Today’s podcast guest is Elizabeth Hoffman, Executive Director, North America at ONE, a global, nonpartisan organization advocating for the investments needed to create economic opportunities and healthier lives in Africa. In this episode, we discuss the background to the current civil war in Sudan, Elizabeth’s on-the-ground observations from her journey to the country earlier this year, the atrocities being committed against the people of Sudan, and what the international community, particularly the US, can do to help end this conflict.
Listen now; link in bio.
Full bio
Elizabeth Hoffman is Executive Director, North America at ONE, a global, nonpartisan organization advocating for the investments needed to create economic opportunities and healthier lives in Africa.
She has extensive experience in government relations and international policy. Before joining ONE, she held positions at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), and as a senior staff member in the House of Representatives focused on foreign policy, national security, and human rights. She also worked at the George W. Bush Institute, where she developed and executed a leadership program for Burmese political leaders.
Elizabeth is a nonresident senior associate at CSIS and a term member at the Council on Foreign Relations. She has published articles and analysis for a variety of organizations and outlets and is a frequent media commentator on foreign policy and defense.
She holds an M.A. in International Affairs from George Washington University and a B.A. in Political Science from Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas.
In my recent podcast episode, I spoke with Dr. Anne Speckhard, Director of the International Center for the Study of Violent Extremism, regarding the roots of terrorism. All terrorism, she notes, has some root in injustice. Listen to this and more in my recent episode; available now - link in bio.
Today’s podcast guest is Ambassador Patrick Theros, Strategic Advisor and Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the Gulf International Forum. He previously served as the U.S. Ambassador to the State of Qatar.
We discuss the US-Israel-Iran war and the pending peace agreement between the US and Iran, the impacts of the war on the region, and how this conflict has affected the political prospects of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu.
Listen now; link in bio.
Full bio
Ambassador Patrick Nickolas Theros is a Strategic Advisor and Non-Resident Senior Fellow at the Gulf International Forum. He served as the U.S. Ambassador to the State of Qatar from 1995-1998. Prior to his appointment, he served as Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism, responsible for the coordination of all U.S. Government counterterrorism activities outside the United States. From 1991-1993, Ambassador Theros served as the Political Advisor to the Commander-in-Chief of Central Command (CENTCOM).
Ambassador Theros joined the Foreign Service in 1963, and served in a variety of positions in Washington D.C., Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Nicaragua and Syria, including charge d’affaires and Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. embassies in the United Arab Emirates and Jordan.
In 1999, His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifah Al-Thani awarded Ambassador Theros the Qatar Order of Merit for his efforts in service of the U.S.-Qatar bilateral relationship. His commitment to national service also earned him the President’s Meritorious Service Award and the Secretary of Defense Medal for Meritorious Civilian Service. Ambassador Theros has also earned four Superior Honor Awards, the highest awards for distinguished service given by the Foreign Service.
Ambassador Theros graduated from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service in 1963. He has done advanced studies at the American University in Washington, D.C., the Universidad Centroamericana in Nicaragua, the Armed Forces Staff College at Norfolk, Virginia, and the National Defense University in Washington, D.C. He speaks and reads Spanish, Arabic and Greek professionally.
Today’s guest is Dr. Anne Speckhard, Director of the International Center for the Study of Violent Extremism. She is an expert in rehabilitation and repatriation of terrorists and their families, and has consulted with foreign governments on issues of terrorist prevention, interventions and repatriation; and the rehabilitation and reintegration of ISIS foreign fighters, wives and children. Her latest book, Homegrown Hate: Inside the Minds of Domestic Violent Extremists, examines the deepening threat of domestic violent extremism in the U.S. through more than 50 in-depth interviews with current and former members of a wide range of domestic hate groups.
In this episode, we discuss the psychological and psychosocial dimensions of violent extremism, what attracts people to these ideologies, how terrorists and violent extremists have been able to utilize social media to draw people into their ideologies, and what can be done to try to prevent people from falling into these extremist ideologies.
Listen now; link in bio.
