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Mallen Baker: Faultlines

"Dangerously reasonable" analysis on politics, science, and particularly the bit where they bump into each other. I aim to give an independent, fact-focused, non-ideological take on the issues that matter.

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All Episodes

00:21:51

Macron Calls Out Trump Bizarre Iran Behaviour | News...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/04/03

In this news round-up of the week for Friday April 3rd 2026. After Trump's incoherent address to the nation the backlash against his war on Iran is widening, and given voice by a particularly sharp attack by French President Macron. The Pentagon is looking to exploit its existing treaty with Denmark to open three new military bases on Greenland - but that treaty was struck at a time before the US became a rogue superpower. And there has been a sudden rush of purges. President Trump fired Pam Bondi,

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00:09:29

Trump Tied Aid To Minerals - Zambia Just Said No

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/04/02

The administration of President Donald Trump was quick to cancel USAID. But quietly since then, it has been reinstating some programmes - with a catch. Increasingly, his 'art of the deal' team are demanding that essential aid for HIV sufferers is tied to preferential access to minerals, and a ten year access to health information for all citizens. The 'deals' are egregiously one-sided, assuming that the other side will have no option. But increasingly now African nations are saying no. President

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00:11:30

Trump Threatens To Pull From NATO

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/04/01

Another day, another verbal twist from the President of War. Yes, now Trump is SO furious at all those Europeans who apparently care about international law and war crimes, that he is threatening to pull the United States out of NATO. It's something we've heard before, and generally it's about trying to terrify the Europeans into dancing to President Trump's tune. But it's getting to the point where many will be seeing such an exit as not just inevitable - but actually a desirable outcome.

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00:15:21

Trump Tells World Go Get Your Own Oil

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/31

President Donald Trump, who just yesterday was threatening to commit war crimes against Iran if it didn't open the Strait of Hormuz, is now on whiplash mode again, and is now talking up the prospect of leaving Iran after a bit more bombing, whether the Strait is open or not. Those countries who need that oil, he said, can sort out the mess (that he is single-handedly responsible for) for themselves. Needless to say, many are not happy at this proposition. But out of the two scenarios, there is cause

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00:15:09

Trump ‘Wants Iran’s Oil’ And Other Fantasies

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/31

The multi-faceted stream of consciousness from President Donald Trump about what he wants from the Iran war, when and how he might end said war, and more besides continues. Now he is saying straight out that he would like to take Iran's oil - something that would only be possible if the US actually occupied Kharg island, something which most analysts say could only happen at very high cost. So maybe he'll just bomb the island's facilities instead, along with all the rest of Iran's energy and water

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00:16:23

Enabling Trump Has Turned Palantir Toxic

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/28

In principle, Palantir is just a company that helps governments to work smarter. In practice, it has embraced the absence of guardrails of the US administration of President Donald Trump, its technology can be used for expanding surveillance, and for making life and death decisions that are extremely in the public eye right now. Its most high profile project has been its support of ICE's mass deportation efforts, that have been so controversial they turned Trump's most popular issue into a

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00:23:31

Trump's Bizarre Iran Fantasies Are Getting Weirder |...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/27

In this news round-up of the week for Friday, March 27th 2026. Trump declares that Iran negotiations, which seem mostly to be conducted between the voices in his head, are going very well - meanwhile Iran is solidifying its control of the Strait of Hormuz. Meta and YouTube were found legally liable by a California jury for deliberately addicting users and causing harm to young people. A finding that could open the floodgates to many more. And Robert F Kennedy Junior's anti-vax agenda is falling

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00:11:22

The Iran War Peace Plans Are A Farce - But No-One's...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/25

Even though President Trump declared to the world that peace negotiations with Iran were advanced, and seeing agreement on most points of substance - today the US presented Iran with its starting-position 15 point plan. Iran basically shrugged it off, presented its own demands, and repeated that no negotiations have taken place, and Iran is not interested in a ceasefire. The absurd Trump claims would be hilarious if the conflict weren't causing such major consequences. But is it all a delaying game

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00:11:45

Can Trump and Putin Save Viktor Orban?

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/24

The election in Hungary is getting closer - and we've been seeing all the things we knew were coming - Trump's endorsement of Viktor Orban, related to CPAC Hungary conference. Other far-right figures from across Europe turning up to give their support. Reams of Russian disinformation on social media. And ... wait, a false flag assassination attempt? Well, evidence has emerged that the idea was floated to the Kremlin at least - whether it was agreed or not. It gives some indication just how much

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00:12:05

Trump's Bizarre Made-Up Iran Negotiations

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/23

President Donald Trump has form in claiming that he is in active negotiations with other leaders, or with countries, when the other parties deny any such thing is happening, and it turns out that they were right. So it's somewhat surreal to find him making exactly that sort of claim about the Iranian leadership, when there is precisely nothing you would expect could be achieved by doing so. Except that any excuse to delay an unviable deadline gives him more time to come up with more distractions

