Politics and views in the United States.

A civil rights report shows a historic spike in anti-American Muslim complaints, advocates call for changes to capital punishment in Oklahoma and President Biden calls for voters to reject political violence. 

TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to 2024 Talks, where we're following our democracy in historic times.

We didn't create the dilemma that's out there right now, where 70 percent of America wants neither candidate, and we've got approval ratings at an all-time low.

Mike Rawlings with the bipartisan No Labels group says they won't put forward a presidential ticket after failing to find a candidate.

He says in spite of the unpopularity of President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, third-party efforts like those of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are pointless.

During a tense call, Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continued U.S. support depends on Israel's treatment of Palestinian civilians.

The White House has not said it's reconsidering arms sales to Israel, however.

Netanyahu also continues to face pressure at home.

A key rival and Cabinet member, the former General Benny Gantz, is calling for new elections there in September.

The Council on American Islamic Relations says anti-Muslim incidents in the U.S. rose by nearly 60 percent last year, higher than even after 9/11 or during former President Trump's Muslim ban.

Corey Saylor is their research and advocacy director.

This is the largest number of complaints CARE has had reported to it in the organization's 30-year history since we've been taking care of numbers.

That's pretty sobering information.

Most of the 8,000 incidents came after the Hamas attacks in Israel.

In Oklahoma, Michael D. Wayne Smith was executed by lethal injection Thursday.

The 12th execution there since capital punishment resumed in 2021.

Smith's family asked the governor to stop the execution.

His sister-in-law, Nicole, says there was evidence of coercion of the witnesses during the trial.

We're asking the governor, have a heart.

Please understand that this is a human's life that you're taking.

The Office of Personnel Management is issuing new rules to safeguard the civil service from presidential actions.

Trump says if reelected, he'll strip thousands of federal employees of civil service protections by reclassifying them.

Biden's campaign is calling on voters to disavow violence after Trump posted a video showing the back gate of a pickup with a photo of Biden hogtied on it.

Former D.C. police officer Michael Fanone previously testified about the January 6th Capitol riot and says those kinds of attacks are bad for the country.

These are Americans who do not appreciate or understand democracy.

These are people who believe wholeheartedly that the ends justify the means.

Meanwhile, a federal judge sharply criticized a January 6th rioter for downplaying the attack and normalizing violent rhetoric.

Washington, D.C. District Judge Royce spoke when sentencing Taylor James Giannottakis to more than seven years Wednesday.

In a podcast, hard-right Louisiana Congressman Clay Higgins says federal law enforcement entrapped people during insurrection.

Higgins argues without proof that federal agents tricked Trump supporters into attacking the Capitol.

I'm Farah Siddiqui for Pacifica Network and Public News Service.

Find our trust indicators at publicnewsservice.org.