Author Archive

Marc Ambinder

Marc Ambinder is senior Defense One contributor. A Los-Angeles-based writer who covers national security, Ambinder is also a contributing editor at The Atlantic, GQ, and writes The Compass blog for The Week. He is the author of "Deep State: Inside the Government Secrecy Industry," and is working on a history of Cold War nuclear strategy.
Ideas

It’s Time to Listen to the Doomsday Planners

Another pandemic, or a terrorist attack, could cripple an unprepared executive branch.

  • Marc Ambinder, The Atlantic
Ideas

Congress vs the President: Who Should Make the Calls on NSA?

Are the intel committees upset that the NSA tapped Merkel's phone -- or that they didn't know about it first? By Marc Ambinder

  • Marc Ambinder
Business

Close the NSA's Reagan-Era Collection Loophole

There are many ways NSA could win back public trust, protect privacy, and still do its job. One way: cancel an executive order signed by Ronald Reagan. By Marc Ambinder

  • Marc Ambinder
Science & Tech

Exclusive: NSA Loophole Keeps Congress Clueless on Foreign Intel Violations

The leaked audit showing the NSA broke privacy rules nearly 3,000 times in one year is just the tip of the iceberg. The NSA is not telling Congress much more. By Marc Ambinder

  • Marc Ambinder
Ideas

What the NSA’s Massive Org Chart (Probably) Looks Like

Amid public cries for greater transparency into the intelligence world, here’s a look at the National Security Agency’s organizational chart -- as far as we know it. By Marc Ambinder

  • Marc Ambinder
Business

Obama's Intel Workers Need New Policies for Secrets, not Snitches

In the Snowden fallout, the administration should focus on developing a happier intelligence workforce, not outing insider threats. By Marc Ambinder

  • Marc Ambinder
Policy

Intel Wars: DIA, CIA and Flynn’s Battle to Consolidate Spying

The Defense Department wants in on the spying game. But will the CIA block their efforts? By Marc Ambinder

  • Marc Ambinder