Pulitzer Prize winning war correspondent Dexter Filkins joins Chuck Todd to explore whether the U.S. military is prepared for the realities of modern warfare. From Ukraine’s innovative battlefield tactics to Israel’s use of AI, militaries around the world are embracing cheap, agile technologies that challenge America’s reliance on massive, legacy weapons systems. They examine how Congress’s instinct to protect jobs keeps outdated systems alive, why the Pentagon is scrambling to produce affordable drones, and how America’s vast defense supply chain quietly runs through China. The conversation turns to Taiwan—home to 90% of the world’s advanced microchip production—and whether the U.S. and its allies are truly ready to defend it in the event of a conflict with China.
The discussion also delves into the vulnerabilities of low-earth orbit satellites, the role of companies like Palantir in military tech, and whether autonomous targeting and video game–like interfaces are desensitizing the nature of war. Beyond weapons, Filkins and Todd confront America’s recruiting crisis, where three-quarters of young adults aren’t eligible for service, forcing the military to experiment with “pre-boot camps.” They close with reflections on fractured alliances, Trump’s effect on European defense spending, Putin’s ambitions to reconstitute the Soviet Union, and Filkins’s own harrowing experiences covering war zones—from Taliban executions in Kabul to jihadi training camps before 9/11.
Timeline:
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00:00 Dexter Filkins joins the Chuck ToddCast
02:00 Is the U.S. military vulnerable to small tech innovation?
02:30 U.S. military is studying Ukraine and Israel’s innovations
04:00 U.S. military relies on few, very expensive weapons
05:30 Legacy weapon systems get updated, rarely replaced
06:45 Congress defends status quo to protect jobs in their district
08:15 America spends huge money, doesn’t get bang for buck
09:30 Pentagon has new program making cheap, accurate drones
10:45 50,000 American defense supply chains lead back to China
13:00 Defending Taiwan is a massive logistical challenge
13:45 Is America ready to help Taiwan survive war with China?
14:45 Taiwan produces 90% of the world’s advanced microchips
15:45 If Taiwan falls, the world economy would grind to a halt
17:00 The Asian-Pacific alliance isn’t rock solid
18:30 War between the U.S. and China would be ugly
19:15 Low-earth orbit satellites are vulnerable to attack
20:15 Destroying the satellite network is mutually assured destruction
21:30 China is watching the U.S. response to Ukraine war
23:45 Would Japan jump into a war between the U.S. and China?
24:45 Israel’s military is using AI for targeting
27:45 What is Palantir’s role with military applications?
29:15 Military systems aren’t interconnected for cybersecurity safety
30:45 Modern warfare will require a rapid decision making process
32:00 Autonomous targeting required to avoid jamming
33:30 Modern targeting systems are incredibly advanced
35:15 How much is war desensitized by its video game nature?
37:15 Recruiting problems for the U.S. military
38:30 75% of prime age military recruits don’t quality for service
40:00 Military has set up a pre-boot camp for recruits to lose weight
41:30 What size of military force do we need?
43:00 The fracturing of U.S. alliances in an era of nationalism
44:30 Trump scared the Europeans into increasing defense spending
46:15 Putin has been clear he wants to reconstitute the Soviet Union
46:45 Would Trump defend/liberate the Baltics in an article 5 scenario?
47:45 If Europe gets serious about defense, Trump did a good thing
49:00 How did defense/military become your beat?
50:30 Surviving close calls when covering a war zone
51:45 Watching a live execution at the Kabul sports stadium in the 90s
52:45 Seeing the jihadi training camps in Afghanistan prior to 9/11
53:45 Any desire to cover an active war zone again?