Flipping Tables – Episode 32: "Weapons of Mass Deception"

Host: Monte Mader | Release Date: September 10, 2025

Episode Overview

In this gripping episode, host Monte Mader—formerly aligned with the alt-right evangelical movement—guides listeners through the haunting legacy of September 11, 2001, and its immense ripple effect on American foreign policy, national trauma, and civic responsibility. Monte’s deep dive exposes the stories of that tragic day, examines the path from 9/11 to the Iraq War, scrutinizes the myth of weapons of mass destruction, unravels the fallout for survivors and veterans, and challenges America’s collective memory and honesty about its history. The episode connects these national wounds to urgent current events, focusing on truth-telling, government accountability, and the vital importance of civic engagement and the First Amendment.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Personal & National Memory of 9/11

• Monte recalls her childhood experience of 9/11:

  • Entering her elementary classroom, witnessing her teacher shocked by the images on TV, not understanding the gravity until years later upon moving to New York and visiting Ground Zero.
  • “When I visited ground zero...I understood how close everything is in this city, just how tall those buildings are...The terror and the fear. New Yorkers are a truly spectacular and strong, strong group of people.” (03:09)

• America’s promise to ‘never forget’ is contrasted with recent policy actions:

  • Critique of Trump administration’s moves to underfund 9/11 survivor compensation, making the act of remembrance into political action.
  • “While we claim never forget, in the name of patriotism, the Trump administration is draining the 9/11 fund for survivors and emergency responders...” (03:40)

2. 9/11 Timeline: Voices & Stories

• Detailed reconstruction of 9/11 events with precise times:

  • [07:17] - Monte provides a vivid timeline:
    • Clear blue skies, families going about their routines, Al Qaeda hijackers aboard four flights.
    • 8:19 AM: Flight attendant Betty Ong’s emergency call: “The cockpit’s not answering. Somebody stabbed in business class.”
    • 8:46 AM: American Flight 11 crashes into the North Tower.
    • 9:03 AM: United 175 strikes the South Tower—America realizes it’s under attack.
    • 9:37 AM: Flight 77 crashes into the Pentagon.
    • 9:55 AM: South Tower collapses.
    • 10:03 AM: United 93—passenger revolt, “Let’s roll” (Todd Beamer), crashes in Pennsylvania, averting more devastation.
    • 10:28 AM: North Tower collapses.

• Emotional audio of victim voicemails and final moments:

  • [10:11]–[10:48]: Monte plays selected voicemails from 9/11 victims, humanizing the tragedy and underscoring the episode’s emotional core.

• Stories from survivors:

  • Monte shares a friend’s testimony: escaping 24 floors, enduring months of dust and trauma, highlighting the EPA’s false assurances about air safety.
  • “Fires smoldered on the site for months, and the sulfuric stench permeated the air. Every day, I wiped away dust from every surface in the apartment...But every morning, a fresh layer of dust appeared.” (13:55)

• Monte’s reflections on New York’s human cost and the necessity of active remembrance:

  • “Memory sometimes takes action. It’s not just something we do passively.” (16:02)

3. 9/11, Afghanistan, and the Path to Iraq

Immediate Response and the “War on Terror”

• America unites behind the President (‘With us or with the terrorists’ speech):
  • [17:10]: The Authorization for Use of Military Force passes; troops enter Afghanistan.

Shift to Iraq

• How the Bush administration linked Iraq to terror:

  • “States like these...constitute an axis of evil...” — George W. Bush (18:14)
  • Repeated, speculative claims that Saddam was rebuilding WMDs: “There is no doubt that Saddam Hussein has weapons of mass destruction.” — Dick Cheney (Aug 26, 2002)

• Pivotal moments:

  • Colin Powell’s UN speech lends credence to war claims, later admitted to be based on faulty and misrepresented intelligence.
  • Monte highlights how policy motives outpaced evidence:
    • “The decision to invade came first. The intelligence was then scrounged up second.” (20:40)

4. The Iraq War: Myths, Motives, and Fallout

The Case for War

• Bush Doctrine & preemptive strikes:
  • Three rationales: WMDs, Saddam-Al Qaeda ties (unfounded), and “spreading democracy.”
  • “The claims formed the narrative that Iraq posed an imminent global threat.” (25:15)

Reality & Aftermath

• No WMDs found—narrative pivots:

  • The “Shock and Awe” campaign, fall of Baghdad, toppling of Saddam’s statue.
  • Iraq Survey Group finds: “Saddam...ended his weapons program in 1991. He had no stockpiles, no active programs, no nuclear weapons. The entire premise of the invasion...was false.” (27:45)

• Consequences:

  • De-Ba'athification, collapse of the Iraqi state, insurgency, civil war, the Abu Ghraib torture scandal, rise of ISIS.

Human Cost

• Pat Tillman’s story:

  • NFL star enlists post-9/11, dies in Afghanistan by friendly fire; military misleads public and his family, using his legacy as propaganda.
  • “They hijacked Pat’s legacy. They tried to turn him into something he wasn’t to suit their needs.” — Mary Tillman (32:52)

• Veteran trauma, disillusionment, and Monte’s reflections on other affected veterans.

