The Libertarian Institute - All Podcasts

John and I continue reading and commentary of Rules for Radicals.

Joe Kent, Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, has resigned in protest over the Iran war, becoming the first senior official to break ranks. In his resignation, Kent stated bluntly that Iran posed no “imminent threat” to the United States — directly contradicting the administration’s justification for military action. A resignation letter from inside Trump’s national security world drops a bombshell claim: Iran posed no imminent threat, and the rush into war was fueled by pressure from Israel and a powerful pro-war lobby in the United States. We take the letter seriously, line by line, because it puts the core question on the table that Washington tries to dodge, who is steering US foreign policy when the stakes are life, death, and a wider Middle East war. We also talk about the blowback. Tulsi Gabbard posts support for the war, even though opposing “forever wars” has been central to her political identity, and we unpack what that says about loyalty, ambition, and the limits of dissent inside an administration. Then we address Trump’s response, including his claims about the Iran nuclear deal and why so many experts argue the 2015 agreement imposed real constraints through inspections and verification. If you care about Iran nuclear weapons, sanctions relief, and the actual mechanics of nuclear diplomacy, this part matters. Finally, we break down the media messaging war, including Ben Shapiro’s reaction, and why dismissing everything as “conspiracy” is not a substitute for evidence. We zoom out to the bigger picture: congressional war powers, misinformation campaigns, and the dangerous lesson wars can teach targeted states, that only a nuclear deterrent prevents regime change. Subscribe, share, and leave a review, then tell us what you think: who is really driving this war, and what would ending it require?

 Download Audio. Scott brings Larry Johnson back on the show three weeks after his last appearance, where Johnson predicted the war with Iran hours before it kicked off. Scott and Johnson examine what’s happened, dig into who’s really calling the shots here, address some of the nonsensical talking points used to make the Iranians out as a unique evil and anticipate what the global consequences of this war will be. Discussed on the show: “​​The Failure of US and Israeli Air Defense” (Sonar21) Larry C. Johnson is a former CIA officer and intelligence analyst, and a former planner and advisor at the US State Department’s Office of Counter Terrorism. Follow his analysis at Sonar21. Audio cleaned up with the Podsworth app: https://podsworth.com Use code HORTON50 for 50% off your first order at Podsworth.com to clean up your voice recordings, sound like a pro, and also support the Scott Horton Show! For more on Scott’s work: Check out The Libertarian Institute: https://www.libertarianinstitute.org Check out Scott’s other show, Provoked, with Darryl Cooper https://youtube.com/@Provoked_Show Read Scott’s books: Provoked: How Washington Started the New Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine https://amzn.to/47jMtg7 (The audiobook of Provoked is being published in sections at https://scotthortonshow.com) Enough Already: Time to End the War on Terrorism: https://amzn.to/3tgMCdw Fool’s Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan https://amzn.to/3HRufs0 Follow Scott on X @scotthortonshow And check out Scott’s full interview archives: https://scotthorton.org/all-interviews This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Incorporated https://rrbi.co Moon Does Artisan Coffee https://scotthorton.org/coffee; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom https://www.libertyclassroom.com/dap/a/?a=1616 and Dissident Media https://dissidentmedia.com You can also support Scott’s work by making a one-time or recurring donation at https://scotthorton.org/donate/https://scotthortonshow.com or https://patreon.com/scotthortonshow

