Trump’s National Security Strategy
On this episode of American Prestige: Julia Gledhill and Van Jackson on the Trump administration’s National Security Strategy.

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Danny and Derek welcome to the show Julia Gledhill and Van Jackson, co-hosts of the Un-Diplomatic podcast, to talk about the Trump administration’s newly released National Security Strategy. They discuss how the document leans on civilizational framing, portrays competition as existential conflict, omits diplomacy and institutions in favor of coercion and deal-making, and deemphasizes democracy promotion. They also touch on the strategy’s treatment of Europe and Latin America, its assumptions about American power, and what the new NSS suggests about the direction of U.S. foreign policy.
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Donald Trump speaks during a Mexican Border Defense Medal presentation in the Oval Office on December 15, 2025.
(Andrew Caballero-Reynolds /AFP via Getty Images)Danny and Derek welcome to the show Julia Gledhill and Van Jackson, cohosts of the Un-Diplomatic podcast, to talk about the Trump administration’s newly released National Security Strategy. They discuss how the document leans on civilizational framing, portrays competition as existential conflict, omits diplomacy and institutions in favor of coercion and deal-making, and deemphasizes democracy promotion. They also touch on the strategy’s treatment of Europe and Latin America, its assumptions about American power, and what the new NSS suggests about the direction of US foreign policy.
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Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.
American Prestige HQ continues to roll the dice on iceberg lettuce. In this week’s news: Iranian strikes kill four U.S. service members in Jordan and Iraq, and the Pentagon conceals dozens of additional casualties (2:09); Trump threatens to hit an Iranian nuclear facility and warns of attacks on civilian infrastructure (6:32); the Houthis blockade Saudi Arabia and strike two oil tankers in the Red Sea (14:20); the U.S. and Saudi Arabia announce a civilian nuclear deal (18:23); in Lebanon, the IDF begins a “pilot” withdrawal from three southern villages (23:48); Hamas elects Khalil al-Hayya as its new political leader (25:48); Ebola deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo top 1,000 (27:44); the Trump administration considers military action against jihadists in Mali (30:09); Volodymyr Zelensky fires Ukraine's top general, Oleksandr Syrskyi (32:29); Andy Burnham becomes prime minister of the United Kingdom (35:17); Trump imposes new tariffs on Brazil and Canada (36:53); and the State Department releases a report that names Cuba a top security threat (40:46).
Don’t forget to watch a replay of last night’s livestream with special guest Alex Aviña.
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