Call Me Back - with Dan Senor

Can we be optimistic about Israel? With Yossi Klein Halevi

11 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today is a special episode in which I preview some of the questions we try to answer in our new book, The Genius of Israel: The Surprising Resilience ...

Mohamed El-Erian on B-R-I-C-S (& J-E-T-S)

07 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Mohamed El-Erian returns to the podcast to discuss the implications of the recent announcement of the expansion of BRICS, China's economy and poss...

The inner workings of an untold (Iran) deal - with Rich Goldberg

04 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Back in July, we dedicated an episode to the question of whether the U.S. was on the cusp of reaching a new deal with Iran. Or was an unofficial deal ...

A peek into a Trumpless election, or just a mirage? With Kristen Soltis Anderson

28 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Kristen Soltis Anderson is a GOP pollster, messaging strategist, and Founding Partner of Echelon Insights, an opinion research and analytics firm that...

Yevgeny Prigozhin falls from the sky

25 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Special episode with Dr. Fred Kagan on the Russia-Ukraine war (and Putin's hold on power). Fred is the Director of the Critical Threats Project at ...

Why China is studying America’s Forgotten War - with Rep. Mike Gallagher

21 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

There is a lot these days to discuss with a US official who is an expert on China and has major influence over US-China policy. But today we take a lo...

The Summer of Geopolitical Heat - with Walter Russell Mead

14 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Throughout modern history, there were major wars that were triggered by fits of inattention or inadvertence. In retrospect, these moments can seem obv...

Mike Murphy on Plan B for 2024

07 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Each national political party should be thinking about their Plan B for the 2024 presidential election. Mike Murphy returns to the podcast to discuss ...

Is Israeli society collapsing, or just growing up?

31 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

One week ago, Israel’s parliament passed the first pillar of its judicial reform package. This, despite 30 weeks of massive protests against the ref...

A techno-skeptic on the A.I. revolution - with Christine Rosen

17 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Christine Rosen is skeptical of all the techno-optimism around the coming era of artificial intelligence. In this episode, she responds to our rec...

The (Iran) deal that shall not be named - with Rich Goldberg

10 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Is the US on the cusp of reaching a new deal with Iran? Or has a deal already been hatched that nobody is talking about? To help us understand what is...

Cracks in the Kremlin? With Fred Kagan

05 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Does Putin’s hold on power now look stronger or weaker? What can we learn about where the Russia-Ukraine war is heading? And what is actually happen...

Contrarian take on the Wagner Putsch - with Richard Fontaine

26 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Last weekend, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner mercenary group, launched a rebellion, coup or putsch against Moscow. It's still hard to dis...

SELECTS: The American College Crack-Up - with Niall Ferguson

19 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In this special re-published episode, we revisit a captivating conversation that resonated deeply with our audience, offering new listeners an opportu...

"Losers Don't Come to Their College Reunions" -- with Bruce Feiler

12 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

These days there are lots of conversations about the re-shaping of the workforce as a result of the pandemic. Bruce Feiler is just out with a new bo...

Bret Stephens teaches college grads to argue!

05 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Bret Stephens, Pulitzer Prize winning columnist for The New York Times, returns for a conversation immediately following his address at the University...

Optimism, AI (and the end of homework!) - with Tyler Cowen

30 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest is surprisingly upbeat about the world. A big factor in his optimism is the revolution in artificial intelligence that we’re about ...

Highest Risk: 2025-2026 - with HR McMaster

22 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Upon graduation from the US Military Academy in 1984, HR McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the US Army for thirty-four years. He retired a...

The Invisible Primary - with Mike Murphy

08 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, we go deep on the current phase (the invisible primary) of the 2024 presidential primaries with Mike Murphy, who has worked on a numb...

How do we know if a country is a success? Israel at 75, with Daniel Gordis

01 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Items discussed in this episode"Impossible Takes Longer":https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/impossible-takes-longer-daniel-gordis/1141759170 "Netanyahu...

