School of War
School of War is a podcast hosted by Aaron MacLean, a senior fellow at Hudson Institute and former U.S. Marine. Each episode features conversations with secretaries of state, military historians, war planners, and political decision-makers to explore the lessons of war. The show aims to provide deep insight into military strategy and foreign policy.
Episodes
The Rise of the Navy SEALs, with Ben Milligan
Ben Milligan, a former U.S. Navy SEAL, Bronze Star recipient, and author of By Water Beneath the Walls: The Rise of the Navy SEALs, joins School of War to discuss the origins and evolution of one of America's most storied special operations forces. How did the Navy SEALs grow out of the Underwater Demolition Teams of World War II? What does it take to become a SEAL? How did the Vietnam War shape t
How Trump Decided to Go to War with Iran, with Jonathan Swan
Jonathan Swan, a White House reporter for The New York Times, joins School of War to discuss the reporting behind his new book, Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump, co-authored with Maggie Haberman. How does Donald Trump make geopolitical decisions? What drove him to join Israel’s war against Iran? How has his thinking on Ukraine evolved? And how does China fit into all o
‘The Odyssey’ and the Search for Historical Truth, with James Diggle and John Underhill
James Diggle, emeritus professor of Greek and Latin at Cambridge University, and John Underhill, professor of geoscience and energy transition at the University of Aberdeen, join School of War to discuss their decades-long search for the real Ithaca of Homer’s Odyssey. Based on their recent Antigone journal article, “In Search of Ithaca,” they explain why the island we’ve called Ithaca for centuri
America’s Iran Problem Isn’t Going Away, with Mike Doran
Mike Doran, senior fellow and director of the Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East at the Hudson Institute, returns to School of War to examine why the war with Iran continues despite devastating military setbacks for Tehran. Is President Trump’s Iran strategy truly different from President Obama’s, or are the similarities overstated? What does the fight over the Strait of Hormuz revea
Lindsey Graham: The Last of the ‘Three Amigos’ with Vance Serchuk
Vance Serchuk, executive director and Partner at the KKR Global Institute, and former senior national security adviser to Senator Joe Lieberman, was uniquely positioned to witness one of the most influential partnerships in modern American foreign policy: the “Three Amigos” of John McCain, Joe Lieberman, and Lindsey Graham. What made their partnership so effective? What vision did they share for A
How Choke Points Became Weapons of War, with Edward Fishman
Edward Fishman, senior fellow and director of the Greenberg Center for Geoeconomics at the Council on Foreign Relations, joins School of War to discuss his New York Times best-selling book, Chokepoints: American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare. How has the United States turned the global economy into a strategic weapon? What are the strengths and limits of sanctions? And how are China, Russia
Four Years Fighting Russia: An American Soldier’s Testimony
David, a U.S. military veteran who has been fighting voluntarily alongside Ukrainian forces, joins School of War to discuss how four years on the front lines have transformed modern warfare. How has combat in Ukraine changed since Russia’s 2022 invasion? Why have first-person view drones become the defining weapon of the war? What misconceptions does the West still have about the Russian military?
The American Revolution Was a World War, with Richard Bell
Richard Bell, historian, professor at the University of Maryland, and author of The American Revolution and the Fate of the World, joins School of War to discuss how the American Revolution became a global conflict that stretched from Boston to the Caribbean, Europe, India, and beyond. How did George Washington's strategy force Britain to fight a world war? Why was France's intervention decisive t
One Battle of Hormuz After Another, with Sal Mercogliano
Sal Mercogliano, professor of history at Campbell University and host of the What’s Going on with Shipping YouTube channel, joins the show once again to discuss Iran's renewed attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Why is the ceasefire already beginning to unravel? What is Iran trying to accomplish by asserting control over the strait? And what could the long-term consequences be
Why Chimpanzees Go to War, with John Mitani
Dr. John Mitani, professor emeritus in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Michigan and recipient of the Charles R. Darwin Lifetime Achievement Award, joins School of War to discuss the violent chimpanzee civil war he documented among the Ngogo chimpanzees in Uganda. What caused one of the world's largest chimpanzee communities to turn on itself? What does chimpanzee warfare reveal
From Teenage Soldier to Commander in Ukraine, with Mamuka Mamulashvili
Earlier this year, Aaron MacLean visited Ukraine, where he met with Georgian Legion commander Mamuka Mamulashvili. What happens when a boy goes to war at 14 years old? What does a lifetime of fighting Russians teach you about how they operate? And what lessons should the West be learning from war in Ukraine?
