National Security News

The Daily Signal provides reports on national and homeland security issues, including military readiness, intelligence operations, border protection, and global conflicts. Featuring news, analysis, and commentary, this section explores how security policy decisions affect America’s national defense and freedom.
Filter articles by
    • Opinion

    Coast Guard Icebreaker Fire Dramatizes US Polar Security Gap Years in Making

    A fire aboard the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Healy on its way to a research mission in the Arctic late last month forced the Coast Guard to cancel all Arctic operations at a time when the United States can least afford it. It pointed out again that the Coast Guard’s motto, Semper Paratus—“Always Ready”—is not being fulfilled in the…
    Janae Diaz
    Read More
    • Opinion

    Maintaining Nuclear Deterrence and Missile Defense

    This article is an excerpt from the “2020 Mandate for Leadership: A Clear Vision for the Next Administration.” It looks back at policy decisions made by the Trump administration over the past four years. You can purchase your copy of “Mandate 2020” here. Since publication of the last Mandate for Leadership, the Trump administration has worked…
    Michaela Dodge
    Read More
    • Opinion

    Injunction Against Postal Reforms Is Biased Judicial Overreach

    U.S. District Court Judge Stanley Bastian last week issued a nationwide injunction preventing the U.S. Postal Service from implementing reforms to its inefficient and wasteful procedures, which will affect postal operations across the country. The Sept. 17 ruling is the latest in a string of factually challenged attacks on Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. Bastian (who…
    David Ditch
    Read More
    • Opinion

    DHS Puts US Companies on Notice: No More China Slave Labor

    Federal agents seized a 13-ton shipment of human hair in July based on evidence the hair was taken from innocent people detained in Chinese internment camps. This was just the beginning of the Department of Homeland Security’s efforts to protect U.S. citizens from unknowingly funding China’s human rights abuses. Acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Ken Cuccinelli…
    Arielle Del Turco
    Read More
    • Opinion

    Creating a Smart Financial System Based on Better Monetary Policy, Deregulation

    Millions of Americans live in fear of another financial crisis, so they are willing to go along with extensive regulation of the financial sector. Unfortunately, they have been fed a falsehood about government regulation and financial stability. While the dominant argument is that deregulation in the 1990s caused the 2008 crash, that story is dead…
    Norbert Michel
    Read More
    • Opinion

    For More Security at Less Cost, Buy More F-35s

    Since its conceptual inception, the F-35 fighter jet has been known as an extremely expensive aircraft that can fill multiple roles. This high-priced “Swiss Army knife” of fifth-generation fighters is intended to replace fighters in the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps. The down side always has been the cost. As good as the F-35…
    Steven Bucci
    Read More
    • Opinion

    US Prosecutors in DC Put Racial Politics Above Safety of Black Residents

    D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser last week unsuccessfully tried to shift the political blame to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Columbia for the violence that she drew to the city in June by ordering the words “Black Lives Matter” painted on a city street. Her stunt failed when the U.S. attorney rebutted her…
    Cully Stimson
    Read More
    • Opinion

    6 Persistent Myths About Socialism, Debunked

    A frightening 70% of millennials say they would back a socialist candidate for office. Today, we are seeing many socialist ideas gaining traction, such as “free” college tuition, government-run health care, and a guaranteed income even for able-bodied people who don’t work. While we can blame some of the attraction on socialism’s false promises of…
    Kay C. James
    Read More
    • News

    NBA’s New Social Justice Coalition Silent on China’s Voter Suppression

    The NBA’s new social justice coalition dedicated to promoting voter access and civic engagement has kept silent on China’s systematic suppression of any organized political opposition to the ruling Communist Party. The NBA and NBA Players Association announced the launch of the coalition, which, according to a statement, will focus on a “broad range of…
    Andrew Kerr
    Read More
    • News

    Attorneys for Teen Kenosha Shooter Say He Acted in Self-Defense

    Attorneys for Kyle Rittenhouse, the 17-year-old charged with killing two people and wounding another during a riot on Tuesday, said the teenager “did nothing wrong” and only pulled the trigger to defend himself from harm. “Kyle did nothing wrong. He exercised his God-given, Constitutional, common law and statutory right to self defense,” Pierce Bainbridge, the…
    Peter Hasson
    Read More
    • Opinion

