National Security « Ed's Blog

April 17, 2011 • 1:00 PM 9

THE NEXT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE?

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During his recent visit to Afghanistan, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates told the troops it likely would be his last visit to the war zone as Secretary. Gates departure from Defense has been long anticipated and there has been much speculation on whom President Obama will appoint to replace him. At the moment, CIA Director Leon Panetta appears to be the leading candidate, but is Panetta the best person to lead Defense given current circumstances, and if not, who is? What kind of person should replace Gates? (More)

Filed under: National Security, access and influence, acquisition, Afghanistan, Asia-Pacific region, Bill Cohen, Central Intelligence Agency, Charles Wilson, CIA director, deficit spending, Dick Cheney, DoD, Don Rumsfeld, Ed Ross, ewross, F-22 Raptor, islamist-jihadists, James Forestall, Leon Panetta, Les Aspin, Libya, M1 tank, Melvin Laird, middle east, National Security Act of 1947, nuclear armed North Korea, nuclear weapons, President Obama, procurement, Robert Gates, Robert Lovett, second-rate military power, Secretary of Defense, William Howard Taft IV, William Perry

March 27, 2011 • 5:12 PM 5

QADHAFI WREAKS HAVOC ON THE AMERICAN POLITICAL CONSCIENCE

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Moammar Gadhafi once again is wreaking havoc. This time it’s not over the skies of Lockerbie, Scotland, in a night club in Germany, or just in the cities and villages of Libya. He’s wreaking havoc on the American political conscience. With a reluctant president and the far left and the far right ganging up on the middle, the debate often resembles the chaos of a Marx brother’s movie. The situation, however, is deadly serious. How we deal with Qadhafi sends a message to repressors and rebels that will have a major impact on the course of events. And the sooner we have a doctrine that forms the basis of coherent strategy in the region, the more likely “Arab Spring” won’t turn out in Libya and other countries like “Prague Spring.” (More)

Filed under: National Security, Terrorism, Admiral Samuel Locklear, Afghanistan, American political class, arms embargo, Bahrain, barack obama, Britain, civil war, Congress, democrats, Ed Ross, Egypt, ewross, far left, far right, France, General Charles Bouchard, Germany, Groucho Marx, interior decorator, international community, Iraq, iron lady, Jordan, Latin America, Libya, Lockerbie, London, Marx Brother's Movie, Mediterranean, middle east, mission creep, Moammar Qadhafi, Muammar al-Gaddafi, Naples, NATO, no-fly zone, non-war, obama administration, oil, Paris, protect Libyan civilians, rebels, repressive dictators, republicans, San Francisco, Saudi Arabia, Scottland, Secretary Hillary Clinton, Secretary Robert Gates, Security Council resolutions, Syria, talk-show circut, tanks and artillery, Tunisia, UN, Venezuela, Washington D.C., wreak havoc

March 20, 2011 • 12:56 PM 3

THE LESSONS WE SHOULD LEARN FROM JAPAN: Are We Prepared?

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The principal lessons Americans should learn from the Japan earthquake-tsunami-nuclear disaster is that no country, no matter how large, prosperous, or technologically sophisticated, is safe from disasters that overwhelm government rescue, relief, and recovery resources; and that life or death may depend on how practically and psychologically we prepare for them.

Knowing there is only so much government can do to prepare for and protect us from the unpredictable, and because mega-disasters are relatively rare, Americans generally don’t prepare for them, especially if we don’t live along hurricane prone coasts or in tornado alley. Now, however, might be a good time to start. (More)

Note: I updated my column and my audio blog to revise the U.S. Death toll from 43,000 to 70,000, still the total is small by comparison.

