On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and John Gay offered their reactions to the Trump Administration's new 2025 National Security Strategy (https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2025-National-Security-Strategy.pdf). In this conversation, A.J. and John discussed the strategy's recommendations as they relate to (or conflict with) realism and restraint, whether this is still a primacist strategy, and how the strategy compares and contrasts with prior administrations' strategy documents.
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In this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and John Gay spoke with Sahar Khan, an independent national security analyst who focuses on nonproliferation, strategic stability, counterterrorism, and crisis management in Southern Asia. Previously, Dr. Khan was the Deputy Director and Senior Fellow of South Asia at the Stimson Center, a Research Fellow in the Defense and Foreign Policy Department at the Cato Institute, and Managing Editor of Inkstick Media. Our conversation discussed regional dynamics and U.S. interests in South Asia, as well as South Asian nuclear programs.
Listener Questions:
We are opening up Security Dilemma to listener-submitted questions. Submit questions you'd like us to ask future guests here, or at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1ouD8WAp0g_HhqLtGm4kOmqTGsJpDbaKT7CSUN3ogFrk/edit. Please specify the episode pertaining to the question in your response. Upcoming recordings include:
In this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and John Gay spoke with Dr. Sumantra Maitra about what an "America First" nuclear strategy might look like. Dr. Maitra is the Director of Research and Outreach at the American Ideas Institute and a Senior Fellow at the Center for Renewing America. He is also the author of The Sources of Russian Aggression. You can check out his article on the contours of an "America First" nuclear strategy here: https://americanaffairsjournal.org/2025/11/exploring-the-contours-of-an-america-first-nuclear-strategy/.
Listener Questions:
We are opening up Security Dilemma to listener-submitted questions. Submit questions you'd like us to ask future guests here, or at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1ouD8WAp0g_HhqLtGm4kOmqTGsJpDbaKT7CSUN3ogFrk/edit. Please specify the episode pertaining to the question in your response. Upcoming recordings include:
In this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and John Gay spoke with Mariya Grinberg about her new book Trade in War: Economic Cooperation Across Enemy Lines (https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501782442/trade-in-war/), why states may trade with their adversaries during wartime, and the relationship between economic interdependence and conflict.
Dr Grinberg is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at MIT. Her primary research examines why states trade with their enemies, investigating the product level and temporal variation in wartime commercial policies of states vis-a-vis enemy belligerents. Her broader research interests center on the question of how time and uncertainty shape the strategic decisions of states, focusing on order formation, military planning, and questions of state sovereignty.
Listener Questions:
We are opening up Security Dilemma to listener-submitted questions. Submit questions you'd like us to ask future guests here, or at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1ouD8WAp0g_HhqLtGm4kOmqTGsJpDbaKT7CSUN3ogFrk/edit. Please specify the episode pertaining to the question in your response. Upcoming recordings include:
In this week's edition of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and John Gay spoke with William Hartung and Ben Freeman of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft about their new book The Trillion Dollar War Machine: How Runaway Military Spending Drives America into Foreign Wars and Bankrupts Us at Home.
You can buy the book here: https://www.amazon.com/Trillion-Dollar-War-Machine-Bankrupts/dp/1645030636
Listener Questions:
We are opening up Security Dilemma to listener-submitted questions. Submit questions you'd like us to ask future guests here, or at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1ouD8WAp0g_HhqLtGm4kOmqTGsJpDbaKT7CSUN3ogFrk/edit. Please specify the episode pertaining to the question in your response. Upcoming recordings include:
On this special Armistice Day/Veterans Day episode of Security Dilemma, the Society's John Gay, Scott McCann, and Julie Thompson-Gomez discussed their experience as part of the Society's Strategic Leaders Fellowship study trip to World War I sites in France, as well as what lessons the First World War has for contemporary statecraft.
Listeners can learn more about the Strategic Leaders Fellowship and apply for the program when the application comes out later this year here: https://jqas.org/the-strategic-leaders-fellowship/.
Listener Questions:
We are opening up Security Dilemma to listener-submitted questions. Submit questions you'd like us to ask future guests here, or at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1ouD8WAp0g_HhqLtGm4kOmqTGsJpDbaKT7CSUN3ogFrk/edit. Please specify the episode pertaining to the question in your response. Upcoming recordings include:
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and John Gay spoke with Lyle Goldstein of Defense Priorities and the Watson Institute at Brown University about his recent paper series "Target Taiwan," which argues that a U.S.-China conflict over Taiwan could be costlier and less winnable for the United States than conventional wisdom assesses.
