the televised christmas message today stressing the importance of privacy and urging an end to government surveillance. the television channel said tuesday the pre-recorded would be the first television broadcast since he arrived in moscow. we will be talking about this with you in the first 45 minutes. your pick for your political hero of 2014. tell us who it is and why. starting with bill in cleveland, ohio. caller: good morning. i am picking joe delisle sheol. i think he is the brush of fresh air. i think we need a different focus. a little bit more inclusive, not only economy but society. is goinge direction he in. at least what he wants to go in. host: did you know more about him before 2013? caller: no, i did not. host: what specifically did you like about him? is populism. i think it is the way the country should go. for the callou fro

and i had never heard of this woman called amy goodman, and i heard her one day on the radio, and she's taking on newt gingrich, the speaker or of the house, and taking on rebels this the congo and talking about social justice struggles in the united states, on immigration issues, and i said i want to be a part of that. some of the young folks who might be familiar with the terms i'm about to use, but i used a pen and what was called paper, and i wrote her something we used to call a letter and put it inside of what's called an envelope, and i licked this thing called a stamp -- anyway,. [laughter] i want to do anything for you if i can. if you have a dog, i'll walk your dog or feed your camp. and then i started going to events. she never responded. i was stalk her, basically, not in a creepy way, and i think she had to decide whether to get a restraining order or let me volunteer. so she let me volunteer, and i learned journalism as a trade. real reporters would ask me to help them edit their pieces, so i learned by p watching journalists who i really admired engage in the trade. and o