Filed under: National Security, 1930s, 2004 Asian Tsunami, 9.0 earthquake, C'est la vie, Canary Island chain, Cumbre Vieja, earthquake, Ed Ross, emergency radio, ewross, family emergency plan, Great Depression, hurricane, Hurricane Katrina, Indian Ocean 2004, Japan, La Palma, land of abundance, lessons, natural disasters, Natural Disasters and Hazards, New Orleans, Nuclear and radiation accidents, nuclear disaster, oil crisis, Past Earthquakes, phenomena, scientific experts, shortages, Tangshan Earthquake, that's life, tornado alley, tsunami, United States, world war II, Yellowstone Caldera

February 27, 2011 • 12:28 PM 8

FIVE-DOLLAR-A-GALLON GAS: Time to Wise Up and Drill

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Amidst the turmoil spreading across the Middle East, Americans are once again faced with a spike in oil and gas prices; and we are hearing the same old arguments about U.S. dependence on foreign oil and what we should do about it. Oil crises, however, haven’t been long lasting in the past. When gasoline prices have approached and exceeded Americans’ threshold of pain—today that’s around $4.00 a gallon—calls to loosen restrictions on drilling offshore and in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) abound; but as soon gas prices drop back below that threshold, the clamor subsides. We’re on our way to $4.00-, perhaps $5.00-a-gallon gas. Will the powerful coalition of Democrats, environmentalists, and “green energy” advocates continue to prevent the exploitation of America’s oil reserves, or will they finally wise up? (More)

Filed under: National Security, Alaska, alternative energy, ANWR, Artic National Wildlife Refuge, British, California, canard, Chevy Volt, CO2 emissions, Deepwater Horizon oil spill, dependence on foreign oil, Dodo bird, drill, drilling offshore, Ed Ross, electric, electric cars, ewross, Exxon Valdex, five dollar a gallon gas, gas prices, green groupies, Gulf of Mexico, hybrid, hydrogen fuel cell, Iran, Libya, middle east, Mojave Desert, moritorium, New York, nuclear power plants, offshore drilling, Prince William Sound, solar panels, tax credits, vehicles

February 13, 2011 • 1:11 PM 5

CALIPHATE, COUPS, OR CONSTITUTIONS: Barack Obama’s Greatest Foreign Policy Challenge

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The sense of relief in the Obama administration and in Washington, D.C., was palpable the day after Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak resigned and the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces of Egypt under Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi (75) assumed power, promising free and fair democratic elections in September. Fears of the infamous Muslim Brotherhood’s ascendency waned and hopes for the spread of freedom and democracy were encouraged. The media, for the time being, will focus its cameras elsewhere; and Americans can return to worrying about jobs, deficits, and the economy. The outcome in Egypt, however, is far from settled, and the implications for governments from Algiers to Teheran ensure we will soon go down this road again. Washington now must assess multiple situations and move intelligently and effectively to influence them. (More)

Filed under: National Security, Africa, Algiers, barack obama, bogyman, caliphate, challenge, CIA, constitutions, coups, Ed Ross, Egypt, ewross, foreign policy, Hosni Mubarak, International Republican Institute, Iran, James Clapper, Leon Panetta, military assistance, Mohamed Hussein Tanntawi, Muslim Brotherhood, National Democraticc Institute for International Affairs, presidential election, professional military education, Sharia law, Supreme Council of the Armed Forces of Egypt, Tehran, Tunisia, United States

January 30, 2011 • 11:13 AM 3

U.S. LEVERS OF INFLUENCE IN EGYPT: Military Ties are Critical

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Whatever the eventual outcomes of popular uprisings in Egypt, Tunisia, and other Islamic countries in the region, historians likely will mark January 2011 as the month the political tectonic plates suddenly shifted in the Islamic world. Will they note also that it was when Islamic fundamentalism began wresting power from pro-Western, secular, albeit autocratic, governments; or will they record it as the indigenous birth of freedom and democracy? (More)

Filed under: Military, National Security, access and influence, Camp David Accords, Chief of Staff, Ed Ross, Egypt, Egyptian Armed Forces, Egyptian Army, ewross, Foreign Military Financing, Gamal Mubarak, Green Revolution, Hosni Mubarak, IAEA, International Atomic Energy Agency, Islamic countries, Islamic fundamentalism, islamic world, levers of influence, Middle East experts, Muslim Brotherhood, Omar Soliman, President Jimmie Carter, President Obama's Cairo Speech, Robert Gibbs, Sami Hafez Anan, Shah of Iran, Stratfor, Tunisia, White House press conference, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali

December 12, 2010 • 12:31 PM 1

WIKILEAKS WAR ON AMERICA: Obama, CINC or Conscientious Objector?

