Shield of the Republic

Eric and Eliot begin with reflections on recent domestic political developments and the "horseshoe theory" uniting political extremes around isolationism and anti-Israeli sentiment. They then discuss the ongoing negotiations over the Strait of Hormuz and the difficulties the Iranian government and Trump administration have created for themselves. From there they move to the ...

Eric begins with major show news before pivoting to the jackassery of the week with Eliot. They then analyze Trump's interactions with Bibi Netanyahu and Vladimir Zelensky at Lindsey Graham's funeral and discuss the ways in which the Iranian and Ukrainian wars are increasingly intertwined. The two discuss Iran's ongoing unwillingness to "take yes for an answer" as evidenced ...

Eliot returns from his trip to western Canada to review the latest jackassery with Eric. The two discuss recent developments surrounding a potential U.S.-Saudi nuclear cooperation agreement and contextualize it against the history of U.S. non-proliferation and counter-proliferation efforts. They also reflect on their personal experiences with the late Senator Lindsey Graham ...

Eric welcomes back friend of the show Professor Hal Brands, the Henry A. Kissinger Distinguished Professor of Global Studies at Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies. The two discuss Hal's recent work, beginning with his column in Bloomberg dissecting the key strategic errors that Trump has made in the ongoing war with Iran. Hal then breaks down...

Eric and Eliot catch up for the first time in a month after returning from overseas. They break down the latest jackassery, from Graham Platner's campaign implosion to Recep Tayyip Erdoğan gifting revolvers and live, gold-plated ammunition to the heads of state at the recent NATO summit. They assess the NATO summit more broadly and note the caveats to Trump's promise to prov...