Net Assessment

On this show, Melanie, Chris, and Zack consider whether the porcupine strategy that Taiwan is currently implementing is the best plan to deter or defend against China. What could Taiwan be doing better, and how can the United States and other friendly countries help? And have we learned any lessons from the situation in the Strait of Hormuz that are relevant to a Taiwan conflict? Chris laments the administration's proposed defense budget, and Melanie pans VP JD Vance for going to Hungary to campaign for Victor Orban. Zack gives a shout out to the astronauts and engineers behind Artemis II, and Melanie commends the U.S. military's successful rescue of downed pilots in Iran. 
 
Show Links:
 
Stacie Pettyjohn and Molly Campbell, "Hellscape Taiwan: A Porcupine Defense in the Drone Age," War on the Rocks, March 27, 2026.

Stacie Pettyjohn and Molly Campbell, "Hellscape for Taiwan: Rethinking Asymmetric Defense," CNAS, February 26, 2026.

Stephanie Yang, "As Taiwan steels its defenses against China, some are hatching escape plans," CNN, April 3, 2026.

Editorial, "Taiwan's self-defense paradox," Washington Post, April 5, 2026.

Raymond Kuo and Catherine Kish, "Taiwan's Will to Fight Isn't the Problem," War on the Rocks, September 5, 2025.

Alastair Gale, Japan's Tomahawk Missile Order Delayed by US Use in Iran, Bloomberg, April 3, 2026.

Gerry Doyle, "US Deploys Bulk of Stealthy Long-Range Missiles for Iran War," Bloomberg, April 4, 2026.

Phil Stewart, Idrees Ali, and Humeyra Pamuk, "How a Perilous US Rescue Mission in Iran Nearly Went Off Course," Reuters, April 7, 2026. 

Supporting Stimson

What are the goals in the US war in Iran? Is the situation in the Strait of Hormuz manageable, or is the Iranian threat to shipping a challenge that must be confronted? And can it be resolved at an acceptable cost? Melanie, Chris, and Zack, discuss the latest from the war, with a particular focus on the threat posed to international shipping in the vital waterway. Grievances for Jeremy Corbyn, and for the Trump administration's decision to remove sanctions on Russian and Iranian oil. Attas to Japanese Prime Minister Takaichii Sanae for navigating her meeting with President Trump, to a federal judge for affirming that the press has First Amendment rights, and to Sean Penn for skipping the Academy Awards ceremony. Melania also acknowledges the incredible life and career of New York Times' war reporter John Burns who passed this month.
 
Show Links:
 
Caitlin Talmadge, "The Hormuz Minefield: In the Strait, Iran Holds the Advantage—and America Has No Good Options," Foreign Affairs, March 13, 2026.

Rosemary Kelanic, "Trump Is Making Jimmy Carter's Mistake on Iran and Oil," New York Times, March 9, 2026.

Charlie Savage, "Striking Down Pentagon Press Limits, Judge Vindicates Independent Journalism," New York Times, March 20, 2026.

Michael Cohen and Christopher Preble, "The Perils of Lethality," Stimson Center, June 24, 2026

Phil Klay, "Trump Has Made a Fundamental Miscalculation about Iran," New York Times, March 22, 2026.

Eli Stokols, Ben Johansen, Jack Detsch, and Paul McLeary, "Inside the White House Plan to Sell the Iran War Online," Politico, March 18, 2026.

Alan Cowell, "John F. Burns, Prize-Winning Foreign Correspondent for The Times, Dies at 81," New York Times, March 13, 2026.

Jack Watling, "Iran's Hormuz Blockade is Its Most Powerful Card Against Trump and Israel. It Won't Back Down Easily," The Guardian, March 16, 2026.

Chris, Zack, and Melanie have a discussion about how America's allies and partners, after decades of relying on the US for security, are derisking from what they view as an increasingly unpredictable and unfriendly power. How much of their hedging is about President Trump, and how much is due to the growing clout of middle powers, world events, or other factors? What should our allies be doing to constructively protect themselves in terms of their economic and national security? And what do the reactions of world leaders to the conflict in Iran tell us about how they view their relationships with the United States?
 