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Wikileaks has declared war on America. Will President Obama be our Commander-in-Chief or a conscientious objector? With the third and most recent release by Wikileaks of classified information—sensitive State Department communications—Attorney General Eric Holder “opened an investigation.” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said it was “an attack on America’s foreign policy interests” and an attack on the “international community.” So far, however, President Obama has been AWOL. He has shown little interest in Wikileaks, and he has given little indication how he will respond to this blatant breach of U.S. national security. (More)

Filed under: National Security, al-Qaeda, Amazon, Bradley Manning, china, CINC, commander-in-chief, criminal prosecution, cyber defenses, cyber war, Daniel Elsberg, Ed Ross, Eric Holder, ewross, free and unrestrained press, hackers, Hilllary Clinton, Hugo Black, Julian Assange, MasterCard, national security, PayPal, Pentagon Papers, poison pill, President Obama, russia, sarah palin, Supreme Court, Visa, war on America, Wikileaks

December 5, 2010 • 11:30 AM 1

WIKILEAKS: Another Fat Lip for America

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The fat lip President Obama received last week on the basketball court is similar in many ways to the fat lip America has received from the latest Wikileaks release of sensitive State Department communications. Both are embarrassing because they reveal vulnerabilities and actions best not made public. Neither is a debilitating injury when properly treated. The President’s fat lip, however, only required a few stitches. America’s fat lip requires major surgery. (More)

President Obama Needed 12 Stitches After Being Hit In Lip During Basketball Game (mediaite.com)
“That Fat Lip Might Give Obama Some Street Cred.” (althouse.blogspot.com)

Filed under: National Security, ABC News, Alan Colmes, Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation, basketball court, Bradley Manning, criminal prosecution, Department of Justice, Ed Ross, enemy combatant, Eric Holder, espionage act, ewross, fat lip, G20, hacker, Hillarry Clinton, Julian Assange, Newt Gingrich, Obama, Robert Gibbs, sexual assault, State Department, Sweden, U.K., Wikileaks

November 7, 2010 • 12:00 PM 2

FOREIGN POLICY: The Last Refuge of a Diminished President?

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President Obama departed Washington, D.C. last week for a 10-day visit to India, Indonesia, South Korea and Japan following the Democratic Party’s historic defeat in the 2010 mid-term elections. It’s a routine foreign trip, like others the well-traveled president has made since he took office, unless it marks a new beginning of President Obama’s personal involvement in foreign policy.

It’s not uncommon for presidents, when opposition-party majorities in one or both houses of Congress stymie their domestic-policy agendas , to spend more time on foreign policy. It’s the domain of presidential power least fettered by Congress. President Obama can use the second half of his term to build a list of foreign-policy accomplishments he can run on in the 2012 election as Republicans seek to dismantle his domestic-policy agenda at home. There’s only one problem—there must be some extraordinary foreign-policy accomplishments. (More)

Filed under: National Security, Politics, The Presidency, 2010 mid-term elections, 2012 elections, Afghanistan, Bilateral Consultative Commission, brinksmanship, Congress, Democratic Party, domestic policy, domestic policy agenda, Ed Ross, ewross, foreign policy, foreign policy doctrine, foreign policy president, fundamentally transform America, global governance, India, Indonesia, instincts, Iraq, Japan, John Kennedy, last refuge, leadership style, liberal president, Middle East peace, military power, missile defense, missiles, President Obama, presidential leadership, redistribution of wealth, republicans, Ronald Reagan, South Korea, Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, United Nations, Washington D.C., West Bank, world community

October 2, 2010 • 10:00 PM 0

BEARING THE BURDENS OF WAR: Something Other People Do

Robert Gates

Speaking at Duke University last week, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates expressed his concerns about the cost of maintaining an all-volunteer force and too few Americans bearing the burdens of war. But is he sending Americans a mixed message that, coming as it does in the midst of the growing U.S. fiscal crisis and two prolonged and controversial wars, risks adopting solutions to one problem that only make the other problem worse? (More)

Filed under: Military, National Security, 401K plans, admirals, airmen, all-volunteer military, burdens of war, compulsory service, Congress, Department of Defense, DoD bureaucracy, Duke University, Ed Ross, ewross, freedom, generals, Joint Forces Command, maines, military compensation, military healthcare, Norfolk Virginia, retirement pay, Richard Nixon, Robert Gates, ROTC, sailors, soldiers, something other people do, United States Secretary of Defense, US defense budget

September 26, 2010 • 2:28 PM 1

PERMANENT WAR: Is This Our New Reality?

