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.
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    • Opinion

    EMP Attack Should Be a Larger National Security Concern

    Many Americans have never heard of EMP (which is short for electromagnetic pulse), much less would they consider it a national security issue worth worrying about. Unfortunately, an EMP attack poses a threat that is both real and also quite serious. An electromagnetic pulse within the United States could cause serious harm to our nation’s…
    David Poortinga
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    • Opinion

    Some States Talk About Border Security. Arizona Is Taking Action.

    While the presidential candidates clash over how to handle illegal immigration and border security, Arizona is doing something about it. When Doug Ducey ran for governor, he made doing something about all the illegal activity on the border with Mexico a cornerstone of his campaign. Since taking office, he has made a high-profiled effort to deliver. His latest…
    James Carafano
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    • Opinion

    When It Comes to Security Preparedness, the TSA Needs Improvements From Congress

    As we approach the holiday season, one thing that many Americans will have in common is travel. In light of recent high-profile mistakes, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) needs to make some serious changes to security methodology. The TSA has already taken some steps to better manage risks at airports. It cut back on the…
    Angelica Hickerson
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    • Opinion

    PBGC’s 2015 $14.6 Billion Jump in Deficits: More Bad News for Beneficiaries of Troubled Private Pensions

    The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)—the government entity that insures private pension plans—released its 2015 annual report, showing a $14.6 billion jump in PBGC’s deficit, to $76.3 billion. This is bad news for millions of workers and retirees with financially strapped private-sector defined-benefit pension plans. When private-sector pension plans fail and can’t pay promised pension…
    Rachel Greszler
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    • Opinion

    Death of Paris Attack Ringleader Underscores Security Flaws in Europe

    The world can breathe a little easier knowing that Abdelhamid Abaaoud, mastermind of the Paris terror attacks, was killed in a firefight with French authorities yesterday. Abaaoud’s terror attacks, which claimed 129 innocent lives last Friday, highlight the continued risk posed by the terrorist group known as the Islamic State—especially to western European nations who…
    Daniel Kochis
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    • Opinion

    No, Suspending the Visa Waiver Program Will Not Increase National Security

    The Visa Waiver Program, or VWP, has recently been questioned in its ability weed-out terrorists attempting to travel to the U.S. This program requires member countries to meet certain security measures, including an increase in airport security, an increased sharing of intelligence on known suspected terrorists, and an exchange of biometric, biographic, and criminal data…
    Chris Caprarese
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    • News

    GOP Lawmakers, National Security Experts Debate Risks, Syrian Refugee Programs’ Vetting Process

    As Republicans push for the Syrian refugee program to be halted, former defense and national security officials today sought to reassure lawmakers that while risks cannot be fully eliminated, they can be mitigated to ensure terrorists do not enter the United States. During a joint hearing of the House Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security committees…
    Melissa Quinn
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    • Opinion

    Hawaii Is Holding an Election That Only Allows People of Certain Racial Background to Vote

    It’s bad enough having a state hold an election that is racially discriminatory. Now we have a judge willing to allow it to move forward. That would be federal district court Judge J. Michael Seabright (a George W. Bush appointee, surprisingly enough). He’s refused to issue an injunction to stop an election in Hawaii to…
    Hans von Spakovsky
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    • News

    This Veterans Video Went Viral. Now It’s on the Big Screen in Times Square.

    Veterans gathered in Times Square on a wet, rainy morning the day before Veterans Day to watch a video.   Producer Stephen Clouse was present as a video tribute played to a crowd of a couple dozen veterans, who turned out in New York City despite pouring rain. The video, featuring the poem “Just a…
    Leah Jessen
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    • News

    Is This the Next Mizzou? As Racial Tensions Rise, Ithaca College President Faces Mounting Criticism

    Around a thousand miles northeast of the University of Missouri, where racial tensions and protests led to the resignation of the university president, students and faculty at Ithaca College have mounted a challenge to their own leader following protests over alleged incidents of racism at the small private college. For months, the college of just…
    Melissa Quinn
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    • Opinion

