Biden SECDEF Pick on Hold?

Maybe it’s not going to be Michèle Flournoy after all.

Avril Haynes Biden’s Director of National Intelligence Nominee

She’d be America’s first woman intelligence chief.

Al Qaeda Deputy Killed in Iran

The man behind the 1998 embassy attacks is dead.

Pompeo Promises ‘Smooth Transition’

” . . . to a second Trump Administration.” Get it?

Pentagon Policy Chief Ousted

The purge of non-loyalists continues.

Trump Fires Esper, Names Acting SECDEF

A lame duck President has fired his Secretary of Defense and replaced him in probably violation of the law.

The Slow Rollout of Pinks and Greens

The Army is finally getting its World War II uniforms, one base at a time.

Joint Chiefs in COVID Quarantine

Because of course they are.

The Proud Boys Heard Trump Loud and Clear

They are standing by as ordered.

The Office of Legal Counsel

Holding the president accountable is hard.

Trump Saves ‘Stars and Stripes’

The venerable military newspaper lives to print another day.

Trump’s Bizarre, Anti-Veteran Rant

The Toddler-in-Chief strikes again.

Fear of a Black General?

My latest for Defense One.

DNI Refusing to Brief Congress on Election Security

Yet more flouting of the rule of law by the Trump administration.

Soldier-Scholar (Pick One)

My latest for War on the Rocks.

President Donald J. Trump disembarks Marine One Sunday Aug. 9, 2020, at the Elberon Park landing zone in Long Branch, N.J. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead) President Donald J. Trump disembarks Marine One Sunday Aug. 9, 2020, at the Elberon Park landing zone in Long Branch, N.J. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead)

Six Responses to Six Scenarios

Yet another call for military intervention in domestic politics.

President Donald J. Trump disembarks Marine One Sunday Aug. 9, 2020, at the Elberon Park landing zone in Long Branch, N.J. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead) President Donald J. Trump disembarks Marine One Sunday Aug. 9, 2020, at the Elberon Park landing zone in Long Branch, N.J. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead)

Domestic Enemies

My latest for Defense One.

Foreign Interference in the 2020 Elections

The Russians are at it again, with the cooperation of the Trump administration and its enablers.

Brent Scowcroft, 1925-2020

The National Security Advisor to Presidents Ford and GHW Bush has died.

Pentagon Training IDs Press as ‘Adversaries’

The reporting demonstrates the uncomfortable truth.

In Response to John Podhoretz’s Latest Column

Shame on him for defending authoritarian actions.

Cops Aren’t Soldiers

The similarities are obvious. The differences are more important.

A Simple Comparison

A thought experiment on what we have seen in Portland.

Cops Should Not Look Like Soldiers

Pentagon officials are speaking out about the militarization of police.

Federal Agents Using Strong-Arm Tactics in America’s Cities

Portland may be a preview of what’s to come.

A Timeline Of Nihilism And Fecklessness

How about crowd sourcing a timeline for all of Trump’s enablers?

Covid-19 Deaths Rising

The trend line shifted this week.

Protestors Getting Hit By Cars

A researcher has documented 66 separate incidents since May 27.

Vindman Abruptly Retiring from Army

The soldier who became a national figure for testifying against President Trump has had enough.

Israeli Bomb Sets Back Iranian Nuclear Program

The Natanz fuel enrichment site has been seriously damaged.

Podcast Recommendation

The Daily on the Russia bounty story.

Intel Briefers Stopped Telling Trump about Russia

The President didn’t want to hear about bad behavior from Moscow, so he wasn’t told.

Trump’s Irresponsible Foreign Policy

CNN has a lengthy, deeply reported piece on Trump’s phone calls to other heads of state.

Russia-Taliban Intel included in PDB

The President should have known about the plot. There’s a good chance he didn’t.

The Cold War Was A Sobering Influence For A Silly People

As scary as the Cold War was, it did reduce the silliness in American politics.

Trump Ignores Russian Bounties on American Troops

The Administration has done nothing about intelligence reports of a grave escalation from Moscow.

Army Wants 10,000 Recruits in Three Days

The Army’s in a bind, because it’s way behind, and willing to make a deal.

Alexander Vindman Selected for Colonel

The former NSC staffer who testified against Trump is at a career crossroads.

Fort Benning honors the nation's fallen service members with a Memorial Day ceremony at the post's cemetery May 27. The 9 a.m. ceremony at the Main Post Cemetery went forward under bright but partly cloudy skies, with an audience of some 200 Soldiers and civilians seated outdoors. The ceremony included remarks by a speaker, and a wreath-laying in tribute to "all the nation's veterans who made the ultimate sacrifice." The wreath-laying was followed by the firing of a three-volley rifle salute and the playing of "Taps." (U.S. Army photos by Patrick Albright, Maneuver Center of Excellence, Fort Benning Public Affairs) Fort Benning honors the nation's fallen service members with a Memorial Day ceremony at the post's cemetery May 27. The 9 a.m. ceremony at the Main Post Cemetery went forward under bright but partly cloudy skies, with an audience of some 200 Soldiers and civilians seated outdoors. The ceremony included remarks by a speaker, and a wreath-laying in tribute to "all the nation's veterans who made the ultimate sacrifice." The wreath-laying was followed by the firing of a three-volley rifle salute and the playing of "Taps." (U.S. Army photos by Patrick Albright, Maneuver Center of Excellence, Fort Benning Public Affairs)

Whose Deaths Should We Honor?

The line between “hero” and “victim” is blurry and rendered meaningless when the former is over-used

President Trump Visits St. John's Episcopal Church President Donald J. Trump walks from the White House Monday evening, June 1, 2020, to St. John’s Episcopal Church, known as the church of Presidents’s, that was damaged by fire during demonstrations in nearby LaFayette Square Sunday evening. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead) President Trump Visits St. John's Episcopal Church President Donald J. Trump walks from the White House Monday evening, June 1, 2020, to St. John’s Episcopal Church, known as the church of Presidents’s, that was damaged by fire during demonstrations in nearby LaFayette Square Sunday evening. (Official White House Photo by Shealah Craighead)

Civil-Military Crisis?

My latest for Defense One has published.

Wargaming During a Pandemic

My latest at War on the Rocks.

After the Protests: What Then?

How to translate understandable frustration at injustice into tangible reform?

A Side Note on the Flynn Transcript

Yet again, this administration puts Trump’s political fortunes ahead of the national interest.

Pentagon (Maybe) On Alert to Stabilize Minneapolis

The President has reportedly invoked the Insurrection Act.

Our Awful Criminal Justice System

A stroll down memory lane.

Who Gets Honored?

Are those who die in our wars more deserving than those who die in our stores?

Gregory McMichael Was Not a Good Cop

A look at the employment records of one of the men involved in the Ahmaud Arbery shooting.

Ronald Shurer, Medal of Honor Recipient, 1978-2020

A hero of the Afghan War has succumbed to cancer, aged 41.

More on the Lack of a Rally Effect for Trump

Some global comparisons.

Dave Dilegge, 1956-2020

The founder of Small Wars Journal passed Saturday.