Catherine Clinton is the Denman Professor of American History at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She is the author of numerous historical books, including the important, Harriet Tubman: A Road to Freedom.

Emma Ashford is a PhD in foreign policy with focus on security studies, Russia, the Middle East and the politics of oil.  She is also a Visiting Fellow at the CATO Institute. Her latest paper written for CATO is entitled, "Friends Like These: Why Petrostates Make Bad Allies."