 Download Audio. Scott interviews Joe Kent, the former director of the US National Counterterrorism Center, about what drove him to resign. Kent explains how he saw the Israelis mislead Trump about an Iranian nuclear threat and the supposed fragility of the regime. He also backs up some of the widely attacked claims in his resignation letter about Israeli involvement in getting the US into previous wars in the region, reflects on what the real goals of the Israeli government are with this war, sheds light on Scott’s concerns about significant blowback terrorism in the US and more. Discussed on the show: Kent’s letter of resignation Joe Kent is a retired Army Special Forces soldier who served as the director of the National Counterterrorism Center in Trump’s second term until he resigned in 2026 over the war with Iran. Follow him on Twitter @joekent16jan19 Audio cleaned up with the Podsworth app: https://podsworth.com Use code HORTON50 for 50% off your first order at Podsworth.com to clean up your voice recordings, sound like a pro, and also support the Scott Horton Show! For more on Scott’s work: Check out The Libertarian Institute: https://www.libertarianinstitute.org Check out Scott’s other show, Provoked, with Darryl Cooper https://youtube.com/@Provoked_Show Read Scott’s books: Provoked: How Washington Started the New Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine https://amzn.to/47jMtg7 (The audiobook of Provoked is being published in sections at https://scotthortonshow.com) Enough Already: Time to End the War on Terrorism: https://amzn.to/3tgMCdw Fool’s Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan https://amzn.to/3HRufs0 Follow Scott on X @scotthortonshow And check out Scott’s full interview archives: https://scotthorton.org/all-interviews This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Incorporated https://rrbi.co Moon Does Artisan Coffee https://scotthorton.org/coffee; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom https://www.libertyclassroom.com/dap/a/?a=1616 and Dissident Media https://dissidentmedia.com You can also support Scott’s work by making a one-time or recurring donation at https://scotthorton.org/donate/https://scotthortonshow.com or https://patreon.com/scotthortonshow

The Strait of Hormuz is the kind of geopolitical pressure point that can turn a regional fight into a worldwide economic shock, and the official story coming out of Washington doesn’t always match what markets and missiles are signaling. We sit down with Larry Johnson to cut through the talking points and ask what’s actually happening as Iran keeps leverage in the Persian Gulf, shipping risk climbs, and allies get pulled into a conflict they didn’t choose. We also dig into the battle over the narrative at home. From Tucker Carlson’s claim that the CIA is pursuing a criminal referral over contacts with Iranians, to Trump’s own comments about charging journalists, we talk plainly about free speech, press freedom, and how fear-based messaging can be used to sell escalation. Larry explains what the CIA is supposed to do, what belongs with the FBI, and why intelligence warnings don’t help if leaders refuse to hear them. Then we zoom out to consequences: oil prices, LNG flows, supply chain disruption, and the fertilizer crunch that can become a food problem months from now. We walk through the escalation ladder too, including talk of Karg Island, the practical barriers to a ground invasion, and the unsettling question of nuclear risk if decision-makers corner themselves.

Air defense looks clean on a diagram. In real war, it is messy, conditional, and expensive in ways most people never see until the alarms are late and the interceptors are flying in bunches. We sit down with Daryl Cooper to translate the jargon and show what “layered missile defense” actually means when Iranian ballistic missiles, drones, and cruise missile threats pressure the system day after day. We walk through the U.S. missile defense stack in plain English: Aegis on ships, THAAD and Patriot batteries on land, the radar and satellite cueing that stitches everything into one shared track picture, and the uncomfortable truth that each layer covers the weaknesses of the others. We also get into why radar performance depends on physics and conditions, including clutter, sunrise effects, and smoke, and how losing early warning sensors can collapse warning time from minutes to seconds. That shift forces engagements into late mid-course or terminal phase, where hit probabilities drop and the price of staying safe becomes volleys of interceptors per incoming missile. Then we zoom out to the strategy and politics shaping the Iran Israel conflict and the wider Middle East war. We talk saturation tactics, multiple re-entry vehicles, engagement queue limits, and the core economic imbalance where defense often costs far more than offense. Finally, we tackle U.S. foreign policy fallout through the Tomahawk missile controversy and what happens when leaders deny what the weapons, timelines, and target decks can confirm. Subscribe for more deep dives, share this with a friend who wants a clearer view of missile defense and Middle East security, and leave a review with your biggest question after listening.

