The Lawfare Podcast

Lawfare Archive: Cheap Fakes on the Campaign Trail

20 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From September 9, 2020: It was a big week for manipulated video and audio content. In just 36 hours, senior republicans or people associated with the ...

Alex Iftimie on DOJ’s Recent Cyber Disruption Efforts

19 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Over the past two weeks, the Department of Justice has issued two press releases announcing disruption efforts it has taken against malicious cyber ac...

Chatter: ‘Special Military Operations’ Against the Russians with Benjamin Wittes

18 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On April 13, 2022, in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Lawfare Editor in Chief Benjamin Wittes conducted his first “special military ope...

Crack-Up Capitalism with Quinn Slobodian

18 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Think about the world. You might be picturing a globe in a classroom, with its patchwork of multi-colored nations. Or perhaps you have an image of a 2...

Inside the Capitol Police’s Intelligence Dysfunction

17 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The House’s select committee on Jan. 6 may have wound down its work at the end of December 2022, but questions about why law enforcement, including ...

The Shadow Docket

16 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In recent years, the Supreme Court's non-merits “shadow docket” has become a topic of contestation and controversy, especially the Court's emergen...

The Law of the Sea in the Age of Climate Change

15 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Though the threat of climate change has come sharply into focus in recent decades, humans have long endeavored to shape and reshape the natural world,...

Chatter: Politicians and White House Plumbers with Olivia Nuzzi

14 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Olivia Nuzzi gets Washington in a way many journalists don’t. As the Washington correspondent for New York magazine, she has written perceptive, pie...

Lawfare Archive: Dara Lind on Immigration and the Southern Border

13 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From May 7, 2021: Over its first 100 days in office, the Biden administration has faced a difficult set of policy challenges at America's southern bor...

Brian Fishman on Violent Extremism and Platform Liability

12 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Earlier this year, Brian Fishman published a fantastic paper with Brookings thinking through how technology platforms grapple with terrorism and extre...

Fionnuala Ní Aoláin on Regulating Spyware

11 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The term “spyware” refers to software that's designed to infiltrate, monitor, and extract sensitive information from a user's device without their...

Ali Breland on Germany’s Neo-Nazi Resurgence

10 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Since 2012, Germany has accepted more refugees than any other country in Europe aside from Turkey. The German government has dispersed these asylum se...

El Salvador’s President Cracks Down on Gangs—and Democracy

09 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Since March 2022, El Salvador has been under a state of exception as its President Nayib Bukele seeks to crack down on the country’s powerful gangs....

Treaties and Dysfunctional Diplomacy

08 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Constitution specifies only one process for making international agreements—Article II gives the president the power to make treaties provided t...

Rational Security: The “Q Agone” Edition

07 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Rational Security, a Quinta-less Alan and Scott were joined by Lawfare legal fellow Saraphin Dhanani to talk through the week's...

Lawfare Archive: David Priess on the History of the President's Daily Brief

06 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From July 7, 2020: David Priess is a former CIA briefer for the Attorney General and the FBI director, and he's the author of "The President's Book of...

Boys With a Bit Less Pride

05 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Yesterday was verdict day for the Proud Boys. Mid-morning, the jury notified Judge Tim Kelly that it had reached a partial verdict, and that partial v...

Chatter: Private Equity and National Security with Brendan Ballou

04 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Private equity firms rank among the largest employers in the United States and invest many billions of dollars in a wide variety of industries. Yet th...

Bridget Dooling and Mark Febrizio on Robotic Rulemaking

04 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

At the core of the regulatory state is the notice and comment process. Agencies propose what they're going to do, the public gets to comment, and agen...

Jim Dempsey and Jonathan Spring on Adversarial Machine Learning and Cybersecurity

03 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Risks associated with the rapid development and deployment of artificial intelligence are getting the attention of lawmakers. But one issue that may n...

Cox and Wyden on Section 230 and Generative AI

02 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Generative AI products have been tearing up the headlines recently. Among the many issues these products raise is whether or not their outputs are pro...

Cyber in the CIA with CIA Deputy Director David Cohen

01 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

David Cohen is the Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, a position he held also during the Obama administration. He's also been Under S...

Chatter: Space Diplomacy and Satellite Data with Mariel Borowitz

30 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As satellites around the planet proliferate, the tug they feel from international tensions seems to rival the gravitational pull exerted by the Earth ...

Lawfare Archive: Elizabeth Shackelford on 'The Dissent Channel'

29 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From May 13, 2020: Scott R. Anderson sat down with Elizabeth Shackelford, a former foreign service officer whose late 2017 resignation became a sign o...

An Interview with Meta’s Chief Privacy Officers

28 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In 2018, news broke that Facebook had allowed third-party developers—including the controversial data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica—to obtain...

