25 years ago, on September 11, 2001, terrorists attacked the United States via four hijacked airplanes destined for New York and Washington, D.C., killing 2,977 people and leaving thousands more with lasting physical and mental scars. The United States immediately went to war in Afghanistan, then Iraq, in the name of fighting terrorism. The short-term effects of these attacks were immediate, while many long-term effects are still being felt today. In this episode, Communications Director Anna Schumann sits down with Executive Director John Tierney, who was in his fourth year as a member of the House of Representatives at the time, and Dr. Stephanie Savell, Director of the Costs of War project at Brown University, to discuss Rep. Tierney’s immediate objections to a sweeping use of military force in response to the attacks, the human and financial costs of war and the lessons the United States should have learned in the last 25 years.

Show notes:

Overview: The True Costs of the Post-9/11 Wars, the Costs of War project at Brown University | https://costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/paper/overview

Rep. Tierney’s amendment offered September 14, 2001, that would have required the Bush administration to give reports to Congress on the status of the military effort in Afghanistan, among other things. | https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/volume-147/issue-120/house-section/article/H5681-1

This year, the Trump administration asked Congress for nearly $1.5 trillion for the Pentagon and nuclear weapons in its annual President's Budget Request — a huge increase over last year's already massive request. This is a number that 59% of people believe is too high, according to recent polling from ReThink Media and the Costs of War project. But is the request warranted? Or are people right to believe this is too much to spend? Can Congress bring down the costs? And, most importantly, how does this affect Americans like you? We talked to our own Connor Murray, Research Analyst here at the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, and Xiaodon Liang, Senior Policy Analyst at the Arms Control Association, to break down how the massive budget request makes its way through Congress, what the administration wants to spend our money on and what Congress should fund to keep us safe and protect American national security interests.

Show Notes:

Most Voters Say the Proposed $1.5 Trillion Pentagon Budget is Too High, by ReThink Media and the Costs of War project | https://rethinkmedia.org/blog/most-voters-say-the-proposed-1-5-trillion-pentagon-budget-is-too-high/

Reconciliation Breaks Decades of Bipartisanship, by Greg Williams at the Project on Government Oversight | https://www.pogo.org/commentaries/reconciliation-breaks-decades-of-bipartisanship

The Employment Impacts of Cuts to Federal Spending: Not All Cuts Are Created Equal, by Heidi Peltier with the Costs of War project | https://costsofwar.watson.brown.edu/paper/employment-impacts-cuts-federal-spending-not-all-cuts-are-created-equal

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French President Emmanuel Macron’s announcement that France would increase its nuclear arsenal is a major blow to non-proliferation efforts, but what does this new development mean for European and American security? Communications Associate and host Farah Sonde sat down with Marc Finaud, Senior Advisor and Associate Fellow at the Geneva Centre for Security Policy; Francesca Giovannini, Executive Director at the Project on Managing the Atom; and John Erath, Senior Policy Director at the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, to discuss France’s new approach to its nuclear arsenal, how it aligns with French tradition and how the United States should respond.

Show Notes –

Marc Finaud’s op-ed on President Macron’s speech - https://www.pressenza.com/2026/04/emmanuel-macrons-paradoxical-speech-on-nuclear-deterrence-a-step-back-and-a-wild-rush-forward/

The Initiatives for Nuclear Disarmament (IDN) Action Plan for the Non-Proliferation Treaty’s Review Conference in April and May - https://www.abolition2000.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/IDN-Action-Plan-2026_ENG.pdf

President Trump has embroiled the United States in yet another war in the Middle East, and at the heart of his shifting reasons for striking Iran with the help of Israel is Iran's nuclear program. Congressman Bill Foster from Illinois sat down with former Research Analyst and Paul Castleman Fellow Sam Hickey to discuss the big questions about Iran's nuclear program, how we got here, and what our next steps should be.

The Doomsday Clock has just been set at 85 seconds to midnight, the closest it has ever been to symbolic human-caused Armageddon. It's no coincidence that this happened just a week before the last remaining nuclear arms control agreement between the United States and Russia — known as New START — expired February 5. Now, the landscape of nuclear arms control looks increasingly bleak. Is there any room for optimism? Communications Director Anna Schumann sat down with Alex Bell, President and CEO of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (the people behind the famed Doomsday Clock) to discuss their decision to move the clock's hands closer to midnight, what the expiration of the New START agreement means for future of arms control and how YOU can help stop an arms race.

Just a note that as we hit publish Thursday on this episode we recorded Monday, Axios broke news that the United States and Russia are working on a draft plan to informally extend New START — a welcome development, if true. But is that enough to stave off a nuclear arms race? Listen and find out. https://www.axios.com/2026/02/05/new-start-arms-control-us-russia-extend

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SHOW NOTES:

This conversation has been edited for time.

