Intelligence Matters

In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with William Evanina, Director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, about the top counterintelligence threats facing the United States. Evanina shares his experience tracking the operational activities of Russian agents in the so-called "illegals" network that culminated in a U.S.-Russia prisoner exchange in 2010. He explains how Russia's ongoing tactical efforts today target critical infrastructure and elections systems, and details the risks posed by non-traditional collection efforts by China. He also tells Morell what other countries are on his "worry list" of increasingly sophisticated espionage challenges.

In this episode of Intelligence Matters, Senator Mark Warner (D-Virginia), vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, speaks with host Michael Morell about top national security issues facing the intelligence community, the policymakers who oversee it, and the administration within which it operates. Warner shares his views on the responsibilities of currently-serving intelligence officials and the importance of adhering to the rule of law, and explains why the Senate Intelligence Committee’s ongoing investigation into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election might be among the most important efforts of his public life. He tells Morell why his concerns about the strategic threat posed China have multiplied in recent years, and what he believes Silicon Valley – and the U.S. government – need to do to protect themselves against foreign influence campaigns from Russia, China, Iran and others.

In this episode of Intelligence Matters, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates Barbara Leaf speaks with host Michael Morell about the importance of diplomacy, the state of governance in the Middle East, and the path forward for Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Palestine. Leaf, who spent over three decades at the Department of State overseeing some of the most challenging diplomatic missions in the Middle East, explains why the United States has a "binding interest" in the region and why successful partnerships are critical to national security. She also tells Morell why she believes former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's tenure marked a period of "extraordinary destructiveness" at the State Department, and what she hopes his successor, Mike Pompeo, will do to help it recover.

In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Stacey Dixon, newly named director of Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), the so-called "DARPA-for-spies." Dixon explains how IARPA's work helps the intelligence community forecast global events like cyberattacks, civil unrest and bio-threats, and advance capabilities that use artificial intelligence and machine learning. She also addresses China's outsize investments in high-tech industries, which she warns risks luring away U.S. and other talent.

In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks to Juan Carlos Pinzon Bueno, Colombia's former minister of defense and its ambassador to the United States from 2015 to 2017. They discuss the status of the historic peace deal with FARC rebels, the growing political turbulence in Venezuela, and why trust remains at the crux of democracy. Pinzon and Morell also discuss the potential for a resurgence in drug trafficking, its implications for the United States, and other evolving security concerns in the region.

In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Laura Rosenberger and Jamie Fly of the German Marshall Fund's Alliance for Securing Democracy. The bipartisan duo discuss their latest project on disinformation campaigns being conducted worldwide, explain how European nations served as a training ground for operations in the United States and describe how other authoritarian regimes are taking examples from Russia's toolkit. They also detail how Russia's effort to sow social and political discord have reached beyond social media platforms and lasted long beyond the 2016 election.

In this bonus episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell addresses the Trump administration’s threat to revoke the security clearances of number of former senior government officials. Morell speaks personally about the value that former officials can offer to current administrations, whether and how clearances can be monetized, and how continuity among agency leaders can help serve the public interest. The episode features previous commentary from DNI James Clapper, NSA and CIA Director Michael Hayden, and CIA director John Brennan.

In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Pakistan's former Ambassador to the United States, Husain Haqqani, who takes stock of Pakistan's prevailing domestic ideologies, its fraught regional relationships, and explains how it deals with Washington today. Just ahead of the elections in Pakistan, Haqqani describes the entrenched challenges facing the country and explains what political leaders can do to confront them. He also shares themes from his latest book, Reimagining Pakistan: Transforming a Dysfunctional Nuclear State.

In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell speaks with Admiral Sandy Winnefeld, former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, about the evolving military threats facing the United States and how potential adversaries are developing non-military means to counter U.S. capabilities. They also discuss the fracturing of the liberal world order and whether threats to it are coming from internal sources - like the United States itself. Winnefeld tells Morell how the U.S. military needs to change its approach in order to maintain its position in the current security environment.

In this episode of Intelligence Matters, host Michael Morell leads a rare interview with CIA's Chief of Talent Acquisition, Sheronda Dorsey, who describes how the agency finds, trains and retains its global network of employees. Dorsey, an agency veteran of nearly three decades, describes her own experience climbing the CIA's ranks as a young black female, and tells Morell how the CIA is working to boost diversity within its ranks and leadership today. She also shares the top qualifying and disqualifying factors for candidates who apply.