The Majority Report with Sam Seder

Episode 3543 - Witnessing the Gaza Genocide; Progressive Runs in Denver

Date: December 11, 2025
Host: Emma Vigeland (in for Sam Seder)
Guests: Anthony Aguilar, Melat Quiros
Produced by: Majority.FM Team

Episode Overview

This episode tackles urgent political issues including the ongoing U.S.-backed Israeli actions in Gaza (framed as genocide), U.S. military escalation in Venezuela under the Trump administration, and progressive primary challenges in the Democratic Party, with a focus on Colorado's 1st Congressional District. Emma Vigeland leads sharp, irreverent discussions with co-hosts and two prominent guests: whistleblower Anthony Aguilar (former U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel, Gaza Humanitarian Foundation contractor) and Melat Quiros (Justice Democrats-endorsed candidate for Congress).

1. Today’s Headlines in U.S. and Global Politics

[00:07–05:44]

Key Discussion Points:

• U.S. military escalation: Troops seize a Venezuelan oil tanker; Trump signals intent for wider military action in Latin America.
• Trump tells left-wing Colombian President Gustavo Petro, “You’re next.”
  • Emma Vigeland: “Wasn't he the... I kept hearing from the right. He's the anti-war guy, huh?”
• House passes $900 billion defense bill; only 94 Democrats opposed.
• Courts rule against Trump administration in various cases (immigration, protester arrests).
• Flooding in Gaza caused by torrential rains; at least one child has died from exposure.

Memorable Moment:

Matt Binder: "A good thing we got the neoconservatives out." (01:17)

2. U.S. Escalation Toward Venezuela & Hypocrisy of “Anti-War” Claims

[05:44–12:37]

Key Discussion Points:

• Trump administration’s military escalation in Venezuela:
  • Dozens of deadly strikes on ships (dubiously labeled as drug runners).
  • Largest troop buildup in the region this century.
  • Seizure of an oil tanker, justification given is its supposed link to Iran.
  • Use of sanctions and asset freezes to force regime change.
  • Hypocrisy of invoking “international law,” and the stretching of 2001/2002 AUMFs for possibly illegal warfare.
• Explicitness of the Trump era: Brags openly about taking oil and military objectives.
  • Emma Vigeland: “The benefit of Trump being such a dumb ass is that he says all of the quiet things out loud.”

Notable Quote:

• [08:23] Emma Vigeland (to Anthony Aguilar as Trump): “What happens to the oil on that ship?”
  Anthony Aguilar (as 'Trump'): “Well, we keep it, I guess.”
  Vigeland: “Just keep the oil. Not even awake.”

Timestamps:

• [07:45]–[08:47]: Trump’s direct comments about the Venezuelan oil tanker

3. Mechanisms of U.S. Support for Regime Change & Sanctions

[12:37–16:26]

Key Discussion Points:

• The U.S. props up opposition figures (e.g., Maria Corina Machado), many with a history of supporting violent regime change and cooperating with foreign hawks.
• U.S. NGOs and “aid” used as vehicles for undermining foreign governments.
• Machado receives Nobel Peace Prize even as she advocates military action by the U.S. against her own country.
• Panel deeply cynical about figures like Machado and the Nobel committee:
  • Matt Binder: “Just f. The Nobel Prize. Forever, man.” (15:30)
  • Emma Vigeland: “What a joke. What a joke.”

4. Fecklessness of Democratic Establishment in Opposing War

[16:26–19:16]

Key Discussion Points:

• Chuck Schumer’s refusal to draw clear distinctions with Trump regime on Venezuela.
• Democratic leaders avoid direct opposition to regime change, hiding behind ambiguity.
• Democrats accused of being “stupid” by underestimating the public’s ability to grasp Trump’s actions.
  • Matt Binder: “Democrats, Republicans think you're lazy. Democrats think you're stupid.”

Notable Quote:

• [18:12] Emma Vigeland: “The problem with Trump is not the substance of his actions, it's that he's confusing. Chuck. Are you...”

5. Interview: Anthony Aguilar on U.S. Complicity in Gaza Genocide

[27:27–50:44]

Introduction:

Anthony Aguilar, former U.S. Army lieutenant colonel and Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) whistleblower, describes firsthand witnessing the U.S.-enabled genocide in Gaza.

Key Insights:

• U.S. Complicity: Aguilar asserts the Gaza catastrophe is “intentional” and “by design,” facilitated directly by the U.S. via arms shipments and operational support:
  • “We, the United States are the glove... absolutely complicit in what is happening in Gaza in terms of the munitions that are used. Every bomb, every mortar... comes from the United States, either through us allowing it or directly providing it.” [29:00]
• GHF as Facade: The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation is “nothing more than a cover for action for parallel military operations,” run by mercenaries and Islamophobic gangs.
• Aid Sites as Death Traps: Initial 400 distribution sites reduced to 4; set in active combat zones to displace and endanger civilians.
  • “They deliberately chose to put these distribution sites specifically to service humanitarian aid for unarmed civilians in sites that would require them to move... through an active and ongoing combat zone.” [37:44]

Memorable Details:

• Infidels Motorcycle Club, an Islamophobic, crusader-themed gang of U.S. veterans, was hired for “security” in Gaza.

