Lawfare Daily: Emily Hoge on Russian Mobsters at the Front episode artwork

EPISODE · Nov 19, 2025 · 46 MIN

Lawfare Daily: Emily Hoge on Russian Mobsters at the Front

from The Lawfare Podcast

Benjamin Wittes sits down with Emily Hoge, a historian at Clemson University, who has written a pair of pieces for Lawfare recently about Russian mobsters and the war in Ukraine. They’re getting out of prison in exchange for service at the front. Some of them are surviving their service there and returning home by way of reward—and the Russian crime rate is skyrocketing as a result. Is all of this altering the Russian social contract, which promised to make the violence of the 1990s a thing of the past in exchange to submission to Vladimir Putin’s rule?To receive ad-free podcasts, become a Lawfare Material Supporter at www.patreon.com/lawfare. You can also support Lawfare by making a one-time donation at https://givebutter.com/lawfare-institute.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Benjamin Wittes sits down with Emily Hoge, a historian at Clemson University, who has written a pair of pieces for Lawfare recently about Russian mobsters and the war in Ukraine. They’re getting out of prison in exchange for service at the front. Some of them are surviving their service there and returning home by way of reward—and the Russian crime rate is skyrocketing as a result. Is all of this altering the Russian social contract, which promised to make the violence of the 1990s a thing of the past in exchange to submission to Vladimir Putin’s rule?To receive ad-free podcasts, become a Lawfare Material Supporter at www.patreon.com/lawfare. You can also support Lawfare by making a one-time donation at https://givebutter.com/lawfare-institute.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/lawfare. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

NOW PLAYING

Lawfare Daily: Emily Hoge on Russian Mobsters at the Front

0:00 46:13

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of The Lawfare Podcast?

This episode is 46 minutes long.

When was this The Lawfare Podcast episode published?

This episode was published on November 19, 2025.

What is this episode about?

Benjamin Wittes sits down with Emily Hoge, a historian at Clemson University, who has written a pair of pieces for Lawfare recently about Russian mobsters and the war in Ukraine. They’re getting out of prison in exchange for service at the front....

Can I download this The Lawfare Podcast episode?

Yes, you can download this episode by clicking the download button on the episode player, or subscribe to the podcast in your preferred podcast app for automatic downloads.
URL copied to clipboard!