Sirens: A Bombshell production

The great Meg Guliford joins Erin and Radha for this week's episode of Bombshell, while Loren enjoys a much deserved vacay. The ladies take a tour of world hotspots with a discussion of North Korean missile tests, the Kashmir crack down, and ongoing protests in Hong Kong. Radha schools us all on currency manipulation before we turn to Director of National Intelligence drama. The show wouldn't be complete without an exploration of domestic terrorism and white supremacist violence — alongside a heartfelt celebration of Toni Morrison Links Meg Guliford North Korea Dagyum Ji, "Kim Jong Un Guided Test-Fire of New "Superior Tactical" Weapon on Saturday: KCNA," NK News, August 11, 2019 Josh Smith, David Brunnstrom, "US Still Hopes for Talk After Latest North Korean Missile Tests," Reuters, August 12, 2019 Kashmir Sameer Yasir, Susasini Raj, and Jeffrey Gettleman,"Inside Sashmir, Cut Off from the World: A Living Hell of Anger and Fear," New York Times, August 10, 2019 Atul Singh and Manu Sharma, "What Lies Behind India's Bold Bet on Kashmir?" Fair Observer, August 10, 2019 Ashan I. Butt, "India Just Pulled Jammu and Kashmir's Autonomy. Here's Why That is a Big Deal for This Contested Region," Washington Post, August 7, 2019 Hong Kong Alice Fung and Yanan Wang, "Tear Gas Fired in Hong Kong With No End In Sight to Protests," AP News, August 11, 2019 Michael C. Davis and Victoria Tin-bor Hui, "In Hong Kong, What Happens Now That Beijing Has Called the Protests a 'Color Revolution?" Washington Post, August 10, 2019 "Hong Kong Protests: Key Dates as Peaceful Rallies Against Extradition Bill Turn to Violent Clashes," Channel News Asia, August 8, 2019 Andrew Thomas, "What's the Economic Cost of Hong Kong Protests?" Aljazeera, August 7, 2019 Ho-Fung Hung, Thomas Kellogg, Antony Dapiran, and Victoria Tin-Bor Hui, "Will Hong Kong Unravel?" China File, August 7, 2019 DNI Zachary Cohen, "Top Intel Official Interrupted Meeting to Urge His Deputy to Resign," CNN, August 9, 2019 Alison Durkee, " John Ratcliffe Is Already Out As Trump's DNI Pick," Vanity Fair, August 2, 2019 Amy Zegart, "The Next Director of National Intelligence: A Thankless Job is Getting Even Harder," Foreign Affairs, August 9, 2019 Terrorism Brian Pascus, "What is "Domestic Terrorism" and What Can the Law Do About It," CBS News, August 10, 2019 Charlie Savage, "What Could a Domestic Terrorism Law Do?" New York Times, August 7, 2019 Trade Scott Lanman and Enda Curran, "Why the US Labeled China a Currency Manipulator," Washington Post, August 7, 2019 Doug Palmer, "New IMF Report Doesn't Back Trump's Currency Manipulation Charge Against China," Politico, August 9, 2019 Paul Krugman, "China Tries to Teach Trump Economics," New York Times, August 9, 2019 Shawn Donnan and Jenny Leonard, "Trump Still Has Plenty of Ways to Escalate His China Trade War," Bloomberg, August 9, 2019 Pop Culture Yohana Desta, "Yes, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is Really Writing for the New Veronica Mars," Vanity Fair, September 26, 2018

This week on Bombshell Loren and Erin hold down the fort and ask the brilliant Elsa Kania to explain the new Chinese defense white paper. Britain has a new PM, Pakistan's visited the US, and there are ongoing protests in Moscow and Hong Kong. Meanwhile, we might have a budget deal? And the president keeps trying to sell weapons to Saudi Arabia. Erin finally saw Capt. Marvel and we collectively wish cast a real Mara Jade adventure. Links China Mike Yeo, "China: US in Pursuit of Absolute Military Superiority," Defense New, July27, 2019 Anthony H. Cordesman, "China's New 2019 Defense White Paper," CSIS, July 24, 2019 Elsa B. Kania, "Innovation in the New Era of Chinese Military Power," CNAS, July 25, 2019 Elsa B. Kania, "China's Army Can intervene in Hong Kong, Says Beijing," CNAS, July 24, 2019 Imran Khan Asad Hashim, "Q&A: Was Pakistan PM Imran Khan's Visit to the U.S. a Success?" Aljazeera, July 25, 2019 Michael Kugelman, "Despite Khan's Visit, U.S.-Pakistan Ties Aren't Ready for a Reset," World Politics Review, July 26, 2019 Russia Protests "Russia Protests: Thousand Arrests at Moscow Rally," BBC, July 27, 2019 Hong Kong protests "Hong Kong: Thousands Mobilize for Anti-Triad Rally," DW, July 27, 2019 Budget Deal Burgess Everett and Melanie Zanona, "Trump Fumes Over Border Wall as Budget Deal Advances," Politico, July 28, 2019 Hyten Confirmation Helene Cooper, "I have a Moral Responsibility to Come Forward: Colonel Accuses Top Military Nominee of Assault," New York Times, July 26, 2019

