Danny and Derek will livestream from Route 3 as they take to the World Cup on foot. This week’s news: in Iran, Trump extends the ceasefire after talks fail (1:02), Iran reimposes its Strait of Hormuz blockade (6:05), the Islamic Republic’s leadership rejects unilateral concessions (9:11), and Persian Gulf mines and oil spills threaten commerce (13:13); the UAE seeks a currency swap after the Iran war’s economic shocks (16:28); Israel violates the Lebanon ceasefire amid extension talks (18:11) while the IDF punishes soldiers over crucifix desecration (21:00); Gaza’s reconstruction costs cause problems, plus governance delays (24:13); the U.S. offers to send Afghan refugees to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (26:33); Japan lifts its lethal arms export ban (28:59); the Sudanese army retakes Moja from the RSF (30:22); the TPLF reasserts control over the Tigray government (32:55); Ukraine reopens the Druzhba pipeline for an EU loan (34:51); CIA deaths expose the United States’ role in Mexico drug raids (37:55); and boat strike survivors allege mistreatment in U.S. custody (40:59).

Be sure to subscribe to our newest miniseries, Marx Prestige.

And check out our series on Christian Zionism with Daniel Hummel.

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Danny and Derek welcome to the show Oren Ziv to talk about Israeli settlement expansion and political changes in the West Bank. They discuss the legal and political structure of Areas A, B, and C; the proliferation of settler outposts; displacement of Palestinian communities; state support for settlers; Bezalel Smotrich’s sovereignty plan; new settlement approvals; the weakening of the Palestinian Authority; and potential future scenarios for the territory.

Read Oren’s article in The Nation, “Erasing the Lines.”

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Danny welcomes back to the show historian ⁠Anton Jäger⁠ to talk about the decline of mass politics and the rise of hyperpolitics across Europe and the United States. They explore the collapse of parties and unions, the neoliberal turn of the 70s and 80s, the 2008 financial crisis and the decade of protest that followed, social media and political expression, the far right’s ascendance and liberalism’s failure, why Trumpism lacks sustainable organization, the Democrats’ inability to build a governing coalition, and whether new political institutions can come out of the current chaos.

Grab your copy of Anton’s book ⁠Hyperpolitics: Extreme Politicization without Political Consequences⁠.

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Danny and Derek are considering attending the Met Gala. In this week’s news: Iran talks amble along despite U.S. forces building up in the region (1:55); the U.S. blockade restricts oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz (9:49); Lebanon and Israel declare a 10-day ceasefire (12:23); Hamas meets U.S. officials in Cairo to advance the talks over Gaza (19:37); Iraq’s parliament elects Nizar Ahmed as president (21:52); Sudan’s war enters its fourth year as Berlin pledges aid (25:21); Libya’s rival governments approve a joint national budget (27:20); Hungary’s opposition defeats Viktor Orbán in parliamentary elections (30:28); Britain suspends the Chagos handover after Trump objects (33:39); Peru’s election continues into a second day and heads to a runoff (36:39); Trump and J.D. Vance feud with Pope Leo over the Iran war (39:39), leading Italian PM Giorgia Meloni to distance herself from Trump (43:49); and the Trump administration prepares military plans for an operation in Cuba (46:17).

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⁠Part One Video ⁠

0:00 Teaser
1:02 Trump’s Middle East chaos continues
6:04 Is Iran more about America’s hegemony or Israel’s?
13:22 Who will win the Hormuz blockade duel?
23:11 Ukraine, China, and the drone wars
27:58 America’s “emergency” emergency
32:11 Is an Iran peace deal possible?
43:34 Overtime preview: The Anthropic Mythos scare

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Danny and Derek welcome to the show writer Paul Heideman to talk about the transformation of the Republican Party from the main party of business interests to a fragmented, personality-driven coalition. They discuss the historical relationship between Republicans and capital, the disorganization of American employers, the political economy of the 1970s crisis, Reagan-era fragmentation, Gingrich and fundraising, globalization and bipartisan neoliberalism in the 1990s, the Koch network and Tea Party, Republicanism after Romney, the conditions that enabled Trump’s rise, and much more.

Read Paul’s book Rogue Elephant: How Republicans Went from the Party of Business to the Party of Chaos.

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Danny and Derek talk about where the ceasefire stands and the U.S. blockade.

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Danny welcomes back to the show historian Daniel Immerwahr to talk about the political and ideological themes of Star Wars, particularly The Phantom Menace. They discuss George Lucas’s Vietnam War influences and anti-imperial framework; myth and generational conflict in the original trilogy; the rise of intellectual property and Silicon Valley ideology; the shift from rebellion to bureaucracy in The Phantom Menace; its depiction of trade, governance, and liberal institutional decay; the racialized and cultural representations in the prequels; the transformation of the Jedi into enforcers; technology and scientism; and how The Phantom Menace reflects the politics of the late 1990s “end of history” moment.