02:18 - Growing up in Soviet Georgia
03:53 - Russia's invasion of Abkhazia
07:59 - Capt
Can Courage Save America? With Rye Barcott
Rye Barcott, co-founder and CEO of With Honor, veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps, and author of Courage Can Save Us, joins School of War to discuss the meaning of courage, the enduring value of service, and the challenge of bridging America’s growing political divides. What separates courage from bravery? Can military service help heal a polarized America? And what does principled leadership look l
Reading Trump’s Iran Deal So You Don’t Have To, with Mark Dubowitz
Mark Dubowitz, CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, returns to School of War to discuss the newly released memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran. What does the deal actually say? What are its biggest strategic implications? And is it comparable to the JCPOA—or something worse?
01:19 - Paragraph 1: Lebanon and Hezbollah
09:45 - Paragraphs 2–3: Sovereignty a
Auditing the Iran War, with Eliot Cohen
Eliot Cohen, Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies; professor emeritus at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, author of The Strategist: How to Think About War and Politics; and co-host of the Shield of the Republic podcast, joins School of War to discuss the recent agreement between the United States and Iran. Did the United St
The Start-Up Spirit Behind America's Founding, with Arthur Herman
Arthur Herman, senior research fellow at the Civitas Institute at the University of Texas at Austin and author of Founder’s Fire: From 1776 to the Age of Trump, joins School of War to discuss how America’s Founding Fathers helped create a culture of innovation in technology, industry, and warfare. Who are the most important founders of the past and present? What lessons can they teach us about tod
Why a Weakened Iran Remains Dangerous, with Behnam Ben Taleblu
Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior director of Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ (FDD) Iran Program and a senior fellow specializing in Iranian security and political issues, returns to School of War to discuss the latest round of fighting between Israel and Iran. Why did this latest wave of Iranian missile attacks feel different? Why does a weakened Iran seem emboldened? Where is the regime most vul
The AI Arms Race: Can Our Intel Community Keep Up? With Anthony Vinci
Anthony Vinci—co-founder and CEO of Vico, an AI company that empowers judgment and analysis in finance and national security, and author of The Fourth Intelligence Revolution—joins School of War to discuss the technological evolution of spycraft. How does an intelligence officer operate in a world of rapidly advancing technology? What happens when machines begin to assist, or even replace, human j
The Iran War and a New World Order in Asia, with Rep. Michael Baumgartner
Rep. Michael Baumgartner, who represents Washington’s 5th Congressional District, joins the show from Singapore at the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue. What was the tone and significance of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s speech? How are the Asian economies fairing in lieu of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz? And what is the future of the American-led order in East Asia?
03:07 - Tone of the Shangri-
The Secret Mission to Save Europe’s Jews, with Matti Friedman
Matti Friedman is an award-winning journalist and columnist at The Free Press. He joins the show to discuss his latest book, Out of the Sky: Heroism and Rebirth in Nazi Europe. Whom were the Zionist Jews fighting on behalf of the British during World War II? What happened to the legendary Zionist figure Hannah Senesh? And how did a war story without battlefield success help give birth to a nation?
The Democratic Party’s Worldview, with Jake Sullivan
Jake Sullivan, former U.S. national security adviser under President Joe Biden, Kissinger professor of the practice of statecraft and world order at the Harvard Kennedy School, and co-host of The Long Game podcast, joins School of War to discuss geopolitics through the lens of today’s Democratic Party. Where do Democrats stand on China, Israel, Iran, and the war in Ukraine?
