Tag: Intelligence
Stevenson’s army, April 4
– TR’s great-grandson says that his ancestor, forbidden by the Army to withdraw his Rough Riders from Cuba in 1898 despite rampant yellow fever and malaria, wrote a letter published in many US newspapers that forced the Army to relent.
– President Trump, who still has not filled Inspector General slots at DoD, HHS, Education, Treasury, and CIA now wants to fire the DNI IG, who told Congress about the Ukraine whistle blower.
– Jared Kushner’s ignorance exposed.
– Former SecState [and many other posts] Jim Baker suggests an “American” way of dealing with the pandemic.
Entertainment note for those sheltering in place: BBCs Culture in Quarantine
Library of Congress film archive
British theatre on line
My SAIS colleague Charlie Stevenson distributes this almost daily news digest of foreign/defense/national security policy to “Stevenson’s army” via Googlegroups. I plan to republish here. To get Stevenson’s army by email, send a blank email (no subject or text in the body) to stevensons-army+subscribe@googlegroups.com. You’ll get an email confirming your join request. Click “Join This Group” and follow the instructions to join. Once you have joined, you can adjust your email delivery preferences (if you want every email or a digest of the emails).
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Stevenson’s army, March 18
NYT has details of HHS’s plan for the pandemic. It envisions 18 months and multiple waves of infections and urges invocation of the Defense Production Act to obtain needed medical supplies. Here’s the link to the 100+ page plan.
OMB wants $48 billion more than the $8 billion emergency supplemental approved last week. Here are the details.
The bidding war is on, both for a stimulus package and especially direct payments to Americans. Schumer started at $750 Billion, McConnell urged $850 Billion. Trump yesterday, because he sad he likes round numbers, called for $1 trillion — and this morning’s reports say the administration wants $1.2 trillion. Various Senators have proposed $1000 checks to people, $2000, or regular $1000 for several months. It appears that McConnell wants to take the lead in developing a Senate package this week.
In other news, David Ignatius warns of acting DNI’s effort to cut NCTC.
A pilot in the Bin Laden raid tells his story.
My SAIS colleague Charlie Stevenson distributes this almost daily news digest of foreign/defense/national security policy to “Stevenson’s army” via Googlegroups. I plan to republish here. If you want to get it directly, To get Stevenson’s army by email, send a blank email (no subject or text in the body) to stevensons-army+subscribe@googlegroups.com. You’ll get an email confirming your join request. Click “Join This Group” and follow the instructions to join. Once you have joined, you can adjust your email delivery preferences (if you want every email or a digest of the emails).
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Stevenson’s army, March 7
The Saudi crown prince has arrested his chief rivals and charged them with treason.
Pres. Trump has named Cong. Mark Meadows as his new chief of staff. [Not “acting”]
Coronavirus blame game: countries are blaming their rivals for the epidemic.
WaPo says CIA & NSA clashed over the purchased of a Swiss crypto machine company.
My SAIS colleague Charlie Stevenson distributes this almost daily news digest of foreign/defense/national security policy to “Stevenson’s army” via Googlegroups. I plan to republish here. If you want to get it directly, To get Stevenson’s army by email, send a blank email (no subject or text in the body) to stevensons-army+subscribe@googlegroups.com. You’ll get an email confirming your join request. Click “Join This Group” and follow the instructions to join. Once you have joined, you can adjust your email delivery preferences (if you want every email or a digest of the emails).
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Stevenson’s army, February 21
SecState Pompeo announces start of violence reduction week leading to a Taliban deal.
WSJ reports more cooperation on Iran sanctions.
Both NYT and WaPo report DNI was fired after Trump learned his office had told House Intelligence Committee that Russia is already interfering in US 2020 elections in support of Trump.
Big study of nonvoters shows they mirror the voting population.
Lawfare says secret international agreements are still not being reported as required by law.
In further proof of my argument that some people die only in the Times, which reports deaths of interesting people, here’s the story about the man who invented computer cutting and pasting.
