Global I.Q. Podcast

Jim's guest this week is Leslie Schweitzer, president and chair of Friends of the American University of Afghanistan. She delves into education issues facing the country and how the college has sought to overcome them.

If you wish to support the Friends of the American University in Afghanistan, visit http://friendsofauaf.org/donate/

Jim's guest this week is Columbia University professor Dr. Christopher Sabatini, who is also the editor of LatinGoesGlobal.com. He drills down into the tumultuous political environment in Venezuela and what it means for the continent.

This week's guest is a Harvard Kennedy School of Government international affairs professor and former Deputy National Security Advisor who is an expert on geopolitic and energy. Learn about the effect of America's energy abundance "windfall" on our nation's power around the world.

Joshua Partlow, Mexico Bureau Chief for the Washington Post, returns to discuss his observations on the current strain in the United States relationship with Mexico.

In this Global I.Q. Minute with Jim Falk, the journalist/author Joshua Partlow delves into the political intrigue surrounding Karzai's administration in Afghanistan.

Council guest, David Priess, former daily intelligence briefer for the CIA and author of “The President’s Book of Secrets,” provides insight into the state of Intelligence in the current administration. Priess gives new insight into the President’s daily briefing, and how President Trump’s daily briefings differ from his predecessors.

Global I.Q. Minute with Jim Falk is sponsored by Greenberg Traurig, LLP.

In this fascinating Greenberg Traurig Global I.Q. Minute with Jim Falk, Manal al-Sharif, the charismatic human rights leader and author of Daring To Drive, discusses not only “driving while female” but also the Islamic “male guardian” system that controls female lives in Saudi Arabia. She says the oppression mirrors the cultural attitudes that launched the American Civil Rights Movement. And, she sees changes coming in the Kingdom.

Dr. Steven A. Cook, author of False Dawn, explains the complicated and evolving multinational relationships in the Middle East in this Global I.Q. Minute with the Council's Jim Falk. For example, how significant is Qatar's difficulty with Saudi Arabia? Cook says, Qatar's "prime directive in foreign policy has been to remain independent of Saudi Arabia." Can democracy "take root" in the Arab and Muslim worlds? Cook has an answer. And, on another challenging topic involving U.S. diplomacy, he says, "It's clear that Turkey's trajectory is authoritarian and unstable." Then there's Syria... Cook has an analysis.

From the Cold War to Twitter? Journalist/author Garrett M. Graff laughs when he describes his latest book as "light reading." In this Global I.Q. Interview with Jim Falk, Graff explains the U.S. Government's Secret Plan To Save Itself While the Rest of Us Die. He also addresses his current newsmaker connection: Robert Mueller, head of the team investigating "Russian meddling." There is even a trendy ‘covfefe’ moment!

"Lack of democracy, lack of liberties and corruption" launched the "Arab Spring" in Tunisia where it is known as the "Dignity Revolution." The nation's Ambassador to the United States, His Excellency Fayçal Gouia, discusses these points and the "young people's" lack of hope, affiliation with ISIS and "evil behavior" in his Global I.Q. with Jim Falk.