Arsenal of Democracy Hudson Institute

Shield AI Co-founder and President, Brandon Tseng, joins the show to explain why the current state of America's industrial base needs to be seen as a national security emergency. Tseng argues we lack government finances and mobilization capabilities to bring mass defense systems online if needed, but thankfully we don't lack is the technology, of which his company Shield AI as a perfect example.

Read Tseng's article in the First Breakfast Newsletter: https://www.firstbreakfast.com/p/the-imperative-of-emergency

Bryan Clark, senior fellow and director of Hudson's Center for Defense Concepts and Technology, joins the show to explain why an emphasis on software-centric innovation is needed to keep America's defense tech at the cutting edge in an era of great power competition. He illustrates how Ukraine is an example of resourceful software-centric warfare, and why the United States urgently needs to resolve its development issues now to stop China from invading Taiwan.

What if Xi Jinping owned a controlling stake in CNN? Or the New York Times? This week's guest Geoffrey Cain argues that TikTok's dominance over the flow of information and news to America's population should be seen as a direct threat to our digital sovereignty and digital infrastructure, all on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party. Cain and host Marshall Kosloff discuss what can be done about this and why Section 230 is the wrong frame for this debate.

Neil Keegan, co-managing partner and CEO of Marlinspike, a DC-based venture capital firm, joins Marshall Kosloff to give a glimpse into the private sector side of defense innovation and marketplace challenges. Keegan explains how companies like Space X are creating a new blueprint for private-public partnerships on defense innovation that are cost-effective and impactful. Such efforts can ultimately lead to a safer America.

Following first-hand trips to Taiwan, Israel and Ukraine, Hudson Institute President and CEO joins host Marshall Kosloff to recap what he saw and heard, as well as the role that America should be playing in each theater. Walters notes that US leaders need to begin calling out Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping for the despots they are and show that the US military is prepared to use soft and hard power to establish a new era of global deterrence.

Jonathan Ward, senior fellow at Hudson Institute, joins Marshall Kosloff to discuss the economic threats of the Chinese Communist Party, arguing that now is the time to build up America’s industrial base, and that private industry and US political leaders needs to unite to defeat the CCP economically—or risk losing the decade to China and presaging future conflict.