Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, who served as chief of staff to US Secretary of State Colin Powell, is speaking out against Pentagon contractors who, he says, have too much say in U.S. foreign policy.
"Corporate influence in general--big oil, big pharma, big food--all exercise insidious power over presidential decision making, over what this country does, both domestically and internationally," he says.
During this River to River interview, Wilkerson talks with host Ben Kieffer. He says the U.S. is beholden to corporate influence that Fmr. President Dwight Eisenhower warned about.
"You’ve got this camp that can’t get out of this embrace. They simply can’t get away from this military industrial complex. Dwight Eisenhower warned us about this. He said, 'This is now way of life at all. Indeed it is humanity hanging from a cross of iron.'"
He also says that U.S. Presidential candidates should watch their comments when talking about Muslims.
"There have been fewer people killed through terrorist attacks in this country since WWII than have been killed in one single year by gun violence," he explains. "Do you know how many Muslim Americans have taken the oath and are now serving in the U.S. armed forces?"
