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PODCAST

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence with Sue Gordon

Sue Gordon & Eric Koepp

Welcome to “Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence with Sue Gordon” — the national security podcast that provides you an elemental understanding of the world as it is, not how you prefer it to be.Each week, Eric — a former Marine, father, and entrepreneur — sits down with the Honorable Sue Gordon, the nation’s former top career intelligence officer. Together, they break down the headlines shaping our world and ask what they really mean for citizens, leaders, and institutions.From armed

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All Episodes

49:17

Ep. 29 Power Without Permission: Who Decides When...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2026/02/03

When technology companies operate as economic engines, civic spaces, and geopolitical actors without the obligations that traditionally accompany that level of power, sovereignty itself begins to redistribute. In this episode, Sue and Eric examine the dangerous mismatch between capability and accountability as AI reaches what Anthropic's CEO calls "technological adolescence" and Sue calls powerful but not yet wise. From Russia poisoning AI training data to South Korea pioneering governance fr...

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55:51

Ep. 28 Power, Precedent, and Accountability: Why...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2026/01/27

Precedent is set by what we excuse, not what we celebrate.When power acts first and explains later, accountability erodes—and precedent takes hold. In this episode, Sue and Eric examine recent events in Minnesota, federal enforcement surges, and global reactions from Davos to assess what really matters beyond any single incident. The danger, they argue, isn’t one decision or one tragedy—it’s the pattern forming beneath them: pressure without restraint, authority without explanation, and leadership

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44:21

Ep. 27 Democracy Under Stress: Elections as...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2026/01/20

In this episode we argue that elections are not only symbolic rituals—they are critical infrastructure with attack surfaces. The most consequential threat is seldom a hacked machine—in fact, our technical infrastructure is remarkably sound; it is the deliberate degradation of trust that makes acceptance of results optional. When acceptance becomes optional, the democratic bargain (and with it democratic stability) starts to fail—quietly, procedurally, and then suddenly. We examine a growing n...

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42:16

Ep. 26 Default to Trust–Why It’s Necessary, Signs...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2026/01/13

Free and open societies rely on a default to trust–a baseline assumption that institutions, experts, and alliances operate largely as advertised. This is not blind faith; it is a functional necessity that allows society to scale and people to live their lives.In this episode, we argue that today’s disquiet is not driven by any single leader or policy–though those are also problematic–but by the erosion of systems designed to provide legitimacy, restraint, and predictability in a fast, low-authority

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43:50

Ep. 25: A Global Geopolitical Romp: Strategy,...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2026/01/06

In this episode, Sue and Eric kick off the year with a look at geopolitical hotspots and assess that, in aggregate, US actions reveal the National Security Strategy for what it is—and isn’t.Assessing the Trump strategy as one of power, resources, and driven by their version of the “scarcity model”, they walk through recent actions in Venezuela, Iran, Syria, Nigeria, Israel, China/Taiwan, and Russia/Ukraine to show that despite the values-based rhetoric often used to justify US actions, the actions

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29:03

Ep. 24 Bonus Space: From Domain to Dependency

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2026/01/02

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric discuss the future of space. Low Earth orbit is becoming a “house of cards,” where mega-constellations and frequent close passes shrink the margin for error and raise the risk of a cascading debris event. Space is shifting from a domain to a dependency, and we’re lagging on the policies, norms, and accountability needed to keep pace with capability. They also dig into what this means for NASA’s next chapter—less about a list of initiatives and

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29:37

Ep. 24 The National Security Trump Card: Ukraine,...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/12/30

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric discuss Ukraine’s latest turn: President Zelensky takes his pitch for peace to Mar-a-Lago as Russia sustains heavy strikes. They unpack what would actually signal progress: whether battlefield activity slows in a way that suggests a real path to peace rather than leverage and messaging.Next, they move north to Greenland to draw a sharp distinction between owning terrain and achieving security outcomes, arguing that strategy is built through

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8:47

Ep. 23 Bonus: You Can't Surge Trust in a Crisis

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/12/26

In this special edition of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric examine public health policy as national security. Beginning with HHS’s termination of pediatric health grants, they map the downstream consequences of politicized funding: diminished institutional trust, fragmented preparedness, and greater vulnerability ahead of the next crisis.Questioning science isn’t the problem— questioning science is the nature of science. Recorded on December 22, 2025, this segment originally appeared in the

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41:19

Ep. 23 Ukraine, the NDAA, and Fusion Hype — and Why...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/12/23

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric start with Europe’s move to fund Ukraine through 2026–2027 and unpack what that signals (and what it doesn’t): real staying power, internal fractures, the role of Russian propaganda, and visible public disagreements in intelligence assessments about Putin’s intentions.Next, they turn to the NDAA and use it as a lens on how national security actually gets built. Combatant Command reorganizations and new-domain priorities matter far less than

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54:33

Ep. 22 Transparency by Design: DOE’s Genesis Mission,...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/12/17

