Shield of the Republic

Eric and Eliot discuss the week's jackassery, including the administration's stripping former Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall of his security clearance for innocuous comments about Trump's new Qatari-donated Air Force One. They then discuss the irresponsibility of Trump's using that aircraft to travel to a NATO summit being held adjacent to a war zone. They also cover the new diplomatic alignment among Turkey, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia in the Middle East, the changes in leadership in Iran, and the rival missile campaigns of Russia and Ukraine in their ongoing war. Frank Kendall then joins the show to discuss his new book, Lethal Autonomy: The Future of Warfare Whether We Like It or Not, and his determination not to be silenced or intimidated by the Trump administration.
Reminder: Shield of the Republic will be going independent soon! Subscribe at shieldoftherepublic.com and follow @ShieldPod on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
Lethal Autonomy: The Future of Warfare Whether We Like It or Not:
https://a.co/d/0g3rRF6s
Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.

Eric and Eliot begin with reflections on recent domestic political developments and the "horseshoe theory" uniting political extremes around isolationism and anti-Israeli sentiment. They then discuss the ongoing negotiations over the Strait of Hormuz and the difficulties the Iranian government and Trump administration have created for themselves. From there they move to the recent cyberattacks on American water systems and the seemingly blasé response by both the Trump administration and the larger public. The two also highlight Russia's ongoing hybrid war with Europe and the tightening links among Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea. They revisit the continuing degradation of Turkish democracy before wrapping up with thoughts on the recent migrant surge into the Spanish exclave of Ceuta.
Reminder: Shield of the Republic will be going independent soon! Subscribe at shieldoftherepublic.com and follow @ShieldPod on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
Congressional Budget Office Analysis of the Trump-Class Battleship:
https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2026-08/62550-battleships.pdf
CSIS Report on Low Munition Stocks:
https://www.csis.org/analysis/six-reasons-why-united-states-low-munitions
IISS Report on Russia's Hybrid War Operations:
https://www.iiss.org/research-paper/2025/08/the-scale-of-russian--sabotage-operations--against-europes-critical--infrastructure/
Garry Kasparov on the DSA:
https://open.substack.com/pub/persuasion1/p/the-dsa-is-a-menace?r=24onkh&utm_
Kathy Gilsinan on the GOP's Groyper Problem:
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2026/08/01/heritage-foundation-young-republicans-groypers-hiring-01006937
Tucker Carlson's Manifesto:
https://www.axios.com/2026/08/06/tucker-carlson-third-party-israel-trump
Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.

Eric begins with major show news before pivoting to the jackassery of the week with Eliot. They then analyze Trump's interactions with Bibi Netanyahu and Vladimir Zelensky at Lindsey Graham's funeral and discuss the ways in which the Iranian and Ukrainian wars are increasingly intertwined. The two discuss Iran's ongoing unwillingness to "take yes for an answer" as evidenced by their recent strikes across the region. Historian and Professor Robert Parkinson then joins the show to discuss his recent book Tyrants and Rogues: Understanding the Declaration of Independence. Parkinson explains his focus on the twenty-seven colonial grievances listed in the Declaration, the crown's misjudgments in attempting to address colonial discontent, and Thomas Jefferson's additional two grievances that were edited out--among other topics.
Greg Jaffe & Kate Kelly in the New York Times on Adm. Daryl Caudle:
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/26/us/politics/caudle-navy-hegseth-parlatore-promotion.html
Tyrants and Rogues: Understanding the Declaration of Independence
https://a.co/d/0bPfR7hl
Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.

Eliot returns from his trip to western Canada to review the latest jackassery with Eric. The two discuss recent developments surrounding a potential U.S.-Saudi nuclear cooperation agreement and contextualize it against the history of U.S. non-proliferation and counter-proliferation efforts. They also reflect on their personal experiences with the late Senator Lindsey Graham and examine his legacy. From there they turn to the latest updates from Ukraine, including President Zelensky's dismissal of Defense Minister Fedorov and Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi. Finally, they consider the ongoing likelihood of escalation in Iran.
Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.

Eric welcomes back friend of the show Professor Hal Brands, the Henry A. Kissinger Distinguished Professor of Global Studies at Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies. The two discuss Hal's recent work, beginning with his column in Bloomberg dissecting the key strategic errors that Trump has made in the ongoing war with Iran. Hal then breaks down his recent essay with Michael Beckley in Foreign Affairs, which examines global conflict through the lens of "heartland" and "rimland" coalitions. Finally, they turn to Hal's latest edited volume which brings together essays by a large group of scholars considering the many ways that AI may change the nature of international affairs, the conduct of war, and global order. 
Hal Brands' latest in Bloomberg:
https://www.aei.org/op-eds/trumps-iran-blunder-shows-strategy-can-defeat-firepower/
Hal Brands & Michael Beckley's latest in Foreign Affairs:
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/china/heartland-vs-rimland-beckley-brands
The Geopolitics of AI: Power, Conflict, and the Future of Global Order:
Free PDF via Johns Hopkins University Press 
Hard copy via Amazon
Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.