The *real* tensions inside Israel — with Micah Goodman

24 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Over the past 16 weeks, Israel has experienced one of the biggest protest movements since its founding. On the surface, these protests were about prop...

IRAN - pariah no more? with Mark Dubowitz

17 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today we sit down in Israel with Mark Dubowitz, who is the CEO of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD), at a time that Saudi Arabia is ...

Broken schools, newsrooms, governments & other institutions — Fixable or forever broken? with Alana Newhouse

10 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

"Brokenism", by Alana Newhouse - https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/news/articles/brokenism-alana-newhouse“The Vanishing”, by Jacob Savage - https...

"Silver Linings" in Israel's crisis? with Yaakov Katz

03 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Yaakov Katz – Editor-in-Chief of The Jerusalem Post and a former advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett – returns to our podcast. Earl...

Special Episode: Update on Israel's political crisis

28 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In this special episode we play a conversation that Dan recently had on the Commentary Magazine podcast on the current crisis, how Israel got here and...

US-China De-escalation? (& the latest on covid's origin) -- with Josh Rogin

27 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Is the US Government trying to re-engage and bring down the temperature with China? Why right now? And what about the resurgent findings on the possi...

"Did we break Iraq?" with Eli Lake

20 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Twenty years ago this past week, on March 19, 2003, the United States invaded Iraq, marking the second time the U.S. fought a war in Iraq in just over...

China Surprise: Saudi-Iranian Detente

13 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

China just announced that it had brokered a deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran to restore diplomatic relations, for the first time since they were off...

Western ideas at their best & why they're under attack - with Eric Cohen

06 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Eric Cohen is the CEO of Tikvah. He was the founder and remains editor-at-large of the New Atlantis, and he serves as the publisher of Mosaic. Eric ha...

What does Biden mean by “as long as it takes”? - with Richard Fontaine

27 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On the topic of geopolitics, international flashpoints and the state of the war, a surprisingly optimistic Richard Fontaine returns to our podcast. Ri...

Niall Ferguson: How Cold War II Turns Hot

20 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Historian Niall Ferguson returns to the podcast to look at how the current Cold War could turn hot. Niall has taught at Harvard, Cambridge, Oxford an...

Bonus Episode: Check-in on the Abraham Accords - with Aryeh Lightstone

16 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Abraham Accords were signed in September 2020. This agreement between Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, marked the first full normaliz...

Mike Murphy on the 2024 presidential primaries

13 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, we go deep on 2024 presidential primaries with Mike Murphy, who has worked on 26 gubernatorial and US Senate races across the country...

Bonus Episode: Super Bowl & Beyond - with Mike Tanenbaum

11 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Mike Tannenbaum has more than 2 decades of experience in NFL team front offices. He was an executive vice president of football operations for the Mi...

Maggie Haberman on 2024

06 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Are we actually headed for a replay of Trump vs Biden in 2024? How strong is Trump heading into the GOP primaries? Is Biden certain to be the Democrat...

US Foreign Policy in 2023 - with Congressman Mike Gallagher

30 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Congressman Mike Gallagher returns to our podcast, this time to look ahead at American foreign policy in 2023. Congressman Gallagher -- of Wisconsin's...

Our new media diets - with John Podhoretz

23 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, we break down changes in our media diets that have been changed as a result of the pandemic and the tech market boom, and what will r...

The Economy in 2023 -- with Mohamed El-Erian

16 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Is there any precedent for combating inflation that doesn’t end in recession or depression? This is one of many questions we have for Dr. Mohamed El...

Speaker McCarthy - with Matthew Continetti

09 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

“Democrats fall in love. Republicans fall in line." So said former President Bill Clinton. But it didn't seem that way last week, as House Republica...

Understanding Netanyahu’s new government - with Yaakov Katz

03 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

WIth Prime Minister Netanyahu's new government now sworn in, and also developments for Israel at the UN, Yaakov Katz – Editor-in-Chief of The Jerusa...

