Part IV in our summer read through of the US Constitution. In this episode and the next, we’ll cover the Constitution’s 27 amendments. Today, I cover the first 10 Amendments that were ratified in the 1790s as a packaged deal and became known as the Bill of Rights. Whose rights do you ask? Yours, mine, our individual state.

Just a reminder, listeners of the podcast can get a discount to my weekly newsletter the Weekly Brief. By subscribing to the Weekly Brief, you'll also get access to a new feature for premium subscribers: An online discussion thread for each podcast episode/topic. Looking forward to talking with you!

Get the show notes at www.timtalkspolitics.com and subscribe to the Weekly Brief on Substack (30% for podcast listeners)!

Part III in our summer read through of the US Constitution. Articles 3-7 outline the judiciary, the process of amending the Constitution, and lays some of the basic legal and economic groundwork outlining how states were to function in relation to one another in the new republic.

Got some good resources to share in this episode too, and a discount to my weekly newsletter the Weekly Brief for podcast listeners. By subscribing to the Weekly Brief, you'll also get access to a new feature for premium subscribers: An online discussion thread for each podcast episode/topic. Looking forward to talking with you!

Get the show notes at www.timtalkspolitics.com and subscribe to the Weekly Brief on Substack (30% for podcast listeners)!

Part II in our summer read through of the US Constitution. Article II deals with the Executive branch, the Electoral College, and the Office of the President. Relevant reading/listening as we approach a presidential election this year. Might be useful to think about the Constitutional duties of the President when considering your vote. Upholding, protecting and defending the Constitution is part of the oath of office after all, the core part of the job description. 

Got some good resources to share in this episode too, and a discount to my weekly newsletter the Weekly Brief for podcast listeners. By subscribing to the Weekly Brief, you'll also get access to a new feature for premium subscribers: An online discussion thread for each podcast episode/topic. Looking forward to talking with you!

Get the show notes at www.timtalkspolitics.com and subscribe to the Weekly Brief on Substack (30% for podcast listeners)!

We’re going to review the Constitution like we did the Declaration of Independence last summer: I’ll read a little, talk a little, read a little more. The objective is to do something that many of us probably haven’t done since 8th Grade, which is read through the entire US Constitution. My hope is that in reading through this extraordinary document we can:

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It's summer in 2020, which means two things:

We kick this transition off with a banger of an interview: Dr. Thomas Patterson from Harvard discusses his new book with me, Is the Republican Party Destroying Itself?

Strap in.

Get the show notes at www.timtalkspolitics.com and subscribe to the Weekly Brief on Substack (30% for podcast listeners)!

US-Russia relations have historically been murky, and that may be because Russia itself is difficult to decipher. Shortly after the outbreak of World War II, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill said of the Soviet Union/Russia:

Through the Cold War and the first part of the twenty-first century, America has struggled to understand this enigma, but has largely failed to account for Russian interests in the midst of that struggle. In this episode, Tim discusses the major themes and historical events that have been a part of US-Russia relations for decades.

Get the show notes at www.timtalkspolitics.com and subscribe to the Weekly Brief on Substack (30% for podcast listeners)!

I go away for a couple months and wow! A global pandemic and looming economic depression. Well, I was planning on discussing US-China relations when I went on my unscheduled break, so I guess there's no time like the present to talk about the history, context, and flash points in the relationship between the world's two superpowers.

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Just what should America be doing with all its economic, political, military, and cultural influence? How should the country behave in world politics? Those questions engage a topic that is hotly debate, especially around election season: the national interest. Broadly speaking, the national interest is a phrase used to describe a country's core concerns and priorities - kind of the absolute essentials for it to do its thing (whatever that is) at home and abroad. So what is America's national interest? What are the factors that influence it? In this episode, I seek to define the national interest and the debate surrounding it by looking at President Trump's 2020 State of the Union speech, and essays on American foreign policy by Democratic candidates Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Joe Biden. Needless to say, there are some important differences between how America's major parties and their leaders think about this question.

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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.

Happy 2020! It's going to be a busy and full year in American politics, which should provide plenty to talk about. However, this podcast is not beholden to the news cycle with its daily dramas of political personalities. Rather, this year I plan to take this podcast on a deep dive into American foreign policy, the Constitution, and American presidential elections. Yes, I'll refer to the news and current goings on, but the goal of this podcast is to help you become a more thoughtful and critical observer of such happenings not just a passive consumer of news. So, let the conversations begin!

Get the show notes at www.timtalkspolitics.com.