02:29 - China summit r
Niall Ferguson on Cold War II and the Rise of Anti-History
Sir Niall Ferguson, Milbank Family Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and columnist at The Free Press, joins the show in front of a live audience to discuss the perilous moment we find ourselves in and how it all relates to history. What is the status of the Iran war? What is influencing President Donald Trump’s policymaking? How do we defeat a dangerous wave of “anti-history”? And are we on
Grading Operation Epic Fury, with Christian Brose
Christian Brose, president and chief strategy officer of Anduril Industries and author of The Kill Chain: Defending America in the Future of High-Tech Warfare, joins the show to help us evaluate American performance against Iran so far and discuss the state of defense innovation in America. What is on the cutting edge? Where are we falling behind? And what happens if the war comes home?
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The New Middle Eastern Balance of Power, with Elliott Abrams
Elliott Abrams, senior fellow for Middle Eastern studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and chairman of the Vandenberg Coalition and the Tikvah Fund, joins the show to discuss Israel, Iran, and the new power dynamics in the Middle East. What new alliances have emerged since the chaos on October 7, 2023? How has the current war with Iran reshaped the region? With a storm of competing interests
China’s War on Faith and Trump’s Trip to Beijing, with Governor Sam Brownback
Sam Brownback, former Kansas senator and governor, co-chair of the International Religious Freedom Summit, and author of China’s War on Faith, joins School of War to discuss the Chinese Communist Party’s persecution of religious minorities and how its domestic oppression shapes America’s broader strategic posture toward China. How is Beijing using the digital revolution as a tool of political cont
Trump Heads to China: Who Has the Upper Hand? With Dan Blumenthal
Dan Blumenthal, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, joins the show to discuss the president’s upcoming summit in Beijing with President Xi Jinping. What are President Trump’s goals? How will war with Iran affect the meeting? And what do these discussions mean for the future of conflict in the Indo-Pacific?
02:12 Trump’s summit with Xi Jinping
03:38 Trump’s goals at summit
04:48
America’s Coming Population Crash—and China’s, with Nicholas Eberstadt
Nicholas Eberstadt, the Henry Wendt Chair in Political Economy at the American Enterprise Institute, joins School of War to discuss global population decline. What does a shrinking and aging population mean for the United States? What does it mean for China, whose demographic crisis may be even more severe? How could population decline reshape economic growth, military power, and geopolitical comp
Is Trump Forcing the Strait of Hormuz Open? With Rich Goldberg and Garrett Exner
Rich Goldberg, senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, and Garrett Exner, adjunct fellow at Hudson Institute, return to School of War to discuss the complicated news out of the Strait of Hormuz. What is President Donald Trump’s new plan, “Project Freedom”? Does it put the ceasefire at risk? What’s really happening in this critical waterway?
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02:31 - President’s stateme
NORAD and Protecting America From Nuclear Attack, With Lance Blythe
Lance R. Blyth, command historian of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM), joins School of War to discuss the evolution of North America’s air defense. How has NORAD adapted to shifting threats over the decades? Are today’s threats manageable? Are we in a new Cold War? And what can the command, with operations deep inside a Colorado m
The Attempt on Trump’s Life and Political Violence in America, with Douglas Murray
Douglas Murray, journalist and author of On Democracies and Death Cults, joins School of War to discuss the assassination attempt that we both witnessed in person at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday. Was there a lapse in appropriate security? Is political violence being normalized? Can it be contained?
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02:44 - White House Correspondents Dinner
04:38 - Shots fired
06:51 -
How the British Army Learned to Win, with Huw Davies
Huw Davies, an associate dean and professor of British military history at King’s College London and author of several books, including The Wandering Army, joins School of War to discuss what the 18th-century British Army can teach us about modern warfare. How does battlefield failure drive military innovation? How did institutions of the past respond to change? And in an era of drones, autonomy,
Has America Fought Well in the Iran War? With Mick Ryan
Major General Mick Ryan, Australian Army (retired), Senior Fellow for Military Studies at the Lowy Institute, adjunct fellow with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and author of the Futura Doctrina Substack joins the show to dissect the current state of the war in Iran. Is this conflict entering a postmortem phase, or are we still in the middle of it? How has America performed so
The Future of Warfighting Technology Is Now with Aviv Shapira
Aviv Shapira, the co-founder and CEO of XTEND, joins the show to discuss his journey from competitive drone racing to building groundbreaking defense technology. How are drone swarms changing warfare? What are the ethical implications of AI weaponry? What happens if this technology falls into the wrong hands? And what comes next?
