School of War

Eric Chewning and Thomas Moore of HII join the show to discuss America’s military shipbuilding challenges, and their potential solutions.

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Times 

    •      01:32 Introduction

    •      01:55 Origins 

    •     07:08 An eroded defense industrial base 

    •      10:20 Shipbuilding in 2025  

    •      17:11 Deindustrialization  

    •      21:46 Learning curves

    •      27:00 Contract economics 

    •      32:26 Japan and South Korea  

    •      37:39 Thinking about the whole problem   

    •      39:03 Manned and unmanned   

    •      42:25 Force protection 

    •      45:06 Soft kills and hard kills

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Diana Mara Henry and Gabe Scheinmann join the show to discuss the new book I Am André: German Jew, French Resistance Fighter, British Spy, which charts the astonishing, brave, and tragic World War II career of ‘André’ Joseph Scheinmann.

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Times 

    •      01:50 Introduction

    •      03:01 The story of a fighter 

    •     09:26 Born in Munich   

    •      11:87 Citizen without a country 

    •      17:08 Liaison to the High Command  

    •      21:46 MI6  

    •      25:20 Spycraft 

    •      30:27 London and capture 

    •      36:31 Interrogation  

    •      42:52 Max and Regina  

    •      46:40 Natzweiler 

    •      52:29 Dachau 

    •      55:30 America

    •      01:01:17 “Jews as fighters”

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Evan Mawdsley, Honorary Professorial Research Fellow at the University of Glasgow and author of Supremacy at Sea: Task Force 58 and the Central Pacific Victory, joins the show to discuss the successful 1944 U.S. naval campaign through the Central Pacific in World War II.

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Times 

    •      01:36 Introduction

    •      02:27 The Central Pacific 

    •      11:15 Carrier air power 

    •     14:31 Embracing the task force   

    •      20:00 Replenishment at sea 

    •      24:28 A campaign for airbases 

    •      27:56 Limiting loss  

    •      33:38 Spruance & Mitscher 

    •      38:36 Japanese defense doctrine 

    •      45:58 Parallels today    

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Dmitry Filipoff, associate research analyst at the Center for Navy Analyses, joins the show to discuss the U.S. Navy surface component and the grave challenges it faces.

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Times 

    •      01:19 Introduction

    •      02:09 Lessons from the Red Sea 

    •      06:35 Friendly fire  

    •      10:55 Depletion   

    •      13:45 2027  

    •      18:07 How do fleets fight? 

    •      21:47 Scope and scale   

    •      24:57 “Catastrophic destruction” 

    •      29:00 The first few hours

    •      34:30 Scripted exercises     

    •      37:15 Managing the chaos 

    •      41:34 Failing constructively  

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Nadège Rolland, Distinguished Fellow, China Studies, at the National Bureau of Asian Research and author of Mapping China's Strategic Space, joins the show to discuss how to better understand the geopolitical premises of China’s strategic elites.

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Times 

    •      01:36 Introduction

    •      02:04 Strategic space 

    •      05:05 Mao’s strategic vision  

    •      11:12 Origin points  

    •      17:10 Geopolitical dimensions 

    •      20:25 Finding answers 

    •      26:35 Encirclement   

    •      33:55 Core interests 

    •      38:56 China’s end goal 

    •      45:37 Multilateralism   

    •      49:04 Risk and overextension 

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Dan Blumenthal and Kyle Balzer, co-authors of The True Aims of China’s Nuclear Buildup for Foreign Affairs, join the show to discuss the geopolitical implications of China’s increasing and diversifying nuclear arsenal. 

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Times 

    •      01:24 Introduction

    •      02:40 China’s buildup 

    •      05:05 American perception  

    •     07:28 What is nuclear strategy?   

    •      11:49 Geopolitical vision 

    •      16:28 Shaping the world order 

    •      18:41 Restoring American credibility  

    •      25:10 Imagining failure 

    •      30:24 Prospects

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Rachel Kousser, professor of Classics and Art History at the City University of New York and author of Alexander at the End of the World, joins the show to talk about the violent, brilliant, complex career of Alexander the Great.

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Times 

    •      01:27 Introduction

    •      01:59 Early years and conquest

    •      05:45 Pragmatic opportunist  

    •     09:20 Persepolis burning   

    •      11:48 Darius 

    •      14:36 Alexander in the field 

    •      19:30 Understanding the geography  

    •      25:56 Dreamer 

    •      29:50 “A war of choice…”

    •      32:57 Building something new 

    •      34:36 Breaking point  

    •      38:00 King with consent 

    •      41:48 Harnessing strength

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Shyam Sankar, Chief Technology Officer and Executive Vice President of Palantir Technologies, joins the show to explain the broken Defense Department acquisition process and how he believes it can be fixed.

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Times 

    •      01:24 Introduction

    •      01:39 Employee #13 

    •      03:14 Palantir 

    •      06:22 Monopsony  

    •      11:18 Messy and chaotic 

    •      14:40 Dual purpose companies 

    •      17:18 The buying process 

    •      23:50 Pushback

    •      25:59 Competing efforts

    •      27:37 Heretics and heroes 

    •      31:22 Thinking about future war  

    •      35:05 A changing selection criteria 

    •      36:47 “The future is software defined”  

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Mark Dubowitz, chief executive officer of Foundation for Defense of Democracies, joins the show to break down the collapse of the Assad regime and the implications for Israel, Turkey, and Iran.

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Times 

    •      01:23 Introduction

    •      02:49 What happened?  

    •      05:04 Rebels 

    •     08:17 Risk assessment  

    •      11:30 Factions

    •      17:10 Extremists and radicals 

    •      19:15 “Our enemies lie to us…”  

    •      24:19 Defensive reshuffle

    •      29:11 Nuclear Iran

    •      34:59 A powerful message

    •      42:40 Striking power  

    •      47:27 A new “Ring of Fire”

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Host Aaron MacLean recently embedded with the Israeli Defense Forces and saw firsthand Israel’s war with Iranian proxy groups Hezbollah and Hamas. What lessons can Americans learn from Israel’s year of fighting for its survival? 

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Times 

  •      03:28 The North 

    •    04:26 Metula 

    •    07:45 Yishai

    •    10:00 Realities and misconceptions  

    •    18:06 Stalemate

    •    22:33 Shaping the fight 

    •    40:00 Reconnaissance-strike complex  

    •    46:38 Dotan Razili

    •    50:50 Iron Dome in action

    •    54:43 Sarit Zehavi

    •    1:11:01 Hezbollah defeated  

    •    1:12:58 “Knowing but not understanding”

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Michael Leggiere, Professor of Humanities at the University of Florida and editor of War Studies Journal 1, joins the show to discuss the sad state of military history in higher education.

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Times 

    •      01:17 Introduction 

    •      02:48 Military history in academia 

    •      03:53 PME 

    •     05:22 What is “new” military history?  

    •      11:55 “History shouldn’t be a mystery”

    •      17:55 The Journal

    •      20:45 Suggested pieces  

    •      24:32 Napoleon  

    •      26:58 Lee

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Mackenzie Eaglen, senior fellow at AEI and author of Keeping Up with the Pacing Threat: Unveiling the True Size of Beijing’s Military Spending, joins the show to discuss the dire situation the U.S. defense budget is in. 

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Times 

    •      01:22 Introduction 

    •      02:48 Keeping up 

    •      05:26 China’s spending 

    •     10:01 Equipment costs  

    •      13:46 “Stealing our stuff”

    •      18:25 5 alarm fire

    •      20:32 U.S. budget truths  

    •      24:50 BCA 101 

    •      31:32 Today or tomorrow 

    •      39:23 Defense is cheaper, not better

    •      43:21 Solutions  

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Thomas Barfield, Professor and Chairman of the Anthropology Department at Boston University and author of Shadow Empires: An Alternative Imperial History, joins the show to discuss empire.  

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Times 

    •      01:15 Introduction 

    •      03:20 Understanding Afghanistan 

    •      05:15 Classifying empires 

    •     09:59 Failures and features  

    •      12:24 Borders

    •      15:30 Exogenous empires

    •      21:36 Brits and Athenians  

    •      26:40 Vulture empires 

    •      32:21 Taking responsibility 

    •      37:15 Empires of nostalgia

    •      44:50 Vacuum empires  

    •      51:05 American/Athenian policy 

    •      54:53 China and empire today

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Rebeccah Heinrichs, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and author of Duty to Deter: American Nuclear Deterrence and the Just War Doctrine, joins the show to make the moral argument for why the United States should modernize and grow its nuclear arsenal. 

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Times 

    •      01:15 Introduction 

    •      01:48 A net good

    •      04:50 Tactical nuclear weapons

    •     10:25 The argument of disarmament 

    •      14:03 Cold War strategy

    •      19:53 Capability and will

    •      26:06 Downside of “no first use”  

    •      32:03 The nuclear triad 

    •      37:20 Russia and China 

    •      40:56 The moral argument

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Randall Schriver, Chairman of the Board at The Project 2049 Institute, and Dan Blumenthal, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, join the show to discuss a road map for economic competition—and warfare—between the U.S. and China. 

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Times 

    •      01:55 Introduction 

    •      02:30 Planning for economic warfare

    •      06:27 Endstate

    •     10:18 Leadership

    •      12:21 NSDD

    •      14:59 Starting points

    •      17:10 Decoupling  

    •      20:03 Where is the stuff coming from? 

    •      23:50 Degrading the Chinese economy 

    •      27:33 A dream of cooperation

    •      32:17 Slow the growth

    •      36:08 Wargaming  

    •      41:41 Protraction

    •      44:49 International and Congressional concerns

Click the link to read the report - DEFEATING THE CCP A RUNNING START

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Watch this episode on YouTube. Frank Cohn joins the show to talk about his life: fleeing Hitler’s Germany, his return as a U.S. soldier tasked with hunting Nazi’s, his service in Vietnam, and more.

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Times 

    •      01:55 Introduction 

    •      02:15 A Nazi in the classroom

    •      05:47 Martin and Ruth

    •     17:35 Leaving Germany

    •      19:22 New York City

    •      22:50 Pearl Harbor

    •      30:47 Back to Europe 

    •      35:30 Nazi Hunter 

    •      39:48 POW for a moment 

    •      42:32 The Dutch lady

    •      50:40 Camps

    •      52:30 Crossing the Elbe 

    •      59:20 Interrogations

    •      01:05:40 Paying back the country 

    •      01:08:51 Paula 

    •      01:14:50 Military Police and Vietnam

    •      01:18:40 Angus 

    •      01:21:12 Lessons

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Nicholas Eberstadt, Henry Wendt Chair in Political Economy at the American Enterprise Institute, joins the show to discuss the North Korean regime and the geopolitical impact of its decision to send troops to support Russia in Ukraine.

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Times 

    •      01:36 Introduction 

    •      01:49 Finding North Korea

    •      04:00 The Sung dynasty

    •     09:24 Beijing and Moscow

    •      14:43 Kim Jong Il

    •      22:14 Mackinder’s World-Island

    •      26:29 Interconnected 

    •      33:18 Why commit to Russia? 

    •      36:55 Limited imaginations  

    •      39:03 New differences

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Nick Lloyd, Professor of Modern Warfare in the Defence Studies at King’s College London and author of The Eastern Front: A History of the Great War, 1914-1918, joins the show to discuss the critical role of the eastern front in World War I.

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Times 

    •      01:43 Introduction 

    •      02:09 “The soul of the war”

    •      04:00 Before the fighting

    •     05:59 War aims

    •      10:51 Tannenberg

    •      15:54 Hindenburg and Ludendorff

    •      19:57 Scale

    •      22:40 Combat

    •      27:14 Munitions scarcity 

    •      32:10 Russian collapse

    •      36:45 Lenin returns

    •      40:42 Brest-Litovsk

    •      44:16 Proto-lebensraum

    •      47:20 The West

    •      52:30 War as a way out

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Ben Noon of the Vandenberg Coalition writes about US-China rivalry and geopolitics. He joins the show to discuss the critical fight for semiconductor dominance.

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Times 

    •      01:38 Introduction 

    •      02:15 Semiconductors 

    •      05:49 Legacy and advanced chips

    •     09:47 China’s chip script

    •      14:21 What’s the big deal? 

    •      19:20 Trade policy

    •      25:11 Containment

    •      28:10 Ratcheting up tensions

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Scott Hartwig, author ofI Dread the Thought of the Place: The Battle of Antietam and the End of the Maryland Campaign, joins the show to discuss the single bloodiest day in American military history, the Battle of Antietam.

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Times 

    •      01:46 Introduction 

    •      02:19 Why Antietam?

    •      09:09 Sourcing history

    •     12:45 Limited to total war

    •      21:24 McClellan 

    •      28:00 Lee in Maryland 

    •      34:57 Geography 

    •      46:20 South Mountain to Antietam 

    •      55:49 The fighting

    •      01:02:12 Mass and maneuver

    •      01:04:44 Lee escapes

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Jacqueline Deal, President and CEO of the Long Term Strategy Group and recently the author of the article Competing against Ourselves: How U.S. Policy Strengthens China, joins the show to discuss U.S.-China competition.

