NucleCast

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Lt Col Raymundo Vann Jr. and Capt Gabriella Graham - It’s a Family Affair: U.S. Air Force May 18, 2023

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LT COLONEL RAYMUNDO M. VANN JR. is the Deputy Commander of the 90th Operations Group at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base (AFB), Wyoming. The group he serves operates fifteen Missile Alert Facilities and one hundred and fifty Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), a third of the nation’s ICBM nuclear alert force, which stand on alert and are constantly ready to launch at the direction of the President of the United States. Lt Col Vann graduated and was commissioned from Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas through the Air Force ROTC program in May 2003. He has been qualified in the Minuteman III weapon system. Lt Col Vann has deployed in support of Operation Southern Watch.

CAPT GABRIELLA C. GRAHAM is the Wing Executive officer at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base (AFB), Wyoming. She plans, performs, and manages executive support functions, programs, and policies for the wing commander and assists with administration of over 42 units and wing staff. She is accountable to the President, SECDEF, and DUSSTRATCOM for critical launch actions of 150 ICBMs upon direction. Capt Graham graduated and was commissioned from the University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming through the Air Force ROTC program in May 2016. She has been qualified in the Minuteman III weapon system.

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The Honorable Frank Miller - All Things Nuclear May 16, 2023

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The Honorable Franklin Miller is a principal at the Scowcroft Group. He dealt extensively with nuclear policy and nuclear arms control issues during his 31-year government career, which included senior positions in the Defense Department and on the NSC staff. He was directly in charge of US nuclear deterrence and targeting policy from 1985 to 2001 and also chaired NATO’s senior nuclear policy committee, the High-Level Group, from 1997 to 2001. He is a member of the Strategic Command Advisory Board and served on the Defense Policy Board from 2008-2020. He served on the 2008 Secretary of Defense Task Force on DoD Nuclear Weapons Management (Schlesinger Task Force), on the 2013-2014 Congressional Advisory Panel on the Nuclear Security Enterprise (Mies-Augustine Panel), and is currently a member of the on-going Congressional Commission on Strategic Posture.

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BG (Ret.) Gregory S. Bowen 2 - The New Role of U.S. Air and Missile Defense May 11, 2023

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Greg’s 36-year military career culminated as the Deputy Director of Global Operations at U.S. Strategic Command, where he was responsible for Department of Defense space activities, ballistic missile defense, cyber operations, strategic deterrence, and nuclear command and control. He was part of the executive leadership team overseeing the operations of 162,000 people, billions of dollars’ worth of equipment, and our nation’s nuclear arsenal.

In addition to his normal duties, Greg was certified as an Airborne Emergency Actions Officer and Designated Command Alternate; in those roles, he was one of a handful of officers certified to brief the President of the United States on nuclear response options.

Greg was selected for Major General (2-star), but elected to retire from active duty to pursue other interests.Greg is a recognized expert in space and missile defense operations, and has been a sought-after speaker on those topics as well as strategic deterrence. He has extensive experience in classified, highly sensitive programs operated by the Department of Defense and others. He has a current TS/SCI clearance with CI Poly.

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Steve Blank - Innovation in the Nuclear Enterprise May 09, 2023

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Steve Blank is an adjunct professor at Stanford and a co-founder of the Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation. Steve consults for the National Security establishment on innovation methods, processes, policies, and doctrine.

His book The Four Steps to the Epiphany is credited with launching the Lean Startup movement. He created the curriculum for the National Science Foundation Innovation Corps.

At Stanford he co-created the Department of Defense Hacking for Defense and Department of State Hacking for Diplomacy curriculums. His follow-on book The Startup Owner’s Manual described a process for turning ideas into scale and his Harvard Business Review cover story redefined how large organizations can innovate at speed. Steve's latest class at Stanford, Technology, Innovation, and Great Power Competition, is providing crucial insight on how technology will shape all the elements of national power.

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Col., USAF (Ret.) Mike Guillot - Sharing Expertise in the Nuclear Enterprise Through Writing May 04, 2023

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Mike Guillot, Colonel, USAF, (Retired) is the former editor of Strategic Studies Quarterly, a position he held for over 11 years (2009-20). As SSQ editor, he produced the first ever special editions covering Cyber, Space, Asia-Pacific, CMR, Austere Defense, Deterrence, and Emerging Technology. During his thirty-year Air Force career, he flew five major weapons systems including the B-52H, KC-10A, VC-137B/C, KC-135R, and EC135N/Y.

Mike spent two years on the ACSC faculty (91-93) and over four years on the Air War College faculty (00-04). He is a former operations officer, squadron commander, US Army joint planner, and former US Air Attaché to France.

In 2007 Mike became the first Educational Support Squadron commander, the Director of International Officer School, and Director of AU International Affairs. He earned a Master’s degree in national security strategy from the National War College (98) and holds an MBA degree from the University of South Dakota (83).

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B.G. John Weidner - Weapons Effects, Modernization, and Policy May 02, 2023

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Brigadier General John W. Weidner assumed the duties as Deputy Director, Plans and Policy, United States Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM), on May 4, 2020. General Weidner was commissioned a second lieutenant in 1991 upon graduation from the Army ROTC program at St. John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in physics.

