Podcast Summary: "Reckless Stupid War Hawks"

Podcast: Part Of The Problem
Host: Dave Smith (co-host: Robbie “the Fire” Bernstein)
Episode Date: January 14, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, Dave Smith and Robbie Bernstein dive into America’s persistent foreign policy interventions—especially the escalating situation in Iran and the government’s motives in Venezuela. They analyze the recurring push for regime change, highlight the warhawk rhetoric (particularly Ben Shapiro’s arguments), and discuss why past interventions should make Americans skeptical of new adventures. The show maintains its libertarian, skeptical tone, critiquing the bipartisan tendency toward war and centralized power.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. U.S. Foreign Policy and the Iran Crisis

• Escalation Threats: Reports suggest imminent U.S. airstrikes against Iran, with high uncertainty about regime outcome and risk of broader conflict.
• Regime Change Rhetoric: Panelists on a recent Piers Morgan segment (which Dave joined) acted as if toppling Iran’s government would be simple or obviously “good,” ignoring past failures and unpredictable consequences.
• Netanyahu & Israel’s Agenda: The hosts argue Israel's government primarily wants regime change simply to eliminate regional rivals and supporters of resistance groups like Hezbollah (07:09).
• Pattern of Failed Interventions: Examples cited include Iraq, Libya, and Syria—each leaving chaos, mass civilian deaths, and no clear benefit to anyone except narrow interests.

  “Their calculation is by overthrowing the regimes in the region who support the resistance...[but] it’s just come with a little price tag of millions of dead innocent people, thousands of dead Americans and trillions of dollars of debt which we pay for, not them.”
  — Dave Smith (06:08)

2. The Hawkish Spin and Manipulation (“For the People” Argument)

• Ben Shapiro’s Rhetoric: Dave deconstructs Shapiro’s insistence that negotiations are pointless, demanding military action “for the protesters,” despite little evidence for such humanitarian concern (18:26–21:43).
• Manufacturing Consent Through Emotional Appeals: The hosts discuss the cynicism behind war proponents suddenly caring about women’s rights or protest movements abroad (26:06).

  “It’s so bananas that the people who supported a genocide are now saying they’re animated by women’s rights.”
  — Dave Smith (26:37)

• Cycle of Excuses: The “humanitarian” argument is identified as a recurring sales pitch for intervention—be it Yazidis in Iraq, Kurds in Syria, or protesters in Iran—used to package wars as moral imperatives.

3. The Mechanics & Myths of Regime Change

• Doubt Over “Shah 2.0” Fantasy: The panel ridicules the notion that the son of the former Shah could simply step in and stabilize Iran after an intervention (07:09).
• Unpredictable Fallout: Even if a coup or external destabilization worked, it’s likely to spawn new conflict, not peace or democracy.

  “You are rolling the dice and like four sides of the die say catastrophe…Revolutions are messy business, you know, and nine times out of ten they don’t lead to Thomas Jefferson.”
  — Dave Smith (14:41)

• History of U.S. Meddling: Discussion of Operation Ajax (Iran 1953), Central America (Guatemala, Panama), all leading to protracted violence and instability instead of promised outcomes (39:56–43:35).

4. “Bomb & Leave” – The New Intervention Pitch

• No Appetite for Occupations: Ben Shapiro and similar hawks now claim that no one wants another Iraq/Afghanistan, instead selling quick strikes/regime change “from the sky” as a safer option (21:45–23:27).
• Hosts’ Rebuttal: Even air campaign regime change often leads to vacuums filled by warlords or extremists (“Libya model”), and is not actually popular among Americans.

  “No one really wants that either, man. We saw what we did in Libya. We don’t want to do that either.”
  — Dave Smith (23:10)

5. The Consistency of Non-Intervention

• Dave challenges the hypocrisy accusation: it’s consistent to oppose all unjust killing and to oppose American complicity, whether victims are in Gaza or Iran (28:37).
• There’s a mockery of pundits who ignore civilian casualties until they need a “humanitarian” case, such as pro-war New York Times columnists never mentioning deaths except as a war pretext.

6. Deep Dive into Ben Shapiro’s Regime Change Arguments

Notable Segment:

• Timestamps:
  • Ben Shapiro Clip: 18:26–21:43 (Negotiation “nonsense”; regime should be overthrown)
  • Air Strikes Discussion: 29:49–34:31 (Risk–reward, escalation dominance, gambling lives)
• Memorable Quotes:

  “If the Iranian government truly decides to attack American troops in the region…that will be the end of the regime and it will be performed largely through air power.”
  — Ben Shapiro (30:56) “Ben Shapiro is quite happy to gamble the lives of Americans as long as it leads to toppling the government in Iran on behalf of Israel.”
  — Dave Smith (34:31)

7. Segment: The Federal Reserve Controversy

• Jerome Powell DOJ Situation: Powell claims Trump DOJ threatened indictment to pressure the Fed into lowering interest rates for political reasons (51:23–53:04).
• Both Dave and Robbie criticize the politicization—but stress the Fed is hardly “apolitical” to begin with. Dave highlights that manipulating rates for political advantage is exactly what the Fed’s critics have always warned about.

  “He does socialism on behalf of the big banks, but Donald Trump wants him to do socialism on behalf of the President.”
  — Dave Smith (54:16)

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• On U.S. Middle East Policy:

  “The major resistance has been Hezbollah, and Hezbollah does business with Iran. So that’s what this is all about. Since the ‘Clean Break’… it’s so obvious that’s what this is all about.”
  — Dave Smith (03:35–06:08)

• On Iran’s Regime Survival:

  “The regime has stood since 1979, most of that time with the most powerful governments in the world hell-bent on overthrowing them.”
  — Dave Smith (09:06)

• On Regime Change Outcomes:

  “The whole idea that we’re going to put in the government we want… you’re telling me no angry young man with a rifle is going to get together? That these two nations that have been defiant of global empire… are just going to roll over and accept that?”
  — Dave Smith (37:56–39:45)

• On the Humanitarian Pretext:

  “They don’t even think about the human beings that die until they need a pretext for war. And then we’re all for ‘the people’ then.”
  — Dave Smith (26:52)

Important Segment Timestamps

• Pierce Morgan Panel Recap: 00:16–02:53
• Iran as Next Target: 01:14–07:09
• Israel, Palestinians & Borders: 03:35–06:08
• Pattern of Regime Change: 06:08–11:30
• Satire: U.S. Policy on Monarchies & Socialism: 11:30–12:10
• Ben Shapiro Hawkish Clip & Breakdown: 18:26–21:43, 29:49–34:31
• Airstrikes & Escalation Logic: 29:49–36:40
• Federal Reserve Subpoena & Powell’s Speech: 51:23–54:16

Memorable Moments

• Satirical Mockery:

  “We need socialists in South America and monarchies back in the Middle East.”
  — Robbie Bernstein (12:04)

• Dave on Warhawks:

  “Wars always have unintended consequences… There’s no one in the world smart enough to game out every single factor.”
  — Dave Smith (39:45)

• Robbie’s Closing on the Fed:

  “If you want to go after criminality at the Fed, start with an audit… But when you’re going after them for a building renovation… and it’s to pressure them on an agenda… that’s worse.”
  — Robbie Bernstein (55:36)

Conclusion

The episode delivers a sharp libertarian critique of “reckless, stupid war hawks.” Despite bipartisan support for interventions, the hosts urge listeners to reject regime change adventurism, question emotional appeals for war, and demand accountability—both from the foreign policy establishment and central banks. The show’s consistent non-interventionism and skepticism about “spreading democracy” offers listeners an alternative to the mainstream narrative.

For More: Check Dave Smith’s website for tour dates and additional content.