1. Prospects for a Chinese Invasion- https://www.defensepriorities.org/explainers/target-taiwan-prospects-for-a-chinese-invasion/
2. Challenges for a U.S. Intervention- https://www.defensepriorities.org/explainers/target-taiwan-challenges-for-a-us-intervention/
3. Limits of Allied Support- https://www.defensepriorities.org/explainers/target-taiwan-limits-of-allied-support/
4. One China and Cross-Strait Stability- https://www.defensepriorities.org/explainers/target-taiwan-one-china-and-cross-strait-stability/
Listener Questions:
We are opening up Security Dilemma to listener-submitted questions. Submit questions you'd like us to ask future guests here, or at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1ouD8WAp0g_HhqLtGm4kOmqTGsJpDbaKT7CSUN3ogFrk/edit. Please specify the episode pertaining to the question in your response. Upcoming recordings include:
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and John Gay spoke with Emma Ashford, a Senior Fellow at the Stimson Center's Reimagining U.S. Grand Strategy program, about her new book First Among Equals: U.S. Foreign Policy in a Multipolar World. In this episode, we discussed the new book and why realism is necessary in an era of multipolarity.
LISTENER QUESTIONS: We are opening up Security Dilemma to listener-submitted questions. Submit questions you'd like us to ask future guests here. Please specify the episode pertaining to the question in your response. Upcoming episodes include:
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and Adam Abdel-Qader spoke with Miranda Priebe, the Director of the Center for Analysis of U.S. Grand Strategy at RAND. Dr. Priebe's work has focused on grand strategy, the future of the international order, and the effects of U.S. forward presence. In this episode, we discussed the implications of a recent report from her team anticipating allies' responses to limited U.S. retrenchment.
LISTENER QUESTIONS: We are opening up Security Dilemma to listener-submitted questions. Submit questions you'd like us to ask future guests here. Please specify the episode pertaining to the question in your response. Upcoming episodes include: AMA with A.J. and John and the Pentagon budget with the Quincy Institute's Ben Freeman and William Hartung.
Check out the report here: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA739-8.html
Listener Question Submission Form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1ouD8WAp0g_HhqLtGm4kOmqTGsJpDbaKT7CSUN3ogFrk/edit
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Gay conducts a full reading of George Washington's Farewell Address, which raised concerns that listeners may find resonate today about foreign influence of U.S. foreign policy, alliance entrapment, and more. The reading is followed by a discussion with co-host A.J. Manuzzi about whether Washington's insights remain valuable in the 21st century. You can follow along and read the full speech for yourself here.
LISTENER QUESTIONS: We are opening up Security Dilemma to listener-submitted questions. Submit questions you'd like us to ask future guests here. Please specify the episode pertaining to the question in your response. Upcoming episodes include: AMA with A.J. and John, U.S. alliances and retrenchment with the RAND Corporation's Miranda Priebe, and the Pentagon budget with the Quincy Institute's Ben Freeman and William Hartung.
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and John Gay spoke with Decker Eveleth, an associate research analyst at the federally funded nonprofit research and analysis organization CNA. Decker specializes in open-source analysis of foreign nuclear postures, as well as ballistic and cruise missile forces in the Middle East and Asia. In this episode we discussed the state of Iran’s nuclear and missile programs in the aftermath of the Twelve-Day War.
LISTENER QUESTIONS: We are opening up Security Dilemma to listener-submitted questions. Submit questions you'd like us to ask future guests here. Please specify the episode pertaining to the question in your response. Upcoming episodes include: AMA with A.J. and John, a reading and discussion of George Washington's Farewell Address, U.S. alliances and retrenchment with the RAND Corporation's Miranda Priebe, and the Pentagon budget with the Quincy Institute's Ben Freeman and William Hartung.
LISTENER SURVEY: Please answer our two-question survey of Security Dilemma listeners. Respondents who provide their email address will be entered into a drawing. The first prize is a signed copy of John Mearsheimer's The Tragedy of Great Power Politics; there are also digital copies of our recent reading group book, Paul R. Pillar's Why America Misunderstands the World. Respond to the survey here.
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi spoke with John Byrnes, the Strategic Director of Concerned Veterans for America to discuss how his experiences being at Ground Zero on 9/11 and serving in America's post-9/11 wars shifted his perspective on U.S. foreign policy to a belief in realism and restraint. Mr. Byrnes joined the Marine Corps in 1991 out of high school and served four years, deployed to Somalia in 1993. He joined the New York National Guard, serving at Ground Zero after the September 11th terrorist attacks and was deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan before retiring from the National Guard in 2018.
He also has a new article out in The American Conservative, in which he discusses his foreign policy evolution and the lessons policymakers should draw from our post-9/11 wars.
LISTENER SURVEY: Please answer our two-question survey of Security Dilemma listeners. Respondents who provide their email address will be entered into a drawing. The first prize is a signed copy of John Mearsheimer's The Tragedy of Great Power Politics; there are also digital copies of our recent reading group book, Paul R. Pillar's Why America Misunderstands the World. Respond to the survey here.
