Today on&nbsp;Target USA, a story that cuts straight to the core of military culture, extremism, and truth. The U.S. Coast Guard, under intense public pressure, has reversed course on a deeply controversial policy shift. A draft manual, first uncovered by&nbsp;The Washington Post, appeared to&nbsp;downgrade the swastika and the noose, two of the most violent, hate-laden symbols in American and world history, from outright banned imagery to merely “potentially divisive.”The backlash from veterans, lawmakers, and civil-rights groups was immediate and fierce. Now the Coast Guard says it never changed its stance. But the documents tell a different story. Coast Guard and Navy veteran Lene Mees De Tricht joins us on this. See Privacy Policy at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy</a> and California Privacy Notice at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info</a>.

<description>
 &lt;p&gt;Today on&amp;nbsp;Target USA, a story that cuts straight to the core of military culture, extremism, and truth. The U.S. Coast Guard, under intense public pressure, has reversed course on a deeply controversial policy shift. A draft manual, first uncovered by&amp;nbsp;&lt;em&gt;The Washington Post&lt;/em&gt;, appeared to&amp;nbsp;downgrade the swastika and the noose, two of the most violent, hate-laden symbols in American and world history, from outright banned imagery to merely “potentially divisive.”&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The backlash from veterans, lawmakers, and civil-rights groups was immediate and fierce. Now the Coast Guard says it never changed its stance. But the documents tell a different story. Coast Guard and Navy veteran Lene Mees De Tricht joins us on this. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;See Privacy Policy at &lt;a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://art19.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; and California Privacy Notice at &lt;a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
 </description>

The Coast Guard reverses a controversial policy on swastikas and nooses

The Coast Guard’s About-Face: The Hate-Symbol Reversal That Shook the Military 

Grenada is facing one of the most consequential national security decisions in its modern history, after the United States quietly requested permission to install a radar system and station military personnel on the island as it pursues action against Venezuela. Veteran Grenadian journalist&nbsp;Linda Straker&nbsp;breaks down the mystery behind the U.S. request, the growing anxiety on the island, and the high-stakes diplomatic trap Grenada now finds itself in.&nbsp;See Privacy Policy at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy</a> and California Privacy Notice at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info</a>.

<description>
 &lt;p&gt;Grenada is facing one of the most consequential national security decisions in its modern history, after the United States quietly requested permission to install a radar system and station military personnel on the island as it pursues action against Venezuela. Veteran Grenadian journalist&amp;nbsp;Linda Straker&amp;nbsp;breaks down the mystery behind the U.S. request, the growing anxiety on the island, and the high-stakes diplomatic trap Grenada now finds itself in.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;See Privacy Policy at &lt;a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://art19.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; and California Privacy Notice at &lt;a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
 </description>

Grenadian journalist Linda Straker reveals how a mysterious U.S. radar request has plunged her country into a high-risk geopolitical showdown between Washington and Caracas.

504 | Grenada’s Impossible Choice: The U.S. or Venezuela

U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to send troops or cut aid to Nigeria has triggered a diplomatic and security storm across Africa. In this episode,&nbsp;we speak with humanitarian journalist&nbsp;Usman Abbba Zanna&nbsp;from Maiduguri, who explains how Trump’s words could inflame tensions, embolden extremists, and reshape Nigeria’s ties to the West. See Privacy Policy at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy</a> and California Privacy Notice at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info</a>.

<description>
 &lt;p&gt;U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to send troops or cut aid to Nigeria has triggered a diplomatic and security storm across Africa. In this episode,&amp;nbsp;we speak with humanitarian journalist&amp;nbsp;Usman Abbba Zanna&amp;nbsp;from Maiduguri, who explains how Trump’s words could inflame tensions, embolden extremists, and reshape Nigeria’s ties to the West.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;See Privacy Policy at &lt;a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://art19.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; and California Privacy Notice at &lt;a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
 </description>

Trump’s threat to send troops to Nigeria sparks global alarm and raises the question: what will Nigeria do next?

503 | Trump’s Threat to Nigeria: A Nation on Edge

In this gripping conversation, Belarusian legal expert and exiled journalist Natalia Belikova explains how disinformation in Belarus isn’t just a tactic; it’s the regime’s operating system.She describes how the Lukashenko government has built an alternative reality, where familiar words like “democracy,” “elections,” and “human rights” are redefined to serve state power. In a sometimes emotional interview, Natalia shares what it’s like to be exiled from your home, to lose colleagues to prison, and to raise children abroad while fighting to preserve your national identity. She also issues a warning to Western democracies.&nbsp;See Privacy Policy at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy</a> and California Privacy Notice at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info</a>.

<description>
 &lt;p&gt;In this gripping conversation, Belarusian legal expert and exiled journalist Natalia Belikova explains how disinformation in Belarus isn’t just a tactic; it’s the regime’s operating system.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;She describes how the Lukashenko government has built an alternative reality, where familiar words like “democracy,” “elections,” and “human rights” are redefined to serve state power. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In a sometimes emotional interview, Natalia shares what it’s like to be exiled from your home, to lose colleagues to prison, and to raise children abroad while fighting to preserve your national identity. She also issues a warning to Western democracies.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;See Privacy Policy at &lt;a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://art19.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; and California Privacy Notice at &lt;a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
 </description>

A Belarusian exile explains how Lukashenko’s regime didn’t just lie to its people. It rewrote reality itself.

502 | Alternate Reality: How The Government of Belarus Built its Own Parallel Truth

When President Trump agreed to meet Vladimir Putin in Budapest, it looked like a potential breakthrough. Instead, it became a masterclass in manipulation. Within 24 hours, the Kremlin pulled the plug — and the world saw how quickly leverage can shift. In this episode, Ambassador Kurt Volker, former US Special Envoy to Ukraine and current Distinguished Fellow at the Center for European Policy analysis unpacks how Putin’s “summit offer” was never about peace talks, but about power, humiliation, and control — and what it reveals about the fragile state of U.S.–Russia diplomacy.See Privacy Policy at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy</a> and California Privacy Notice at <a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info</a>.

<description>
 &lt;p&gt;When President Trump agreed to meet Vladimir Putin in Budapest, it looked like a potential breakthrough. Instead, it became a masterclass in manipulation. Within 24 hours, the Kremlin pulled the plug — and the world saw how quickly leverage can shift. In this episode, Ambassador Kurt Volker, former US Special Envoy to Ukraine and current Distinguished Fellow at the Center for European Policy analysis unpacks how Putin’s “summit offer” was never about peace talks, but about power, humiliation, and control — and what it reveals about the fragile state of U.S.–Russia diplomacy.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;See Privacy Policy at &lt;a href="https://art19.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://art19.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; and California Privacy Notice at &lt;a href="https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
 </description>

A cancelled summit, a calculated move and a clear reminder that in geopolitics, timing is strategy.

501 | The Summit That Wasn’t: Putin’s Power Play

Whether its terrorists, anarchists, cyber criminals or nation states, America has a target on its back. WTOP National Security Correspondent J.J. Green investigates the threats facing the U.S., the people behind them, the agencies fighting them and their impact on Americans.

Target USA Podcast by WTOP

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