DC 911, DC police response

DC's 911 call center remains broken. Mayor Bowser is responsible.

Washington, DC Police response times are too slow. Crimes in progress are not receiving due attention.

China airfield training, Harris/Netanyahu speech, Scientific American UFOs, Secret Service director

Does China's airfield strike training suggest a Pearl Harbor-style attack possibility? The PLA are training to take out America's most advanced jets on the tarmac.

Snubbing Netanyahu's address, Kamala Harris shows a weird partisanship. The Israeli prime minister is a poor American ally but U.S.-Israeli interests require dialogue.

The science problem with "Nope- It's never aliens." A new Scientific American piece takes a rather one-sided look at the UFO subject.

The Secret Service director had to go. Kimberly Cheatle's position was rightly untenable.

Secret Service protection list, Kurilla vs. WH, Secret Service foreign trips

Does the Secret Service need to protect 36 people? The demands on Secret Service resources are significant. But protection should only be provided to those who actually need it.

Central Command's Kurilla, unlike predecessor, speaks truth to power. The general has made clear to his political masters that their counter-Houthi strategy is failing.

Foreign governments will fear even higher stress Secret Service visits. The agency is always uncomfortable with foreign visits. But the recent Trump assassination attempt will only increase this stress quotient.

Biden

Biden ends reelection campaign, doing the right thing for the nation. The president's decision is the right one but it should have come sooner.

Trump's Iron Dome

Trump's Iron Dome boondoggle won't make America safer. The costs and capability potential of this proposal are not supportive of the national interest.

Europe Trump, Europe-U.S. tech war

Germany aside, Europea attempts to build bridges with Trump. Most European powers want to establish at least a functional relationship with Trump. Apparently not Germany.

The U.S. should threaten Europe over X/tech extortion. The EU Competition Commissioner is waging a blatantly protectionist/extortionist war on U.S. tech firms. It should not be allowed to stand.

USSS director

 Fighting for her job: Secret Service director’s record faces growing scrutiny. Kimberly Cheatle has pursued various DEI initiatives that some say have weakened the Service.

Secret Service, RNC protection

Strengthening Secret Service protection is far easier said than done. The agency does not have the capacity to simply throw more bodies at the problem.

Trump Secret Service detail notably reinforced at Republican National Convention. The action comes following Saturday's assassination attempt against the former president.

Secret Service critiques, Trump-proofing NATO, Russia teaches China on ASW

Trump assassination attempt: Secret Service critiques vary between the justified and the ignorant. The agency should be judged fairly but only by those who understand basic elements of close protection.

Europe can't Trump-proof NATO on the cheap. European allies must spend more on defense to ensure the alliance retains Trump's support. This is a simple, justifiable requirement.

Russia gives China another lesson on how to hunt U.S. submarines. The Russian navy have far more experience than the PLA in this regard.

Trump attack

Trump shows courage and Secret Service skill amid Trump campaign rally attack. The former president was not seriously injured.

AT&T

Congress must summon AT&T CEO John Stankey over catastrophic data leak. The telecommunications firm is showing a lack of seriousness over its security incompetence.

Trump-Orban, Germany assassination

Trump honors most pro-China leader, Hungary’s Orban, at Mar-a-Lago. The idea that Orban is anything other than a human carpet for Communist China is laughable.

Germany gives Russia an assassination plot pass. Scholz has failed to respond with any serious resolution to a Russian plot to murder one of Germany's top businessmen.

NATO HQ

NATO headquarters needs relocating to Warsaw, Poland. The alliance needs to look east and toward allies that care about burden sharing.

NATO 2% happy talk, Biden NATO speech, Biden's praetorian pledge, Sunak speech

The problems with the NATO defense spending happy talk. 19 allies are spending less than or just slightly more than the 2%-of-GDP minimum defense spending target. 

Biden rallies support for Ukraine and rightly salutes Jens Stoltenberg. The president broadly did a good job at the NATO leaders summit on Tuesday.

Biden commits to a Praetorian presidency. By pledging to serve out a full second term, Biden has essentially pledged that unelected advisors will hold executive power.

Rishi Sunak offers Biden and Trump an example of political civility. The former UK prime minister made an impressive speech in Parliament on Tuesday.

Putin hospital attack, Biden Morning Joe

The politics behind Putin's missile strike on a Ukrainian children's hospital. The Russian leader is likely playing to his nationalist base and also sending a message to NATO. But he risks aggravating Xi.

Biden's self-destructive Morning Joe interview. The president continues to show his mental frailty.

Keir Starmer, China drones, Defense industrial base

Who is Keir Starmer and what will the UK's new prime minister mean for the special relationship? The Labour Party leader is unlikely to produce major changes to the relationship. But China policy will bear attention.

Will the West do anything about China sending combat drones to Russia? If the U.S. won't admit this crosses a lethal aid red line, Europe surely isn't going to do anything.

Restoring America's military industrial base. The threat posed by China demands urgent action to ensure the U.S. can build more ships, submarines and missiles asap.

