Trump vs. the CIA
The unanimous rejection of the Trump administration’s efforts to reinstate the ban on travel from seven Muslim countries will lead to the first test between this White House and the intelligence community, particularly the CIA. The three-judge panel indicated that the travel ban did not bolster national security in the United States and that there was “no evidence” that anyone from the seven countries had committed terrorism in the United States. Former intelligence tsar James Clapper has stated that there is no intelligence to justify such a ban. However, the appeals court acknowledged that the president was owed deference on immigration and national security issues, which will compel the White House to tailor intelligence to document a threat.
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Biden’s Legacy: The Decline of Arms Control and Disarmament
The current discussion is dangerously reminiscent of the nuclear discussion of the 1950s, which was dominated by false notions of a vast Soviet superiority in deployed nuclear ballistic missiles, the so-called “missile gap,” as well as the so-called “bomber gap” regarding strategic aircraft.
The Disappearance of International Law
The United States is devoting insufficient attention and resources to the possibility of bilateral dialogue with potential adversaries that could ameliorate the international horrors that currently exist. Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has stated that there are “no barriers” to nuclear negotiations with the United States. There has been no response from the Biden administration. China wants the United States to ease its pressures on Beijing in order to stabilize bilateral relations and to enter discussions of nuclear matters. At this point in time, President Joe Biden is the first U.S. president to avoid travel to China in more than 50 years. Putin is looking for ways to reopen a dialogue with the United States, but Biden believes he has nothing to say to the Russian president.
