The John Batchelor Show
3,861 episodes — Page 10 of 78
S8 Ep1356: Gregory Copley, editor of Defense & Foreign Affairs, argues that the US sanctions regime against Iran is strategic signaling that makes Washington look weak, as it ignores China's trade dominance and threatens relations with India. He also views the Canad
Aug 26, 202637 min
S8 Ep1356: Colonel Jeff McCausland, US Army (Retired) and Visiting Professor at Dickinson College, warns that the US foreign policy process has collapsed under President Trump, who relies on personal loyalty over expert advice. This is illustrated by Trump's sudden
Aug 26, 202619 min
S8 Ep1355: Mary Kissel, Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute and former Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State, analyzes Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign against Iran, asserting that its success relies on penalizing large Chinese financial institutions. Howeve
Aug 26, 202617 min
S8 Ep1354: Jonathan Schanzer, Executive Director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, evaluates the Treasury's initial tranches of secondary sanctions targeting entities trading with Iran, including firms in China and the UAE. Although these measures stop s
Aug 26, 202619 min
S8 Ep1354: Liz Peek, columnist for The Hill and Fox News, discusses the surprising resilience of the American economy, noting that small businesses are reporting strong hiring and profitability growth based on broad National Federation of Independent Business and Ba
Aug 26, 202617 min
S8 Ep1353: CONTENTS THE JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW, 8-24-2026. OTTAWA Conrad Black and co-host Edmund Fitton-Brown discuss the collapse of trade negotiations and subsequent US tariff threats that have sparked a major political crisis in Canada, leading to opposition call
Aug 25, 20266 min
S8 Ep1352: John Hardie and Edmund Fitton-Brown outline Russia's military assistance to Iran via the Caspian Sea, a highly secure transit route. This collaboration benefits Moscow by raising energy prices and draining US munition stockpiles like Patriot interceptors,
Aug 25, 20269 min
S8 Ep1351: Michael Sobolik and Gordon Chang examine how Chinese AI company Moonshot bypassed US export controls by "distilling" technology from Anthropic's Claude Opus model to train its own system, Kimi K3. This intellectual property theft threatens American marke
Aug 25, 202610 min
S8 Ep1350: Samuel Ben-Ur and Edmund Fitton-Brown discuss how, following a temporary lull, Hamas has intensified attacks in Gaza, emboldened by disarmament frameworks proposed by Egyptian, Qatari, and Turkish mediators. Ben-Ur notes Hamas only accepted the deal under
Aug 25, 202617 min
S8 Ep1350: Edmund Fitton-Brown critiques the term "economic D-Day," explaining that Pakistan's mediation in Iran is self-interested, driven by fears of secondary US sanctions. These sanctions have suffocated Iran's economy, reducing oil exports and sparking hyperinf
Aug 25, 202619 min
S8 Ep1349: Ivana Stradner analyzes Ukrainian President Zelenskyy's visit to Belgrade, which does not signal a split between Serbia and Russia. President Vučić's weapons sales to Ukraine are merely lucrative business deals. Serbia remains highly dependent on Russia,
Aug 25, 202617 min
S8 Ep1349: David Daoud and Edmund Fitton-Brown examine UNIFIL's mandate, which restricts it to acting as an auxiliary to the Lebanese Armed Forces, preventing independent disarmament of Hezbollah. Consequently, Hezbollah operates freely near UN watchtowers and tunne
Aug 25, 202619 min
S8 Ep1348: Malcolm Hoenlein and Edmund Fitton-Brown discuss rising security concerns in Israel after incendiary balloons from Gaza were discovered, potentially testing Israel's border preparedness. Concurrently, Turkey is expanding its regional footprint, occupying
Aug 25, 202617 min
S8 Ep1347: Ernesto Araújo and Alejandro Peña Esclusa, with Edmund Fitton-Brown: In Brazil, falling poll numbers have panicked President Lula, prompting him to call Donald Trump despite years of anti-American rhetoric. Araújo explains this reflects the US's central r
Aug 25, 202619 min
S8 Ep1346: Janatyn Sayeh and Edmund Fitton-Brown examine Iranian official Ghalibaf's public appearance in Iraq, signaling defiance to the US and Israel before secondary sanctions are revealed. Sayeh explains that Iran views Iraq as its backyard, using it to evade sa
Aug 25, 20268 min
S8 Ep1346: Conrad Black and co-host Edmund Fitton-Brown discuss the collapse of trade negotiations and subsequent US tariff threats that have sparked a major political crisis in Canada, leading to opposition calls to immediately reconvene Parliament. Black describes
