Rational Security is a weekly roundtable podcast featuring Shane Harris of the Washington Post and Susan Hennessey, Tamara Cofman Wittes and Benjamin Wittes of the Brookings Institution. It’s a lively and irreverent discussion of news, ideas, foreign policy, and law. There’s always a laugh. Sometimes there’s even scotch. You can subscribe here or on iTunes.
Latest in Rational Security
It’s our last episode—at least in our current form. We’ll reminisce about our favorite moments, hear from longtime friends and listeners, and share in a final Object Lesson.
Ben shares some scotch.
Shane remembers an old recorder.
Historic protests rock Cuba. The ripple effects of an assassination linger in Haiti. And a former president warns the consequences of withdrawal from Afghanistan will be “unbelievably bad.”
Ben is on his way to Vichy French citizenship.
Tamara reminds you to renew your passport early.
At long last, the Director of National Intelligence releases its findings about UFOs. The Trump Organization and its chief financial officers are accused of a 15-year tax fraud scheme. And Russian hackers are at it again, this time launching possibly the largest ransomware attack as well as a strike against the Republican National Committee.
This week for Object Lessons, the gang has a big announcement.
The Egyptian government may have assisted a Saudi hit team in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a new investigation finds. Congress debates repealing an authorization for “forever war.” And a judge narrows the lawsuits filed over the clearing of Lafayette Square before a Trump photo op.
World leaders convene in Cornwall and Brussels as President Biden makes his first official trip abroad. Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin have a face-to-face meeting in Geneva. And leak investigations aplenty have ensnared journalists, former officials and members of Congress.
Bibi Netanyahu may be out of a job. Alleged drug lords and contract killers thought they were using a secure messaging app but WOOPS, they were talking to the cops. And there’s no evidence it's aliens, but the USG doesn’t know WTF is flying around in our airspace.
Violence escalates in Afghanistan as U.S. troops withdraw. President Biden directs intelligence agencies to look for more evidence that a lab leak may have started the covid pandemic. And a ransomware attack targets the world’s largest beef processor. Plus, special guest Madiha Afzal of the Brookings Institution joins the gang.
The prosecutor in the Trump criminal probe convenes a grand jury to hear evidence and weigh potential charges. The skyjacking of a commercial airliner over Belarus sparks international condemnation. And a former Saudi intelligence official could spill classified information in a U.S. court.
Fighting intensifies in Israel and Gaza as President Biden pleads for a cease fire. Lawmakers debate setting up a commission to investigate the Jan. 6 attack. And a New York state investigation of the Trump Organization is now exploring potential criminal conduct.
Tamara is inspired by the cicadas.
The death toll rises in Israel and Gaza as a historic wave of violence enters its third day. A ransomware attack leads to the shutdown of a major gas pipeline in the U.S. And the GOP identity crisis enters its latest phase.
Plus, a very special Object Lesson from the whole gang.