Deep State Radio

Have we ever seen an Attorney General so contemptuous of the law? A Department of Justice so dedicated to promulgating injustice? A judiciary so full of political hacks and incompetents? The U.S. justice system is broken and few weeks have illustrated that quite so well as the one just passed--from the effort to oust the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York to a court ruling supporting the politically-motivated DoJ efforts to drop charges against Michael Flynn, from hearings revealing political bias and pressure with Main Justice to further revelations about Bill Barr's heavy hand in directing the police against peaceful protestors in Lafayette Park, it has been a profoundly disturbing week. We discuss it and what the summer may hold with three exceptional experts, former US Attorney Barb McQuade, former US Attorney Harry Litman and NYU Law Professor and co-editor of "Just Security" Ryan Goodman. Join us for an eye-opening discussion. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio.

We face an extraordinary challenge--a massive economic crisis and a great public health crisis, each feeding into one another. Our government's response thus far has exacerbated both. To recover is going to require big ideas and bold execution from the next president of the United States. Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz offers some of those ideas and thoughts on how a Biden Administration could make them a reality in the latest edition of our Agenda 2021 series. It is essential listening on issues from how to create millions of jobs to how to save our cities and states from an even greater crisis, from how to foster a green recovery to what lessons the G.I. Bill may offer for those thinking about the issue of reparations. Join us! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

To commemorate the beginning of summer, we take a look at the issues likely to dominate the headlines between now and Labor Day, from COVID to unrest in the streets, the economic crisis to potential cyberattacks, from foreign policy threats to the navel gazing of the narcissist-in-chief. We talk to Natasha Bertrand, national security correspondent for Politico, Chris Lu, former Cabinet Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Labor for President Obama and David Sanger of the New York Times to try to understand why the weeks just ahead are likely to be unsettling and for many Americans, a deepening crisis. You won't want to miss this insight-rich conversation. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Everywhere you go, you get the sense that people are "over" COVID...except the hospitals that are filling up across the country. In fact, the anti-science populism of some political leaders and the short-attention span of some in the media are combining to make the next six months of the COVID crisis look potentially more deadly and more challenging than the last six months. How bad can it get? What's to be done? We discussed with three of the country's leading experts: former Baltimore Public Health Commissioner, professor and practicing physician, Dr. Leana Wen, former Obama White House health advisor and practicing physician, Dr. Kavita Patel and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, Laurie Garrett. You won't want to miss this. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

John Bolton's book has Washington in a tizzy. Whether the rest of the country cares that much, whether anyone will see it as revelatory, whether it has any impact on the election and whether Bolton will ever see a penny of profit from it are all open questions. We discuss the book's aftershocks with David Sanger of the New York Times, Greg Sargent of the Washington Post and Ryan Goodman of "Just Security" and NYU Law School. It's a special episode. Don't miss it. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In honor of three years of doing "Deep State Radio", the original gang of Rosa Brooks of Georgetown Law Center, Kori Schake of AEI and David Sanger of the New York Times join host David Rothkopf for a discussion of the biggest stories that have taken place during the past three years that have not involved the president of the US. That's right--an entirely He Who Shall Not Be Named-free episode! Is the big story the end of China's ascendancy? The decline of the EU? The pandemic? Russia's return on its investments in destabilizing the West? Or...turning our focus back to the US...is it that the country is stronger than even the enemies within our borders, than even those who are in power right now? Are the protests a sign that America is healing, that we will triumph over He Who We Really and Truly Did Not Name Even Once During an Entire Episode? Tune in to find out. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Donald Trump says he's never even heard of Brett McGurk, but that's what he says whenever he feels jilted. On today's episode of Deep State Radio, Rosa Brooks stands in for David Rothkopf as host, and DSR regulars Ryan Goodman and David Sanger are joined by Brett McGurk, who hurt Trump's feelings very badly when he resigned as Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL in late 2018. Rosa, Brett, David and Ryan talk about whether the last week has been a "break glass in emergency" moment for the nation's senior military leaders, whether everyone left in the Trump administration should resign en masse, and whether the US need an ROTC-type program for future diplomats. David admits to having a pet cow, Rosa defends the ugly chair in her Zoom background and admires Sebastian Gorka's leather vest, and Kori Schake's laugh is sorely missed. Don’t miss it! Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We are in a deep economic crisis today, the worst unemployment crisis since the Great Depression. While some recovery from the worst of the crisis is possible prior to the election, whomever takes office in 2021 will have major challenges before him. In this, the latest in our Agenda 2021 series of podcasts, we discuss how to tackle those challenges with the man who served as Chairman of Barack Obama's Council of Economic Advisors, Harvard professor Jason Furman. Ed Luce of the Financial Times and host, David Rothkopf, pose questions concerning how we create the jobs we need, combat inequality, reimagine trade policy and more and Furman answers with the kind of clarity and specificity that is both rare and welcome at a moment like this one. Don't miss it. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