Aug 25, 20269 min
S8 Ep1345: Gaius and Germanicus: The hosts close on the president's health and psyche, referencing the new book by senior New York Times correspondent Maggie Haberman and her colleague, which finds the eighty-year-old relatively healthy—minor hand bruising, blood-th
Aug 24, 202617 min
S8 Ep1344: Gaius and Germanicus: Germanicus attributes these failures to a psychological myth of omnipotence that has "suckled" every post-Cold War president: George H.W. Bush dipping a toe into Somalia, Bill Clinton's cruise missile war on Serbia, Barack Obama's ta
Aug 24, 202611 min
S8 Ep1344: Gaius and Germanicus: On a rainy late summer night in 92 AD Londinium, the hosts convene in their newly expanded wine bar by the River Thames, built so retired centurions of the eighth legion—such as Strabo, who served twenty-seven years—can rest and put
Aug 24, 202621 min
S8 Ep1343: Jeff Bliss, Wildfire Report #2: The wildfire threatening Reno, Nevada—a city near the California border heavily reliant on tourism and healthcare—has exploded to nearly 100,000 acres after strong afternoon winds breached a 97% containment line. Sparked in
Aug 24, 202613 min
S8 Ep1342: Toby Wilkinson, Part Two: The Ptolemaic family's decline is driven by internal civil wars, incestuous marriages, and rising Roman influence. Highly ambitious queens like Cleopatra I and Cleopatra III emerge as central political forces. The narrative culmi
Aug 24, 202637 min
S8 Ep1342: Toby Wilkinson, author of The Last Dynasty: Ancient Egypt from Alexander the Great to Cleopatra, Part One: The narrative begins with Alexander the Great's conquest of Gaza and his subsequent journey to the Siwa Oasis, where the oracle of Zeus Ammon declar
Aug 24, 202637 min
S8 Ep1341: Josh Ireland, Part Two: The focus shifts to the assassination plot in Mexico. NKVD spy Leonid Eitingon and Spanish communist Caridad Mercader recruit Caridad's son, Ramón Mercader, to eliminate Trotsky. Ramón infiltrates Trotsky's inner circle by seducing
Aug 24, 202637 min
S8 Ep1341: Josh Ireland, author of The Death of Trotsky: The True Story of the Plot to Kill Stalin's Greatest Enemy, Part One: The narrative opens with the 1936 executions of original Bolsheviks Zinoviev and Kamenev under Stalin's orders. Ireland explores the contra
Aug 24, 202637 min
S8 Ep1340: W. Fitzhugh Brundage, Part Two: The suspension of exchanges leads to massive prisoner concentrations. This is illustrated by a grueling transport to Andersonville, a Georgia camp built to relieve Richmond's strained supplies, and the Union's equally harsh
Aug 24, 202637 min
S8 Ep1340: W. Fitzhugh Brundage, author of A Fate Worse Than Hell: American Prisoners of the Civil War, Part One: The narrative begins with the January 1863 capture of the Union gunboat Isaac Smith and three Black sailors. The Confederacy's refusal to exchange these
Aug 24, 202637 min
S8 Ep1339: Jeremy Zakis, Part Two: Zakis reports on springtime in New South Wales, beginning with magpie breeding and swooping season—the start of nesting and defensive "dive-bombing" behavior, contrasted with the birds' remarkable memory and facial recognition that
Aug 23, 202613 min
S8 Ep1338: Jeremy Zakis, Part One: Zakis discusses the unprecedented 4°C Pacific anomaly—ocean warming not seen in 150 years—its disruption of global trade at the Panama Canal, and the unseasonal heavy rains hitting Sydney rather than a baking heat dome. He explains
Aug 23, 202614 min
S8 Ep1338: David K. Randall, author of The Monster's Bones: The Discovery of T. Rex and How It Shook Our World, recounts the historic discovery of the Tyrannosaurus rex by pioneering paleontologist Barnum Brown. The narrative traces Brown's journey from a Kansas far
Aug 23, 202639 min
S8 Ep1337: David Shedd, author of The Great Heist: China's Epic Campaign to Steal America's Secrets, analyzes China's multi-decade campaign of intellectual property and data theft against the United States, costing up to $600 billion annually. He explains how admitt
Aug 23, 202637 min
S8 Ep1336: Dennis Sewell, Part Two: Sewell details Downing's secret diplomacy with Cardinal Mazarin, followed by his opportunistic defection to Charles II upon Cromwell's death. To secure his position under the restored monarchy, Downing orchestrated the capture and
Aug 23, 202637 min
S8 Ep1335: Dennis Sewell, author of Cromwell's Spy: From the American Colonies to the English Civil War, Part One: Sewell introduces George Downing, a brilliant Harvard graduate who rose to become Oliver Cromwell's scoutmaster general during the English Civil Wars.