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Danny “Hollywood” Bessner and Derek “Bethesda” Davison are back with the news. This week: Israel bombs Lebanon and kills hundreds (2:09) as Iran halts traffic through the Strait of Hormuz in response (5:43); the U.S. and Iran prepare for peace talks in Pakistan (8:26); Trump threatens to resume the war if talks fail (13:02); the Gaza Board of Peace demands Hamas provide a disarmament response (14:56); Afghanistan and Pakistan pause talks and agree to avoid escalation (17:16); Myanmar’s parliament elects junta leader Min Aung Hlaing as president (20:04); Vietnam’s National Assembly elects Communist Party chief To Lam as president (21:14); KMT leader Chiang Li-wun visits China to pursue closer ties (22:59); Burkina Faso’s junta leader extends military rule (27:06); Hungarian polling projects Viktor Orban to lose power to the opposition (31:51); Chadian forces deploy to Haiti under a UN-backed mission (34:54); Haiti postpones voter registration amid ongoing violence (37:15); Trump pressures NATO to secure the Strait of Hormuz (41:51).

Don’t forget to subscribe to the Marx Prestige miniseries. New episodes out on Tuesdays!

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Danny and Derek talk about the announced Iran ceasefire, getting into the terms and uncertainty around the two-week ceasefire, disputes over the Strait of Hormuz and potential tolling, whether Lebanon is included in the agreement, the feasibility of the negotiating demands, internal U.S. political and military tensions, Iranian claims of victory and possible Chinese involvement, Israeli reactions, and how Gulf states and global actors are responding.

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Read Andrew's book Karl Marx in America.

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Danny and Derek welcome to the show Eldar Mamedov, foreign policy expert and non-resident fellow at the Quincy Institute, to talk about Europe’s response to the war in Iran. They discuss European support and hesitation toward the US-Israel attack, inconsistencies in international law, shifts in European rhetoric as the war continues, fears over economic fallout and energy disruption, Europe’s loss of leverage after the nuclear deal collapsed, dependence on the United States for security, domestic political pressures in Europe, and the prospects for diplomacy with Iran and Russia.

See more of Eldar’s work at the Quincy Institute.

Don't forget to download our new miniseries Marx Prestige.

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Don't forget to check out our new series, ⁠Marx Prestige⁠.

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Danny and Derek welcome back Eleanor Janega to discuss the history and meaning of Easter in Christianity. They talk about the centrality of the resurrection in Christian belief, how Easter was understood in early Christianity and the Middle Ages, the relationship between Easter and Passover, debates over the nature of Jesus and the Trinity, the origins of common Easter myths about pagan festivals, and the origins of modern traditions like eggs and the Easter bunny.

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Derek is monitoring The Situation, so Always at War’s Alex Jordan is back to deliver the news with Danny. This week: Trump extends the Iran war without an exit plan (4:02); the U.S. weighs a commando raid to seize Iranian uranium (10:04); Iran threatens U.S. companies after striking a Kuwaiti tanker (13:17); the Hormuz closure drives shortages and price shocks across the global economy (18:43); Europe sees NATO tensions rise as France blocks U.S. overflights and Trump threatens Ukraine aid (22:20); Israel deepens its occupation of southern Lebanon and kills UN peacekeepers (26:42); in Gaza, the Board of Peace proposes faction disarmament before reconstruction (29:28); Israel passes a race-based death penalty law for Palestinians (32:07); a Russian tanker reaches Cuba with oil despite the U.S. blockade (34:17); the U.S. and China prepare a summit amid wider global tensions (36:39); in Sudan, the RSF seizes Kermuk in Blue Nile state (39:13); South Sudan’s peace process collapses as elections lose credibility (40:14); and the UK cuts aid to Africa to fund higher defense spending (41:55).

Don’t forget to check out our new miniseries, Marx Prestige. New episodes out weekly!

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Danny and Derek speak with Hasan Piker about his recent trip to Cuba and the broader political moment in the United States. They talk about the Democratic Party’s internal crisis and relationship to the media, his role in intra-party debates, left populism and electoral strategy, the Cuba aid flotilla and the effects of U.S. sanctions, the material impact of the blockade on Cuban society, and the prospects for future U.S.-Cuba relations.

Don't forget to check out our new series, ⁠Marx Prestige⁠.

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Subscribe now at the annual tier for free access to series like this one!