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Times 

    •      01:15 Introduction 

    •      01:53 Net assessment

    •      04:32 China’s view

    •     08:20 Is entanglement the goal?

    •      14:34 Changing the global balance

    •      21:45 Communism 

    •      25:47 “Their own worst enemy”

    •      30:12 CCP & manipulation 

    •      35:06 Weaponized supply chains

    •      39:12 Getting their attention

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Nicholas Morton, Senior Lecturer in History, Nottingham Trent University and author of The Crusader States and their Neighbours: A Military History, 1099-1187, joins the show to discuss the Crusades.

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Times 

    •      01:25 Introduction 

    •      02:21 What were the Crusades?

    •      07:30 Franks and Turks

    •     09:57 Combat

    •      14:01 50/50

    •      19:48 Sieges

    •      23:47 Others

    •      31:31 Seljuks

    •      36:50 Crusader States

    •      41:28 Why did they fail?

    •      45:19 Continuity and complexity

   •      49:45 Fluidity

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Katherine Kuzminski, Director of the Military, Veterans, and Society Program at CNAS, joins the show to discuss recruiting and mass mobilization in the event of war.

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Times 

    •      01:33 Introduction 

    •      02:08 Why worry about mobilization?

    •      03:54 Meeting the threshold 

    •     06:58 Low yield

    •      11:37 A loss of identity

    •      15:42 Aging up

    •      21:38 The Russian model 

    •      23:55 Israeli lessons

    •      26:38 Working with what we have

    •      32:05 Infantry concerns

    •      35:05 Women in the draft

    •      39:12 Deterrent value

    •      41:20 Sustaining industry

    •      43:45 An “I” society

Back to the Drafting Board

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Mark Dubowitz, chief executive of Foundation for Defense of Democracies, joins the show to help us understand breaking developments in the war between Israel, Iran, and Iran’s regional proxies.

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Times 

    •      01:41 Introduction 

    •      02:24 Iran’s missile attack

    •      03:56 Iranian intentions

    •     06:34 Options

    •      11:27 Iranian concerns

    •      14:59 Ring of fire

    •      19:10 Near term calculus 

    •      23:49 Regime change

    •      28:52 Reagan strategy

    •      32:55 A “good” deal

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Alex Miller, Senior Advisor for Science and Technology and the CTO to the Chief of Staff of the Army, joins the show to talk about how we are preparing to fight on the battlefields of the future—which are here today.

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Times 

    •      01:17 Introduction 

    •      01:32 CTO

    •      04:48 Scale/E.W./drones

    •     09:06 How we buy 

    •      13:07 Transforming in Contact

    •      18:15 Electronic warfare

    •      22:37 Defensive spectrum 

    •      25:20 An invisible world

    •      28:12 Drone warfare

    •      35:05 Humans and machines

    •      37:49 What does the Army need?

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Frank Ledwidge, Senior Fellow in Air Power and International Security at the Royal Air Force College and author of Aerial Warfare: The Battle for the Skies, joins the show to talk about warfare’s next frontier, space. 

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Times 

    •      01:40 Introduction 

    •      03:24 Thinking about space

    •      09:09 More than a conduit

    •     14:15 ASAT 

    •      19:55 Space domain awareness

    •      26:20 Directed energy and nuclear weapons

    •      31:16 Congested/competitive/contested 

    •      39:44 36,000 earths

    •      42:15 Commercial incentives

    •      45:05 Who has the advantage?

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Eric Edelman and Thomas Mahnken of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments join the show to talk about what our defense establishment has gotten right, and wrong, in planning for the next war. 

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Times 

    •      02:10 Introduction 

    •      02:43 National Defense Strategy

    •      06:58 Continuity between administrations

    •     08:55 Multiple theater force construct 

    •      17:31 “A flawed net assessment” 

    •      28:30 An imbalance of power

    •      34:46 Favoring the defense

    •      38:42 Resources and cost

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Christopher Lynch, Professor of Political Science at Missouri State University and author of Machiavelli on War, joins the show to talk about renaissance warfare and Niccolò Machiavelli.

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Times 

    •      01:20 Introduction 

    •      01:56 Machiavelli’s world

    •      03:52 French invasion

    •     07:08 Republicanism 

    •      13:42 Mercenary armies 

    •      22:50 Time in office

    •      27:30 Battle

    •      33:17 Resurrecting Rome and Greece

    •      38:00 Catastrophic endings

    •      41:31 Exile and writings 

    •      45:54 Good guy or bad guy?

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Mark Montgomery, senior director of the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation at FDD and contributor to The Boiling Moat: Urgent Steps to Defend Taiwan, joins the show to talk about Taiwan, tensions in the South China Sea, and more.

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Times 

    •      01:27 Introduction 

    •      02:00 Why the Navy?

    •      04:05 PACOM

    •     06:53 Working with Senator McCain 

    •      10:51 Resource prioritization 

    •      15:19 Shortsighted decisions

    •      19:56 Sink China’s Navy

    •      25:30 Is Taiwan ready?

    •      30:35 Imitate Estonia

    •      33:31 Sensor complexes 

    •      37:26 Missile defense

    •      43:30 Nuclear escalation

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Sabin Howard, sculptor of A Soldier’s Journey, the central feature of the new World War I Memorial in Washington, DC, joins the show to talk about his work and the art of memorializing war and honoring veterans.

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Times 

    •      01:50 Introduction 

    •      02:07 Becoming an artist

    •      07:03 Spiritually classical

    •     10:04 WWI 

    •      14:24 Getting it right

    •      18:35 Daughter and father

    •      21:37 The ordeal

    •      25:00 The charging man 

    •      28:18 Modern methods

    •      33:52 Aftermath

    •      41:11 Return 

    •      51:00 Excite and engage

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Andrew Roberts, author of Churchill: Walking with Destiny, joins the show to give his thoughts on Tucker Carlson’s controversial guest Darryl Cooper.

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Times 

    •      01:25 Introduction 

    •      02:34 Churchill the villain

    •      05:20 Pat Buchanan

    •     08:57 Dragging America into war 

    •      14:50 Barbarossa

    •      20:06 “Mr. Cooper simply can’t have read Mein Kampf…”

    •      21:37 Terror bombings

    •      24:19 Dog whistles 

    •      26:11 Founding mythology

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Matt Pottinger, distinguished visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution, Chairman of FDD’s China Program, and author of The Boiling Moat: Urgent Steps to Defend Taiwan, joins the show to talk about how a war over Taiwan might start and how it may be prevented.

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Times 

    •      01:13 Introduction 

    •      03:11 The Boiling Moat

    •      04:54 Is Xi serious?

    •      11:35 How to deter China 

    •      17:40 Out with the old, in with the new

    •      24:30 Mapping the scenarios

    •      30:14 No such thing as an accidental war

    •      35:44 A cognitive trap

    •      39:22 Left with no choice

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Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi, ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, joins the show to discuss his plan to spend five percent of America’s GDP on defense. Click the link to read more Peace through Strength: A Generational Investment in the U.S. Military 

▪️

Times 

    •      01:31 Introduction 

    •      01:40 Service years

    •      04:39 3% vs 5%

    •      9:00 Peace through Strength   

    •      12:50 More money, more problems?

    •      16:40 “Let’s get some more shipyards…”

    •      19:37 Modernizing the nuclear arsenal

    •      23:14 Force Design 2030

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General Kenneth F. McKenzie, USMC, retired as the fourteenth commander of U.S. Central Command in 2022 and is the author of The Melting Point: High Command and War in the 21st Century (https://a.co/d/a2RmIDK). He joins the show to talk about the strategic significance of the Middle East.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:16 Introduction 

    •      01:38 The Citadel

    •      04:15 The humanities

    •      10:00 Central Command   

    •      13:43 Thinking globally

    •      17:53 Iran pushes back

    •      23:05 Pursuing peace

    •      26:15 Afghanistan

    •      32:01 Collapse

    •      37:58 A regional war

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Joshua S. Treviño, Chief of Intelligence and Research and the Director for Texas Identity at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, joins the show to talk about the crisis on the U.S. southern border.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:28 Introduction 

    •      02:03 “The border itself is insecure…”

    •      06:06 Immigration is not the issue 

    •      08:58 Texas remembers    

    •      21:44 The Mexican side

    •      31:34 WWI in Mexico

    •      32:25 PRC and cartels

    •      39:24 DoD and the border

    •      44:01 “A sincere security partner…”

    •      46:03 The Caroline affair

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Richard Frank, historian and author of Downfall: The End of the Imperial Japanese Empire and Tower of Skulls: A History of the Asia-Pacific War: July 1937-May 1942, joins the show to talk about the controversial legacy of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

▪️

Times 

    •      02:05 Introduction 

    •      02:15 Soldier/Lawyer/Historian

    •      09:19 Early controversy 

    •      14:55 Counting all the dead    

    •      21:54 Contemplating invasion

    •      30:10 1:1 ratio, recipe for a bloodbath

    •      38:03 Why unconditional surrender? 

    •      40:48 Two steps to end the war

    •      46:54 A combination of forces 

    •      51:08 How many bombs?

    •      54:01 Thinking as your enemy does

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Ronald C. White, Senior Fellow at the Trinity Forum and author of On Great Fields: The Life and Unlikely Heroism of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, joins the show to talk about the hero of Little Round Top, Joshua L. Chamberlain.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:37 Introduction 

    •      01:51 Why Chamberlain?

    •      09:01 Fighting for the Union 

    •      14:05 The 20th Maine  

    •      18:10 Arriving at Gettysburg

    •      21:34 The 15th & 47th Alabama 

    •      24:25 “Bayonets”

    •      29:31 Fighting for Grant

    •      33:40 Appomattox 

    •      35:53 Home

    •      29:31 Battle Cry of Freedom

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Rich Goldberg, senior advisor at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, joins the show to talk about the expanding war between Israel and Iran.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:40 Introduction 

    •      03:30 Where things stand

    •      15:25 Israeli expectations 

    •      24:44 Retaliation  

    •      31:39 Iran’s strategic concept

    •      36:16 American interests

    •      44:20 Projection

    •      50:36 Once Iran has nuclear weapons

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Michael Sobolik, author of Countering China's Great Game: A Strategy for American Dominance and Senior Fellow in Indo-Pacific Studies at the American Foreign Policy Council, joins the show to talk about China.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:38 Introduction 

    •      04:29 Belt and Road

    •      07:54 The Beginning 

    •      13:12 Chinese imperialism

    •      20:50 Mackinder’s math

    •      25:19 Nazi geostrategic thinking

    •      28:21 Spykman and BRI

    •      31:42 Imperialism is not a relic

    •      35:43 Countering China

    •      40:40 Tracing BRI back to Beijing 

    •      46:55 Keeping Taiwan safe

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James Holland, author of The Savage Storm: The Battle for Italy 1943 and host of the We Have Ways of Making You Talk podcast, joins the show to talk about the Allied campaign in Italy.

▪️

Times 

    •      02:08 Introduction 

    •      04:23 “No greater moment of human drama…”

    •      11:08 Why go into Italy at all?

    •      18:24 Mission to Rome  

    •      29:33 Baytown and Avalanche

    •      32:10 Salerno

    •      36:25 rethinking Mark Clark

    •      40:50 Very hard fighting      

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Michael Kofman, Senior Fellow, Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and contributor to War in Ukraine: Conflict, Strategy, and the Return of a Fractured World, joins the show to talk about the operational phases of the war in Ukraine.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:28 Introduction 

    •      02:14 A case of “Two Wars” 

    •      09:37 Operating on assumptions

    •      14:54 Contingency and structure

    •      23:41 Figuring things out in the field  

    •      31:22 Cyber is overhyped

    •      39:56 Achieving a favorable outcome

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Thomas Mahnken, President and CEO of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments and contributor to War in Ukraine: Conflict, Strategy, and the Return of a Fractured World, joins the show to talk about how strategic fallacies have played a role in Ukraine.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:33 Introduction 

    •      02:30 Fallacies of rationality 

    •      05:36 Is war irrational? 

    •      10:02 Germany willed WWI to happen

    •      15:40 Fallacy of the irrational/hyper-rational adversary  

    •      22:53 Rational/irrational Hitler 

    •      28:09 Wrapped around the rational axle    

    •      30:34 Fallacy of over/underestimating the adversary

    •      37:53 Losing the contingency  

    •      41:08 Fallacies of interaction    

    •      45:56 Learning but not doing

    •      50:53 Building defenses against fallacies

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John Spencer, chair of urban warfare studies at the Modern War Institute and host of the Urban Warfare Project, joins the show to talk about urban combat and how Israel is fighting an unprecedented war against Hamas with justice and humanity.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:50 Introduction 

    •      02:08 Fighting and teaching

    •      09:31 Changes in urban warfare

    •      17:14 Terrain still matters

    •      21:54 Israel’s unprecedented war  

    •      26:11 Learning on the ground 

    •      33:24 Genocide    

    •      43:57 The battle of Manila

    •      49:41 Suffering is the strategic aim 

    •      51:04 Tunnels    

    •      55:51 Outthinking the enemy

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Frank Gavin, the Giovanni Agnelli Distinguished Professor and inaugural director of the Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs at Johns Hopkins SAIS and contributor to War in Ukraine: Conflict, Strategy, and the Return of a Fractured World, joins the show to talk about nuclear strategy and the war in Ukraine.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:36 Introduction 

    •      01:53 What are nuclear weapons for?

