BLUF: Signal Woes
Monday’s release of the intelligence community’s annual “Threat Assessment Report” was mired by a bombshell revelation from The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffery Goldberg, who was mistakenly added to a highly sensitive U.S. government group chat on Signal, an encrypted messaging platform.
The chat featured top U.S. national security officials including Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, as well as key leaders from the intelligence community. Named “Houthi PC Small Group,” this chat was utilized to discuss information and logistics regarding U.S. airstrikes on Houthi terrorists in Yemen, and has drawn criticism for its brazen and informal nature. While not revealing troop posturing or specifics on strike package capabilities within CENTCOM, Secretary Hegseth’s messages on pre-determined weapons options and strategies reflect a bold and careless mistake by top defense officials — one that has already received bipartisan scrutiny.
As the nation remains sharply focused on the administration’s security slip, it is important to dive into the intelligence report that has been all but forgotten. During Tuesday’s worldwide threats hearing with the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Chairman Tom Cotton noted, “For the first time, the annual threat assessment lists foreign illicit drug actors as the very first threat to our country.” Notably, this was listed above other national security threats from countries such as China, Iran, Russia, and North Korea.
The report, however, goes on to note that China remains the top military and technological threat to the U.S., with conventional weapons, cyber malware, and space warfare capabilities, and adding that Beijing also seeks to displace the United States as the top AI power by 2030. The report said China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) most likely seeks to use large language models to create fake news, imitate personas, and train cyber attack networks. This frightening reality represents a new normal as our adversaries continue to grow stronger, but also must serve as a reminder to our national security leaders that the U.S. must take a strong and unwavering stand in the face of present threats.
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