Fault Lines

Today, Jamil, Jess, Morgan, and Les discuss last Thursday’s general election in Pakistan. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party led by jailed former prime minister Imran Khan won 93 of the 134 simple majority seats required to form a government. This led to rival parties, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PLM-N) party to form a coalition, returning former pr...

Today, Jamil, Jess, Morgan, and Les discuss recent comments from former President Donald Trump criticizing NATO countries and their NATO commitments, as well Tucker Carlson’s recent interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin on topics ranging from the war in Ukraine to the cause of World War Two.  Should our NATO allies be spending more on their defense budgets? Should the U.S. uphold NA...

* This episode was recorded before President Zelensky dismissed Gen. Zaluzhnyi and appointed Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi to lead Ukraine’s military. * Today, Jamil, Jess, Morgan, and Les discuss recent developments in the war in Ukraine with Ukrainian President Zelensky publicly confirming on Sunday that he is considering dismissing Gen. Valerii Zaluzhnyi, head of Ukraine’s military, and David Ign...

Today, Jess, Morgan, and Les discuss recent shake-ups in West Africa. From Senegal postponing this month’s presidential election indefinitely, to Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso leaving the regional bloc ECOWAS, and the DoD backing away due to Congressional pressure from a planned training of troops from West African nations with coup governments and records of human rights abuses.  Does the U....

Today, Jamil, Jess, Morgan, and Les discuss the over 80 strikes against Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) Quds Force and several other Iranian proxy militia groups in response to the recent deaths of three Americans and the wounding of over 30 more servicemembers in Jordan.  Will these strikes deter further attacks by Iranian proxies? Is the United States at war with Iran? Does the B...

Today, Jamil, Jess, Morgan, and Les discuss Wednesday’s Special Episode - NSI on the Ground: The New Hampshire Primary- where a group of New Hampshire voters shared their thoughts and opinions on the national security and foreign policy debates shaking up America! Were New Hampshire voter’s views on U.S. engagement in the world different than Iowans? Were the Fault Lines crew surprised by any of t...

Today, on this special episode of Fault Lines, NSI’s Founder and Executive Director Jamil Jaffer interviewed New Hampshire voters on their thoughts on the national security issues and debates shaking up America. Do national security issues matter when voting?  Should the U.S. continue to support Ukraine in its war with Russia? Are we falling behind China technologically? What is the greatest...

Today, Jamil, Morgan, and Les discuss Sunday’s drone attack in Jordan by Iranian-backed militias that killed 3 U.S. servicemembers and wounded over 30 more. President Biden has vowed to respond to this attack, which was the first U.S. fatalities after months of strikes by such groups against American forces across the Middle East since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Was this attack only a matt...

Today, Les, Morgan, and John discuss the potential collapse of the bipartisan Senate deal to pair border enforcement measures and Ukraine and Israel aid after former President Donald Trump called on Republicans to reject any deal unless given everything regarding immigration. Was this deal destined to fail? What are the geostrategic implications of failure to fund aid to Ukraine? Who is ultimately...

Today, Jess, Morgan, and Les discuss Tuesday's Turkish parliament vote to approve Sweden’s membership bid to NATO, lifting a major hurdle to Sweden’s entry into the military alliance. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who previously linked his country’s support of Sweden to Turkey’s desire to buy fighter jets from the U.S., must still sign the protocol into law. Once signed, Hungary becomes...

Today, Jamil, Jess, Morgan, and Les discuss last Friday’s Special Episode - NSI on the Ground in Iowa - where average Iowans gave their thoughts and opinions on the national security and foreign policy debates shaking up America! Were the Fault Lines crew surprised at Iowan opinions on U.S. engagement in the world? Do we think that Friday’s conversations show U.S. policymakers need to more clearly...

Today, on this special episode of Fault Lines, NSI’s Founder and Executive Director Jamil Jaffer interviewed Iowan voters on their thoughts on the national security issues and debates shaking up America. Do national security issues matter when voting? Should the U.S. continue to support Ukraine in its war with Russia? How should the U.S. deal with Iran? Listen to what voters had to say about these...

Today, Jess, Morgan, and Les discuss the escalating situation in the Red Sea where the U.S. and allied forces have continued their campaign of strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen, while two U.S. Navy SEALs have gone missing while interdicting a ship in the Gulf of Aden meant to deliver weapons to the Houthis, and China and Russia voted for a UN Security Council resolution calling for the immedi...

