Hayden on Pompeo: “Confident and Knowledgeable”
President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for CIA Director, Representative Mike Pompeo (R-KS), made clear in his Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday that he believes Russia was […] More
Trump
North Korea: A Vexing Problem for the New U.S. President
Kim Jong-un’s New Year’s speech has triggered fevered speculation about the possibility of an impending North Korean intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test, even provoking President-elect […] More
Tillerson Grilled on Russia, Sanctions as He Breaks with Trump on Key Issues
Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson on Wednesday sharply differed from President-elect Donald Trump on a number of key foreign policy issues, suggesting he’d take […] More
Trump Slams Report Saying Russia Has Damaging Information On Him
President-elect Donald Trump Wednesday lashed out in a press conference at reports overnight that U.S. intelligence agencies had given him, President Barack Obama, and leaders […] More
Reaction to Berlin Terror Attack Shows Divide Between Merkel & Trump
Their reactions to a terror attack on a public Christmas market in Berlin show stark differences between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and U.S. President-elect Donald […] More
Gen. Petraeus: The Need for a Calibrated Response to Russian Hacking
General David Petraeus, former Director of the CIA, says the U.S. response to Russian hacking of the 2016 election must be calibrated to avoid a […] More
Trump, Russia, and the CIA: Allies and Adversaries Confused
When asked by The Cipher Brief about how both allies and adversaries might view President-elect Donald Trump’s early, contentious relationship with the CIA, former Acting […] More
Tillerson’s Task: Mastering Mind-Numbing Expectations at State
Exxon Mobil Chief Rex Tillerson, like almost all post World War II Secretary of State nominees, if confirmed, will come to the job with extensive […] More
Trump's Attacks Do Not Bode Well for the CIA, Former Officers Say
What impact will President-elect Donald Trump’s attack on the Intelligence Community have on the CIA as it steels itself to deal with its already contentious […] More
Fmr. CIA Acting Dir. Michael Morell: "This Is the Political Equivalent of 9/11"
The Washington Post report on a secret CIA assessment concluding that Russia intervened in the U.S. Presidential election with the intention of helping President-elect Donald […] More
Playing the Taiwan Card
On November 25th, six Chinese aircraft—two nuclear-capable H-6K bombers, two Su-30 fighters, and two surveillance planes—participated in an exercise near Taiwan’s airspace. Four of the […] More
Catching China Off Guard
The December 2nd phone call between President-elect Donald Trump and Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen is the first such communication between a U.S. president or president-elect […] More
A Challenging Four Years for the Media
Don’t be fooled that there is a new Donald Trump now that he is president-elect. As I have written before, this Trump presidency is going […] More
Job Creation in the Age of Globalization: Trump and Xi's Shared Challenge
President-elect Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping have more in common than they currently realize. Both want to make their countries “great again,” and both […] More
The Security Clearance Process Might Need a Revamp
As the security clearance process comes under the microscope during President-elect Donald Trump’s transition, some experts and former intelligence community members say the system for […] More
Oversight Needed on Trump's Global War Against Islamic Terror
Prepare yourselves for a stepped-up, worldwide war against Islamic radical terrorists directed from the White House by President-elect Donald Trump and his closest aides, who […] More
Keane: I Can't Go Back to Public Service
As President-elect Donald Trump assembles his national security team, The Cipher Brief met with one prospective nominee, General Jack Keane, former Vice Chief of Staff […] More
Trump Taps Three Conservative Loyalists for Security & Law Teams
President-elect Donald Trump is compiling his national security and law enforcement teams and, so far, has tapped three conservative Trump loyalists – retired Lieutenant General […] More