Countries where Islamist terrorist attacks have occurred (click on map for more)

Is America in a state of permanent war, or at least a war that will span generations? From the First Gulf War to expel Saddam Hussein from Kuwait, to the military operations to enforce sanctions on Iraq, to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and all the of terrorist attacks on us and our covert military operations in between, we’ve been at war for 20 years, and there is no end in sight. Is this our new reality?

Bob Woodward, in his new book, Obama’s Wars, quotes General David Petraeus, commander of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan: “You have to recognize also that I don’t think you win this war. I think you keep fighting. It is a little bit like Iraq, actually. . . Yes, there has been enormous progress in Iraq. But there are still horrific attacks in Iraq, and you have to stay vigilant. You have to stay after it. This is the kind of fight we’re in for the rest of our lives and probably our kids’ lives.” (More)

Filed under: National Security, 9/11, Afghanistan, al-Qaeda, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, Bob Woodward, cartel, cold war, commander-in-chief, counterespionage, covert military operations, drug war, Ed Ross, espionage, ewross, exit strategy, Faisal Shahzad, First Gulf War, general david petraeus, George W. Bush, International Security Assistance Force, Iraq, Islamic fundamentalism, islamic world, Islamist-Jihadism, Korea, Kuwait, new reality, nuclear arms race, nuclear weapons, Pakistan, peace-loving people, permanent war, preemptive, President Obama, propoganda, Taliban, terrorism, Umar Abdulmutallab, United States, Vietnam, Warfare and Conflict, Waziristan, weapons of mass destruction, world's preeminent military power

September 12, 2010 • 1:29 PM 7

THE CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS: Seeing the Forest for the Trees

In his 1998 book, “The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of the World Order,” political scientist Samuel P. Huntington wrote that “cultural and religious identities will be the primary source of conflict in the post-Cold War world.” Nine years after 9/11, Huntington’s thesis has become reality. The attacks on 9/11 and the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and with al-Qaeda that followed are part of a larger conflict with a growing segment of the Muslim world that adheres to cultural and religious identities that are antithetical to and threaten Western philosophy and values. (More)

Filed under: National Security, Terrorism, 9/11, Afghanistan, al-Qaeda, barack obama, Christianity, clash of civilizations, commander-in-chief, Cordoba House, Crusaders, cultural and religious identities, David Petraeus, Ed Ross, ewross, Ganesville Florida, George W. Bush, Ground Zero, Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, Iraq, islam, Islamist, Islamophobic, jihad, jihadist, Muslim Americans, Muslim street, Muslim world, New York City, obama administration, Political correctness, Political science, post Cold-War world, Quran, Robert Gates, Saladin, Samuel P. Huntington, Terry Jones, Western philosophy

August 15, 2010 • 5:18 PM 5

REDUCING THE DOD BUREAUCRACY: Less is More

Secretary Robert Gates wants to make sweeping budget cuts in overhead at the Department of Defense (DoD). For starters, he has proposed eliminating Joint Forces Command (JFCOM) in Norfolk, Virginia, a 10 percent cut in contractors, the reduction of at least 50 generals and admirals, and the elimination of 150 Senior Executive Service (SES) civilians. I applaud Gates for his initiative. Not only will it save money for the needed modernization of weapons and equipment necessary to maintain our military capabilities, but it will make DoD more efficient and effective. (More)

Officials: Belt-tightening will cut major command (sfgate.com)
Scrapping the Defense Department CIO (informationweek.com)
Secretary Of Defense Gates Announces Plan To Disestablish Joint Forces Command, Cut Civilian And Military Personnel (minx.cc)
Gates Says Defense Bureaucracy Swollen, Declares Cuts (businessweek.com)
Pentagon Cuts Come Under Fire (online.wsj.com)

