Claim Ownership
Change Agents with Andy Stumpf
Change Agents with Andy StumpfSubscribed: 633Played: 30,887
Subscribe
© IRONCLAD
Description
-New Episodes Every Wednesday- Find out what takes to solve some of the world's seemingly impossible problems. In each episode, SEAL Team 6 veteran and "Cleared Hot" podcast host Andy Stumpf interviews a new "agent of change" who is enacting real change to understand the scope of their work, how it can be replicated, and the unimaginable stakes of their everyday lives. An IRONCLAD Original.
145 Episodes
Reverse
On this week's episode of Change Agents, Andy sits down with award-winning journalist Mariana van Zeller, host of National Geographic’s Trafficked, to explore cartels, black markets, and human trafficking in the U.S. and abroad. Mariana discusses how cartels operate in small American towns, use domestic flights for smuggling, and recruit American citizens as distributors. She also examines the trade of Vietnamese brides into China and the broader social and economic factors that enable these crimes.
The conversation highlights the scale of drug trafficking and human exploitation and emphasizes the need for awareness and solutions that address the root causes.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared
Visit https://ammosquared.com/ today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
TacPack
Visit http://www.TacPack.com
and use code IRONCLAD at checkout to get a free $70 tactical gift
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today’s episode, Andy sits down with Bobbie Johnson, senior editor at Wired and an investigative journalist with deep experience covering technology, security, and digital culture. Bobbie unpacks a startling new investigation into how North Korea has infiltrated Western tech companies through remote work schemes.
Using fake identities, stolen documents, and AI-powered tools to breeze through coding tests and interviews, North Korean operatives have managed to secure jobs at hundreds of U.S. companies. With the help of facilitators inside the United States, these workers receive laptops, funnel salaries back to Pyongyang, and generate millions for the regime’s weapons programs. The conversation explores how these tactics threaten both national security and private industry, why they’re so hard to detect, and what steps companies can take to guard against them.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared
Visit https://ammosquared.com/ today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
TacPack
Visit http://www.TacPack.com
and use code IRONCLAD at checkout to get a free $70 tactical gift
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today’s episode, Andy sits down with Steven Dudley, an investigative journalist and expert on Latin American organized crime. Steven is the founder of InSight Crime, a leading organization dedicated to studying and reporting on criminal networks in the region. They discuss the structure and operations of cartels, recent U.S. maritime drug enforcement actions, and the use of terrorism designations in policy. Steven highlights the potential impact of these operations on international relations, particularly with countries like Venezuela, and shares insights into the challenges of targeting decentralized criminal networks.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/change-agents-with-andy-stumpf/id1677415740
Subscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3SKmtN55V2AGbzHDo34DHI?si=5aefbba9abc844ed
Sponsors
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared
Visit https://ammosquared.com/ today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
TacPack
Visit http://www.TacPack.com
and use code IRONCLAD at checkout to get a free $70 tactical gift
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode, Andy welcomes back former CIA officer John Kiriakou for a wide-ranging conversation about intelligence and global power. They discuss Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged ties to Israeli intelligence and what those claims reveal about the overlap between private influence and state security.
The conversation then turns to the rise of the BRICS nations—Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa—and how their growing cooperation could shift the global balance. They also explore the importance of maintaining dialogue with adversaries, drawing on Trump’s meetings with Putin and Zelensky, and consider possible scenarios for Russia’s political future beyond Putin.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared
Visit https://ammosquared.com/ today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
TacPack
Visit http://www.TacPack.com
and use code IRONCLAD at checkout to get a free $70 tactical gift
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode , Andy talks with Jack Barsky, a former KGB spy, who lived undercover in the United States during the Cold War. Barsky details how the Soviet Union recruited and trained him, the high-stakes challenges of creating a new American identity, and the constant pressure of balancing a normal life with espionage.
