The Secret Power Behind the U.S.– Saudi Relationship | 11/20/25
Saudi Arabia’s influence over U.S. strategy runs deeper than most people realize, and Colonel Roxane Towner-Watkins returns to map out the hidden pressure points shaping today’s geopolitical landscape. She and Keith Malinak explore the unspoken leverage that keeps the U.S.–Saudi relationship locked in place, even as global alliances shift and domestic institutions crack under their own weight.
This conversation breaks down:
- How Saudi oil, military dependency, and historical power shape a quiet influence on Washington
- Why global alliances are shifting faster than the public sees
- How Venezuela’s instability connects to CIA operations, cartels, and regional pressure
- Why exploding drug boats signal something deeper than “drug enforcement”
- How institutional failures inside the FBI weaken American leverage abroad
- Why do global players like China use these fractures to accelerate their own strategy
- And how all these pressure points sit on one interconnected geopolitical board
Rather than walking through headlines, this episode connects the forces driving them: state power, covert influence, resource battles, and the hidden negotiations that shape the modern world.
Chapters:
00:00 – Thanksgiving, Headlines, and a Chaotic Week
02:33 – Arctic Frost and Surveillance Tech Concerns
08:18 – Venezuela’s Crisis and Regional Fallout
11:34 – CIA Influence and Power Players Inside Venezuela
18:16 – Drug Routes, Raids, and Hidden Operations
27:41 – Chemical Warfare Framed as “Drug Policy”
35:12 – Saudi Arabia’s Past and Violent Power Foundations
40:23 – Middle East Power Games and Shifting Deals
49:22 – MBS, Influence, and the Modern Saudi Equation
56:47 – FBI Failures and the Institutional Breakdown
01:24:46 – China, Colombia, Venezuela, and the Next U.S. Strategy Shift
Creators & Guests:
- Keith Malinak – Host
- Colonel Roxane Towner-Watkins – Guest
- Produced by 2nd Floor Studios (Dallas, TX)
