U.S. Defense Cooperation with Canada and Mexico Matters Far More Than You Think
Last month, Secretary Mattis and his counterparts from across the Americas met in Mexico City for The Conference of Defense Ministers of the Americas to […] More
North America
Keep Calm and Report On: The Case Against Julian Assange
OPINION — U.S. law enforcement and intelligence officials have treated WikiLeaks as a hostile, foreign intelligence service and Julian Assange, its director, as a potential […] More
The Art of Sidelining Intelligence
Bottom Line Up Front At some point today, the U.S. government is expected to release its assessment on the murder of U.S. resident Jamal […] More
The Staggering Cost of the Never-Ending ‘Global War on Terror’
Bottom Line Up Front By October 2019, the U.S. will have spent approximately $6 trillion in efforts related to support of the so-called ‘global […] More
The U.S. Military’s Border Enforcement Role
The President reaffirmed during his November 7 post-election press conference that the deployment of thousands of U.S. active duty military personnel to the nation’s southwest […] More
How to Not Screw Up a Democratic Majority
OPINION — Democrats controlling the House next January should see an Armed Services Committee that supports some reduced defense spending in fiscal 2020, and an […] More
National Security in a Nation of Mass Shootings
Bottom Line Up Front On November 7, a man with a handgun murdered 11 people inside a bar in Thousand Oaks, California. The Thousand […] More
General Michael Hayden: ‘The Cyber Cavalry Ain’t Coming’
In a recent interview, The Cipher Brief sat down with former NSA and CIA director Michael Hayden to talk about global threats, and in particular, […] More
Secretaries Series: Jeh Johnson on DHS’ Toughest Tasks
Election security, the migration of people toward the U.S.’ southern border and the public-private critical intersection of cyber security are just a few of the […] More
We’re The Government and We’re Here to Help Protect Critical Infrastructure
Cipher Brief Editorial Note: On the heels of Cybersecurity Awareness Month in October, President Donald Trump has proclaimed November as National Critical Infrastructure Security and […] More
The True Border Mission
OPINION — President Trump’s pre-election-day deployment of U.S. Army units on the southwest border may turn out to be more of a dangerous, long-term precedent […] More
General Michael Hayden on Threats Foreign and Domestic – Part One
As a best-selling author and television commentator, General Michael Hayden (ret.) has been vocal about the threats he sees – both foreign and domestic. The […] More
Nuclear Bargaining Chips in a Protracted Arms Race
OPINION — President Donald Trump’s recent threat to withdraw from the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) provides another false justification for adding to a […] More
The Case for Giving a U.S. Space Force Some Lift
The National Space Council heard testimony, and then voted this week to move forward with six recommendations that are intended to provide some lift for […] More
A U.S.-Imposed Punishment for Jamal Khashoggi’s Death
OPINION — While President Trump’s claimed $110 billion in arms sales to Saudi Arabia remains “fake,” and shouldn’t be even considered “news,” there are deliveries […] More
Why Congress Will Not Build That Wall
The President’s recent tweet storm threatening to close the U.S.’s land border with Mexico and order military action to counter a “dangerous” caravan of asylum […] More
Correcting the Record: Probing ‘Links’ Between Terrorism & Immigration
Bottom Line Up Front Immigration remains a major issue for the Trump administration, with stories emerging recently about White House infighting about whether or […] More
The Challenge of Liaison Operations in Autocratic Regimes
As Turkish officials continue to release details that draw a gruesome picture of the apparent murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the level of […] More