The Strategerist

Our next guest on The Strategerist is leading economist and Harvard Professor, Jason Furman. He served 8 years as an economic advisor in the Obama administration, notably as the President’s chief economist, the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors. He currently contributes to the New York Times’ Opinion section, and has edited several books alongside his teaching and research activities.

On this episode of The Strategerist, hosts Andrew Kaufmann and Natalie Gonnella-Platts are joined by Rebecca Blumenstein, Diana Kapp, and Mursal Rahim to discuss "The Last Free Women." The book follows the harrowing 2021 rescue and subsequent American adaptation of four young Afghan women -- Marwa, Mursal, Maryam, and Samira -- following the fall of Kabul to the Taliban. The authors and Mursal discussed the book and the rollercoaster ride of women's rights in Afghanistan. Rebecca Blumenstein is the President of Editorial at NBC News, and was previously at the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. She has won numerous awards for her journalism, including a Pulitzer Prize and an Emmy Award. Diana Kapp is a journalist who has written extensively about women and girls in today’s culture, specifically in the northern regions of Afghanistan. She has authored 3 books, including The Last Free Women. Mursal Rahim is a policy and legal professional from Afghanistan who specializes in refugee resettlement. She graduated from Cornell University with her Master of Public Administration, and regularly speaks on the challenges faced by Afghan women.

The Strategerist recently hosted Reggie Dickson, a man who dedicated nearly three decades to the United States Air force. For nineteen of those years, he served as a flight attendant entrusted with the care and safety of the nation's highest leaders — supporting two Vice Presidents and three Presidents of the United States.

The next guest on The Strategerist is Chris Meek, co-founder of SoldierStrong, a nonprofit he created in the aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attacks. Chris is also a 2018 Stand-To Veteran Leadership Program scholar, and more recently, a filmmaker. He joined us to discuss what it was like being in New York on 9/11, how he leads SoldierStrong, and his documentary, 'The Heroism and Resiliency of 9/11” hopes to transform “never forget” to “we remember.”

The Strategerist welcomed Ari Fleischer, former White House press secretary. He was the primary spokesperson for President Bush and delivered the daily White House press briefings from 2001 to 2003. In his almost four years working for President Bush, Ari served as spokesperson during the historic presidential recount, September 11th, two wars, and the anthrax attack. He’s currently a best-selling author, president of his own firm, and Fox News Contributor.