He recounts the dramatic moment the FBI caught up with him, the tactics he used to escape the KGB’s grip, and what his story reveals about the hidden world of Russian intelligence.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared
Visit https://ammosquared.com/ today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this week's episode, Andy talks with Glenn Chafetz, former CIA analyst and expert on strategic culture and national security. They discuss the evolution of nuclear weapons policy, the role of trust and treaties in international relations, and how changing global alliances are affecting stability. Glenn draws on his experience to provide context on nuclear proliferation and its implications for the future of global security.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared
Visit https://ammosquared.com/ today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today’s episode, Andy speaks with national security expert Nicholas Eftimiades about the recent arrest of two Chinese nationals charged with acting as unregistered agents of China’s Ministry of State Security. The pair allegedly targeted U.S. Navy personnel and gathered intelligence on military sites across multiple states. Drawing from decades of experience in the CIA, DIA, and State Department, Eftimiades explains how China’s intelligence operations function, why the U.S. military is a key focus, and what this case signals about the broader landscape of Chinese espionage efforts inside the United States.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared (don’t put it on Youtube, megaphone only)
Visit https://ammosquared.com/ today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today’s episode, Andy talks with Cory Gautereaux—Army veteran and founder of The G.O.A.T. Initiative—about what he’s uncovered along remote sections of the southern border. From finding discarded passports from countries like China and Venezuela, to accessing a smuggler’s Chinese phone, to identifying stretches of the border that remain completely unguarded, Cory shares raw details from the ground.
To find out more about the GOAT Initiative, visit:
https://thegoatinitiative.org/
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared
Visit https://ammosquared.com/ today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this week's episode, Andy sits down with Mark Dubowitz, CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a leading expert on Iran sanctions and U.S. foreign policy. Dubowitz has advised multiple U.S. administrations and lawmakers on strategies to counter Iran’s nuclear ambitions and regional activities. The conversation covers the evolution of U.S.-Iran relations, the effectiveness and limitations of sanctions, and the impact of domestic political divisions on international strategy. Dubowitz also examines the importance of historical context and discusses the potential role of supporting internal dissent within Iran as part of a broader policy approach.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared
Visit https://ammosquared.com/ today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today’s episode, Andy sits down with former CIA analyst Michael Shurkin to explore the agency’s post-9/11 focus on Africa and the emergence of jihadist movements in the Sahel. They unpack the rise of Al-Qaeda–linked groups in Mali, the regional dynamics that fueled instability, and how external actors like France and Russia shaped the conflict. The conversation highlights the day-to-day realities of intelligence work, the strategic blind spots of U.S. foreign policy, and why what’s happening in Africa could have consequences far beyond the continent.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors: Firecracker FarmUse code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared Visit https://ammosquared.com/ today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today's episode, Andy is joined by Bill Roggio—senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and editor of The Long War Journal—for a wide-ranging conversation on national security, starting with the complexities of firearm ownership in the U.S. and shifting into an in-depth analysis of the global jihadist threat. They trace the evolution of groups like the Taliban and al-Qaeda, examining how these networks have resurged in the wake of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. The discussion dives into U.S. military strategy, missteps in the War on Terror, and the enduring ideological mindset of jihadist fighters. Together, they unpack what went wrong, what the media often overlooks, and why public awareness of these threats is more important than ever.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared
Visit https://ammosquared.com/ today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today’s episode, Andy sits down with geopolitical strategist and author Peter Zeihan, founder of Zeihan on Geopolitics. They discuss Taiwan’s role in the global semiconductor supply chain and its relationship with China. The conversation covers the challenges the U.S. faces in reshoring manufacturing, China’s demographic trends, and the potential consequences of a military conflict over Taiwan. They also address issues related to AI development, global food security, and the need for investment in U.S. industrial and energy infrastructure.
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
AmmoSquared
Visit AmmoSquared.com today for a special offer and keep yourself fully stocked. With over 100,000 members and thousands of 5-star ratings, Your readiness is their mission.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today’s episode, Andy sits down with former CIA officer John Kiriakou to discuss his path into the Agency, the unconventional recruitment process, and his firsthand experience with enhanced interrogation and rendition operations. Kiriakou shares the moral and ethical dilemmas he faced, what ultimately led him to speak out, and the personal consequences of becoming a whistleblower. The conversation also explores the political environment during the Bush administration, the evolution of U.S. counterterrorism strategies after 9/11, and Kiriakou’s perspective on the current crisis in Gaza and the broader implications of American foreign policy.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original Sponsors: Firecracker FarmUse code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today's episode, Andy welcomes back investigative journalist Nick Bryant to examine the government’s refusal to release key information in the Jeffrey Epstein case. They discuss the broader implications of sealed files, political blackmail, and institutional silence, as well as the media’s selective coverage of the story.
Bryant highlights the alarming scale of trafficking in the United States and shares the story of Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s most well-known victims.
Today, he serves as the Director of the organization Epstein Justice, which seeks justice for the victims of Jeffrey Epstein and advocates for systemic reform and transparency.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today’s episode, Andy sits down with retired Green Beret and former Lieutenant Colonel Scott Mann, who served over 20 years in Army Special Forces conducting missions across Afghanistan, Iraq, and Latin America. After retiring, Scott founded The Hero’s Journey and became a leading advocate for veterans’ transition through storytelling.