Erin, Radha and Loren reunite with author and general badass Nada Bakos to talk about her new book, The Targeter. Foreign relations are pretty lit these days: possible Russian funding of far-right politics in Italy, tiny steps of progress in Afghan govt-Taliban negotiations, and an unexpected political agreement in post-coup Sudan. The music hasn't stopped in the latest round of DOD musical chairs and the UK ambassador to the US was defenestrated by tweet. All in all stranger than fiction - so do read more fiction! Links Sudan Nadine Awadalla, Eltayeb Siddig, and Khalid Abdelaziz, "Thousands Demonstrate in Sudan to Mark 40 Days Since Deadly Crackdown," Reuters, July 13, 2019 Richmond Danso, "After Another Attempted Coup, What's Next for Sudan?" Washington Post, July 13, 2019 Italy/Russia Silvia Sciorilli Borrelli, "Italian Prosecutors Investigate Report That League South Russian Funding," Politico, July 11, 2019 Iran Tanker David D. Kirkpatrick, "U.K Offers to Return Seized Iranian Oil Tanker," New York Times, July 13, 2019 Erin Cunningham, "Britain to 'Facilitate' Release of Seized Iranian Tanker – As Long As it Doesn't Go to Syria," Washington Post, July 14, 2019 Afghanistan David Zucchino and Farooq Jan Mangal, "Seeking Revenge Taliban Target Afghan Soldiers' Family," New York Times, July 9, 2019

Erin, Radha and Loren return after some technical difficulties to rehash the G20, a newsy leader summit full of the president reversing the well-honed positions of his staff. Radha explains how China and the US are talking trade again, with a re-opening of US exports to Huawei and a gentle ask that China remake itself utterly. White House mayhem reminds us all that we almost went to war with Iran and we have no leaders anywhere at the Department of Defense. And do you have summer reading material to distract yourself from the world? Bombshell can help with its summer reading list. Links Bombshell's Summer 2019 Reading List G20 Megan Henney, "At G20 Summit in Japan, These Were the Biggest Moments You Missed," Fox Business, June 29, 2019 Spencer Kimball, "It's a Temporary Timeout: Trump and Xi Agree to Negotiations, But Offer No Clear Path to End US-China Trade War," CNBC, June 29, 2019 Iran Conor Finnegan, "Iran May Stand Down on Nuclear Threat After Europe, China Work to Bypass US Sanctions," ABC News, June 28, 2019 Trade Keith Bradsher, "A China-US Trade Truce Could Enshrine a Global Economic Shift," New York Times, June 29, 2019 Michael Martina and Jonathan Landay, "Experts Think Trump Policy on China Counterproductive: Draft Letter," Reuters, June 29, 2019

