134. Bradley Whitford. The Iconic Actor and Activist. The Handmaid’s Tale and The Taliban. Biden and Hollywood. What Would Commander Lawrence Do With Senators Sinema and Manchin? General Milley Under Fire. Is Afghanistan a “Strategic Failure”?

Independent Americans with Paul Rieckhoff

Righteous Media | Bleav

Daily News, Veteran, News, Politics, News Commentary, National Security

4.6 • 907 Ratings

🗓️ 30 September 2021

⏱️ 90 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

From The West Wing, to Get Out, to Transparent, to The Handmaid’s Tale. For a generation, Bradley Whitford (@BradleyWhitford) has shaped the world’s understanding of politics--through the lens of entertainment. But Bradley doesn’t just play politics. He lives it. At this precarious time in American history, art and politics are merging and colliding in powerful ways. He’s deeply involved in politics--and in causes he cares about. From climate change, to standing up for IATSE (the union that represents workers in film and television), Bradley’s a guy who cares deeply, and is not afraid to throw a punch. He’s earned three Emmys, been a figure in our film, TV and stage universe for a generation, and appeared in classics ranging from Adventures in Babysitting to Billy Madison to Scent of a Women to Revenge of the Nerds 2. After joining us way back in Episode 27 (one of our top episodes ever), the iconic actor and activist is back. This is a fun, wide-ranging and candid episode. This is Bradley Whitford and Paul Rieckhoff (@PaulRieckhoff) chopping it up on all kinds of issues. Bradley takes you on set in Toronto and inside the Emmy Awards. It’s an insider’s look at Hollywood and politics at the highest levels. And another powerful conversation that’s about more than just politics, news and culture. It’s about America--and about all of us. Bradley talks about why The Handmaid’s Tale is so groundbreaking, about how Gilead is like Afghanistan, and about how he thinks Commander Lawrence would deal with Senators Krysten Cinema and Joe Manchin. We’ll also dig into his month in isolation in Canada, if he thought the Emmys this month should have been held inside during a pandemic, his Joe Biden in Hollywood story, and what he wants to clarify from his last visit to our show. It’s another conversation that keeps it real. The kind to help you stay vigilant. Because eternal vigilance is the price of freedom. Our host, national security and political analyst and Army veteran Paul Rieckhoff takes you behind the scenes for candid conversations with top leaders from all backgrounds. It’s a bold and blunt perspective you won’t find anywhere else on the media landscape. You can support the show and join our dynamic community of listeners by joining the IA Patreon community. You’ll get access to events, guests, merch discounts, and exclusive content. And you’ll help us keep speaking independent truth to power. You can also WATCH the full conversation with Bradley and Paul here: https://youtu.be/jXi1dGYEcow Independent Americans is powered by Righteous Media. On social media or www.IndependentAmericans.us. Stay vigilant, America.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Independent Americans. Welcome to episode 134. I'm your host, Paul Reikoff. After focusing six of our last seven episodes
0:27.2	squarely on Afghanistan, we're going to switch it up a bit. In this show, we're going to go deep
0:34.1	and wide on all things politics and entertainment and America
0:39.4	with legendary actor and activist Bradley Whitford.
0:44.5	But before we do, unlike the rest of the media, we will not let Afghanistan become
0:52.9	forgotistan.
0:54.5	Because now, maybe more than ever, now is still a time to stay vigilant.
1:02.3	We helped build a state, but we could not forge a nation.
1:06.3	The fact that the Afghan army that we and our partners trained simply melted away in many cases without firing a shot took us all by surprise and it would be dishonest to claim otherwise.
1:18.6	We need to consider some uncomfortable truths that we did not fully comprehend the depth of corruption and poor leadership in their senior ranks.
1:29.9	That we did not grasp the damaging effect of frequent and unexplained rotations by President
1:35.6	Ghani of his commanders. That we did not anticipate the snowball effect caused by the deals that the
1:42.4	Taliban commanders struck with local leaders in the wake
1:45.2	of the Doha agreement.
1:47.9	That the Doha agreement itself had a demoralizing effect on Afghan soldiers, and that we failed
1:53.2	to fully grasp that there was only so much for which and for whom many of the Afghan
1:58.0	forces would fight.
2:00.1	We provided at the Afghan military with equipment and aircraft and the skills to use them.
2:05.8	And over the years, they often fought bravely, and tens of thousands of Afghan soldiers and police officers died.
2:12.2	But in the end, we couldn't provide them with the will to win, at least not all of them.
2:17.4	And as a veteran of that war, I am personally reckoning with all of that.
2:22.9	Yeah.
	...

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