The President’s Inbox

Latest Episodes:

Canada Hedges Against the United States, With Jonathan Berkshire Miller Feb 04, 2026

Show notes

Jonathan Berkshire Miller, senior fellow at the Macdonald Laurier Institute, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss Canada's effort to diminish its vulnerability to U.S. economic threats and just how much middle powers like Canada can successfully hedge in a world of great power competition.

Mentioned on the Episode:

“Live From Davos: Exclusive Interview With Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent,” Human Events Daily with Jack Posobiec

Mark Carney, “Principled and Pragmatic: Canada’s Path,” Office of the Prime Minister of Canada

“Canada's Arctic Foreign Policy,” Government of Canada. Updated March 25, 2025

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/presidents-inbox/canada-hedges-against-the-united-states

Opinions expressed on The President’s Inbox are solely those of the host or our guests, not of CFR, which takes no institutional positions on matters of policy.

Trump’s Greenland Ambitions, With Heather Conley and Rebecca Pincus Jan 28, 2026

Show notes

Heather Conley, nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and Rebecca Pincus, senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, sit down with James M. Lindsay to discuss how President Trump's desire to acquire Greenland has thrown the transatlantic relationship into its latest crisis.

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/presidents-inbox/trumps-greenland-ambitions

Opinions expressed on The President’s Inbox are solely those of the host or our guests, not of CFR, which takes no institutional positions on matters of policy.

America at 250: The Best and Worst U.S. Foreign Policy Decisions, With Mary Dudziak and Christopher Nichols Jan 21, 2026

Show notes

Mary Dudziak, Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Law at Emory University, and Christopher Nichols, Wayne Woodrow Hayes Chair in National Security Studies and Professor of History at the Ohio State University, sit down with James M. Lindsay to unpack a new CFR survey of historians on the best and worst foreign policy decisions in U.S. history.

To mark the 250th anniversary of the U.S. declaration of independence, CFR is dedicating a year-long series of articles, videos, podcasts, events, and special projects that will reflect on two and a half centuries of U.S. foreign policy. Featuring bipartisan voices and expert contributors, the series explores the evolution of America’s role in the world and the strategic challenges that lie ahead.

Mentioned on the Episode:

Christopher McKnight Nichols, Promise and Peril: America at the Dawn of a Global Age

Joshua Kurlantzick, A Great Place to Have a War

CFR.org, The Ten Best and Ten Worst U.S. Foreign Policy Decisions

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/presidents-inbox/america-250-best-worst-us-foreign-policy-decisions

Opinions expressed on The President’s Inbox are solely those of the host or our guests, not of CFR, which takes no institutional positions on matters of policy.

Trump Foreign Policy at One Year, With Matthew Kroenig Jan 14, 2026

Show notes

Matthew Kroenig, Vice President and Senior Director of the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security at the Atlantic Council, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss how President Trump has approached foreign policy since returning to the Oval Office last January.

Mentioned on the Episode:

Matthew Kroenig, “To Get to Peace in Ukraine, Trump Should Play the Nuclear Card,” Foreign Policy

Matthew Kroenig, “Trump Has a Strategy for Venezuela,” Foreign Policy

Matthew Kroenig, “Trump Should Oust Maduro,” Foreign Policy

Matthew Kroenig, “Trump Was Right to Oust Maduro,” New York Times

Matthew Kroenig, “Two Cheers for the National Security Strategy,” Foreign Policy

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/presidents-inbox/trump-foreign-policy-at-one-year-with-matthew-kroenig

Opinions expressed on The President’s Inbox are solely those of the host or our guests, not of CFR, which takes no institutional positions on matters of policy.

Washington’s Venezuela Strategy After Maduro, With Will Freeman Jan 07, 2026

Show notes

Will Freeman, fellow for Latin America studies at the Council, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the consequences of the U.S. seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Mentioned on the Episode:

Antonio Maria Delgado, ”The U.S. Gamble on Chavismo: How a Once-Unthinkable Pact Could Stabilize Venezuela,” Miami Herald

Will Freeman, “The Shock Waves of Venezuela: How Maduro’s Capture Could Transform Latin America,” Foreign Affairs

Jason Lange, ”A Third of Americans Support U.S. Strike on Venezuela, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds,” Reuters

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/presidents-inbox/washingtons-venezuela-strategy-after-maduro-with-will-freeman

Opinions expressed on The President’s Inbox are solely those of the host or our guests, not of CFR, which takes no institutional positions on matters of policy.