Aug 23, 202637 min
S8 Ep1334: Alan Taylor, Part Two: Taylor covers post-1865 developments across the continent, focusing on Canadian confederation under John A. Macdonald, the French imperial intervention in Mexico against Benito Juárez, and the violent realities of Reconstruction und
Aug 23, 202637 min
S8 Ep1333: Alan Taylor, author of American Civil Wars: A Continental History, 1850–1873, Part One: Taylor examines the ideological and geopolitical conflicts of mid-19th-century North America. He profiles figures like expansionist Jane McManus Cazneau, abolitionist
Aug 23, 202637 min
S8 Ep1332: Max Boot, Part Two: Boot traces Reagan's presidency, beginning with his campaigns and the 1981 assassination attempt. It analyzes his supply-side domestic economics, foreign relations ending the Cold War with Mikhail Gorbachev, and the damaging Iran-Contr
Aug 23, 202637 min
S8 Ep1332: ### Max Boot **Book:** *Reagan: His Life and Legend* * **Part One** (*Hour One*) explores **Ronald Reagan's early life**, from a nomadic childhood shaped by an alcoholic father and an optimistic mother, to his success as a lifeguard, sports broadcaster
Aug 23, 202637 min
S8 Ep1331: TABLE OF CONTENTS THE JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW, 8-21-2026 Jeff Bliss reports Las Vegas is planning major upgrades to Allegiant Stadium, with the Raiders seeking $75 million in taxpayer funding to resolve pedestrian choke points and add retail opportunities.
Aug 22, 20265 min
S8 Ep1331: Jonathan Marcus reports American universities are suffering from declining public trust, soaring tuition costs, and a looming demographic drop in enrollment tracing back to the 2008 recession. Schools that became financially dependent on high-paying inter
Aug 22, 202619 min
S8 Ep1330: Henry Sokolski warns that while nuclear negotiations focus heavily on Iran's uranium, Iran has a neglected second path to weapons: hundreds of bombs' worth of plutonium stored at the Bushehr plant. Sokolski also criticizes the geopolitical reliance on Elo
Aug 22, 202617 min
S8 Ep1330: Bob Zimmerman reports SpaceX is rumored to be expanding to Louisiana with a massive 130,000-acre launch and data center site, while aerospace startup Castelion is successfully building low-cost hypersonic missiles for the Pentagon. Internationally, China
Aug 22, 202619 min
S8 Ep1329: Lorenzo Fiori reports Europe's severe heatwave is finally breaking as heavy rain and storms across Switzerland and Northern Italy drop temperatures by up to 20 degrees. This rainfall offers critical, long-awaited relief for the dry Po River, which has rea
Aug 22, 20268 min
S8 Ep1328: Jim McTague reports Lancaster County's diverse economy—spanning tourism, agriculture, light manufacturing, and healthcare—is showing signs of notable resilience. While heavy July rains and high fuel costs temporarily slowed business, economic activity sta
Aug 22, 20269 min
S8 Ep1327: James M. Scott, Part Two: The Potsdam Declaration offered Japan a choice between rebuilding or "utter destruction." President Harry Truman greenlit the atomic bomb on the back of a pink telegram sheet, leading to historic missions piloted by Paul Tibbets,
Aug 22, 202637 min
S8 Ep1327: Richard Epstein examines the suit by Disney and ABC against the FCC, claiming that threats to review their local television station licenses constitute unconstitutional retaliation for their political late-night and morning show commentary. Epstein agrees
Aug 22, 202619 min
S8 Ep1326: Jeff Bliss reports Las Vegas is planning major upgrades to Allegiant Stadium, with the Raiders seeking $75 million in taxpayer funding to resolve pedestrian choke points and add retail opportunities. In Los Angeles, incumbent Mayor Karen Bass faced critic
Aug 22, 202617 min
S8 Ep1325: TABLE OF CONTENTS THE JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW 8-21-2026 Anatol Lieven discusses the war in Ukraine, highlighting Ukrainian drone and missile attacks on Russian civilian infrastructure like Black Sea resorts and a commercial center.
Aug 21, 20265 min
S8 Ep1324: Evan Ellis analyzes key regional political and security developments in Latin America. Ellis discusses Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa's visit to China to secure security, trade, and economic assistance, and explains how historical visa-free policies tu
Aug 21, 202637 min
S8 Ep1324: James M. Scott traces the dramatic, complex final months of World War II in the Pacific. Scott details how Secretary of War Henry Stimson briefed Truman in depth on the secret atomic bomb, and praises General Leslie Groves' masterful management of the Man
Aug 21, 202637 min
S8 Ep1323: Rohan Naidu discusses the groundbreaking discovery of "black hole stars" at cosmic dawn using the James Webb Space Telescope. Naidu explains that these infant objects appear as mysterious "little red dots" but possess hybrid properties of both highly lumi
Aug 21, 202619 min
S8 Ep1322: Veronique de Rugy critiques California Representative Ro Khanna's proposal for a "one-time" 5% wealth tax on billionaires. De Rugy explains that several different European countries largely abandoned wealth taxes because they are administratively difficul
Aug 21, 20269 min