This episode is brought to you by Lionsgate Plus. The third season of the Lionsgate Plus

original series The Great is available to stream on Friday July 14 exclusively on Lionsgate

Plus. Follow Catherine the second play by L-Fanning and Peter The Great, played by Nicholas

Holt, as they hilariously attempt to make their marriage work after some seemingly insurmountable

problems, from attempt to murder and the imprisonment of close friends to their never-ending

legal responsibilities. The Great Season 3 is available to stream on Friday July 14 exclusively

on Lionsgate Plus.

The Great is available to stream on Friday July 14 exclusively on Lionsgate Plus.

The Great is available to stream on Friday July 14 exclusively on Lionsgate Plus.

The Great is available to stream on Friday July 14 exclusively on Lionsgate Plus.

The Great is available to stream on Friday July 14 exclusively on Lionsgate Plus.

Crisis averted. It's not as gripping a headline as conflagration underway,

but the situation in Afghanistan is one of crisis averted or at least delayed.

As recently as a week ago, the candidates in the presidential election were at a stand-off,

each side alleging corruption. New details have emerged that a breakaway republic was very nearly

announced, but in no small part thanks to the intervention of Secretary of State John Kerry

and the creation of a newly empowered office of Prime Minister, the Afghan election is back on track.

Jonah Blank is a senior political scientist at the Rand Corporation. He served as policy director

for South and Southeast Asia on the staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee as a doctor

at Anthropology. Hello Jonah. How you doing? Thanks for having me. Absolutely. So,

Afghan elections, was there really true uncertainty or was this just an opportunity for the

presumably losing or at least trailing candidate to press an advantage? There really was uncertainty

...