The President’s Inbox

Latest Episodes:

China Reacts to Trump’s Election, With Zoe Liu (Transition 2025, Episode 7) Dec 17, 2024

Show notes

Zoe Liu, the Maurice R. Greenberg Senior Fellow for China Studies at CFR, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss how Trump’s victory is being viewed in China and what his presidency will mean for the future of U.S.-China economic relations. This episode is the seventh in a special TPI series on the U.S. 2025 presidential transition and is supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Mentioned on the Episode

Zongyuan Zoe Liu, Sovereign Funds: How the Communist Party of China Finances Its Global Ambitions

Zongyuan Zoe Liu, “Why China Won't Give Up on a Failing Economic Model,” Foreign Affairs

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/china-reacts-trumps-election-zoe-liu-transition-2025-episode-7

Japan Reacts to Trump’s Victory, With Sheila Smith (Transition 2025, Episode 6) Dec 10, 2024

Show notes

Sheila Smith, the John E. Merow senior fellow for Asia-Pacific studies at CFR, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss how Trump’s victory is being viewed in Japan and what his presidency will mean for U.S.-Japanese relations and the security situation in northeast Asia. This episode is the sixth in a special TPI series on the U.S. 2025 presidential transition and is supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Mentioned on the Episode

Sheila Smith, Japan Rearmed: The Politics of Military Power

Sheila Smith, "Governing from Weakness: The LDP Under Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru," The Diplomat

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/japan-reacts-trumps-victory-sheila-smith-transition-2025-episode-6

Latin America Reacts to Trump’s Election, With Will Freeman (Transition 2025, Episode 5) Dec 03, 2024

Show notes

Will Freeman, a fellow for Latin America studies at CFR, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss how Trump’s victory is being viewed in Latin America and what his policies toward the region might be. This episode is the fifth in a special TPI series on the U.S. 2025 presidential transition and is supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Mentioned on the Episode

Will Freeman and Javier Corrales, “How Organized Crime Threatens Latin America,” Journal of Democracy

Claudia Sheinbaum, “Claudia Sheinbaum’s Defiant Letter to Donald Trump: A Blueprint for a New Era in US-Mexico Relations,” Pressenza International Press Agency

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/latin-america-reacts-trumps-election-will-freeman-transition-2025-episode-5

Europe Reacts to Trump’s Victory, With Liana Fix and Matthias Matthijs (Transition 2025, Episode 4) Nov 26, 2024

Show notes

Liana Fix, a fellow for Europe at CFR and adjunct professor at Georgetown University, and Matthias Matthijs, a senior fellow for Europe at CFR and associate professor of international political economy at Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies, sit down with James M. Lindsay to discuss how governments across Europe are preparing for a second Trump administration. This episode is the fourth in a special TPI series on the U.S. 2025 presidential transition and is supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Mentioned on the Episode

“A Second China Shock, With Brad Setser,” The President’s Inbox

Liana Fix, “NATO and Ukraine: The Peril of Indecision,” Survival

Liana Fix and Michael Kimmage, “The Ukraine Scenarios,” Foreign Affairs

Matthias Matthijs, “Europe’s Leadership Void,” Survival

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/europe-reacts-trumps-victory-liana-fix-and-matthias-matthijs-transition-2025-episode-4

Trump’s National Security Appointees, With Christopher M. Tuttle (Transition 2025, Episode 3) Nov 19, 2024

Show notes

Christopher M. Tuttle, a senior fellow at CFR, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the people that President-Elect Donald Trump has nominated for foreign policy and national security positions. This episode is the third in a special TPI series on the U.S. 2025 presidential transition and is supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Mentioned on the Episode

“Trump and the Middle East, With Steven A. Cook (Transition 2025, Episode 2),” The President’s Inbox

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/trumps-national-security-appointees-christopher-m-tuttle-transition-2025-episode-3

Trump and the Middle East, With Steven A. Cook (Transition 2025, Episode 2) Nov 12, 2024

