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

    Obama Is Willing to Put Our National Security at Risk With a Veto
    The Russians are bombing CIA-backed rebels in Syria and continuing to hold parts of Ukraine. ISIS continues to spread in the Middle East and inspire attacks around the world. Iran is receiving hundreds of billions in sanctions relief, some of which will likely go to destabilizing the Middle East. China is building illegal islands in…
    Justin Johnson
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  • opinion

    Hurricanes Highlight Why FEMA Should Be Reformed
    With hurricane Joaquin intensifying to category 4, citizens all along the East Coast should be preparing for a substantial impact. In the coming days, it is important to remember the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s advice: Know your evacuation route Gather supplies (first aid, food, flashlight, etc.) Establish a family plan (method of contact in case…
    Angelica Hickerson
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  • opinion

    House Homeland Security Committee Task Force Releases Report on ISIS Foreign Fighters
    Following the completion of a six-month investigation, the House Homeland Security Committee’s Task Force on Combatting Terrorist and Foreign Fighter Travel released a final report on Tuesday, September 29. The bipartisan Task Force was formed in March with the primary purpose of reviewing both classified and unclassified information regarding the increased number of foreign fighters…
    Thomas Whittaker
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  • opinion

    Defense Reform Is Far From Dead in Congress
    Defense reform has gotten a lot of attention around Washington—from members of Congress and senior Pentagon leaders as well as the usual policy mavens and influencers. Lately, though, whispers wafting from the Pentagon have suggested that perhaps defense reform has peaked, that Congress won’t support meaningful reform. Bushwah! Defense reform is far from dead in…
    Justin Johnson
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  • opinion

    Special Forces Are Great, but They Require a Strong Conventional Military to Operate
    Reuters recently reported on a contingent of U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) personnel in southern Niger assisting the West African country in its battle against the terrorist organization Boko Haram, which is increasingly raiding into Niger. The contingent is a portion of the approximately 1,000 special operators currently deployed across the continent, part of President…
    Joshua Meservey
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  • opinion

    8 Important Takeaways From the 2016 Defense Authorization Act
    On Thursday the House (with the Senate shortly thereafter) will vote on the final version of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016. That’s a long name for the annual defense policy bill passed by Congress for 53 years in a row. While many of the issues addressed by the bill are extremely…
    Justin Johnson
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  • opinion

    6 Crucial Budget Facts Lawmakers Need to Remember
    The end of the fiscal year is here, meaning that Congress is scrambling to resolve a host of important budget issues that lawmakers have ignored all year. Most importantly, they must fund the government for the 2016 fiscal year (which begins on October 1st), and come December, they must address the impending debt ceiling. These…
    Michael Sargent
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  • opinion

    While Iran Receives Billions From Lifted Sanctions, the U.S. Military Is Cut by Billions
    There are many reasons to think that the Iran nuclear deal is an awful agreement—one of those being the $150 billion (or so) that Iran will receive as sanctions are lifted. While Iran is receiving $150 billion, the U.S. military is struggling under cuts that total over $180 billion over the last four years. In…
    Justin Johnson
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  • opinion

    Argument for Giving Law Enforcement Special Access to Encrypted Systems Falls Short
    In the continuing debate over whether law enforcement and intelligence officials should have some sort of special access to encrypted communications, officials are arguing that such access is important against “sloppy and stupid terrorists.” Objections have centered on the counterargument that allowing the government some form of special access to encrypted communications and systems would…
    David Inserra
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  • news

    David Petraeus Calls on US to Escalate Military Action in Iraq, Syria
    Former CIA Director David Petraeus returned to Capitol Hill Tuesday for the first time since his 2012 resignation to detail his strategy for the United States to escalate military involvement in Iraq and Syria. In testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Petraeus advised the U.S. to form enclaves in Syria protected by coalition airpower…
    Natalie Johnson
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  • opinion

