With more than 146,000 deaths and counting, the United States has been the hardest hit country by COVID-19.

In this first episode of a special Head to Head series, we challenge prominent members of the Republican and Democratic parties on their handling of the crisis.

In part one, Mehdi Hasan challenges Jack Kingston, a surrogate for the Donald Trump campaign, and a former Republican congressman.

Our second guest, Jess O'Connell, is the former CEO of the Democratic National Committee who has worked on Hillary Clinton and Pete Buttigieg's presidential campaigns.

So, who is to blame for the US COVID-19 catastrophe?

*Editor's Note: These interviews were recorded on July 9 and 13, and since then, some of the data quoted has changed, including the number of cases and the death toll, which have sadly grown exponentially.

With more than 146,000 deaths and counting, the United States has been the hardest hit country by COVID-19. In this first episode of a special Head to Head series, we challenge prominent members of the Republican and Democratic parties on their handling of the crisis. In part one, Mehdi Hasan challenges Jack Kingston, a surrogate for the Donald Trump campaign, and a former Republican congressman. Our second guest, Jess O'Connell, is the former CEO of the Democratic National Committee who has worked on Hillary Clinton and Pete Buttigieg's presidential campaigns. So, who is to blame for the US COVID-19 catastrophe? *Editor's Note: These interviews were recorded on July 9 and 13, and since then, some of the data quoted has changed, including the number of cases and the death toll, which have sadly grown exponentially.

Interviews with attitude, tackling the big issues of our time with Mehdi Hasan.

Head to Head

US coronavirus catastrophe: Who is to blame? | Head to Head

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, tensions have mounted between China and the United States.

In this special edition of Head to Head, we ask if the West is heading towards a new Cold War with China.

In part one, we challenge retired US Brigadier General Robert Spalding, a former senior director for strategy on President Donald Trump's National Security Council, on why he believes the world should stand forcefully against China.

In part two, we challenge Kerry Brown, director of the Lau China Institute, King's College London, who argues that it would be disastrous to turn away from China now.

More: https://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/headtohead/

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, tensions have mounted between China and the United States. In this special edition of Head to Head, we ask if the West is heading towards a new Cold War with China. In part one, we challenge retired US Brigadier General Robert Spalding, a former senior director for strategy on President Donald Trump's National Security Council, on why he believes the world should stand forcefully against China. In part two, we challenge Kerry Brown, director of the Lau China Institute, King's College London, who argues that it would be disastrous to turn away from China now. More: https://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/headtohead/

Is China a threat or a partner to the West? | Head to Head

In this episode, Mehdi Hasan goes Head to Head with two guests with opposing views.

In part one, he challenges Lanhee Chen, chief architect of former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's campaign. Chen argues that "the employer-sponsored system ... has been the linchpin of a quality system of care we have in the US".

And in part two, Hasan debates Bernie Sanders surrogate and health policy expert Abdul El-Sayed. "I don't want to live in a society where any of my neighbours … have to potentially go bankrupt because they got sick ... and that's what we have here in the United States," he says.

*Editors Note: In the programme, Hasan refers to a study by the Kaiser Family Foundation, published May 13, which estimated that by May 2, 2020, some 27 million Americans could have lost their health insurance as a result of the economic impact of the coronavirus. After this segment was recorded, a new study, conducted by Families USA, estimated that 5.4 million Americans lost their health insurance. While the Kaiser study took into account family members of the insured, the Families USA study did not. Americans frequently receive their insurance through another family member's employer.

More: https://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/headtohead/

In this episode, Mehdi Hasan goes Head to Head with two guests with opposing views. In part one, he challenges Lanhee Chen, chief architect of former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's campaign. Chen argues that "the employer-sponsored system ... has been the linchpin of a quality system of care we have in the US". And in part two, Hasan debates Bernie Sanders surrogate and health policy expert Abdul El-Sayed. "I don't want to live in a society where any of my neighbours … have to potentially go bankrupt because they got sick ... and that's what we have here in the United States," he says. *Editors Note: In the programme, Hasan refers to a study by the Kaiser Family Foundation, published May 13, which estimated that by May 2, 2020, some 27 million Americans could have lost their health insurance as a result of the economic impact of the coronavirus. After this segment was recorded, a new study, conducted by Families USA, estimated that 5.4 million Americans lost their health insurance. While the Kaiser study took into account family members of the insured, the Families USA study did not. Americans frequently receive their insurance through another family member's employer. More: https://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/headtohead/

US healthcare: A cure worse than disease? | Head to Head

In this episode of Head to Head, Mehdi Hasan challenges Erik Prince, the founder and former CEO of Blackwater, on his security firm’s performance during the Iraq war, the “exit strategy” he’s proposing for the war in Afghanistan, and his support for US President Donald Trump.

