Last season, I explored some basic principles on how American foreign policy gets made and applied those principles to interpreting America's relations with Iran. Since that episode aired, relations with Iran escalated sharply after a drone strike killed General Qasem Soleimani one of the highest ranking military leaders in Iran. In many respects it was a precedent setting move by the Trump administration, but it was a precedent built on a series of precedents stretching back at least as far as the 1940s. How did we reach a decision to authorize a drone strike like this one? In this episode, I break some of the key elements that went into making such a decision possible.

Get the show notes at www.timtalkspolitics.com.