This week on Alternate Shots, John Ellis and Richard Haass examine a world in which wars of choice are producing consequences nobody quite knows how to manage. They begin with Ukraine (Putin’s war of choice), where Haass calls American policy toward Russia nothing short of shameful, and the decision to restrict Ukraine’s military communications raises deeply troubling questions about Washington’s reliability and priorities. From there, they turn to Saudi Arabia, a Saudi war of choice in 2015 and where now the Houthis are threatening not simply the kingdom’s security but potentially the legitimacy and stability of the House of Saud itself. The parallels with America’s predicament in Iran (Trump’s war of choice) are, shall we say, uncomfortable. Also on the agenda: Germany’s economic malaise, Europe’s absence from the AI race, and the disturbing normalization of political violence in the United States. Finally, the Yankees and Dodgers discover that money cannot buy everything, while baseball’s smaller markets remind us that competence can more than compensate for payroll.

Hosted by John Ellis and Richard Haass

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Produced by Dale Eisinger

This episode of Alternate Shots begins with a status report on the Iran War (who will cry "uncle" first, is the question), President Xi's mysterious "naps" at the White House, the upcoming Israeli election, the U.S. abandonment of Ukraine, the "plague" outbreak in Siberia, Pete Hegseth's presidential campaign and OpenAI's astonishing breakthrough(s) in mathematics. We end with the speedy departure of the New York Yankees from the MLB playoffs and the surprisingly competitive Nearby New York Giants. Reggie Jackson may need to hedge his bet.

Hosted by John Ellis and Richard Haass

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This week on Alternate Shots, John Ellis and Richard Haass take stock of a world where institutions, summits, and alliances are showing their age. They begin with UN week in New York, where Haass argues the United Nations has become less an institution than a venue: useful for speeches and side meetings, but largely irrelevant when the major powers disagree. From there, they turn to the Trump-Xi summit, a quiet affair that may be preferable to the wrong kind of grand bargain. They also discuss Haass’s Foreign Affairs essay on Iran, where diplomacy is now the least bad option after months of war, higher oil prices, and diminishing U.S. leverage. Also on the agenda: China’s role in sustaining Iran, Russia’s temptation to test NATO, AI and cyber vulnerability, Trump fatigue, and the tragedy of the New York Giants.

Hosted by John Ellis and Richard Haass

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This week on Alternate Shots, John Ellis and Richard Haass look ahead to the Trump-Xi summit and ask whether, in this instance, an uneventful meeting would be preferable to a consequential one. Haass worries not about failure, but about the wrong kind of success: a commercial deal purchased at the expense of Taiwan, American allies, or U.S. leverage on Russia and Iran. From there, they turn to AI, where the United States and China dominate the field but lack the trust, process, and perhaps urgency required to build meaningful guardrails. They also assess the Houthis’ expanding role in the Red Sea, the widening maritime crisis, Saudi Arabia’s diminishing options, and America’s munitions shortfall, which points to a deeper conceptual failure in U.S. defense planning. Finally: press access, a possible blue wave, the Giants, and the Jets.

Hosted by John Ellis and Richard Haass

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This week on Alternate Shots, John Ellis and Richard Haass consider a world in which old assumptions no longer hold. They begin with 9/11, what it did and did not change, and the danger that AI, drones, and biotechnology could make terrorism newly consequential. From there, they turn to diplomacy done backward: envoys courting Moscow before Kyiv, money offered where nationalism is the real currency, and the spreading crisis at sea as the Houthis threaten the Bab el-Mandeb. Also on the table: Iran, Saudi Arabia, oil prices, Treasury overreach, AI dread, the Giants, late-night tennis, and the Walker Cup.

Hosted by John Ellis and Richard Haass

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This week on Alternate Shots, John Ellis and Richard Haass ask whether declaring the Iran war over makes it so. Haass is skeptical: a blockade remains an act of war, retaliation remains likely, and the United States is still stuck in the gray zone between ceasefire and conflict. They also examine Russian support for Iran, the anti-American axis on display at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Turkey’s hedging, Venezuela’s oil gamble, inflation, the possibility of a blue wave, and the risks of AI escaping its sandbox. Finally, because every reputable outlet needs a sports section, they turn to the Giants and Odell Beckham Jr.

Hosted by John Ellis and Richard Haass

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This week on Alternate Shots, John Ellis and Richard Haass mark six months of the Iran war and ask: what went wrong? Many things is their answer. They're equally downbeat about Treasury Secretary's "D-Day" and President Trump's rekindled interest in North Korea, although not as downbeat as Stanley Druckenmiller and the South Koreans. The conversation then turns to the devastating research report from The British Medical Journal (BMJ) on professional (American) football players and CTE (brain damage). Bonus: a quick mini-roundup of sports news.

Hosted by John Ellis and Richard Haass

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This week on Alternate Shots, John Ellis and Richard Haass examine a world discovering that technology, politics, and war are moving faster than institutions built to manage them. They begin with Iran, where Haass argues Washington should have led with economic pressure, not military escalation, and where coercion now tests which side can endure more pain. From there, they turn to Ukraine’s drone advantage, America’s dated defense posture, and the need for something like a second Pentagon built for cheap, scalable systems. They also weigh deficits, vaccines, anti-vax politics, Democratic enthusiasm, Trump’s health, and the uneasy state of the WNBA. Finally, because equilibrium must be restored, there is golf: Winged Foot, Phil Mickelson, and the value of low expectations.

Hosted by John Ellis and Richard Haass

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Produced by Dale Eisinger