They’re dragging a disproved Iraq War storyline out of storage to sell a new war with Iran, and it matters because it’s the kind of myth that can get people killed. We sit down with Captain Matt Ho to dissect the EFP hoax: what explosively formed penetrators were, how they were used in Iraq, and how the claim of Iranian direction or supply turned into a convenient political talking point. We also name the bigger pattern: when leaders need a clean villain, they rewrite messy history into a simple slogan. From there, we get into the competence problem driving today’s Iran war narrative. Trump points to advice from Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, and we explore what happens when personal loyalty replaces subject-matter expertise, especially around Iran’s nuclear program. Mixed messages about goals like regime change, “unconditional surrender,” or vague “imminent threats” aren’t just sloppy, they’re dangerous, because they blur the line between deterrence and escalation. We also zoom out to the strategic fallout: US military readiness, munitions constraints, and the real-world risk of energy shock tied to the Strait of Hormuz. Add in Lindsey Graham pressuring allies and the growing influence of religious nationalism, including Christian nationalism inside parts of the US military, and you get a conflict that can expand fast while staying politically incoherent. If you care about foreign policy, the Iraq War legacy, Iran war analysis, and the future of the US empire, this conversation is for you. Subscribe, share this with someone who still remembers the Iraq War messaging, and leave a review telling us what claim you want fact-checked next.

I’ll discuss Iran and the grunt math of salvo competition. Buppert’s Law of Military Topography: “Mountainous terrain held by riflemen who know what they are about cannot be militarily defeated.” For other insight on Iran, I recommend CG episodes 061 , 067 and 078. References: The Boogeyman of 21st-Century Warfare: Drones Why the US is facing strategic defeat Points of Resistance and Departure: An interview with James C. Scott Lester Grau and Charles J. Bartles Mountain Warfare and Other Lofty Problems: Foreign mountain combat veterans discuss movement and maneuver, training and resupply (Helion Studies in Military History) Lester Grau The Bear Went Over The Mountain: Soviet Combat Tactics In Afghanistan [Illustrated Edition] Lester Grau The Other Side of the Mountain: Mujahideen Tactics in the Soviet-Afghan War Mark Thompson The White War: Life and Death on the Italian Front 1915-1919 James C. Scott The Art of Not Being Governed: An Anarchist History of Upland Southeast Asia Sun Tzu The Art of War Carl von Clausewitz On War Miyamoto Musashi A Book of Five Rings: The Classic Guide to Strategy H. John Poole The Last Hundred Yards: The NCO’s Contribution to Warfare Christian Brose The Kill Chain: Defending America in the Future of High-Tech Warfare Qiao Liang & Wang Xiangsui Unrestricted Warfare: China’s Master Plan to Destroy America My Substack: https://t.co/7a8jn2Mmnx Email at cgpodcast@pm.me.

I invited Buck Johnson of Counterflow on to have a nice relaxing conversation about things revealed and how it plays into our daily lives and worldview.

A headline-friendly story says Iran tried to assassinate Donald Trump. We pull the threads and find a different picture: an FBI-driven sting targeting Asif Merchant, two undercover “hitmen,” no money to fund the job, and no credible evidence that Tehran ordered anything. When prosecutors invoke state secrets and the agents who proposed the idea also control the evidence, it raises a hard question—are we building a case for war on a foundation of sand? From there we widen the lens. Antony Blinken has acknowledged years of Israeli pressure on Washington to strike Iran, and the gap between Obama’s resistance and Trump’s compliance says a lot about how policy gets made. We explore how the Israel lobby, friendly media, and political figures turned a flimsy plot into a narrative arc: Iran is coming for us, so hit first and ask later. Add Marco Rubio’s blunt admission about coordinating with Israel and you see the operational fusion—shared weapons, shared intelligence, shared target sets—that makes de-escalation harder and miscalculation easier. We also unpack the chaotic state of negotiations. Reports that senior envoys entered talks without nuclear experts help explain the constant moving of goalposts: from enrichment levels to ballistic missiles to regional behavior. When your asks keep changing, diplomacy becomes theater and escalation becomes default. Meanwhile, at home, costs mount—rising fuel prices, an affordability crunch, and the chilling reappearance of draft talk framed as “options on the table.” Younger Americans, skeptical of another proxy war, are asking who benefits and who pays. If you care about evidence-based policymaking, media literacy, and avoiding a wider regional conflict, this conversation lays out the signals behind the noise. We separate proof from posture, show where the narrative broke from the record, and highlight the off-ramps still available—if leaders have the courage to take them. If this resonated, tap follow, share it with a friend, and leave a quick review so more people can find the show. Your feedback shapes what we dig into next.