Show notes

Steven A. Cook, the Eni Enrico Mattei Senior Fellow for Middle East and Africa Studies at CFR, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss how Middle Eastern countries are reacting to former President Donald Trump’s election victory and his potential policy for the region. This episode is the second in a special TPI series on the U.S. 2025 presidential transition and is supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Mentioned on the Episode

Steven A. Cook, The End of Ambition: America’s Past, Present, and Future in the Middle East

Ivo H. Daalder and James M. Lindsay, The Empty Throne: America's Abdication of Global Leadership

Jared Kushner, Breaking History: A White House Memoir

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/trump-and-middle-east-steven-cook-transition-2025-episode-2

Staffing a New Administration, With Stephen Hadley (Transition 2025, Episode 1) Nov 05, 2024

Show notes

Stephen Hadley, a principal of Rice, Hadley, Gates & Manuel LLC and former national security advisor to President George W. Bush, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the presidential transition process and the challenges that all incoming presidents face in staffing up their administration. This episode is the first in a special TPI series on the U.S. 2025 presidential transition and is supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Mentioned on the Episode

Stephen Hadley, Hand-Off: The Foreign Policy George W. Bush Passed to Barack Obama

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/staffing-new-administration-stephen-hadley-transition-2025-episode-1

The Axis of Autocracies Challenge, With Jennifer Kavanagh and Andrea Kendall-Taylor (Election 2024, Episode 7) Oct 29, 2024

Show notes

Jennifer Kavanagh, senior fellow and director of military analysis at Defense Priorities, and Andrea Kendall-Taylor, senior fellow and director of the Transatlantic Security Program at the Center for a New American Security, sit down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the nature and significance of growing cooperation between China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. This episode is the seventh in a special TPI series on the U.S. 2024 presidential election and is supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Mentioned on the Episode

Daniel R. DePetris and Jennifer Kavanaugh, “The ‘Axis of Evil’ is Overhyped,” Foreign Policy

Richard Fontaine and Andrea Kendall-Taylor, “The Axis of Upheaval: How America’s Adversaries Are Uniting to Overturn the Global Order,” Foreign Affairs

Walter Lippmann, U.S. Foreign Policy: Shield of the Republic

The U.S. Election and Foreign Policy, CFR.org

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/axis-autocracies-challenge-jennifer-kavanagh-and-andrea-kendall-taylor-election-2024

The China Challenge, With Liza Tobin and Jake Werner (Election 2024, Episode 6) Oct 22, 2024

Show notes

Liza Tobin, senior director for economy at the Special Competitive Studies Project, and Jake Werner, acting director of the East Asia program at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, sit down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the challenges the next president will face navigating relations with China. This episode is the sixth in a special TPI series on the U.S. 2024 presidential election and is supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Mentioned on the Episode

Robert Atkinson and Liza Tobin, "The Missing Piece in America's Strategy for Techno-Economic Rivalry with China," Lawfare

The U.S. Election and Foreign Policy, CFR.org

Jake Werner, "A Program for Progressive China Policy," Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/china-challenge-liza-tobin-and-jake-werner-election-2024-episode-6

The Taiwan Challenge, With Oriana Mastro and David Sacks (Election 2024, Episode 5) Oct 15, 2024

Show notes

Oriana Mastro, a Center Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, and David Sacks, a fellow for Asia studies at CFR, sit down with James M. Lindsay to discuss U.S. policy toward Taiwan in light of talk that China might seek to compel the island’s reunification with the mainland. This episode is the fifth in a special TPI series on the U.S. 2024 presidential election and is supported by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Mentioned on the Episode

Council on Foreign Relations, China's Belt and Road: Implications for the United States

Council on Foreign Relations, U.S.-Taiwan Relations in a New Era: Responding to a More Assertive China

Oriana Skylar Mastro, “The Pivot That Wasn’t,” Foreign Affairs

Oriana Skylar Mastro, “This Is What America Is Getting Wrong About China and Taiwan,” New York Times

Oriana Skylar Mastro, Upstart: How China Became a Great Power

David Sacks, “Taiwan’s Trump Conundrum,” CFR.org.

The U.S. Election and Foreign Policy, CFR.org

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/taiwan-challenge-oriana-mastro-and-david-sacks-election-2024-episode-5