Filed under: Healthcare, Military, National Security, Africa Command, bureaucratic politics, CIA, defense acuisition reform, defense budget, Defense Department, deficits, Department of Defense, DoD bureaucracy, DoD civilians, efficient and effective, fighting wars and deterring aggression, Government, grade creep, GS-14, GS-15, Horn of Africa, Joint Forces Command, less is more, Military, military capability, national defense, National Security Council, Norfolk Virginia, Parkinson's Law, personnel costs, precision guided munitions, Reagan administration, reorginization, Robert Gates, Senior Executive Service, stealthy bomber, United States, United States Department of Defense, United States government, United States Joint Forces Command

August 8, 2010 • 5:24 PM 1

THE UNITED STATES AND VIETNAM: China’s Migraine Headache

The visit Sunday to the aircraft carrier USS George Washington, cruising off coast of Vietnam, by high-ranking Vietnamese military and government officials was not a big story in the United States. Teams of U.S. military personnel have been conducting MIA-remains-recovery operations in Vietnam for 20 years. U.S.-Vietnam relations have been steadily improving since 1995 when the two countries normalized diplomatic relations. The first U.S. warship visited Ho Chi Minh City in 2003. It was, however, big news in China, especially in the specialized news reports circulated among China’s ruling elite. (More)

Vietnam welcomes US nuclear supercarrier amid concerns over South China Sea (foxnews.com)
Former enemies US, Vietnam now military mates (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
Vietnam, US hold first ever defense talks (sfgate.com)

Filed under: National Security, soviet union, china, United States, Vietnam, Zhongnanhai, Hillary Clinton, special forces, migraine headache, Vietnamese millitary, U.S. millitary personnel, MIA, Ho Chi Minh, Ho Chi Minh City, China's ruling elite, POWs, Senator John McCain, superpower, fall of Saigon, one-party rule, middle kingdom, South China Sea, Yellow Sea, U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, South Korean naval ship Cheonan, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mike Mullen, James Steinberg, Asean Regional Forum, ship visits, millitary exercises, Indonesia, United States Navy, United States armed forces, George Washington

August 1, 2010 • 1:52 PM 5

AFGHAN WAR DIARY – Anti-War Activism at its Worst

As soon as Wikileaks posted the 91,000 reports they call the “Afghan War Diary” online, some people immediately compared them to the “Pentagon Papers.” Daniel Elsberg’s 1971 leak of a top-secret Defense Department Vietnam War study revealed 20 years of presidential-administration deception about American involvement in Southeast Asia. The Afghan War Diary is a reprehensible and damaging revelation of secret intelligence sources and methods that places the lives of U.S. warriors and Afghani informants at greater risk, but the Afghanistan war’s “Pentagon Papers” it’s not. (more)

Filed under: Military, National Security, Afghan War Diary, Afghani informants, anti-war activism, Army Field Manual, Bradley Manning, collateral damage, Daniel Elsberg, droness, First Amendment rights, intelligence officer, intelligence sources and methods, Inter-Services Intelligence, NATA forces, New York Times, north vietnamese army, Pakistan, Pentagon Papers, special forces, Stanley McChrystal, top secret, Viet Cong, Vietnam, Wikileaks

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Ed's Blog

THE NEXT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE?

Listen to Ed’s Audio Blog:

QADHAFI WREAKS HAVOC ON THE AMERICAN POLITICAL CONSCIENCE

Listen to Ed’s Audio Blog:

THE LESSONS WE SHOULD LEARN FROM JAPAN: Are We Prepared?

Listen: Behind This Week’s Column:

FIVE-DOLLAR-A-GALLON GAS: Time to Wise Up and Drill

CALIPHATE, COUPS, OR CONSTITUTIONS: Barack Obama’s Greatest Foreign Policy Challenge

U.S. LEVERS OF INFLUENCE IN EGYPT: Military Ties are Critical

WIKILEAKS WAR ON AMERICA: Obama, CINC or Conscientious Objector?

WIKILEAKS: Another Fat Lip for America

FOREIGN POLICY: The Last Refuge of a Diminished President?

BEARING THE BURDENS OF WAR: Something Other People Do

PERMANENT WAR: Is This Our New Reality?

THE CLASH OF CIVILIZATIONS: Seeing the Forest for the Trees

REDUCING THE DOD BUREAUCRACY: Less is More

THE UNITED STATES AND VIETNAM: China’s Migraine Headache

AFGHAN WAR DIARY – Anti-War Activism at its Worst

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