During the early years of the Bush administration’s so-called ‘War on Terror’, Blackwater grew into one of the most profitable private military contractors in the US. Over the years, it received over a billion dollars’ worth of government contracts to provide security to top US officials, train members of the Iraqi army and police, and support the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and Department of Defense’s counternarcotics programme in Afghanistan.

But following the 2007 Nisour Square incident where Blackwater employees shot and killed 14 unarmed Iraqi civilians at a traffic circle, the firm and its founder shot to international notoriety, highlighting the clear dangers of using armed military contractors on the battlefield.

Prince, a former US Navy SEAL, has since been channeling his efforts to train security personnel abroad, including most recently in China, where he launched the Hong Kong-based Frontier Services Group, a security and logistics company.

He’s also offered a proposal to end the costly, ongoing US-led war in Afghanistan – the longest in US history – by privatising the bulk of it: replacing thousands of US troops with private contractors and sending NATO forces home. But is he really the man to bring peace to the war-torn country?

In front of the Oxford Union audience, we challenge Prince on the record of his private contractors in the Iraq war and ask him to explain how his controversial plan for the conflict in Afghanistan would bring it to an end. We’ll also ask Prince, who previously served as an informal advisor to President Trump and has been interviewed by both the US House Intelligence Committee and Special Counsel Robert Mueller, about his ties to the current administration. 

We are joined by a panel of three experts:

Sean McFate, a former private military contractor, former officer in the US army, and author of the book, The New Rules of War.

Ghaith Abdul-Ahad, an award-winning Guardian journalist from Iraq who’s covered conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen and beyond.

Tim Collins, a former commander in the British Army and co-founder of the private military consulting company, New Century. 

This episode will be broadcast March 8 at 20:00 GMT and will be repeated on March 9 at 12:00 GMT, March 10 at 01:00GMT and March 11 at 06:00 GMT.

Follow us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/AJHeadToHead) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/AJHeadtoHead).

Watch previous Head to Head episodes here: https://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/headtohead/episodes.html 

Head to Head is Al Jazeera's forum for ideas, a gladiatorial contest tackling big issues such as faith, nationalism, democracy and foreign intervention, in front of an opinionated audience at the Oxford Union.

- Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe 
- Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish 
- Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera 
- Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/

In this episode of Head to Head, Mehdi Hasan challenges Erik Prince, the founder and former CEO of Blackwater, on his security firm’s performance during the Iraq war, the “exit strategy” he’s proposing for the war in Afghanistan, and his support for US President Donald Trump. During the early years of the Bush administration’s so-called ‘War on Terror’, Blackwater grew into one of the most profitable private military contractors in the US. Over the years, it received over a billion dollars’ worth of government contracts to provide security to top US officials, train members of the Iraqi army and police, and support the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and Department of Defense’s counternarcotics programme in Afghanistan. But following the 2007 Nisour Square incident where Blackwater employees shot and killed 14 unarmed Iraqi civilians at a traffic circle, the firm and its founder shot to international notoriety, highlighting the clear dangers of using armed military contractors on the battlefield. Prince, a former US Navy SEAL, has since been channeling his efforts to train security personnel abroad, including most recently in China, where he launched the Hong Kong-based Frontier Services Group, a security and logistics company. He’s also offered a proposal to end the costly, ongoing US-led war in Afghanistan – the longest in US history – by privatising the bulk of it: replacing thousands of US troops with private contractors and sending NATO forces home. But is he really the man to bring peace to the war-torn country? In front of the Oxford Union audience, we challenge Prince on the record of his private contractors in the Iraq war and ask him to explain how his controversial plan for the conflict in Afghanistan would bring it to an end. We’ll also ask Prince, who previously served as an informal advisor to President Trump and has been interviewed by both the US House Intelligence Committee and Special Counsel Robert Mueller, about his ties to the current administration. We are joined by a panel of three experts: Sean McFate, a former private military contractor, former officer in the US army, and author of the book, The New Rules of War. Ghaith Abdul-Ahad, an award-winning Guardian journalist from Iraq who’s covered conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen and beyond. Tim Collins, a former commander in the British Army and co-founder of the private military consulting company, New Century. This episode will be broadcast March 8 at 20:00 GMT and will be repeated on March 9 at 12:00 GMT, March 10 at 01:00GMT and March 11 at 06:00 GMT. Follow us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/AJHeadToHead) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/AJHeadtoHead). Watch previous Head to Head episodes here: https://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/headtohead/episodes.html Head to Head is Al Jazeera's forum for ideas, a gladiatorial contest tackling big issues such as faith, nationalism, democracy and foreign intervention, in front of an opinionated audience at the Oxford Union. - Subscribe to our channel: http://aje.io/AJSubscribe - Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AJEnglish - Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera - Check our website: https://www.aljazeera.com/

US coronavirus catastrophe: Who is to blame? | Head to Head

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