Bombshell welcomes back Amanda Sloat to dish on all the drama across the pond - Brexit, the selection of the new Tory leader, and Trump's visit, which was surely not (short)waisted [sic]. Foreign relations are a-twitter with elections in the European Union and Israel (yes, again). And Kim Jong Un thumbed his nose at the world to show that he of course does not murder his failed negotiators – he just imprisons them. The Trump administration has launched another salvo in a trade war with Mexico the same week it noticed USMC-A to Congress, proving that we do indeed contain multitudes. And did you happen to hear about what's going on with the USS John S. McCain? Also, Radha watched Good Omens and you should too. Links Trade – Mexico Andrew Van Dam, "As Mexico Becomes America's Top Source of Imported Goods, Here are the Products That Could Be Most Hit By Trump's Tariffs," Washington Post, May 31, 2019 Edward Alden, "Why Congress Cannot Allow the Trump Tariffs on Mexico to Stand," Council on Foreign Relations," May 31, 2019 Tom Hals and Brendan Pierson, "Trump's Mexican Tariffs Test Limits of U.S. Emergency Powers: Legal Experts," Reuters, May 31, 2019 Trade - China "China Threatens Sweeping Blacklist of Firms After Huawei Ban," Bloomberg, May 31, 2019 EU Election Jon Henley, "EU Elections Turnout Rises As Political Landscape Fragments," Guardian, May 26, 2019 NK Executions Laura Bicker, "North Korea Execution Reports – Why We Should Be Cautious," BBC, MAY 31, 2019 Brexit Amanda Sloat, "Brexit Endgame: A Withdrawal Agreement for Theresa May, But No Clarity on Brexit," Brookings, May 30, 2019 Thomas Wright, "How Trump Undermined Theresa May," Atlantic, May 31, 2019 The Role of Parliament in Today's Britain, Brookings, May 28, 2019 Israeli Elections Bernard Avishai, "A Climax to the Saga of Benjamin Netanyahu and Avigdor Lieberman," New Yorker, June 1, 2019 Yaakov Katz, "Why is Israel Really Going to New Elections?" Jerusalem Post, June 2, 2019 USS McCain Barbara Starr and Devan Cole, "Shanahan: USS John McCain Request Made Directly to Seventh Fleet," CNN, June 2, 2019

This week the ladies dive into the recent Iran drama with Ariane Tabatabai. Next, they revisit some recent election results before turning to whirlwind trade developments, as talks with China fall apart and new restrictions are levied against Huawei. White House Mayhem never disappoints, and the ladies sound off on the moral and strategic bankruptcy of pardoning war criminals. Pop-culture brings us home. Links Elections Damien Cave, "Australia Elections Results: Prime Minister Scott Morrison Seizes a Stunning Win," New York Times, May 18, 2019 Hywel Griffith and Jay Savage, "Scott Morrison: How Australia's PM Built a 'Miracle' Election Win," BBC, May 19, 2019 Douglas Schorzman and Kai Schultz, "Polls Are Closed in India's Election: What Happens Next?" New York Times, May 19, 2019 Trade Brendan Murray, "Tariff Man Trump Just Had Himself a Week. Here's a Recap," Bloomberg, May 19, 2019 China Chris Buckley and Keith Bradsher, "How Xi's Last-Minute Switch on U.S.-China Trade Deal Upended It," New York Times, May 16, 2019 Eamon Barrett, "China is Running Out of U.S. Good to Tariff, Has Other Trade War Weapons to Unleash," Fortune, May 18, 2019 Michael Schuman, "To China, Alls' Fair in. Love and Trade Wars," Atlantic, May 18, 2019 Julia Horowitz, " Huawei Takes the U.S.-China Trade War to a Dangerous New Level," CNN, May 16, 2019 Mexico – Canada Kayla Tausche and Jacob Pramuk, "US Reaches Deal to Lift Steel and Aluminum Tariffs on Canada and Mexico," CNBC, May 17, 2019 Iran "Iran Nuclear Deal: Tehran May Increase Uranium Enrichment," BBC, May 08, 2019 Becca Wasser and Ariane Tabatabai, Washington Post, "Irans Network of Fighters in the Middle East Aren't Always Loyal to Iran," May 21, 2019 Eric Brewer, Elisa Catalano Ewers, Ilan Goldenberg, Peter Harrell, Nicholas Heras, Elisabeth Rosenberg, and Ariane Tabatabai, "A Realistic Path for Progress on Iran," CNAS, January 29, 2019 Ariane Tabatabai, "Can Anyone Save the Iran Nuclear Deal?" New York Times, May 10, 2019 Huawei Frank Bajak and Tali Arbel, "Huawei Hit by US Export Controls, Potential Important Ban," AP News, May 16, 2019 Emily Feng, "S. Move to Isolate Huawei Sends Ripples Through Global Supply Chain," NPR, May 16, 2019 Emily Stewart, "The US Government's Ongoing Battle With Chinese Telecom Giant Huawei, Explained," Vox, May 21, 2019 War Crimes Dave Philipps, "Trump May Be Preparing Pardons for Servicemen Accused of War Crimes," New York Times, May 18, 2019