    Politicians Seek to Drive Out Income Opportunities in California

    With the COVID-19 recession causing high unemployment around the country, now is the time for policymakers to lift barriers to earning an income. With limited operations and selective lockdowns making business activity difficult for both employers and employees—especially workers who have children at home or other obligations—promoting worker flexibility is essential. Unfortunately, California lawmakers are…
    Rachel Greszler
    Read More
    • News

    Protesters Harass Politicians, RNC Guests Leaving White House After Trump’s Speech

    Protesters in Washington, D.C., harassed and blocked people trying to leave the White House as the Republican National Convention ended late Thursday night, numerous videos show. A crowd swarmed and shouted at Sen. Rand Paul and his wife as they left the White House after President Donald Trump closed out the RNC. A police officer…
    Kaylee Greenlee
    Read More
    • Opinion

    Push to Police Social Distancing Clashes With Calls to Defund Police

    The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and racial justice protests have come together to produce one of the strangest ironies of 2020: Many of the same people who publicly support defunding the police and curtailing the reach of the criminal justice system are calling for law enforcement to police minor behaviors. New York City Mayor Bill de…
    Emily Mooney
    Read More
    • News

    USPS Faces Financial, Logistical Hurdles Before Mail-In Ballot Surge

    The final votes of the 2020 primaries were cast Aug. 11, concluding a primary season marred by confusion, lawsuits, and an investigation by a United States Postal Service inspector general. Threats of fraud, foreign interference, and large-scale voter disenfranchisement have brought the Postal Service’s ability to transport the expected surge of mail-in ballots this November…
    Thomas Catenacci
    Read More
    • Opinion

    1 Question Remains in Trump’s Underappreciated Middle East Victory

    Anything that reduces tensions in the Middle East and contributes to Israel’s security should be applauded. The agreement between the United Arab Emirates and Israel to establish diplomatic relations in exchange for Israel’s suspension of settlements and claims to sovereignty over Judea and Samaria (as Israel refers to the West Bank) is a tremendous policy…
    Cal Thomas
    Read More
    • News

    State Department Official ‘Destroyed’ Records at Foreign Agent’s Request

    A former State Department official told the Senate Intelligence Committee that he destroyed records in January 2017, the month President Donald Trump took office, at the request of former British spy Christopher Steele, according to a new report. Jonathan Winer, who served as special envoy to Libya through early 2017, was Steele’s contact at the…
    Chuck Ross
    Read More
    • Opinion

    ‘Great Nightfall’ Provides Extraordinary Overview of Military Challenges Facing America

    Americans who want to better understand the complex threats the United States faces might assume that they need to read at least several books to get the full picture. Indeed, the landscape is complicated. The range of threats today includes cyber, space, nuclear weapons, artificial intelligence-guided weapons, and robots; not to mention the more traditional…
    Thomas Spoehr
    Read More
    • Opinion

    A Defense of Our Founding Ideas

    It’s not just statues and American history that are under attack. The most essential ideas from America’s founding are under siege and on trial. Robert R. Reilly, the director of the Westminster Institute and widely published author, joined “The Right Side of History” podcast to discuss his new book “America on Trial: A Defense of the…
    Jarrett Stepman
    Read More
    • News

    Border Chief Rips Media, Oregon Politicians for Anti-Law Enforcement Rhetoric

    A top homeland security official is calling out leaders in Portland, Oregon, as well as the mainstream media over criminal rioting and the smearing of federal law enforcement there.  “This is really about politics over public safety,” Mark Morgan, acting commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said Monday during a virtual event held by…
    Fred Lucas
    Read More
    • Opinion

    Administration Ramps Up Use of Defense Production Act

    In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Trump administration was criticized for not using the Defense Production Act quickly enough or in sufficient quantity to counter the spread of the coronavirus. Now, after using the act 33 times since March 18, there is no denying that the administration is utilizing it to fight…
    Maiya Clark
    Read More