    •      04:15 Pervasive but not used

    •      09:53 Invasion insurance

    •      17:58 Better to be near-nuclear  

    •      22:26 How might Putin use nuclear weapons? 

    •      26:04 Learning by doing

    •      33:48 “It’s all happening at once”

    •      41:31 Rattling the saber works  

    •      48:04 “We will get them back”    

    •      50:07 History and Strategy

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Follow the link to buy the book - War in Ukraine: Conflict, Strategy, and the Return of a Fractured World

Stephen Kotkin, Kleinheinz Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and contributor to War in Ukraine: Conflict, Strategy, and the Return of a Fractured World, joins the show to talk about the war in Ukraine and what the endgame might look like.

▪️

Times 

    •      02:24 Introduction 

    •      05:09 Four victories

    •      11:48 “Winning only on Twitter”

    •      22:36 10/7 and Ukraine

    •      28:27 Regime change in Russia  

    •      37:03 Keeping allies  

    •      45:24 Renting land armies    

    •      55:01 “European culturally but not Western”    

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Robert Blackwill & Richard Fontaine, authors of Lost Decade: The US Pivot to Asia and the Rise of Chinese Power, join the show to talk about America’s failed pivot to Asia and why they think it still needs to happen.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:59 Introduction 

    •      03:10 Was the pivot serious?

    •      07:40 Absent compulsion

    •      13:25 War in Europe?

    •      22:46 Changes to the plan  

    •      28:28 A bigger budget 

    •      32:23 Domestic resistance to TPP    

    •      38:25 The ultimate goal    

    •      44:36 Why not regime change in China?

    •      51:08 Henry Kissinger

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Follow the link to buy the book - Lost Decade: The US Pivot to Asia and the Rise of Chinese Power

Michel Paradis—litigator, national security law scholar, and author of The Light of Battle: Eisenhower, D-Day, and the Birth of the American Superpower—joins the show to talk about D-Day and the man behind the invasion, Dwight Eisenhower.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:49 Introduction 

    •      01:56 “Wildly under appreciated”

    •      05:17 Upbringing  

    •      11:40 Seeing the world as it is

    •      15:01 Not that long ago  

    •      22:14 British vs American plans

    •      32:50 Using strategic advantages    

    •      36:03 Designing D-Day   

    •      46:58 Planning for failure

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Follow the link to buy the book - The Light of Battle: Eisenhower, D-Day, and the Birth of the American Superpower

Nick Bunker, journalist and author of In the Shadow of Fear: America and the World in 1950, joins the show to talk about the first decade of the Cold War.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:36 Introduction 

    •      02:26 Countdown to war

    •      05:17 Biden and Truman  

    •      09:05 A failure of American policy?

    •      13:09 Present at the Creation  

    •      21:16 Stalin’s view of the world

    •      25:50 Stalin and China    

    •      30:44 Developing nuclear thinking  

    •      32:39 Robert Taft

    •      38:01 No choice but to defend Korea

    •      46:44 NSC-68

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Follow the link to buy the book - In the Shadow of Fear: America and the World in 1950

Shane Brennan, Associate Professor of History and Classics at the Asian University for Women in Bangladesh and author of Xenophon's Anabasis: A Socratic History, joins the show to talk about why the Anabasis remains an important part of the Western canon of military writing.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:30 Introduction 

    •      02:05 Dubai to Bangladesh

    •      05:37 Xenophon’s start  

    •      09:25 Several levels of failure

    •      12:37 “An exemplary Socratic student”  

    •      14:40 Fighting for the Persians

    •      17:18 Cyrus the Younger    

    •      20:46 A leader emerges  

    •      29:41 “How was he so right?” 

    •      36:43 Matterhorn

    •      38:33 Exile

    •      42:01 An instruction on leadership

    •      44:16 “There is always something there…”

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Sergey Radchenko, Wilson E. Schmidt Distinguished Professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and author of To Run the World: The Kremlin's Cold War Bid for Global Power, joins the show to talk about the strategic aims of the U.S.S.R. during the Cold War and how the Soviets attempted to run the world.

▪️

Times 

    •      01:17 Introduction 

    •      02:32 A novel argument

    •      08:36 Power and recognition  

    •      11:51 Who started the Cold War?

    •      14:55 The American dilemma  

    •      17:09 Fukuyama

    •      21:21 Nuclear guarantees    

    •      25:16 The shadow of WWII  

    •      29:44 Flippancy and boredom 

    •      32:06 Détente

    •      32:12 Backstabbing

    •      37:52 American lecturing

    •      45:39 Sources of Soviet collapse

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Follow the link to buy the book - To Run the World: The Kremlin's Cold War Bid for Global Power

Mike Gallagher and Matt Pottinger join the show to discuss their recent Foreign Affairs essay on the need for a victory strategy in America’s cold war with China.

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:53 Introduction 

    •      03:25 Meeting in Iraq

    •      07:43 “There are bad guys…”

    •      13:15 Why detente isn’t working  

    •      23:45 Real statesmanship?

    •      32:12 Rearm/Reduce/Recruit 

    •      35:20 TikTok

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Read the Foreign Affairs piece here No Substitute for Victory America’s Competition With China Must Be Won, Not Managed 

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Andy Lowery, CEO of EPIRUS and a retired U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander, joins the show to talk about directed energy weapons on the modern battlefield.

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:45 Introduction 

    •      02:02 Before EPIRUS

    •      06:29 Drones on the battlefield

    •      13:30 Current countermeasures 

    •      19:40 An answer for autonomy

    •      21:32 How does it all work? 

    •      29:54 Beam specs 

    •      33:45 Sci-fi but familiar

    •      38:11 Gallium nitride

    •      40:31 Cat and mouse game

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Iskander Rehman, Ax:son Johnson Fellow at the Johns Hopkins SAIS Kissinger Center and author of Iron Imperator: Roman Grand Strategy Under Tiberius, joins the show to talk about the military career and statecraft of Tiberius and what his career has to teach us today.

▪️

 Times 

    •      02:32 Introduction 

    •      03:29 The Pentagon and Rome

    •      07:29 Why Tiberius?

    •      15:04 Parallels 

    •      18:26 Germania

    •      22:38 Roman criticism 

    •      28:03 Auxiliaries and proxies 

    •      32:09 Diplomacy and a recruitment crisis

    •      34:00 A brilliant military career

    •      37:17 Force structure

    •      41:18 Parthian Cold War

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Buy the book here - Iron Imperator: Roman Grand Strategy Under Tiberius

Yaroslav Trofimov, chief foreign-affairs correspondent at The Wall Street Journal and author of Our Enemies Will Vanish: The Russian Invasion and Ukraine's War of Independence, joins the show to talk about the early days of Russia’s war in Ukraine, how the battlefield has evolved, and where the war may be headed.

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:48 Introduction 

    •      02:06 Growing up Ukranian

    •      05:03 The collapse of Kabul

    •      07:40 Leadership counts 

    •      10:14 Zelensky

    •      16:20 How did Putin get Ukraine so wrong? 

    •      19:49 Touch and go

    •      22:45 Draft confusion

    •      26:09 Battlefield evolution

    •      30:42 Countermeasures

    •      34:33 Washington’s tepid support

    •      38:11 Possible futures 

    •      40:26 Trump

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Buy the book here - Our Enemies Will Vanish: The Russian Invasion and Ukraine's War of Independence

Michael Doran, Senior Fellow and Director of the Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East at the Hudson Institute and co-host of the podcast Counterbalance, joins the show to talk about the Israel-Hamas war and the broader regional competition with Iran.

▪️

 Times 

    •      02:04 Introduction 

    •      04:01 Is Hamas winning?

    •      10:29 Fighting the clocks

    •      13:10 Defeat from the jaws of victory 

    •      18:24 An Iranian-American conflict

    •      22:44 Managing decline 

    •      26:40 Lessons not learned

    •      33:00 The Iranian nuclear umbrella

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Rabbi Shlomo Brody, executive director of Ematai and author of Ethics of Our Fighters: A Jewish View on War and Morality, joins the show to talk about the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas and the Jewish tradition of military ethics.

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:28 Introduction 

    •      04:04 Just war

    •      07:27 The Bible as a framework

    •      13:34 International service 

    •      18:33 Reprisals

    •      21:37 Purity of arms 

    •      27:09 Collateral damage

    •      33:41 International law

    •      35:48 Proportionality 

    •      39:40 A dangerous ideology  

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David Stahel, associate professor of history at the University of New South Wales and author of Hitler's Panzer Generals: Guderian, Hoepner, Reinhardt and Schmidt Unguarded, joins the show to talk about Heinz Guderian, the myth and the man.

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:38 Introduction 

    •      02:57 Diving into the letters

    •      08:43 Debunking

    •      15:30 A sinister figure  

    •      19:39 Achtung - Panzer!  

    •      27:37 Guderian the Nazi 

    •      33:42 Poland and France 

    •      45:49 Russia  

    •      50:50 Barbarossa bound to fail?

    •      54:48 Guderian the chameleon   

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Buy the book here - Hitler's Panzer Generals: Guderian, Hoepner, Reinhardt and Schmidt Unguarded

Stephen Robinson, author of The Blind Strategist: John Boyd and the American Art of War, joins the show to talk about Boyd, the man who developed the concept of “maneuver warfare,” and what Boyd may have gotten wrong.

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:21 Introduction 

    •      02:24 “A genuine polymath”

    •      04:20 The OODA Loop

    •      07:39 J.F.C. Fuller and B.H. Liddell Hart  

    •      13:28 The conventional blitzkrieg  

    •      19:26 Maneuver warfare 

    •      25:01 Cannae 

    •      29:07 Tactical success to operational failure  

    •      34:07 Post-Vietnam U.S. military woes

    •      37:24 Active defense   

    •      43:31 Skeptical of technology

    •      48:07 The Defense Reform Movement   

    •      53:50 Iraqi Freedom

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Buy the book here - The Blind Strategist: John Boyd and the American Art of War

Eric Edelman, former Under Secretary of Defense for Policy and Ambassador to Turkey and Finland, joins the show to talk about how nuclear strategic thinking began and how those debates resonate today.

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:47 Introduction 

    •      02:45 Oppenheimer’s Borden in reality

    •      07:00 Brodie and The Absolute Power

    •      11:12 Deterrence before Hiroshima 

    •      13:15 Blackett and Fear, War, and the Bomb  

    •      19:40 Counter-value vs counter-force 

    •      37:33 Russian nuclear strategy  

    •      42:44 Extended deterrence   

    •      52:37 Pain tolerance

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Rebeccah Heinrichs, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and the director of its Keystone Defense Initiative, joins the show to talk about the state of U.S. deterrence of Russia, Iran, and China—and what Washington could be doing better.

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:42 Introduction 

    •      02:18 Conventional and strategic deterrence

    •      04:06 A failure of strategic deterrence

    •      09:38 Integrated deterrence 

    •      13:33 Putin is committed to the bit  

    •      15:36 If Russia wins, what’s it to the US? 

    •      19:16 Options if Russia uses nuclear weapons

    •      24:06 The pendulum keeps swinging  

    •      28:20 Washington’s confusion regarding Iran and Israel

    •      31:56 Red Sea adrift

    •      36:00 China and the rest

    •      40:01 Pacific flashpoints

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Paul Scharre, Executive Vice President and Director of Studies at CNAS and author of Four Battlegrounds: Power in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, joins the show to talk about how AI will change the battlefield.

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:38 Introduction 

    •      01:54 Becoming a Ranger

    •      03:48 A defining moment 

    •      07:25 A historical parallel for AI

    •      11:16 Hardware 

    •      14:10 “Taiwan is the Saudi Arabia of chips” 

    •      16:20 Military applications

    •      19:37 Battle damage assessment and AI tracking  

    •      22:50 Autonomous weapons

    •      27:50 Legal, ethical, and control issues

    •      30:08 Battlefield applications

    •      32:43 Operational ability 

    •      36:51 WMDs

    •      40:09 Countermeasures 

    •      43:53 Transportable?

    •      46:40 AI and nuclear weapons

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Buy the book here - Four Battlegrounds: Power in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

Prit Buttar, historian and author of To Besiege a City: Leningrad 1941–42, joins the show to talk about the siege of Leningrad and about the nature of war on the Eastern Front. 

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:56 Introduction 

    •      02:10 A familiar story

    •      06:09 Themes of the Eastern Front 

    •      13:19 From Tsar to Stalin to Putin

    •      11:10 Barbarosa 

    •      19:45 An immense scale 

    •      27:29 Doctrinal failure

    •      33:17 Inside the Russian mindset  

    •      37:21 The myth of the “Clean Wehrmacht”

    •      40:20 The siege 

    •      49:15 Who stays?

    •      51:18 How did the Germans fail? 

    •      01:03:25 Staying vigilant

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Thomas Mahnken, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, joins the show to talk about net assessment and the future of war.