 Download Audio. Scott interviews Israeli geopolitical analyst Shaiel Ben-Ephraim about how Israelis are navigating and thinking about this new war with Iran. He and Scott dig into the differences between the US and Israeli government’s objectives in this war, the distinction between the various factions in Israel, how Netanyahu’s goals differ from the IDF’s and more. Discussed on the show: Follow Ben-Ephraim on X The Grand Reckoning Shaiel Ben-Ephraim is an Israeli geopolitical analyst, activist, and podcast host. Subscribe to his show The Grand Reckoning and follow him on Twitter @academic_la Audio cleaned up with the Podsworth app: https://podsworth.com Use code HORTON50 for 50% off your first order at Podsworth.com to clean up your voice recordings, sound like a pro, and also support the Scott Horton Show! For more on Scott’s work: Check out The Libertarian Institute: https://www.libertarianinstitute.org Check out Scott’s other show, Provoked, with Darryl Cooper https://youtube.com/@Provoked_Show Read Scott’s books: Provoked: How Washington Started the New Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine https://amzn.to/47jMtg7 (The audiobook of Provoked is being published in sections at https://scotthortonshow.com) Enough Already: Time to End the War on Terrorism: https://amzn.to/3tgMCdw Fool’s Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan https://amzn.to/3HRufs0 Follow Scott on X @scotthortonshow And check out Scott’s full interview archives: https://scotthorton.org/all-interviews This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Incorporated https://rrbi.co Moon Does Artisan Coffee https://scotthorton.org/coffee; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom https://www.libertyclassroom.com/dap/a/?a=1616 and Dissident Media https://dissidentmedia.com You can also support Scott’s work by making a one-time or recurring donation at https://scotthorton.org/donate/https://scotthortonshow.com or https://patreon.com/scotthortonshow

A president calls for Iran’s “unconditional surrender,” then floats picking the next government and rebuilding a nation of 90 million. We unpack how a mission that began as punitive strikes ballooned into de facto nation building, why timelines quietly stretched from days to months, and how the math of missiles versus interceptors exposes the limits of U.S. power. Along the way, we confront the human cost of a school reduced to graves, the political theater of “this isn’t a war,” and the uncomfortable reality that AI-assisted targeting can accelerate mistakes faster than leaders can correct them. We dig into the strategic heart of the conflict: Iran’s calculation that a short war only invites another round, its vow to avoid talks it sees as traps, and the emerging use of advanced munitions that test Israeli air defenses. In the Gulf, partners run low on interceptors while Washington shuffles scarce systems from Asia and Europe, weakening deterrence where it’s needed next. We look at how Hezbollah’s front intensifies, why public sentiment in Bahrain cheers hits on U.S. sites, and how a CIA play to leverage Kurdish factions could backfire into Iraqi instability and a broader proxy storm. The politics at home are just as volatile. Congress shrugs off War Powers limits, giving leaders campaign cover without real accountability, even as flag-draped coffins return. We map the incentives that keep the war going, the industrial constraints that make “infinite ammo” a fantasy, and the scenarios that could flip U.S. basing rights and alliances across the region. Most of all, we focus on the only real off-ramp: narrow the aims, stop the escalation treadmill, and pair verifiable security guarantees with a plan that matches resources to reality. If you value candid analysis that cuts through talking points, tap follow, share this episode with a friend who cares about U.S. foreign policy, and leave a review with your take on the most realistic off-ramp. Your feedback shapes where we go next.

Ben Dixon of the Union of Orthodox Journalists joined me to discuss the UOC and OCU schism, the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, and Orthodoxy in America.

