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Front Burner

How the petrodollar took over the world

4/30/202627 min

The shockwaves triggered by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran have made clear the extent to which the global economy relies on oil, and the U.S. dollar. It’s no accident. 

So today we are going to try and understand how and why the U.S. and Saudi Arabia created this system, and how severely it’s being tested by this war. David Wight is our guest. He’s a lecturer at the University of North Carolina Greensboro and the author of Oil Money: Middle East Petrodollars and the Transformation of U.S. Empire, 1967–1988.

For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts

Clips

Saudi Arabia Bankrolled U.S. Deficits
The 1974 Grand Bargain
Does Policy Protect The Dollar?
Petrodollar’s Biggest Challenge Yet
UAE Move Signals Dollar Durability
Iran’s Revolt Against ‘Oil Heist’

Transcript preview

First 90 seconds

  1. Speaker 00:00

    This week on Two Blocks from the White House, the political fallout from Saturday's shooting at the White House Correspondents' Dinner.

  2. Speaker 10:06

    A suspect has been charged with attempting to assassinate the US president.

  3. Speaker 00:10

    Does this reflect growing political violence in America?

  4. Jayme Poisson· Host0:13

    Join me, Katie Simpson, and my fellow Washington correspondents, Paul Hunter and Willie Lowry, as we break down US politics from a Canadian perspective.

  5. Speaker 10:22

    Find and follow Two Blocks from the White House wherever you get your podcasts and watch us on YouTube every Wednesday. [upbeat music] This is a CBC podcast.

  6. Jayme Poisson· Host0:33

    [upbeat music] Hey, everybody. I'm Jamie Poisson. The shock waves triggered by the US-Israeli war on Iran have made clear the extent to which the global economy relies on really two things, oil and the US dollar. It's no accident. So today, we're gonna try and understand how and why the US and Saudi Arabia created this system and how severely it's being tested by this war. David White is the guy for this. He is a lecturer at the University of North Carolina Greensboro and author of Oil Money: Middle East Petrodollars and the Transformation of US Empire, 1967 to 1988. [upbeat music] David, hey, great to have you.

  7. David Wight· Guest1:28

    Thank you so much for having

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