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For the First Time Since WWII, Moscow Is Under Attack (w/ Marc Bennetts) | Shield of the Republic

2026-05-25 News & Politics
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The Bulwark
The Bulwark
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Description

Eliot and Eric discuss the current state of the Iran negotiations, the apparent US-Israeli plan to install Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as a Delcy Rodríguez-type figure early in the war, and Reuters’ report on the ongoing hollowing out of U.S. diplomacy. They assess Trump’s apparent designs in Cuba, noting the indictment of Raul Castro, and the deployment of an aircraft carrier strike group to the Caribbean. Finally, they touch on Turkey’s deepening fall into authoritarianism and Putin’s visit to Beijing before turning to guest Marc Bennetts, journalist and author of THE DESCENT: Witnessing Russia’s Spiral Into Madness Under Putin. The Descent: Witnessing Russia’s Spiral into Madness Under Putin: https://a.co/d/01fuFsvu Inside the Unravelling of US Diplomacy Under Trump: https://www.reuters.com/investigations/inside-unraveling-us-diplomacy-under-trump-2026-05-21/ Early War Goal Was to Install Hard-Line Former President as Iran’s Leader: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/19/us/politics/iran-israel-us-leader-ahmadinejad.html Shield of the Republic is a Bulwark podcast co-sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia.

Top Comments (10)

@BirdYoumans 2026-05-25

America is the nation that needs regime change. Bad(ly).

189 7 replies
@elizabeththorburn5120 2026-05-25

You don’t bother to mention that Cuba was under sanctions and a decades long embargo. Are you saying the US has the right to invade anybody it pleases? Rubio is emotionally unfit to see Cuba reasonably. I do appreciate that you do such a great job pronouncing names correctly.

80 6 replies
@sydneygrace-oconnor3067 2026-05-25

I just have trouble comprehending how Iran is not given reparations. Whether in Hormuz tolls or other...they did not start this crap. Usa and Israel bombed up their country, killed civilians and hold no responsibility for the damage? Bessent boasted publicly for trashing their economy right before the protests due to the state of the economy. Where does the usa take responsibility for their actions?

56 8 replies
@craigthomasgallery8692 2026-05-25

God, it will never cease to amaze me how these so called experts still continue to discuss Trump as if he is on some level normal and has any interest other than his personal ones.

52 5 replies
@NofOne2318 2026-05-25

Wait, you think Rubio will be a moderating voice of reason?! He's obsessed to the point of tunnel vision with regime change in Cuba...he's the ultimate hawk on this.

51 7 replies
@emanuelmota7217 2026-05-25

First year of the next Democratic (normal, law-abiding) administration - tear down the Trump Ballroom and Trump Arch. And all Trump statues. And remove Trump's presidential painting from the White House. And tear out all gold vomit from the Oval, repaint, then fumigate thoroughly.

48 7 replies
@WilliamV-b7q 2026-05-25

In 1806, Napoleon commissioned the Arc de Triomphe. In 2026, another loser megalomaniac, Trump, proposes another edifice to edify him.

41 3 replies
@Marcos-f7l4z 2026-05-25

The Iran War seems to be an Israeli idea. Netanyahu has been regurgitating the story about Iran close to getting a Nuclear Weapon since the 90’s. He found the right fool.

26 3 replies
@EmilyBoltz 2026-05-25

Sounds like Trump and Putin walk the same path. Both either received incorrect intel or simply ignored advice regarding an invasion. Both could care less about the impact their actions make on the people of their country.

24
@C0gnitiveDissident 2026-05-25

In order to have a Triumphal Arch don't you have to have a triumph?

20 2 replies

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