He completed a Ph.D. in medical physics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2012, and holds Master of Science degrees in medical physics, nuclear engineering, engineering management, and strategic studies. His military education includes the Engineer Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, the Combined Arms Services Staff School, the Command and General Staff College, and the Army War College. He is also a registered Professional Engineer in the state of Wisconsin. General Weidner most recently served as the Director of the US Army Nuclear and Countering WMD Agency at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, where he led the Army's capability to integrate nuclear weapon effects into conventional operations, and supported Army service component commands with nuclear and countering WMD expertise.

General Weidner previously served as the Director of the USSTRATCOM Commander Action Group; Director for Strategic Capabilities Policy in the Defense Policy and Strategy Directorate on the National Security Council staff; Executive Director for the Office of Major Modernization Programs, National Nuclear Security Administration, Department of Energy; assistant professor in the Department of Engineering Physics at the Air Force Institute of Technology; stockpile associate for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) at Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico; consequence management advisory team leader for DTRA at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico; assistant professor in the Department of Physics at the United States Military Academy at West Point; and Deputy District Engineer for the St. Paul District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He commanded B Company, 52nd Engineer Battalion at Fort Carson, Colorado and served as an Engineer Platoon Leader at Fort Riley, Kansas and in the Republic of Korea.

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Christine M. Leah, PhD - Where Does Australia Stand on the U.S. Extended Deterrence Apr 27, 2023

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Christine is a fellow with the National Institute for Deterrence Studies. She has worked in government, she was a visiting fellow at CISS Pakistan, a Postdoctoral Fellow with the Grand Strategy Program at Yale University, a Stanton Postdoctoral Fellow in Nuclear Security at MIT, a visiting fellow at the Rajaratnam School of International Studies, a journalist for Karen News on the Thai-Burma border, a summer research fellow at RAND, and a research intern at IISS-Asia, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, and IISS-London.

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Eric Wollerman - Manufacturing and Supply Chain in the Nuclear Enterprise Apr 25, 2023

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Eric Wollerman is President of Honeywell Federal Manufacturing & Technologies (FM&T). FM&T manages and operates the U.S. Department of Energy’s Kansas City National Security Campus (KCNSC). With nearly 6,500 employees in Kansas City and Albuquerque, the KCNSC provides national security through their diverse engineering, manufacturing, and secure supply chain management activities.

As Honeywell FM&T president, Wollerman is responsible for applying best-in-class commercial standards in managing operations and delivering outstanding mission results with a $1.8B annual operations budget. Since joining FM&T in April 2020,

Wollerman has been leading KCNSC’s strategies, including: delivering operational excellence in nuclear weapons and national security missions with a focus on quality, early design engagement and delivery requirements; embracing digital transformation tools and technologies to enhance our mission; strategic planning for KCNSC’s infrastructure; supply base and workforce needs for today and the future; and, unlocking the value of our people and processes while enhancing the organization’s Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Acceptance (IDEA) strategies.

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Dr. Kerry M. Kartchner - Arms Control and Russia’s Objectives Apr 20, 2023

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Retired in 2018 from a career in the U.S. Department of State and the Defense Department, where he was primarily responsible for nuclear weapons policy and nonproliferation issues. During his career, he negotiated nuclear arms control agreements with Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine, he participated in several inspections of Russian nuclear weapon facilities, and was the State Department’s representative to the ABM Treaty commission when the U.S. withdrew from that treaty.

Dr. Kartchner led the team that drafted the 2004 joint Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense statement on the need for strategic nuclear modernization. He was the State Department representative to the 2009 congressionally charted Strategic Posture Review Commission, chaired by former Secretaries of Defense William J. Perry and James R. Schlesinger. As senior foreign policy advisor at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, he organized and participated in nuclear dialogues with numerous countries.

He is the co-editor and contributor to several books on U.S. national security. His co-edited 2014 book, On Limited Nuclear War in the 21st Century is widely read today in the strategic nuclear community, and has been translated into Korean for use in the South Korean senior officer’s education program. His MA and PhD in international relations are from the University of Southern California, and his BA is from Brigham Young University.

Dr. Mark Herrmann and Dr. Charles Nakhleh - U.S. National Laboratories, Stockpile Stewardship and Workforce Apr 18, 2023

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Mark C. Herrmann, Ph.D. Program Director for the Weapon Physics and Design within Weapons and Complex Integration Directorate Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Dr. Herrmann leads LLNL’s efforts to strengthen our nation’s nuclear deterrent by advancing our understanding of nuclear weapons physics and design. This includes the physics design, assessment, and certification efforts for the enduring LLNL systems (W80, B83, W87), the W80-4 Life Extension Program, and the W87-1 Modification program. He also leads weapon science research and development, including focused experiments, integral hydrodynamic and subcritical experiments, high-energy-density (HED) experiments at the National Ignition Facility (NIF), and modeling and simulation using NNSA’s high performance computing capabilities. Dr. Herrmann has been in this role since January 2022.

Charles W. Nakhleh, Ph.D. Associate Laboratory Director for Weapons Physics (ALDX) Los Alamos National Laboratory. In this role, Dr. Nakhleh has line responsibility for the nuclear weapons designers and simulation code architects at the Laboratory, as well as program responsibility for the NA-11 weapons science, computing, and technology maturation portfolio. Prior to taking on his current role, he was the Executive Officer to the Deputy Director for Weapons (DDW), where he was responsible to the DDW for integrating and aligning activities across the weapons program.

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