In this first episode of Marx Prestige, Danny, Derek, and Andrew Hartman talk about how Karl Marx understood the United States as a testing ground for capitalism and democratic development in the nineteenth century. They delve into the reception history approach to Marx in America, Marx’s early views on American democracy and capitalism, his writings on the Civil War and slavery, the transition in Marx’s thought from philosophy to political economy, Reconstruction and its limits, early American interpretations of Marx, and the emergence of Marxism in the late nineteenth century.

Be sure to check out Andrew's Book ⁠⁠Karl Marx in America⁠⁠.

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Be sure to grab a copy of Sina’s book Iran and the Bomb: The United States, Iran, and the Nuclear Question.

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Danny and Derek speak with writers China Miéville (the forthcoming The Rouse) and Richard Seymour (Disaster Nationalism) about the changing character of the U.S. empire and global politics. They discuss the war with Iran as an expression of imperial decline, the absence of a coherent strategy in U.S. foreign policy, the collapse of ideological justification for war, the shift toward raw power politics, the relationship between the U.S. and Israel in this conflict, the weakening of liberal hegemony, and the broader implications for global capitalism and conflicts.

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Derek speaks with journalist Afeef Nessouli about Israel’s war on Lebanon and the political and social consequences. They talk discuss Israeli airstrikes and the ground invasion in southern Lebanon, mass displacement and humanitarian conditions, destruction of infrastructure and barriers to evacuation, Hezbollah’s role as both military and political organization, public opinion toward Hezbollah, the weakness of the Lebanese government, sectarian tensions and external manipulation, and grassroots relief efforts amid the crisis.

You can support affected Lebanese people at local organizations like Ahla Fawda, Nation Station and Truth Be Told.

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Just a reminder: there was too much Iran news to fit into this episode, so we gave it a standalone special you can find here. Otherwise, this week around the world: in Israel-Palestine, the Gaza Board of Peace negotiates a Hamas disarmament agreement (1:54) while the West Bank sees settler violence surge around Nablus (3:35); Pakistan resumes its war with Afghanistan after the Eid ceasefire expires (7:09); Trump reschedules his China trip for May (8:26); in Sudan’s Blue Nile State, RSF and SPLM-N militants seize Kormuk as Chad boosts its border military presence after Sudan spillover violence (11:19); in Ukraine, Russia launches a massive drone barrage as a new offensive begins (14:14), the United States ties security guarantees for Ukraine to territorial concessions (16:04), and Russia reportedly offers to end support for Iran in exchange for the U.S. ends support for Ukraine (19:00); Denmark’s snap election leaves Mette Frederiksen weakened, but still in contention to govern (21:46); Raul Castro joins Cuba’s talks with the United States (23:55); in Ecuador, a U.S.-backed operation reportedly destroys a dairy farm instead of a drug camp (27:12); the UN General Assembly condemns the transatlantic slave trade, the United States votes no (29:56); Trump pays TotalEnergies to halt East Coast wind projects (31:22).

Be sure to check out our new series premiering Tuesday, Marx Prestige. Listen to the trailer here.

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Danny and Derek give you the latest on the war on Iran. They discuss Trump’s failed peace proposal and shifting threats, mediation attempts involving regional actors, Iran’s strategic position and deterrence problem, US troop deployments and potential military options, Israeli operations in Iran and Lebanon, Trump’s claims about regime change and a mysterious “present,” reports of a possible Diego Garcia attack, sanctions relief on Iranian oil, and global economic effects including disruptions to the helium supply.

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Danny and Derek welcome back to the show historian Udi Greenberg to talk about Israeli public opinion, politics, and its strategy vis-à-vis the war with Iran. They discuss the overwhelming public support for military operations, the underlying strategic consensus across Israeli politics prioritizing military dominance over negotiation, the absence of meaningful debate over a two-state solution or Palestinian sovereignty, the stability of Israeli domestic political divisions despite the war, how media and military messaging shapes public perception, and the relationship between Israeli strategy and continued U.S. support.

Don't forget to mark your calendars for our series Marx Prestige, coming March 31.

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Annual subscribers will get free access, so be on the lookout for an email with instructions!

Be sure to check out Andrew's book ⁠Karl Marx in America⁠.

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Danny and Derek speak with Sam Biddle of The Intercept about the role of AI in modern warfare, including the current Iran conflict. They talk about Palantir’s Maven system, LLMs in target selection, the use of Claude in airstrike planning, the integration of drone, satellite, and intelligence data, the acceleration of targeting and strike decisions, large-scale target lists, risks from outdated or misinterpreted intelligence, the limits of human review in the kill chain, and the absence of meaningful guardrails on this technology.

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Danny and Derek give an update on the conflict in Iran. They talk about the overall state of the war, the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, casualty figures across multiple countries, the prospect of a ground invasion, the state of Iran’s leadership, the strike on South Pars and its effects on Gulf energy infrastructure, Iran’s attacks on Israel, Israeli public support for the war, and polling on American support for the intervention.