    For Many Vets, Military Career First Step in Service to US, Followed by Serving in Law Enforcement

    As Americans, Veterans Day allows us to reflect upon the gratitude we feel for the men and women who have taken it upon themselves, through their service, to protect the freedoms we enjoy here at home. To those special individuals we call veterans, patriotism and service to country embody more than mere rhetoric; they encompass a…
    Scott Erickson
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    • Opinion

    Mizzou Proves That Americans Should Not Be Forced Into Racial Categories

    The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is, like all bureaucracies, humorless and unyielding—and it is no less so when it comes to balkanizing or fragmenting Americans. Employers must divide the workforce into racial and pseudo-ethnic groups, growls the EEOC, whether the workforce wants to be divided or not. Here’s a sample of their FAQs on the…
    Mike Gonzalez
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    • Opinion

    Is a Defense Renaissance Around the Corner?

    Get ready for resurgence in planning the future of the American military. It’s long overdue. In fact, serious thinking about the “future force”—what America will need to assure national security in the face of foreseeable, emerging threats—has been largely lacking in the post-Reagan era. Thankfully, that seems to be changing. The Pentagon recently announced the…
    James Carafano
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    • Opinion

    US Military Is Now Less Ready to Defend Our National Interests Than It Has Been for Decades

    The world’s an even scarier place than it was last year. From the Middle East to the South China Sea, the bad guys have grown stronger and bolder. Meanwhile, our allies and friends—suffering from economies much weaker than ours—are spending less and less on defense. This means less help available to us, if things go…
    Steven Bucci
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    • Opinion

    What the Constitution Tells Us About How Senators Should Consider Obama’s Judicial Nominees

    What exactly is the Senate’s role of “Advice and Consent” when it comes to the nominations made by a president? It’s a topic of perpetual debate in Washington. One wrong-headed argument holds the role to be quite modest: Senators should defer to a president’s choices except in extreme circumstances. That position is advanced far too often by…
    Hans von Spakovsky
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    • Opinion

    America’s Military Can’t Run on Wishful Thinking

    It seems fitting that the Heritage Foundation released its latest Index of U.S. Military Strength just before Halloween. It makes for some scary reading. It’s easy to assume that our military will always be prepared to not only defend our shores, but protect our allies and interests worldwide. Indeed, to suggest otherwise might seem unnecessarily pessimistic. But wishful…
    Ed Feulner
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    • Opinion

    Obama’s Special Operations Policy: Useless and Dangerous

    No respectable historian will find much to admire in the president’s legacy as foreign policy and national security leader. Still, they may well bicker for many years over why he does what he does. The White House recently announced that special operations forces are going into harm’s way in Syria. That choice may be one of the defining…
    James Carafano
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    • Opinion

    The Passing of Homeland Security Visionary Mike Wermuth

    This week, the homeland security community lost of one of its original architects. Michael Wermuth, whose contributions to the field began before 9/11 and continued for the past fifteen years, passed on Nov. 1 at age 69. When Mike joined the RAND Corporation in 1999, his first task was to serve as executive director of…
    Daniel Kaniewski
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    • Opinion

    The Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Is Still a Bad Idea

    Like the antagonist in a bad horror film, some ideas just won’t die. The Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) is one of those ideas. The Senate refused to ratify the treaty back in 1999, the first time the Senate rejected a treaty since Woodrow Wilson’s League of Nations. Still, Secretary of State John Kerry and…
    David Poortinga
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    • Opinion

    What Last Night’s Election Results Prove About Social Conservatism and Voters

    Kim Davis confounded the pollsters and propelled an underdog candidate, Matt Bevin, to victory in the Kentucky governor’s race. Nearly two-thirds of voters in Ohio rejected marijuana. And citizens in Houston vetoed their city council and rejected a bad policy on sexual orientation and gender identity. Conventional wisdom is that social liberalism is an electoral…
    Ryan T. Anderson
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