Find the Bulletin’s Doomsday Clock announcement here: https://thebulletin.org/doomsday-clock/

Check out the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists website: https://thebulletin.org/

Read our New START fact sheet: https://armscontrolcenter.org/understanding-new-start-agreement/

Has “A House of Dynamite” popped up on your Netflix? Our staff got the chance to see it early in theaters and decided to break down what this film gets right (and wrong) about the nuclear weapons complex and what we hope people will take away from it. Host and Communications Associate Farah Sonde is joined by Senior Policy Director John Erath, Research Analyst Connor Murray and Communications Director Anna Schumann in this special Nukes of Hazard roundtable.

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Show Notes -

More analysis from us on “A House of Dynamite”: https://armscontrolcenter.org/a-house-of-dynamite/

Check out our podcast episode on OSINT (open-source intelligence) collection: https://soundcloud.com/cacnp/how-open-source-intelligence-can-unlock-nuclear-secrets

Check out our podcast episode on the nuclear football and our nuclear launch system: https://soundcloud.com/cacnp/footballs-biscuits-and-americas-nuclear-monarchy

On August 6 and 9, 1945, the United States bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki with the first nuclear weapons ever used against another country. In this special episode, Communications Director and Guest Host Anna Schumann takes a step back from the hard-hitting policy deep dives Nukes of Hazard is generally known for to speak with Sara Burkinshaw, whose grandmother survived the bombing of Hiroshima. Sara details the moment that made her realize why sharing her grandmother's story matters and what she believes compels young people to understand the dangers of nuclear weapons. For more on her grandmother's story, listen to our episode, "The Human Cost of the Hiroshima Bombing," with Sara's mother, Kathleen Burkinshaw.

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With decreasing transparency and increasing tensions in the Middle East, Iran’s nuclear ambitions are constantly in the news. How close is Iran to a nuclear weapon, and how should the United States approach Iran’s nuclear program? In this episode, we explore past diplomacy related to Iran’s nuclear program and ways to move forward. Program Coordinator and Guest Host Emma Sandifer speaks to Negar Mortazavi, editor and host of the Iran Podcast and Senior Fellow at the Center for International Policy, and Valerie Lincy, Executive Director of the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control.

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Show Notes:

Iran Watch website: https://www.iranwatch.org/

Iran Podcast: https://www.negarmortazavi.com/iran-podcast

Chemical weapons have left a lasting impression on global security since their introduction in World War I. Now, with 100% of America's chemical weapons legacy dismantled, it's time to revisit how we got here and what concerns we have for future chemical weapons threats. Host Farah Sonde speaks to John Gilbert, Senior Science Fellow for the Center's Scientists Working Group on Biological and Chemical Security; John Isaacs, Senior Fellow at the Center for Arms Control & Non-Proliferation; Matthew Meselson, Thomas Dudley Cabot Professor of the Natural Sciences at Harvard University and Council for a Livable World board member; and Andy Weber, Senior Fellow at the Council on Strategic Risks’ Janne E. Nolan Center on Strategic Weapons.

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Show Notes:

'This Day in History Class' episode: https://omny.fm/shows/this-day-in-history-class/phone-call-in-dugway-sheep-incident-march-17-1968

'This Day in History Class' podcast: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-this-day-in-history-class-29520957/

Matthew Meselson's archives: https://projects.iq.harvard.edu/meselsonarchive

Matthew Meselson's testimony to the Committee on Foreign Relations in 1969: https://projects.iq.harvard.edu/sites/projects.iq.harvard.edu/files/meselsonarchive/files/04301969meselson.pdf

Jonathan B. Tucker's book 'War on Nerves': https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/180879/war-of-nerves-by-jonathan-b-tucker/

Open-source intelligence (OSINT) and satellite imagery have changed the way civil organizations understand and evaluate nuclear arsenals and delivery systems — and the way governments interact with a changing balance of transparency and secrecy. Join us as we break down new developments in OSINT technology, how OSINT analysis can be used in nuclear weapons verification and the challenges ahead in regulating its use. Host Farah Sonde speaks to Decker Eveleth, Graduate Research Assistant at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies; Marcy R. Fowler, Research and Analysis Manager for Open Nuclear Network; Matt Korda, Senior Research Fellow for the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists; and Dave Schmerler, Senior Research Associate at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies.

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Show Notes:

The Glory of Youth (Chinese Rocket Force TV Show) trailer: https://youtu.be/yXhIbqaMkCU?si=6m0GlALSyWf_BYpA

Open Nuclear Network's Korean Peninsula Analysis Centre: https://analysis.opennuclear.org/