Coercive Capital with Elaine Dezenski

In this episode of Coercive Capital, Elaine Dezenski hosts David Rader, Senior Advisor at the Office of the Secretary of Defense and Adjunct Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies along with Wes Spurlock, Senior Advisor and Co-Founder of the Office of Strategic Capital at the Department of Defense and a former U.S. Air Force Military Officer. They discuss the supply chain economics of the Department of Defense, adversarial capital, and much more.

In the 1970s, corruption in the U.S was often not considered a problem. Or it was viewed as a problem that happened “over there”.... in other parts of the world. But in retrospect, the reality and our perception of corruption has changed.   And even though anti-corruption legislation like the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act was implemented to help combat the issue, corruption continues and grows in ways that no one could have predicted. 

Kleptocrats around the world are uniting to attack us- in Russia, China, Venezuela, North Korea, and Iran- use their power to attack their neighbors, and destabilize the global economy… allowing dictators and criminals to leverage our own system against us – hiring lobbyists, lawyers, and corporate service agents to influence our elections, buy off our politicians, move dirty money, compromise our economy, and weaken our resilience.

To help understand the urgency of these new risks and the tools needed to protect America, democracy, and, maybe, the world, Coercive Capital host Elaine Dezenski speaks with Scott Greytak, the Director of Advocacy of Transparency International US, and Casey Michel, Director of the Combating Kleptocracy Program at the Human Rights Foundation.

The ongoing fentanyl crisis in America shows few signs of abating. Roughly 200 people per day, more than 75,000 Americans per year, lose their lives due to fentanyl use. But how do we stem the tide?  Looking through a financial and national security lens to follow the money, Coercive Capital host Elaine Dezenski and Ray Donovan, a 28-year veteran of the DEA, serving as its Head of Operations, and a leading voice on the matter take a deep dive on the Chinese underground money laundering networks and manufacturers of precursor chemicals that ensure that criminal networks get paid and that chemicals flow to the Mexican cartels producing and distributing fentanyl in the United States.  

In the debut episode of Coercive Capital, Elaine Dezenski hosts Juan Zarate, who served as the Deputy National Security Advisor for Counterterrorism in the George W. Bush administration and is also the Co-Founder and Chairman of the Center on Economic and Financial Power at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. In a wide-ranging discussion, Elaine and Juan discuss today’s economic security landscape, America’s complex and vulnerable relationship with China, and the growing weaponization of trade. They also discuss transparency, ally-shoring, and new economic alliances as well as the critical role that private capital and American companies play in the global economic realignment that is shaping our world.

Coercive Capital explores the intersection of U.S. economic and national security and global financial reform. Global adversaries are weaponizing our trade and financial systems, while Illicit financial flows, kleptocracy, and organized crime continue to erode democratic systems and destabilize economies. Elaine Dezenski brings together experts who understand these emerging threats and provide insights into the risks and emerging opportunities to strengthen our collective response.