Eric welcomes Eliot back from his sojourn in Spain to break down the latest jackassery from the administration. They discuss the current state of the Iran war, including the somehow simultaneously open and closed Strait of Hormuz, the ongoing negotiations, and how China factors into the conflict. Turning to Europe, they assess Viktor Orban’s electoral defeat in Hungary and the blow it strikes against Trump, Vance, MAGA, and the European right writ large. The conversation also covers the U.S.’s diminishing support for Ukraine and the battlefield situation amidst Russia’s spring offensive. They wrap up with thoughts about the broader European reaction to Trump’s continued threat to withdraw from NATO and Trump’s architectural plans for the nation’s capital.

Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.