Watch our video exclusive with Samuel Moyn about Jürgen Habermas.

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Derek wore his Fitbit to a CIA black site, both exposing the security state and meeting his daily step goal. This week’s news: in the Iran war, Israel assassinates Ali Larijani and other senior Iranian officials (1:15), U.S. allies refuse Trump’s demand that they help reopen the Strait of Hormuz by force (5:41), and the Pentagon seeks roughly $200 billion for the war (8:32) as it considers new deployments to the region (13:27); in southern Lebanon, the IDF begins its ground invasion (14:41); Israel continues killing people in Gaza during the supposed ceasefire while Rafah reopens for medical evacuations after pressure from Hamas (17:31); Afghanistan and Pakistan agree to a five-day Eid ceasefire (21:30) as the two countries dispute the circumstances Pakistani airstrike in Kabul (22:57); Trump postpones his planned trip to China as the Iran war consumes Washington’s attention (25:22); in Sudan, the RSF retakes the strategic town of Bara (27:39); the Trump administration reportedly threatens to cut PEPFAR and other health aid to Zambia unless it gets favorable mineral concessions (29:37); Russia increases its support for Tehran with drone tactics, technology, and possible intelligence sharing (33:45); the United States reopens its embassy in Venezuela as normalization moves ahead (37:11), plus Delcy Rodríguez replaces Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino with intelligence chief Gustavo González López (38:21); and Trump pressures Cuba’s leadership amid a grid collapse and reports of U.S. talks about political change (40:24). 

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Danny and Derek welcome back to the show Annelle Sheline to discuss the impact of the US–Israel war on Iran on the Gulf states. They talk about how the conflict developed and why Gulf governments anticipated Iranian retaliation, the limits of US security guarantees, the risks to energy and desalination infrastructure, the vulnerability of the Gulf’s economic model relying on stability and foreign investment, and the potential postwar regional order if Iran survives weakened but intact.

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Writer and former U.S. Army intelligence officer Harrison Mann joins the show to talk about the U.S–Iran war and what a ground invasion could actually look like. They discuss Harrison’s resignation from the Defense Intelligence Agency over U.S. support for the Gaza genocide, his assessment of the first weeks of the conflict with Iran, internal divisions within the military and intelligence community, and the risks of shifting the rules of engagement and permissive attitudes toward civilian casualties. They then explore potential ground invasion scenarios, including special raids on nuclear facilities, the proposal to seize Kharg Island, the feasibility of occupying territory along the Strait of Hormuz, and the broader trajectory of the conflict.

Read Harrison’s piece “I Was a US Intelligence Analyst. Here's What a Ground Invasion of Iran Could Look Like.”

Sign Win Without War's petition to Congress against spending more taxpayer dollars on the Iran war via an upcoming supplemental funding bill.

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Danny and Derek discuss the latest developments in the war in Iran, including the U.S. bombing military targets on Kharg Island; Iran’s retaliation in the UAE and strategy around the Strait of Hormuz; the status of Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei after reportedly sustaining wounds; Israel’s possible plan to occupy southern Lebanon and reports of interceptor shortages; China’s muted response to the war; and the U.S. deploying Marines to the region.

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Danny and Derek welcome to the podcast political scientist Robert Pape to talk about the theory and history of air power. They discuss how ideas of air superiority shaped modern military doctrine and the belief that air power alone can coerce or topple regimes. They then focus on the war with Iran, including the U.S. strategy falling into the “smart bomb trap,” Iran’s strategy of horizontal escalation, the use of precision drones, the risks surrounding dispersed nuclear material, and the potential economic and geopolitical shocks as the conflict expands.

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Danny and Derek speak with Spencer Ackerman, writer of ⁠Forever Wars⁠ newsletter and author of ⁠Reign of Terror: How the 9/11 Era Destabilized America⁠ about the war in Iran, how it emerges from recent history, its military aspects, and much more.