Shocking Statistics:

• Aguilar estimates the Gaza death toll may be as high as 500,000, based on scale of destruction and population displacement.
  • “The death toll... is likely close to half a million.” [41:19]

Long-Term Plan for Gaza:

• The Boston Consulting Group, Netanyahu affiliates, and U.S. contractors planned for years to “clear” Gaza’s population and redevelop as a “riviera”—plans predate the October 7 attacks. [45:47]
  • “The true objective is that every Palestinian within Gaza will either be dead or voluntarily transferred somewhere else and they will never come back.”

Humanitarian Crisis:

• “They are starving them every day.”
• Ongoing storm in Gaza—children dying of exposure in tents.

Notable Quotes:

• “[GHF] was really just the candy coating on this hard pill that we were forcing down the throat of the Palestinians.” [31:13]
• “I have never seen... anything of that level of disproportionality, complete disregard for the civilian population... What I witnessed in Gaza... made me sick. It broke me.” [35:42]

6. Interview: Melat Quiros, Progressive Challenger in Denver

[51:40–69:14]

Introduction:

Justice Democrats-endorsed Melat Quiros, a young immigration lawyer and progressive activist, discusses her campaign to unseat corporate Democrat Diana DeGette in Colorado's bluest congressional district.

Key Policy Positions:

• Medicare for All:
  • "Medicare for All is the most efficient, effective and economical proposal that we have..." [52:54]
• Universal Childcare:
  • “Trying to get childcare is like trying to pay for a second rent or a second mortgage. Right. It is that inaccessible to a lot of young people.” [53:45]
• Climate/Green New Deal:
  • Supports renewable energy, revision and implementation of Green New Deal, concerns about AI data centers exacerbating environmental harms. [54:54]
• Anti-Corporate Platform:
  • Pledges not to take corporate PAC or AIPAC money.
• Anti-Genocide/Pro-Palestine:
  • Supports an arms embargo to Israel, recounts being fired from a law firm for defending pro-Palestine protestors in 2023.

Personal Narrative:

• Immigrated from Ethiopia as an infant (diversity visa lottery); father worked his way through pharmacy school.
• “We're not living in a free market, we're living in a coercive market where these institutions... are using their power over us because we can't afford our rent, we can't afford our health care…” [57:54]

Direct Challenge to Incumbent:

• Critiques DeGette’s 30-year tenure, corporate-backed politics, and disconnect from local progressive values:
  • “When she got elected, the number one song in the country was the Macarena.” [64:23]
  • “No votes for corporate shills, period.” [65:46]
• Highlights that 80% of Democratic voters support an arms embargo on Israel, while incumbent continues to take pro-Israel PAC money and avoid action.

Notable Quotes:

• “We need to put people in Congress that are going to be accountable to the people, not to their wealthy donors, not to the corporate PACs.” [63:00]
• “Standing up to power for our most basic values of human rights and standing up against genocide is the bare minimum that we need to be requiring of these institutions.” [57:54]

7. Progressive Movement Strategy: Funding, Empowerment, and Volunteerism

[67:03–69:14]

• Quiros highlights the importance of small-donor power, national public funding for campaigns, and grassroots organizing to overcome corporate-backed incumbents.
  • “If you can donate 5 or $10 on a recurring basis, that is going to make all of the difference.” [68:20]
  • Pushes for the expansion of donor matching programs to level the playing field for insurgent candidates.

8. Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments – Compiled

• “It's a self licking ice cream cone, to use a phrase that Sam likes to deploy.” — Emma Vigeland [07:58]
• “Remember when he maybe accidentally revealed that the death toll in Gaza was hundreds of thousands?” — Emma Vigeland, on Trump [08:53]
• “Just keep the oil. Just keep the oil not even awake.” — Emma Vigeland, on Trump’s bluster [08:40]
• “They deliberately chose to put these distribution sites... in sites that would require them to move... through an active and ongoing combat zone.” — Anthony Aguilar [37:44]
• “The death toll... is likely close to half a million.” — Anthony Aguilar [41:19]
• “When she got elected, the number one song in the country was the Macarena.” — Melat Quiros [64:23]
• “No votes for corporate shills, period.” — Melat Quiros [65:46]

9. Key Timestamps

• [00:07] Headlines & Opening Banter
• [07:45]–[08:47] Trump on oil theft & Venezuelan war escalation
• [12:26]–[16:26] Discussion of foreign regime-change hypocrisy (Iran, Venezuela, Gaza)
• [27:27]–[50:44] Interview: Anthony Aguilar exposes U.S. backed genocide in Gaza
• [51:40]–[69:14] Interview: Melat Quiros, insurgent candidate and Justice Democrats endorsement

10. Episode Tone & Takeaway

The tone is urgent, incisive, and scornful of U.S. militarism, bipartisan complicity, and establishment inertia. The Majority Report provides both sobering firsthand testimony and practical political guidance for progressives fighting for justice and accountability—especially on the issues of Gaza, Venezuela, and AIPAC’s grip on Democratic politics.

For more info & ways to support:

• Melat Quiros: quirosforco.com
• Majority Report: Majority.FM

End of Summary