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:39 Introduction 

    •      02:02 An interesting journey

    •      03:33 The Office of Net Assessment 

    •      09:49 A tool, not a solution 

    •      13:19 Both quantity and quality matter 

    •      15:05 Soviet thinking 

    •      19:20 Leveraging insight 

    •      23:11 Potential outcomes

    •      28:35 “The Houthis have friends.”  

    •      33:19 Danger and opportunity 

    •      37:20 The terms of success change

    •      43:14 Solving the problem of the moment

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John Noonan, senior advisor at POLARIS National Security, joins the show to talk about all things nuclear; the life of a missileer, the current U.S. arsenal and its production problems, the strategy of deterrence, and how Congressional oversight helps/hinders good government. 

▪️

 Times 

    •      01:34 Introduction 

    •      02:04 VMI and the Air Force

    •      05:13 Missileers 

    •      11:25 Targets of significance 

    •      16:33 Atrophy 

    •      22:18 Production problems 

    •      27:46 Congressional oversight 

    •      34:30 An unfocused military

    •      44:17 Not getting it done 

    •      47:05 “Raw and abject stupidity”

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Donald L. Miller, historian and author of Masters of the Air: America's Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War Against Nazi Germany, the book behind Apple TV+’s Masters of the Air, joins the show to talk about the air war over Europe during WWII.

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 Times 

    •      01 :41 Introduction 

    •      02:12 Growing up “surrounded by the war”

    •      15:35 Both sides are losing 

    •      25:23 Highest percentage of casualties

    •      34:36 Mass vs mass 

    •      37:20 A new battlefield 

    •      42:49 “Almost nothing held up.” 

    •      44:46 Robert Rosenthal 

    •      48:57 Working with Tom Hanks 

    •      53:51 Recreating air combat 

    •      56:02 Gil Cohen, Greyhound, and Das Boot 

    •      59:44 Narrative choices

    •     01:06:36 The stress of command

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Buy the book here - Masters of the Air: America's Bomber Boys Who Fought the Air War Against Nazi Germany 

John Orloff, creator, writer and co-executive producer of Apple TV+’s Masters of the Air, joins Aaron to talk about the new show highlighting the WWII experiences of the men of the 100th Bomb Group, a part of the 8th Air Force’s strategic bombing campaign over Europe. Masters of the Air streams January 26th only on Apple TV+.

▪️

Times 

•   02:25 Introduction 
•   03:00 Getting started
•   05:45 Band of Brothers 
•   12:56 Finding the story
•   19:44 Masters of the Air 
•   24:37 Core characters 
•   30:12 Group level 
•   32:11 Influences 
•   37:38 Production challenges
•   40:25 Procedure as drama 
•   43:50 Unique trauma 
•   48:20 Casting

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John McManus, author of To the End of the Earth: The US Army and the Downfall of Japan, 1945 and host of the We Have Ways of Making You Talk in the USA podcast, joins the show to talk about why the U.S. Army’s war in the Pacific during WWII merit deeper study and recognition.

▪️

Times 

    •   02:12 Introduction 

    •   03:57 Lessons to be learned

    •   05:32 The Army from Pearl to Tokyo 

    •   08:50 Winds of change

    •   14:07 Europe first 

    •   21:16 Taiwan or the Philippines? 

    •   27:55 Battleground Manila 

    •   30:48 Bleeding the Americans

    •   34:56 Failures in China

    •   40:33 Chiang Kai-shek

    •   45:07 Okinawa

    •   48:06 Operation Downfall

    •   52:24 Revisionist and reductionist history 

    •   55:19 Required reading

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Dmitry Filipoff, head of online content at the Center for International Maritime Security, joins the show to talk about modern naval tactics and the readiness of the U.S. Navy for a surface engagement with the PLA Navy.

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Times 

    •    01:26 Introduction 

    •    02:48 Evolution in naval warfare

    •    05:46 Historical comps 

    •    08:01 Lessons from the Red Sea

    •    09:37 Anti-ship missiles

    •    12:16 DMO - Distributed Maritime Operations 

    •    15:00 What is the surface Navy’s purpose?

    •    20:00 Massing fires

    •    22:33 Defeating missile defenses

    •    29:25 Scarcity and the network

    •    34:12 Can the dynamic change?

    •    37:13 Aircraft carriers

    •    40:14 Is the U.S. Navy ready? 

    •    44:36 Exercises

    •    47:51 Institutional knowledge

    •    49:38 Is the PLAN ready?

A FLEET ADRIFT: THE MOUNTING RISKS OF THE U.S. NAVY’S FORCE DEVELOPMENT

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Peter Feaver, Professor of Political Science and Public Policy at Duke University and author of Thanks For Your Service: The Causes and Consequences of Public Confidence in the US Military, joins the show to talk about the state of civil-military relations in America, and to call for a truce on the issue of “wokism.”

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Times 

    • 01:46 Introduction 

    • 2:40 Precedents

    • 4:18 Citizen soldier to today 

    • 11:40 Expanding fissures

    • 18:46 Downsides to a high approval rating

    • 25:04 Isolationism and “wokeness”

    • 33:56 Sloppy discourse

    • 38:16 An echo of the ’90s

    • 41:11 Progress

    • 48:28 Race/Sexuality/Gender

    • 55:03 A bit of Sparta in Athens

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Sean Mirski, author of We May Dominate the World: Ambition, Anxiety, and the Rise of the American Colossus, joins the show to talk about how the United States came to its global position and China’s attempts to match it.

▪️

Times 

    •    01:40 Introduction 

    •    2:22 An accidental project

    •    6:41 The view from Washington 

    •    13:18 American paranoia

    •    16:43 Post Civil War Mexico

    •    22:04 Smedley Butler

    •    24:46 The problem of order

    •   31:12 After WWI

    •   33:04 Strategic vulnerabilities

    •    38:32 Regional hegemony

    •    44:51 A desire to dominate

    •    48:36 A lesson and a warning 

Here is a link to the article discussed today

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Paul Edgar, Executive Director of the Clements Center for National Security at the University of Texas-Austin, a veteran of the U.S. Army, and a scholar of ancient Near Eastern warfare, joins the show to talk about war and peace in the old days—the very old days.

▪️

Times 

    •    02:58 Introduction 

    •    10:07 Olmsted

    •    16:00 The Bronze Age

    •   22:07 Verifying history

    •    27:12 Idrimi

    •    35:03 How did they fight?

    •    39:46 Tactics of the time

    •   42:34 Continuities in geopolitics

Here is a link to the article discussed today

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Iskander Rehman, Ax:son Johnson Fellow at SAIS’s Kissinger Center and author of Planning for Protraction: A Historically Informed Approach to Great-power War and Sino-US Competition, joins the show to talk about how future wars might be more a test of national endurance than expected.

▪️

Times 

    •    01:56 Introduction 

    •    04:01 Sharp and short wars

    •    09:07 After the first salvo

    •    12:33 Geography as a predictor

    •    15:21 Will nuclear deterrence work?

    •    21:16 “An informationized local war”

    •    25:13 What matters in protracted wars

    •    28:59 Innovation and adaptation

    •    33:51 The role of national leadership in protracted conflict

    •    38:49 Sino-U.S. competition 

    •    44:50 Absorbing massive casualties

    •    48:06 Polybius

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Alexander Mikaberidze, Professor of History and Ruth Herring Noel Endowed Chair at Louisiana State University and author of The Napoleonic Wars: A Global History, joins the show to talk about director Ridley Scott’s Napoleon.

▪️

Times 

    •    02:54 Introduction 

    •    04:52 First reactions

    •    08:18 Joaquin Phoenix as Napoleon

    •    15:12 Propaganda of the time

    •    17:14 No invention needed

    •    21:22 Wellington and Talleyrand

    •    23:24 Napoleon: Master Tactician

    •    27:35 Waterloo

    •    33:45 Josephine and Elba

    •    35:44 More Napoleon content

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Nicholas Morton, associate professor of history at Nottingham Trent University and author of The Mongol Storm: Making and Breaking Empires in the Medieval Near East, joins the show to talk about the Mongol invasions.

▪️

Times 

    •    01:40 Introduction 

    •    02:15 Central Asia before the Mongols

    •    04:15 Mongol methods

    •    09:15 Sailing the Eurasian Steppe

    •   13:54 Temujin

    •    18:38 A dearth of sources

    •    21:50 Khwarazmian Empire

    •    26:40 The Mongol secret

    •   32:03 Selective savagery 

    •    36:30 The Near East

    •    40:15 Mamluks

   •    42:03 Mongol rule

    •    45:17 Lasting effects

Matthew Waxman, Liviu Librescu Professor of Law at Columbia Law School, joins the show to talk about what’s lawful on the battlefield, what’s not, and how the laws of war apply to Israel and Hamas.

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Times 

    •    01:49 Introduction 

    •    02:25 What is the law of war?

    •    05:05 How does it all work?

    •    08:15 What does it matter?

    •    11:06 A rule of law society

    •    12:16 10/7 

    •    15:14 Military necessity vs humanitarian interest

    •    19:54 Bright line rules

    •    25:23 Reasonableness

    •    28:07 Sieges

    •    32:30 Weaponizing the law

    •    36:34 Perverse incentives

    •    39:09 How does the law evolve?

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Edward Luttwak, strategist and co-author of The Art of Military Innovation: Lessons from the Israel Defense Forces, joins the show to talk about the research and development methods of the IDF and events on the ground in Israel.

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Times 

    •    01:51 Introduction 

    •    03:05 R&D the IDF way

    •    21:30 Evaluating Israel’s strategy

    •    25:30 Stopping the clock

    •   29:51 Downside of discipline 

    •    34:07 Macro-innovation

    •    39:26 Iran

    •    43:21 Qatar

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Vincent O’Hara and Trent Hone, naval historians and co-editors of Fighting in the Dark: Naval Combat at Night, 1904-1944, join the show to talk about how naval warfare was transformed by technology that made possible night combat at sea.

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Times 

    •    02:01 Introduction 

    •    03:35 Night combat pre-19th century

    •    06:02 Why do we fight at night?

    •    09:30 Getting close in

    •   13:47 Different approaches 

    •    19:28 German naval thinking pre-WWI

    •    22:05 Jutland and after

    •    27:09 Theory vs. experience 

    •   32:04 Japanese success at night

    •    37:59 The Italian navy

    •    40:52 Long range torpedoes

    •   45:27 Changes in command expectations

    •    49:44 Dealing with technological changes today

    •    52:36 Is the U.S. Navy the “best”?

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Rich Goldberg, senior advisor at Foundation for Defense of Democracies and co-host of Jewish Insider’s Limited Liability podcast, joins the show to talk about the war in Israel, Iran’s objectives, and America’s.

▪️

Times 

    •    01:41 Introduction 

    •    02:22 Sit Rep 10/23

    •    12:05 Confused messaging from Washington

    •    20:21 Too clever by half

    •   24:54 Owner operated proxies?

    •    32:40 What does Iran want

    •    35:51 Volatile Israeli politics

    •    40:52 Dancing to the enemy tune

    •   42:51 The cost of being America’s ally

    •    44:25 Deterrence

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Jonathan Schanzer, senior vice president for research at Foundation for Defense of Democracies, joins the show to talk about the state of the war in Israel, the history of Hamas and its campaign to eradicate the Jewish state, and Israel’s plans to end the cycle forever.

▪️

Times 

    •    01:41 Introduction 

    •    02:24 The situation today

    •    04:55 Gaza’s terrain

    •    09:27 Focusing on the north

    •   12:51 Gaza in Arab politics

    •    18:41 Iranian support

    •    25:41 Walls can work both ways 

    •    29:00 Israeli objectives

    •   35:56 Strategic goals and military means 

    •    41:38 Dancing to an Iranian tune 

    •    46:01 Working against the clock

    •   49:06 Staying informed

To read the WSJ article discussed today click here

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Michael Doran, senior fellow and director of the Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East at the Hudson Institute, joins the show to talk about Iran-backed Hamas’ savage attack on Israel, how we can expect Israel to act in Gaza, prospects for escalation, and the echoes of 1973.

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Times 

    •    02:33 Introduction 

    •    03:16 10/7

    •    08:51 Potential Israeli objectives in Gaza

    •    20:18 A regional war?

    •   27:20 Iranian objectives

    •    34:28 Intelligence failures, operational catastrophes

    •    42:11 Redeployments 

    •    44:45 Parallels with the Yom Kippur War

    •   51:07 America and Israel today

To read the article discussed today click here 

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Cliff May, founder and president of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, joins the show to talk about the neo-imperialism of America’s adversaries and what defending democracy requires.

▪️

Times 

    •    02:22 Introduction 

    •    02:39 Taking on Jon Stewart

    •    06:50 Starting in the Soviet Union

    •    12:26 Policy activism

    •   20:11 Foundation for Defense of Democracies 

    •    26:31 Ending tyranny

    •    34:53 The people have to want it

    •    41:05 Are we misleading ourselves?