01:58 Aviv’s background04:46 Replay technologies08:28 VR Messi08:58
How Trump’s Blockade of Iran Actually Works with Sal Mercogliano
Sal Mercogliano, professor of history at Campbell University and host of the What’s Going on with Shipping YouTube channel, joins the show once again to discuss the naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz imposed by United States Central Command. How might this blockade unfold? Is it a tactic to bring Iran back to the negotiating table, or a step that risks igniting a new wave of conflict? We do no
The Strategic View From the Baltic Sea with General Michael Claesson
General Michael Claesson is Sweden’s Chief of Defence Staff and Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces. How did Russia’s annexation of Crimea change Sweden’s global strategy? Is Russia weaker than it appears? How strong is the American alliance with Europe? With the tectonic plates of war shifting beneath our feet, the stakes are high and the future of NATO hangs in the balance.
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Danger Lurks In J.D. Vance’s Negotiations with Iran
Mark Dubowitz, chief executive of FDD, joins Aaron to discuss the ceasefire negotiations between the U.S. and Iran. What are the fears surrounding the talks? Where are the two sides close on the proposed ceasefire, and where are they miles apart? What should we look for to indicate how the talks are going? Looming over everything is the question of whether the negotiating table can, at times, be
Is the Strait of Hormuz Closed Forever? with Sal Mercogliano
Sal Mercogliano, professor of history at Campbell University and host of the What’s Going on with Shipping YouTube channel, joins us to discuss the strategic importance of the Strait of Hormuz, highlighting the complexities of navigating the Strait under normal and elevated circumstances. The conversation delves into the geopolitical tensions involving Iran, the impact on global shipping, and the
America’s Incredible Rescue of its Downed Airmen in Iran and Trump’s Strategic Options Ahead with Rich Goldberg & Garrett Exner
Rich Goldberg, senior advisor at FDD, and Garrett Exner, adjunct fellow at Hudson Institute, join the show to breakdown the dramatic events of the weekend and take a look at the road ahead in the Iran War. We discuss the American F-15E shot down in Iran, and the subsequent rescue of its crew by special operations forces near Isfahan. The conversation delves into the details of the rescue operation
Trump Says We’re ‘Winning’ in Iran. It’s More Complicated.
The Strait of Hormuz is closed. Iran’s nuclear program survives. And while the regime has been weakened, it remains intact. So what has President Trump accomplished—and what comes next in the war? Today on School of War, we’re doing something a little different. Instead of sitting in the interviewer’s chair, as I usually do – I’m the one being interviewed. I joined Rafaela Siewert of The Free Pres
Even as America Fights Iran, It’s Not Ready for China—with Eyck Freymann
Eyck Freymann, Hoover Fellow at Stanford University and author of Defending Taiwan: A Strategy to Prevent War with China, joins the show to explain the complexities of deterrence against China, the strategic challenges in the Indo-Pacific, and the implications of the wars in Ukraine and Iran for Taiwan. We break down China’s plausible gray-zone tactics like quarantine and coercive mobilization, an
How Can America Defeat Iran? With John Spencer
John Spencer, Chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War Institute at West Point and host of the Urban Warfare Project podcast, joins the show to break down how the U.S. and Israel are executing a 'neurological' campaign—using precision, targeted strikes on the Iranian Regime and its center of gravity. A strategy that’s as old as Clausewitz but more relevant than ever. How are the U.S. and I
Are We About to Send the Marines Into Iran? With Rich Goldberg and Garrett Exner
Rich Goldberg, senior advisor at FDD, and Garrett Exner, adjunct fellow at Hudson Institute, break down what’s really happening behind the headlines — from covert strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites to the fragile possibility of reopening the Strait of Hormuz. How are the U.S., Israel, and Iran navigating the negotiations, and are there any operational knock-on effects? What are the realities and comp
Did Trump Miscalculate on Iran? with Niall Ferguson
Sir Niall Ferguson, Milbank Family Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and columnist at The Free Press, reveals how geography and choke points have always been pivotal in global conflicts and just like the Dardanelles during WWI, today’s hotspots like the Straits of Hormuz and Taiwan remind us that some strategic challenges never change. What exactly are chokepoints and why do they matter? How