Two million people flood central Tehran and an American reporter says he felt safe—so what else about Iran, the protests, and the path to war have we been getting wrong? We open with a vivid, on-the-ground account of Iran’s national day, where politics look more like a citywide festival than a fever dream of chaos, and where conversations about U.S. policy run surprisingly deep. That lived reality sets the stage for a tougher conversation about how narratives harden: claims of mass killings, allegations of organized provocateurs, and the media scaffolding that turns moral outrage into quiet consent for a wider war. From there we dig into the power dynamics driving escalation. When leaders boast “we attacked first,” and lawmakers argue that an ally’s actions leave Washington “no choice,” the question becomes unavoidable: who actually holds the veto over U.S. war decisions? We examine joint command structures, donor-entangled negotiators, and a Congress that delayed War Powers votes until after strikes began—signals of a constitutional breakdown where authorization lags behind action. Add in a troubling pattern where negotiations serve as cover for surprise attacks and assassinations, and the credibility of diplomacy itself starts to fray. Finally, we confront how the character of warfare is shifting. Precision stocks deplete; gravity bombs abound. Civilian-dense targets reenter the strike list. War games that once predicted disaster for a U.S.–Iran fight never assumed normalized mass-civilian harm or casual talk of tactical nuclear use. With missiles and drones already exacting real costs across the region, the margin for miscalculation narrows. We ask what escalation looks like if battlefield losses mount, and why Hebrew-language hints of a shocking “surprise” should alarm every policymaker and voter. If you care about media truth, constitutional limits, and the difference between deterrence and drift, this conversation offers a clear-eyed map of where we are—and where we might be headed. Subscribe, share with a friend who follows foreign policy, and leave a review telling us what part of the narrative you’re rethinking.

A war launched with shifting reasons and sliding timelines is a warning sign, not a strategy. We sit down with former Lt. Col. Karen Kwiatkowski to examine how the U.S.–Iran confrontation veered from consent to chaos in days: bungled evacuations, brittle base defenses, and a communications vacuum that can’t cover for poor planning. Karen draws a sharp line from the Iraq playbook—months of theater and “evidence”—to today’s improvisation, arguing that when leaders skip the work of persuasion, they often skip the work of preparation too. We unpack the divergence between U.S. national interests and the aims of regional allies who gain from fragmentation rather than stability. From alleged false flags to decapitation strikes that harden, not break, an adversary’s will—especially during sacred seasons—Karen explains why social cohesion, religion, and memory matter in war as much as missiles and jets. We probe the culture inside the Pentagon, where candor fades as rank rises, and how that dynamic leaves troops exposed in trailers instead of layered defenses while press briefings promise “every precaution.” The conversation gets unflinching about costs: industrial limits that can’t sustain a long fight, political timelines that breed wishful thinking, and a post-failure push for massive “rebuild” budgets that reward the very errors that caused the losses. Yet there’s a path forward. We chart a reset built on real national security—clear objectives, lawful authority, matched means, and diplomacy that lowers the premium on force. If America wants fewer funerals and fewer blank checks, it needs consent, competence, and clarity at the core of policy. If this resonated, follow the show, share it with a friend who cares about foreign policy, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway so we can keep these conversations sharp and useful.

 Download Audio. Scott interviews author and scholar Robert Pape about the insights he’s gained from his decades of extensive research into the strategic effectiveness of air power in war. Pape argues that, while modern precision bombs are remarkable at carrying out their tactical functions, they alone are not enough to win wars. And further, the obsession with tactical bombing campaigns can distract decision-makers from the political dynamics that primarily determine how wars end. Discussed on the show: Bombing to Win: Air Power and Coercion in War by Robert A. Pape The Escalation Trap Robert A. Pape is Professor of Political Science and Director of the University of Chicago Project on Security and Threats and the author of Bombing to Win: Air Power and Coercion in War. Follow him on Twitter @ProfessorPape Audio cleaned up with the Podsworth app: https://podsworth.com Use code HORTON50 for 50% off your first order at Podsworth.com to clean up your voice recordings, sound like a pro, and also support the Scott Horton Show! For more on Scott’s work: Check out The Libertarian Institute: https://www.libertarianinstitute.org Check out Scott’s other show, Provoked, with Darryl Cooper https://youtube.com/@Provoked_Show Read Scott’s books: Provoked: How Washington Started the New Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine https://amzn.to/47jMtg7 (The audiobook of Provoked is being published in sections at https://scotthortonshow.com) Enough Already: Time to End the War on Terrorism: https://amzn.to/3tgMCdw Fool’s Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan https://amzn.to/3HRufs0 Follow Scott on X @scotthortonshow And check out Scott’s full interview archives: https://scotthorton.org/all-interviews This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Incorporated https://rrbi.co Moon Does Artisan Coffee https://scotthorton.org/coffee; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom https://www.libertyclassroom.com/dap/a/?a=1616 and Dissident Media https://dissidentmedia.com You can also support Scott’s work by making a one-time or recurring donation at https://scotthorton.org/donate/https://scotthortonshow.com or https://patreon.com/scotthortonshow

