Empire Has No Clothes

On the latest pod, Will and Curt are joined by Luke Nicastro, fellow at the John Quincy Adams Society. On the docket: Afghanistan a year after U.S. exit, and following the Ayman Zawahiri slaying; Iran deal redux; and will the war in Eurasia be continuous?

In this episode, Curt Mills and Will Ruger are joined by Saurabh Sharma, president of American Moment and Charles McElwee, editor of RealClearPennsylvania, to discuss the foreign policies debates that went on last month in the campaigns in the Buckeye and Keystone states. The group also addresses the ongoing foreign policy fissures within the GOP as the party licks its chops for a red wave in November, while regrouping for 2024.

Curt is joined by Luke Nicastro, TAC contributing writer and fellow at Defense Priorities, to discuss the French election: what happened to Eric Zemmour, how Emmanuel Macron has been an unlikely nationalist, and how he might go down in defeat to Marine Le Pen anyways.

Curt and Will dive in on President Biden's first State of the Union address, the fast moving narrative on Russia and Ukraine, and the worrisome prospects from here.

Curt and Will rehash "the top 10 foreign policy moments of 2021" and revisit TAC's December foreign policy conference (link below). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GT_nX35hH48

A year after Biden's election, the new president is plainly floundering, with crises at home and abroad. Curt and Will dive into where elite Republican foreign policy discourse could go from here, with a dive into: the Charles Koch Institute's recent 'Advancing Security Summit' with longtime national security bigwig (most recently Afghan envoy) Zalmay Khalilzhad, further discussion on National Conservatism, China and a provocative new report about former President Trump's wars with the CIA over Iran. Relevant links: https://charleskochinstitute.org/news/in-conversation-ruger-and-khalilzad-discuss-americas-future-interests-in-afghanistan/ https://news.yahoo.com/frustrated-with-cia-trump-administration-turned-to-pentagon-for-shadow-war-with-iran-205152958.html

On this episode, Curt and Will discuss: the new dust-up in Ukraine, the rise of France and the European future after Merkel, a nasty but unintentionally hilarious piece on former Trump personnel man John McEntee and the nationalist vs. libertarian divide on the National Conservatism Conference.

Co-hosts Curt Mills and William Ruger discuss Colin Powell's death, envoy to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad's exodus from government and the modern history of Republican foreign policy factions in government.

Curt Mills, contributing editor, and William Ruger, TAC board member, reboot EHNC and revisit the decision to leave Afghanistan after the deluge. Mills and Ruger explore the timeline on the decision, its tradeoffs, and Ruger’s own nomination to be ambassador to Afghanistan under former President Donald Trump.

This week on Empire Has No Clothes, Kelley, Dan, and Matt discussed Joe Biden's decision to bomb Syria and what it means for his foreign policy going forward. We also talked with David Sterman of New America about what it means to have an endless war and how to stop them.

This week on Empire Has No Clothes, Kelley, Dan, and I discussed neoconservative Robert Kagan's new essay embracing endless war. We also talked with John Ghazvinian of the Middle East Center about the future of American policy in Iran.

This week on Empire Has No Clothes, Kelley, Dan, and I discussed the war in Afghanistan and why it's lost. We also talked with journalist James Carden about the state of the antiwar left and whether Joe Biden might do some good on foreign policy.

This week on Empire Has No Clothes, Kelley, Dan, and I discussed Joe Biden's announcement that he would withdraw all American support for the war in Yemen. We also talked with Michael Brenes at Yale's Jackson Institute for Global Affairs about how the military-industrial complex came to be.

This week on Empire Has No Clothes, Kelley, Matt, and I discussed the situation in Myanmar and how far the so-called "responsibility to protect" might extend. We also talked with John Allen Gay of the John Quincy Adams Society about why young people are embracing foreign policy restraint.

This week on Empire Has No Clothes, Kelley, Dan, and I discussed the war in Yemen and whether Joe Biden will make good on his pledge to end it. We also talked with Lindsey O'Rourke at Boston College about why covert regime change fails and why we cling to it nonetheless.

This week on Empire Has No Clothes, Kelley, Dan, and I discussed the president's final moves on foreign policy and how Mike Pompeo is maneuvering to be his heir. We also talked with John Glaser at the Cato Institute about Donald Trump's legacy and whether he's done more harm than good.

This week on Empire Has No Clothes, Kelley, Dan, and I discussed the insurrection at the Capitol building and how we can avoid making the mistakes we made after 9/11. We also talked with Jonathan Bydlak of the R Street Institute about the Pentagon budget and why the taxpayer seems to get so little for so much.

This week on Empire Has No Clothes, we talked with Barbara Slavin of the Atlantic Council about Iran and whether Joe Biden can ease our tensions with Tehran. Kelley, Dan, and I also discussed the latest defense authorization bill and all the terrible provisions therein.

On the latest Empire Has No Clothes, Matt, Kelley, and Dan speak with William Astore, retired lieutenant colonel (USAF), who teaches history at the Pennsylvania College of Technology. We discuss the Lloyd Austin appointment as Joe Biden's defense secretary, America’s endless wars, the missing antiwar movement, and the need for greater public engagement with foreign policy.

On this edition of Empire Has No Clothes, Matt, Kelley, and Daniel speak to Rachel Esplin Odell of the Quincy Institute. She discusses China, what a Biden administration policy will look like, and the real nature of the threat from Beijing. We also talk about the assassination of an Iranian nuclear scientist and Israel's likely involvement.