Tag: Defense
Stevenson’s army October 28
– Key intelligence leading to the Baghdadi raid came from Iraqi intelligence, according to Reuters. But NYT credits the Kurds and notes that the president’s order to withdraw troops from northern Syria, despite knowledge of the narrowing hunt for Baghdadi, forced a last minute scramble that could have jeopardized the operation.
– Congressional notification was not required because the operation was a “traditional Military Activity” rather than a covert action, title 10 rather than 50. Lawfare explains why. The bin Laden raid was CIA controlled, with the SEAL force legally transferred to CIA under title 50, and the gang of 8 was notified as required by law [Hughes-Ryan as updated in 1990].
– There’s further confirmation of how Graham and Keane used the oil argument to get Trump to keep some forces in Syria. But legally, we can’t keep the oil.
-A tell-all book by Mattis’ speechwriter, whom he has denounced, is out this week. Ln the grounds that a review may tell you all you need to know, here’s a review.
– Those of you who remember my long history with the B-1 bomber may appreciate this: they have found a way to use them.
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, October 25
– WSJ says DOD wants to send tanks and more troops to Syrian oil fields.
– In order to pass this year’s NDAA Sen. Inhofe suggests a “skinny bill.”
– VP Pence’s long delayed China speech seems to criticize US companies more than Beijing. Here’s the text.
– Sen. Graham has a resolution criticizing the impeachment inquiry — and all but 9 GOP Senators are cosponsors.
– Sec. Pompeo was back in Kansas, sounding a lot like a candidate for Senate. See if you agree after reading this amazing interview.
– Huawei spends a lot on US lobbying; now there’s a Ukraine connection.
– NYT says House investigators are working with Bolton lawyers to arrange a deposition.
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, September 30 and October 1
I had trouble posting from home yesterday, so here are Charlie Stevenson’s news summaries for today and yesterday:
October 1
Happy New Year! [FY2020]
US News argues that the military have increasing dominance over DOD civilians. I share those concerns.
FP has a review of two new memoirs, by Samantha Power and Susan Rice.
Picking up on John Bolton’s sharp criticism of North Korea policy, John Gans notes the parallels with Al Haig, fired by Reagan.
September 30
Why did special envoy Volker resign? Politico has some background.
Will Trump actually block Chinese from Wall Street?
Double standard? Why does NYTimes seem to care more about hiding identity of a leaker than of a whistleblower who followed the law?
Is it that easy to hack US voting machines? The scary report.
How to mitigate the effects of tariffs? Sen. Cotton has another deviously clever idea.
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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