Special Episode: Bret Stephens on Cancel Culture

02 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

One of our regular guests – Bret Stephens, Pulitzer Prize winning columnist for The New York Times – returns for a conversation on cancel culture,...

Geopolitical threats as we enter ‘23 - with Senator Tom Cotton

26 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

U.S. Senator Tom Cotton recently announced that he would not run for president in 2024. And yet at the same time, he continues to be one of the most i...

2024: DeSantis vs Polis? -- with Yuval Levin

19 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Yuval Levin returns to the podcast. He's especially focused on whether we will have a replay of Trump vs Biden in 2024 or a new generation of leaders ...

Sleepwalking Through a Decisive Decade - with Bret Stephens

12 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

President Biden recently warned that the U.S. faces a 'decisive decade' in its rivalry with China. Are we sleepwalking through this decisive decade? T...

Unrest in China — with Matt Pottinger

05 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

From civil disobedience we have not seen in China since Tiananmen Square, to loosening zero covid policy, and leadership tightening its political grip...

Should the Democrats have won the House too? With Howard Wolfson

21 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Most of the post-midterm commentary has been focused on how the Democrats pulled off a surprise win in holding the majority in the U.S. Senate, and on...

Prime Minister Netanyahu

14 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Looking back with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on his new book, “BiBi: My Story”. Also looking forward to his next government’s approach to...

Mike Murphy on the Democrats' "Good Bad Night"

10 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, we go deep on deconstructing the mid-term results. We try to understand the implications for both parties heading into 2024. (And Mur...

Israel’s Next Government - with Yaakov Katz

04 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Yaakov Katz – Editor-in-Chief of The Jerusalem Post and a former advisor to Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett – returns to our podcast. Earl...

Special Episode: "Taking the 5th" - Scenarios for Israel's next government

01 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

We join the team at Commentary Magazine for a discussion on scenarios for Israel's next government coming out of this election (the 5th in 44 months!)...

The Economic "Trilemma" - with Mohamed El-Erian

27 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Record inflation, another wake-up call out of Beijing, a new prime minister in the UK, overhang of supply chain shocks and massive fiscal and monetary...

Karl Rove's "Crystal Ball"

20 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

With less than 3 weeks to the mid-term elections, Karl Rove joins the conversation. Karl served as Senior Advisor to President George W. Bush and Whit...

'No off ramps for Putin' - with Fred Kagan

14 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

With increasing talk about nuclear threats, we have three questions in this episode: What do we know from Putin’s past behavior that could inform h...

Cracks in Iran’s Theocracy - a view from a former CIA officer

30 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

We have all seen the images of women in cities across Iran burning their headscarves and cutting their hair in public to chants of "Death to the dicta...

BONUS EPISODE: Kol Nidrei...misunderstood - with Rabbi Meir Soloveichik

30 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, begins in a few days. Kol Nidrei, is one of the most misunderstood parts of the Jewish high holidays -- and of the e...

Putin's Panic Surge? With Richard Fontaine

22 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Vladamir Putin has announced what he called a “partial mobilization” of up to 300,000 reservists. According to reports, these reservists are basi...

Mike Murphy on the Mid-Terms (& the madness of polls)

17 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Between now and November, we will be taking a close look at the midterm election season, which -- for most voters -- is just kicking off now. If histo...

Iran, Israel & a Masterclass in US foreign policy - with Walter Russell Mead

09 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Are we getting closer to or farther away from an Iran deal? Walter Russell Mead of The Wall Street Journal has been following developments closely. I ...

The Hidden Jobs Crisis - with Nicholas Eberstadt

03 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

While the unemployment rate ticked up slightly to 3.7% in August from a low of 3.5% in July, job growth still remained well above the pre-covid trend....

Who by Fire - With Matti Friedman

18 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Matti Friedman is one of the most thoughtful writers when it comes to all matters related to Israel, on the broader Middle East, and also on trends in...