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00:12:29

Why Trump’s Iran Whiplash Points To Growing Desperation

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/22

In the course of 24 hours, President Donald Trump went from saying that he was looking at 'winding down' the Iran war, to issuing threats to escalate the crisis should Iran refuse to completely open up the Strait of Hormuz. Such massive whiplash on positions suggest that he is getting increasingly agitated about his options, and is looking around - and testing out publicly - the course of action that will enable him to get out of this situation while credibly claiming victory. But, on that score,

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00:18:49

Trump Blunders A Huge Energy Crisis Onto The World |...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/20

In this news round-up for March 20th 2026: Iran's strike on Qatar has triggered what energy analysts are calling an "Armageddon scenario" for global gas markets — and Trump's denial that the US knew about the Israeli attack that provoked it lacks credibility. President Trump invoked Pearl Harbor during the latest Oval Office struggle session, this time with Japan's prime minister Takaichi. Then praised Japan for support that seems somewhat theoretical. And eleven weeks after US forces arrested

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00:14:17

How Trump’s America First Became America Alone

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/19

According to one of his best allies in the Senate, President Donald Trump is more furiously angry about having none of America's allies agree to join it dealing with the consequences of his illegal war on Iran, than he's ever been seen. How did we reach this moment? From the time when the consensus seemed to be to flatter and appease Trump, to the point where former allies of the United States are content to defy his wishes - and have clearly reached the conclusion that the consequences of so doing

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00:14:27

Trump Wants To Bury Bad News About the Iran War

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/17

In the last few days, the administration of President Donald Trump has been going hard after the media - any journals or networks that have reported the slightest bad news about Trump's Iran war have been getting schooled on being more patriotic. That could just be so much business as usual - except that the FCC Chair Brendan Carr has pitched in to suggest that 'fake news' about the war would be remembered at licence renewal time, and defence secretary Pete Hegseth has been publicly pitching for the

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00:11:28

Trump Threatens NATO: Help Now Or Regret It

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/16

President Trump told NATO allies, as well as countries like Japan, South Korea and even main geopolitical rival China, that they must send warships to help open the Strait of Hormuz - or else. This would be bad for NATO. He would delay his planned visit to Beijing to meet with Xi Jinping. And so far, having spent the last year being insulted, threatened, tariffed and bullied - all of those countries are saying 'no thanks'. Is this the pivotal moment where the US, having realised it needs alliances,

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00:12:35

Elon Musk’s Grok AI Platform Just Blew Up In His Face

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/15

It's not a secret that Elon Musk's xAI platform, Grok, is not entirely like other AI models. Specifically, he has gone to great lengths to ensure it absorbs his ethos and "anti-woke" mindset, even as he has been promising it would overtake all the other models any day soon. However, it seems not all has been well in xAI - and Musk has been clearing out the old guard, firing people all over, and talking publicly about reapproaching people who were rejected for job interviews who may have been what

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00:23:04

US Ammunition Crisis As Iran Grows Bolder | News...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/13

In this news round-up of the week for Friday March 13th 2026. Pentagon insiders reveal that Trump's war on Iran has burned through years of critical munitions in two weeks of his illegal war on Iran. And this could seriously weaken the US in dangerous times. As the Pentagon tries to isolate and damage AI company Anthropic for ethical restrictions on what its system will do, Microsoft has stepped out, risking billions in government contracts, to stand alongside it. And Trump's threats and insults

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00:14:17

How The Massive Impact Of Trump’s War Is Hitting The...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/12

The alarm bells across the world are really starting to sound loudly now, as the short-term effects on the cost and availability of energy and fertiliser is hitting the citizens of countries across the world. President Donald Trump's war of choice with Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz. He has proven unable to reopen it, and the future consequences if this remains the case for an extended period have been predicted as being 'catastrophic'. Let's do the quickest of canters across the globe to see

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00:13:45

Peter Magyar vs Putin, Trump AND Orban | Hungary’s...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/11

Today, the Financial Times reported on a leaked proposal for Russia to engage in a disinformation and influence campaign in support of the re-election of autocrat Viktor Orban. This comes as his opponent in next month's election, Peter Magyar, is significantly ahead in independent polling. But President Vladimir Putin does not want to lose his best ally in Europe. President Donald Trump likewise. And hence begins what may be a template election for Russian and American influence campaigns on behalf

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00:14:00

Is Trump About To TACO Out Of Iran?

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2026/03/10

Trump has started talking in terms of the war being complete, and stressing that it was just an 'excursion' - a sign, according to stock markets and commodity traders, that he is looking pretty urgently for an off-ramp from the Iran war. Is Trump, some are asking, about to TACO (Trump Always Chickens Out) out of the Iran war? Well, unfortunately, it's not quite that simple. In a war, it doesn't fall to just one side whether it stops or not. And, in this case, there is plenty of evidence that the

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542 results

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