School of War

Ep 159: Rebecca Heinrichs on the Morality of Nuclear Weapons

2024-11-1944:51

Rebecca Heinrichs, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and author of Duty to Deter: American Nuclear Deterrence and the Just War Doctrine, joins the show to make the moral argument for why the United States should modernize and grow its nuclear arsenal. ▪️ Times • 01:15 Introduction • 01:48 A net good • 04:50 Tactical nuclear weapons • 10:25 The argument of disarmament • 14:03 Cold War strategy • 19:53 Capability and will • 26:06 Downside of “no first use” • 32:03 The nuclear triad • 37:20 Russia and China • 40:56 The moral argument Watch today’s episode on YouTube @SchoolofWarPodcast Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 158: Randall Schriver and Dan Blumenthal on an Economic Strategy for China

2024-11-1248:23

Randall Schriver, Chairman of the Board at The Project 2049 Institute, and Dan Blumenthal, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, join the show to discuss a road map for economic competition—and warfare—between the U.S. and China. ▪️ Times • 01:55 Introduction • 02:30 Planning for economic warfare • 06:27 Endstate • 10:18 Leadership • 12:21 NSDD • 14:59 Starting points • 17:10 Decoupling • 20:03 Where is the stuff coming from? • 23:50 Degrading the Chinese economy • 27:33 A dream of cooperation • 32:17 Slow the growth • 36:08 Wargaming • 41:41 Protraction • 44:49 International and Congressional concerns Click the link to read the report - DEFEATING THE CCP A RUNNING START Follow along on Instagram or YouTube @SchoolofWarPodcast Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 157: Frank Cohn—Veterans Day Special

2024-11-0801:27:18

Watch this episode on YouTube. Frank Cohn joins the show to talk about his life: fleeing Hitler’s Germany, his return as a U.S. soldier tasked with hunting Nazi’s, his service in Vietnam, and more. ▪️ Times • 01:55 Introduction • 02:15 A Nazi in the classroom • 05:47 Martin and Ruth • 17:35 Leaving Germany • 19:22 New York City • 22:50 Pearl Harbor • 30:47 Back to Europe • 35:30 Nazi Hunter • 39:48 POW for a moment • 42:32 The Dutch lady • 50:40 Camps • 52:30 Crossing the Elbe • 59:20 Interrogations • 01:05:40 Paying back the country • 01:08:51 Paula • 01:14:50 Military Police and Vietnam • 01:18:40 Angus • 01:21:12 Lessons Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 156: Nicholas Eberstadt on North Koreans in Russia

2024-11-0543:45

Nicholas Eberstadt, Henry Wendt Chair in Political Economy at the American Enterprise Institute, joins the show to discuss the North Korean regime and the geopolitical impact of its decision to send troops to support Russia in Ukraine. ▪️ Times • 01:36 Introduction • 01:49 Finding North Korea • 04:00 The Sung dynasty • 09:24 Beijing and Moscow • 14:43 Kim Jong Il • 22:14 Mackinder’s World-Island • 26:29 Interconnected • 33:18 Why commit to Russia? • 36:55 Limited imaginations • 39:03 New differences Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 155: Nick Lloyd on World War I’s Eastern Front

2024-10-2955:24

Nick Lloyd, Professor of Modern Warfare in the Defence Studies at King’s College London and author of The Eastern Front: A History of the Great War, 1914-1918, joins the show to discuss the critical role of the eastern front in World War I. ▪️ Times • 01:43 Introduction • 02:09 “The soul of the war” • 04:00 Before the fighting • 05:59 War aims • 10:51 Tannenberg • 15:54 Hindenburg and Ludendorff • 19:57 Scale • 22:40 Combat • 27:14 Munitions scarcity • 32:10 Russian collapse • 36:45 Lenin returns • 40:42 Brest-Litovsk • 44:16 Proto-lebensraum • 47:20 The West • 52:30 War as a way out Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 154: Ben Noon on the U.S.-China Chip Wars

2024-10-2230:30

Ben Noon of the Vandenberg Coalition writes about US-China rivalry and geopolitics. He joins the show to discuss the critical fight for semiconductor dominance. ▪️ Times • 01:38 Introduction • 02:15 Semiconductors • 05:49 Legacy and advanced chips • 09:47 China’s chip script • 14:21 What’s the big deal? • 19:20 Trade policy • 25:11 Containment • 28:10 Ratcheting up tensions Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 153: Scott Hartwig on the Battle of Antietam