The New Deal - Iran & its nuclear program, with Mark Dubowitz

12 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What is happening right now in Vienna with the negotiations over the future of Iran’s nuclear program? What was the significance of Putin’s recent...

Zawahiri, Putin & Pelosi - with Richard Fontaine

05 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Why did Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei get such outsized attention? She’s not the first US Speaker to travel to Taiwan. Why did the killi...

The Summer of Shortages - with Scott Lincicome

28 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Air travel this summer seems broken. On some days, major airlines have been canceling 10 percent of their flights. In normal times, it’s something...

Britain's Next Prime Minister

24 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This next week will be among the most consequential in contemporary British politics. Ballots are sent out to Tory party members on August 1st, and th...

Nine Point One - with Mohamed El-Erian

14 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Inflation hit a staggering 9.1% over the last 12 months, rising 1.3% for the month of June. The increases were “broad-based,” as the Bureau of La...

“The War on Fun” with Noah Rothman

08 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Are there comparable periods in our history that can guide us through the current ‘“woke” debates? Is there precedent for this kind of thing bur...

Bonus episode: Lessons from the collapse of the Israeli Government

29 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Dan recently joined the Commentary Magazine podcast to share analysis on the current state of Israeli politics. We are posting that conversation here....

The Coming Political Crack-Up — with Mike Murphy

24 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What have we learned so far about this election cycle, and what does it tell us about what’s likely to happen in the midterm elections of 2022, and ...

Saudi Arabia, Biden & The Nobel Peace Prize – with Amb. Ron Dermer

17 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The Biden administration has announced that the President will take his first trip to the Middle East as president. His first stop will be in Israel t...

100 Days: The Tide Turns Towards Putin

11 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

After the 100-day mark of the 2022 Russian war against Ukraine. we assess some grim facts of this war, and try to understand how they should inform wh...

Revolution in Pro Sports Industry? With Jon Patricof

23 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When it comes to the future of sports and entertainment, Jon Patricof is always trying to innovate and disrupt. He’s had the added challenge of laun...

What Does Putin Want Now? - with Fred Kagan

13 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What are his objectives at this point in his war against Ukraine? And what are Ukraine’s objectives? What are US objectives? After all, the goals of...

An entrepreneur & former Naval officer on Russia/Ukraine & Global Supply Chains -- with Ami Daniel

07 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In Israel we sit down with an entrepreneur and former Naval officer, who has built a company that has had to navigate the twin crises of Russia’s in...

The Future of The Right - with Matthew Continetti

29 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Should we be surprised that there seems to be a renewed by bi-partisan consensus in response to Putin’s war? Are we back in a Cold War posture, both...

Putin’s Newly Shattered Norms - With Richard Fontaine

23 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Is Putin crossing almost every line the West did not anticipate he would cross? What does this tell us about where he might might ultimately escalate ...

That '70s Show - with John Podhoretz

15 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The 1970s were a tragedy – inflation, rising crime and crumbling cities, American humiliation abroad from the Iranian hostage crisis and the Soviet ...

A conversation with Ambassador Ron Dermer

08 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The security situation continues to deteriorate in Israel -- tragic developments, including right in the heart of Tel Aviv. We continue to monitor dev...

Paradox in US response to Russia? with Thomas Friedman of The New York Times

01 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Regardless of how or when the Russia-Ukraine war ends, is it possible to see the very early signs of a new geopolitical order taking shape? There are ...

Iran Nuclear Negotiations - The Origin Story, with Ambassador Eric Edelman

25 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

While we are all following the minute to minute developments in Russia-Ukraine, a new international deal with Iran on its nuclear program may be on th...

5 Scenarios for Russia-Ukraine -- with Richard Fontaine

18 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How could Russia-Ukraine escalate? How could it deescalate? Does Zelensky survive? Does Putin survive? Does China try to bail out Russia? On this e...

