Four Big Takeaways from the Munich Security Conference
The Cipher Brief asked expert and retired four-star General David Petraeus for his big takeaways after attending last weekend’s Munich Security Conference. First, the wedge between […] More
President Trump
I Was in the CIA. Trump’s Petty Fights and Insults Will Make Us All Less Safe.
Steven Hall spent more than 30 years in the CIA, the bulk of them running and managing intelligence operations in Eurasia and Latin America. He […] More
The Trust But Verify Strategy with North Korea
OPINION — The “tremendous progress” with North Korea that President Trump has repeatedly claimed does not approach the success that Kim Jong Un has achieved, […] More
The Growing Intelligence-Policy Divide
Bottom Line Up Front On January 30, President Trump sent out tweets that were construed by many as pointed criticism of the intelligence community […] More
The Taliban and the Trump Card
U.S. and Taliban officials have agreed to a framework for a possible deal that could see a Taliban guarantee that Afghanistan will not be used […] More
A Green Beret Congressman’s Take on Terrorism
As this month’s terror attacks in Syria and Nairobi make clear, organizations like ISIS and al-Shabab remain focused on launching attacks as a show of […] More
A U.S. Terrorism Prevention Strategy
The Trump Administration is defunding the nation’s primary anti-domestic terror program at the Department of Homeland Security and DHS’ Office of Terrorism Prevention has removed […] More
One Bad Decision on Syria Doesn’t Necessarily Lead to Another
President Donald Trump now says U.S. troops will “slowly” be withdrawn from Syria after his controversial announcement in December, saying that troops would be pulled […] More
Preventing Terrorism Starts with a Plan
The Trump Administration’s National Strategy for Counterterrorism, released this past October, has received positive reviews for its balanced focus on the challenges associated with confronting […] More
The High Cost of President Trump’s Decision-Making Style
The Administration will start the new year with a new acting Secretary of Defense after President Donald Trump accepted James Mattis’s resignation letter and moved […] More
President Trump’s Syria Surprise
The 19 December announcement by President Trump to withdraw ground troops from Syria was surprising to everyone but should have come as a shock to […] More
The Urgency of Resetting Relations With China
Bottom Line Up Front: The Trump Administration is confronting China on issues that have been developing for years and have percolated to the top of […] More
‘Bringing Down the Hammer’ on China Trade Negotiations
Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou is out on bail in Vancouver while she fights an extradition request to the United States. This, as President Donald Trump […] More
How to Support and Distance Yourself from the President’s DoD Budget
OPINION — Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer last week joined the very public chorus of defense experts in questioning whether President Trump’s call for reducing […] More
Adam Schiff’s Agenda
OPINION — “Do the Russians continue to hold some financial leverage over the president?” That is one question Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) will be looking to […] More
Trump and Xi Meet at G-20 Amidst Deteriorating China-U.S. Relations
Bottom Line Up Front On December 1, President Trump met Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Argentina. The […] More
Trump’s Thanksgiving Message
OPINION — The media should be satisfied with President Trump’s telephoned “visit to the troops overseas” from his Mar-a-Lago resort on Thanksgiving Day, and not […] More
Resetting the Crucial U.S.-Saudi Relationship
President Donald Trump is expected to receive a full report on the killing of Washington Post Journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Tuesday. The President called a […] More