The President’s Inbox

Ambassador Stephen Sestanovich, CFR’s George F. Kennan senior fellow for Russian and Eurasian studies, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss Belarus’s decision to force a commercial airliner to land in Minsk in order to arrest Belarusian journalist and blogger Roman Protasevich.

Ambassador Robert D. Blackwill, CFR’s Henry A. Kissinger senior fellow for U.S. foreign policy and a member of Harvard Kennedy School’s Applied History Project, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the debate over U.S. strategy toward Taiwan. Ambassador Blackwill, with Philip Zelikow, recently co-authored the Council Special Report, The United States, China, and Taiwan: A Strategy to Prevent War.

 

Rob Knake, CFR’s Whitney Shepardson senior fellow, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the consequences and lessons of the recent ransomware attack on the owner of the largest fuel pipeline system in the United States.

Steven A. Cook, CFR’s Eni Enrico Mattei senior fellow for Middle East and Africa studies and director of the International Affairs Fellowship for Tenured International Relations Scholars, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the rising tensions between Israelis and Palestinians.

Beverly Gage, Christopher Nichols, and Andrew Preston sit down with James M. Lindsay to discuss what grand strategy means and its role in U.S. history. Beverly Gage is professor of twentieth century American history and director of the Brady-Johnson Program in Grand Strategy at Yale University. Christopher Nichols is director of the Center for the Humanities and the Sandy and Elva Sanders Eminent professor in the Honors College at Oregon State University. Andrew Preston is professor of American history at the University of Cambridge, where he is a fellow of Clare College.

Rear Admiral James Bynum, Rear Admiral Pat DeQuattro, and Major General Paul J. Rock Jr. sit down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the new Tri-Service Maritime Strategy, which was released in December 2020. Rear Admiral Bynum currently serves in a dual capacity as the assistant deputy chief of naval operations for war fighting development, and the director of warfare development in the office of the chief of naval operations. Rear Admiral DeQuattro is the Coast Guard deputy for Operations, Policy and Capabilities. Major General Rock is the director of Plans, Policies & Operations in the Strategy and Plans division at Marine Corps Headquarters.

Max Boot, CFR's Jeane J. Kirkpatrick senior fellow in national security studies, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss President Biden's recent announcement to completely withdraw all U.S. forces from Afghanistan before September 11, 2021.

Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew, managing partner at Lindsay Goldberg, and retired Admiral Gary Roughead, Robert and Marion Oster distinguished military fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, sit down with James M. Lindsay to discuss what China’s global infrastructure initiative means for the United States and the world. Secretary Lew and Admiral Roughead co-chaired the CFR Task Force Report, China’s Belt and Road: Implications for the United States.

In this special series of The President’s Inbox on the future of democracy, James M. Lindsay speaks with experts to discuss whether and where democratic governance is faltering around the world. This week, Steven Levitsky, professor of government at Harvard University, breaks down the health of democracy in countries across Latin America. This episode is part of the Council on Foreign Relations’ Diamonstein-Spielvogel Project on the Future of Democracy.

In this special series of The President’s Inbox on the future of democracy, James M. Lindsay speaks with experts to discuss whether and where democratic governance is faltering around the world. This week, Pratap Bhanu Mehta, leading scholar of political theory, constitutional law, international affairs, and society and politics in India, breaks down the health of democracy in India. This episode is part of the Council on Foreign Relations’ Diamonstein-Spielvogel Project on the Future of Democracy.