Prime Minister Netanyahu long pursued two goals regarding Iran: regime change and dismantling its nuclear and long-range missile programs. After failing to enlist previous U.S. administrations, he found a willing partner in President Trump, hoping to finally achieve both objectives. Instead, the outcome was the opposite. Trump agreed to a memorandum of understanding that deferred Iran’s nuclear program, its ballistic missile development, and, more than anything else, the dismal failure to effect regime change. The reaction in Israel has been one of anger and disillusionment. Many who once strongly supported Trump now feel betrayed. The U.S.-Israel relationship is under unusual strain, largely due to Netanyahu’s politically driven miscalculations and Trump’s illusion that waging war on Iran would yield a quick victory. It did not. Both leaders failed, and Iran has emerged in a stronger strategic position.
15 CommentsComment on Facebook
#americadirtytrix
Let’s be clear, Trump is the one that chickened out not Netanyahu. Bibi wanted to finish the job and still does.
No planes , no sh8ps ,no nuclear program , na bal8stic missails only missindmg thing is n9 aiatolachband i5 woukd be Iran win 5hanks to Trump.
Nice
AMAZING .. the deal has just been published and the left is already lying about it.. .We got exactly what we wanted, Iran will never have a nuke.. after WW1 the allies had a policy of punishing Germany,, and what we got was WW2.. on the other hand after WW2 we rebuilt Germany and Japan... and what we got was two of our greatest allies.. and the left calls the right uneducated??.. but the TDS will complain that this will be paid for by others.
Terrorist Israel is a cancer of the Middle East.
Their aim is been achieve already by killing Iran leaders
No president in modern American history has done more to accelerate environmental damage than Donald Trump. He systematically dismantled critical climate regulations to expand oil and gas production, benefiting powerful industry interests while ignoring the long-term cost. His indifference to the consequences for future generations—at home and globally—is deeply troubling. Equally alarming is a Republican Party that has enabled this recklessness. The evidence is no longer abstract. Climate change is not a distant threat; it is unfolding now—in raging wildfires, stronger hurricanes, devastating floods, and prolonged droughts that defy historical norms. The damage is already impacting communities across the country, and its effects will only intensify. Silence is complicity. The public must demand accountability and act before the cost becomes irreversible.
7 CommentsComment on Facebook
Is America the only country pumping oil? Sell your oil before it becomes worthless
Fairy tales
just in January
Let us not forget, the “fossil fuel industry” knew about its climate impact YEARS ago, and preferred PROFIT to PROPRIETY. www.scientificamerican.com/article/exxon-knew-about-climate-change-almost-40-years-ago/
Nobody cares
Go fuck yourself dude
Human rights defender Rufat Safarov has been sentenced to eight years in prison in Azerbaijan on charges widely viewed as politically motivated. Safarov, who documents corruption, torture allegations, and politically motivated prosecutions, was arrested just before traveling to Washington, D.C., to receive the 2024 U.S. Secretary of State Human Rights Defender Award. His conviction follows a familiar pattern of using questionable criminal charges to silence activists, journalists, and critics. As one of Azerbaijan’s few remaining independent human rights defenders, he faces serious concerns about the country’s shrinking civic space and the continued crackdown on civil society. Azerbaijani authorities should immediately release Safarov and drop all politically motivated charges against him.
0 CommentsComment on Facebook
The country of Georgia is facing one of the most dramatic democratic backslides in Europe. According to Amnesty International, the government has built a coordinated system of repression designed to silence critics, weaken civil society, intimidate journalists, and punish peaceful protesters. Authorities have passed restrictive laws, frozen the assets of NGOs, weaponized the courts, and used police force against demonstrators demanding closer ties with Europe. Hundreds of protesters have reported beatings, arbitrary arrests, and abuse in detention, while those responsible rarely face consequences. What is unfolding in Georgia is not an isolated crackdown—it is the systematic dismantling of democratic institutions. When governments begin treating dissent as a crime, democracy itself becomes the target.
10 CommentsComment on Facebook
Yeah…just replace the Georgian (Sakartvelo) flag with US one and we’re here.
They should join forces with Ukraine
Liberals when you tell them they aren't allowed to operate as unregistered foreign agents to undermine society
It's an old Soviet block nation its None of America's business
Like the UK and Canada?
“ … the guise of maintaining order,” is among the oldest and most common pretexts for advancing Fascism.
Amnesty International? Lol. Lmao. Yeah I trust them SO much.
I thought the NED was doing Uyghurs this week.
You mean subverting the government which does not follow the Europeans? Yes that’s the death of Democracy.