    •   43:23 Cracks in the Axis of Tyrannies  

    •    47:26 Chinese imperialism

    •    52:35 Understanding ourselves abroad

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Paul Rahe, Charles O. Lee and Louise K. Lee Chair in the Western Heritage at Hillsdale College, and author of Sparta's Sicilian Proxy War: The Grand Strategy of Classical Sparta, 418-413 BC, joins the show to talk about proxy wars, the strategy of Sparta, and the role of regimes in the shaping of foreign policy.

▪️

Times 

    •    01:37 Introduction 

    •    06:43 Donald Kagan

    •    08:32 The Spartan point of view

    •   11:59 Why change the perspective?

    •    17:30 Sparta’s goals

    •    24:59 Why does Sparta matter? 

    •    31:56 “Putin’s completely irrational”

    •   33:56 Is Realism dangerous?

    •    39:17 Why do the Athenians go to Sicily?

    •    44:35 Alcibiades

    •    47:06 Could the Athenians have won?

    •    49:11 The significance of victory

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Andrew Krepinevich, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and author of The Origins of Victory: How Disruptive Military Innovation Determines the Fates of Great Powers, joins the show to talk about how to interpret and think about military revolutions of the past and how that can help us forecast the shape of war in the future.

▪️

Times 

    •    01:35 Introduction 

    •    02:50 Andy Marshall 

    •    07:45 A diagnostic outlook

    •   10:11 The military technical revolution

    •    19:14 How do military revolutions work?

    •    24:49 Playing catch-up 

    •    27:35 The MRAP question

    •   33:34 The pace of change 

    •    42:17 Mass and main force

    •    46:12 What are we not doing that we need to be?

Here is a link to the article referenced in the episode - Hudson Institute - Archipelagic Defense 2.0

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Mick Ryan, Major General (retired) in the Australian Army and author of White Sun War: The Campaign for Taiwan, joins the show to talk about the war today in Ukraine, the potential war in Taiwan, and the changing character of war itself.

▪️

Times 

    •    02:22 Introduction 

    •    05:49 China on Australia’s radar

    •    11:56 Ukrainian progress 

    •    17:26 Timeframe 

    •   24:00 “We’re helping them tread water. We’re not helping them swim.”

    •    27:37 What is China learning from Ukraine?

    •    35:20 Can China pull off its own Operation Neptune? 

    •    41:12 Looking to the past

    •   44:35 White Sun War 

    •    51:23 Everything new is old

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John H. Maurer, the Alfred Thayer Mahan Professor of Sea Power and Grand Strategy at the Naval War College and contributor to New Makers of Modern Strategy, joins the show to talk about Mahan and his relevance today.

▪️

Times 

    •    01:30 Introduction 

    •    02:06 Mahan struck from the syllabus

    •    06:30 Early writings

    •    09:19 Looking out at the world 

    •   12:17 Six elements of seapower

    •    15:01 Arming for peace

    •    20:35 Corbett 

    •    22:54 The 18th century

    •   29:49 A political scientist 

    •    35:10 Where might one go wrong?

    •   39:03 Free security

    •    42:26 Who should we be reading? 

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Wayne Lee, Bruce W. Carney Distinguished Professor of History at UNC and author of The Cutting-Off Way: Indigenous Warfare in Eastern North America, 1500-1800, joins the show to talk about war in the ‘Eastern Woodlands’, both before and after European contact.

▪️

Times 

    •    01:48 Introduction 

    •    02:50 Coincidences

    •    07:19 “Woods and rivers, deer and rabbits, corn and beans”

    •    12:51 Unused land

    •   19:29 Sacred spaces

    •    21:56 Strategic objectives

    •    28:35 Why not occupy? 

    •    32:50 Logistics

    •   41:57 The role of the prisoner 

    •    49:10 Something like the truth 

    •    54:34 Offense and defense

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David Betz, Professor of War in the Modern World at King’s College London, joins the show to talk about what the status of the Ukrainian counteroffensive has to teach us about the enduring relevance of fortifications and the defense as a form of war.

▪️

Times 

    •    02:02 Introduction 

    •    02:16 Modern War

    •    03:36 Counteroffensive progress

    •    06:08 Tracking events

    •   11:08 Russia’s defensive scheme

    •    23:07 Fortified strategic complex

    •    32:9 Maginot reconsidered 

    •    40:47 The pendulum 

    •   48:07 What if… 

To read the article discussed on this episode click the link -

Russian fortifications present an old problem for Ukraine - JULY 20, 2023 DAVID J BETZ

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Antulio J. Echevarria, General Douglas MacArthur Chair of Research at the U.S. Army War College and a contributor to New Makers of Modern Strategy, joins the show to talk about one of the most influential military thinkers of the modern age, Antoine-Henri Jomini. 

▪️

Times 

    •    01:55 Introduction 

    •    02:22 Who was Jomini?

    •    06:13 A charlatan?

    •    08:57 Summary of the Art of War

    •   11:50 Clausewitz vs Jomini 

    •    14:26 The center of gravity

    •    16:03 Lines of operation

    •    21:21 Regard for the enemy

    •   24:44 Interpreting Napoleon 

    •   28:09 Mahan and Jomini

    •    30:47 Air power

   •   31:55 Clausewitz revival

    •    34:02 Jomini today

Mike Gallagher, U.S. representative for Wisconsin's 8th congressional district and Chair of the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, joins the show to talk about why the Korean War should be front-of-mind for American policymakers and strategists. 

▪️

Times 

    •    02:06 Introduction 

    •    04:05 Wolf-warrior diplomacy

    •    10:42 A new Cold War

    •    13:05 T.R. Fehrenbach

    •   22:25 “This stuff matters” 

    •    25:25 Task Force Smith 

    •    29:44 Route clearances

    •    31:23 Inchon

    •   35:06 Truman’s failures 

    •    38:19 Eisenhower brings balance 

    •    42:24 China has gotten stronger

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And here is a link to checkout the article Aaron and Mike wrote for Foreign Affairs Why America Forgets and China Remembers the Korean War

Mark McGrath and Brian Rivera, hosts of the No Way Out podcast, join the show to talk about strategist John Boyd. 

▪️

Times 

    •    02:09 Introduction 

    •    02:59 Who was John Boyd?

    •    06:03 “40 Second” Boyd

    •    08:05 Air to air combat

    •   09:45 OODA Loop 

    •    14:20 Getting inside the enemy’s loop

    •    18:44 Fast transients

    •    21:41 Patterns of Conflict

    •   26:27 Military reformer  

    •    29:46 Blitzkrieg and Entebbe 

    •    37:43 Detractors

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For more on John Boyd and from Mark and Brian check out the ​​No Way Out Podcast

Aaron O’Connell, Associate Professor of History at the University of Texas at Austin, joins the show to talk about the “founding fathers” of 20th century geopolitical thought: Mahan, Mackinder, and Spykman. 

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Times 

  •    01:46 Introduction 

    •    02:20 From Marine to scholar to the NSC

    •    06:24 Alfred T. Mahan

    •    12:27 Choke points, decisive battle, and battleships

    •   15:45 Security through imperialism  

    •    18:08 Chinese Mahanians

    •    20:33 China’s crowded neighborhood

    •    21:27 Halford Mackinder

    •   28:56 Heartland rising  

    •    31:36 Inner and outer crescent

    •    33:01 Nicholas Spykman 

    •    37:55 The nature of power

    •    39:03 Containment

    •   42:11 The American role

    •    46:22 The path of partnerships

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Charles Edel, senior adviser and Australia Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and contributor to New Makers of Modern Strategy, joins the show to talk about one of the founding architects of American foreign policy, John Quincy Adams. 

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Times 

    •    01:33 Introduction 

    •    02:20 Democratic strategy

    •    04:43 Adams

    •    08:03 Early threats to the Republic

    •   13:20 A potential challenger to Europe

    •    18:10 Unity and strength 

    •    25:08 “In search of monsters to destroy”

    •    30:07 British parallels 

    •   34:11 Slavery 

    •    38:36 Public service

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Max Hastings, journalist, military historian, and author most recently of Abyss: The Cuban Missile Crisis 1962, joins the show to talk about the world’s brush with World War III. 

▪️

Times 

    •    01:41 Introduction 

    •    01:59 From journalism to history

    •    07:06 Recollections

    •    09:40 Castro and the Bay of Pigs

    •   19:46 Overflights 

    •    26:46 Quarantine and blockade 

    •    33:45 Russian floundering

    •    35:52 Dealmaking 

    •   40:07 Uncomfortable proximity 

    •    42:36 Spheres of influence

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Holger Afflerbach, Professor of Modern European History at the University of Leeds and author of On a Knife Edge: How Germany Lost the First World War, joins the show to talk about the origins of the First World War, how much Germany is to blame, and why the July Crisis of 1914 is relevant in 2023. 

▪️

Times 

    •    01:59 Introduction 

    •    02:46 Fritz Fischer 

    •    10:34 1914 and today

    •    15:24 The Kaiser

    •   21:54 Bethmann Hollweg

    •    27:46 Military necessity

    •    37:25 How did Germany lose? 

    •    44:10 Murderers or sleepwalkers?

For context, and a better sense of the events unfolding in 1914, checkout the National World War One Museum Interactive Timeline and Summer 1914 Day By Day.

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Mark Galeotti, director of Mayak Intelligence, host of the In Moscows’s Shadow podcast, and author of Putin's Wars: From Chechnya to Ukraine, joins the show to talk about the post-Cold War Russian Armed Forces.

▪️

Times 

    •    02:13 Introduction 

    •    04:26 The peak 

    •    10:04 In decline

    •    13:04 A day in the life of a ’90s Russian soldier

    •    16:23 The First Chechen War 

    •    21:17 Putin and Chechnya

    •    24:42 Russia’s claims

    •    35:10 Modernization

    •    40:49 Historical karma in Ukraine

    •    46:10 Big picture 

    •    48:20 Ukraine’s counter-offensive

    •    51:49 Wagner and Prigozhin

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Hew Strachan, Bishop Wardlaw Professor at the School of International Relations at the University of St. Andrews and a contributor to New Makers of Modern Strategy, joins the show to talk about Carl von Clausewitz.

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Times 

    •    02:10 Introduction 

    •    04:31 Serious-minded

    •    09:43 On War 

    •    11:54 Deconstruct to construct

    •    15:19 Distinctions in war 

    •    24:07 The American embrace of Clausewitz

    •    28:00 Context is everything

    •    32:14 Politics by other means

    •    36:24 Clausewitz the Marxist

    •    40:05 Absolute and Total

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Iskander Rehman, Ax:son Johnson Fellow at the Kissinger Center at Johns Hopkins SAIS and contributor to New Makers of Modern Strategy, joins the show to talk about French grand strategy during the 16th and 17th century rivalry between the Bourbons and Habsburg Spain. 

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Times 

    •    02:41 Introduction 

    •    04:35 A nagging curiosity  

    •    06:59 Sully at the start 

    •    13:27 The genesis of a struggle

    •    21:19 French internal cohesion 

    •    26:51 Naval power

    •    29:28 Religious factions and Richelieu

    •    32:14 The 30 Years War and France

    •    36:22 The fruits of disorder

    •    41:44 Defender of the faith

    •    44:41 Mazarin 

    •    49:48 Hegemonic France

    •    53:56 Rapid-fire lessons

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Levi Roach, Associate Professor of Medieval History at the University of Exeter and author of Empires of the Normans: Conquerors of Europe, joins the show to talk about the rise, violent spread, and ultimate normalization of the group of Viking raiders know as the Normans.  

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Times 

• 01:25 Introduction 

• 01:53 Who were the Normans?  

• 06:40 Transformations

• 11:41 Parallel outbursts

• 14:35 “If a Frank is your neighbor, he’s not your friend”

• 16:01 Towards 1066

• 22:20 Dukes and kings

• 26:34 Hastings

• 31:42 William’s victory

• 36:13 Rule by castle

• 39:26 Siege and counter-siege

• 41:27 Normans in the Mediterranean

• 47:24 “Noteworthy, not unique”

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Toshi Yoshihara, Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, author of Mao’s Army Goes to Sea, and contributor to the New Makers of Modern Strategy, joins the show to talk about Sun Tzu and Mao’s strategic thought.

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Times 

    •    02:14 Introduction 

    •    02:33 Who was Sun Tzu?  

    •    05:38 Spring and Autumn 

    •    08:27 Legitimizing the text

    •    11:18 Rational analysis 

    •    13:51 Clausewitz versus Sun Tzu

    •    20:28 A dangerous optimism 

    •    24:40 Shih

    •    29:59 Mao in ’49 and ’50

    •    34:11 Chinese intervention in Korea

    •    38:36 The origins of Chinese sea power 

    •    43:11 Amphibious operations

    •    47:33 D-Day without any advantages 

Andrew Rhodes Map D-Day Invasion compared to potential Taiwan Invasion

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Mark Moyar, the William P. Harris Chair of Military History at Hillsdale College, author of Triumph Regained: The Vietnam War, 1965-1968 and contributor to New Makers of Modern Strategy, joins the show to reconsider the history of the Vietnam War.