Parloff and Buchman on the Proud Boys Trial

27 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Proud Boys trial has gone to the jury. It is the longest Jan. 6 case to date and the third case to involve seditious conspiracy charges against se...

Eugene Volokh on AI Libel

26 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

If someone lies about you, you can usually sue them for defamation. But what if that someone is ChatGPT? Already in Australia, the mayor of a town out...

Ashley Merryman on the ‘Dangerous’ Cycle of Pentagon Sexual Harassment Policy

25 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

April is Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention month. It’s a time—recognized by civilian and U.S. military communities—intended to promote the...

Polina Ivanova on Evan Gershkovich’s Detention

24 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Evan Gershkovich has been in Russian detention for the last several weeks. He is a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, and he’s the latest America...

Rational Security: The “Catch More Flies with Shugerman” Edition

23 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Rational Security, Alan, Quinta, and Scott were joined by law professor extraordinaire Jed Shugerman to talk over his controversial take ...

Lawfare Archive: 'National Security, Leaks and Freedom of the Press'

22 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From April 20, 2021: Jack Goldsmith sat down with Lee Bollinger, the president of Columbia University, and Geoffrey Stone, the Edward H. Levy Distingu...

The Lazarus Heist: Season 2, with Jean Lee and Geoff White

21 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Over the past decade, North Korea has taken on an exceptional global role: a sovereign state believed to be at the head of an unprecedented internatio...

Margot Kaminski on Regulating AI Risks

20 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the last few months we've seen an explosion of new AI products, especially those built around large language models. And in response, we've also he...

Democratic Decline in Tennessee

19 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Early this month, the Republican supermajority in the Tennessee House of Representatives voted to expel two Democratic lawmakers who had participated ...

Cyber Leadership at ODNI with Chris Fonzone and Laura Galante

18 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Fonzone is the General Counsel of ODNI and has worked in senior legal roles at the Defense Department, the National Security Council, and the De...

Vanuatu's Big Climate Win with Melissa Stewart

17 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Republic of Vanuatu, a small island nation in the South Pacific, just won a big victory in New York City. At the end of March, the UN General Asse...

Chatter: Reporting from the Front Lines with Nancy Youssef

16 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Nancy Youssef has reported on war and conflict around the world and from Washington. As a young journalist, she went to Iraq and sensed early on ...

Lawfare Archive: The Attack in Saudi Arabia

15 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From September 17, 2019: Tensions in the Middle East are at a high point. Over the weekend, large Saudi oil facilities were attacked. The Yemeni Houth...

A TikTok Ban and the First Amendment

14 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Over the past few years, TikTok has become a uniquely polarizing social media platform. On the one hand, millions of users, especially those in their ...

The Saudi-Iran Deal Featuring China

13 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A few weeks ago, China made headlines for brokering a deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to thaw diplomatic relations after seven years of cutting tie...

Rid and Toler on the Latest Megaleak

12 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Thomas Rid is a Professor of Strategic Studies at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. Aric Toler is the Director of Res...

Craig Timberg on the Vulkan Files

11 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Document leaking has been in the news lately—and not just stories about the leaking of U.S. intelligence documents. On March 30, 2023, the Washingto...

India’s Democracy Under Modi

10 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On March 23, 2023, an Indian court found Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s principal opposition leader, Rahul Gandhi, guilty of defaming the Prime Mini...

Rational Security: The “24-Hour News Psychos” Edition

09 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Rational Security, Quinta and Scott were joined by Lawfare Managing Editor Tyler McBrien to celebrate the return of the complete media ma...

Lawfare Archive: War in Gaza

08 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From August 2, 2014: This week, Lawfare Editor-in-Chief Benjamin Wittes asked three of his colleagues—all from the Brookings Center on Middle East P...

Rob Joyce, NSA Director of Cybersecurity

07 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Rob Joyce is the Director of the Cybersecurity Directorate at the National Security Agency. He's been NSA's top cryptologic representative in the Unit...

Finland Joins NATO, with Henri Vanhanen and Minna Ålander

06 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Finland is in NATO. This week, the ratification was made complete, and the country joined the North Atlantic alliance. To talk through how it got ther...

Emergency Edition: The Indictment of Donald Trump

05 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The grand jury indictment of Donald Trump in the Supreme Court of the State of New York has been unsealed. It involves Stormy Daniels, Karen McDougal,...

Russia’s Aggression Against Ukraine and the International Legal Order

04 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has tested the international legal order like never before. For many, the fact that a nuclear power and member of the U...

Cybersecurity and AI

03 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Hosted by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation Cyber Initiative and Aspen Digital, Verify 2023 brings together journalists and cyber and tech poli...