My SAIS colleague Charlie Stevenson distributes this almost daily news digest of foreign/defense/national security policy to “Stevenson’s army” via Googlegroups. I plan to republish here. If you want to get it directly, To get Stevenson’s army by email, send a blank email (no subject or text in the body) to stevensons-army+subscribe@googlegroups.com. You’ll get an email confirming your join request. Click “Join This Group” and follow the instructions to join. Once you have joined, you can adjust your email delivery preferences (if you want every email or a digest of the emails).
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Stevenson’s army, February 20
– More details on John Rood’s firing. NYT links it to policy disagreements with the WH; FP says he had a toxic work environment and many staff left.
– Amb. to Germany Richard Grenell has been named acting DNI. His major qualification for the job is fierce public loyalty to the president. He can only serve until mid-September, and would have to step down immediately if formally nominated for the job [as SecDef Esper had to do].
This lets me remind you of two of the most consequential but little known laws — the Vacancy Act and the Administrative Procedures Act. The former limits the use of non-Senate confirmed officials and people in “acting” positions. The latter prevents replacement of older executive orders and regulations without a lengthy and detailed process. The new team can’t just say, we want to change.
-Georgetown had a special event featuring former Amb. to Ukraine Yavonovitch.
My SAIS colleague Charlie Stevenson distributes this almost daily news digest of foreign/defense/national security policy to “Stevenson’s army” via Googlegroups. I plan to republish here. If you want to get it directly, To get Stevenson’s army by email, send a blank email (no subject or text in the body) to stevensons-army+subscribe@googlegroups.com. You’ll get an email confirming your join request. Click “Join This Group” and follow the instructions to join. Once you have joined, you can adjust your email delivery preferences (if you want every email or a digest of the emails).
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Bottom of the barrel
Richard Grenell, Ambassador to Germany and impresario of the recent Belgrade/Pristina agreements that are expected to open air and train service between the two cities, is pulling up stakes. He is headed back to Washington to be Director of National Intelligence, the leader if not the boss of 17 US intelligence agencies with a budget of $50 billion. He will also be the principal intelligence advisor to the President.
This is extraordinary. A gay Evangelical and white nationalist, he is a “communications” (i.e. PR) guy with no intelligence experience who has accumulated a dismal record for offending Berlin. The ink on his Pristina/Belgrade agreements isn’t even dry. I won’t be surprised if they evaporate before effective implementation. Grenell pushed himself into the Balkans not to fix anything but rather in a blatant effort to catch the President’s eye by delivering some sort of international triumph. As soon as he had even a glint of that, off he goes to bigger and better things.
A lot bigger and better. President Trump has been unhappy with the intelligence community because it concluded that Russia interfered with the 2016 election and will do it again if not stopped. Trump has also been anxious to get evidence of Ukrainian interference in the election and dirt on former Vice President Biden and his son from Ukraine, efforts that resulted in impeachment. Had the intelligence community delivered what he wanted in Ukraine, Trump would not have needed Rudy Giuliani’s help.
The DNI job has been in “acting” hands since August. It is being reported that Grenell will also be acting. That avoids Senate confirmation, which could be difficult for Grenell. He was confirmed as Ambassador to Germany by a dismal vote of only 56-42. Acting status also gives the President stronger leverage over appointees. We can expect Grenell to toady 100% to Trump’s whims, helping him to parry intelligence community judgments that differ from the President’s predilections. This appointment–like Barr at Justice, Pompeo at State, and O’Brien at the National Security Council–is intended to solidify political control over key government agencies and ensure that they toe Trump’s erratic lines, no matter how far they stray from reality.
I suppose there have been more harmful appointments in this Administration, but this one is destined to be high on that scale. Grenell is a spinmeister, not a truth teller. The intelligence community will find itself in not only incompetent but ill-meaning hands. This would be the bottom of the barrel, if the barrel had a bottom.
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