Target Usa Podcast By Wtop

Former FBI agent and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers says, "Al Qaida got the snot kicked out of 'em," and ISIL needs to get the same treatment. But, he says, it's not happening. In this episode of Target USA, he details what exactly needs to be done to neutralize the Islamic State group. Not only has ISIL demonstrated great skill at plotting terror attacks, but it's also very good at inspiring lone wolves to launch attacks that are just as deadly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson says the massacre at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando on June 12 reflects a new direction for terror attacks on the U.S. Former House Intelligence Chairman Mike Rogers says the attack was done exactly as ISIL leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi wanted it. He warns Americans need to wake up and make some changes before the next one comes along. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On Sunday morning, June 12, a delegation of Department of Homeland Security staffers and other U.S. government officials were waiting at Joint Base Andrews for Secretary Jeh Johnson, for a trip to China. But he never showed. The Orlando night club massacre had not only shocked the U.S. population and set off fear and uncertainty about terrorists possibly in our midst, but U.S. officials were scrambling as well to figure out what was going on. Secretary Johnson sat down with Target USA to explain what happened in Orlando and what's next for U.S. homeland security. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The U.S. has launched more than 400 drone strikes since 2004. More than 3,100 people have been killed - most of them terrorists. The U.S. military announced more than 120 ISIL leaders, operatives and other so-called, high-value individuals have been killed so far in 2016. Rarely do U.S. officials talk about the program, but the man who commanded some of the most high-profile operations is talking to WTOP. T. Mark McCurley, a retired Lt. Colonel in the US Air Force, commanded the mission that killed Anwar al Awlaki, the former leader of Al Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula. He's even stared right into the eyes of a terrorist, through the camera of a drone, before a Hellfire missile turned out the lights for that terrorist. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What would happen if a person walked into a U.S. airport strapped with explosives? Would there be time to stop what would be almost certain death and destruction? WTOP National Security Correspondent JJ Green put that question, called "The Scenario" in inner circles, to TSA Administrator Peter Neffenger. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A half dozen aviation incidents in the last year, bribes of airport security personnel overseas and long security screening lines in the U.S. are keeping Transportation Security Administration Chief Peter Neffenger up at night. But when he sat down with WTOP National Security Correspondent JJ Green for an extended interview, Neffenger told JJ exactly how he's going to keep U.S. airports and travelers safe. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It happened on February 14, 2016 in Casablanca, Morocco. A strange sequence of events began unfolding in the early morning hours and spanned two airports and hundreds of miles, linked by a solitary transaction that took less than 30 seconds. The impact of that transaction may never be known, but without a doubt just the existence of the practice is wreaking havoc on aviation security around the world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Millions of American citizens, dozens of U.S. companies and even top intelligence officials are victims of aggressive cyber intrusions. Target USA has learned that foreign intelligence agencies, cyber criminals and terrorists are robbing the U.S. blind - taking everything from large sums of money to ideas. Bill Evanina, Director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center (NCSC), says 90 percent of the intrusions originate with spear phishing emails and more than 50 percent of the attacks originate in China. He says U.S. security, national secrets and your bank account are all at risk. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Faycal Gouia, Tunisia's Ambassador to the US, tells Target USA that Tunisia has built a 100-mile wall along its border with Libya. It's also installing a sophisticated, partially U.S.-funded surveillance system to keep terrorists out. Robert Baer, a former CIA covert operative, who is very familiar with those borders, tells Target USA he's not sure that's enough. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

David Cohen, the deputy director of the CIA, says his agency "is working day and night to understand how ISIL's external operations network operates: who's involved, where they are, how they operate and how we can disrupt their operations." At the same time, the agency, which calls itself the "nation's first line of defense," is being stretched by other threats that are bigger, stronger, faster and smarter than any others they've ever seen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The information that former NSA contractor Edward Snowden and others leaked has created what a top U.S. intelligence official calls a "virtual university" for terrorists, spies, hackers, smugglers and many others seeking to attack or exploit the U.S. Rick Ledgett, deputy director of the NSA, says those nefarious people and the organizations they represent have made adjustments "in order to avoid being detected by NSA." Ledgett said Snowden's leaks alone caused "significant" risk to the safety of Americans everywhere. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

32 people were killed in Brussels on March 22, 2016. Four Americans were among the dead. Belgian officials say they knew something was coming, but couldn't pinpoint when. For that and other shortcomings, they've been heavily criticized in the press and by intelligence experts. But, on this program, Belgium's Ambassador to the U.S. Johan Verbeke gives Target USA a detailed explanation for how the attacks happened and why intelligence missed the attackers. He makes no excuses but he strongly pushes back against allegations intelligence mistakes led to the attacks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Europe has been in the eye of a terrorism storm that many say is just beginning. The Islamic State group has launched sophisticated attacks in Paris and Belgium already and is threatening more. Trying to figure out what's next has pushed Europe's intelligence services to extremes they've not been faced with in more than a decade. The man leading the charge for the European Union, Rob Wainwright, breaks down the strategy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The world has been preoccupied with the size of the so-called Islamic State terror organization since it sprang up in 2014. But, for all of that preoccupation, there has been precious little certainty about just how big ISIL is, who's actually on the ground fighting and how it all impacts U.S. national security. In part two of our exclusive interview, National Counterterrorism Director Nicholas Rasmussen breaks down the composition of ISIL, including participation by Americans. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The growing number of stealthy terrorists roaming the planet are keeping Nicholas Rasmussen, Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, up at night. In part one of an exclusive interview, he says the agency is stretched more "thinly now than they were five or six years ago." He says it's impossible to keep up with every terrorist and outlines the main challenge that ISIL poses in the aftermath of major terror attacks in Europe and the U.S. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The surprise attack by ISIS in Brussels, again stunned the world and demonstrated how hard it is to stop them. As a result, the FBI and other U.S. intelligence officials are redoubling efforts to make sure security is air tight - especially in Washington. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A chilling examination of the North Korean regime and what's at stake for the U.S. Former Ambassador Joseph Detrani sat across the table from North Korea trying to talk the country down from its nuclear program. He tells host J.J. Green why North Korea is such a big threat to the region and the U.S. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Director of National Intelligence Jim Clapper says in an exclusive interview that he is concerned with Russia's renewed aggressiveness toward the U.S. And, he says, the situation is getting more alarming. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Director of National Intelligence Jim Clapper opens up in an exclusive interview about the dark threats and dangerous enemies the U.S. faces. Clapper breaks down in vivid detail the sophisticated nature of the groups and nation-states that want to attack. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.