Chatter: Debunking Nuclear Proliferation Myths with Målfrid Braut-Hegghammer

02 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Misperceptions about nuclear proliferation attempts abound, particularly when we find authoritarian leaders involved. It is easy to picture these dete...

Lawfare Archive: John Sipher on Spy Swaps: Past, Present, and Future

01 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From January 8, 2019: The Russian government's recent arrest of American Paul Whelan and its charges against him have many politicians and pundits spe...

Biden’s Executive Order on Commercial Spyware

31 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On March 27, the Biden administration issued an Executive Order on Prohibition on Use by the United States Government of Commercial Spyware that ...

Israel’s Overlapping Crises

30 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For months, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been promising a set of legal reforms favored by partners in his far-right coalition government that...

Talking IoT Security with Google

29 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Tatyana Bolton is a Security Policy Manager working on cybersecurity at Google, and Dave Kleidermacher is the Vice President of Android Security &...

Ashley Deeks on International Regulation of National Security AI

28 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

States are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence systems to enhance their national security decision-making. The real risks that states will...

Ravi Iyer on How to Improve Technology Through Design

27 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On the latest episode of Arbiters of Truth, Lawfare's series on the information ecosystem, Quinta Jurecic and Alan Rozenshtein spoke with Ra...

Rational Security: The “Mission Admonished” Edition

26 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Rational Security, Alan, Quinta, and Scott waited for a big shoe to drop by talking over the week's big national security news, including...

Lawfare Archive: Alperovitch and Iftimie Talk Response to Russia and China

25 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From April 28, 2021: The Biden administration has now responded to two major cyberattacks—one from Russia, the SolarWinds attack, and the other from...

What We've Learned About Security and Intelligence Failures on Jan. 6

24 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Last month, the Government Accountability Office released its latest report on the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, focusing on the failures of sever...

The New American Foreign Policy of Technology

23 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The open nature of the internet has allowed malicious actors to abuse technology. Information operations, offensive cyber, and IP theft are just some ...

Travis LeBlanc and FISA Section 702

22 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On December 31, 2023, Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) will expire unless it is reauthorized by Congress. Section 702 a...

Charles Dunst on Defeating the Dictators

21 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

By many accounts, the United States is living through a new era of competition—not just between major powers and strategic rivals, but between ideol...

Two Perspectives on the Invasion of Iraq at 20, with Ambassador Doug Silliman and Salem Chalabi

20 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Twenty years ago today, the United States invaded the nation of Iraq, intent on removing the regime of dictator Saddam Hussein and installing a stable...

Chatter: Spy Movies and the Oscars with Alyssa Rosenberg

19 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Academy loves a good spy flick, and so do we! This week, Shane Harris talks with Washington Post culture critic Alyssa Rosenberg about the endurin...

Lawfare Archive: Fault Lines: Hot Topics in the Arctic

18 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From February 24, 2020: What do Russia, China and Canada all have in common? They all disagree—in one manner or another—with American policy goals...

Orly Lobel on How AI Can Make the World a Better, More Equal Place

17 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Artificial Intelligence is advancing at what seems like an exponential rate, with every month—sometimes every week—bringing news of a new, game-ch...

Meanwhile in Somalia with Charlie Savage and Eric Schmitt

16 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As U.S. counterterrorism efforts have waned in Yemen, Libya, and parts of Pakistan, Somalia has emerged as the most active element in the “forever w...

Jen Easterly

15 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As Director of the United States Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Jen Easterly is one of several women at the very top of the cyberse...

A New Sanctions Approach for Humanitarian Assistance

14 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For years, the international community has wrestled with how to reconcile sanctions policies targeting terrorist groups and other malevolent actors wi...

Chip Brantley and Andrew Beck Grace on White Lies Season 2

13 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Chip Brantley and Andrew Beck Grace are the creators of the NPR audio documentary White Lies, which was a Pulitzer finalist for its first season. Chip...

Rational Security: The “Giving Two Effs” Edition

12 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Rational Security, Alan, Quinta, and Scott were joined by Naval Academy professor and cyberlaw expert Jeff "Two Effs" Kosseff to work thr...

Lawfare Archive: Nicole Perlroth on the Cyberweapons Arms Race

11 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From March 19, 2021: Jack Goldsmith spoke with New York Times cybersecurity reporter Nicole Perlroth about her new book, "This is How They Tell M...

Kemba Walden

10 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Kemba Walden recently took over from Chris Inglis as Acting National Cyber Director in the White House. She had been Principal Deputy Assistant Nation...

Does Section 230 Protect ChatGPT?

09 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

During recent oral arguments in Gonzalez v. Google, a Supreme Court case concerning the scope of liability protections for internet platform...

Philippe Sands on Britain’s Last Colony

08 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A few weeks ago, Human Rights Watch released a report on the forced expulsion of the Chagossian people, whom the United Kingdom deported fro...

