Defense Nerds Podcast
Military
Previously known as The Political Fallout Shelter, Military Times Deputy Editor Leo Shane III and Defense News Capitol Hill Bureau Chief Joe Gould introduce listeners to the stories behind the latest military happenings on Capitol Hill. Each week, they’ll bring an insider’s perspective on what the biggest headlines are, why the public should care, and what’s coming next.
Location:
United States
Description:
Previously known as The Political Fallout Shelter, Military Times Deputy Editor Leo Shane III and Defense News Capitol Hill Bureau Chief Joe Gould introduce listeners to the stories behind the latest military happenings on Capitol Hill. Each week, they’ll bring an insider’s perspective on what the biggest headlines are, why the public should care, and what’s coming next.
Twitter:
@militarytimes
Language:
English
Website:
http://www.militarytimes.com/
Email:
webdesk@sightlinemg.com
Episodes
The boys of summer have gone
9/9/2019
Leo and Joe break down Congress’ return to work this month, including the defense appropriations package (1:30) and the annual defense authorization bill (6:05). The pair also discuss President Donald Trump’s cancelled peace summit with Taliban leaders at Camp David (15:40) before fitting in some forced football/national defense talk.
Duration:00:18:44
Draft Showdown: TV Joint Chiefs
8/26/2019
Leo and Joe continue their month of fantasy draft nonsense with a contest to see who can create the best Joint Chiefs of Staff from popular television shows. Defense News Senior Pentagon Correspondent Aaron Mehta joins the hosts for the experiment, which quickly turns to conversations about space conquest and fictional war crimes.
Duration:00:23:55
Draft Showdown: U.S. aircraft
8/19/2019
Leo and Joe continue their month of fantasy draft nonsense with a contest to see who can create the best fleet of American military aircraft. Defense News air warfare reporter Valerie Insinna, who rips apart all the mistakes they made and panders to the aviation geek crowd.
Duration:00:19:15
Draft Showdown: Military movie characters
8/12/2019
Leo and Joe take a break from the news for a little summer fun, drafting a team of the best American military movie characters. They’re joined by producer Ben (Bob?) Murray as they take a trip through films like War Games and Independence Day as well as a few good ones.
Duration:00:27:06
Vacation, all I ever wanted
8/5/2019
Leo and Joe get ready for the summer congressional recess with a wrap-up of lawmakers’ last-minute work before leaving town: finalizing the new budget deal (1:05), confirming a host of defense posts (6:10) and punting the controversial nomination of Gen. John Hyten until the fall (8:40). The pair also get you ready for National Presidential Joke Day (18:00).
Duration:00:20:24
Money for nothing
7/29/2019
Leo and Joe look at the surprising two-year, $2.7 trillion budget deal (1:00) and whether it leaves House Republicans with regrets for their earlier opposition to the annual defense authorization bill (5:10). They also look at the rush of defense confirmations to end the congressional summer session (11:30) before discussing military culture mistakes in television (17:00).
Duration:00:19:26
Revvin' up your engine
7/22/2019
Leo and Joe break down Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s attack on Defense Secretary nominee Mark Esper (1:05) and what his likely confirmation means for Pentagon leadership vacancies (9:25). They also discuss Turkey’s fight with the White House over the F-35 (12:30) before worrying about the sound track for the Top Gun sequel (19:05).
Duration:00:22:21
You say potato, I say Buttigieg
7/15/2019
Leo and Joe recap the fights to come following House passage of the annual defense authorization act (1:05) and the upcoming confirmation hearing for Defense Secretary nominee Mark Esper (8:00). They also discuss Leo’s recent interview with Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg (10:15) and end with possible new names for military bases with ties to the confederacy (17:20).
Duration:00:20:28
Bombs bursting everywhere
7/1/2019
Leo and Joe recap the Senate passage of the annual defense authorization act (1:20) and the latest tensions with Iran (6:00) before breaking down the limited national security discussion in the first Democratic debates (11:30). Finally, the pair talk about what might happen at the national Fourth of July celebrations this year (18:40).