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and John Gay spoke with Jonathan Guyer of the Institute for Global Affairs at Eurasia Group. Jonathan is the Program Director of IGA's flagship Independent America program, which is focused on interrogating the conventional wisdom of US foreign policy and informing the public about America’s changing role in the world. He was previously a senior foreign policy writer at Vox and managing editor of The American Prospect. Our conversation today discussed U.S. Middle East policy, the rise of Silicon Valley-based defense firms, and the "revolving door" between industry and government.
LISTENER SURVEY: Please answer our two-question survey of Security Dilemma listeners. Respondents who provide their email address will be entered into a drawing. The first prize is a signed copy of John Mearsheimer's The Tragedy of Great Power Politics; there are also digital copies of our recent reading group book, Paul R. Pillar's Why America Misunderstands the World. Respond to the survey here.
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Ted Jones, the Senior Director for National Security and International Programs at the Nuclear Energy Institute. An expert on international energy markets and nuclear trade policy, he leads initiatives related to nuclear energy exports. In addition to his work on nuclear trade policy and promotion, Mr. Jones serves as liaison to stakeholders in the nuclear policy and national security communities. Mr. Jones previously served as policy director of the U.S.-India Business Council at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. During his tenure there, he led a successful campaign to change U.S. law and international rules to admit India to the global commercial nuclear trade.
In this episode, we discussed the global nuclear supply chain, energy security, and careers with industry trade groups.
LISTENER SURVEY: Please answer our two-question survey of Security Dilemma listeners. Respondents who provide their email address will be entered into a drawing. The first prize is a signed copy of John Mearsheimer's The Tragedy of Great Power Politics; there are also digital copies of our recent reading group book, Paul R. Pillar's Why America Misunderstands the World. Respond to the survey here.
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Madison Schramm about why liberal democracies often initiate wars against dictatorships.Dr. Schramm is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Toronto and a Nonresident Senior Fellow with the Stimson Center’s Reimagining U.S. Grand Strategy Program. Her research focuses on international security, the domestic politics of foreign policy, political psychology, and gender and foreign policy. She was previously an Assistant Professor at the U.S. Army War College and is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations. In this episode, we discussed her book Why Democracies Fight Dictators, whether there is global competition between democracies and autocratic states, and threat inflation.
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Gay conducts a full reading of John Quincy Adams' July 4, 1821 "Monsters to Destroy" speech (which warned the United States against overreach abroad in the name of liberty), followed by a discussion with co-host A.J. Manuzzi about the enduring relevance of Adams' words for U.S. statecraft. You can read the full speech for yourself here.
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Dan Caldwell and Jennifer Kavanagh about their recent Defense Priorities explainer on U.S. defense posture under a grand strategy of restraint.
Dan Caldwell is a former senior adviser to the Secretary of Defense and worked on the Trump 2024 transition team. He is a veteran of the Marines and a former Capitol Hill staffer. Jennifer is a senior fellow and director of military analysis at Defense Priorities. She previously was a senior fellow in the American Statecraft Program at the Carnegie Endowment and a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation, where she directed RAND’s Army Strategy program for three years. Kavanagh’s research focuses on U.S. military strategy, force structure and defense budgeting, the defense industrial base, and U.S. military interventions.
In this conversation, we discussed how the United States can realign its defense posture with realist core national interests and objectives, and what obstacles such a realignment would face. You can read their full paper here: https://www.defensepriorities.org/explainers/aligning-global-military-posture-with-us-interests/.
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and Michelle Newby spoke with Dr. Lindsey O'Rourke, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Boston College and a Non-Resident Fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. She’s the author of Covert Regime Change: America’s Secret Cold War, which catalogues and analyses Cold War-era U.S. regime change efforts.
We discussed why American regime change efforts are often futile, take a closer look at spheres of influence as a fact of life, and examined how an American regime change war in Iran would transpire, and why it would likely fail to achieve American interests.
On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and new guest co-host Michelle Newby, Programs Director at Defense Priorities and a 2024 JQAS Strategic Leaders Fellow, spoke with Kyuri Park. Dr. Park is a Postdoctoral Fellow with the Security and Foreign Policy Initiative at the Global Research Institute and a faculty affiliate of the Public Policy Program at the College of William & Mary. She studies international security and cooperation, with a regional focus on the Asia-Pacific.
We discussed her book project on the behavior of Asia-Pacific secondary states diversify their partnerships amid U.S.-China competition and its implications for U.S. policymakers. We also discussed the future of the U.S.-South Korea alliance in the wake of the election of new President Lee Jae-myung and whether nuclear diplomacy with North Korea is viable.
Our listeners should also check out Dr. Park's new article on South Korea's strategic autonomy in The National Interest co-authored with former SD guest Dave Kang: https://nationalinterest.org/blog/korea-watch/south-korea-will-not-choose-between-the-us-and-china
On this off-cycle episode of Security Dilemma, John Gay sat down with A.J. Manuzzi to discuss Iran's 6/20 missile attacks on Israel, why deeper U.S. involvement could lead to mission creep and shifting goals, and congressional efforts to block unauthorized U.S. entry into the war.