2024-10-1801:17:05

Scott Hartwig, author ofI Dread the Thought of the Place: The Battle of Antietam and the End of the Maryland Campaign, joins the show to discuss the single bloodiest day in American military history, the Battle of Antietam. ▪️ Times • 01:46 Introduction • 02:19 Why Antietam? • 09:09 Sourcing history • 12:45 Limited to total war • 21:24 McClellan • 28:00 Lee in Maryland • 34:57 Geography • 46:20 South Mountain to Antietam • 55:49 The fighting • 01:02:12 Mass and maneuver • 01:04:44 Lee escapes Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 152: Jacqueline Deal on China’s Strategy

2024-10-1541:52

Jacqueline Deal, President and CEO of the Long Term Strategy Group and recently the author of the article Competing against Ourselves: How U.S. Policy Strengthens China, joins the show to discuss U.S.-China competition. ▪️ Times • 01:15 Introduction • 01:53 Net assessment • 04:32 China’s view • 08:20 Is entanglement the goal? • 14:34 Changing the global balance • 21:45 Communism • 25:47 “Their own worst enemy” • 30:12 CCP & manipulation • 35:06 Weaponized supply chains • 39:12 Getting their attention Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 151: Nicholas Morton on the Crusades

2024-10-1152:06

Nicholas Morton, Senior Lecturer in History, Nottingham Trent University and author of The Crusader States and their Neighbours: A Military History, 1099-1187, joins the show to discuss the Crusades. ▪️ Times • 01:25 Introduction • 02:21 What were the Crusades? • 07:30 Franks and Turks • 09:57 Combat • 14:01 50/50 • 19:48 Sieges • 23:47 Others • 31:31 Seljuks • 36:50 Crusader States • 41:28 Why did they fail? • 45:19 Continuity and complexity • 49:45 Fluidity Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 150: Katherine Kuzminski on the Draft

2024-10-0846:02

Katherine Kuzminski, Director of the Military, Veterans, and Society Program at CNAS, joins the show to discuss recruiting and mass mobilization in the event of war. ▪️ Times • 01:33 Introduction • 02:08 Why worry about mobilization? • 03:54 Meeting the threshold • 06:58 Low yield • 11:37 A loss of identity • 15:42 Aging up • 21:38 The Russian model • 23:55 Israeli lessons • 26:38 Working with what we have • 32:05 Infantry concerns • 35:05 Women in the draft • 39:12 Deterrent value • 41:20 Sustaining industry • 43:45 An “I” society Back to the Drafting Board Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 149: Mark Dubowitz on the Iran-Israel War

2024-10-0137:14

Mark Dubowitz, chief executive of Foundation for Defense of Democracies, joins the show to help us understand breaking developments in the war between Israel, Iran, and Iran’s regional proxies. ▪️ Times • 01:41 Introduction • 02:24 Iran’s missile attack • 03:56 Iranian intentions • 06:34 Options • 11:27 Iranian concerns • 14:59 Ring of fire • 19:10 Near term calculus • 23:49 Regime change • 28:52 Reagan strategy • 32:55 A “good” deal Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 148: Alex Miller on Battlefield Technology

2024-10-0141:26

Alex Miller, Senior Advisor for Science and Technology and the CTO to the Chief of Staff of the Army, joins the show to talk about how we are preparing to fight on the battlefields of the future—which are here today. ▪️ Times • 01:17 Introduction • 01:32 CTO • 04:48 Scale/E.W./drones • 09:06 How we buy • 13:07 Transforming in Contact • 18:15 Electronic warfare • 22:37 Defensive spectrum • 25:20 An invisible world • 28:12 Drone warfare • 35:05 Humans and machines • 37:49 What does the Army need? Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 147: Frank Ledwidge on War in Space

2024-09-2753:17

Frank Ledwidge, Senior Fellow in Air Power and International Security at the Royal Air Force College and author of Aerial Warfare: The Battle for the Skies, joins the show to talk about warfare’s next frontier, space. ▪️ Times • 01:40 Introduction • 03:24 Thinking about space • 09:09 More than a conduit • 14:15 ASAT • 19:55 Space domain awareness • 26:20 Directed energy and nuclear weapons • 31:16 Congested/competitive/contested • 39:44 36,000 earths • 42:15 Commercial incentives • 45:05 Who has the advantage? Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 146: Eric Edelman and Thomas Mahnken on America’s Defense Strategy Crisis

