We’re still only days into Donald Trump’s second term, but there is already a wealth of data to draw upon to update our models and expectations for how to think about his impact on the United States, US foreign policy, and the world. Joining Darren to talk through these early days is frequent guest Zack Cooper of the American Enterprise Institute.

Australia in the World is written, hosted, and produced by Darren Lim, with research and editing this episode by Walter Colnaghi and theme music composed by Rory Stenning.

Relevant links

Euan Graham, “The Quad foreign ministers joint statement: short and sweet”, ASPI Strategist, 22 Jan 2025: https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/the-quad-foreign-ministers-joint-statement-short-and-sweet/

Yuval Levin, Trump Redux Begins, National Review, 21 Jan 2025: https://www.aei.org/op-eds/trump-redux-begins/

Ezra Klein Show, “MAGA’s big tech divide” (interview with James Pogue), 28 Jan 2025: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/28/opinion/ezra-klein-podcast-james-pogue.html

James Pogue, “Steve Bannon Has Called His “Army” to Do Battle—No Matter Who Wins in November”, Vanity Fair, 9 Oct 2024: https://www.vanityfair.com/news/story/steve-bannon-nato-world-order

James Pogue, “How Long Can the Alliance Between Tech Titans and the MAGA Faithful Last?”, New York Times, 18 Jan 2025: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/18/opinion/donald-trump-tech-musk-bannon.html?unlocked_article_code=1.rE4.j9zE.VS5n0pOxgHg_&smid=url-share

On the eve of Donald Trump’s second inauguration, one of the podcast’s editors, Corbin Duncan, interviews Darren in a “ask me anything” format, asking both his own questions and those submitted by friends of the podcast. How did Darren come to studying economic security and is there a framework for practising it? Are we returning to a world of spheres of influence? Is foreign interference being normalised? How is the ‘pivot to Asia’ going? Have we reached peak democracy? Who will be the geopolitical winners of decarbonisation? Can academics influence foreign policy and are they self-censoring?

It is a very wide-ranging conversation!

Australia in the World is written, hosted, and produced by Darren Lim, with research, interviewing and editing this episode by Corbin Duncan and theme music composed by Rory Stenning.

Relevant links

Eliot Chen, “Does Washington Have China Groupthink?”, The Wire China, 5 January 2025: https://www.thewirechina.com/2025/01/05/does-washington-have-china-groupthink/

Arthur C. Brooks (personal website): https://arthurbrooks.com/

Rob Henderson, Troubled: A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class (Gallery Books, 2024): https://www.amazon.com.au/Troubled-Memoir-Foster-Family-Social/dp/1982168536

The Day of the Jackal (TV Series): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Day_of_the_Jackal_(TV_series)

In the past few months Darren has been teaching his elective undergraduate course, Power and Influence in World Politics (POLS2136) at ANU. This year, he has grappled with the impact of Donald Trump’s re-election, and what it signifies for how power will be accumulated and wielded in the future. Remember, Trump’s core critique of the Biden Administration was weakness – so presumably Trump plans to show us strength. Does that mean America can be more ‘powerful’, or will the result actually be the opposite? And Australia’s deals with PNG and Nauru this month illustrate how far Australia has come in exercising power and influence in recent years.

Hervé Lemahieu and Susannah Patton of the Lowy Institute in Sydney join Darren for a conversation about power. Hervé is Lowy’s Director of Research and Susannah the Director of the Southeast Asia Program and Project Lead for Lowy’s Asia Power Index, which Hervé first developed in 2018. Who better to have a conversation with about power, what it is, how we measure it, and how the forces that have given us Trump, or perhaps Trump himself, might require is to reassess how we conceive of power in world politics into the future.

Australia in the World is written, hosted, and produced by Darren Lim, with research and editing this episode by Walter Colnaghi and theme music composed by Rory Stenning.

Relevant links

Hervé Lemahieu (bio): https://www.lowyinstitute.org/herve-lemahieu

Susannah Patton (bio): https://www.lowyinstitute.org/susannah-patton

Lowy Institute Asia Power Index, 2024 Edition: https://power.lowyinstitute.org/

Susannah Patton and Hervé Lemahieu, “Asia has no hegemon: But U.S.-Chinese Bipolarity Is Good for America and the Region”, Foreign Affairs, 13 September: https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/asia-has-no-hegemon-us-chinese-bipolarity-good-america-region

Mitch McConnell, “The Price of American Retreat: Why Washington Must Reject Isolationism and Embrace Primacy”, Foreign Affairs, Jan/Feb 2025: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/price-american-retreat-trump-mitch-mcconnell

Join or die (Netflix documentary): https://www.netflix.com/au/title/81746809

Wicked (2024 Film): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wicked_(2024_film)