The “Shameless Self Promotion” Edition

Rational Security

This week, Alan, Quinta and Scott were joined by Allies host and Lawfare associate editor Bryce Klehm! Together they talked through the week's big national security news stories, including:

• "Remember the ‘90s?” Nine months have passed since the Taliban seized power in Kabul, and its promises of a more moderate rule than the harsh theocracy it oversaw in the 1990s are increasingly ringing hollow. Just this past week, the Taliban issued a new edict directing women and girls to cover everything but their eyes while in public and discouraging them from leaving their homes. Is there any chance of the Taliban changing tack? And how should the United States and others engage with them?
• “A Shooting in Buffalo.” An 18-year-old shooter who targeted and killed black shoppers at a supermarket this past week appears to have been radicalized online by a version of “replacement theory,” which has been echoed in rhetoric by mainstream right-wing political figures ranging from Tucker Carlson to Elise Stefanik. How should platforms and policymakers combat such radicalization to prevent more violence?
• “It’s Coming from Inside the House.” The Jan. 6 committee took a dramatic step earlier this week when it issued subpoenas to five House Republicans who had refused to voluntarily participate with its investigation, including minority leader Kevin McCarthy. Why did the committee take this step now? And what are the odds it will lead these members to cooperate?

For object lessons, Alan endorsed Emily St. John Mandel's newest piece of sci-fi literature, "Sea of Tranquility." Quinta celebrated the miraculous recovery of her house plant. Scott encouraged listeners to check out an overlooked and underappreciated chapter in the Muppets' oeuvre, the 2015 adult sitcom "The Muppets." And Bryce recommended an old television show folks might not have heard of called "The Sopranos" for some insight into mafia-style management.

And everyone encouraged listeners to check out the newest podcast series from Lawfare and Goat Rodeo, Allies, which does a deep dive into how the decade-long failure of the Afghan Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program led the United States to leave so many allies behind following its withdrawal from Afghanistan. The first two episodes are out: subscribe today and leave us a positive review!

Be sure to visit our show page at www.lawfareblog.com and to follow us on Twitter at @RatlSecurity.

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