Episode 37 of the 18th Airborne Corps Podcast features Maj. Gen. Chris Donahue, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division. Donahue talks to host Joe Buccino about his priorities for the All American Division, his leadership philosophy, his focus on warfighting, and why the 82nd Airborne Division is “flat, fast, accurate, and lethal.”

Donahue also gets personal, talking about his upbringing, how he earned the nickname “Flatliner” as a captain, and how he developed his leadership style.

Donahue is one of our nation’s premier warfighters. He’s spent most of his career leading Special Operations Forces units. In fact, his service as the 82nd Airborne Division commander is his first assignment in the 82nd.

The discussion with Donahue touches on all the issues facing our Army today: readiness, culture, innovation, soldier suicide, and sexual assault. Every Army leader can find value in this episode.

Episode 37: We Do Not 'Heavy Breathe' In This Division: A Discussion with Maj. Gen. Chris Donahue

On January 20, 1973, Richard Nixon was riding high. Sworn into office for his second term of the U.S. presidency, he’d just won a massive landslide victory, capturing 49 states and more than 60 percent of the popular vote. His stunning diplomatic move to reopen relations with China, combined with his efforts to negotiate an end to the war he inherited in Vietnam, made him an enormously consequential president. He was popular, brilliant, and seemingly headed for an FDR-like legacy.
 
20 months later, Nixon resigned in disgrace, his presidency shattered by his conspiracy to cover up the break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate complex during the 1972 election. Nixon, a complicated man overcome by the urges of insecurity and ego was brought low by his own design: a secret and ubiquitous taping system that recorded an enormous volume of White House conversations served as the smoking gun that forced his resignation.
 
Journalist Michael Dobbs just published a stunning new book into the drama inside the White House as the Nixon presidency collapsed under the weight of scandal. In “King Richard, Nixon and Watergate: An American Tragedy,” Dobbs plumbs the psyche of our 37th president for fresh insight into his undoing. The book is a triumph: cinematic and scintillating, it pulls the curtain on the fight for survival within Nixon’s staff. By using the tapes as a primary source material, Dobbs locks the reader in a shrinking room with Nixon and his aides, the walls closing in as reporters tie the president to the break-in.
 
Michael joins host Joe Buccino for one of the most vivid episodes of the 18th Airborne Corps podcast to date. Anyone interested in conspiracy, the American presidency, or the workings of the White House will find insight in this episode. Also discussed are the ties between the Watergate break-in and subsequent cover-up and the catastrophically unpopular Vietnam War.
 
Watergate was a critical moment in American history, one that has shaped the way Americans think about the federal government ever since. The build-up to the Iraq War, the January 6, 2020 insurrection, and the public response to COVID-19, all have their origin in Watergate.
 
The 18th Airborne Corps Podcast is the official podcast of the U.S. Army’s XVIII Airborne Corps. Recorded on Fort Bragg, North Carolina, the program releases new episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.

Episode 38: King Richard: A Conversation on Nixon and Watergate with Journalist Michael Dobbs

Col. Eric Kreitz spent a two-decade Army career silently suffering from depression and alcoholism. To the world he was thriving, successfully commanding a battalion on Fort Bragg and raising a family. Internally, he was plummeting deeper and deeper into darkness, unwilling to face his demons. A suicide attempt and subsequent hospitalization forced him out of command and into recovery. He's been on that glide path ever since.

Eric joined host Joe Buccino in the podcast studio to tell his story with courage and candor. It's an important story, one that every Soldier and leader should hear. 

There is a great deal of value in this episode for all of us. We all want anyone who is suffering right now to get help. Military One Source (https://www.militaryonesource.mil/) is a 24/7 resource for all Soldiers and a trained specialist is always available at the National Suicide Prevention Hotline (800-273-8255).

This is a dark story, but it's an inspirational story, one filled with courage, love, and hope. One thing is clear: Eric's leadership never gave up on him, kept him in the Army, invested in his family, and put him on the road to recovery. There is so much to be learned from their example.

Episode 39:  A Soldier's Story of Alcoholism, Depression, Hope, and Recovery

Episode 40 of the 18th Airborne Corps Podcast is a somber episode focused on a very heavy subject. Dr. Eren Watkins, a supervisory epidemiologist and Division Chief of the Behavioral Health at the U.S. Army Public Health Center, joins host Joe Buccino to discuss her work in studying soldier suicide. 

This is a deeply important episode, and Dr. Watkins’ is a voice that should be heard by leaders throughout our Army. She’s been studying soldier suicide for years and, in this candid discussion, offers indicators, trends, and causes of soldier suicide. She also describes what leaders can do to build positive organizational environments, reduce the factors for suicide, and seek out signs of trouble.

Soldiers are resilient. There are actions leaders can take to build up soldier resilience and to drive down risk factors. Dr. Watkins offers these insights in a thought-provoking conversation.

Dr. Eren Watkins has a PhD in Epidemiology from the University of South Carolina Arnold School of Public Health, a Master's in Public Health in Epidemiology from Eastern Virginia Medical School, a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology with a concentration in Human Biology from Temple University, and a Certificate in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University. She began her service at the U.S. Army Public Health Center in January 2011 where she leads a multidisciplinary team of public health professionals that monitor behavioral and social health trends among Army units. Dr. Watkins has published a number of studies on Soldier suicide in scientific journals.

This is a critically important and urgent episode of the 18th Airborne Corps Podcast. There is a great deal of wisdom in this discussion with one of the Nation’s leading experts on soldier suicide.

The 18th Airborne Corps Podcast is the official podcast of the U.S. Army’s XVIII Airborne Corps. Recorded on Fort Bragg, North Carolina, the program releases new episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.

Episode 40: Preventing Soldier Suicide

Anthony Gregerson is an interesting guy. The Command Sergeant Major of an airborne battalion on Fort Bragg is a YouTube skateboarder (he performs all his own stunts and edits all his videos), an aging Paratrooper, and a deep thinker. He entered the 18th Airborne Corps Podcast studio to chat with host Joe Buccino about leading through the end of COVID, life after the Army, and a dark moment for him and his troops.

This discussion with Sergeant Major Gregerson has something to offer leaders throughout the Army. His conclusions and experiences may surprise you.

The 18th Airborne Corps Podcast is the official podcast of the U.S. Army’s XVIII Airborne Corps. Recorded on Fort Bragg, North Carolina, the program releases new episodes every Tuesday.

Episode 41: The Skateboarding Sergeant Major

Major General Milford Beagle, known around the Army as "Beags," leads with authenticity, humility, and compassion. He's the kind of leader who reveals his vulnerability to his troops and communicate with them on their level.






A native of Enoree, South Carolina, Beags commissioned in the Army after graduating from South Carolina State University in 1990 as an infantry officer. He's since had a long and distinguished career as an infantryman with stops at the Old Guard, Korea, the 10th Mountain Division on Fort Drum, and the Pentagon. In 2018 that career brought him home: he took command of the Fort Jackson, South Carolina-based US Army Training Center.






This past July, he returned to Fort Drum to command the 10th Mountain Division. As the 31st "Climb To Glory 6," he upholds a legacy that dates back to the formation of a ski-based unit for World War II.






Beags joined the 18th Airborne Corps podcast to talk about his priorities with the 10th Mountain Division, his leadership philosophy, and his Family. This is a thoughtful discussion for anyone interested in Army leadership.

XVIII Airborne Corps

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