Defense & Aerospace Report Podcast [Washington Roundtable Jan 17, ’25]

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Washington Roundtable, Dr. Patrick Cronin of the Hudson Institute think tank, Michael Herson of American Defense International, former Pentagon Europe chief Jim Townsend of the Center for a New American Security, and former Pentagon comptroller Dr. Dov Zakheim of the Center for Strategic and International Studies join Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss Senate confirmation of President-elect Trump’s cabinet appointments including Pete Hegseth as defense secretary, Marco Rubio as Secretary of State and Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence as Congress weighs appropriations, a reconciliation package and a debt ceiling increase; covering California wildfire costs; Israel and Hamas agree to a ceasefire that will see several hundred Palestinian prisoners traded from 33 Israeli hostages, half of whom are dead; why Republicans forced the resignation of Lockheed Martin’s widely respected head of government affairs; Ukraine war update and what’s next as Trump returns to office; Trump and Xi Jingping talk by phone before the inauguration; the revelation of Beijing’s new amphibious capabilities as Chinese planes and ships encircle Taiwan; the South Korea’s impeached President Yeon Suk Yeol detention; and President Biden’s legacy as he ends decades of service in elected office including his farewell remarks that warned of a “tech industrial complex” led by unaccountable billionaire oligarchs and undermines democracy.