Biden’s Cybersecurity Strategy

07 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On March 2, the Biden administration released its long-awaited National Cybersecurity Strategy. The new strategy comes more than two years after ...

The Israeli Judicial System on the Brink

06 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Amichai Cohen and Yuval Shany are both Israeli legal scholars and longtime Lawfare contributors. Shany is a professor of international law at the Hebr...

Chatter: Fixing America To Bolster National Security with Richard Haass

05 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For the past 20 years, Richard Haass has led the Council on Foreign Relations, building on his national security experience in government and his rela...

Lawfare Archive: Cybersecurity Futures

04 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From December 7, 2019: Wargaming has long been a staple of military strategizing, but how do we plan for the future in cyberspace, a realm where gover...

Counterintelligence Today with Mirriam-Grace MacIntyre and Alan Kohler

03 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Lawfare Publisher David Priess wore his hat as a Senior Fellow at George Mason University's Michael V. Hayden Center for Intelligence, Poli...

Is Peru Still a Democracy?

02 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Since December, Peru has been in the midst of a protracted politico crisis. Following a failed coup in early December, President Pedro Castillo was ar...

Matt Olsen on FISA 702

01 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Matthew Olsen, the Assistant Attorney General of the National Security Division at the U.S. Department of Justice, gave yesterday a major address at t...

What’s Going On With Scott Perry’s Cell Phone?

28 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

There was a big showdown at the D.C. Circuit last week over the Speech or Debate Clause and Representative Scott Perry and his cell phone, the latter ...

Nicky Woolf and Max Johnston on The Sound

27 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Remember Havana Syndrome? Diplomats, spies, and other people suddenly hearing a loud noise and then having neurological symptoms, sometimes debilitati...

Rational Security: The “Not, Like, the Three Greatest Experts at Podcasting” Edition

26 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Rational Security, Alan, Quinta, and Scott sat through literally hours of oral arguments to prepare to discuss all the national security ...

Lawfare Archive: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Section 230 Reform

25 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From March 18, 2021: On this episode of Arbiters of Truth, the Lawfare Podcast’s miniseries on our online information ecosystem, Evelyn Douek a...

Alina Polyakova on the First Year of the Russia-Ukraine War

24 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It’s the first anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia. To talk about this first year and what comes next, Lawfare editor-in-chi...

The Supreme Court Hears Oral Arguments in Gonzalez and Taamneh

23 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in a pair of cases concerning to what extent online platforms can be held...

Can the Speech or Debate Clause Shield Mike Pence from a Subpoena?

22 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Special Counsel Jack Smith has issued a subpoena to former Vice President Mike Pence as part of the investigation into Trump’s role in instigating t...

Chris Inglis

21 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Chris Inglis has had an illustrious career in the defense of this country, serving as an Air Force general, deputy director of the National Security A...

Lawfare Archive: The State of the U.S.-Turkey Relationship

20 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From April 30, 2021: When President Biden entered office, he inherited a bilateral relationship with Turkey that was strained to the limits by the gro...

Chatter: Former National Security Advisor Steve Hadley's Reflections on Presidential Transitions

19 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Along with co-editors Peter Feaver, William Inboden, and Meghan O'Sullivan, former National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley is editor of the new ...

Lawfare Archive: Natan Sachs on the Israeli Governance Crisis

18 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From April 6, 2021: Natan Sachs is a Brookings senior fellow and the head of the Brookings Center for Middle East Policy, part of the Brookings Foreig...

Gonzalez v. Google and the Fate of Section 230

17 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On February 14, the Brookings Institution hosted an event on the upcoming Supreme Court oral arguments in Gonzalez v. Google and Twitter v. Taamneh—...

Karen J. Greenberg on the Intertwined Stories of Saifullah and Uzair Paracha

16 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Earlier this month, a Pakistani man named Majid Khan started his new life in Belize after spending nearly half his previous life in U.S. detention, fi...

A Jan. 6 Committee Staffer on Far-Right Extremism

15 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Jan. 6 committee’s final report on the insurrection is over 800 pages, including the footnotes. But there’s still new information coming out a...

How the Police Became Untouchable

14 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Last month's brutal murder of Tyre Nichols by Memphis police has once again sparked a national conversation about the causes of and remedies for persi...

How Cyber Criminals Can Exploit ChatGPT

13 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Since it launched in November of last year, ChatGPT has been subject to widespread attention. Cyber criminals have been quick to try to find ways to a...

Rational Security: The "Are You There, Nena? It's Me, NORAD" Edition

12 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week on Rational Security, Alan, Quinta, and Scott were joined once again by host emeritus Benjamin Wittes to talk through the week's various fre...