Podcast / American Prestige / Nov 5, 2024

Foreign Policy and the 2024 US Presidential Election

On this episode of American Prestige, Eli Clifton on the Gaza and whether the Democrats are capable of learning lessons from a loss.

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Foreign Policy and the 2024 US Presidential Election w/ Eli Clifton | American Prestige
byThe Nation Magazine

On this episode of American Prestige, Derek and Danny are joined by Eli Clifton, senior advisor and investigative journalist at large at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, to talk about the role of foreign policy in US presidential elections (including tomorrow's). They talk about chatter on the ground regarding Gaza/Lebanon, whether the Democrats are capable of "learning lessons" from a loss, how to once again make foreign policy relevant to American voters, the broken discourse around China, how money in politics defines the parameters of FP discussion in Washington, and more.

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Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris campaigning in Washington, DC, faces protests from hundreds of people expressing disapproval of her administration's Gaza policy, on October 29, 2024.

Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris campaigning in Washington, DC, faces protests from hundreds of people expressing disapproval of her administration’s Gaza policy, on October 29, 2024.

(Celal Gunes / Anadolu via Getty Images)

On this episode of American Prestige, we’re joined by Eli Clifton, senior advisor and investigative journalist at large at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, to talk about the role of foreign policy in US presidential elections (including tomorrow’s). We talk about chatter on the ground regarding Gaza/Lebanon, whether the Democrats are capable of “learning lessons” from a loss, how to once again make foreign policy relevant to American voters, the broken discourse around China, how money in politics defines the parameters of FP discussion in Washington, and more.

The Nation Podcasts
The Nation Podcasts

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.

Iran and the End of Restraint w/ Trita Parsi and Akbar Shahid Ahmed | American Prestige
byThe Nation Magazine

Danny and Derek are back with a two-part episode on the war with Iran. First, they speak with Trita Parsi of the Quincy Institute about the Trump administration’s decision to go to war, the belief that assassinating Ayatollah Khamenei would cause the regime to implode, the structure and failure of pre-war negotiations, the influence of Israeli officials and hawks, the potential for sending in ground troops, and the impact on Iranian society. They then speak with Akbar Shahid Ahmed, Senior Diplomatic Correspondent at HuffPost, about the erosion of rules of engagement, the alignment of U.S. and Israeli military strategy, congressional inaction, compliant allies, and whether any realistic off-ramps remain.

Read Akbar’s piece “Trump Says He Brought 'Justice' To Iran. His War Boosts Fears The U.S. Has Gone Rogue.”

Keep up with Quincy’s work at Responsible Statecraft and Always at War.

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Even before February 28, the reasons for Donald Trump’s imploding approval rating were abundantly clear: untrammeled corruption and personal enrichment to the tune of billions of dollars during an affordability crisis, a foreign policy guided only by his own derelict sense of morality, and the deployment of a murderous campaign of occupation, detention, and deportation on American streets. 

Now an undeclared, unauthorized, unpopular, and unconstitutional war of aggression against Iran has spread like wildfire through the region and into Europe. A new “forever war”—with an ever-increasing likelihood of American troops on the ground—may very well be upon us.  

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Daniel Bessner

Daniel Bessner is an historian of US foreign relations, and cohost of American Prestige, a podcast on international affairs.

Derek Davison

Derek Davison is a writer and analyst specializing in international affairs and US foreign policy. He is the publisher of the Foreign Exchanges newsletter, cohost of the American Prestige podcast, and former editor of LobeLog.

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