Listener Mailbag: 2025 in Review, With Carla Anne Robbins and Matthias Matthijs Dec 23, 2025

Show notes

Carla Anne Robbins, senior fellow at the Council, and Matthias Matthijs, senior fellow for Europe at the Council, sit down with James M. Lindsay to answer listener questions about the major developments, initiatives, and changes in U.S. foreign policy over the course of 2025.

Mentioned on the Episode:

"2025 National Security Strategy of the United States of America," The White House

Ivo H. Daalder and James M. Lindsay, “The Price of Trump’s Power Politics,” Foreign Affairs

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

Rebecca Lissner, “America’s Quasi Alliances,” Foreign Affairs

Matthias Matthijs and Nathalie Tocci, "How Europe Lost: Can the Continent Escape Its Trump Trap?" Foreign Affairs

Brad Setser, "How German Industry Can Survive the Second China Shock," Center for European Reform

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/listener-mailbag-2025-review-carla-anne-robbins-and-matthias-matthijs

Are We Ready? | America’s Crumbling Defense Industrial Base, With Kathleen Hicks Dec 17, 2025

Show notes

Kathleen Hicks, former Deputy Secretary of Defense and a senior fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center, the Johns Hopkins University’s Kissinger Center for Global Affairs, and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss how the U.S. defense industrial base has struggled to keep pace with the demands of renewed great power competition.

This is the ninth episode in a special series from The President’s Inbox, bringing you conversations with Washington insiders to assess whether the United States is ready for a new, more dangerous world.

Mentioned on the Episode:

Mark Bowden, "The Crumbling Foundations of America's Military," The Atlantic

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/are-we-ready-americas-crumbling-defense-industrial-base-kathleen-hicks

Are We Ready? | Trump’s National Security Strategy, With Rebecca Lissner Dec 10, 2025

Show notes

Rebecca Lissner, senior fellow for U.S. foreign policy at the Council, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the Trump administration's new National Security Strategy and its consequences for U.S. foreign and defense policy.

This is the eighth episode in a special series from The President’s Inbox, bringing you conversations with Washington insiders to assess whether the United States is ready for a new, more dangerous world.

Mentioned on the Episode:

"2025 National Security Strategy of the United States of America," The White House

Rebecca Lissner, Will Freeman, Liana Fix, Steven Cook, Michelle Gavin and Paul Stares, “Unpacking a Trump Twist of the National Security Strategy,” CFR.org

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/are-we-ready-trumps-national-security-strategy-rebecca-lissner

Are We Ready? | The Economic Security Challenge, With Jonathan Hillman Dec 03, 2025

Show notes

Jonathan Hillman, senior fellow for geoeconomics at the Council, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the steps the U.S. government should take to protect and support American firms developing critical new technologies such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and biotechnology from predatory foreign challenges without stifling its own growth and innovation.

This is the seventh episode in a special series from The President’s Inbox, bringing you conversations with Washington insiders to assess whether the United States is ready for a new, more dangerous world.

Mentioned on the Episode:

Council on Foreign Relations, U.S. Economic Security: Winning the Race for Tomorrow’s Technologies

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/are-we-ready-economic-security-challenge-jonathan-hillman

Are We Ready? | China's Campaign to Reshape the Global Order, With Hal Brands and Michael Kuiken Nov 26, 2025

Show notes

Hal Brands, Henry A. Kissinger Distinguished Professor of Global Affairs at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University, and Mike Kuiken, Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution, sit down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission's latest annual report to Congress and how China is working to reshape the global balance of power.

This is the sixth episode in a special series from The President’s Inbox, bringing you conversations with Washington insiders to assess whether the United States is ready for a new, more dangerous world.

Mentioned on the Episode:

U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, "2025 Annual Report to Congress"

For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/tpi/are-we-ready-chinas-campaign-reshape-global-order-hal-brands-and-michael-kuiken

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected