On this Washington Roundtable episode of the Defense & Aerospace Report Podcast, sponsored by Bell, our guests in segment one are Michael Bayer, former chairman of the Defense Business Board and the president of the Dumbarton Strategies consultancy, and Arnold Punaro, the chairman of the National Defense Industrial Association and CEO of the Punaro Group consultancy to discuss the ongoing presidential transition and how to best accomplish the monumental task of a peaceful transition of power.

In segment two, our roundtable guests are Dov Zakheim, PhD, former DoD comptroller, now with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Dr Gordon Adams, the senior White House budget official for national security during the Clinton administration who is now a distinguished fellow at the Quincy Institute and the Stimson Center as well as an American University professor emeritus, Mackenzie Eaglen of the American Enterprise Institute and Todd Harrison of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Topics:

— When the Biden administration will name next batch of senior Pentagon leaders and implications of staffing delays on budget and strategy

— How new team will execute series of key reviews without senior staff in place

— Budget update as new administration works to disclose “skinny” budget next month with more detailed spending plans in May

— Need for new readiness model and roles and mission review

— Key takeaways from President Biden’s first visit to the Pentagon and first call with Chinese Premier Xi Jinping

— How a split Republican Party could impact national security

— Analysis of French President Macron’s stance on European security, closer UK-Japan links and US-Iran outlook