Can Trump Beat China by Winning In Iran? with Zineb Riboua
Zineb Riboua, research fellow with Hudson Institute’s Center for Peace andSecurity in the Middle East, joins the show to talk about the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, focusing on China's interests and involvement. How dependent is China on the region's energy resources? How does China project power in the Middle East and in Africa? Is China benefiting or suffering from the current war? What a
Did the Islamic Revolution Succeed? And Can It Survive? with Ray Takeyh
Ray Takeyh, senior fellow for Middle East studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and author of The Last Shah: America, Iran, and the Fall of the Pahlavi Dynasty, joins the show to talk about the origins, evolution, and possible future of the Islamic Republic of Iran. What forces produced the 1979 revolution, and how did it reshape Iran’s political and religious order? What are the psychologic
How the War in Iran Actually Works with Mark Montgomery
Mark Montgomery, senior director of the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation at FDD and retired U.S. Navy rear admiral, joins the show to provide in-depth analysis of the Iran conflict. Mark gives his thoughts on naval operations in the Strait of Hormuz, including their strategic implications for the progress of the war. He also discusses drone warfare, missile defense, and the broader geopol
General Frank McKenzie on the War in Iran
General Kenneth “Frank” McKenzie Jr, USMC (ret.), commanded US Central Command from 2019-2022. Gen. McKenzie led a distinguished 42 year career in the US Marine Corps, commanding at multiple levels and serving on the Joint Staff. In this in-depth conversation, General McKenzie shares his insights on the recent U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran, strategic mistakes by Iran, and the prospe
Ep 281: Fred Kagan on the Iran War, Drone Defense, and the Future of the Middle East
Fred Kagan, senior fellow and director of the Critical Threats Project at the American Enterprise Institute, joins the show to discuss the war, what Ukraine can do to help the Gulf with drone defense, and the future of the Islamic Republic.
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01:51 Updates
03:29 Iranian strikes
09:15 Munitions crisis
14:28 Innovation
18:45 Isolated and weak
25:12 Arming the opposition
30:55 A dangero
Ep 280: Mike Doran on the Iran War
Mike Doran, senior fellow and director of the Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East at the Hudson Institute, joins the show to bring us the latest breakdown on the war and how long this may go on.
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01:52 Where are things going?
05:45 Rational strikes
09:56 A weakened positioned
16:33 Lasting change
20:13 What comes next?
26:40 Regional war
30:28 Integration
38:30
Ep 279: Mark Dubowitz on U.S.-Israel War with Iran
Mark Dubowitz, CEO of FDD, joins the show to bring us up to speed on the rapidly developing full-scale conflict between the United States-Israel and Iran.
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01:19 Iranian leaders targeted
04:48 10/7 roots
07:39 Ambitious war aims
12:41 Scope
15:59 Regime change
20:11 Iranian response
23:42 Playing with fire
28:13 Partnership
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Ep 278: Yossi Cohen on The Mossad
Yossi Cohen, served as the director of the Mossad from 2016 until 2021 and is the author of The Sword of Freedom: Israel, Mossad, and the Secret War. As director, he personally orchestrated some of the Mossad’s most daring operations, such as the seizure of the Iranian nuclear archives—the exposure of which was among the main factors behind the United States’ withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal—
Ep 277: Behnam Ben Taleblu—Will There Be a War with Iran?
Behnam Ben Taleblu, Senior Director (Iran Program) and Senior Fellow at FDD, joins the show to talk about the build-up of American military power in the Middle East and what it might mean for Iran and the Iranian regime.
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02:04 U.S. build-up
05:46 Timing
11:08 “Decisive and different”
24:41 Iranian retaliation
30:03 Targets
35:25 Ideology of the Supreme Leader
41:36 A Trump JC
Ep 276: Charlie Laderman on Regime Change in Iran
Charlie Laderman, associate professor at the University of Florida’s Hamilton School for Classical and Civic Education, joins the show to discuss parallels between Reagan’s policy towards Cold War Poland and the crisis in Iran today.
