The White House/Flickr
After tearing up the Iran nuclear deal negotiated under President Obama, Trump is trying to bomb his way to a better outcome and it’s failing spectacularly.
On this episode of After America, nuclear policy expert Jon B Wolfsthal and Dr Emma Shortis discuss the US-Iran negotiations, the risks of this conflict metastasising, and how Trump is continuing to break down the guardrails around the use of nuclear weapons.
This episode was recorded on Friday 17 April.
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Guest: Jon B Wolfsthal, US Nuclear Policy Fellow, PAX sapiens // @jonatomic
Host: Emma Shortis, Director, International & Security Affairs, the Australia Institute // @emmashortis
Show notes:
Shorter America: The consequences of not caring; The enemy of your enemy is not your friend; Visions for the future by Emma Shortis, The Point (April 2026)
What Is the Iran Nuclear Deal?, Council on Foreign Relations
Photo: The White House/Flickr (U.S. Government work)
Theme music: Pulse and Thrum; additional music by Blue Dot Sessions
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It isn’t always easy to keep up with what’s happening in the US. “Shorter America” is a series where Dr Emma Shortis loops you in on what’s going on in America and shares news and analysis that you can trust.
Australia has long been one of America’s closest and most reliable friends. That means we can see the Trump administration for what it is. More than half of Australians now believe that President Donald Trump is a greater threat to global security than Russian President Vladimir Putin (17%) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (16%).
