Putting Guard Rails Around the Nuclear Option
OPINION — “I am told that there are responsible officials in Russia that, were he [Russian President Vladimir Putin] to push a nuclear button, they […] More
Archive for ‘White House’
Why The Intelligence Community Needs a Climate Change Task Force
Kristin Wood, Sr. Climate Editor, The Cipher Brief Kristin Wood is the Senior Climate Editor for The Cipher Brief, a Cipher Brief expert, a non-resident […] More
Biden’s National Security Test
Cipher Brief Expert John McLaughlin is former Acting Director of the CIA, former Deputy CIA Director and is the Distinguished Practitioner in Residence at the […] More
A Bill, the President and China
Walter Pincus is a contributing senior national security columnist for The Cipher Brief. He spent forty years at The Washington Post, writing on topics from […] More
Washington’s Cyber Reckoning
As Washington continues to investigate the true depth of what experts are describing as one of the most damaging cyberattacks in U.S. history, both government […] More
The Times that Try Men’s Souls
OPINION – The military has become the U.S. institution in which the public has the most confidence, as measured by the latest Gallup Poll, which […] More
How Will a Biden Administration Engage the Middle East?
The Cipher Brief is a non-political media outlet focused on publishing expert perspectives on national security issues. We are committed to presenting multiple opinions to […] More
Trump’s Pre-Election Search for a National Security Win
OPINION — President Trump and his team are trying to come up with at least one last minute foreign policy success before Election Day, just […] More
The Reckoning: Donald Trump and Xi Jinping
Dr. Kenneth Dekleva served as a Regional Medical Officer/Psychiatrist (including 5 years at the U.S. Embassy Moscow, Russian Federation) with the U.S. Dept. of State […] More
A Cyber Leader for Today
The Cipher Brief spoke with former Special Assistant to President Obama and Cyber Security Coordinator on the National Security Council, Michael Daniel about the need […] More
A Look Inside the Justice Department’s National Security Priorities
Last week, the Justice Department brought an indictment against two individuals accused of working with China’s Ministry of State Security to conduct a decade-long cyber […] More
Hovakimian’s Quest for Approval
OPINION – President Trump’s nominee for the top legal job in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Patrick Hovakimian, gave limited answers to […] More
What Follows a ‘Sayonara’ Foreign Policy
Cipher Brief Expert and former Acting CIA Director John McLaughlin is a distinguished practitioner in residence at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International […] More
The Future of Hong Kong
A whirlwind of actions and statements regarding Hong Kong over the past week has increased tensions between the US and China. Even before Beijing passed […] More
How to Compete with China without Going to War
Well before COVID-19 there was a “hardening of expert and public opinion in America on the seriousness of the Chinese threat,” according to Cipher Brief […] More
The Real Impact of COVID on Mexico’s Drug Cartels
Since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, law enforcement has kept a close eye on the impact the virus might have on drug cartels. Supply […] More
The Strange Case of Michael Flynn
OPINION — Cherry-picked information filed last Thursday by the Justice Department in Attorney General William Barr’s effort to have charges dismissed against one-time Trump National […] More
OSINT Global Trendline Report: COVID and the Americas
The Cipher Brief’s Open Source Trend Line Report utilizes open source data on a quarterly basis to track trends around the world that impact national and global […] More
Is a New Strategy Emerging for Targeted Killings?
OPINION — Ten minutes into President Trump’s speech at his first 2020 presidential re-election campaign rally in Toledo, Ohio, last Friday, he drew great cheers […] More
Sorting Facts from Propaganda
OPINION — “The function of truth is to bring to light the hidden facts, to set them into relation with each other, and make a […] More
An Insider’s Account of Hunting the Caliphate
BOOK REVIEW: Hunting the Caliphate: America’s War on ISIS and the Dawn of the Strike Cell By Dana J.H. Pittard and Wes J. Bryant “The […] More
American Foreign Policy on Trial
OPINION – It was supposed to be Senate confirmation hearing for Stephen E. Biegun to be confirmed as Deputy Secretary of State, but really, it […] More
How Foreign Leaders Play President Trump
OPINION — Donald Trump as president displays weakness toward those he envies as strong foreign leaders, while he acts like a bully toward leaders he […] More
Tom Bossert’s Plan to Hijack the Hack
Tom Bossert spends a lot of time thinking about hacking. The former Homeland Security Advisor to President Trump who also served as the country’s Chief […] More