Hard Questions about Gina Haspel’s Appropriateness to Lead CIA
As the senate prepares for what is expected to be a close vote this week on the nomination of Gina Haspel to become the next […] More
Congress
Two CIA Vets Take on CIA Nominee Haspel & Those Tapes
The nomination hearing of Gina Haspel to lead the agency is shaping up to be a bruising interrogation over Haspel’s role in the destruction of […] More
Full Court Press for Haspel – Letter from Fifty Former Officials
More than 50 former senior U.S. government officials sent a letter to the Senate intelligence committee Monday to support Trump nominee Gina Haspel to lead […] More
CIA Nominee Haspel’s History of “Taking the Tough Jobs”
To the distinguished ladies and gentlemen on Capitol Hill: You are poised to make one of the most critical decisions this term by voting on […] More
NATO Observer Group: Keeping Watch on Moscow from the US Senate
As the U.S., NATO and other allies move against Russia over an alleged nerve agent attack against a former Russian spy in Britain, bipartisan moves […] More
Trump’s Silence on Russia Means His Chiefs Have to Say Too Much
President Donald Trump’s unwillingness to publicly make plain that Russia is undertaking a large-scale active measures campaign against our democracy is forcing others in office […] More
Shedding the Veneer of Non-Partisanship on the House Intel Committee
Notwithstanding the comity on display at the recent Senate intelligence committee Annual Threat Hearing, reports that Republican Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on […] More
China Is Tightening the Screws on Taiwan. Will Trump Act – and Risk Losing Beijing?
Bottom line: Beijing aimed skyward with its latest attempt to expand areas of influence, unilaterally opening up several flight routes including one between Shanghai and […] More
How Immigration Makes the CIA Better at its Job
In recent weeks, debate over much needed immigration reform has reached a partisan crescendo. Elected representatives have argued whether prospective immigrants should be measured as […] More
How to Stop a Mass Killer? “Wait, Watch and Hope They Don’t Act”
Bottom line: After the mass shooting at the Parkland, Fla., school this week, the Trump administration’s focus on tackling mental health issues may produce legislation […] More
Russia by Cyber, North Korea by Nuke: A New Batch of Grim Warnings from US Intel
Questioning on Russian election interference and how the Trump White House handles staff clearances dominated the worldwide threat hearing Tuesday, as the Senate intelligence committee […] More
Mattis: New U.S. Nuclear Capabilities Needed to Deter Moscow
Pentagon chief Jim Mattis defended the administration’s 2018 Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) as the right response to Russia’s rising nuclear capacity and its failure to […] More
Former Spies on Nunes Memo: Underwhelmed, Unconvinced
Cipher Brief experts were underwhelmed by the “Nunes Memo,” made public Friday, despite the objections of Democrats, leaders in the intelligence community, and the FBI […] More
“We Need Revolution, Not Just Evolution” in Security Clearances
With the multitude of national security threats facing our nation – from Russia and North Korea to extremism and climate change – you might not […] More
Heed the Three Wise Men of National Security
“Our foreign policy is a complete and total disaster. No vision. No purpose. No direction. No strategy.” Then-presidential-candidate Donald Trump said that in his first […] More
What is Congress Good For? Not Declaring War
The framers of the U.S. Constitution decided 230 years ago to divide the nation’s war powers between the president and the Congress, making the president […] More
Bipartisan Hill Group Slams Trump’s China Policy
President Donald Trump’s wooing of Chinese President Xi Jinping has so far failed to deliver the results he promised since their first summit meeting in […] More
Wrestling with Nukes, Not Enough Troops & Too Much CO2
While most American news outlets last week focused on sexual harassment, tax reform and President Donald Trump’s red-carpet trip to the Far East, the Pentagon […] More