Power Problems – Details, episodes & analysis

Daniel DePetris and Jennifer Kavanagh of Defense Priorities discuss the latest iteration of the Axis of Evil threat, this time in reference to China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran, and argue their relationship is misconstrued and overhyped. They discuss threat inflation, the relationship dynamics among these four powers, including China and Russia’s relationship and how US posture has pushed them together, the state of the Russia-Ukraine war, China’s role in the Middle East, the problem of prioritizing threats and interests under primacy, and how to constructively think about core US national interests, among other issues.

Show Notes

• Daniel DePetris and Jennifer Kavanagh, “The ‘Axis of Evil’ is Overhyped,” Foreign Policy, August 14, 2024.

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The Stimson Center’s Senior Fellow Dan Grazier and Research Associate Julia Gledhill analyze U.S. defense spending and explain how the Pentagon is creating “a budgetary time bomb set to explode in the next twenty years.” They discuss several examples of failed over-budget weapons acquisition programs and warn that future such fiascos are now in the making, with unsustainable budgetary implications, unless crucial reforms to U.S. defense and foreign policy are made. 

Show Notes

Dan Grazier, Julia Gledhill, Geoff Wilson, “Current Defense Plans Require Unsustainable Future Spending”, Stimson Center Issue Brief, July 16, 2024.

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James Bosworth, founder of Hxagon and columnist at World Politics Review, discusses the various "push factors" throughout Latin America and the Caribbean driving the recent upsurge in migration to the US-Mexico border. He covers US-Mexico relations as well as gang violence, poor governance problems, and other instability in Haiti, Venezuela, Cuba, Ecuador, and beyond. Bosworth also discusses the transnational network dynamics of criminal organizations throughout the region, including their involvement in human trafficking, and argues that only an internationally coordinated approach within the hemisphere can mitigate such problems. Finally, he explains why the US's drug war approach to the region is misguided and provides recommendations for how DC can better approach this hemisphere's problems.

Show Notes

• James Bosworth at World Politics Review

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How will President-elect Biden change US foreign policy? John Glaser talks to Emma Ashford of the Atlantic Council about the transition from Trump to Biden, and from host Emma to host John. 

1. Emma Ashford Bio https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/expert/emma-ashford/
2. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/new-atlanticist/joe-biden-just-won-the-presidency-what-does-that-mean-for-americas-role-in-the-world/ 

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Power transitions are a hot topic in international relations! David Kang and Xinru Ma join Emma Ashford to discuss why we should look outside Europe for insight.

1. David Kang Bio: https://dornsife.usc.edu/cf/faculty-and-staff/faculty.cfm?pid=1024445  
2. Xinru Ma Bio: https://cisac.fsi.stanford.edu/people/xinru-ma#:~:text=She%20uses%20game%20theoretical%20models,processing%20methods%20to%20large%2Dscale  
3. David Kang and Xinru Ma, “Power Transitions: Thucydides Didn’t Live in East Asia,” Washington Quarterly.  

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Is American influence declining? Emma Ashford talks to Ali Wyne and Gabby Tarini of the Rand Corporation about their new report on America in the world.   

1. Ali Wyne Bio: https://www.ducoexperts.com/users/ali-wyne  
2. Gabrielle Tarini Bio: https://www.rand.org/about/people/t/tarini_gabrielle.html  
3. James Dobbins, Gabrielle Tarini, and Ali Wyne, “The Lost Generation in American Foreign Policy,” RAND Corporation.  

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Emma Ashford talks with MIT’s Taylor Fravel about ongoing China-India tensions and what China wants from the world.

1.     Taylor Fravel bio: https://polisci.mit.edu/people/m-taylor-fravel

2.     Taylor Fravel, “Why are India and China Skirmishing at their Border?” Washington Post.

3.     Taylor Fravel, “China’s Sovereignty Obsession,” Foreign Affairs. 

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Paul Staniland of the University of Chicago joins Emma Ashford to discuss current events in India, Pakistan, and South Asia. 

Show Notes 

1. Paul Staniland bio: https://paulstaniland.com/
2. Paul Staniland, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, “Political Violence in South Asia: The Triumph of the State?”

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Donald Trump has taken America’s relationship with Europe from bad to worse. Emma Ashford chats with Rachel Rizzo of the Truman Project about the prospects for transatlantic relations.

1. Rachel Rizzo Bio. 

2. Tom McTague, "Remember the 90s, Don't Long for a Return," The Atlantic. 

3. Emma Ashford, "Biden Wants to Go Back to a Normal Foreign Policy. That's the Problem," The New York Times. 

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In a special crossover episode, Emma sits down with the hosts of the Pop & Locke podcast and members of the Cato Foreign Policy team to explore how pop culture interacts with nuclear weapons, and why we should stop worrying and learn to love the bomb. 

• Pop and Locke Podcast: https://www.libertarianism.org/podcasts/pop-and-locke
• Eric Schlosser, The New Yorker, “Almost Everything in Dr. Strangelove was True.” 
• Eric Gomez and Caroline Dorminey, “America’s Nuclear Crossroads” 

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