This week on "Bombshell," Kelly Magsamen joins us to talk about Sec Tillerson’s Asia visit, the upcoming Trump-Xi soiree, and North Korean chicanery. We also discuss splitting the check with NATO, attacks on civil servants, whether the Defense Department deserves a bonus (and how to spend it), and why we love Christine Fox. We also answer questions from the audience and reveal our favorite bourbon bars in DC.

Readings

• "Did Rex Tillerson Misspeak?" by Laura Rosenerger 
• "The Rebalance is Dead! Long Live the Rebalance!" by Mira Rapp-Hooper, Harry Kreja, and Hannah Suh
• "Rex Tillerson's approach to North Korea," by Jeff Lewis
• "Healthcare + Iran Deal," by Ilan Goldenberg
• "What's a NATO Ally Worth?" by Richard Fontaine
• "Is NATO Obsolete? Trump Not Only One Asking," by Molly O'Toole
• "Federal Staffers Panicked by Conservative Media Attacks," by Nahal Toosi and Andrew Restuccia
• "Trump's Bigger Military Won't Necessarily Make US Stronger, Safer," by Todd Harrison
• White House docs on DoD supplemental budget

Note: Please excuse some minor, intermittent cell phone interference in this episode. That's on us and it won't happen again!

This week Radha, Loren, and Erin drink hot toddies and reluctantly dig into the newest Marine Corps scandal. They also explore growing tensions on the Korean Peninsula and Europe with a brief "missiles: big, medium, and small" explainer; debate the wisdom of loosening counter-terrorism policies while gutting American soft power (aka, Is it always a good time to kill bad guys?); and exorcise the bogeyman of the deep state. Stick around for pop culture digestif.

Readings:

Marine Scandal as reported byTask and Purpose in 2014

Paul Szoldra on the Marine scandal in Business Insider

NYT on Chinese response to South Korea

Hayes Brown on Turkey and the Netherlands in Buzzfeed (see also Michael Crowley)

Loren Schulman on the Deep State in Politico (see also David Remnick)

Erin Simpson and Max Fisher on Trump’s use of force

On Get Out and Slavery

On How Buffy Transformed TV

This week, Loren, Radha, and Erin discuss the North Korean assassination (beware the perfume lady) and take questions from listeners (what is inter-service rivalry anyway?). Kori Schake joins to dissect the defense budget, H.R. McMaster's challenges at the National Security Council, Thucydides, and why she hates Moneyball.