Month: March 2022

Biden’s Call to Remove Putin and is Russia’s Main Objective to “Liberate” the Donbas?

We assess the implications of a Russian general’s remarks suggesting that Russia’s main objective is not Kyiv but is to “liberate” the Donbas. Joining us is Michael Kimmage, a professor of history and department chair at the Catholic University of America, chair of the Kennan Institute Advisory Council and a fellow at the German Marshall Fund. From 2014 to 2017, he served on the Secretary’s Policy Planning Staff at the U.S. Department of State, where he held the Russia/Ukraine portfolio. His latest book is The Abandonment of the West: The History of an Idea in American Foreign Policy and we discuss the likelihood of the war in Ukraine continuing for months if not years.

How to Get Around Putin’s Orwellian Grip on Information Inside Russia

Then we look into the Orwellian grip on information Putin is imposing as his propaganda machinery pumps out patriotic appeals and ludicrous lies to cover up a mounting death toll and a stalled invasion referred to as a special military operation, otherwise 15 years in jail awaits those who describe it otherwise.  Joining us is Kathryn Stoner, Director of the Mossbacher Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law and a professor of political science at Stanford University. She is the co-author of Transitions to Democracy: A Comparative Perspective and is the author of Resisting the State: Reform and Retrenchment in Post-Soviet Russia. And her latest book is Russia Resurrected: Its Power and Purpose in a New Global Order.

What to Do About a Supreme Court Justice’s Wife Involved in Insurrection

Then finally we look into calls for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to recuse himself from cases related to the January 6 insurrection following remarks by his wife revealing that she was an ardent supporter of the insurrection and was involved in attempts to overturn the election results to keep Trump in power. Joining us is Leah Litman, Assistant Professor of Law at the University of Michigan who clerked for The Hon. Jeffrey Sutton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and Justice Anthony Kennedy of the U.S. Supreme Court and is now a regular contributor to the Take Care blog, and the co-host and creator of Strict Scrutiny, a podcast about the U.S. Supreme Court.