    US Must Leverage Aid to Stop Child Sexual Abuse Among Afghan Security Officials
    The New York Times Monday ran a shocking story about the U.S. military condoning child sexual abuse among Afghan security personnel. According to the report, U.S. military officers were told by their superiors to ignore acts of alleged child rape and molestation committed by Afghan police officials, sometimes on U.S. military bases. Adding insult to…
    Lisa Curtis
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  • opinion

    Forget the Talking Points. What Should the US Really Spend on Defense?
    The debate about defense spending will likely reignite this month as Congress returns from recess and the end of the fiscal year draws near. Unfortunately, much of that debate will not be very helpful or informative. Instead of arguing the merits of a particular military spending level, much of the debate will revolve around Democratic…
    Justin Johnson
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  • opinion

    Britain’s New Labour Leader Could Destroy the U.S.-U.K. ‘Special Relationship’
    Jeremy Corbyn is hardly a household name in the United States, but his election win has raised eyebrows on this side of the Atlantic and has been prominently featured on the pages of The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and The New York Times. With good reason: there is growing nervousness in Washington in…
    Nile Gardiner
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  • opinion

    US Spends Far More on Social Welfare Than Most European Nations
    The U.S. Census Bureau has released its annual poverty report. Conventional wisdom holds that the U.S. has a small social welfare system and far more poverty compared with other affluent nations. But noted liberal scholars Irwin Garfinkel, Lee Rainwater, and Timothy Smeeding challenge such simplistic ideas in their book “Wealth and Welfare States: Is America…
    Robert Rector
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  • opinion

    Can Uber End Traffic Jams? CEO Has Bold Plan to Overhaul Transportation Industry
    Travis Kalanick gave a rare interview in San Francisco this week at the mega Dreamforce conference. Since Uber began getting regularly hammered in the press for its aggressive political tactics and potential legal violations, the once outspoken CEO hasn’t given the public much direction about the future of the multi-billion-dollar transportation company. This week, he gave…
    Greg Ferenstein
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  • news

    Oregon Judge Who Won’t Officiate Gay Weddings Fights to Keep His Job
    >>> Update adds judge's comments in televised interview. An Oregon judge is fighting an investigative panel’s accusation that by declining to perform same-sex weddings on religious grounds, he violated both the state’s constitution and code of conduct for judges. This and other allegations could result in the judge’s suspension or removal from office. However, a close…
    Ken McIntyre
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  • opinion

    Is Socialism on the Rise?
    Heritage Foundation expert Nile Gardiner, director of the Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom, spoke to Fox News’ Neil Cavuto about the victory of far-left politician Jeremy Corbyn, who will lead the British Labour Party, and what it might mean on the global stage. “What you have seen, certainly, on both sides of the Atlantic is…
    Daily Signal Staff
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  • news

    ‘Safest School in America’ Has $400K Security System. Should Other Schools Catch Up?
    Monday’s incident at Delta State University marks the ninth time that one or more persons have died during a school shooting event in 2015, according to the website Everytown.org, which tracks school shootings in the United States. A high school in suburban Indiana is taking extra steps to steel itself against such tragedy and has been called…
    Madaline Donnelly
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  • news

    Army Photographer Founds Music Non-Profit to Help Struggling Military Members
    When you meet confident, Emmy-winning Michael Henneberger, it’s hard to believe that just seven years ago he was diagnosed with both panic disorder and major depressive disorder. Henneberger, then 25, had joined the Army as a combat photographer. He was stationed at Ft. Meade, Md., for a year of training prior to his discharge. The former musician found…
    Leah Jessen
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  • opinion

    The Chinese Economy Just Hit a Major Speed Bump. Why the Pentagon Cares.
    The Pentagon cares as much about how money moves around the world as it does about the movement of arms. Small wonder the recent bobbling in Beijing’s economy has caught the armed services’ attention. After owning bragging rights to one-third of global economic growth, the Chinese economy just hit a major speed bump. Growth slowed. The…
    James Carafano
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