China piracy, Biden's excuses, Secret Service

China tests Biden with Taiwan-Philippines piracy. The Chinese are escalating their seizure efforts against Taiwanese and Filipino vessels.

Biden's debate excuses: jet lag? advisers? a cold? What's next, Aliens? The president has utterly failed to take responsibility for his disastrous debate performance.

Secret Service professionalism underlined by absent Biden leaks. Members of the protective agency have surely witnessed concerning lapses by the president. That they haven't leaked is a tribute to their professionalism.

Biden's responsibility, Lebanon war, Delta assassination question, Russia exploitation

For the Bidens, the buck stops anywhere but with Joe Biden. The First Family's incapacity for introspection and holier than thou rhetoric is tedious.

How the U.S. should respond to Lebanon war risks. The key is to protect U.S. citizens and interests.

Delta Force asks candidates whether they would follow an order to assassinate a political opponent. You're not getting into the unit if you answer in the affirmative.

from Saturday

Will Russia attempt to exploit American fears over Biden's age/senility? It is likely a tempting prospect for Vladimir Putin.

International media reaction to debate, Biden's ghost

What international media are saying about the Biden-Trump debate. The near universal perspective is that Biden is very obviously frail and that Democratic panic is justified.

In the battel between Biden the ghost and Trump the narcissist, the ghost lost. Biden's obvious frailty and senility will take paramount concern in voter minds.

China PLA charges, CNN debate pooler, SXSW vs Army, Russia vs. US drones, Hungary EU presidency

Xi signals Taiwan ambitions with public defenestration of former PLA officials. The public listing of charges against Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu is striking.

CNN's incomprehensible decision to block the pool reporter from the presidential debate. The decision is contrary to the public interest and ammunition for Trump's narratives.

SXSW badly misses the mark with Army repudiation. The music-tech festival organizer has made a poor decision in banning the Army from sponsoring its 2025 event.

from Wednesday...

On Russia's growing suggestion it might shoot down a U.S. drone over the Black Sea. Russian officials are giving increasing indications of this rising threat.

China set to assume EU presidency via its Hungarian puppet. Viktor Orban's government is a servant of Beijing.

Russia escalation, Ukraine dirty bomb

Russia's escalation theatrics are designed to manipulate Americans. Putin wants Americans to back off from supporting Ukraine in fear of what will happen if they don't.

Why Russia has invented a Ukrainian dirty bomb plot. It's just part of the growing effort to stoke Western fears of direct escalation.

Russia-NK agreement

What the Russia-North Korea security agreement actually means. It is not a treaty defense accord. It's an effort to secure greater North Korean aid for Putin's Ukraine war.

Putin loyalty

Putin shows loyalty concern by promoting children of top allies. The Russian leader is putting dynastic politics at the heart of his stability base.

Police carjackers

Prince George's County Police department show DC how to deal with carjackers. I was a witness to a successful pursuit and arrest of armed carjackers on Wednesday.

Tajik arrests, China-Dutch

Urgent border terrorist threat underlined by Tajik arrests. Responding to an FBI tip off, ICE has arrested six Tajiks suspected of possible ISIS-K membership.

China's self-defeating Dutch gun barrel diplomacy. China wants ASML exports but it also wants to harass Dutch warships in international waters. The two don't gel well.

Orban national sovereignty

Viktor Orban's nationalist sovereignty jelly. The Hungarian leader does not care about sovereignty nearly as much as he pretends.

Yasen Cuban

The visit of a Russian submarine to Cuba is far more of a U.S. opportunity than a prospective threat. The intelligence collection potential related to this visit is significant.

Biden-Russia, FBI AMLO

Biden tempts Russian escalation with hairbrained Ukraine caution. The balance between deterring the Russians and encouraging them is rarely built around weakness.

FBI Director implies Lopez-Obrador is corrupted by cartels and more. The interesting testimony came via questions from Sen. John Kennedy.

Hong Kong schools

Hong Kong calls on primary schools to report anti-Communist Party attitudes and behavior. The guidance issued on Monday is just the latest evidence for the death of Hong Kong's democracy.

Biden foreign policy

Biden is putting his reelection interests before national security. On Iran, Russia, China and most other foreign policy concerns Biden is putting short term calm before longer term security.

Israel protests

Israel event protests show America and Israel at their best. Choosing free speech in preference to apparent intimidation can be painful but is ultimately the right course to take.

China-Taiwan, Macron nuclear

Subtle and not so subtle messages in China's military exercises near Taiwan. Xi is sending a message to Lai and Washington, but also to his own people.

Macron shows Biden how to deal with Russian nuclear blackmail. The French nuclear strike exercise on Thursday is the appropriate response to Putin's own nuclear exercises.

Biden-Ukraine, UK election, Air Force death

Why is Biden running scared of Putin in Ukraine? The U.S. continues to put excessive restrictions on Ukraine's use of weapons against Russian military targets.

Keir Starmer seems set to become UK prime minister on July 5. Will that affect US relations? It's unlikely to lead to much of a change from today.

Air Force salutes airman who died in tragic police shooting. Three different leaders show three different leadership examples in the aftermath of Roger Fortson's death.

