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Rational Security

The “Escalatory Alan” Edition

Rational Security

The Lawfare Institute

Politics, Nationalsecurity, Government, Middleeast, News, Foreignpolicy

4.82K Ratings

🗓️ 5 October 2022

⏱️ 65 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This week, Alan, Quinta, and Scott sat down with unofficial fourth co-host, Lawfare executive editor Natalie Orpett, to discuss the week’s big national security news, including:

  • “That’s one, one disqualified elector. (Ah ah ah.)” Both the House and Senate finally seem ready to reform the Electoral Count Act, the ambiguity-ridden statute that has (kind of) governed how Congress counts electoral votes since 1887. What threats to our elections process will these reforms fix? Which will they leave unaddressed?
  • “It’s No Longer A-Me, Mario.” Recent elections are set to replace Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi with none other than Giorgia Meloni, the leader of the far-right Brothers of Italy movement. What does her victory mean for democracy in Italy and across Europe?
  • “Narcnado.” The Treasury Department’s decision to sanction Tornado Cash, an open source cryptocurrency tumbler, has privacy and technology advocates crying foul. Will the sanctions survive a coming legal challenge? Does it put First Amendment rights at risk?

For object lessons, Alan confessed his love of Jon Hamm, particularly in the movie "Confess, Fletch." Quinta recommended journalist David Enrich's deep dive into the big law firm Jones Day, "Servants of the Damned." Scott urged listeners to check out both his long-awaited report on standing doctrine and the late Loretta Lynn's rocker "Portland, Oregon" off her album with Jack White, "Van Lear Rose." And Natalie passed along a recent very real, non-satirical filing before the Supreme Court by America's finest news source, The Onion.


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Transcript

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0:00.8

Natalie, I can't tell why, but with the headphones,

0:04.0

I'm getting like a real princess lay-off vibe.

0:06.4

Mm-hmm.

0:07.4

Do you know that I have never ever seen Star Wars?

0:10.3

What?

0:11.2

What?

0:12.2

That is a little absurd.

0:13.5

I know. My husband threatens to divorce me

0:15.4

every couple months.

0:16.8

Just watch Star Wars, it's easy solution.

0:20.9

You better watch now because there's just

0:22.6

worse Star Wars coming down the pike.

0:24.3

Like it's just gonna be completely overwhelming

0:26.2

if Disney Plus has its way for one more year.

0:28.1

Not getting better either.

0:29.9

But see, none of this is a compelling reason

0:32.4

for me to watch at all.

0:34.6

Okay, I will say, I think the original series,

0:37.0

if you understand it as like space, Western, B3,

0:42.8

it's fun, it's just like, it's a good watch

0:44.8

entertaining, you can laugh at this

0:46.8

but the corny special effects, you know?

...

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