Brandon J. Weichert

Brandon Weichert

Brandon J. Weichert is the Senior National Security Editor. He was previously the senior national security editor at The National Interest. Weichert is the host of The National Security Hour on iHeartRadio, where he discusses national security policy every Wednesday at 8 pm Eastern. He hosts a companion show on Rumble entitled "National Security Talk." Weichert consults regularly with various government institutions and private organizations on geopolitical issues. His writings have appeared in numerous publications, among them Popular Mechanics, National Review, MSN, and The American Spectator. And his books include Winning Space: How America Remains a Superpower, Biohacked: China's Race to Control Life, and The Shadow War: Iran's Quest for Supremacy. Weichert's newest book, A Disaster of Our Own Making: How the West Lost Ukraine, is available for purchase wherever books are sold. He can be followed on Twitter/X at @WeTheBrandon.

An F/A-18F Super Hornet Strike Fighter Squadron 103 is parked on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) as the ship operates in the Arabian Sea on Dec. 5, 2006. The Eisenhower is in the Arabian Sea in support of maritime security operations.

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

Washington Never Guessed the Iran Ceasefire Would Hand Tehran a Renewed Economic Lifeline — but That’s Exactly What It Just Did

Reporting cited by Brandon Weichert indicates Iran exported some 70 million barrels — nearly $6 billion gross — during the short-lived MOU, roughly a...

Brandon WeichertJuly 20, 2026

President Donald Trump is joined by Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, Vice President JD Vance, British Ambassador Peter Mandelson, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, and Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, while announcing a trade agreement with the U.K., Thursday, May 8, 2025, in the Oval Office. (Official White House Photo by Molly Riley)

Dollars and Sense

A Trump Cabinet Secretary Says the Iran War Is No Longer About the Nuclear Program — It’s About Who Controls the Strait of Hormuz

Energy Secretary Chris Wright says America's mission in Iran now centers on keeping oil moving through the Strait of Hormuz, Brandon Weichert writes —...

Brandon WeichertJuly 20, 2026

President Donald J. Trump hosts a Rose Garden Club dinner in honor of Police Week in the White House Rose Garden, Monday, May 11, 2026. (Official White House Photo by Molly Riley)

Dollars and Sense

There’s a Hidden Reason Oil Prices Never Went Stratospheric During the Iran War — and That Safety Net Is Quietly Disappearing Now

Oil prices never hit the feared stratosphere during the Iran War for a hidden reason: China pulled back from the market, living off vast...

Brandon WeichertJuly 18, 2026

Ukraine War

Putin’s New Ukraine Problem Might Be the Thing That Sparks A War with NATO

A Russian dissident living in Latvia who ABC News describes as “once one of the most powerful men in Russia,” Mikhail Kasyanov, believes that...

Brandon WeichertJuly 17, 2026

210618-N-JW440-2053 STRAIT OF MALACCA (June 18, 2021) As seen from the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Shiloh (CG 67), the Navy’s only forward-deployed aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) transits the Strait of Malacca with the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS Halsey (DDG 97). The ships are part of Task Force 70/Carrier Strike Group 5, conducting underway operations in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Rawad Madanat)

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

Trump Is Threatening to Bomb Iran’s ‘Pickaxe Mountain’ — a Nuclear Site Buried So Deep American Bombs May Not Be Able to Kill It

Trump is threatening to strike Pickaxe Mountain — Iran's underground nuclear complex a mile from Natanz — if Tehran doesn't deescalate. Analysts say its...

Brandon WeichertJuly 17, 2026

(October 30, 2007) - USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) conducts Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) following a six-month Planned Incremental Availability (PIA). All Naval vessels are periodically inspected by INSURV to check their material condition and battle readiness. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class (AW) M. Jeremie Yoder.

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

Washington Says Hormuz Belongs to the World, Tehran Says Half Is Theirs — and Oman Just Said Nobody Should Control It at All

Day six of the renewed war brought expanded US strikes across Iran and wider Iranian attacks on America's Gulf partners — with only a...

Brandon WeichertJuly 16, 2026

President Donald Trump participates in a working lunch meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Tuesday, October 28, 2025, at Akasaka Palace in Tokyo, Japan. (Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok)

Dollars and Sense

Before the War, Roughly 140 Ships a Day Moved Through the Strait of Hormuz — Now the Count Is Down to Maybe a Dozen

Commercial transits through the Strait of Hormuz have fallen to near-zero since fighting resumed — from roughly 140 ships daily before the war to...

Brandon WeichertJuly 16, 2026

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

The Iran Ceasefire Effectively Handed Tehran Control of Hormuz — Washington Realized It, Reversed Course, and the Deal Died in 18 Days

The Washington–Tehran MoU effectively ceded Hormuz control to Iran — so Trump forced ships onto the Omani route, and the deal collapsed in 18...

Brandon WeichertJuly 16, 2026

Putin in January 2019 Russian Federation Image

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

One Source Says Putin’s Nuclear Threats Were All an Act — a Way to Let China Talk Him Out of What He Never Meant to Do

Brandon Weichert weighs whether Russia will turn to tactical nuclear weapons as Ukraine's strikes bite — and argues it won't. Russian doctrine reserves them...

Brandon WeichertJuly 15, 2026

National Security Journal

Brandon Weichert

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

Washington Never Guessed the Iran Ceasefire Would Hand Tehran a Renewed Economic Lifeline — but That’s Exactly What It Just Did

Dollars and Sense

A Trump Cabinet Secretary Says the Iran War Is No Longer About the Nuclear Program — It’s About Who Controls the Strait of Hormuz

Dollars and Sense

There’s a Hidden Reason Oil Prices Never Went Stratospheric During the Iran War — and That Safety Net Is Quietly Disappearing Now

Ukraine War

Putin’s New Ukraine Problem Might Be the Thing That Sparks A War with NATO

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

Trump Is Threatening to Bomb Iran’s ‘Pickaxe Mountain’ — a Nuclear Site Buried So Deep American Bombs May Not Be Able to Kill It

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

Washington Says Hormuz Belongs to the World, Tehran Says Half Is Theirs — and Oman Just Said Nobody Should Control It at All

Dollars and Sense

Before the War, Roughly 140 Ships a Day Moved Through the Strait of Hormuz — Now the Count Is Down to Maybe a Dozen

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

The Iran Ceasefire Effectively Handed Tehran Control of Hormuz — Washington Realized It, Reversed Course, and the Deal Died in 18 Days

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

One Source Says Putin’s Nuclear Threats Were All an Act — a Way to Let China Talk Him Out of What He Never Meant to Do

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