According to economist Ricardo Hausmann of Harvard's Kennedy School, the economic crisis triggered by the COVID pandemic is going to be very different from any we have faced in memory. It will be different in scope, in severity, in what it may demand of afflicted governments, and in what it will demand of the global financial system. It is a massive problem and observes Hausmann, one of the world's foremost development economists, we are ill-prepared to deal with it. We discuss the challenges with him and Edward Luce of the Financial Times, Kori Schake of the American Enterprise Institute and Rosa Brooks of Georgetown University Law Center. Don't miss this thought-provoking conversation. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

If Parson Weems, who wrote of little George Washington's inability to tell a lie, were to write the story of Donald Trump and the cherry tree, you can bet that the president-to-be would be portrayed as saying "I would never lie, Father, I'm the hugest truth teller there is. And nobody has done more for cherry trees than me." Lying is what Trump does. It is who he is. And this week we have seen how those lies could be twisted into a threat against democracy itself. We discuss the lies and this disturbing, potential turning point of a week with Kori Schake of the American Enterprise Institute, Ryan Goodman of "Just Security" and NYU Law School and with special guest Glenn Kessler, of the Washington Post, co-author of an important new book "Donald Trump and His Assault on Truth: The President's Falsehoods, Misleading Claims and Flat-Out Lies." Don't miss it. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

There is no question that the Trump Administration has been a dramatic departure from past US Administrations on issues like democracy promotion, human rights and protecting press freedoms. Autocrats have been embraced. Press freedoms and free speech have been under siege here in the U.S. What would change if Joe Biden took office next January? In the second of our Agenda 2021 series, Amb. Derek Mitchell, President of the National Democratic Institute, Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America and author of the forthcoming Dare to Speak: Defending Free Speech for All (HarperCollins, July 2020) and Kenneth Roth, Executive Director of Human Rights Watch discuss global trends, and policy shifts they expect and that they would like to see. Don't miss this important discussion. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

As if a public health catastrophe and an economic disaster were not enough, America is now rocked by the worst civil unrest in 50 years. And, to make matters worse, the president is...making matters worse. Wherever he can he is pouring gasoline onto the flames. Having declared the riots the result of the work of far-left "terrorists" Trump is seeking to militarize the racial, political and regional conflicts he has been fomenting since the first day of his campaign. Where does this lead? How do each of these crises intersect with one another? We discuss with Juliette Kayyem of the Harvard Kennedy School, Jeremy Konyndyk of the Center for Global Development, Rosa Brooks of Georgetown Law Center and Ed Luce of the Financial Times. Worried about a long hot summer? This conversation will give you the chills. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

America is re-opening. Whether we should be or not is beside the point. It is happening. So the question becomes how do we manage that re-opening and what risks may be emerging that we are ill-prepared for? Some are public health risks? Some have to do with adapting to a new way of life. In addition, just as we face the greatest public health crisis in a century, we witness the scene of a police officer crushing a man's throat and killing him which forces us to address yet another dimension of all this--how can we trust our government to keep us safe? We discuss with Dr. Leana Wen, a practicing physician and former Health Commissioner of Baltimore, Dr. Kavita Patel, also a physician and former WH official during the Obama Administration and our regular co-host Ryan Goodman of NYU Law School and "Just Security." It is a sobering, incisive discussion. Don't miss it. Here is the link to the website referenced by Dr. Kavita Patel: https://nextstrain.org/ncov/global Here is the link to Dr. Leana Wen's Opinion Piec

It is possible that in January 2021, America may welcome a president with more foreign policy experience than anyone who has assumed the office in more than three decades. That will be vitally important given the damage that Trump has done to our institutions, relationships and interests at home and abroad. In the first of our "Agenda 2021" series of podcasts exploring the priorities a new president ought to pursue, we speak with two distinguished American foreign policy leaders, both who have held the job of Deputy Secretary of State, Ambassador Bill Burns, president of the Carnegie Endowment and the top foreign policy advisor to the Biden campaign Tony Blinken. If you care about the future of America's role in the world, you won't want to miss this. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

COVID has taken such a ghastly human and economic toll that people can speak of or think of little else. That's dangerous. Because opportunists and worse are seeking to take advantage of the fog of this moment to advance dangerous or unsavory agendas. From China moving against democracy in Hong Kong to Russia upping the ante in Libya, from Netanyahu planning illegal annexations of Palestinian territory to the US pulling out of important international treaties, serious risks are rising. Further Trump himself might use the crisis as an excuse to reschedule or suspend elections in the U.S. Far-fetched? We shouldn't count on it. Rosa Brooks of Georgetown Law, Ed Luce of the Financial Times, David Sanger of the New York Times and Joe Cirincione of the Ploughshares Fund join for this unsettling episode. Don't miss it. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We have a new Director of National intelligence who doesn't meet the minimum statutory requirements for holding the job. We have an administration that has become a disinformation engine. People are fired for telling or seeking the truth. We are actively dismantling the international system that we helped build and giving autocrats their way worldwide. Sometimes it all feels like more reality TV politics, but it is something much more serious and dangerous. Join Ryan Goodman of Just Security and host David Rothkopf as they discuss in a special conversation with Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Don't miss it. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Donald Trump likes to talk a lot about being a wartime president. But wartime presidents lead by example and inspire the country to set aside politics to focus on a common goal. This week, Trump is headed to Michigan to view how the state went from being the arsenal of democracy in the 40s to the "arsenal of health" today. According to Rep. Debbie Dingell who represents Michigan's 12th Congressional District, factory workers will be watching closely as they know the right example and practices are key to opening factories and restoring their livelihoods. Dingell joins us for a special conversation about the crisis, the solution she thinks is required (infrastructure plays a big role), and how Trump is likely to fare in that key battleground state later this year. She's felt the brunt of this national disaster in very personal ways and her passion about the urgency of recovery is palpable throughout our conversation. Do not miss it. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/pr

In many ways, one of the unexpected side-effects of the COVID pandemic has been a rapid acceleration of the application of new technologies and the adaptation to technology driven new realities. From the ubiquity of Zoom to tele-medicine, from a focus on biotech to living our lives and conducting our work remotely, we've been given a taste of the world to come. On the heels of these changes are coming transformational technologies associated with artificial intelligence, robotics and more. What demands might those make of our leaders in the future--from polices forces to the highest level policymakers? Peter W. Singer and August Cole describe that world in a riveting new novel that is based entirely on what's really going on in emerging technologies, "Burn-In: A Novel of the Real Robotic Revolution." Peter Singer joins Rosa Brooks of Georgetown Law and Kori Schake of the American Enterprise Institute for a discussion about the book and about how it ties into both this moment in our history and our immediate f

Almost 40 million Americans have lost their jobs in the past 8 weeks. That is a quarter of the workforce. We have never faced a crisis like this one. How we choose to rebuild will be the decision that will define us all in history's eyes. Gene Sperling was the top White House economic advisor for both President Bill Clinton and President Barack Obama. He has written a book that addresses the core question that must precede the rebuilding: What is our goal? How will we measure success? His answer is that we must place human dignity at the center of our policy decisions. His book is called "On Economic Dignity" and he discusses it with Ed Luce of the Financial Times and host David Rothkopf. It is discussion that gets to the very core of who we are as a country and who we aspire to be. Don't miss it. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In boxing, repeated body blows are seen as a way to bring down an adversary. We will soon see whether the repeated body blows the US economy and society have endured during this crisis will have the same effect on the Administration that is seen as having at the very least left the country undefended against them and that very likely exacerbated the impact of those blows. We discuss the state of the current crisis and its knock on effects with former US Deputy Labor Secretary Chris Lu, Rosa Brooks of Georgetown Law, Kori Schake of AEI and Ed Luce of the FT. Join us. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/deepstateradio. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.