This episode argues that leaked details of a Trump-Netanyahu call and John Bolton’s complaints reveal Trump’s rejection of the traditional National Security Council process and the permanent intelligence bureaucracy’s control over presidential decision-making.
It links that shift to Trump’s appointment of Bill Pulte as acting Director of National Intelligence, citing establishment and bipartisan backlash and JD Vance’s statement that the intel bureaucracy must answer elected leadership.
The script then highlights Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue, describing a move away from “globalist” rules-based rhetoric toward a scoped Pacific posture defined by a balance of power, sovereignty, free commerce, and improved U.S.-China relations.
Finally, it cites a Council on Foreign Relations essay, “After Hegemony,” as an admission that the old Hobbes/Locke philosophical basis of geopolitics is ending, framing the conflict as empire versus sovereign nations.
Chapters
00:00 The Midweek Update - Intro - June 3, 2026
02:00 Trump Pulls Rank: The Presidency Comes Off the Leash
04:35 Bill Pulte, New Acting Director of National Intelligence
06:32 What Hegseth Planted in the Pacific
10:10 The Confession: "Locke's World Would Emerge From Hobbes'"
FYI
Brent Scowcroft Paradigm
Brent Scowcroft, who served as the national security advisor for Presidents Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush, established a paradigm for the role that influenced subsequent holders of the office.
He passed away on August 6, 2020, at the age of 95.
Scowcroft was also a U.S. Air Force officer and held positions such as Military Assistant to President Richard Nixon and Deputy Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs.
The Atlantic Council (a globalist organization) launched the Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security, now known as the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, in 2011 to capture and institutionalize his legacy.
Scowcroft’s approach to the national security advisor role is often described as a “model” or “winning formula,” characterized by his ability to gain the trust of key U.S. principals and his fairness in dealing with others.
It also circumvents the power of the U.S. Presidency by pressuring him to follow suit of the Imperialist protocols.
However, former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates (another globalist) noted that Scowcroft did not leverage his close relationship with the president to disadvantage others, and former Director of Central Intelligence John Deutch (globalist) stated that Scowcroft had the ideal temperament to lead the country.
Scowcroft was known for his low-key, self-effacing demeanor, integrity, common decency, resolve, and moral and political courage, which set him apart in Washington D.C.
This is the paradigm that President Trump is replacing with the power of the U.S. Presidency that is given to him through our Constitution, not through the powers of the National Security Council.
The NSC reports to the President, NOT the other way around.
