The Lawfare Podcast

Sander Tordoir is the Chief Economist of the Center for European Reform (CEPR) and a prominent European voice in the E.U.'s debate over its economic and technological relationship with China. With European trade policy toward China shifting over the past two years from integration towards managed trade, Sander joins Lawfare Contributing Editor and host of the Security Economics podcast Peter Harrell to unpack the recent E.U.-China deal involving quotas on hybrid cars and the apparent pause in what Sander refers to as "supply chain warfare."
Sander also explains the new trade instruments the European Union is developing to make itself more nimble in pushing back against Chinese trade issues and whether Europe might one day use those instruments against the U.S. as well. Harrell also answers some of Sander's questions about shifting views of trade in the U.S.
This episode is part of the Security Economics podcast series, in which Peter Harrell and guests explore the intersection of economics and national security, how countries manage their economies to support national security, and how they deploy economic tools in support of geopolitical objectives.
To receive ad-free podcasts, become a Lawfare Material Supporter at www.patreon.com/lawfare. You can also support Lawfare by making a one-time donation at https://givebutter.com/lawfare-institute.
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lawfare Editor in Chief Benjamin Wittes sat down with Senior Editors Anna Bower and Roger Parloff to discuss three-day preliminary hearing before magistrate Judge Faruqui in the criminal case of former FBI analysts charged with false statements to Congress and obstruction.

To receive ad-free podcasts, become a Lawfare Material Supporter at www.patreon.com/lawfare. You can also support Lawfare by making a one-time donation at https://givebutter.com/lawfare-institute.
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Scott sat down with his Lawfare colleagues Executive Editor Natalie Orpett and Senior Editors Michael Feinberg and Molly Roberts to talk through the week’s big international news stories, including:

“Full Metal Ballot.” For more than 160 years, federal law has made it a crime to bring “troops or armed men” to any place where an election is being held. But with President Trump refusing to rule out invoking the Insurrection Act, National Guard troops still on the streets of Washington, and the Justice Department preparing to send roughly 1,000 election monitors to polling sites across the country, many are worried about what voters will encounter on Tuesday. Military leaders say they have no plans to send troops to the polls, and a federal judge just reined in armed Homeland Security agents who had been going door to door questioning suspected noncitizen voters. What does the law actually allow federal personnel to do on Election Day? And what happens if the administration decides to test those limits anyway?
“Certifiable.” With Election Day less than a week away, the Justice Department has moved from warning about election fraud to actively trying to shape how votes get counted and certified. Last week, in Alaska, the Justice Department—acting on President Trump’s personal orders—sued to block certification of the U.S. Senate race if Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan loses, citing possible voter confusion caused by a second candidate on the ballot named Daniel J. Sullivan. In California, DOJ has sued to stop officials from counting more than 20,000 mail ballots from voters it claims are “likely noncitizens,” threatened election officials in all 58 counties with prosecution, and even tried to leapfrog the trial judge by running straight to the Ninth Circuit, which promptly sent it back. Attorney General Todd Blanche insists DOJ isn’t trying to overturn anything. So what are these lawsuits really for? And what do they tell us about what the administration may have planned for after Nov. 3?
“Deepfake in the Heart of Texas.” Russia is back—assuming it ever left. Last week, researchers attributed a pair of AI-generated videos falsely accusing Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico of sexual abuse to Storm-1516, a Kremlin-linked influence operation that ran a similar play against Tim Walz in 2024. That same week, the top Democrats on the congressional intelligence committees, Sen. Mark Warner and Rep. Jim Himes, said a classified briefing showed Russia targeting Democrats and other supporters of Ukraine, with China and Iran running more targeted efforts of their own. All this comes after the Trump administration dismantled much of the federal apparatus for countering foreign election influence. How worried should we be about foreign meddling in the final days of the midterms? And what happens if the administration itself starts invoking foreign interference to cast doubt on the results?
In object lessons, Molly is keeping cozy with a surprisingly delicious parmesan cabbage soup. Scott is catching up on the historical horror book, "Between Two Fires." And for any The Velvet Underground fans, Michael recommends "Rock*: A Mainstream Alternative History of Alternative Mainstream Music."

To receive ad-free podcasts, become a Lawfare Material Supporter at www.patreon.com/lawfare. You can also support Lawfare by making a one-time donation at https://givebutter.com/lawfare-institute.
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For today's podcast, Executive Editor Natalie Orpett is joined by Natan Sachs of the Center for Middle East Policy, Joel Braunold of the Center Project, and Lawfare Editor in Chief Benjamin Wittes to talk about the Oct. 27 elections in Israel. After record turnout by Israeli voters, especially Arab Israelis, we have an outcome—but the implications are far from clear. They unpack what happened and the questions that remain: Whether longtime Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu has a path to staying in power, whether opposition parties can stay unified, and whether there’s any prospect of a governing coalition or if we’re heading toward another round of elections. The future of Israeli politics is still very uncertain. They explain why.

To receive ad-free podcasts, become a Lawfare Material Supporter at www.patreon.com/lawfare. You can also support Lawfare by making a one-time donation at https://givebutter.com/lawfare-institute.
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Andy Hendrickson, the chief of the FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology (OET), and Alice Jou, the chief of staff and deputy chief of OET, join Lawfare Contributor Justin Sherman to discuss the process for testing and certifying devices in the United States, the offshoring of that apparatus, and how some countries do not allow foreign bodies to certify equipment sold in their borders. They also discuss the national security risks of certain offshoring or foreign-owned or -based testing and certification bodies, a “Minnesota” lab that was actually based in China, the FCC’s “Bad Labs” rulemaking on the problem, and the future of the supply chain and risk space.
To receive ad-free podcasts, become a Lawfare Material Supporter at www.patreon.com/lawfare. You can also support Lawfare by making a one-time donation at https://givebutter.com/lawfare-institute.
Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.