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We’re putting out, what, an episode a day at this point? But the news roundup must go on. This week: In the Iran war, casualty and displacement figures rise across Iran and Lebanon (1:20), Iran mines and threatens to close the Strait of Hormuz (4:31), Iranian officials threaten to expand the war by targeting financial institutions across the Gulf (7:47), and new supreme leader Mustafa Khomeini delivers his first address (10:27); in Gaza, aid shortages deepen as food supplies run low (16:01); escalating drone warfare hits markets, towns, and civilian targets in Sudan (17:19); in Mali, the U.S. moves to restore counterterrorism cooperation and reconnaissance flights with the ruling junta (22:20); new warnings of conflict emerge in Ethiopia’s Tigray region (24:51); Nepal’s Rastriya Swatantra Party secures a landslide victory in the latest elections (28:26); in Ukraine, the UN accuses Russia of committing a crime against humanity through the forced transfer of Ukrainian children (30:07); far-right politician José Antonio Kast takes office as president of Chile following the end of Gabriel Boric’s term (31:31); in Haiti, human rights groups warn about civilian harm from an expanding drone campaign targeting gangs in Port-au-Prince (34:05); and in these United States, investigations into the Minab elementary school strike raise questions about the use of AI-assisted targeting in U.S. military operations (35:41), plus Donald Trump hosts the first “Shield of the Americas” summit at his Doral resort (39:44).

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Derek welcomes back legal scholar Maryam Jamshidi to discuss the legal aspect of the U.S.–Israel war on Iran. They talk about the administration’s shifting legal justifications, why the administration’s claims about Iranian threats and nuclear weapons fail under international law, the legal limits of self-defense, how the conflict fits within the laws of war, and the broader humanitarian and political consequences of the war for Iranian civilians and the country’s future. 

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Danny and Derek give an update on the war in Iran and the region. They discuss Israeli strikes on fuel depots outside Tehran and the growing civilian toll, the pace of Iranian missile and drone retaliation against Israel, the selection of Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran’s new supreme leader, and the regional expansion of the conflict including ongoing Israeli attacks in Lebanon.

Note: After the time of recording, ⁠CNN confirmed⁠ that Iran is placing mines in the Strait of Hormuz.

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Danny and Derek speak with historian Alfred McCoy about how the Cold War operated as a global conflict influenced by decolonization, covert action, and geopolitical strategy. They discuss the role of individual intelligence operatives as “men on the spot”; Cold War rivalry and the collapse of European empires; how conflicts across Asia, Africa, and Latin America produced much of the war’s violence; the development of U.S. containment strategy and covert action institutions; and Iran as flashpoint in Cold War and post-Cold War geopolitics, and how Alfred interprets these conflicts through a lens of imperial decline and strategic chokepoints like the Suez Canal and the Strait of Hormuz.

Buy Alfred’s book Cold War on Five Continents!

Reading recommendation: The Cold War's Killing Fields: Rethinking the Long Peace by Paul Thomas Chamberlin.

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Danny and Derek welcome back historian Djene Bajalan to talk about the Iran War and whether the U.S. and Israel are attempting to destabilize the Iranian state by opening a Kurdish front. They discuss debates over Israeli strategy being aimed at regime collapse, whether the United States and Israel are pursuing different objectives in the conflict, and the strategy behind attempts to destabilize Iran through peripheral pressure. They also get into reporting about a potential Kurdish front, including the roles of Iraqi Kurdish authorities, Iranian Kurdish militias in Iraqi Kurdistan, and the limits of Kurdish military capacity.

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Derek welcomes back Esfandyar Batmanghelidj, founder and CEO of the Bourse and Bazaar Foundation and professor at Johns Hopkins University, to discuss the economic consequences of the Iran war and its implications for the Gulf and the global economy. They discuss Iran’s strikes on Gulf infrastructure, disruptions to shipping and energy routes through the Strait of Hormuz, risks to logistics hubs like Dubai and Doha, rising oil prices, the vulnerability of global supply chains, and the potential long-term economic impact of the conflict on the Gulf.

Read Esfandyar’s article in Foreign Policy, “The Iran War Is Jeopardizing the Entire Global Economy.”

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Danny and Derek discuss the escalating war with Iran, including the expanding U.S. and Israeli bombing campaign, the reported U.S. strike on an Iranian school, America sinking the Iranian ship IRIS Dena, Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the resulting oil shock, Israel’s attacks in Lebanon, and the Trump administration’s demand for Iran’s unconditional surrender as the conflict shows signs of lasting for months.

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Grab a copy of Danny and Michael Brenes’ edited volume Cold War Liberalism: Power in a Time of Emergency. Use the discount code BESSNER26.

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And subscribe to AP to also get a discounted membership to NonZero for heaven's sake.

Part One Video 

0:00 Teaser

1:50 Marco Rubio's Israel faux pas

05:00 What are Trump’s new goalposts?

11:55 The regime after Khamenei

16:08 Can a regime be changed by air strikes alone?

22:21 Will Turkey be drawn in?

