The U.S. is in the grips of spy-mania in the aftermath of Russia's interference in the 2016 election that has made President Trump's 2016 election campaign the focus of a federal investigation. But Russia's active measures to infiltrate and influence the U.S. consciousness didn't begin, nor end with the 2016 election. For years, John Sipher, a 28-year veteran of the CIA's National Clandestine Service, recruited Russian spies and led counter-intelligence operations against Moscow and he's here to...
Jan 30, 2018•56 min
Republican U.S. Senator and Army veteran Tom Cotton is often described as a hawkish conservative for taking a hardline stance on issues like immigration and the Iran nuclear deal. In this interview, Michael Morell steps away from policy and gets a sense of the Arkansas senator's character, political philosophy and driving influences. Cotton talks about working as his father's farm hand and learning about his dad's service in Vietnam. He also discusses his time studying political science and poli...
Jan 23, 2018•47 min
In this episode of Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell talks to constitutional scholar Geoff Stone on constitutional interpretation and its relevance in today's society. Stone, who authored "Sex and the Constitution" explores oversight of government surveillance on communications and safeguarding a citizen's personal freedoms. Stone also addresses originalism and affirmative action, what he calls the "most cynical form of judicial review we have today." To learn more about listener data and our...
Jan 16, 2018•54 min
In this special episode of Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with retired U.S. Navy Admiral James "Sandy" Winnefeld about a non-traditional national security threat that has affected him personally: America's opioid crisis. Winnefeld recently lost his own son Jonathan to opioid addiction, and he is dedicating his life to reversing a crisis he calls a national emergency. The statistics are staggering: the CDC reports that more than 64,000 Americans died in 2016 from a drug overdose more...
Jan 11, 2018•46 min
The U.S. intelligence community's second-in-command, Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence Sue Gordon talks to Michael Morell about being a career CIA officer, starting as a young analyst and working her way to up to leading all four of the CIA's Directorates. Her vast experience and innovative approach to bridging gaps is what prepared her for the PDDNI role, where she focuses on integrating each of the nation's intelligence agencies and innovating so that the United States retains...
Jan 02, 2018•55 min
The U.S. relationship with China is arguably one of the most strategically important, as highlighted by the Trump administration calling China a "strategic competitor" in its new national security strategy. In this episode, Michael spends time with Chris Johnson, one of his most trusted former China analysts while the two worked at the CIA, to examine how China has evolved to challenge the U.S. on the global stage: its economic growth; its geopolitical influence; Chinese political power plays an...
Dec 19, 2017•56 min
Cybercrime is one the fastest-growing and most lucrative areas of crime. Former Deputy Director of U.S. Naval Intelligence Terry Roberts, is a global cyber intelligence expert with more than 30 years in the intelligence community. This week she joins Intelligence Matters and talks to Michael about how nation-states, groups and individual actors leverage the global cyber domain, how it affects our economy and what we need to do to safeguard ourselves against an ever-evolving threat. To learn more...
Dec 12, 2017•55 min
The House Intelligence Committee's top Democratic member, Congressman Adam Schiff talks to Michael about the investigation of Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 presidential election. He talks about the one thing Russian President Vladimir Putin fears most, why Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is critical to protecting the homeland and why intelligence is not a perfect science. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc...
Dec 05, 2017•58 min
Leading international relations expert Philip Gordon, helps decipher the complexities in the Middle East: the actions and motives of major players and why the big national security challenges and risks that we face as Americans all emanate one way or another from the region. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Nov 21, 2017•56 min
Former CIA Counterintelligence Chief Mark Kelton talks to Michael Morell about his years working in Cold War outposts, how the U.S.-Russia adversarial relationship has evolved and what double agents Aldrich Ames and Robert Hanssen have in common with Edward Snowden. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Nov 14, 2017•50 min
In this week's episode of Intelligence Matter's Michael speaks with Robert Cardillo, the Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA). Cardillo explains the agency's mission and how advanced imagery was used in the NGA's creation of a replica of Osama bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad in preparation for the May 2, 2011 raid. Cardillo also talks about what differentiated President Barack Obama's leadership style and looks back on the many tough meetings and long hours spent in t...