 Download Audio. Scott interviews Matthew Hoh about an article he just wrote debunking the old lie, that is being pushed once again, that the Iranian government helped kill hundreds of American soldiers by supplying critical parts for armor-piercing roadside IEDs. He and Scott also discuss how insane Trump’s decision to attack Iran is. Discussed on the show: “They Are Still Lying About Iraq” (Antiwar.com) The Occupation: War and Resistance in Iraq by Patrick Cockburn “Iraq War II, Part 10: Soda Straws and EFPs” (Substack) Matthew Hoh is associate director at the Eisenhower Media Network and formerly worked for the U.S. State Department. Hoh received the Ridenhour Prize Recipient for Truth Telling in 2010. Subscribe to his Substack and follow him on Twitter @MatthewPHoh Audio cleaned up with the Podsworth app: https://podsworth.com Use code HORTON50 for 50% off your first order at Podsworth.com to clean up your voice recordings, sound like a pro, and also support the Scott Horton Show! For more on Scott’s work: Check out The Libertarian Institute: https://www.libertarianinstitute.org Check out Scott’s other show, Provoked, with Darryl Cooper https://youtube.com/@Provoked_Show Read Scott’s books: Provoked: How Washington Started the New Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine https://amzn.to/47jMtg7 (The audiobook of Provoked is being published in sections at https://scotthortonshow.com) Enough Already: Time to End the War on Terrorism: https://amzn.to/3tgMCdw Fool’s Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan https://amzn.to/3HRufs0 Follow Scott on X @scotthortonshow And check out Scott’s full interview archives: https://scotthorton.org/all-interviews This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Incorporated https://rrbi.co Moon Does Artisan Coffee https://scotthorton.org/coffee; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom https://www.libertyclassroom.com/dap/a/?a=1616 and Dissident Media https://dissidentmedia.com You can also support Scott’s work by making a one-time or recurring donation at https://scotthorton.org/donate/https://scotthortonshow.com or https://patreon.com/scotthortonshow

War rarely begins with a single decision; it grows from motives, misreads, and momentum. We sit down with Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson to map how a promised era of “no new wars” gave way to a high-stakes confrontation with Iran that could redraw the strategic landscape. He unpacks an unsettling mix of incentives—profit for well-connected investors, donor appeasement, and domestic distraction—that, layered atop alliance politics with Israel, pushed Washington onto an escalation ladder with few exit ramps. We walk through the hard realities of deterrence, from Netanyahu’s saber-rattling and nuclear ambiguity to the very real prospect of great-power entanglement. If a nuclear-armed state strikes a non-nuclear Iran, global norms shatter and condemnation surges, while Russia and China, already tightening ties to Tehran, weigh their leverage. Wilkerson explains why even “limited” nuclear use becomes a civilization-scale risk once the United States, Russia, and China—each with thousands of advanced warheads—are forced into a confrontational posture. That alone should demand humility and restraint. Beyond headlines about missiles and speeches, the logistics are grim. Iran’s layered strategy of cheap drones and rockets is designed to drain expensive Patriot and naval interceptors, opening windows for heavier strikes. Maritime chokepoints—Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb—become economic pressure valves, where selective disruption could upend oil flows, food shipments, and global trade. Quiet diesel-electric submarines operating in the acoustically favorable North Arabian Sea complicate any escort mission and raise the chance of a sudden, costly loss. And talk of U.S. ground forces? A recipe for a grinding, urban-and-mountain war that repeats the most painful lessons of Iraq and Afghanistan. We close on the long tail: how mass casualties, perceived impunity, and widening fronts unify otherwise divided communities, supercharge extremist recruitment, and tempt desperate states toward nuclear proliferation. Power isn’t just force; it’s legitimacy, alliances, and foresight. If we want stability, we have to rebuild credibility with clear aims, disciplined strategy, and diplomacy that matches the stakes. If this conversation moved you, subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a review with your biggest question about de-escalation—we’ll tackle it in a future show.

