LSE: The Ballpark

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Dr Lauren Sukin, Debak Das, Matthew Fuhrmann, J. Luis Rodriguez | In June 2024, the LSE Phelan US Centre held the conference, US Nuclear Strategy in a Changing Indo-Pacific. The conference brought together scholars and analysts with a strong record of policy-relevant research on nuclear strategy and expertise in the security dynamics of the Indo-Pacific. The conference was convened by Phelan US Centre Affiliates, Rohan Mukherjee and Lauren Sukin, both Assistant Professors of International Relations in the LSE’s International Relations Department. In this episode of the Ballpark, we speak to Dr Lauren Sukin about the main themes and takeaways from the conference. We also talk to three of the conference participants, Debak Das (University of Denver), Matthew Fuhrmann (Texas A&M University), and J. Luis Rodriguez (George Mason University), about what they saw as the nuclear security dynamics in their region of focus, and how the US has been responding to these both within that region and across the Indo-Pacific. This Extra Inning was produced by Chris Gilson and Anderson Tan.

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Professor Jeff Legro | In May 2024 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Jeff Legro, University Professor at the University of Richmond, and Visiting Professor at the Phelan US Centre for 2023-24. They spoke about the US’ role as a “unipolar” country in the world, conceptions of sovereignty, both in the US and abroad, the potential future of US foreign policy, and the relationship between nuclear weapons and globalization.   They also discussed Professor Legro’s work with the Phelan US Centre’s Undergraduate Research Assistantship programme and students Ayush Das and Evelyne Ong.   This Extra Inning was produced by Chris Gilson and Anderson Tan. Links mentioned in this episode Phelan US Centre Undergraduate Research Assistantship programme - https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/for-students/us-centre-undergraduate-research-assistantships-current Rethinking the World: Great Power Strategies and International Order (Cornell University Press, 2016) - https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.7591/9781501707322/html?lang=en Shaper Nations: Strategies for a Changing World (Harvard University Press, 2016) - https://www.hup.harvard.edu/books/9780674660212

Contributor(s): Brooke Gladstone, Chris Gilson | In 2024 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Brooke Gladstone, host and Managing Editor of WNYC’s On the Media about the US’ changing media landscape, the meaning of truth and facts in the age of Donald Trump, and how we can teach the next generation to be better media consumers. This Extra Inning was produced by Chris Gilson and Anderson Tan.

Contributor(s): Dr Fred Kaplan, Chris Gilson | In May 2024 the Phelan US Centre spoke to author and journalist for Slate magazine and Phelan US Centre Visiting Senior Fellow, Fred Kaplan about his 2020 book, The Bomb: Presidents, Generals, and the Secret History of Nuclear War and the changing attitudes of US politicians and policymakers to nuclear weapons and nuclear war. This Extra Inning was produced by Chris Gilson and Anderson Tan. Listen to the podcast of the LSE Event ‘Is the risk of nuclear war increasing?’ on LSE Player: https://www.lse.ac.uk/lse-player?id=c1fc651a-d27e-46e2-8ae0-2078d24736e0 Fred Kaplan’s ‘War Stories’ column at Slate: https://slate.com/news-and-politics/war-stories

Contributor(s): Elizabeth Ingleson | How did China—the world’s largest communist nation—converge with global capitalism? And when did this occur? In this event, held on 7 May 2024, Dr Elizabeth Ingleson of the LSE Department of International History and Phelan US Centre Affiliate argued that this convergence began in the early 1970s, when the United States and China re-opened trade and the interests of US capitalists and the Chinese state gradually aligned: at the expense of US labor and aided by US diplomats.

Contributor(s): Elizabeth Ingleson, Ashley Tellis, John Van Reenen | A shining city on a hill. America the beautiful. The United States has long been mythologised as the land of dreams and opportunity. And since the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s it has been undisputedly the most powerful nation on earth. But is it a fading force? The idea of an America in decline has gained traction in recent years and has, of course, been capitalized on by President Trump. Is America’s ‘greatness’ under threat? In this episode of LSE iQ, a collaboration with the LSE Phelan US Centre's podcast, The Ballpark, Sue Windebank and Chris Gilson speak to LSE’s Elizabeth Ingleson and John Van Reenen and Ashley Tellis from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Contributors Elizabeth Ingleson John Van Reenen Ashley Tellis   Research Made in China: When US-China Interests Converged to Transform Global Trade by Elizabeth Ingleson The Fall of the Labor Share and the Rise of Superstar Firms by David Autor, David Dorn, Lawrence F Katz, Christina Patterson and John Van Reenen, The Quarterly Journal of Economics, May 2020. Revising U.S. Grand Strategy Toward China by Robert D. Blackwill and Ashley J. Tellis   More Information LSE Phelan United States Centre: https://www.lse.ac.uk/United-States Listen to The Ballpark podcast: https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/the-ballpark/Podcasts; LSE Player, Spotify; Soundcloud Related interviews on The Ballpark with guests on this episode Dr Ashley Tellis - The Future of US-China Competition Dr Elizabeth Ingleson - Made in China: When US-China Interests Converged to Transform Global Trade

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Professor John Owen | In 2024 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Professor John Owen, Ambassador Henry J. and Mrs. Marion R. Taylor Professor of Politics, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture and the Miller Center for Public Affairs at the University of Virginia, and an Academic Visitor at Nuffield College, University of Oxford from January to June 2024. They discussed his new book, ‘The Ecology of Nations: American Democracy in a Fragile World Order’, the United States’ changing foreign policy objectives, and the move from welfare liberalism to open liberalism in the post-war period and beyond. You can read Professor Owen's recent article for USAPP, ‘How pluralistic liberalism can protect democracy in a time of contested world order’ here - https://wp.me/p3I2YF-dDK. This Extra Inning was produced by Chris Gilson and Anderson Tan.

Contributor(s): Elizabeth Ingleson, Chris Gilson | In April 2024 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Dr Elizabeth Ingleson, Assistant Professor in the Department of International History at LSE and Centre Affiliate of the Phelan US Centre. They spoke about Dr Ingleson’s new book, Made in China: When US-China Interests Converged to Transform Global Trade. They also discussed the evolution of the US-China trade relationship since the 1970s, including the role played by US policymakers and capitalist interests. Dr Elizabeth Ingleson will be launching her new book at the LSE Phelan US Centre event, ‘Made in China: When US-China interests converged to transform global trade’, on Tuesday 7 May from 5pm to 6:30pm at LSE. More details about how to attend in person and online are here - https://www.lse.ac.uk/united-states/events/2024-events/Made-in-China-When-US-China-Interests-Converged-to-Transform-Global-Trade. This Extra Inning was produced by Chris Gilson and Anderson Tan.

Contributor(s): Professor Elizabeth Saunders, Chris Gilson | In March 2024 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Professor Elizabeth Saunders, Professor of Political Science at Columbia University about her new book, ‘The Insiders’ Game: How Elites Make War and Peace’ and the role of ‘elites’ in US foreign policymaking. This Extra Inning was produced by Chris Gilson and Anderson Tan. Contributors: Professor Elizabeth Saunders (Columbia University)

Contributor(s): Chris Gilson, Jennifer Carlson | In March 2024 the Phelan US Centre spoke to Professor Jennifer Carlson of Arizona State University, and 2022 MacArthur Fellow, about her new book, Merchants of the Right: Gun Sellers and the Crisis of American Democracy. They also discuss the symbolism and political value guns have in American politics and society. This Extra Inning was produced by Chris Gilson and Anderson Tan. Contributors: Professor Jennifer Carlson (Arizona State University)