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02:45 Comparing Iran and Poland
05:56 Reagan’s plan
10:15 Reheating the Cold War
12:26 ’81 coup
15:53 Sanctions and pressure
20:19 Constant agitat
Ep 275: Michael Baumgartner on Marco Rubio’s Speech and the Future of Europe
Rep. Michael Baumgartner of Washington State’s 5th Congressional District joins the show to give his key takeaways from the Munich Security Conference.
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01:34 Getting to Munich
05:22 European attitude
14:20 AOC and recalibration
17:50 Germany returns
23:59 Rubio’s speech
30:23 Ukraine
39:22 Iran and a “good” deal
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Ep 274: Lawrence Freedman on Strategists and Ukraine
Lawrence Freedman, Emeritus Professor of War Studies at King’s College London and author of On Strategists and Strategy: Collected Essays, 2014-2024, joins the show to talk about a lifetime among strategists, and to give an update on the war in Ukraine.
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02:34 Essay writing
07:49 Michael Howard
18:42 Colin Gray
23:06 Timeless aspects of strategy
26:00 The goal of SDI
36:40 Tactics
Ep 273: Matthew Kroenig on China’s Nuclear Test
Matthew Kroenig, Professor in the Department of Government and the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, joins the show to talk about the new nuclear age the world is entering.
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Times
03:27 Secret Chinese testing
07:35 Seismic monitoring and de-coupling
11:40 U.S. testing plan
15:30 Why might we need more nuclear weapons?
18:01 New START
21:23 How many nuke
Ep 272: Beatrice Heuser on Why Leaders Make Bad Decisions
Beatrice Heuser, Distinguished Professor at the Brussels School of Governance in the Free University of Brussels and author of Flawed Strategy: Why Smart Leaders Make Bad Decisions, joins the show to discuss decision-making and strategic thinking.
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02:58 Economists and strategy
07:59 Acting rationally vs logically
15:00 Mirror imaging
20:01 How should we study strategy?
27:17 Denia
Ep 271: Geoff Ball on the Future of America’s Infantry
Geoff Ball, U.S. Marine Corps infantry officer, staff director for the Naval Academy’s Leadership Education and Development Division and Executive Editor of The Connecting File, joins the show to discuss the radical changes and surprising continuities in how America’s grunts will fight.
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02:25 The Connecting File
06:22 How is the infantry doing?
14:10 Companies of the future
23:22 In
Ep 270: David Shedd on China’s Spies
David Shedd, former Acting Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency and author of The Great Heist: China’s Epic Campaign to Steal America’s Secrets, joins the show to discuss Chinese spy craft.
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Times
02:05 Early days
06:49 CIA
09:28 Sandinistas and revolutionaries
15:14 IC preparation
18:35 A great awakening
26:11 Industrial espionage
30:50 National Intelligence Estimate
34:11 T
Ep 269: Walter Russell Mead on Donald and Davos and Greenland, Oh My!
Walter Russell Mead, Alexander Hamilton Professor of Strategy and Statecraft at the University of Florida's Hamilton Center and columnist for The Wall Street Journal, joins the show to discuss foreign policy in the Age of Trump.
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03:15 An extraordinary week
05:06 The Transatlantic relationship
09:02 Turning to China
16:10 Greenland
27:03 Post-presidency Trump
32:25 Harder now
43:
Ep 268: Seth Jones on America’s Defense Industrial Crisis
Seth Jones, president of the Defense and Security Department and Harold Brown Chair at CSIS, joins the show to talk about how America has resurrected its defense industrial base in the past and why it should be doing so now.
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Times
02:55 The British in the 1930s
05:58 Roosevelt’s decision
09:48 Re-orientation
13:59 The B-29
16:00 Victory in Iraq
27:54 Skunkworks
31:30 Xi comes into po
Ep 267: Michael Lurie on Israel’s New Laser Weapon
Michael Lurie, CEO and President of Rafael USA, joins the show to explain how High Energy Lasers and Iron Beam will change missile & air defense, not to mention warfare itself, forever.
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Times
02:34 The evolution of missile defense
05:09 Iron Dome & Iron Beam
08:04 How do lasers work?
15:16 Limitations
20:07 Integrating systems
25:28 Future applications
30:09 Lessons from field testin
Ep 266: Blake Seitz & Mike Watson—Were the Founders Isolationists?
