Welcome back to Potsator World's Tommy V-Twer.

Thank you as always for tuning in.

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Today's episode is a double header.

First, Obama's top foreign policy aid, Ben Rhodes, tried to help us understand what is happening

down with our diplomats in Cuba.

Why so many of them are getting sick or going deaf?

We talk about that in the broader implications for the region.

When I talked to the former secretary of the Navy, Ray Mabis, he was the secretary of

the Navy for all eight years, the Obama administration, who's also the US ambassador to Saudi Arabia

in the 90s.

We talked about how he managed the Navy and literally purchased billion dollar ships at a time.

I think it was an interesting window into how to rationalize a defense budget that can reach

numbers like $760 billion a year.

We also talked about the changing nature of the economy in Saudi Arabia, their transition

from the entirely oil-based economy to one where oil is dropping below $30 a barrel and

they're going to have to deal with that going forward.

It was an interesting perspective on decisions they're making like allowing women to drive.

He also talked about how he tried to turn the Navy green in the Marine Corps green by pushing

them to use biofuels and renewable energy.

It was a perspective on the value of conservation and going green that I'd never heard before

...