Podcast
In The Room
Each week, listeners are invited to join Peter as he covers topics like the Ukraine War, the war in Gaza, the Pentagon’s long and schizophrenic relationship with UFOs, a rare peek inside the FBI’s unit that is trying to prevent mass shootings, and a tour of the CIA’s secret museum. He interviews top experts and leaders like U.S. Army General David Petraeus, Jen Easterly, who leads U.S. efforts to prevent cyberattacks, former U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton, U.S. Deputy Homeland Security Advisor Josh Geltzer, CNN Chief International Correspondent Clarissa Ward, Sir Lawrence Freedman, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Lord Andrew Roberts, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, Christine Abizaid, Admiral William “Bill” McRaven and leading authors like Patrick Radden Keefe, Elizabeth Kolbert, David Sanger, Fareed Zaharia, and Anne Applebaum.
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The War that Americans Forgot, Iraqis Can’t — and Iran Won
Twenty years ago, a massive statue of Saddam Hussein was pulled down in Baghdad, a day that for many Iraqis signaled hope for the future of the country. But America’s invasion did not come with a coherent plan for what should come next, and those hopes were dashed. What is the legacy of U.S. intervention in the country today? Peter travels to Iraq to find out.
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How Hackers Stole Half of Americans’ Private Information - and Why
The wild story of the ‘worst corporate data breach ever,’ the man who got blamed for it, and the sleuths who figured out who actually did it.
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1-on-1 with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. on why he is running for US president
RFK, Jr.’s views on vaccines and penchant for questioning official narratives have kept him on the fringes of American politics for years. His blistering critiques of the Biden Administration on everything from the pandemic to the war in Ukraine have earned him praise from Republicans. Now, he’s running to beat President Biden in the Democratic primaries. In this lengthy sit-down, Peter probes Kennedy’s unrelenting skepticism about a wide range of issues.
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Lessons From the Man Who Got bin Laden
On #InTheRoom Admiral William McRaven. He’s the Navy SEAL who literally wrote the book on special operations, and who says the best way to plan the raid for the world’s most wanted man — or do pretty much anything else — is to start by making your bed. https://www.audible.com/pd/Episode-21-Lessons-From-the-Man-Who-Got-bin-Laden-Podcast/B0BZ2M62FH?action_code=ASSGB149080119000H&share_location=pdp–
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On the Trail and Inside the Mind of Osama bin Laden
It’s impossible to understand the events of 9/11 without understanding Osama bin Laden. Who was he? What was he hoping to achieve with the attack? How did the US track him down? And what can we learn from that story now? Three women – a CIA analyst, an FBI investigator, and a scholar who read 6,000 pages of documents recovered from bin Laden’s compound after he was killed – recount how they came to know and understand Osama bin Laden.
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China, Critical Minerals, and the National Security Threat in Your iPhone
We can’t do much without batteries and microchips; they power everything from smartphones to electric cars to defense systems. But the US ceded control of the raw materials required to make them – to its chief rival, China. Is it possible to catch up, especially given America’s more stringent labor and environmental standards?
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How Did a 60-Year Old American Veteran Wind Up Fighting in Ukraine?
Malcolm Nance was retired from the U.S. Navy, but the Russian invasion of its neighbor compelled him to dig out his old weapons and equipment, and join up with the International Legion fighting in Ukraine. He explains how the International Legion functions, what it’s like to take a direct hit from a Russian shell, and why he doesn’t believe he and his fellow legionnaires have run afoul of an 18th century law against Americans fighting in other people’s wars.
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What if there were a 9/11 Commission for COVID?
Actually, there basically is – led by the same guy. They have found that President Trump didn’t cause the botched response (although they label him a “comorbidity”). Neither did partisan politics (although there are some isolated exceptions). And if you think that’s surprising, wait till you hear how prepared we are (not) for the next pandemic.
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How Was Afghanistan Lost to the Taliban - Again? Ep. 2
In the final chaotic days of the US presence in Afghanistan, a young survivor of a Taliban attack was trying to get to the airport, the top American diplomat was doing his best to make the departure as orderly as humanly possible, and the Afghan national security advisor was fleeing with the president on a helicopter. You will hear from all of them and more in this exploration of how the US pullout has reverberated – through individual lives and throughout geopolitics.
©2023 Audible Originals, LLC (P)2023 Audible Originals, LLC
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Episode 15: How Was Afghanistan Lost to the Taliban - Again? Ep. 1
By: Peter L. Bergen
Narrated by: Peter L. Bergen
Aug 1 2023
Length: 40 mins
Podcast
Summary
After a 20-year war that cost the United States two trillion dollars and led to nearly 200,000 deaths, the Taliban are back in power – and offering safe haven to Al Qaeda once again. General David H. Petraeus, Trump advisor Lisa Curtis, Afghan ambassador to the US Roya Rahmani and others, bring us “in the room” to explain how this debacle came to pass, and warn us of the consequences.
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