Today, Jamil, Jess, Morgan, and Les discuss the developing situation in Guyana where on Tuesday, Venezuela’s dictator Nicholas Maduro ordered the creation of a new state dubbed “Guyana Esequiba” in the wake of the recent referendum in which Venezuelan voters overwhelmingly approved the annexation of the oil-rich land from its neighbor.  How does this impact the stability of the region? What r...

Today, Jamil, Jess, Morgan, and Les assess the current situation in the Middle East. Recent U.S. strikes in Iraq, an ultimatum against Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, and attacks from Hezbollah against Israel amid its conflict in Gaza has caused increased worry over a widening conflict in the region. Is this worry of a widening conflict justified? What role does China play in these Middle Eastern d...

Today, Jamil, Jess, and Les discuss U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s recent hospitalization and the breakdown of communication that had President Biden, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, and Secretary Austin’s own Deputy Kathleen Hicks, who was on vacation, out of the loop. Sec. Austin’s absence occurred as the U.S. and its allies gave an ultimatum to Houthi rebels, as well as condu...

Today, Les, Morgan, and Jamil discuss the recent U.S. airstrike in Baghdad, Iraq that killed commander Abu Taqwa of Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba, an Iran backed militia group. This airstrike happened during a busy week for Middle East, with the continuation of the Israel-Hamas War in Gaza, Houthi forces’ attacks on shipping vessels in the Red Sea, and the recent ISIS bombing in Iran that killed 80...

Today, Morgan, Andy, and Bishop discuss the recent attacks against shipping vessels in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen by Houthi forces. The Red Sea plays a critical role in global trade and they discuss the implications of increasing attacks for the global economy and escalation of conflict in the Middle East. They also discuss potential U.S. responses to these attacks in light of Iran’s recen...

Recorded live at the Reagan National Defense Forum, Jamil and John interview Trae Stephens, Co-Founder and Chairman of Anduril Industries, a defense technology company focused on autonomous systems. Trae is also a Partner at Founders Fund, a venture capital firm that was the first institutional investor in SpaceX and Palantir Technologies, as well as an early investor in Facebook.  What is th...

Recorded live at the Reagan National Defense Forum, Les and Jess interview Shannon Clark, Senior Vice President, Federal, R+D, at Palantir Technologies, who also previously served as the Director for Counterterrorism on the National Security Council at the White House under President Obama and as an intelligence analyst in the Department of Defense. How has the adoption of AI and other emerging te...

Recorded live at the Reagan National Defense Forum, Les and Jess interview Mara Rudman, a Member of the 2022 National Defense Commission, who also currently serves as a James Schlesinger Distinguished Professor at the Miller Center at the University of Virginia. Can the U.S. be a global leader handling all the world’s hotspots or should we only focus on China? How can we sell the benefits of globa...

Recorded live at the Reagan National Defense Forum, Jess and Les interview Secretary Leon Panetta, who previously served as the 23rd Secretary of Defense and Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Secretary Panetta is currently the Chairman of the Panetta Institute and an NSI Advisory Board member! How has American engagement with the world changed over the last decade? Does the U.S. defense...

Recorded live at the Reagan National Defense Forum, Jess and John interview Ambassador Eric Edelman, who serves as Vice Chair of the Commission on the National Defense Strategy. Previously, Edelman served as Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, Ambassador to Turkey and Finland, and lastly, and most importantly, as Jess’ professor at Johns Hopkins SAIS. How do policymakers and defense experts...

Recorded live at the Reagan National Defense Forum, Les and John interviewed Matthew Pottinger. Pottinger is the current Chairman for the China Program at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD). Previously, Pottinger served in the White House for four years, in senior roles within the National Security Council, including serving as Deputy National Security Advisor from 2019-2021. Pott...

Today, Jamil, Jess, Les, and Morgan discuss the upcoming Reagan National Defense Forum (RNDF). This forum brings together the top U.S. defense and national security leaders from across the country to discuss and debate how the U.S. can lead the world in an era of increasingly complex challenges and opportunities. During RNDF, NSI and the Fault Lines crew will be recording live, conducting a series...