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Times 

• 01:53 Introduction 

• 04:30 Beginnings 

• 08:43 Early success 

• 12:23 Fallout from the coup

• 14:00 LBJ takes over 

• 19:06 Domino theory

• 22:20 China and Vietnam 

• 25:40 Buying time

• 28:23 Johnson and McNamara

• 34:22 Maintaining the shield 

• 35:53 Westmoreland and attrition 

• 41:42 South Vietnam 

• 45:33 Parallels

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Carter Malkasian, chair of the Defense Analysis Department at the Naval Postgraduate School and contributor to New Makers of Modern Strategy, joins the show to talk about counterterrorism and counterinsurgency since 9/11.

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Times 

    •    01:39 Introduction 

    •    02:01 From academia to Garmsir 

    •    03:48 Center for Naval Analysis 

    •    05:45 Two faces of the same coin

    •    08:51 Counterterrorism vs counterinsurgency 

    •    13:00 McChrystal and Petraeus

    •    16:29 Types of insurgency 

    •    20:34 The Sunni Awakening and the Surge

    •    24:32 Two different wars

    •    30:51 Gilding the lily 

    •    37:46 The Obama Administration

    •    41:42 ISIS

    •    44:45 Withdrawal deadline

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Matthew Kroenig, professor in the Department of Government and the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University and contributor to the New Makers of Modern Strategy, joins the show to talk about one of the most influential strategic thinkers of all time, Niccolo Machiavelli.

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Times 

• 02:21 Introduction 

• 03:52 Teaching Machiavelli 

• 05:38 Machiavelli’s relevance

• 07:49 Who was Niccolo?

• 10:00 A lasting effect 

• 12:16 The Art of War

• 15:52 A bad reputation

• 19:58 A return to republic

• 22:25 The Prince

• 25:45 An early realist 

• 30:35 Classical influences

• 35:12 Bullish on democracy

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John Gaddis, Robert A. Lovett Professor of Military & Naval History at Yale University and a contributor to New Makers of Modern Strategy, joins the show to talk about the foundations of strategic thought.

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Times 

• 02:01 Introduction 

• 02:42 Makers of Modern Strategy 

• 05:21 Democracy and strategy 

• 07:42 Do authoritarians do strategy better?

• 10:32 A guide for future action

• 14:19 Grammar and logic

• 17:42 Ecological sensitivity

• 21:00 Maintain credibility 

• 23:25 NSC-68

• 28:04 Reactions  

• 32:18 Self-correction

• 37:12 Tolerating contradictions 

• 41:29 Robert Kagan

• 42:43 Intellectual humility

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Will Scharf, former federal prosecutor and candidate for Missouri Attorney General, joins the show to talk about how the Chinese Communist Party uses fentanyl as part of a broader strategy to pressure the United States.

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Times 

• 01:16 Introduction 

• 02:19 Law enforcement and policy

• 04:39 What is fentanyl? 

• 06:53 Violent Crimes

• 09:00 Fentanyl’s strength

• 12:02 Fentanyl vs opium

• 13:24 Origins

• 17:52 China’s role

• 21:09 The Opium Wars 

• 25:41 The Chinese enigma 

• 34:13 What can we do? 

• 38:02 The cartels

• 41:03 Cui bono?

John Lisle, a historian of science and the American intelligence community and author of The Dirty Tricks Department, joins the show to talk about the World War Two-era Office of Strategic Services and its Research and Development Branch.

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Times 

• 01:44 Introduction 

• 02:10 “Wild Bill” Donovan

• 05:54 Donovan’s style 

• 08:53 Stanley Lovell

• 12:35 An unconventional training process

• 16:40 Explosive pancake batter

• 19:24 Limpet mines and Java Man

• 23:33 A meaningful legacy?

• 27:34 Target: Werner Heisenberg

• 31:51 WMDs 

• 35:40 Truth Serum

• 39:02 From OSS to CIA

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Peter H. Wilson, Chichele Professor of the History of War at All Souls, Oxford, and author of Iron and Blood: A Military History of the German-Speaking Peoples since 1500, joins the show to talk about Germany, Germans, and German-speakers at war.

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Times 

• 01:52 Introduction 

• 03:07 A dominance myth? 

• 06:58 The Holy Roman Empire 

• 10:33 HRE longevity

• 12:38 The Thirty Years War

• 15:31 Westphalia

• 21:24 Prussia rising

• 24:09 Prussia and Austria 

• 27:56 Napoleon 

• 31:43 The Imperial legacy 

• 34:42 Bismarck’s wars  

• 37:06 1914 vs 1940 

• 40:03 Blitzkrieg

Stephen J. Hadley, National Security Advisor to President George W. Bush and lead editor of Hand-Off: The Foreign Policy George W. Bush Passed to Barack Obama, joins the show to talk about the lasting effects of the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan and the Bush administration’s dealings with Russia and China.

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Times 

• 01:38 Introduction 

• 02:03 Transitions

• 06:41 Russia and China then and now 

• 08:45 Democratic values and our interests

• 15:20 Democracy in Iraq and Afghanistan

• 19:39 Missing ingredients in Afghanistan

• 24:07 Departing Iraq

• 30:05 A better outcome for Afghanistan? 

• 33:33 Commitments

• 38:30 China and Russia from ’01 to ’09 

• 44:57 Integrating China into the international system  

• 47:37 NATO expansion

Michael E. O’Hanlon, senior fellow and director of research in Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution and author of Military History for the Modern Strategist: America’s Major Wars Since 1861, joins the show to talk about how the patterns of military history can shed light on today’s concerns.

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Times 

• 01:16 Introduction 

• 01:50 Military history for the modern strategist

• 05:16 Is military history relevant? 

• 09:05 Lessons from the Civil War

• 22:47 Could the South have succeeded?

• 27:46 America starts slow

• 35:35 MaArthur’s dismissal

• 41:16 Could the Korean War have ended earlier? 

• 45:11 What is our grand strategy?

John Hosler, Professor of Military History at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and author of Jerusalem Falls: Seven Centuries of War and Peace, joins the show to talk about the wars, and the peace, of medieval Jerusalem.

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Times 

• 01:26 Introduction 

• 01:46 Why care about medieval military history?

• 07:22 What is it about Jerusalem? 

• 12:45 Continuities

• 16:19 The Byzantines and the Jews

• 23:54 The Arabs arrive 

• 29:42 An “evidentiary problem”

• 33:59 Three hundred years of peace

• 36:29 Causes of the First Crusade

• 40:36 The Crusaders

• 42:32 Siege and conquest

• 44:23 A Christian city

• 47:31 The Crusader States 

• 49:29 The Knights Templar

Dan Blumenthal and Fred Kagan of the American Enterprise Institute join the show to talk about the three strategies that China can use to seize control of Taiwan.

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Times 

• 01:40 China’s three approaches on Taiwan 

• 02:09 Persuasion

• 07:35 Complimentary campaigns 

• 10:34 Dominance of discourse power

• 14:40 Talk, talk, fight, fight

• 18:45 Coercion 

• 26:51 Speaker Pelosi's trip to Taiwan 

• 30:02 Compellence

• 35:24 CSIS war game conclusions 

• 42:33 Fighting for themselves

• 46:48 Ukraine or Taiwan, who gets what?

• 51:38 Xi Jinping’s dilemma

Steve Kemper, author most recently of Our Man in Tokyo: An American Ambassador and the Countdown to Pearl Harbor, joins the show to talk about the political chaos in Tokyo in the years leading up to WWII and the man that tried to keep the peace, U.S. AmbassadorJoseph C. Grew.

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• 01:18 Introduction 

• 01:50 Who was Joseph C. Grew? 

• 04:36 Japanese politics in the ’30s 

• 07:30 Imperial Army vs Imperial Navy

• 11:00 First impressions

• 17:31 Insurrection 

• 22:12 Drifting towards war 

• 26:08 Dynamics in D.C. 

• 28:24 Appeasement 

• 35:05 Japan’s plans

• 37:40 Embargoes and FDR

• 42:48 Distinct parallels

Mike Pompeo, former Secretary of State and Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, and author of Never Give an Inch: Fighting for the America I Love, joins the show to talk about American foreign policy and his service in the Trump administration.

Watch this video on YouTube.

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Times 

• 01:13 Introduction 

• 02:12 Chinese surveillance balloons 

• 05:01 Chinese espionage “inside the gates” 

• 07:19 Meeting Xi Jinping 

• 10:25 “Mushy Middle” diplomacy 

• 15:58 Republicans and Russia 

• 20:18 America in the Middle East 

• 26:00 Why talk to the bad guys? 

• 31:35 Afghanistan

• 33:05 Resetting the conversation on human rights

Sonny Bunch, contributing columnist at the Washington Post and culture editor for The Bulwark, where he hosts The Bulwark Goes to Hollywood newsletter and podcast and Across the Movie Aisle, joins the show to talk about the best American war movies.

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Times 

• 01:35 Introduction

• 02:16 What is a war movie?

• 07:55 The Revolutionary War - The Patriot/John Adams

• 13:15 The Civil War - Glory/Gettysburg

• 16:56 World War I - Paths of Glory/Lawerence of Arabia (Hon. mention: Sgt. York)

• 26:30 World War II - Inglorious Bastards/Patton/The Thin Red Line/Greyhound

• 36:22 The Korean War - Heartbreak Ridge/The Manchurian Candidate 

• 41:45 The Vietnam War - Full Metal Jacket (Hon. mention: Apocalypse Now)

• 46:10 Post Cold War - Black Hawk Down/Jarhead

• 49:00 Post 9/11 - 13 Hours/The Outpost/Generation Kill

Marc Hyden, Director of State Government Affairs at R Street and author of Gaius Marius: The Rise and Fall of Rome's Saviour, joins the show to discuss the life of one of the Roman Republic’s most innovative and controversial generals: Gaius Marius.

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Times 

• 01:33 Introduction

• 01:46 An interest in Rome

• 04:06 Growing pains

• 06:36 The man born in Arpinum

• 09:46 Serving in the legions

• 11:37 Jugurtha 

• 13:25 Roman politics  

• 20:31 Marius in Numidia 

• 28:51 Sulla and political reform

• 37:06 The Cimbri and Teutones and “Marius’s Mules” 

• 43:05 Career on the rocks 

• 49:02 Social War to Civil War

• 56:27 “Do you dare kill Gaius Marius?”

James Lacey, the Major General Matthew C. Horner Chair of War Studies at Marine Corps University and author of Rome: Strategy of Empire, joins the show to discuss the grand strategy of the Roman Empire.

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Times 

• 01:33 Introduction

• 01:59 A lover of history

• 05:12 The “Plato to NATO” historian 

• 08:40 Edward Luttwak 

• 13:20 The Romans “obviously had a strategy”

• 21:02 Speaking from historical silence

• 26:27 The Republic vs the Empire  

• 32:50 Cost benefit analysis in Rome

• 35:57 Three moments of “muscle change” 

• 41:33 Unable to adapt militarily  

• 46:55 Lessons for America

Philip Taubman, lecturer at Stanford University's Center for International Security and Cooperation and author of In The Nation's Service: The Life and Times of George P. Shultz, joins the show to discuss the legacy of American statesmen George P. Shultz.

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Times 

• 01:52 Introduction

• 02:14 First encounters with Schultz

• 06:44 An old-fashioned patriot 

• 10:10 Secretary of State 

• 15:38 Different approaches to defeating Communism 

• 20:00 Two sides to Reagan 

• 26:44 Hawks

• 31:05 Schultz, Clark, and Dobrynin

• 33:35 Arms control 

• 38:24 The end of the Cold War

• 41:55 Tension as a tool

Congressman Mike Gallagher, U.S. representative for Wisconsin’s 8th district and chair of the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, joins the show to discuss his time as a Marine in Iraq, the dangers posed by the CCP, from Tik-Tok to maritime threats, and the crisis confronting our military’s culture.

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Times 

• 01:26 Introduction

• 02:11 The China Committee

• 08:56 What’s the problem with Tik-Tok?

• 13:12 A reverse Opium War 

• 15:25 A Marine from Green Bay 

• 21:16 On the ground in Iraq

• 28:52 What’s the American interest in Taiwan?

• 32:05 Consequences of Taiwan’s defeat

• 38:21 Marine Corps force design

• 41:42 The Navy’s fighting spirit

• 46:31 Culture in the military

Ronald H. Spector, Professor Emeritus of History at George Washington University and author of A Continent Erupts: Decolonization, Civil War, and Massacre in Postwar Asia, 1945-1955, joins the show to discuss the fall of Japan, the spread of Communism, and the role of the United States in postwar Asia.

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Times 

• 01:34 Introduction

• 05:57 No clear plan

• 08:30 The Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere

• 10:51 The Indian National Army 

• 12:12 Marines in North China 

• 15:49 Levels of violence

• 17:24 Was 1949 preventable?

• 22:32 U.S. attitudes towards Korea 

• 26:25 Kim Il-sung

• 28:17 Ho Chi Minh goes to Moscow

• 31:08 Stopping the spread of communism 

• 33:03 Reconstruction 

• 35:09 Post 1955

Myke Cole, author of The Bronze Lie: Shattering the Myth of Spartan Warrior Supremacy, joins the show to discuss what most people get wrong about Sparta, arguing that Spartan warriors were neither more deadly, nor more successful in war, than other Greeks of their day.