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric track Transparency by Design; how you build trust in national security by setting clear outcomes instead of picking winners. They start with DOE’s Genesis Mission, a national push to use AI and advanced computing to supercharge U.S. science through DOE's 17 national labs, while warning against “integration theater” and calling for real governance and talent to match the ambition.Next, they hit the market front: Nvidia’s H200 exports to

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59:29

Ep. 21 Dominance Playbook: National Security...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/12/09

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric crack open the 2025 National Security Strategy. They start by explaining what a National Security Strategy is supposed to do—define outcomes, not micromanage actions—and what it means when a strategy leans hard into “America First” rhetoric while saying almost nothing about education, health, and the human capital that underpins national power. They walk through the Trump Corollary of the Monroe Doctrine and the Western Hemisphere, the choice

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6:27

Ep 20 Bonus: Retribution Politics: When Dissent...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/12/06

In this special edition of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric explore the troubling rise of retribution politics in America. Prompted by a Reuters investigation into over 470 individuals and institutions allegedly targeted by the Trump administration, they examine what happens when government power is used to punish dissent—from prosecutors and journalists to universities and companies.Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction to Ui Bonus Episode00:57 Sue's Perspective on Retribution02:15 Government

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48:50

Ep. 20 Trust and Consequences: Afghan Allies,...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/12/02

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric look at the price of trust—starting with an Afghan ally accused of murdering a West Virginia National Guard member near the White House and the administration’s response: freezing asylum and visa decisions for Afghan allies. They unpack what it means to run a “nation of immigrants” on fear instead of evidence, then turn to Ukraine back-channels and Venezuela’s shadow war to ask what happens when unelected power brokers and intellectual

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57:54

Ep. 19 Substitution or Sovereignty? China’s Capital,...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/11/25

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric trace how seemingly ordinary deals can reshape American security, starting with a Chinese-linked insurance acquisition that offers a window into the “holy grail” of intelligence—intent. Some foreign capital is about substitution, not partnership. From there, they turn to energy in the AI era, using the federal loan to restart Three Mile Island as a case study in government use. They examine the tug-of-war between state and federal authority,

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49:48

Ep. 18 Leaky Systems: Agentic AI Hack, Dams and...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/11/19

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric break down a new milestone in AI operations: an agentic hack using Claude that orchestrates tools together. They explain what’s actually new about the attack, why intent plus AI scale is the real risk, and how governments, companies, media, and citizens should think about Who’s Responsible in this next phase. From there, they turn to water security as national security—tracing a line from Iran’s dams to the Colorado River, the Ogallala

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45:46

Ep. 17 Steppe Signals: Kazakhstan’s Uranium, Europe’s...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/11/11

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric discuss U.S. global influence on display as a C5+1 White House celebration, a former al-Qaeda–linked Syrian leader visits, and the State Department expresses irritation as the EU grabs first-mover ground in standards—from a draft Space Act to AI policy. They weigh the case for an AI bubble and the benefits of natural down-selection versus the risks of chilling real adoption. Plus: post-election signals, pragmatic U.S.–Syria engagement, and a

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41:04

Ep. 16 Critical Mass: Nuclear Testing, Power for the...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/11/05

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric discuss the significance of local elections around the country. They delve into the U.S. government’s approach to decommissioned nuclear warheads, current discussions about resuming nuclear testing, and key takeaways from President Trump’s diplomatic tour in Asia. They also examine a high-profile insider-threat case involving a defense contractor and close with What We’re Watching for the week ahead: Supreme Court action on tariffs, a

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45:19

Ep. 15 Speed Is the Advantage: Army Acquisitions, the...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/10/28

We’re back! In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric put speed at the center of national power—why getting tech from contract to combat faster is the 2025 advantage, how to measure success in Ukraine beyond headlines, and what AUKUS and Australia’s rare-earth capacity mean for resilient national security. Plus: what to realistically expect from upcoming Asia travel—watch South Korea—and a tease of the emerging “time-service” cyber risk (“time is the new oil”) that we’ll unpack in a

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49:53

Ep. 14 Quantum Is Closing In, Data Everywhere, &...

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/10/14

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric put quantum computing on the table—what quantum computers are, why “harvest-now, decrypt-later” raises the stakes for your data, and what a post-quantum cryptography (PQC) world will look like. Plus: China’s threats to restrict rare-earth exports, partnership opportunities in AI-enabled open-source intelligence (OSINT), and the implications of the well deserved Nobel Peace Prize recognition for María Corina Machado of Venezuela.Programming

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50:48

Ep. 13 The War Department’s Misfire

Understandable Insights: Information to Intelligence... ·

2025/10/07

In this episode of Understandable Insights, Sue and Eric unpack Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s fiery Quantico address—why it was a tactical speech to a strategic audience, how it missed the mission, and what its message signals for women and talent across the country. They examine the tension between unity and conformity, leadership and loyalty, and the risk of mistaking discipline for devotion. Plus: SWIFT moves onto blockchain, Beijing’s use of organized crime to expand influence in Taiwan,

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