What Xi is learning from Putin's war - with Matt Pottinger

12 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As Russia has become isolated globally, a senior Russian Foreign Ministry official was asked if Moscow has anyone left in its corner, anywhere in the ...

How Putin turns this around - with Congressman Mike Gallagher

05 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Is Putin winning or losing? It looks like his war effort is not going according to plan, and that he underestimated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zele...

Fog of War - with Fred Kagan

25 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Vladimir Putin may be unpredictable, but his direction seems to be clear. That’s the view of our guest today, Fred Kagan, who is a return guest. ...

With all eyes on Putin, enter Iran — a conversation in Jerusalem

20 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Israel's "Radical" move to the political center — and lessons for the rest of us

11 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

You can order Micah's books here: Catch-67: The Left, the Right, and the Legacy of the Six-Day War:  https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/catch-67-micah...

Hollywood, China & Cold War 2, with The Wall Street Journal’s Erich Scwartzel

04 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

On this podcast, we spend a lot of time discussing the rising threat from China and Cold War 2. We’ve hosted Matt Pottinger (episode #28), Josh Rogi...

Putin-Ukraine Escalation: Lessons from an Obama Pentagon official & a NY Times columnist - with Evelyn Farkas & Bret Stephens

28 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Is it too late to deter Russia from invading Ukraine? It certainly seems that way. And while it should be obvious that it does matter, at least as far...

Anti-Semitism’s Enablers with Bret Stephens of The New York Times

21 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Anti-semitism was tragically back in the news in recent days with the hostage-taking at the Beth Israel synagogue in Colleyville, Texas. But was this ...

“Back in the USSR” with The Wall Street Journal’s Walter Russell Mead

15 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In these conversations, we’ve talked a lot about tensions on the Russia-Ukraine border. But what we haven’t talked about is whether Putin is actua...

How does a war with China start? With Admiral James Stavridis

07 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

On this podcast series, and in many other discussions and debates in think tanks and in the media, we often speculate about the likelihood of a kineti...

From Baby Boom to Baby Bust - with Nicholas Eberstadt

31 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

China is poised to pass one of the great demographic inflection points” – that’s according to the Financial Times. The inflection point the FT i...

Revisiting The New Inflation - with Mohamed El-Erian

30 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Covid-19 recession technically ended in April 2020. At two months, it was one of the shortest economic recessions in history. Since then, we have ...

Revisiting China’s Great Wall of Steel - with Matt Pottinger

28 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

This week we are re-posting some of our episodes from 2021 that are most relevant right now. We’ll start with Matt Pottinger on recent developments ...

How Omicron Stunned The Scientific Community - With Scott Gottlieb

17 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

What about Omicron has most surprised the scientific community? What does it tell us about vaccines and where we’re heading? These are among the big...

Russia: In decline or on the march? with Richard Fontaine

11 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Russia poses a threat to Ukraine, again. But what about Russian President Putin’s threat to the unity of Europe, and what do recent developments tel...

The American College Crack-Up - with Niall Ferguson

04 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In this decade we may finally experience a true crack-up in higher education. There have been comparable periods on American college campuses in the p...

Lessons for the 2020s - With Historian Niall Ferguson

26 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The first of our two-part conversation with Naill Ferguson is on applied history’s lessons of the 1920s and the 1970s...for the 2020s. Niall is a ...

Dan Senor’s New Podcast - Call Me Back

23 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Welcome to our new podcast, “Call Me Back”, where we try to zoom out from minute-to-minute news and look back to how we got here, what we can lear...

The Political Fallout from Covid19 - with Matthew Continetti

06 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The recent electoral outcomes in Virginia, New Jersey, New York City, Buffalo, Minneapolis and other areas across the country were as much to do with ...

Vaccines: A New American Success Story? — with The Wall Street Journal’s Gregory Zuckerman

30 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Have we revolutionized vaccine development? What does this mean for our lives and our health well beyond the vaccine for Covid-19? Could this kind of ...