Eric and Eliot welcome Lt. Col. (ret.) Alexander Vindman, former director for Europe on the National Security Council during the first Trump term and author of The Folly of Realism: How the West Deceived Itself about Russia and Betrayed Ukraine (New York: Public Affairs Press, 2025). They discuss the U.S. government's prioritization of US-Russia relations over Ukraine policy across multiple Administrations and the tendency towards a transactional relationship with Ukraine as well as the degree of agency and responsibility of Ukrainian officials for this chronic state of affairs. They touch on the Obama Administration's underwhelming response to the seizure of Crimea and destabilization of Ukraine in 2014 as well as Trump's vulgar transactionalism and personal grudge against Zelensky as a motivation for the Oval Office meltdown two weeks ago. Eric and Eliot also discuss their respective articles in the Dispatch and the Atlantic on Russia's habit of violating agreements it has reached and Ukraine's success in fighting a war of attrition against Russia despite the media's misreporting of the state of the war. They also discuss the generational damage to American alliances and national security intellectual capital that the second Trump term is creating, Trump hostage envoy Adam Boehler's direct negotiation with Hamas terrorists, Trump's mistaken reference to Viktor Orban as the leader of Turkey, and Elon Musk and Marco Rubio's trashing of Poland's Foreign Minister on Twitter. The Folly of Realism: How the West Deceived Itself About Russia and Betrayed Ukraine: https://a.co/d/dTa2qN8 Eric & Frank Miller's latest on Russian treaty violations: https://thedispatch.com/article/russia-history-broken-treaties-agreements/ Eliot & Phillips O'Brien's latest on the rate of attrition in Ukraine: https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2025/03/russia-ukraine-war-status/681963/ Eliot on the Trump administration's reputational damage to the U.S.: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/03/buzz-saw-pine-forest/681984/ Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.

Michael Beckley, Associate Professor of Political Science at Tufts University and author of 'Unrivaled', shares insights on America's perceived decline versus its resilient economic strength. He outlines how historical narratives of declinism persist, despite data showing the U.S. thriving economically. Beckley discusses America's unique advantages, such as its geography and innovative capacity, while also acknowledging the risks linked to political fragmentation and social challenges. The conversation offers a nuanced view of America's place in a shifting global landscape.

Tension brews as VP Vance's controversial ambush in the Oval Office involving Trump and Zelensky raises eyebrows. The hosts dissect the implications for U.S. foreign policy and critique possible pro-Putin sentiments in the blame game. Concerns about allies' trust in America deepen amidst shifting strategies, drawing parallels to historical political upheavals. They candidly discuss Trump's potential claims of divinity and the need for moral clarity, against a backdrop of increasingly precarious international relations.

Eric and Eliot mark the third anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine with a shout out to the brave Ukrainians who are resisting Russian tyranny. They discuss the Friday night massacre at the Pentagon, noting the remarkable personal qualities of General C. Q. Brown and his role as Chief of Staff of the Air Force and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs. They touch on the role of the JAGS and the dangers to good order and discipline that will result from having pliant lawyers. They also discuss the very troubling U.S. vote in the UN General Assembly against the resolution condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine putting us in the company of Russia, Belarus, Nicaragua and North Korea. They consider what kind of negotiators Trump and Steve Witkoff will be and how international negotiations differ from real estate transactions. Finally, they consider some of the intellectual currents swirling around Trumpism and agree that they merit careful consideration. Eliot on the Pentagon's Friday Night Massacre: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/02/lawful-enormously-destructive/681809/ Eric on PBS News Weekend: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/the-potential-consequences-of-trumps-unprecedented-pentagon-shakeup Gen. C. Q. Brown Amidst the Death of George Floyd (2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nw4MI1v8I0k Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast cosponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.

Eliot and Eric delve into the complexities of the Munich Security Conference, exposing the conflicting messages from Trump officials amidst rising tensions with Russia. They question the implications of U.S.-Russian talks and assess the potential ceasefire in Ukraine. The conversation shifts to the ethical dilemmas faced by civil servants under political chaos, emphasizing integrity and resilience in turbulent times. With a nod to historical struggles, they highlight the importance of hope as America navigates its fraught foreign policy landscape.

Dive into the swirling chaos surrounding the Trump Administration, as the hosts dissect its political ramifications and authoritarian undertones. They explore the impact of foreign aid and propose the need for reform in U.S. policy. Insights on military procurement and the Pentagon's broken system emerge, complemented by a discussion on the geopolitical chessboard of Ukraine amid rising tensions with Russia. This lively conversation challenges conventional thoughts while weaving through current events with a blend of humor and critical analysis.

