Rational Security

The Russian government hacks the Democratic National Committee. Is Moscow trying to swing the election for Donald Trump? Will it work or backfire? Also, the gang takes your questions!  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A terrorist in Nice, France, kills more than 80 people celebrating Bastille Day. Turkey’s president hangs onto power following an attempted coup. And the congress releases 29 previously classified pages from an inquiry into the 9/11 attacks. This week, Ryan Evens of War on the Rocks joins the podcast. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Police officers in Dallas use a robot-bomb to kill the man who murdered five police officers. A tribunal rules that China is violating international law over its territorial claims. And the GOP platform committee eliminates language that supports a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Hillary Clinton will not be prosecuted over her use of a private email server. The death toll of a bombing in Baghdad approaches 300. And the death of a Navy sailor raises concerns about the training of elite military operators.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

How will the U.K.’s exit from the European Union affect U.S. national security? Is a terrorist attack in Turkey the inevitable result of battlefield victories against ISIS? And the gang takes on the sound and fury of the Benghazi report.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The American political system has gone insane. What's that mean for our national security? State Department officials protest President Obama's decision not to bomb Syria. And the intelligence community lashes out at Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard. Special guest Jonathan Rauch joins the podcast this week.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

How did Omar Mateen become a mass-killer, and could he have been stopped? The politics of the Orlando shooting have something for everyone, but very little clarity. And Russian hackers penetrate the Democratic National Committee. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Hillary Clinton says Donald Trump can't be trusted to protect U.S. national security. In Israel there's talk of another war in Gaza. And a federal appeals court rules that the Fourth Amendment doesn't apply to cell phone location information.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

President Obama makes one last pivot to Asia in an official visit. The United States kills the Taliban’s leader. And a State Department inspector general report scolds Hillary Clinton and others for their use of private email.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

An EgyptAir jet crashes en route from Paris to Cairo, immediately sparking fears of terrorism. Hackers are targeting the presidential candidates’ campaigns. And the intelligence community may scrutinize social media accounts of people applying for security clearances. Plus, listener questions! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A new study on “sextortion” reveals a widespread crime few people are talking about. Is a profile of presidential adviser Ben Rhodes a puff piece or a clever hit job? And president Obama faces a lawsuit over war powers from an unlikely source.    See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Donald Trump becomes the presumptive Republican nominee for president after an overwhelming primary victory in Indiana. Iraq and Syria are in meltdown—why is this time any worse? And the Supreme Court gives the thumbs up to new hacking powers for law enforcement.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The U.S. is ramping up cyber operations against ISIS. Anotherstandoff over the FBI’s access to a locked iPhone ends, but aremore fights around the corner? And the mystery of the curioushabeas cases popping up at Guantanamo. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Lawmakers want to give families of the 9/11 victims the power to sue Saudi government officials, but the Obama administration says that’s a terrible idea. Syrian peace talks are in jeopardy of falling apart, but a ceasefire seems to be offering some reprieve. And Facebook swears it won’t try to rig the presidential election against Donald Trump. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A Navy officer is accused of spying, possibly for Taiwan and China. President Obama wades into the debate over how much government information should be classified. And a family in Kansas is trapped in a special kind of Internet hell. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The hugely popular messaging system Whatsapp is now encrypting everything for 1 billion people. The financial shenanigans of the rich and powerful are laid bare in the Panama Papers, the biggest leak of all time. And Bernie Sanders has his own embarrassing interview with a newspaper editorial board.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The dispute between the FBI and Apple over a dead terrorist’s iPhone comes to an end, but new fights are just around the corner. Why did bombings in Pakistan and Iraq get so little attention compared to the attacks in Brussels? And the Justice Department indicts seven Iranians for allegedly launching cyber attacks on U.S. banks and a dam in New York.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Terrorists attack Brussels in a series of bombings. The FBI tells Apple, “Just kidding! We can maybe hack the iPhone after all.” And Donald Trump sits down with the Washington Post editorial board, and no one’s sure what he said.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

President Obama nominates Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court. An American ISIS defector is in Kurdish custody. And major Web sites have been delivering malware to their readers. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Republican national security experts declare Donald Trump unfit to be president. Who would actually advise a President Trump? And President Obama pulls back the curtain on the inner workings of his foreign policy. Plus, in Object Lessons, Ben and Tamara are on the road again.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.