He and Andy discuss the origins of Operation Pineapple Express, a grassroots effort led by veterans to evacuate Afghan allies when official channels failed. They explore the lasting effects of trauma, the challenges of reintegration, and why veterans are often forced to lead long after their service ends.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors: Firecracker FarmUse code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1On today’s episode, Andy is joined by Mike Rowe, television host, narrator, and founder of the Mike RoweWORKS Foundation. Best known for his show Dirty Jobs, Mike has spent years spotlighting the essential workers who keep the country running and advocating for the skilled trades through scholarships and public outreach.
In this conversation, Mike talks about the growing labor shortage in America and the cultural shift that led to the decline in respect for hands-on work. He and Andy explore how education, media, and policy have steered young people away from trades, the consequences of that shift, and what it will take to reverse the trend.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today's episode, Andy sits down with Sarah Adams, a former CIA targeter, to discuss her journey from academia to the frontlines of counterterrorism. They unpack the complexities of intelligence work, the shifting dynamics of the Syrian conflict, and the influence of Iran and Russia in destabilizing the region. Sarah shares an unfiltered view on the current failures in intelligence gathering, the resurgence of terrorist threats like Al-Qaeda and ISIS, and the critical role local law enforcement must play in safeguarding American communities.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
MTNTOUGH
Go to https://mtntough.com and enter code CHANGEAGENTS to receive 40% OFF - a savings of about $100 off your MTNTOUGH+ annual subscription.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today’s episode, Andy sits down with Thomas Drake—a former senior executive at the NSA, Air Force veteran, software expert, whistleblower.
While at the NSA, Drake exposed serious issues including multi-billion-dollar fraud, intelligence failures, and a secret post-9/11 mass surveillance program. He supported the use of ThinThread, a cost-effective and privacy-protecting tool, but it was rejected in favor of Trailblazer—a more expensive program lacking privacy safeguards.
In 2005, Drake anonymously shared unclassified information about NSA misconduct with a journalist. In 2010, he was charged with 10 felony counts under the Espionage Act but the case collapsed, and he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor. That same year, he received the Ridenhour Prize for Truth-Telling.
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Watch Change Agents: Black Project, a 4 part mini series, weekly on Tuesdays or Binge all 4 episodes of now by becoming a member on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmK3k1U3D3fqPZWcnAaa-Vg/join.
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
MTNTOUGH
Go to https://mtntough.com and enter code CHANGEAGENTS to receive 40% OFF - a savings of about $100 off your MTNTOUGH+ annual subscription.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today’s episode, Andy sits down with Annie Jacobsen, a Pulitzer Prize finalist and bestselling author known for her investigative work on government secrecy, military history, and national security. They dive into the stark realities of nuclear war, the differences between atomic and thermonuclear weapons, and the consequences of nuclear escalation. Jacobsen shares her research methods, insights on government transparency, and what she’s learned from those responsible for nuclear stewardship. They also explore Area 51, military technology, and the enduring fascination with UAPs.
To read more from Annie, check out her newest novel Nuclear War
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Watch Change Agents: Black Project starting April 8th on Youtube @thisisironclad
Sponsors:
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
MTNTOUGH
Go to https://mtntough.com and enter code CHANGEAGENTS to receive 40% OFF - a savings of about $100 off your MTNTOUGH+ annual subscription.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On today’s episode, Andy sits down with Scott Payne, a former FBI agent who went undercover to infiltrate The Base, a neo-Nazi extremist group. Scott shares how he gained the trust of members, the group's structure and recruitment methods, and the challenges of maintaining his cover in a highly suspicious environment. He also discusses The Base’s ideology, its use of digital platforms for communication and propaganda, and the intelligence gathered during his operation.
To learn more about Scott's undercover work on The Base, check out his book Code Name: Pale Horse
Change Agents is an IRONCLAD Original
Coming Soon - Change Agents: Black Project
Follow @thisisironclad for updates!
Sponsors:
Firecracker Farm
Use code IRONCLAD to get 15% off your first order at https://firecracker.farm/
MTNTOUGH
Go to https://mtntough.com and enter code CHANGEAGENTS to receive 40% OFF - a savings of about $100 off your MTNTOUGH+ annual subscription.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Download from Google Play
Download from App Store
United States
Absolutely love Change Agents with Andy Stumpf! Andy’s ability to dive deep into the minds of his guests and extract such valuable insights is truly impressive. https://rigidbox-masters.podigee.io/1-new-episode