Blake Seitz, Content Strategist at Palantir Technologies, and Mike Watson, Executive Director at The Alexander Hamilton Society, join the show to discuss America’s relationship with the world at the time of the Founding Fathers.
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02:45 18th Century geopolitical landscape
06:25 Yorktown
11:17 Diplomacy of the Founders
16:23 Bold rhetoric
19:37 Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists
25:4
Ep 265: Mark Dubowitz on Is Iran Next?
Mark Dubowitz, CEO of FDD, joins the show to bring us up to speed on widespread Iranian protests, the chances of American or Israeli intervention, and what intervention might achieve.
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Times
02:15 Will we strike?
05:34 New Iran talks?
07:03 Nuclear concessions?
10:35 Intervention possibilities
15:10 The Shah’s son and the Islamic regime
24:28 How do these protests compare to the past?
Ep 264: Mark Montgomery on Seizing Venezuela’s Shadow Fleet
Mark Montgomery, senior director of the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation at FDD and retired U.S. Navy rear admiral, joins the show to discuss Venezuela’s shadow fleet, the cyber component of the Maduro raid, and the future of the U.S. Navy.
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03:04 Shadow Fleets
06:06 Ship Hunting
10:07 Coast Guard
12:35 Leverage and Sanctions
18:37 Planning the Maduro Raid
24:57 How We U
Ep 263: Elliott Abrams on the Venezuela Raid and Risks Ahead
Elliott Abrams, senior fellow for Middle Eastern studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and U.S. Special Representative for Venezuela and Iran from 2019 to 2021, joins the show to discuss Venezuela and what might happen next.
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Times
02:04 Snatch and Grab
05:50 Intelligence Operations
12:04 Oil
16:50 Holding the Country Together
24:16 Risks & Mistakes
30:48 Blockade
33:54 Hard To L
Ep 262: Mark Jones Jr. on Special Air Operations and American Military Dominance
Mark Jones Jr., chief pilot of experimental flight test with the Honda Aircraft Company and recently retired U.S. Air Force test pilot and special operations commander, joins the show to talk about the nature of special air operations and the extraordinary air raid that kicked off Desert Storm.
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Times
02:45 9/11
05:58 Test Pilot
11:52 Special Air Operations
17:54 Two Vastly Different Exp
Ep 261: Behnam Ben Taleblu on the (Next!) Iran-Israel War
Behnam Ben Taleblu, Senior Director (Iran Program) and Senior Fellow at FDD, joins the show to talk about how Iran has worked to reconstitute its missile program since the summer, and what the U.S. and Israel might do to stop it.
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Times
01:43 Vessel Seizure
05:45 Making a Ballistic Missile
13:06 What Modern War Looks Like
17:19 Iran’s Missile Program
21:42 Evolving Assessment
26:24 Rel
Ep 260: Kevin Passmore on the Maginot Line and the Battle of France
Kevin Passmore, professor of History at Cardiff University and author of The Maginot Line: A New History, joins the show to talk about the most elaborate fortification system of the 20th century and why it failed.
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02:03 Attacking the Maginot Line
05:53 Fortifications and Warfare
11:48 Flexibility vs Depth
15:38 A Total Commitment to War
19:49 French Defensive Concepts
22:42 Living
Ep 259: Christian Brose on Rethinking How We Fight
Christian Brose, President and Chief Strategy Officer at Anduril Industries and author of The Kill Chain: Defending America in the Future of High-Tech Warfare, joins the show to talk about American industry and the future of war.
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02:26 Erosion of Military Advantage
11:11 The Nature of the Problem
16:42 Consensus and Urgency
21:01 Learning the Right Lessons in Ukraine
25:32 Scaling
Ep 258: Eric Cline on the Collapse of Civilizations
Eric Cline, professor of Classical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies and of Anthropology at The George Washington University and author of 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed, joins the show to break down the collapse of the Bronze Age civilization and why it matters today.
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02:57 Writing History for All
04:51 The Three Age System
10:32 Tin: The Oil of the Ancient World
11:37 A
Ep 257: Elliott Abrams on the Venezuela Crisis
Elliott Abrams, senior fellow for Middle Eastern studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and U.S. Special Representative for Venezuela and Iran from 2019 to 2021, joins the show to discuss events in the Caribbean.