 Download Audio. Daniel Davis joined the show for a quick rundown on the war Trump just launched on Iran. He and Scott talk about what’s happened so far and where things may go from here. Discussed on the show: Daniel Davis / Deep Dive Daniel Davis did multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan during his time in the army. He is a Senior Fellow at Defense Priorities and is the author of the reports “Dereliction of Duty II: Senior Military Leaders’ Loss of Integrity Wounds Afghan War Effort” and “Go Big or Go Deep: An Analysis of Strategy Options on Afghanistan.” Find him on Twitter @DanielLDavis1and subscribe to his YouTube Channel.  Audio cleaned up with the Podsworth app: https://podsworth.com Use code HORTON50 for 50% off your first order at Podsworth.com to clean up your voice recordings, sound like a pro, and also support the Scott Horton Show! For more on Scott’s work: Check out The Libertarian Institute: https://www.libertarianinstitute.org Check out Scott’s other show, Provoked, with Darryl Cooper https://youtube.com/@Provoked_Show Read Scott’s books: Provoked: How Washington Started the New Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine https://amzn.to/47jMtg7 (The audiobook of Provoked is being published in sections at https://scotthortonshow.com) Enough Already: Time to End the War on Terrorism: https://amzn.to/3tgMCdw Fool’s Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan https://amzn.to/3HRufs0 Follow Scott on X @scotthortonshow And check out Scott’s full interview archives: https://scotthorton.org/all-interviews This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Incorporated https://rrbi.co Moon Does Artisan Coffee https://scotthorton.org/coffee; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom https://www.libertyclassroom.com/dap/a/?a=1616 and Dissident Media https://dissidentmedia.com You can also support Scott’s work by making a one-time or recurring donation at https://scotthorton.org/donate/https://scotthortonshow.com or https://patreon.com/scotthortonshow

 Download Audio. Scott interviews Andy Schoonover, the CEO of CrowdHealth, about the business he started to offer an alternative to our terrible government-warped healthcare market. Discussed on the show: CrowdHealth “Bitter Pill: Why Medical Bills Are Killing Us” (Time Magazine) Andy Schoonover is the Founder and CEO of CrowdHealth.  Audio cleaned up with the Podsworth app: https://podsworth.com Use code HORTON50 for 50% off your first order at Podsworth.com to clean up your voice recordings, sound like a pro, and also support the Scott Horton Show! For more on Scott’s work: Check out The Libertarian Institute: https://www.libertarianinstitute.org Check out Scott’s other show, Provoked, with Darryl Cooper https://youtube.com/@Provoked_Show Read Scott’s books: Provoked: How Washington Started the New Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine https://amzn.to/47jMtg7 (The audiobook of Provoked is being published in sections at https://scotthortonshow.com) Enough Already: Time to End the War on Terrorism: https://amzn.to/3tgMCdw Fool’s Errand: Time to End the War in Afghanistan https://amzn.to/3HRufs0 Follow Scott on X @scotthortonshow And check out Scott’s full interview archives: https://scotthorton.org/all-interviews This episode of the Scott Horton Show is sponsored by: Roberts and Roberts Brokerage Incorporated https://rrbi.co Moon Does Artisan Coffee https://scotthorton.org/coffee; Tom Woods’ Liberty Classroom https://www.libertyclassroom.com/dap/a/?a=1616 and Dissident Media https://dissidentmedia.com You can also support Scott’s work by making a one-time or recurring donation at https://scotthorton.org/donate/https://scotthortonshow.com or https://patreon.com/scotthortonshow