26:50 The logic of Iran's response

33:04 The pathetic European (and Canadian) response

36:30 Heading into Overtime

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Danny and Derek are back with a two-part episode on the war with Iran. First, they speak with ⁠Trita Parsi⁠ of the Quincy Institute about the Trump administration’s decision to go to war, the belief that assassinating Ayatollah Khamenei would cause the regime to implode, the structure and failure of pre-war negotiations, the influence of Israeli officials and hawks, the potential for sending in ground troops, and the impact on Iranian society. They then speak with ⁠Akbar Shahid Ahmed⁠, Senior Diplomatic Correspondent at HuffPost, about the erosion of rules of engagement, the alignment of U.S. and Israeli military strategy, congressional inaction, compliant allies, and whether any realistic off-ramps remain.

Read Akbar’s piece ⁠“Trump Says He Brought 'Justice' To Iran. His War Boosts Fears The U.S. Has Gone Rogue.”⁠

Keep up with Quincy’s work at ⁠Responsible Statecraft⁠ and ⁠Always at War⁠.

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Danny and Derek give an update on the escalating regional conflict. They discuss the reported downing of three American F-15s over Kuwait, Israeli and U.S. operations inside Iran and Tehran’s missile retaliation, Hezbollah’s rocket fire and Israel’s strikes in Lebanon, attacks on Gulf energy infrastructure and the effective shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz, Trump’s shifting timeline and openness to ground troops, and the regional and domestic political fallout of the war so far.

Note: Iran denies that they attacked Saudi oilfields.

Recorded early mid afternoon, March 2, 2026

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Danny and Derek welcome back to the show Séamus Malekafzali to talk about the assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s temporary leadership council and uncertainty around succession, continued U.S.–Israeli escalation and Iranian counterstrikes, the absence of a coherent American endgame beyond capitulation and regime change, and Israel’s use of the war to intensify restrictions and violence in Gaza and the West Bank.

Recorded early Sunday afternoon, March 1, 2026

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Danny and Derek discuss the U.S. and Israeli bombing of Iran today, the goal of regime change, mass civilian casualties including a strike on a girls’ elementary school, Iran’s retaliation and threats to close the Strait of Hormuz, the status of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and the risk of a widening regional war.

Recorded midday, Saturday, February 28, 2026

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Derek speaks with Alexander McKeever, publisher of This Week in Northern Syria, about the defeat of the Syrian Democratic Forces’ (SDF) autonomous project and its integration into the new Syrian state. They discuss the fall of the Assad regime, the March 2025 integration agreement between Damascus and the SDF, the breakdown of negotiations and January fighting in Aleppo, the rapid collapse of SDF control in Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor, tribal defections and grievances against the autonomous administration, and the uncertain future for Kurdish rights under the centralized Syrian government.

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Nikhil Pal Singh joins Danny and Derek to discuss Trump’s second term and the consolidation of executive power. They talk about how Trump’s second term differs from the first; revenge politics and the liberal “lawfare” frame; mass deportation and the war on migrants; “domains of rightlessness” and undocumented people as a lever to expand state power; the imperial presidency and unitary executive theory; how the carceral state and the war on terror laid the groundwork for Trump 2.0; the breakdown of postwar liberal anti-fascist constraints and the collapse of the Nazi taboo; and China and spheres of influence.

Read Nikhil’s essay “Homeland Empire.”

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Derek and Danny are joined by Tariq Kenney-Shawa from Al-Shabaka for an update on conditions in Gaza and a discussion of Jared Kushner’s proposed “reconstruction” plan. They talk about the current phase of the so-called ceasefire; ongoing Israeli military actions; population displacement; humanitarian access; the expansion of Israeli control inside Gaza; Israel’s long-term objectives; population management; Kushner’s vision for Gaza requiring mass displacement, surveillance, and the end of Palestinian political life; and Palestinian-led alternatives for reconstruction.

Read Tariq’s piece for The Nation, “Jared Kushner’s “Plan” for Gaza Is an Abomination.”

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Derek and Danny are joined by historian Alex Thurston to talk about the rise and decline of area studies in the United States. They discuss how regional expertise was once central to the management of American power; why policymakers increasingly ignored that knowledge when it existed; how programs like Fulbright, Title VI, and the Wilson Center fit into a postwar arrangement between the state and the academy; DOGE; the retreat of private foundations; the turn toward technocracy and quantitative approaches; and what the collapse of area studies says about the end of Progressive Era faith in expertise.

Read Alex’s piece for Foreign Exchanges, “The Decline and Fall of Area Studies.”

Statement from SSRC on ending its International Dissertation Research Fellowship program.

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Danny and Derek speak with historian Sean Delehanty about the invention of shareholder value and the transformation of the American corporation in the late twentieth century. They discuss postwar conglomerates and corporate social responsibility, the crisis of Fordism, the rise of financial economics, and the theory of the firm. They also look at hostile takeovers, leveraged buyouts, private equity, the collapse of the public corporation, and the bipartisan consolidation of shareholder primacy in the 1990s.