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01:56 Venezuela Through Multiple Administrations
06:05 Maduro
11:53 Trump to Biden
17:56 U.S. Military Capabilities
24:05 Political Justifications
30:11 The Venez
Ep 256: Nadia Schadlow on Strategic Depth
Nadia Schadlow, former Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategy and senior fellow at Hudson Institute, joins the show to breakdown what strategic depth is and why the concept remains relevant.
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Times
02:37 Unhinged, Frenetic Times
03:36 What is Strategic Depth?
07:50 A Lack of Space
12:50 Territory and War
14:55 How to Increase Time
23:18 Allies and Fo
Ep 255: Roya Hakakian on the Islamic Revolution
Roya Hakakian, author of Assassins of the Turquoise Palace and Journey from the Land of No, joins the show to discuss the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran, the rise of Ayatollah Khomeini, and how these events have shaped the world.
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Times
02:56 Life Before the Revolution
11:02 Antisemitism in Revolutionary Iran
21:56 Khomeini’s Rise to Power
22:32 The Global Left and the Soviet Union
29:49
Ep 254: Frank Gavin on History and Statecraft
Frank Gavin, Giovanni Agnelli Distinguished Professor and Director of the Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs at Johns Hopkins University SAIS and author of Thinking Historically: A Guide to Statecraft and Strategy, joins the show to discuss the promise and perils of using history to guide today’s statecraft.
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Times
02:20 Political Science vs. History
05:37 The Importance of Histori
Ep 253: Michael Pack on the Battle of Fallujah
Michael Pack, President and CEO of Palladium Pictures LLC and director of The Last 600 Meters: The Battles of Najaf and Fallujah, joins the show to discuss his remarkable documentary of the Iraq war and the Marines and battles that it portrays.
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Times
01:59 The Journey of Creating 'The Last 600 Meters'
06:24 Censored
10:55 Combat and Valor
21:06 Political Decisions and Military Strategy
Ep 252: Andrew Lambert on the British Empire’s Strategic Challenges and America’s Today
Andrew Lambert, Laughton Professor of Naval History in the Department of War Studies, King's College London and No More Napoleons: How Britain Managed Europe from Waterloo to World War One, joins the show to discuss how the British Empire maintained the balance in Europe between the fall of Napoleon to the summer of 1914.
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Times
02:59 Studying the Problem of War
06:20 British Perspectives o
Ep 251: John Lee on Ukraine, Peace, and What China Wants
John Lee, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, joins the show to discuss the Trump administration’s efforts to bring the war in Ukraine to an end, and what it all means facing China in the Pacific.
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Times
01:56 Strategic Implications of the War
03:24 The 28-Point Peace Plan
09:49 Challenges of Negotiating Peace
15:19 The Russia-China Connection
19:48 Nuclear Deterrence and Arms Control
Ep 250: Jeremy Armstrong on Ancient Rome’s Myths and Warfare
Jeremy Armstrong, Professor of Classics & Ancient History at the University of Auckland and author of Children of Mars: The Origins of Rome's Empire, joins the show to discuss the early history of Rome, the role of family and clan in the structure of its military, the transition from monarchy to republic, and the nature of warfare during this formative period.
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Times
02:28 The Problems of E
Ep 249: Mick Ryan on the Ukrainian Way of War
Major General Mick Ryan, Australian Army (retired), Senior Fellow for Military Studies the Lowy Institute and author of the Futura Doctrina substack, joins the show to discuss the current state of the Ukraine war. We cover tactical innovations, the challenges of operations and strategy, the structure of the Ukrainian military, the political landscape under Zelensky, and the industrial capabilities
Ep 248: Marc Milner on D-Day and the US-UK Battle for Hegemony
Marc Milner, Emeritus Professor of History at the University of New Brunswick and author of Second Front: Anglo-American Rivalry and the Hidden Story of the Normandy Campaign, joins the show to discuss the turbulent passing of the torch of Western hegemony during WWII.
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Times
02:50 1917
10:52 American Battle Monuments Commission
14:31 FDR and the British Empire
21:36 American views on the
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