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Times 

• 01:09 Introduction

• 05:13 “Not especially tough”

• 09:17 Getting it right, not being right

• 10:48 What is the “Bronze Lie”? 

• 16:57 Captured by politics

• 23:23 Who were the Spartans?

• 30:11 Spartan slavery 

• 34:09 The Greco-Persian Wars 

• 37:00 Thermopylae

• 41:32 Sparta and soft power

• 45:30 “Making the time”

Jonathan Kirshner, Professor of Political Science and International Studies at Boston College and author of An Unwritten Future: Realism, Uncertainty, and World Politics, joins the show to discuss realism and realists.

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Times

• 01:40 Introduction

• 02:25 What is Realism?

• 07:10 The birth of modern Realism

• 11:59 To be “scientific” and “predictive” 

• 15:10 Not a rejection of social sciences

• 19:30 “Purpose matters”

• 23:40 Liberalism 

• 28:04 The Twenty Years Crisis 

• 36:00 Ideology matters

• 42:07 The China challenge

• 48:04 Sleepwalking into war?

• 55:48 Where does classical realism fall short?

• 01:02:10 Finding moral counsel

David M. Pritchard, Associate Professor of Greek History at the University of Queensland and author of Athenian Democracy at War, joins the show to discuss how and why ancient Athens fought its wars.

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Times 

• 01:41 Introduction

• 02:3 Martial culture in Athens

• 05:08 Democracy and victory

• 11:42 Innovation and participation

• 15:38 Joining up in ancient Athens

• 19:10 Broad support for war

• 24:43 Military morality 

• 30:49 Control of the battlefield is victory

• 38:28 Democracy and war today

Dr. Michael Livingston , Professor at The Citadel and author of Crécy: Battle of Five Kings, joins the show to discuss the Hundred Years War, medieval warfare, and the English victory at the battle of Crécy.

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Times 

• 01:53 Introduction

• 02:33 Why Crécy

• 05:53 The Hundred Years War

• 10:29 The French-Scottish connection 

• 14:08 Why invade France at all?

• 20:51 Strengths/Weaknesses

• 26:00 Medieval command and control

• 34:01 Crécy the legend

• 38:24 French losses

• 39:17 Crécy the reality

• 44:29 Costly French decisions

• 51:11 The King of Bohemia’s last ride

• 57:52 Hundred Years War ends

Alexander Mikaberidze, Professor of History and Ruth Herring Noel Endowed Chair at Louisiana State University in Shreveport and author of Kutuzov: A Life in War and Peace, joins the show to discuss the Russian general Kutuzov, the hero of 1812.

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Times 

• 00:53 Introduction

• 01:31 18th century Russia 

• 04:00 A young officer

• 08:57 Modernization  

• 12:11 Catherine’s wars

• 14:30 International relations

• 17:00 Shot in the head - twice

• 22:11 Promotions

• 29:18 Tolstoy’s take on Kutuzov

• 32:32 Czar Alexander

• 39:21 Austerlitz

• 48:28 Grand strategy in 1812

• 57:21 Tolstoy and reality

• 1:02:09 Legacy

Sir Lawrence Freedman, Emeritus Professor of War Studies at King's College London and author of Command: The Politics of Military Operations from Korea to Ukraine, joins the show to discuss how politics and military command are inextricably linked.

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Times 

• 01:08 Introduction

• 02:01 Command 

• 05:44 Politics and generalship

• 08:00 MacArthur myths 

• 11:59 Educating future commanders

• 15:50 France’s end of empire

• 22:57 Democratic drawbacks

• 27:51 Putin’s position

• 33:49 Ukraine endgame

• 37:27 Better off without Putin

• 39:09 Winter is coming

William Inboden, executive director and William Powers, Jr. Chair at the Clements Center for National Security at the University of Texas at Austin and author of The Peacemaker: Ronald Reagan, the Cold War, and the World on the Brink, joins the show to discuss Ronald Reagan’s foreign policy.

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Times 

• 01:32 Introduction

• 02:09 Inheriting détente 

• 06:13 The Soviet understanding

• 09:56 Deterring strength, exploiting weakness 

• 13:42 Religious Reagan

• 17:32 Bush as teammate

• 20:54 Win without fighting

• 25:47 Contradictions

• 30:00 South and Central America

• 35:35 Gorbachev

• 40:23 Did Reagan’s approach work?

• 43:53 Kissinger

• 45:09 Reagan as manager

• 50:07 Reagan’s legacy on the Right

Ian Beckett, professor emeritus of military history at the University of Kent and author of Rorke’s Drift and Isandlwana, joins the show to talk about the two most famous battles of the Anglo-Zulu War.

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Times 

• 01:58 Introduction

• 02:22 British interests in Zululand 

• 06:52 The Zulu system

• 09:55 The British plan  

• 13:12 The horns of the buffalo

• 16:49 Isandlwana

• 26:44 Innate warriors

• 29:14 Aftermath

• 33:18 Movies and myths

• 42:11 Rorke’s Drift 

• 48:38 Firepower wins out

• 53:56 A western way of war?

Tom Cotton, senator from Arkansas and author of Only the Strong: Reversing the Left's Plot to Sabotage American Power, joins the show to talk about U.S. foreign policy.

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Times 

• 01:03 Introduction

• 03:43 Formative Interests

• 06:47 Bill Rood And The Distant Ramparts

• 11:13 Joining The Infantry 

• 13:30 Iraq & Afghanistan

• 18:39 Congress 

• 21:19 Foreign Entanglements

• 25:54 Progressivism

• 32:06 Vietnam

• 38:52 Iran 

• 44:26 Withdrawal

• 47:15 American Interests And The Rimland

James M. Scott, author of Black Snow: Curtis LeMay, the Firebombing of Tokyo and the Road to the Atomic Bomb, joins the show to talk about the World War II career of one of the most important and controversial American generals of the 20th Century, Curtis LeMay, and his leadership of the strategic bombing campaign in the Pacific.  

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Times 

• 02:00 Introduction

• 03:02 Teaching In Japan

• 06:27 Lemay, Tireless Worker

• 09:47 Bomber Vs Fighter 

• 11:43 Europe, B-17, and B-29 

• 19:54 Hansel & O’Donnell

• 30:00 LeMay Takes Over 

• 32:37 From Dresden To Tokyo

• 35:10 On His Own Authority

• 40:26 “We’ll Be Tried As War Criminals”

• 43:07 Firestorm

• 49:06 What Brought Peace?

Randall Schriver, former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific affairs and Chairman of the Project 2049 Institute, joins the show to talk about U.S.-China relations and a new project, the China Economic & Strategy Initiative. 

Times 

• 02:10 Introduction

• 03:36 “Take Chinese Language” 

• 11:21 Why 2049?

• 13:40 China In The ’90s 

• 18:13 Power Projection and Missiles

• 28:10 The Diplomatic Situation 

• 35:00 Economic Entanglement 

• 42:44 Decoupling 

• 47:32 Urgency And Policy 

• 52:00 Deterrence

Check out the China Economic & Strategy Initiative here -

https://cesionline.org

Ep 44: Jay Lockenour on Erich Ludendorff 

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Jay Lockenour, associate professor of history at Temple University and author of Dragonslayer: The Legend of Erich Ludendorff in the Weimar Republic and Third Reich, joins the show to talk about the life of the infamous German general and politician. 

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Times 

• 01:30 Introduction

• 02:00 Ludendorff’s Significance

• 03:08 Ludendorff’s Early Life

• 05:02 Not Quite A Matinee Idol 

• 07:13 The German General Staff

• 11:43 A General Without Portfolio

• 17:50 The War And The Myth 

• 22:23 For The Record - The German Military Lost 

• 26:12 The Early 1920’s

• 29:49 Erich And Adolf

    • 34:10 Ludendorff And The Right

• 37:00 The Holocaust And Ludendorff

Eli Lake, host of The Re-Education and national security journalism fellow at the Clements Center, joins the show to talk about 9/11 and the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan. 

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Times 

• 02:04 Introduction

• 02:43 From Philly To The Middle East

• 05:14 9/11

• 07:49 The World Before 

• 09:20 No More Nation Building

• 12:03 Neo-Cons Or Not

• 18:09 Liberal Internationalists 

• 22:05 Early Mistakes

• 29:08 Baking In Problems 

• 32:46 The Bonn Conference

    • 37:04 Capable Of Being Free

• 41:04 Toppling Sadam - Right or Wrong?

    • 45:47 WMDs And Insurgency

• 53:25 New Strategies

    • 56:51 The Surge 

• 59:01 The Loss Of Choice

Ian Easton, senior director at the Project 2049 Institute and author of The Final Struggle: Inside China’s Global Strategy, joins the show to talk about Xi Jinping, the ideology that shaped Jinping and by which he rules, and why his vision for the world should not be dismissed. 

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Times 

• 01:56 Introduction

• 02:22 Interested In China

• 05:01 Discovering Taiwan

• 10:32 Perceptions Of The PRC 

• 13:11 How The Chinese Government Works

• 17:47 Who Is Xi Jinping?

• 23:42 The Tactics Of Ideology And Control

• 26:29 The “Scourge Of The Corrupt”

• 29:36 Authentic Socialism

• 31:25 Does China’s Communism Matter?

    • 37:04 The Blending Of Communism And Nationalism

• 43:04 Exporting Xi Jinping Thought

    • 49:19 Absolute Control

• 52:41 Does Xi Jinping Have Rivals?  

    • 56:04 Optimisim To Pessimism In Taiwan  

• 01:04:00 It’s Not All Dark

Hal Brands, Henry Kissinger Distinguished Professor at Johns Hopkins University, and Michael Beckley, associate professor of political science at Tufts University, join the show to talk about how an armed confrontation with China could be coming more quickly than most expect. 

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Times 

• 01:30 Introduction

• 02:28 Danger Zone 

• 05:13 A Matter Of Timing

• 07:55 A Thucydides Trap?

• 13:07 Historical Analogies and 1914

• 20:32 Getting To The Long Game

• 25:37 Sleepwalking Into War?

• 31:10 China’s Problems And Plans

• 35:06 The “Lenin Trap”

• 36:44 Why Does Taiwan Matter?

    • 40:27 Commitments And Capabilities 

• 44:37 What Will War Look Like?

    • 48:24 Cold War Lessons 

• 52:22 Getting Through The Danger Zone 

Michael S. Neiberg, Chair of War Studies in the Department of National Security and Strategy at the U.S. Army War College, joins the show to talk American policy towards Vichy France.

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Times 

• 01:21 Introduction

• 02:15 Vichy France - An Overview

• 06:38 A Phony War

• 09:16 American Assumptions Pre-war

• 13:09 Isolationism No Longer Works

• 24:30 Roosevelt’s Policy 

• 28:45 Stress In The Anglo-American Alliance

• 33:03 American Vision Of A Post-War World

• 36:00 Vichy Unveiled 

• 39:01 Chaos In North Africa

    • 43:19 Vichy’s Shame

• 51:57 de Gaulle

Ocie Vest, retired Marine infantry officer, joins the show to talk about his experiences as a platoon commander in the Battle of Marjah and later as a combat leader in Nimruz Province, lessons learned in training and in combat, and how the war can continue after the fighting ends. Second of a two-part conversation.

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Times 

• 01:27 Violent Months

• 06:15 “Do Whatever Those Guys Do”

• 09:42 Tactical Adaptation

• 13:32 A Fighting Exit

• 18:03 “That Sucked…Why’d We Want To Do That So Bad?”

• 21:29 Dispersed Operations

• 26:36 Nimruz Province 

• 30:43 Hope For The Future

• 34:39 Leadership

• 36:11 Medically Retired, Twice

    • 38:53 The Work Works

• 45:47 “Now Its Up To Them”

Ocie Vest, retired Marine infantry officer, joins the show to talk about his experiences as a platoon commander in the Battle of Marjah and later as a combat leader in Nimruz Province, lessons learned in training and in combat, and how the war can continue after the fighting ends. First of a two-part conversation.

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Times 

• 01:46 Introduction

• 02:24 Joining The Marines

• 03:55 Quantico

• 09:00 Becoming An Infantry Officer

• 20:22 Camp Lejeune

• 27:21 False Start

• 35:06 Crossing The Line Of Departure 

• 40:49 On The Job Learning

• 44:40 Marjah

• 50:43 First Combat

    • 59:11 Sustained Combat

• 1:02:45 Different Neighborhood, Different War

Alexander Watson, Professor of History at Goldsmiths, University of London, joins the show to talk about the Eastern Front in World War One, and how the events of 1914/15 foreshadowed tragedies to come and the crisis in Ukraine today. 

