CIA intelligence officer (ret.) Marc Polymeropoulos joins Robyn Curnow to talk about the successes and failures of his time on the frontlines in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere, as well as his love of dive bars and heavy metal music.

Marc was one of the CIA's most highly decorated operations officers. He specialized in counterterrorism, the Middle East and South Asia and was in charge of the CIA's clandestine operations in Europe and Eurasia when he retired in 2019.

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What happened in Moscow when CIA operative Marc Polymeropoulos was attacked by an energy weapon that left him with a traumatic brain injury? There are still too many questions and not enough answers from America's intelligence community, says the decorated intelligence officer on what appears to be a systematic, targeted attack on American spies by a foreign government.

Marc discusses, what he calls, a cover-up of Havana Syndrome with Robyn Curnow in this frank, emotional conversation about a career in the shadows, only to be hurt by a shadow weapon.

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During Holocaust Remembrance Week, Robyn Curnow laments the words 'Nazi' and 'Hitler' are being overused in political name-calling. Stop cherrypicking the past to pigeonhole the present, she says, especially when it comes to the Holocaust.

No. Trump and his team are not Nazis and Hitlers.

No. Americans are not like 'Germans supporting Hitler,' or 'Russians supporting Putin' blindly.

And no, Big Business is not doing a Vichy France capitulation.

Leave the Holocaust out of political mudslinging - it's a specific time in history that cannot be used as a lens today. Or ever again.
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Trump's has power and political capital. Americans - over 60% - are optimistic and want his policy promises to succeed.

The Democrats have lost the White House, the Senate, the House, the Village People and Silicon Valley in the last four years. Now the Techbros are in DC - looking to deregulate the future instead of litigating the past with identity politics.

Chapters

00:00 Trump 2.0: A New Era Begins
04:03 Political Capital and Optimism in America
11:59 The Tech Bros: Innovating Government
17:09 Looking Ahead: Open Minds and Future Trends

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Robyn Curnow spoke to Jeffrey Lewis, pre-eminent American nuclear expert, State Department security advisor and a self-described ‘arms control wonk. ’

Robyn has known Jeffrey ever since he tweeted during President Trump’s first term that the administration’s nuclear plans were a ‘goat rodeo.’ But this time around, the world is different and Trump's team is different. They talk about non-rational actors, paranoid leaders and nuclear realities. And how Pres Trump has a great opportunity to use his power to get China and Russia to sign up to new arms control agreements for missile defense and other things.

Robyn asked him what crazy weapons some countries were testing and where he thought nuclear proliferation was a problem for 2025.

Jeffrey explains why he’s worried about the Russians going all sci-fi with a space nuke which can take out satellites and a long-range nuclear-armed underwater drone, which the North Koreans copied. He’s also concerned that if Iran gets a nuclear weapon (highly likely) then the Saudis, the Turks and the UAE will want to pony up too. And there’s the worry that Burma (Myanmar) is looking to build up its nuclear capability, alongside Taiwan and South Korea.

Saddle up, listen up!

Robyn Curnow
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Jeffery Lewis.
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The Biggest New Year Challenge for America: China! CNN's National Security Analyst, fmr. Chief of Staff to the US Ambassador to China and author of The Return of Great Powers joins Robyn Curnow to talk about how 2025 will be the Year of the Xi-Dragon.

Xi Jin Ping's ambitions clash with Donald Trump's plans - where do they battle it out and what does it mean for America and the rest of the world?

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The world is changing and it reminds CNN's National Security analyst Jim Sciutto of the 19th Century. He joins Robyn Curnow to talk about how 2025 will continue to trend towards Great Power rivalry and how that will or will not change with President Trump's reemergence on the global stage.

Christmas Cheer (and Fear) this happy Yuletide! Greetings from the American South where the inflatable Santas are bigger and better and BBQ pork is a seasonal delicacy.

Robyn Curnow is hopeful that the Trump team's better angels will sing this time around. She's hoping the push and pull between his Disrupters and his Enforcers will create a less chaotic Presidency and lessen the worst instincts of The Don. For various reasons, Americans have trusted Trump with the country - will he leave it in a better place or not?