This week Erin and Radha hold down the fort and return to some of Bombshell's greatest hits topics, starting with North Korean missile tests and a double feature from ISIS (a new video from Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and the horrific attacks in Sri Lanka), and spinning some militias in Libya and new Iran sanctions for good measure. With the continuing mayhem in Washington, they turn to the chaos in Venezuela, lack of data from Afghanistan, and of course the "clash of civilizations" on the horizon with China. With Loren out, Erin has to skip Game of Thrones coverage and talk princess TV and tiaras with Radha. Links Libya Mieczyslaw Boduszynski and Christopher Lamont, "Trump Changed US Policy Toward Libya. This is Why it Matters," Washington Post, May 03, 2019 Al Baghdadi/Sri Lanka Frank Gardner, "Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi: Why is it So Difficult to Track Down IS Leader?" BBC, May 01, 2019 Souad Mekhennet "In ISIS Leaders Video Appearance, Messages to Followers, Rivals, and the West," Washington Post, May 02, 2019 Iran Sanctions "Six Charts That Show How Hard US Sanctions Have Hit Iran," BBC, May 02, 2019 Osama Bin Javaid, "Iran Sanctions Explained," Aljazeera, May 04, 2019 Matthew Lee, "US Renews Iran Sanctions Waivers for Civilian Nuclear Work," AP, May 03, 2019 "Clash of Civilization" Daniel Drezner, "Let's Grade the State Department's Director of Policy Planning on Her Grand Strategy Musings," Washington Post, May 01, 2019 Paul Musgrave, "The Slip That Revealed the Real Trump Doctrine," Foreign Policy, May 02, 2019 "A Better Reading of History Must Bring Home the Truth That the Basic Factor in Human Affairs is Not Politics, But Race," Lawyers Guns Money Blog, May 03, 2019 Jessica Chen Weiss, "No China and the US Aren't Locked in an Ideological Battle. Not Even Close," Washington Post, May 04, 2019 Afghanistan "US Military Stops Releasing Information Tracking Progress in Afghanistan," CBS, May 01, 2019 Sri Lanka James Griffiths, "A Weeks After the Easter Sunday Attacks, Sri Lanka is No Closer to Understanding or Healing," CNN, April 28, 2019 Venezuela Karen DeYoung, "US Officials Weigh Options for Venezuela as Trump Describes Positive Call with Putin," Washington Post, May 03, 2019 Anthony Faiola, "Guaido Says Opposition Overestimated Military Support Before Failed Uprising," Washington Post, May 04, 2019

This week, Loren, Radha, and Erin explore the world's many recent elections - in Israel, India, Indonesia, and Ukraine. They then return to Northern Ireland, not to talk about Brexit, but to unpack resurgent sectarian violence. The recent coup in Sudan rounds out a very sporty Keeping up Foreign Relations. Radha notes we're still waiting on a big trade summit with China before we dive headfirst into the Mueller report and speculate wildly on the ongoing counter-intelligence investigation(s). DoD remains opaque as ever, while DHS gets purged. Finally, a lively Pop Culture round-up to take our minds off all this mayhem. Links Trade Enda Curran "How the US-China Trade War Reached A Turning Point," Washington Post, April 18, 2019 Jeff Cox, "US Trade Deficit Falls in February As Shortfall with China Decreases 28%," CNBC, April 17, 2019 DHS: Ronald Brownstein, "Trump's Immigration Policies Unify White Republicans," Atlantic, April 11, 2019 Sudan Nandita Balakrishnan, "Sudan's Upheaval is the Latest Examples of a Gray Zone Coup," Washington Post, April 17, 2019 Mai Hassan and Ahmed Kodouda, "Sudan Ousted Two Autocrats in Three Days. Here's What's Next," Washington Post, April 15, 2019 Protests "Protests in Sudan Are Escalating. Here's What You Need to Know," Washington Post, April 10, 2019 "Generals Overthrew Sudan's President Bashir, But They Can't Agree On What Comes Next," Washington Post, April 16, 2019 Election "FP's Guide to the Indian Elections," Foreign Policy, April 18, 2019 Arys Aditya, "After Record One-Day Indonesia Election, Result Still Weeks Away," Bloomberg, April 20, 2019 Ilan Goldenberg, "The Future of the Two-State Solution is at Stake," April 08, 2019 Northern Ireland "Lyra McKee Murder: Journalist Shot Dead During Derry Rioting," BBC, April 19, 2019 "Petrol Bombs Thrown at Police in Derry As Journalist Kill," Guardian, April 19, 2019 Ed O'Loughlin and Richard Perez-Pena, "Lyra McKee, Northern Ireland Journalist, Is Killed in 'Terrorist Incident,' Police Say," New York Times, April 19, 2019 Bonnie Weir, "Brexit and a Border Town: Troubles Ahead in Northern Ireland?" New York Review of Books, April 11, 2019 Mueller Benjamin Wittes, "Notes on the Mueller Report: A Reading Diary," Lawfare, April 19, 2019 Joshua Geltzer and Ryan Goodman "Mueller Hints at a National-Security Nightmare," New York Times, April 19, 2019 Pop Culture Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - Teaser Spencer Kornhaber, "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Might Spark and Old Fight," April 12, 2019 Andrew Dyce, "Star Wars Already Made Rey a True Skywalker (You Just Missed It)," Screen Rant, April 20, 2019