Buy Sean’s book Company Men: The Invention of Shareholder Value and the Splintering of the American Economy.

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Derek is joined by Washington Post columnist Ishaan Tharoor for a roundup of the 2026 World Economic Forum in Davos. They discuss Trump’s return to the forum, the Greenland annexation threat and its fallout inside NATO, Mark Carney’s speech declaring the end of the rules-based order, the unveiling of Trump’s “Board of Peace,” Jared Kushner’s Gaza reconstruction presentation, and what Davos revealed about elite attitudes toward the war in Gaza, European rearmament, and more

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⁠Part One Video⁠

(0:00) A recap of January’s Trump turbulence

(4:52) Is Trump a cause or symptom of world disorder?

(13:09) Is Trump increasingly unstable?

(15:41) Will we invade Cuba?

(19:43) American politics after Trump

(25:54) The crumbling bedrock of International Law

(35:30) Where are the Democrats?

(38:19) Heading into Overtime: Renee Good, Syria, Worthwhile Canadian Prime Minister

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Danny and Derek speak with political scientist Thea Riofrancos about extraction, climate politics, and the limits of the green energy transition. They discuss why the advent of renewable energy does not mean a decline in fossil fuel use; how capitalism can generate new green industries while being unable to destroy fossil fuel infrastructure; mining, financialization, and intentional value destruction; political risks posed by dismantling fossil capital; and consumption, organizing under conditions of deindustrialization, and the challenges of building climate politics in the current political climate.

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Danny and Derek are joined by Jay Caspian Kang of Time to Say Goodbye and Sam Biddle of The Intercept to discuss prediction markets, online gambling, and the effort to financialize politics, war, and social life. They talk about the history of prediction markets leading to their current role in betting on elections, coups, invasions, and humanitarian catastrophes; insider trading as a design feature rather than a bug; the erosion of legal and moral guardrails; the growing integration of gambling platforms into journalism and media ecosystems; prediction markets in the context of financialization and declining democratic legitimacy; and the normalization of openly ghoulish profit-seeking, with violence becoming a tradable asset.

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Danny and Derek speak with historian Stuart Schrader about the global history of American policing and how US police power has been shaped by struggles both at home and abroad. They discuss police opposition to oversight in the 1960s, the development of the Border Patrol and ICE, Joe Biden’s “tough on crime” record, Trump’s plan to outsource detention, the ways counterterrorism blurred into immigration enforcement, and the resistance on display in Los Angeles this summer.

Read Stuart’s book Badges without Borders: How Global Counterinsurgency Transformed American Policing.

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Danny and Derek welcome Gabriel Hetland back to the show, this time to talk about the U.S. military operation capturing Nicolás Maduro and what it says about American power in Latin America. They discuss how years of sanctions and economic warfare set the stage for direct intervention, the unresolved contradictions of the so-called Pink Tide, the role of oil and regional politics in America’s policy, the implications for the broader hemisphere, and what it means when the United States abandons even the pretense of restraint.

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Danny and Derek are joined by Alex Jordan of the Quincy Institute and Always at War to discuss the U.S. seizure of President Nicolás Maduro. They discuss what we know so far about the operation, how it differs from past U.S. interventions in the region, the risks of political fragmentation inside Venezuela, the potential of prolonged U.S. involvement, and the implications about the future of American power in the Western Hemisphere.

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Danny and Derek are joined by historian Aileen Teague to discuss the renewed U.S. focus on Latin America as part of the War on Drugs. They talk about recent U.S. actions in the Caribbean and Venezuela; the return of “narco-terror” rhetoric; political forces driving Washington’s approach to the region; where these developments fit within the longer history of U.S. intervention, sanctions, and militarized security; and what this all means for regional stability, migration, and U.S.–Latin America relations.

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Grab a copy of Eleanor’s book The Once and Future Sex: Going Medieval on Women's Roles in Society.

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Use discount code XMAS2025 to get an annual subscription for $45!

Danny welcomes writer Justin Boyd and writer/producer VJ Boyd to the show to talk about The Muppet Christmas Carol. They discuss Charles Dickens as a transitional figure in 19th-century literature, Victorian ghost stories and Christmas, Jim Henson’s pre-Disney career and the regional TV ecosystem that produced the Muppets, the film’s melancholy as a post-Henson/post–Richard Hunt work, Michael Caine’s performance and Jonathan Rosenbaum’s critique, anti-capitalist themes vs liberal moral reform, chronos versus kairos in Scrooge’s transformation, and why this adaptation endures.

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Get an annual subscription for $45 with our holiday discount code XMAS2025.

