Defense & Aerospace Report Podcast [Jun 26, ’26 Washington Roundtable]

On this week’s Defense & Aerospace Report Washington Roundtable, Dr. Patrick Cronin of the Hudson Institute think tank, Michael Herson of American Defense International, former DoD Europe chief Jim Townsend of the Center for a New American Security, and former Pentagon Comptroller Dr. Dov Zakheim of the Center for Strategic and International Studies join Defense & Aerospace Report Editor Vago Muradian to discuss President Trump’s derailing of the budget process by refusing to sign a bipartisan housing affordability measure until lawmakers pass his SAVE Act that critics maintain is a voter suppression measure; prospects for Reconciliation 3.0 as lawmakers move to tie it to portions of the SAVE measure; House and Senate authorization and appropriations processes move ahead as the administration is expected to request $88 billion to cover Iran war costs; analysis of ongoing US-Iran negotiations — as well as direct contact between American military officials and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — as Tehran fired on a Singaporean tanker for using an unauthorized transit corridor through the Strait of Hormuz, shutting traffic as Iranian officials continue efforts to assert ownership of the key waterway; Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s efforts at the Gulf Cooperation Council to sell the deal to nervous allies as Saudi Arabia opened direct talks with Iran; Israel’s continuing operations fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon; NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte’s visit to Washington to pave the way for a smooth alliance summit 7-8 July in Ankara as the administration considers deep cuts in US capabilities available to NATO and fires Gen. Chris Donahue, the top US Army commander in Europe; Ukraine turns the tables on Russia and Crimea; China sails its newest aircraft carrier — the Fujian — through the Taiwan Strait and pressures US states and private American firms to cut ties with Taipei; US efforts to modernize alliances across Asia whether through new operational concepts or economic ties; South Korea’s investment in the United States and whether US lawmakers will allow the US Navy to buy foreign-made ships; Japan’s $2.3 trillion industrial plan; Kim Jong Un commission’s North Korea’s largest ever new destroyer on the 76th anniversary of north’s invasion of the south; and reflections as America celebrates its 250th birthday.