With Eliot traveling Eric welcomes Eugene Finkel, the Kenneth H. Keller Professor of International Affairs at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) to discuss his recent book Intent to Destroy: Russia's Two-Hundred Year Quest to Dominate Ukraine (New York:  Basic Books, 2024). They discuss the long-term Russian effort to dominate, subordinate and eliminate Ukrainian nationality, culture and language. They touch on the pillars of Russian national identify and how Russians came to see Ukraine and Ukrainians as inferior members of a hierarchy of Russian-ness and how the emergence of Ukrainian nationalism in Poland and later the Austro-Hungarian empire came to represent an existential threat to Russian ethnic domination of St. Petersburg's multinational empire in the run up to world war one. They discuss the collapse of the Russian Empire and the emergence of an independent Ukraine, the reasons for its failure and Stalin's efforts to destroy Ukrainian nationalism, his drive for collectivization of agriculture and the ensuing Holodomor -- a man-made famine that cost perhaps as many as 5 million lives. They also discuss Ukraine during World War Two, caught between the Wehrmacht and Red Army. The collaboration of some Ukrainian nationalists with the Nazis and the guerrilla war to prevent Soviet re-occupation of Ukraine which lasted into the early 1950s, cost perhaps 100 thousand lives and gave birth to the Russian notion that Ukrainian nationalism was inherently fascist. They consider Ukraine's independence in 1992, the negotiation of the Budapest Memorandum and the myth that Ukraine "gave up nuclear weapons, as well as the cultural shift that will have to take place in Russia if there is to be lasting peace that ends the current war. Intent to Destroy: Russia’s Two-Hundred-Year Quest to Dominate Ukraine: https://a.co/d/5fsdy8L Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.

Eric and Eliot welcome Professor H. W. Brands, the Jack S. Blanton Chair in History at the University of Texas, Austin and the best-selling author of more than a dozen books on American History. They discuss his book America First: Roosevelt vs. Lindbergh in the Shadow of War (New York: Doubleday, 2024) touching on what drew him to the subject of the America First movement, the nature of the national debate on radio from 1939-1941, the transformation of the nation's default foreign policy of non-interventionism to globalism, the role of the Congressional fight over repealing the Neutrality Acts, Lindbergh's racialized thinking and anti-semitism, how the speech he gave in Des Moines at an America First rally in fall 1941 destroyed his national image and reputation, Lindbergh's personal character (and his multiple affairs with German women in the last twenty years of his life, the transition in elite thinking from hemispheric defense to a global posture of forward defense, the British and German influence operations to shape American public opinion before Pearl Harbor and the contemporary overtones of Lindbergh's non-interventionism, focus on future technology, and political naivete that are visible in Donald Trump and Elon Musk. America First: Roosevelt vs. Lindbergh in the Shadow of War: https://a.co/d/4Lr9jmh Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.

Eliot and Eric welcome Drew Lichtenberg (resident dramaturg at the Shakespeare Theatre Company) and Deborah Payne (Professor of Literature at American University), authors of Shakespeare in the Theatre: Shakespeare Theatre Company. They discuss the long history of Washington’s fascination with and interest in Shakespeare. They talk about the tensions inside the Folger Library with regard to studying or performing Shakespeare’s plays, the political and economic changes that explain Washington’s evolution from sleepy Southern city to a more vibrant cultural center, changing interpretation of Shakespeare’s plays as a proxy for debates over representation and America’s changing demography, and avant garde interpretation with a political spin versus more traditional classical approaches to the texts. Eric and Eliot also provide their first blush takes on Trump 2.0’s first 48 hours. Shakespeare in the Theatre: Shakespeare Theatre Company https://a.co/d/cGaM5zO Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.

Eric and Eliot welcome friend of the show Kori Schake back to Shield of the Republic. Kori is Senior Fellow and Director of Foreign Policy and Defense Studies at the American Enterprise Institute and author of Safe Passage: The Transition from British to American Hegemony (Cambridge, MA:  Harvard University Press, 2017). They discuss her recent retrospective article in Foreign Policy on the BIden administration's foreign policy. She critiques the Biden team's failures on the withdrawal from Afghanistan, trade policy and the broader decline of America's margin of deterrence and in particular the failure to keep military spending at an appropriate level given inflation. She also credits the Biden Administration with using the intelligence community's insights into Russia's plans for invading Ukraine appropriately to undo some of the damage done by the Iraq war and its alliance management after the Russian invasion in 2022. She discusses how much of the failure can be laid at Biden's feet personally and how much lies with his national security team. Finally, Eric and Eliot discuss the prospects for the new Trump team that appears to be brimming with self-confidence. They dissect the prospects for Pete Hegseth's confirmation hearing as well as Trump's fixation on Greenland and whether his enthusiasm is getting in the way of actual strategic accomplishments given the increasing strategic importance of the Arctic. https://foreignpolicy.com/2025/01/07/biden-foreign-policy-record-failure-success-national-security/ https://www.amazon.com/Safe-Passage-Transition-American-Hegemony/dp/0674975073 https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2025/01/trump-bluster-foreign-policy-greenland-canada/681268/ Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.