Danny and Derek are joined once again by Vincent Bevins, this time to talk about the recent wave of so-called “Gen Z protests.” They explore why that framing explains almost nothing; how contemporary mass protests actually form, why they tend to resemble each other, and why their political outcomes rarely meet their original demands; and the crisis of representation, the collapse of ideology, “explosive mobilization,” and why the military generally decides what comes next. The conversation also touches on whether there is still such a thing as a revolutionary subject and what happens when politics become anti-corruption rhetoric and “vibes.”

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Derek is joined by Annelle Sheline of the Quincy Institute to discuss the Southern Transitional Council’s recent territorial advances in Yemen, what they mean for the country’s already-fractured political order, and why the “internationally recognized government” remains mostly theoretical. They also delve into the history of southern secessionism, the dysfunction of the Presidential Leadership Council, and how Emirati-backed forces have consolidated control over much of former South Yemen.

Follow Annelle on Twitter.

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Chag Sameach! Danny and Derek are joined by independent scholar Joseph Scales to talk about the history of Hanukkah. They discuss the rivalry between the Seleucid and Ptolemaic empires that preceded the conflict; the Maccabean/Hasmonean revolt and the family's ascension to power within Judea; the Judean expansion; and much more.

Originally published November 27, 2021

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Danny and Derek are joined once again by historian Rashid Khalidi to discuss Gaza two months after the announcement of a ceasefire. They begin with Dr. Khalidi's class on Palestine at the People’s Forum after his decision to leave Columbia University, and what that experience says about the state of American higher education. They then turn to Gaza, exploring why Israel continues its assault, how it continues to slow the flow of aid and reconstruction materials, and what life looks like for Palestinians facing winter without adequate shelter, medical care, or infrastructure. They also talk about U.S. and regional diplomacy around a proposed second phase of the ceasefire, including plans for international mandates or technocratic governance, and the political consequences for Gaza and the West Bank.

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The greatest recurring crossover in the biz, between AP and ⁠NonZero Newsletter⁠, returns. Get your discounted membership to NonZero now!

Part One Video

0:00 The incoherence of Trump's foreign policy
7:16 The paucity of debate around Chinese chip restrictions
19:13 Danny: Is this the stupidest foreign policy establishment ever?
25:27 Should AGI worry us?  
34:40 Bob’s Overtime bait

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Danny and Derek welcome back to the show media scholar Andrew deWaard to discuss Netflix’s reported acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery and what it says about the economic forces driving contemporary media. They talk about how conglomeration and financialization have reshaped Hollywood; zero interest rates, asset inflation, and Wall Street driving mergers; how intellectual property, streaming platforms, and algorithmic “background TV” are transforming both culture and labor; the decline of cable and mass entertainment to Netflix’s rent-based (and subsequent subscription) business model; the influence of Spotify, YouTube, and Amazon on media strategy; and the global implications of growing U.S. cultural monopolies.

Read Andrew’s book Derivative Media (for free!).

Check out Danny’s piece “The Life and Death of Hollywood.”

Also take a look at this n+1 article on Netflix and how it’s transformed modern film and TV consumption, “Casual Viewing.”

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Danny and Derek welcome back Brendan James and Noah Kulwin, of the Blowback podcast, for a tour through their latest season, which takes the show to Angola. They discuss how Angola became one of the largest and least-remembered battlefields of the Cold War, Reagan’s return to proxy wars, Cuba’s decision to send troops without Soviet approval, South Africa’s “total onslaught” ideology, the Reagan era’s fanaticism, its echoes in today’s politics, and what happens when the U.S. exports its wars (and mythology) across continents.

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Danny and Derek speak to Ilias Alami, assistant professor of political economy at Cambridge, about the global shift from neoliberalism to new forms of state capitalism. They discuss the rebalancing of economic power toward East Asia; sovereign wealth funds, policy banks, and state-owned enterprises; and the role of states in industrial strategy, technology, and supply chains. They also touch on China, AI, and the overlap between economic rivalry and geopolitical confrontation.

Check out the book Ilias co-authored, The Spectre of State Capitalism.

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This conversation examines China’s early post-Korean War period and the political and social campaigns that defined the new PRC. The group discusses land reform, the Three-anti and Five-anti campaigns, Soviet-style economic planning centered on heavy industry, and the technocratic overhaul of higher education. They also explore China’s deteriorating relationship with the United States, shifting ties with the Soviet Union after Stalin’s death, early signs of the Sino-Soviet split, and Mao’s tightening control.

Theme music by Jake Aron, based on the song “The East is Red.”

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If you like what you hear, why not support Alex and ⁠join Hyperfixed⁠? 

Otherwise, have a great holiday, and keep your eyes peeled for the second episode of ⁠Chinese Prestige⁠ on the AP feed tomorrow!

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