The ladies of Bombshell take on proteins and Afghanistan policy all in one segment with special guest Frances Brown. Across the pond, Brexit is going nowhere fast and NATO is celebrating a grand birthday while the American president is questioning whether he wants to keep paying dues. In It's Aghast, 5G is fast, the future, and not so much fun for American competitiveness. And in White House mayhem, the Congress mustered up some war powers energy to get the US out of the military operations in Yemen that the administration claims we aren't in, while the president visited the border just defenestrating his Homeland Security Secretary. Links Huawei/5G Ahiza Garcia, "Verizon Launches First 5G Phone You Can Use on a 5G Network in US," CNN, April 3, 2019 Milo Medin and Gilman Louie, "The 5G Ecosystem: Risks and Opportunities for DOD," Defense Innovation Board, April 2019 Zak Doffman, "Huawei May Have Claimed 5G Victory Over the US But Is Now In A Street Fight," Forbes, April 5, 2019 Keith Johnson and Elias Groll, "The Improbable Rise of Huawei," Foreign Policy, April 3, 2019 Saudi Human Rights Vivian Yee and David Kirkpatrick, "Saudis Escalate Crackdown on Dissent, Arresting Nine and Risking US Ire," New York Times, April 5, 2019 Alex Ward, "Saudi Arabia Is Detaining American Activists 6 Months After Khashoggi's Murder," Vox, April 5, 2019 ALQST, Tweets, April 4, 2019 Joyce Lee and Dalton Bennett, "The Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi," Washington Post, April 1, 2019 Brexit Heather Stewart and Daniel Boffey, "Hopes of Brexit Progress Fade as Labour Says May Has Failed to Compromise," Guardian, April 5, 2019 Afghanistan Fahim Abed, "Taliban Attack Kills Dozens in Afghanistan Despite U.S. Efforts in Peace Talks," New York Times, April 4, 2019 Barbara Walter, "Hoping That Peace Comes to Afghanistan? Dream On," Washington Post, January 30, 2019 Mexico Border Molly O'Toole, Noah Bierman, and Eli Stokols, "As Trump Threatens to Close Border, Experts Warn of Billions in Economic Damage," Los Angeles Times, April 1, 2019 Maegan Vazquez, "Trump Heads to US-Mexico Border After a Week of Confusing Threats," CNN, April 6, 2019 NATO Karen Donfried, "3 Ways Europe Is Looking At A Fray NATO," Defense One, April 2, 2019 Rachel Rizzo and Carrie Cordero, "Bolstering Congressional Support for NATO," CNAS, March 20, 2019 Yemen Elisa Catalano Ewers and Nicholas Heras, "Congressional Action on Yemen Isn't Only About Yemen," CNAS, February 27, 2019

Join Bombshell for a rousing discussion of the fathomless train wreck that is Brexit and the increasing lack of predictability of the upcoming Israeli elections. Believe it or not, China trade talks are not going as well as they might, as we discuss in "It's Aghast." In White House mayhem, President Trump issued a tremendous press release on the fourth or fifth defeat of ISIL with some bombast and a little general life advice, while recognizing the generally illegal Israeli annexation of the Golan Heights, crapping on his own North Korea policy, and putting out a DOA defense budget. We're all fine here, how are you? Links Ana Swanson, "Trump Administration Strikes Tougher Stance Ahead of China Talk," New York Times, March 22, 2019 Ian Austen, "What's Going on Between Canada and China? Our Experts Share Their Thoughts," New York Times, March 22, 2019 Yen Nee Lee, "A Trade Deal Could Come in Weeks, But it Won't Remove 'Contentious' Issues, Says Former US Diplomat," CNBC, March 24, 2019 Audit of the Department of the Treasury Forfeiture Fund's Financial Statements for Fiscal Years 2018 and 2017 Kathy Gilsinan, "The 'Caliphate' Is Dead, but Americans Might Not Be Any Safer," Atlantic, March 23, 2019 Tamara Cofman Wittes and Ilan Goldenberg, "Trump's Golan Fiasco: Recognizing the Disputed Territory Won't Help Israel. But It Will Reverberate All Over the World," Politico, March 22, 2019