In this edition of the Sentinel podcast, host Lauren Anderson, former senior FBI executive, sits down with Ambassador Tom Shannon, one of the most experienced diplomats of his generation. They discuss what Shannon describes as a “counterrevolution” in U.S. foreign policy – a shift away from the post-WWII alliance-based system toward a more unilateral “America […]
Applying the “broken windows theory” to international relations seems appropriate in this moment of riotous disorder – at least to explain why the weakening of the legal and customary architecture of the system in the hands of autocrats has so profoundly impacted individuals caught up in violence that they never wanted . The broken windows […]
Since the Trump administration launched Operation Epic Fury on February 28, 2026, the public has been subjected to a torrent of misinformation, disinformation, and conflicting accounts regarding everything about the action, from its motives to who is responsible for what. A good term for the way information has been managed in Epic Fury is “gaslighting.” […]
Photo by Engin_Akyurt Welcome to The Steady State’s Weekly Digest, a compilation of the week’s Steady State publications. Catch up on what you missed or dive deeper into the issues shaping our moment. Threatening War Crimes: Has Trump Finally Crossed the Line? by| Charles A. Ray Donald Trump’s threats to “destroy” Iran’s energy structure, if […]
Our allies refusal to join us in Iran is a warning. If America does not rebuild respect, credibility, and partnership, isolation will be the new normal. Our allies refusal to join the United States in its war in Iran is framed by the current Administration as a failure of allied courage or commitment. It is […]
A former FBI director, a decorated Marine, and a lifelong public servant, Robert Mueller, was publicly denounced as “a disgrace to our country” by a sitting president. This was a moment in recent American life that should give us pause, not only because it was crass personal and political rhetoric, but because it revealed a […]
ICYMI: Leaving MAGA isn’t just about changing your politics. It’s about walking away from an identity. In the latest episode of The Steady State Sentinel, John Sipher sits down with Rich Logis, founder and executive director of Leaving MAGA, for a deeply personal and revealing conversation about how people fall into political extremism—and what it […]
DHS/ICE: Inside the System Producing Volatile, Unaccountable Federal Agents Photo by Jim Vondruska/REUTERS/PBS If you wanted to design a hiring and training system that would produce the most psychologically volatile, constitutionally illiterate federal law enforcement officers possible, it would look almost exactly like what the Department of Homeland Security is building today When I was […]
Donald Trump/Robert Mueller (CBS News) Robert Mueller stands out as a true American hero, a man devoted to country, public service, and the institutions that make the United States the world’s leading light. The Steady State joins a long list of other organizations and luminaries in rightly honoring Mueller and his legacy of service. In […]
Autocrats start wars for no better reason than consolidating their power at home, making follow-up incoherent. Donald Trump is no exception. In Venezuela, the unresolved ledger is substantial: no transition framework, no election timeline, a fragmented opposition, a consolidating regime, hundreds still imprisoned, and an extractive oil architecture with no democratic conditionality. By mid-March, U.S. […]