2024-09-2445:18

Eric Edelman and Thomas Mahnken of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments join the show to talk about what our defense establishment has gotten right, and wrong, in planning for the next war. ▪️ Times • 02:10 Introduction • 02:43 National Defense Strategy • 06:58 Continuity between administrations • 08:55 Multiple theater force construct • 17:31 “A flawed net assessment” • 28:30 An imbalance of power • 34:46 Favoring the defense • 38:42 Resources and cost Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 145: Christopher Lynch on Machiavelli at War

2024-09-2048:19

Christopher Lynch, Professor of Political Science at Missouri State University and author of Machiavelli on War, joins the show to talk about renaissance warfare and Niccolò Machiavelli. ▪️ Times • 01:20 Introduction • 01:56 Machiavelli’s world • 03:52 French invasion • 07:08 Republicanism • 13:42 Mercenary armies • 22:50 Time in office • 27:30 Battle • 33:17 Resurrecting Rome and Greece • 38:00 Catastrophic endings • 41:31 Exile and writings • 45:54 Good guy or bad guy? Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 144: Mark Montgomery on Defending Taiwan (Boiling Moat #2)

2024-09-1754:48

Mark Montgomery, senior director of the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation at FDD and contributor to The Boiling Moat: Urgent Steps to Defend Taiwan, joins the show to talk about Taiwan, tensions in the South China Sea, and more. ▪️ Times • 01:27 Introduction • 02:00 Why the Navy? • 04:05 PACOM • 06:53 Working with Senator McCain • 10:51 Resource prioritization • 15:19 Shortsighted decisions • 19:56 Sink China’s Navy • 25:30 Is Taiwan ready? • 30:35 Imitate Estonia • 33:31 Sensor complexes • 37:26 Missile defense • 43:30 Nuclear escalation Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 143: Sabin Howard on WWI, Art, and Honoring Veterans

2024-09-1358:38

Sabin Howard, sculptor of A Soldier’s Journey, the central feature of the new World War I Memorial in Washington, DC, joins the show to talk about his work and the art of memorializing war and honoring veterans. ▪️ Times • 01:50 Introduction • 02:07 Becoming an artist • 07:03 Spiritually classical • 10:04 WWI • 14:24 Getting it right • 18:35 Daughter and father • 21:37 The ordeal • 25:00 The charging man • 28:18 Modern methods • 33:52 Aftermath • 41:11 Return • 51:00 Excite and engage Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 142: Andrew Roberts Debunks Darryl Cooper on Winston Churchill

2024-09-1029:29

Andrew Roberts, author of Churchill: Walking with Destiny, joins the show to give his thoughts on Tucker Carlson’s controversial guest Darryl Cooper. ▪️ Times • 01:25 Introduction • 02:34 Churchill the villain • 05:20 Pat Buchanan • 08:57 Dragging America into war • 14:50 Barbarossa • 20:06 “Mr. Cooper simply can’t have read Mein Kampf…” • 21:37 Terror bombings • 24:19 Dog whistles • 26:11 Founding mythology Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 141: Matt Pottinger on the Defense of Taiwan (Boiling Moat #1)

2024-09-0343:19

Matt Pottinger, distinguished visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution, Chairman of FDD’s China Program, and author of The Boiling Moat: Urgent Steps to Defend Taiwan, joins the show to talk about how a war over Taiwan might start and how it may be prevented. ▪️ Times • 01:13 Introduction • 03:11 The Boiling Moat • 04:54 Is Xi serious? • 11:35 How to deter China • 17:40 Out with the old, in with the new • 24:30 Mapping the scenarios • 30:14 No such thing as an accidental war • 35:44 A cognitive trap • 39:22 Left with no choice Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Ep 140: Roger Wicker on Defense Spending and Peace through Strength

2024-08-2724:26

Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi, ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, joins the show to discuss his plan to spend five percent of America’s GDP on defense. Click the link to read more Peace through Strength: A Generational Investment in the U.S. Military ▪️ Times • 01:31 Introduction • 01:40 Service years • 04:39 3% vs 5% • 9:00 Peace through Strength • 12:50 More money, more problems? • 16:40 “Let’s get some more shipyards…” • 19:37 Modernizing the nuclear arsenal • 23:14 Force Design 2030 Follow along on Instagram Find a transcript of today’s episode on our School of War Substack

Saba Qamar

Downeast Maritime

Jeremy Cartwright

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Saba Qamar

Downeast Maritime

Jeremy Cartwright

School of War