MUST MAKE VLAD GLAD: The Reagan Foundation recently released the results of a national survey on a variety of issues. Among the interesting findings is that confidence in institutions like the military remain high 86% and Congress low 33%. But perhaps one of the most interesting findings is that 46% of “Armed services households” identify Russia as an American ally compared to just 25% of those households identified as “not armed services.” Russia is an ally? With friends like these…
IT SLICES, IT DICES: But it doesn’t explode. That’s the conclusion of some folks as reported in TheDrive.Com about a variant of the Hellfire missile that may have been used against high profile targets like ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The missile, known as the AGM-114R9X, reportedly substitutes the standard exploding warhead with a set of folding sword-like blades designed to minimize collateral damage. The article includes a photo of a minivan with a hole in its roof but otherwise largely intact. That vehicle was not involved in the al-Baghdadi raid but may have been driven by other nearby terrorist suspects. The Wall Street Journal reported in May that the secret missile is designed to kill only terrorists but not nearby civilians and that the CIA and Pentagon have worked to keep its capabilities a secret. Popular Mechanics has dubbed the weapon a “flying Ginsu” missile.
NOT A PARTY LINE: The State Department has reportedly issued orders that will cut down on the number of officials who are able to listen in on phone calls between the Secretary or other senior officials and their foreign counterparts. The long standing practice, according to Foreign Policy, was that the State Department’s Operations Center would initiate the calls and operations officers would listen in, “take notes and transcribe the calls, both to send readouts of the calls to other officials in the building and to comply with federal record-keeping laws.” Sources say the new directive has ordered the OPS Center to quit taking notes and circulating the results to interested parties. A State Department spokesperson declined to comment but said the department is concerned about leaks that could undercut national security and stressed the department will continue to comply with federal records laws.
CRISIS IN TRANSATLANTIC RELATIONS CANCELLED: The Danish Atlantic Council had planned an international conference on NATO and the transatlantic cooperation which was to be co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. “WAS” is the operative word. The Danish group cancelled the event after the U.S. Ambassador to Denmark, Carla Sands, vetoed the participation of American Stanley Sloan who had been invited to give a keynote speech. Sloan has been critical of President Trump’s approach to NATO. The proposed title of Sloan’s remarks was “Crisis in Transatlantic Relations.” Ambassador Sands is a political appointee and is a former actor and chiropractor according to BuzzFeedNews.
NEW USE FOR POWER TOOLS: Army Private First Class Patrick Montgomery was gassing up his truck at a Fayetteville, NC filling station when he heard gunshots ring out at a nearby pawn shop. So, he ran toward the sound of the guns. Fayetteville Police Detective Richard Vernon says: “It probably wasn’t the smartest thing, but hey, I give him credit.” The shooter had escaped but Montgomery found the shop’s proprietor behind the counter, bleeding out from a gunshot wound. He reached for his belt to create a tourniquet but discovered he wasn’t wearing one. So, he found a power tool on display in the pawn shop and took the attached cord to wrap around the victim’s leg until paramedics with better gear could arrive. Army Times says the soldier will receive some award – but the level has yet to be determined. We figure the pawn shop should also give him a few belts.
LIQUID PLOT: Former CIA analyst Aki Peritz has landed a deal with Potomac Books to write Disruption: The 2006 Liquid Bomb Plot & Terrorists' Half-Century Love Affair with The Air Industry. The book is reportedly about the investigation which led to all of us being restricted to carrying no more than three ounces of liquid aboard airplanes in an effort to thwart terrorist plans. No publication date was announced.
IS HOMELAND STILL ON? Yep. One last season coming up. It is Season 8 and will be released on Showtime on February 8, 2020. The network has just released a second trailer for the series which is ending this year – having run out of countries in which to have crises. Here is a plot synopsis for Season 8 from Film-Bok.com. “The final season of HOMELAND finds Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) recovering from months of brutal confinement in a Russian gulag. Her body is healing, but her memory remains fractured – which is a problem for Saul (Mandy Patinkin), now National Security Advisor to the newly ascendant President Warner (Emmy and Golden Globe winner Beau Bridges). The top priority of Warner’s young administration is an end to the “forever war” in Afghanistan, and Saul has been dispatched to engage the Taliban in peace negotiations. But Kabul teems with warlords and mercenaries, zealots and spies – and Saul needs the relationships and expertise that only his protégé can provide. Against medical advice, Saul asks Carrie to walk with him into the lion’s den – one last time.”
SNEAKY PETE: Apparently some people think that presidential candidate Mayor Pete Buttigieg is connected to the CIA. Why? Well, he was an intelligence officer in the naval reserve and went on to work for a few years for the McKinsey consulting firm – which is known for being somewhat secretive – so there you have it. Buttigieg told The Atlantic that no, he was not in the CIA.
POCKET LITTER: Bits and pieces of interesting /weird stuff we discovered:
OH GOD, NO: Netflix is working on a new series called “Messiah” which is about a god-like figure who comes out of nowhere and starts to perform miracles. So, who you gonna call? The CIA is tasked with investigating what the mysterious man’s intentions really are. Actress Michelle Monaghan plays a CIA officer whose job it is to determine if the man is “a divine entity or a deceptive con man.” The series debuts January 1.
WHAT DOPES: The fact checking website SNOPES recently looked into internet rumors that a major fire had damaged CIA headquarters and revealed a giant drug lab. Apparently, folks who believed the article didn’t read far enough in the report (originally contained in something called “World News Daily Report” saying that they assume “all responsibility for the satirical nature of its articles and for the fictional nature of their content. All characters appearing in the articles in this website – even those based on real people – are entirely fictional…”
HIGH FLIGHT: Speaking of dopes, the website Task&Purpose tells an interesting story (in what we trust is not satire) that an Air Force U2 pilot was convicted at a general courts martial for using cocaine, distributing for recreational use a drug known as “go-gel” (normally used to treat ADHD,) and for “shaving his entire body to avoid a drug test.”
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