Chris has a grievance for people, especially those with inside information, betting on war, Zack congratulates Congress for exercising its oversight responsibilities, and Melanie wonders what the purpose of the UN even is anymore. 
 
Show Links:
 
James M. Lindsay, "Will US Allies Succeed in Hedging Against the United States?", Council on Foreign Relations, February 18, 2026.

Shayan Sardarizadeh, X feed.

Emmanuel Macron, Speech on France's Nuclear Deterrence, March 4, 2026.

"At Last, Reasons to be Cheerful about European Tech," The Economist, March 1, 2026.

Henry J. Gomez, "Vance's anti-war posture collides with his more hawkish views on Iran," NBC News, March 3, 2026.

Chris Cook, Oliver Hawkins, Eade Hemingway and Stephanie Stacey, "Polymarket users won big with unusual bets on US attack on Iran," Financial Times, March 3, 2026

Flight 93 National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service)

Chris, Melanie, and Zack debate the wisdom of President Trump's proposal for a Golden Fleet of new American "battleships." They question the strategic logic, timelines, cost estimates, and political dynamics behind the proposal. Chris commends USA Hockey for its gold medal performance at the Olympics while Melanie questions Eileen Gu's comments there and Zack expresses appreciation for the Supreme Court's tariff decision.
 
Show Links:
 
Eli Rosenberg, "Who is US women's hockey star Megan Keller? A BC alum, and more," NBC Connecticut, February 19, 2026.

Christopher A. Preble and Celia Clark, "The Brooklyn Navy Yard revived | 12 | A defense conversion case study," 2016.

Sam Mercoliagno, X post, February 22, 2026.

Ben Jensen, "Why the Golden Fleet Will Sail," CSIS, January 9, 2026.  

Fighting Instructions, US Navy, February 9, 2026.  

Carline Downey, "Alysa Liu Is a Spunky, Gen Z National Treasure and a Force of American Athleticism," National Review, February 21, 2026.

Sean Gregory, "'I Don't Believe in Limits': How Eileen Gu Became Freestyle Skiing's Biggest Star," Time, January 22, 2026.

Trent Hone, "Why the U.S. Navy Doesn't Build Battleships Anymore," War on the Rocks, January 12, 2026.

Mark Cancian, "The Golden Fleet's Battleship Will Never Sail," CSIS, December 23, 2025.

U.S. Navy, "Webpage currently under construction," accessed February 24, 2026.

Ellen Nakashima et al., "Tulsi Gabbard's appearances at Fulton County FBI raid raises questions," Washington Post, January 30, 2026

Zack Cooper, "Asia After America," Foreign Affairs, March/April 2026

In this episode, Chris, Melanie, and Zack, discuss a recent Council on Foreign Relations special report which explores varies grand strategies, and proposes an alternative known as "Resolute Global Leadership." Is this strategy realistic? Does it accurately assess the strengths and weaknesses of alternatives? And what did the report leave out, or fail to develop adequately, to ensure that it will succeed where others failed? Grievances for what Jeff Bezos has done to the Washington Post, to the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists for their doomsday clock, and to Donald Trump for weighing in on the Japanese parliamentary elections in favor of Sanae Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party. Attas to Takaichi for her stunning and unprecedented victory, to Javier Milei for turning around Argentina's economy, and to Anduril's Palmer Luckey for admitting that the Pentagon spends too much on the wrong stuff.
 
Show Links:
 
America Revived: A Grand Strategy of Resolute Global Leadership, Council on Foreign Relations, January 2026

Monica Pitrelli and Sydney Goh, U.S. can spend billions less on defense, says Anduril Industries founder, CNBC, February 6, 2026

Benjamin Mullin, Katie Robertson and Erik Wemple, Washington Post Cuts More Than 300 Jobs, The New York Times, February 4, 2026

Commission on the National Defense Strategy

Jack Butler, "A Doomsday Crock," Wall Street Journal, February 5, 2026.