Russia nuclear exercises, State Dept. LGBT warning, Pier omnishambles

Why it matters if Russia's nuclear weapons exercises occur in Crimea. The Iskander missile system's range would feasibly allow Russia's use of a Crimea location to send a message use of a Crimea location to send a message.

Did the State Department have intelligence to support its LGBT warning? It doesn't appear so. 

Biden's pier Omnishambles. The $320 million pier and how all the aid is being stolen.

Raisi death

The Biden Administration should have ignored Raisi's death rather than memorialize him. The U.S. owes no favors when it comes to ardent anti-Americans.

Fico assassination attempt

The key failures of Slovakian prime minister Robert Fico's security detail. They did not respond well to the attempted assassination on Wednesday.

Xi-Putin, Zelensky's ego

Xi and Putin's wake up call to the world. Whatever their disagreements, the two leaders are fundamentally united in a common purpose of seeking to degrade the U.S.-led alliance structure and associated international order.

Zelensky's ego is cashing checks Ukraine cannot afford. Complaining about Western support and failing to take responsibility, Zelensky undermines Ukraine's interests.

Trump Secret Service

Trump shouldn't use the Secret Service as a political prop. The GOP's latest campaign ad makes heavy use of the Secret Service toward that effect.

UK-US on Ukraine, Orban-Xi, China on war in Ukraine, AHI

The U.K. and U.S. are again dividing on Ukraine. Where the U.K. supports more robust action in Ukraine's support, the U.S. is becoming more risk averse.

Saluting Xi Jinping, Viktor Orban mocks his American conservative supporters. The Hungarian leader is Xi's favored European puppet.

Chinese state media endorse Russia's war in Ukraine. Xi's neutral lies aside, the truer narrative sometimes comes to the surface.

from Wednesday...

Congress tackles Havana Syndrome. The House Homeland Security Committee just held a positive hearing on the subject.

Russia nukes

Russia's nuclear weapons exercises have two key purposes. First, to intimidate the West against support for Ukraine. Second, to broadcast the limits of Chinese influence.

British weapons vs. Russia, George Galloway

Why the UK is letting Ukraine use British weapons inside Russia. The UK doesn't want to allow Russia to set the escalation narrative. In addition, Russia is setting fire to warehouses in London.

Will Russia attempt to covertly fund George Galloway's political party? Russia's related record and Galloway's political positions-prospects suggest it's a possibility. 

Macron Ukraine

France's Macron rebukes Putin's nuclear threats and shows Europe the way on Ukraine. The French president has provided specifics as to under what conditions he might order military action in support of Ukraine.

Israel-Rafah

How Israel can secure Rafah without devastating the civilian population. The key is for an armor-centric cordoning operation versus bombing campaign.

Russia sabotage, Xi's cannon diplomacy

Russia is conducting an aggressive covert sabotage campaign in Europe. Russian intelligence services are plotting and carrying out attacks on Ukraine-aligned targets.

Xi Jinping complicates France state visit with water cannon antics. By escalating his aggression against the Philippines, Xi makes it harder for his Western partners to focus only on trade relations.

Austria, Switzerland, Germany

Can Austria, Switzerland and Germany stay neutral amid rising Sino-Russian threats? The old gambit of having one's cake and eating it may not be viable for much longer.

Secret Service, RAF-Bomber Command

Exclusive: Secret Service agent assigned to Kamala Harris suffers apparent medical incident and fights other agents. The incident occurred at the Washington area Andrews Air Force Base on Monday.

The Royal Air Force should bring back Bomber Command and buy B-2 bombers. The U.K. must anticipate taking the deep strike lead for NATO in the contingency of a simultaneous NATO-Russia, U.S.-China war.

UK-Germany and China spies, UK defense boosts, Trump China

U.K. and Germany finally take on Chinese spies but... they are only cracking the tip of China's espionage iceberg. And only with caution.

The U.K. sends message to Trump, NATO and Russia with defense budget boosts. Rishi Sunak has pledged that the U.K. will spend 2%-of-GDP on defense by 2030.

Trump's cabinet picks will reflect China focus. Right or wrong, the war in Ukraine will take a backseat.

Shadow war, Ukraine-EU, Patrushev-Cubans, Trump-TikTok

 The new way of war:  How US enemies foster American anger, disunity, and self-doubt. China is mastering the effort to shape and control what Americans believe and do.

Ukraine and the European Union must adapt their strategies to U.S. aid realities. The most recent U.S. aid package is likely to be the last of its scale.

Russian spymaster meets with Cuban, Brazilian and Bolivian counterparts in Moscow. The meetings underline Russia's interest in bolstering anti-American partnerships.

Trump again bows to Beijing with pro-TikTok rant. The former president appears to care more about campaign donations than national security.

Ukraine/Taiwan

China will likely invade Taiwan even if Ukraine wins. The Chinese decision to attack or not attack will have little to do with the outcome of the war in Ukraine.

Havana Syndrome

CIA doubles down on see-no-Russian Havana Syndrome spin. Director Bill Burns put out an internal memo expressing his continued support for what appears to be flawed analysis.