Today's episode of The Realignment is a two-parter. First, Saagar and Marshall discuss the show's recent coverage of the Biden administration and the anniversary of the Afghanistan withdrawal, and then answer Supercast subscriber-exclusive Q&A. Afterwards, Coco Krumme, joins Marshall to discuss her new book: Optimal Illusions: The False Promise of Optimization. Coco and Marshall discuss the costs of hyper-optimization, everywhere from supply chains to personal devices, how balance efficiency and resiliency, and the current state of Silicon Valley.

404 | Coco Krumme: The False Promise of Optimization - Plus, Saagar & Marshall on the Biden Presidency

The United States is in the midst of a dramatic political realignment with shifting views on national security, economics, technology, and the role of government in our lives. Saagar Enjeti and Marshall Kosloff explore this with thinkers, policymakers, and more.

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Craig Whitlock, Washington Post reporter and author of Fat Leonard: How One Man Bribed, Bilked, and Seduced the U.S. Navy & The Afghanistan Papers, joins The Realignment. Marshall and Craig discuss how a Malaysian defense contractor, Leonard Francis (nicknamed "Fat Leonard"), bribed scores of high-ranking U.S. Navy officers across three decades, defrauded the Navy out of tens of millions of dollars, exposed vast security and counter-intelligence gaps in the military, and the reforms needed to prevent future corruption scandals.

478 | Craig Whitlock: The Story of "Fat Leonard" - How One Man Seduced and Corrupted the U.S. Navy

Nellie Bowles, writer, former New York Times reporter, and author of Morning After the Revolution: Dispatches from the Wrong Side of History, joins The Realignment. Marshall and Nellie discuss why some of the most educated people in America lost their minds in 2020, what she learned investigating and reporting on Seattle's Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) and Antifa protests in Portland, and why 2020 reckoning inspired moves like abolishing the SAT, defunding the police, and drug decriminalization are running out of steam.

477 | Nellie Bowles: Waking Up the Morning After the 2020 Revolution

Edward F. O'Keefe, CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library Foundation and author of The Loves of Theodore Roosevelt: The Women Who Created a President, joins The Realignment. He joins the show as part of The Realignment's coverage of the American presidency during the lead up to the 2024 election. Marshall and Edward discuss why they believe Theodore Roosevelt is the most compelling and interesting president, the ways that Roosevelt's rugged 19th century masculinity was shsaped by his mother, sisters, and wives, how he navigated America's industrial era realignment, and the future plans to build a Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in North Dakota.

476 | Edward F. O'Keefe: The Era, Women, and Realignment That Made Theodore Roosevelt

Bayard Winthrop, Founder and CEO of American Giant, joins The Realignment. Marshall and Bayard discuss American Giant’s work primarily sourcing and manufacturing its clothing in the U.S., what the clothing industry could teach other attempts to re-shore post-COVID, how Washington helps (and impedes) manufacturers, and the importance of domestic production and its impact on jobs, society, trade policy, and supply chain resilience.

475 | Bayard Winthrop: Why America Must Rebuild Its Domestic Manufacturing Base

In the latest edition of The Realignment's weekend Ask Me Anything and discussion series, Saagar and Marshall evaluate whether the campus protests sweeping schools across the country are effective, analyze the question of whether bipartisan policy failure in the Middle East is due to ignorance, and discuss why third parties and their candidates such as Ross Perot and RFK Jr. fail to translate their initial ballot success into long-term political change.

Saagar & Marshall Supercast AMA & Discussion Preview: Campus Protests, the Cost of Middle East Ignorance, and the Roots of Third Party Political Failure

404 | Coco Krumme: The False Promise of Optimization - Plus, Saagar & Marshall on the Biden Presidency

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