Duration:00:20:45
Meet the new boss
6/24/2019
Leo and Joe recap the sudden departure of acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan (2:00) and the timing of when a permanent replacement for the Pentagon’s top job could be confirmed (7:25). They also discuss how problems with Shanahan’s past were missed by investigators (9:50) and end with Army Secretary Mark Esper’s sudden promotion (16:15) and what he can do to make his time in office memorable (19:45).
Duration:00:21:07
Rock 'n roll all night
6/17/2019
Leo and Joe recap the 21-hour NDAA debate before the House Armed Services Committee last week: what the big fights were (3:15), why space corps wasn’t a fight (7:40), surprises in the final product (11:30) and how Air Force One’s new paint scheme plays into national security (18:35).
Duration:00:20:57
Stop worrying and love the bomb
6/10/2019
Leo and Joe are joined by Defense News Weekly host Jeff Martin to review the congressional fight over nuclear weapons (1:10), the supplemental disaster aid bill (8:25), President Trump’s confusing comments on transgender recruits (11:00) and plans to have troops paint the southern U.S. border wall (15:00).
Duration:00:17:27
Nothing really matters, anyone can see
6/3/2019
Leo and Joe review the controversies coming out of President Donald Trump’s recent trip to Japan, and debate which ones are worth worrying about: Hiding the USS McCain (2:00), “Make Aircrew Great Again” patches (6:30), electromagnetic catapults vs. steam (9:15), and calling Navy ships “boats” (14:10). The two also brainstorm new names for Jim Mattis’ new book (16:00).
Duration:00:19:04
Stealing from war widows
5/27/2019
Leo and Joe discuss what the disaster aid bill’s passage means for the military (1:15) and what to take away from the Senate Armed Services Committee’s first draft of the annual defense authorization bill (5:40). They also look at how lawmakers are addressing military housing problems (8:10) and new tax burdens on Gold Star families (10:50) before offering their own Memorial Day reflections (16:15).
Duration:00:19:46
Defense budget playoff season
5/20/2019
Leo and Joe discuss the new House Appropriations plan for the defense budget (2:00) and this upcoming week’s work by senators on the annual defense authorization bill (9:05). They also discuss Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s plan to reduce corporate influence within the Pentagon (10:40) and bad lessons learned for the military from Game of Thrones (17:45).
Duration:00:20:09
All hail the new king
5/13/2019
Leo and Joe discuss Trump’s surprising/not surprising nomination of Patrick Shanahan to be the next defense secretary (1:05). They also cover the latest military news on Iran (7:30) and North Korea (12:55) before brainstorming nicknames for the incoming Pentagon leader (16:15)
Duration:00:20:12
Let’s start our own defense company
5/6/2019
Leo and Joe discuss congressional efforts to overturn rules which block military medical malpractice lawsuits (1:00). The also detail the fight over U.S. military assistance in the war in Yemen (8:30) and explain what sonobuoys are (13:45) before dissecting the confusing strip club comments one sailor made ahead of Vice President Mike Pence’s speech last week (19:45).
Duration:00:23:03
Welcome to the Defense Nerds Podcast
4/29/2019
Leo and Joe discuss some changes in the podcast before diving into the week’s defense issues: Patrick Shanahan’s possible nomination as Defense Secretary (3:00), President Donald Trump’s fight with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over VA policy (8:15), the possible decommissioning of the USS Harry S. Truman (14:30) and what happens next to the Political Fallout Shelter (20:15).
Duration:00:21:28
The watchers without a wall
4/15/2019
Leo and Joe discuss President Donald Trump’s latest threat to deploy more troops to the southern border in coming months amid the ongoing fight over his border wall project (1:15). They also discuss the schedule for the annual defense authorization bill debate (7:15) and what exactly happened with the House budget vote last week (13:15) before getting into some “Game of Thrones” defense acquisition debate (17:40).
Duration:00:20:35
Let's play Senate thermonuclear war
4/8/2019
Leo and Joe discuss why defense and veterans advocates should care about the “nuclear” changes in how the Senate handles confirmation votes (0:45). They also talk about Military Times’ recent sit-down with Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie (6:30) and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg’s address to Congress (11:40) before sharing some military conspiracy theories (17:15).
Duration:00:20:18