DUST OFF THE TUX FOR SPY PROM: Who doesn’t love a Washington black-tie dinner? Especially one where the ‘who’s who’ of the national security world comes to mingle. Former Congressman Will Hurd dubbed last year’s Cipher Brief HONORS Dinner as ‘spy prom’ and the label stuck given that national security luminaries like George Tenet, Dr. Michael Vickers, General Michael Hayden, The Hon. Stephanie O’Sullivan, The Hon. Sue Gordon and other leaders came to honor those who have helped us better understand national security and where it’s headed. Last year’s dinner recognized a range of honorees from CIA Director Bill Burns to award-winning journalist Walter Pincus to Hollywood Showrunner Howard Gordon, of ‘24’ and ‘Homeland’ fame. We’re psyched to see who will be honored this year as the envelopes are opened later this month.
SO SOON? With confirmation hearings of cabinet-level nominees for the new administration already underway, and the ‘inside-the-beltway’ guessing game about who will be confirmed and who might not be, a recent piece in Politico seemed a bit premature but that’s Washington for you. The column speculated that Marco Rubio – yet to be confirmed as Secretary of State – may be among the first cabinet officials to be ousted from his future job. Nahal Toosi, Politico’s senior foreign affairs correspondent, suggested that Rubio will be “lucky to last a year at Foggy Bottom.” Speculation has already begun as to who will replace Rubio.
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