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Times 

• 01:43 Introduction

• 02:40 WWI In The East

• 05:29 Battlefield - Austria-Hungary 

• 10:10 The Austro-Hungarian Army

• 13:28 Coveted Galicia

• 17:44 1914 - A Primordial Soup

• 19:02 The Siege Begins

• 26:27 Przemysl’s Defensive Plan

• 29:50 The Russians Take A Direct Approach

• 36:08 Inside A City Under Siege

    • 40:19 Total Exhaustion 

• 44:45 Military And Human Consequences

• 50:00 Birthplace Of The Bloodlands

• 55:09 Strange Ends

Maps Courtesy of United States Military Academy West Point

Eastern Europe, 1914 and Planned Army Concentration Areas in Central Europe, 1914

 Operations on The Eastern Front to 20 September 1914

Charlie Laderman, lecturer at King’s College London and co-author of Hitler's American Gamble, joins the show to talk about his latest book, which covers the crucial days between the attack on Pearl Harbor and Hitler’s perplexing declaration of war on the United States.

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Times 

• 01:52 Introduction

• 02:50 Wasn’t War Inevitable?

• 07:12 Japan And Germany - Strange Bedfellows

• 11:10 Hitler’s Blurred Vision

• 14:45 Japan - Will They, Won’t They Attack 

• 15:51 Churchill’s Outlook

• 22:58 Anti-Interventionist Sentiment

• 26:57 Anti-Semitism

• 31:18 Roosevelt Sees Things Clearly

• 35:21 A War With Germany, Not Japan

    • 38:40 Catastrophic German Strategic Errors

• 43:23 Hitler’s American Gamble 

• 49:15 Pearl Harbor Condemned The European Jews

• 53:54 Alarmingly Relevant Parallels

Brendan Simms, Professor at the University of Cambridge, and his co-author, Steven McGregor, a U.S. Army vet, join the show to talk about their new book, The Silver Waterfall: How America Won the War in the Pacific at Midway.

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Times 

• 02:12 Introduction

• 02:30 Why Write About Midway?

• 05:54 Strategic Situation In The Pacific 

• 08:26 Who Is Chester Nimitz? 

• 11:02 Small Scale Start To The Large Scale Fight

• 14:20 Intelligence Breaches And Carrier Combat 

• 17:12 Dueling Carrier Doctrines 

• 22:09 Lt. Dusty Kleiss On The Day Of Battle

• 24:45 Hide And Seek In The Pacific Ocean

• 28:45 Finding The Kido Butai At Midway

• 30:53 To Dive Bomb Or Not

• 32:11 Never Call Me A Hero

• 33:38 A Fine Days Work 

• 36:23 Preparation + Opportunity = Luck

Andrew Corbett, author of Supreme Emergency: How Britain Lives With the Bomb, joins the show to talk about what it’s like commanding one of Her Majesty’s deadliest weapons, how deterrence policy actually works, and why Britain has the Bomb.

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Times 

• 01:45 Introduction

• 02:12 Why Join The Royal Navy?

• 03:31 What’s In A Name?

• 05:31 Day To Day Life 

• 10:33 Disorienting Conditions 

• 12:35 The Fighting Sub

• 16:58 The Sound Of Silence 

• 21:50 The Nuclear Triad

• 24:12 Developments Under The Sea

• 26:05 The British And The Bomb

• 30:12 Command By Sub-Committee

• 32:23 Extreme Secrecy 

• 37:35 Morality In Nuclear Weapons 

• 45:04 Why Should The UK Have Nukes

• 50:07 Who Shouldn’t Have Nukes 

• 54:46 Extended Deterrence

Steven Pressfield, author of A Man at Arms and Gates of Fire, joins the show to talk about writing historical fiction, telling the truth about war, and why the hardest part of art is “doing the work” .

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Times 

• 01:38 Introduction

• 03:49 Why Historical Fiction?

• 08:25 Creating The “Distant Mirror”

• 12:12 Special Forces 

• 14:17 Characters 

• 19:44 A Man at Arms 

• 22:01 Post-Warrior Life  

• 23:46 The Warrior Ethos

• 27:20 Society Needs, But Doesn’t Want, Warriors

• 32:52 Citizen-Soldier 

• 34:10 Reading History 

• 37:48 Characters Are Uncovered, Not Made

• 40:19 The War Of Art

• 45:52 Telling Stories

Barry Strauss, Bryce and Edith M. Bowmar Professor in Humanistic Studies at Cornell University, joins the show to talk about Octavian, Antony, and Cleopatra, and the battle of Actium, the clash that “made the Roman Empire”.

Times 

• 02:04 Introduction

• 02:36 Events Leading To Actium

• 07:45 What Breaks The Second Triumvirate

• 13:29 Strategy Is Not Sterile 

• 15:04 Antony’s Will, Octavian’s Weapon

• 20:24 Caesar’s Inheritance 

• 22:42 Audacious Agrippa  

• 25:26 Ancient Marines And War In The Mediterranean 

• 31:18 Breakout Is Victory

• 38:27 Antony In Defeat

• 42:16 End Game

Rich Goldberg, senior advisor at The Foundation for Defense of Democracies and host of both the Cryptonite podcast and Jewish Insider’s Limited Liability podcast, joins the show to talk about economic sanctions and financial warfare.

Times 

• 01:30 Introduction

• 08:19 The Dollar Is Still King

• 10:10 Access Is Everything

• 13:00 Whom Do Sanctions Effect 

• 15:42 Uneasy Lies The Head That Wears A Crown

• 21:50 Warfare By Other Means

• 30:20 Working With Allies

• 38:33 Exquisite Calibration 

• 43:42 Usurping The Power Of The Dollar

• 49:02 Integrated Deterrence 

• 51:01 The Potency Of Sanctions

Guy MacLean Rogers, William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of History and Classical Studies at Wellesley College and author of For the Freedom of Zion: The Great Revolt of Jews Against Romans, 66-74CE, joins the show to talk about the great uprising of the Jewish people against Rome—including moments that resonate to the present day, like the destruction of the Temple at Jerusalem and the siege of Masada. 

Times 

• 02:20 Introduction

• 04:21 The Jewish Revolt In Roman History 

• 08:09 Flavius Josephus 

• 13:41 Herod the Great 

• 22:29 Little Causes, Big Revolt

• 26:40 The Leadership Of Rebellion

• 30:11 Jewish Strategy And Logistics

• 35:03 Vespasian

• 41:04 The Temple 

• 50:01 The End of the Sacrificial Cult

• 52:01 Destruction of the Temple

• 56:00 The End Of The Revolt

• 1:01:02 Josephus’ Speeches

• 1:06:13 Could The Jews Have Won?

Wesley Morgan, journalist and author of The Hardest Place: The American Military Adrift in Afghanistan's Pech Valley, joins the show to discuss his experiences in the Pech valley, one of Afghanistan’s most contested battlegrounds, and to talk about the U.S. counterinsurgency’s successes and failures. 

Times 

• 01:25 Illicit Economies

• 04:13 Green Berets And CIA “Lost The Forest For The Trees” In Kunar

• 06:57 Who Is Jim Gant?

• 11:36 Self-Aware Proxy Warriors

• 13:42 Counterinsurgency Styles and Outpost Building

• 20:44 Central Government - Whether They Want It Or Not

• 33:18 Cash For Calm - Paying For Peace

• 37:22 War Winds Down In The Pech 

• 41:30 The Afghan House Of Cards Collapses

• 44:13 A Tired Afghan Army With No Good Options

Ep 28: Wesley Morgan on Afghanistan

Wesley Morgan, journalist and author of The Hardest Place: The American Military Adrift in Afghanistan's Pech Valley, joins the show to discuss his experiences in the Pech Valley, one of Afghanistan’s most contested battlegrounds, and to talk about the U.S. counterinsurgency’s successes and failures. This episode is part 1 of 2.

Times 

• 02:52 Introduction
• 04:28 From Princeton to The Pech
• 07:25 The Age Dynamic 
• 09:46 Fighting Styles In Helmand Province 
• 12:42 The Episodic Nature Of Fighting In Afghanistan 
• 13:42 The Terrain Of The Pech Valley
• 17:11 Seeking Bin Laden In Kunar 
• 18:43 Kafiristan - Daniel Dravot’s Dream
• 20:27 Special Forces - A Tool For Every Task
• 24:21 The Role Of Seal Team Six and Delta Force
• 29:36 Seeking The Enemy 
• 31:23 Who Was The Enemy In The Pech?
• 33:58 The Timber Mafia

Ep 27: Fred Kagan on Ukraine II

Fred Kagan, Senior Fellow and Director of Critical Threats Project at AEI, joins the show to discuss where the war in Ukraine stands, how initial Russian designs failed, and where the conflict is headed.

Times 

• 02:14 Introduction
• 03:22 Accurate Predictions
• 06:45 The Baffling Russian Attack on Kyiv 
• 08:36 A River Runs Through…The Russian Plan 
• 10:22 Operational Design 101
• 13:22 Back To Basics - Reading Terrain Still Matters
• 16:33 Russian Objectives In The East
• 21:51 Russian Command And Control 
• 26:29 Ukrainian Strikes On Senior Russian Officers
• 28:38 Russian Objectives In The South
• 33:06 Putin Still Seeking Total Victory?
• 36:42 Russian Game-plan For The South Coast
• 39:18 Transnistria
• 42:27 False Flags - Putin’s Comfort Zone
• 44:01 Moldovan Capabilities 
• 47:46 Force Is A Kind Of Failure
• 50:47 Putin’s Options 
• 54:48 Deterrence And Nuclear Taboos

Ukraine Maps 05/02/2022 per ISW

Ep 26: Andrew Lambert on the Crimean War 

Andrew Lambert, Laughton Professor of Naval History in the Department of War Studies, King's College, joins the show to discuss the Crimean War, including why it shouldn’t have been called by that name. Professor Lambert also explains the relevance of the Crimean War to today’s war in Ukraine.

Times 

• 01:28 Introduction

• 02:20 Causes of the Crimean War

• 07:57 Flashpoint in the Holy Land

• 12:31 Steamships and Strategy

• 16:34 Functional Dysfunction in Policymaking

• 21:44 Why Target Sevastopol?

• 26:44 What Went Wrong

• 31:47 The Press and Public Opinion

• 36:31 Reading Events Incorrectly 

• 38:57 The Baltic Campaign

• 45:30 Mahan and Corbett Interpret the War

• 48:39 Ukraine War - An Echo of the Crimean War

• 55:34 Can Russia Re-Integrate Into The Global Community? 

• 58:32 Will Putin Use Tactical Nuclear Weapons? 

Waller Newell, Professor of Political Science and Philosophy at Carleton University, joins the show to discuss tyranny and tyrants—and Vladimir Putin in particular. 

Times

• 02:05 Introduction
• 03:43 Let's talk about Vladimir Putin
• 05:40 What is the Russian "Soul"?
• 07:19 Quote from "The Russian Idea"
• 08:40 Who was Nikolai Berdyaev?
• 09:54 Is Berdyaev an influence on Aleksandr Dugin?
• 11:05 The West has a hard time understanding non-economic motivations. Why?
• 13:06 Who is Aleksandr Dugin?
• 15:21 “Eurasian Nationalist Bolshevism” 
• 16:55 Rehabilitating Stalin
• 18:40 Are we seeing a perpetuation of Tsarist Russia?
• 20:40 What is fascism?
• 22:35 The many types of tyranny
• 25:12 What kind of tyrant is Putin?
• 26:50 Why has millenarian tyranny appeared so relatively recently in history?
• 29:51 The relationship between liberalism and millenarian tyranny
• 31:25 The next ten years in Russia
• 34:00 Did Putin know what he was getting himself into in Ukraine?
• 35:36 The prospect of Russian and Chinese collaboration in the future
• 36:55 Who drives Chinese policy - Xi Jinping or the Chinese Communist Party?
• 38:56 Staying sane while studying tyrants
• 42:10 What should we be reading to better recognize hostile actors for what they are?

Richard Overy, professor of history at the University of Exeter, joins the show to discuss World War II and the wars of imperial aggression.

Times

• 02:23 - Introduction
• 04:24 - Imperialism prior to World War II
• 06:00 - Nations as empires
• 08:32 -Traditional imperialism versus the Axis Powers' concept
• 11:02 - Who is Halford Mackinder?
• 13:14 - The development of Germany's vision of empire
• 14:36 - German war aims in World War I and World War II
• 17:02 - Germany and the East
• 22:16 - The Japanese vision of empire
• 25:01 - How Japan modernization
• 26:33 - Japan's methods of rule
• 27:50 - American and the USSR
• 34:06 - World War II book recommendations

James Holmes, the J.C. Wylie Chair of Maritime Strategy at the Naval War College, joins the show to discuss sea power, the war in Ukraine, and the possibility of war in the Pacific

Times

• 00:58 - Introduction 
• 01:57 - Time spent considering Russia and the NATO alliance’s naval power
• 04:05 - Russian President Vladimir Putin’s grand strategy
• 05:35 - What does Ukraine mean to Putin?
• 06:58 - The Crimean War 
• 10:32 - Closing the Bosporus
• 16:15 - Does the war end well for Putin? 
• 21:28 - Zelensky’s survival 
• 23:12 - Worst-case scenario for Putin 
• 25:43 - What the outcome in Ukraine will mean for Taiwan
• 28:35 - China’s challenge in Taiwan
• 31:02 - How security concerns in the early American Republic influence China’s thinking
• 35:25 - Should the United States shift national security focus to Asia?