Welcome to The View from the Front podcast. My name is Stan and this is the Feb. 15th edition.
You can listen to the podcast by clicking the blue button above. Or, you can watch the video below on YouTube.
I really hope you get something out of it.
Please note: There is also an un-edited, AI-generated transcript, that you can find by clicking the Transcript button at upper right, under the podcast player device.
Or, you can find the podcast on your favorite channel below:
Questions? Comments? You are welcome to comment below. I read all comments and answer most of them. You can also reach out privately at: authorstanrmitchell@yahoo.com. (You can say “hi,” vent, or send news tips! I love all three of those things!)
If you just happened to stumble by, let me say a quick word about what we’re doing here.
For those who don’t know, my name is Stan R. Mitchell, and I’m a prior Marine and journalist.
Every week, I primarily do three things with my podcast:
Cover emerging hotspots and foreign policy news that you absolutely should know. (Why I focus on foreign policy...)
Work to unite our country and remind us of how lucky we are to live in America. (My thoughts on the division in this country...)
And finally, I always share plenty of motivation and wisdom at the end of each episode.
Take a listen to the podcast. I really hope you get something out of it.
Selected source notes for podcast and transcript above.
U.S. news:
Senate passes $95 billion foreign aid bill. But the funding faces long odds in House.
The Senate passed a $95 billion foreign aid bill early Tuesday, capping a lengthy battle that highlighted deep foreign policy rifts within the Republican Party.
The 70-29 vote kicks the funding bill over to the House, where House Speaker Mike Johnson has said his chamber will not consider the legislation because it does not include border security provisions. The package would appropriate $60 billion to support Ukraine, which has been battling Russia since February 2022.
It would also send $14 billion in military assistance to Israel, $9 billion in humanitarian assistance to Gaza and elsewhere, and nearly $5 billion to defend Taiwan.
Proponents of the legislation – including most Democrats and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell – see Russian President Vladimir Putin as a threat to democracy in Europe. An investment in Ukraine’s effort to hold Russia at bay would prevent the involvement of American troops down the line, they argued, should Russia succeed and feel emboldened to attack a NATO ally.
Trump advisers rush to spin ‘off the cuff’ NATO remarks
Why the Navy says its Red Sea and Gulf of Aden battles are historic
The Navy’s ongoing battles with Iran-backed Houthi rebels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden have resulted in destroyers shooting down 14 anti-ship ballistic missiles “for the first time in history,” the Navy’s top officer said Tuesday at the annual West 2024 conference here.
Since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October, the warships Carney, Gravely, Laboon, Mason and Thomas Hudner have destroyed more than 70 drones and seven Houthi cruise missiles, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti said.
Anti-ship ballistic missiles are designed to hit vessels like Navy destroyers, and their deployment by the Houthis against military and commercial ships in the region is believed to be the first time such munitions have been used in a conflict.
Ukraine news:
Ukraine's commander-in-chief is out
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Thursday that he has fired Valerii Zaluzhnyi from the role of the military’s commander-in-chief. His dismissal is the most high-profile change in leadership in Kyiv since Russia’s invasion.
“The time for renewal is now,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “I proposed to General Zaluzhnyi to remain part of the team,” he added. The commander of Ukraine’s land forces, Oleksandr Syrsky has been appointed as the new military leader.
“2024 will bring new changes for which we must be ready. New approaches, new strategies are needed,” Ukraine’s Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said in a Facebook post, thanking Zaluzhynyi for his time leading the army.
Syrskyi: Ukraine shifts to defense to drain Russian troops
Ukrainian troops have switched from offensive to defensive posture and aim to exhaust advancing Russian forces, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said in an interview with German ZDF channel, published on Feb. 13.
Stocks of shells for Ukrainian air defense will only last until March of this year.
According to The New York Times, although the Armed Forces of Ukraine have a new commander-in-chief, the problems remain the same. General Syrskyi, having taken office, may soon again be faced with the grim calculations that have accompanied the war for two years: “when the cost of defending territory outweighs any benefit obtained from harming the enemy.”
According to the newspaper, Ukrainian troops are exhausted, they lack weapons and ammunition, and air defense systems are depleted, while US assistance is still in question.
Western officials and military experts warn that without American help, the Armed Forces of Ukraine will face a “rapid collapse” on the front line this year, writes the NYT.
CNN: Ukraine says it has sunk another warship, disabling a third of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet
Ukraine claims it has now disabled a third of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet after its military intelligence said it sank another Russian warship in a sea drone attack off the coast of Crimea on Wednesday.
Russia’s landing ship Caesar Kunikov was attacked with “MAGURA” V5 drones that punctured “critical holes” on its left side before sinking, the Ukrainian military intelligence agency said on Telegram.
“Ukraine has disabled a third of the Russian Black Sea Fleet during the large-scale invasion,” the country’s armed forces told CNN after Wednesday’s attack.
That aligns with Ukrainian claims last week that they had disabled about 33% of Russia’s warships, amounting to 24 disabled ships and one submarine. The landing ship Caesar Kunikov would be the 25th disabled ship, according to Ukraine’s count.
Motivation and inspiration:
I always like to share a few from the Bible, because that book has become such a source of strength and wisdom and calm for me during the past year.
And, I always like to end with this one:
And with that, thanks for joining us this week on The View from the Front.
If you can, consider at some point becoming a paid subscriber.
That’s it for this edition.
Dealing with PTSD? Emotionally or mentally at rock bottom? Here’s the link that I mention in each podcast: Be like Ozzie; go near your master. (The power of prayer. Part 1.)
Love my moderate, optimistic view of politics and want to know more about how I see things?
Go here:
As a reminder, please be kind and try your best to love your fellow Americans.
So many men and women have sacrificed, fought, and died to keep this country together the past 240-plus years. Please work daily to unite our country again. The vast majority of Americans are decent, loving, great people.
Also, please try to be a better person each and every day. Try to be kinder on social media and how you interact with others with whom you disagree.
Please join me again in our next episode, and please stay safe until then.
Don’t forget: You can comment anytime — I try to monitor those. You can also reach out privately at: authorstanrmitchell@yahoo.com. (You can say “hi,” vent, or send news tips! I love all three of those things!)
Love and peace,
Stan R. Mitchell
P.S. Don’t forget to check out my books. I’ve written a CIA/Marine sniper series, a detective series, a private investigator series, an action-packed Western, a motivational self-help book about President Obama, and two realistic war novels: one about World War II and one about Afghanistan. You can find all of these books on Amazon.
Want to know more about me? Click here: About me. You can also learn more about my journey here: Writers are crazy, and I’m crazier than most.
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Podcast Episode 2-15-24 of The View from the Front.