Donald Trump's Foreign Policy Switcheroos: The New Fifth Column, With Michael Weiss

Also: Watch Matt Welch talk North Korea on MSNBC tonight at 8 pm ET

Matt Welch

Michael Weiss, editor in chief of the Russia-watching Interpreter magazine, and author of ISIS: Inside the Army of Terror, has long been one of the most knowledgeable observers of Great Game international politics. Last night, after one of the most eventful weeks in modern foreign policy history, what with President Donald Trump's showy switcheroos on Syria, Russia, China, and NATO, and his noisy belligerence toward North Korea, Weiss joined for 45 minutes of a 133-minute (!) version of The Fifth Column, the weekly podcast of Kmele Foster, Michael C. Moynihan, and myself. You can listen right here:

Also earning mentions: Masshole marathoners, "Black Ron Paul," the Maple Syrup Mafia, and much more. You can further service your Fifth Column needs at iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, wethefifth.com, @wethefifth, and Facebook.

BONUS ANNOUNCEMENT: I am scheduled to appear on tonight's All in With Chris Hayes on MSNBC with guest-host Joy-Ann Reid at 8 pm ET, to talk about our coming conflict with North Korea.

Comments

[Fist of Etiquette]

Invite Weiss to be a regular correspondent. He will solve the middle east.

[GILMORE?]

Have you ever seen the comments on any of his videos on Youtube?

It makes Takimag look like a Quaker Meeting-house.

[Fist of Etiquette]

I avoid youtube comments. I enjoy my sanity.

[DanO.]

Avoid the Noid Glibs then. Every stale meme you've ever heard x 1000.

[Crusty Juggler aka "Chad"]

This podcast was literally longer than Hitler.

[Matt Welch]

Imagine being in the room!

[Chipper Mourning Will Grigg]

Matt, are you ever gonna do a show where you answer commenter questions?

[CharlesWT]

The podcasts are, on average, gaining about a minute per episode.

Length = 54 + Episode Number

[Feminist Killjoy]

This popped up in itunes just as I was loading stuff on for a trip back to the states and I swore out loud. In a good way.

[Not a True MJG]

The Fifth Column, the weekly podcast

Almost.

[Fist of Etiquette]

-Minus.

[GILMORE?]

Gah! John Lithgow

[GILMORE?]

It seems MSNBC is interviewing congresspeople who are SHOCKED!!! SHOCKED!! that the US government is at war in places like Syria or Libya or Somalia or Pakistan or Yemen.... and something must be done to stop this warmongering republicanism.

[GILMORE?]

*Barbara Lee.

please tell me Welch is going to gut these people

[Fist of Etiquette]

She said "a whole nother level" on national television. Well, MSNBC.

[Fist of Etiquette]

OMG, Welch. Is Welch drunk? When you knot your tie up, as expected, then your shirt collar will not fall outside the confines of your suit jacket.

[Not a True MJG]

Oh, right, you people are actually watching MSNBC.

I, for one, don't even own a TV.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Then you're the model MSNBC viewer.

[Not a True MJG]

Bing!

[GILMORE?]

Oh Matt....

...the collar.... the COLLAR!!! @#)@($*)@* COLLAR!!!!! (facepalm) YOU HAD ONE JOB

you might as well be swinging a half empty bottle of blueberry schnapps around. Don't get me started on the fact that these aren't even close to appropriate "War Room" colors.

[Matt Welch]

It popped out! Failed to do the proper pre-check....

[Fist of Etiquette]

Also, it appears that Welch has seized back his old position at Reason.

[GILMORE?]

I don't believe anything MSNBC says. We'll have to wait until Kennedy changes his job-title.

[Chipper Mourning Will Grigg]

He is finally gonna fix the comments?

[Chipper Mourning Will Grigg]

He is finally gonna fix the comments?

[Jerryskids]

Switcheroos? Fake news - Trump didn't change his position on anything, everything else changed their position on Trump. NATO was obsolete, a few choice tweets from Trump and they straightened their asses up. Same with China - Trump called them out on Twitter for being bad actors and now they're totally reformed. Ex-Im Bank? Pathetic crony capitalist when whatsisface was in charge, Trump's got that place helping the little guys, creating jobs, turning a profit. Syria wasn't something we needed to be messing with the bozos we had before, Trump's a military genius who'll have that little kerfuffle straightened out in a week. See? Everything he said before was true when he said it and now that everything's completely different, saying the complete opposite is also true.

[Charles Easterly]

Clearly some of you are more adept at navigating the provided links properly. All I was able to manage from the one Matt provided at the end of his article was a rather smug lady talking about cake and health code violations at a place owned by President Trump, which I couldn't connect with the US Government's "coming conflict with North Korea".

[GILMORE?]

there was no link for the MSNBC appearance. it was just a matter of "tune in on time"

[Charles Easterly]

My mistake/misunderstanding.

[Fist of Etiquette]

It wasn't worth your time, anyway, unless you like watching a disheveled editor-at-whatevs speaking for about 30 seconds.

[Charles Easterly]

In that event I am glad that I "missed" it.

[Chipper Mourning Will Grigg]

How are you Charles? I hope your Friday night is splendid and lavishingly peaceful. It is a wish I extend to all the commenters.

[GILMORE?]

The impression i got from Farkas (former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense) was that

"uh, yeah, Trump is like Hitler, but seriously, none of this stuff was like all that bad or that new although of course he's going to start WWIII"

It seems to be the position of the former Obama officials that you need to carefully navigate criticisms so that no one actually says, "But these wars are wrong and stupid!!" because that might provoke some reflection about how they've been going on for a number of years before now.

they seem to like to keep their options open between saying, "Trump is crazy and dangerous warmongering!!" and "He's not actually doing anything *new*! HILLARY HAD A PLAN""

[GILMORE?]

I humbly request the 5th Column use this as intro or outro music in a future podcast

its thematic

[Matt Welch]

I recognized my late-show accent.

[Chipper Mourning Will Grigg]

Can anyone tell me how many out of the 133 minutes is a Moynihan monologue? I want to listen, but only if Moynihan's hoging of the mic does not reach triple digits.

[DanO.]

It is the prerogative of every woman to change her mind.
Leave Britney alone!