Nov 07, 2017•41 min
On this episode of Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell talks with Pedro Burelli, a former member of the Executive Board of Petroleos de Venezuela about is behind the crisis in Venezuela, what fueled firebrand leader Hugo Chavez's paranoia, how the nation evolved to a narco-state, the current humanitarian crisis, and whether the country can recover without an outside intervention. Intelligence Matters is the new, wildly popular podcast from The Cipher Brief in partnership with CBS News, where fo...
Oct 31, 2017•53 min
In this special episode of Intelligence Matters, Michael Morell speaks with former U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Michele Flournoy about the future of the U.S. military, the Iran nuclear deal, the North Korea crisis, Russian election interference and the U.S. falling into the shadow of China's economic dominance. However, Flournoy does not only weigh in on the headlines, but offers advice to young women interested in a national security career field. When her nomination was confirme...
Oct 26, 2017•51 min
In this week's episode of Intelligence Matters, former Acting Director of the CIA Michael Morell speaks to Laura Rosenberger, a name that may not be immediately recognizable but who at a young age rose the ranks to hold influential senior foreign policy advisor roles. Rosenberger talks about the events of 9/11 inspiring her to a civil service career, and the mentors and champions that helped propel her to the West Wing of the Barack Obama White House in the National Security Council. She talks a...
Oct 24, 2017•56 min
The DNI's former Iran Mission Manager, Norman Roule was the leading specialist responsible for integrating collection and analysis on Iran across the Intelligence Community and in this week's episode of Intelligence Matters he talks to former Acting Director of the CIA Michael Morell about whether he believes Iran is complying with its JCPOA obligations, the destabilizing effect of Iran's regional behavior and whether U.S. President Donald Trump's gamble to decertify the nuclear deal will pay of...
Oct 17, 2017•50 min
On this week's episode of Intelligence Matters, former acting CIA Director Michael Morell talks with Kimberly Dozier. Dozier was a CBS correspondent for 17 years, and was stationed in Baghdad for three years before being critically wounded. A Peabody and Edward R. Murrow award winner, Dozier started reporting on national security for the Daily Beast, and has now joined The Cipher Brief as Executive Editor. Listen in as Dozier talks about her unique childhood traveling the world, her experiences ...
Oct 10, 2017•53 min
In this week's episode of Intelligence Matters, former White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough talks about his view of American exceptionalism in creating opportunities for its citizens, how his ideologies were deeply influenced by both his upbringing and travels, and what distinguishes President Barack Obama in his view from other government officials. In a wide-ranging interview with former Acting Director of the CIA Michael Morell, McDonough talks about being one of eleven children and the...
Oct 05, 2017•49 min
In this week's episode of Intelligence Matters, former acting Director of the CIA Michael Morell speaks with former National Security Advisor Tom Donilon about his distinguished career in government: working as a top security advisory in the White House, his thoughts on U.S. President Barack Obama and his advice for the current administration on the most pressing security concerns of our time. As he looks back on his career, Donilon describes an unlikely route to national security and foreign po...
Oct 03, 2017•50 min
This week we have a special episode of Intelligence Matters with Michael Morell, in which, The Cipher Brief expert Ambassador Joseph DeTrani weighs in on mounting tensions between the United States and North Korea. The exchange of fiery rhetoric between U.S. President Donald Trump and members of the North Korean regime raises the question, is this war of words a precursor to armed conflict, escalating the crisis to a tipping point. Trump has publicly rebuked his predecessors for leaving him what...
Sep 28, 2017•47 min
In this week's episode of Intelligence Matters with Michael Morell, we hear from the Director of National Counterterrorism Center Nicholas Rasmussen who in a rare interview gives insight into the dramatic progress made against ISIS in the battlefield, why Al Qaeda is still priority to analysts, primary threats currently facing the homeland and how the terror threat has evolved. Rasmussen is the top analyst on terrorism in the United States with nearly two decades' experience in the counterterror...
Sep 26, 2017•48 min
In the premiere episode of Intelligence Matters, former Acting CIA Director Michael Morell puts his analyst hat on for a wide-ranging conversation with former Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta. Morell succeeded Panetta as Acting Director of the Agency in 2011 when Panetta left to take on the role of Secretary of Defense under President Barack Obama. While the two men worked together, and both currently serve as Senior Counselors at Beacon Global Strategies, a geopolitical consulting firm based i...
Sep 19, 2017•54 min