• Grim statistics:

  • 4,400 US troops killed, tens of thousands wounded, Iraqi deaths from 150,000 to 500,000+. Costs estimated at $2–6 trillion.
  • “No wonder they hate us.” (35:44)

Root Causes

• “Was it really about weapons? Or oil and projecting power?”
  • Multiple scholars cited; oil and energy security considered primary motivations.
  • “The weapons of mass destruction were the public rationale, but the deeper reasons were more complex.” (38:50)

5. Unkept Promises to Survivors: The World Trade Center Health Program

• The ongoing health crisis and political obstruction to care for 9/11 survivors:
  • Monte returns to Christina Stanton’s story:
    • After suffering effects from toxic dust, Christina is diagnosed with cancer now recognized as 9/11-related.
    • Recent attempts by the Trump administration to cut funding and staffing for the World Trade Center Health Program and CDC leave survivors in limbo.
    • Testimony from attorneys and advocates warning that people are being denied care due to these cuts (Michael Barash: “If the layoffs are not reversed, 9/11 responders and survivors will die needlessly.” (44:22))
    • Christina’s question: “Can we still count on that promise [to never forget]?” (46:10)

6. The First Amendment, Civic Engagement, and Historical Reckoning

• Current legislative threats:

  • Discussion of Trump’s recent executive order criminalizing flag burning (contrary to Supreme Court ruling), and threats to the First Amendment.
  • Concerns over election redistricting battles and their impact on democracy.

• Urgency of protecting free speech for dissent and protest:

  • “Without the ability to speak up against our government...we have nothing.” (48:00)

• Call for historical honesty & learning from global models (i.e., Tower of London’s brutal truth):

  • “We have got to be willing, especially as white Americans, to sit in the discomfort of truth. Because if we do not do that...we will continue to perpetuate the same evils.” (50:45)

• Challenge to listeners:

  • “Sit in the discomfort and challenge yourself to sit in the truth, no matter how painful it is. That is the only way that we stop this cycle...” (51:44)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Memory sometimes takes action. It’s not just something we do passively.”
  — Monte Mader (16:02)

• “There is no doubt that Saddam Hussein has weapons of mass destructions. There is no doubt...”
  — Dick Cheney (cited by Monte) (18:50)

• “The decision to invade came first. The intelligence was then scrounged up second.”
  — Monte (paraphrasing Paul Pillar) (20:40)

• “They hijacked Pat’s legacy. They tried to turn him into something he wasn’t to suit their needs.”
  — Mary Tillman (quoted by Monte) (32:52)

• “If the layoffs are not reversed, 9/11 responders and survivors will die needlessly.”
  — Michael Barash (quoted from email) (44:22)

• “Without the ability to speak up against our government, to criticize our government when they lie or they encroach on civil liberties or when they break their promises, we have nothing.”
  — Monte (48:00)

• “We have got to be willing, especially as white Americans, to sit in the discomfort of truth.”
  — Monte (50:45)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 00:46 – 03:40 | Monte’s personal 9/11 memory & opening reflection
• 07:17 – 10:48 | Step-by-step recap of 9/11 & United Flight 93’s “Let’s roll” moment
• 13:55 – 16:30 | NYC survivor stories, aftermath, and memorial experience
• 17:10 – 20:40 | US government response: war in Afghanistan, pivot to Iraq
• 20:40 – 27:45 | Bush administration’s case for war, weapons inspection failures, Powell’s speech
• 27:45 – 35:44 | Iraq War: occupation, insurgency, Abu Ghraib, consequences
• 32:00 – 34:15 | The Pat Tillman story: friendly fire, military cover-up
• 35:44 – 38:50 | War cost, withdrawal, and regional destabilization; rise of ISIS
• 38:50 – 46:10 | Underlying motives for war: oil, power projection, scholar insights
• 46:10 – 48:00 | World Trade Center Health Fund, survivor testimonials & current funding threats
• 48:00 – 54:00 | Civic action, First Amendment, active remembrance, honest historical reckoning
• 54:00 – end | Closing challenge: confronting uncomfortable truths, call for active remembrance

Tone & Language

• Monte’s tone blends empathy, conviction, and historical rigor, often oscillating between deeply personal testimony and hard-hitting critique.
• The language is direct, emotional, and occasionally laced with humor and sarcasm (e.g., “No, I will not debate or explain further. You get it.”).
• Speakers are referenced authentically, with Monte frequently paraphrasing or quoting directly from political figures, survivors, and scholars.

Conclusion & Next Steps

Monte urges listeners to transform remembrance into action—demanding accountability, supporting survivor health initiatives, and confronting America’s real history, not just the shining myths. The episode closes with a preview of the next discussion: separation of church and state with Dr. Richard Ballmer—a reminder that the freedoms at the core of American democracy remain under threat and must be understood, defended, and cherished.