I love your weekly informative podcast. I can’t get it on sub stack because my phone is not compatible. Any chance you can put it on apples podcast site where your old podcast was so it could be accessed there. For now I turn on the podcast and listen from the email.
Thank you Eric for calling Elliott on the normalizing of Marco Rubio- this is not for the betterment of the Venezuelan people. He might not be a Hegseth, but he’s certainly a Vance.
My god, Eliot can't help himself, he's always trying to put more lipstick on the Trump pig. Rubio has completely disgraced himself in his stint as SecState, turning his back on ideals and core issues he once stood for. Screw him and I applauded Eric's no-nonsense pushback.
Several points: 1. One should compare the Venezuela/US production sharing contract with standard or common international contracts between sovereign states and large oil companies. Is the Venezuela/US agreement relatively exploitive compared to the norm or not? 2. If the drilling, production, and sharing arrangements go off peacefully and successfully, will the US demand similar arrangements with Canada?
Did I hear correctly? I thought I heard Eliot say that Russia would not help Iran survive our war with them. Apparently that’s not the case.
“Putin pledges support to Iran, rallies leaders to challenge U.S. - A regional security meeting in Kyrgyzstan highlighted the increasingly close military and political alliance between Moscow and Tehran.”, By Mary Ilyushina, 9/1/26, WaPo, https://apple.news/ABber9jMwRIe2RGyZutxE3g
“Operation Economic Outcast” is unlikely to produce any results either.
Guys, whether you or Trump or anyone else likes it or not, we’re stuck with the NOT ambiguous, clear and specific promises we made to Iran in the MOU that Vance negotiated and Trump signed. In the Cipher Brief National Security Nightcap for 9/1/26 they report:
“Despite the provocations this morning, Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian said that "If the U.S. returns to its commitments under the Memorandum of Understanding, Iran will immediately reciprocate." “
The US government, represented by the President of the United States, made some very specific promises in that MOU and Iran is not going to give in or give up until we honor that agreement. No economic coercion is going to make Iran cry uncle and “come back to the table”. And why should they? If Trump can sign an MOU (in Versailles, no less) in June and repudiate it in July, why should Iran trust that any “new” MOU will be honored? They can’t and they won’t. Unless Trump is willing to have an extremely costly in blood and treasure and non-existent weapons ground invasion, it’s the June 2026 MOU or nothing.
That said, it was still a great discussion. Btw, where is the book review that Eliot said Eric has posted? I don’t see it anywhere, unless it’s the interview with Paul Miller about his book on Afghanistan.
Why would anybody take seriously any agreement that Trump signed? Trump has never, in his entire life, felt bound by any contract. The biggest example is the USMCA, which Trump signed in 2020 and repudiated in 2025.
Thanks! Awesome, got it now, and subscribed ... when I searched for 'Shield of the Republic' I kept only getting the Bulwark-sponsored old website. The search algorithm distorts results!
I love that you are doing these podcasts now on Substack, although I have always respected, and learned from, all of your work.
I love your weekly informative podcast. I can’t get it on sub stack because my phone is not compatible. Any chance you can put it on apples podcast site where your old podcast was so it could be accessed there. For now I turn on the podcast and listen from the email.
Yes! The feed should auto update hopefully at some point today with no action needed on your part.
Thank you Eric for calling Elliott on the normalizing of Marco Rubio- this is not for the betterment of the Venezuelan people. He might not be a Hegseth, but he’s certainly a Vance.
My god, Eliot can't help himself, he's always trying to put more lipstick on the Trump pig. Rubio has completely disgraced himself in his stint as SecState, turning his back on ideals and core issues he once stood for. Screw him and I applauded Eric's no-nonsense pushback.
Several points: 1. One should compare the Venezuela/US production sharing contract with standard or common international contracts between sovereign states and large oil companies. Is the Venezuela/US agreement relatively exploitive compared to the norm or not? 2. If the drilling, production, and sharing arrangements go off peacefully and successfully, will the US demand similar arrangements with Canada?
Did I hear correctly? I thought I heard Eliot say that Russia would not help Iran survive our war with them. Apparently that’s not the case.
“Putin pledges support to Iran, rallies leaders to challenge U.S. - A regional security meeting in Kyrgyzstan highlighted the increasingly close military and political alliance between Moscow and Tehran.”, By Mary Ilyushina, 9/1/26, WaPo, https://apple.news/ABber9jMwRIe2RGyZutxE3g
“Operation Economic Outcast” is unlikely to produce any results either.
“Iran, accustomed to sanctions, cites pain of new U.S. pressure but doesn’t bend”, By Rachel Chason, 8/31/26, WaPo, https://apple.news/Ac88dj9opSfC0UhT9Rl37Lg
Did you time your launch with the anniversary of the invasion of Poland or was that coincidence?
Go Eric!!!
The interview with Paul Miller on what went wrong in Afghanistan is the most comprehensive discussion I’ve come across on this subject. Fascinating!
Guys, whether you or Trump or anyone else likes it or not, we’re stuck with the NOT ambiguous, clear and specific promises we made to Iran in the MOU that Vance negotiated and Trump signed. In the Cipher Brief National Security Nightcap for 9/1/26 they report:
“Despite the provocations this morning, Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian said that "If the U.S. returns to its commitments under the Memorandum of Understanding, Iran will immediately reciprocate." “
The US government, represented by the President of the United States, made some very specific promises in that MOU and Iran is not going to give in or give up until we honor that agreement. No economic coercion is going to make Iran cry uncle and “come back to the table”. And why should they? If Trump can sign an MOU (in Versailles, no less) in June and repudiate it in July, why should Iran trust that any “new” MOU will be honored? They can’t and they won’t. Unless Trump is willing to have an extremely costly in blood and treasure and non-existent weapons ground invasion, it’s the June 2026 MOU or nothing.
That said, it was still a great discussion. Btw, where is the book review that Eliot said Eric has posted? I don’t see it anywhere, unless it’s the interview with Paul Miller about his book on Afghanistan.
Just went live this morning! https://www.shieldoftherepublic.com/p/book-review-53-days
Why would anybody take seriously any agreement that Trump signed? Trump has never, in his entire life, felt bound by any contract. The biggest example is the USMCA, which Trump signed in 2020 and repudiated in 2025.
Why can’t you mirror this post and have your own YouTube channel as well? You’re making access harder and dispersing your audience. It’s a shame.
We're available on YouTube as well! https://www.youtube.com/@ShieldPod
Thanks! Awesome, got it now, and subscribed ... when I searched for 'Shield of the Republic' I kept only getting the Bulwark-sponsored old website. The search algorithm distorts results!