What Just Happened: John Bolton Search Warrants

Last week, Senator Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) unveiled a new “national security war plan,” centered on reviving the middle class, winning the global tech race, and rethinking how Americans are protected in an era of shifting threats and changing geopolitical realities. Senator Slotkin joins Just Security’s editors-in-chief Ryan Goodman and Tess Bridgeman to discuss the relationship between economic security and national security, the tools Congress should use to defend against threats to our democracy, the role for congressional oversight in domestic use of the military and in the recent military attack on a suspected drug smuggling vessel in the Caribbean, how the United States should engage with China in an era of increasing competition and cooperation, and a range of other national security and foreign policy priorities.Show Notes:  Senator Elissa Slotkin’s launch of her new vision for American national security and foreign policy at the Council on Foreign Relations.   Just Security’s AI and Emerging Technology Archive Just Security’s Congress Archive

Last week, the United States carried out an unprecedented strike against a vessel suspected of narcotics trafficking in the Caribbean, destroying the vessel and reportedly killing 11 people on board. This action raises highly concerning questions about the process followed within the U.S. government: how and by whom was the strike authorized?  Why was it carried out by U.S. armed forces? And what kind of accountability or pushback might we see from Congress, in courts, or within the government itself?Rebecca Ingber and Brian Finucane join Tess Bridgeman to unpack the attack, the limited justifications the administration has put forward to date, and what to expect from here. Show Notes: Legal Issues Raised by Lethal U.S. Military Attack in the Caribbean by Brian FinucaneLabels, Not Law, to Justify Lethal Force: Venezuela Boat Strike by Mark Nevitt 

David Aaron is joined by Mary McCord and Zachary Myers to discuss last week’s search of the office and residence of former National Security Advisor John Bolton. The experts unpack what the execution of these warrants means, and what we should expect next in this unfolding investigation. Show Notes: Letter from Adm. Michael S. Rogers, Director, NSA submitted in United States v. Pho, 1:17-cr-00631 (GLR), ECF 20-1 (Sept. 18, 2018)Willfulness and the Harm of Unlawful Retention of National Security Information by David Aaron (Dec. 2, 2022)“Secret Evidence in Public Trials” by David Aaron (June 6, 2023) Just Security Podcast:  Insiders’ Views of Espionage Act Trials (July 17, 2023) Just Security’s coverage of John Bolton 

The Trump administration’s unprecedented federalization of policing in Washington, D.C. raises significant legal and policy questions about the Executive Branch’s power over the Metropolitan Police Department and the use of National Guard forces from D.C. and other states, among other pressing topics. To break down the latest developments, host David Aaron is joined by Brian Netter, Legal Director at Democracy Forward and former Deputy Assistant Attorney General at the Department of Justice, and Mark Nevitt, associate professor of law at Emory University and former Distinguished Military Professor at the U.S. Naval Academy and a member of the Just Security editorial board.   Show Notes: “Trump, the National Guard, and the District of Columbia” by Mark Nevitt “One Week of Trump’s DC Takeover Attempt: An analysis of the president’s use of military, police, and security services in the nation’s capital” by Joseph Nunn and Spencer Reynolds “How to Truly Keep Washington, DC Safe: President Trump’s militarized approach undercuts what’s been working” by Donell Harvin Just Security Podcast: What Just Happened - Federalization of Law Enforcement in Washington DC with David Aaron, Carrie Cordero, and Donell Harvin

This week, the Trump administration took over command of the D.C. police department, and surged federal law enforcement officers and National Guard units into the city. While the United States has a long tradition of leaving most policing to state and local agencies, federal law enforcement has specific powers, and there are well-established limits on the use of military forces for domestic law enforcement, but the rules for DC are particular.In this episode, host David Aaron is joined by Carrie Cordero, General Counsel at the Center for a New American Security and former Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for National Security and Senior Associate General Counsel at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and Donell Harvin, Visiting Fellow at the National Security Institute at George Mason University and former Chief of Homeland Security and Intelligence for the District of Columbia. Together, they unpack significant legal and policy considerations concerning the Executive Branch’s recent actions and the open questions still in play.Show Notes:Center for a New American Security, The 21st Century National Guard: Expanding Missions, Modernizing AuthoritiesJust Security’s Federalization of DC Policing, Law Enforcement and National Security Archives

Ukraine’s response to the 2022 full-scale Russian invasion has been defined by extraordinary civilian mobilization. As millions of Ukrainians face the devastation of their homes, schools, and communities, volunteers—especially women—have stepped up in unprecedented ways to support the nation’s survival. In this episode, host Viola Gienger is joined by Lauren Van Metre, President and CEO of Women in International Security (WIIS) and a non-resident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center, and  Ella Lamakh, founder of the Kyiv-based Democracy Development Center, to discuss how Ukraine’s women in frontline communities have stepped up to lead the local response. The episode also features the voices of three of the women in Ella’s network who are serving their frontline communities with humanitarian aid, organizing, and in one case, as a military administrator. Special thanks to those community leaders – Valentyna Holovata, Yuliia Porhenko, and Tetiana (who asked to use only her first name for security purposes), and to Dmytro Lysak for translation.Show Notes:  Voices from the Frontlines of Democracy in Ukraine: Supporting and Protecting Civil Society by Lauren Van MetreElla Lamakh’s Democracy Development CenterJust Security’s Russia-Ukraine War Archive 

Yesterday, the White House released its long-awaited AI Action Plan and signed three executive orders on AI, laying out the Trump administration’s strategy to secure what it calls “unquestioned and unchallenged” U.S. dominance across the entire AI tech stack. Framing AI as a global race for technological supremacy, the Plan envisions nothing short of an industrial revolution, an information revolution—and even a renaissance—all driven by AI. To achieve that vision, the Plan is centered around three pillars: innovation, infrastructure, and international diplomacy and security. It calls for upskilling the workforce, revising federal rules, building high-security data centers, and tightening export controls—all whilst removing what the administration views as regulatory obstacles to faster AI adoption.The plan also raises major questions. What’s the role of government in steering this technology responsibly? Are we building the right guardrails as we scale up? And what message is the U.S. sending to allies and adversaries as it charts a new course in AI policy?Show Notes: Sam Winter-Levy’s article, "Assessing the Trump Administration’s AI Action Plan" (July 25, 2025)Joshua Geltzer’s article “The Trump Administration’s AI Action Plan Is Coming. Here’s What to Look For.” (July 18, 2025) Alasdair Phillips-Robins’s and Sam Winter-Levy’s article, “What Comes Next After Trump’s AI Deals in the Gulf” (June 4, 2025)Clara Apt and Brianna Rosen’s article “Shaping the AI Action Plan: Responses to the White House’s Request for Information” (Mar. 18, 2025)Brianna Rosen interview with Joshua Geltzer, “The Just Security Podcast: Trump’s AI Strategy Takes Shape” (April 17, 2025) Just Security’s Tech Policy Under Trump 2.0 series Just Security’s Artificial Intelligence Archive

The massive budget bill that passed this month allocates tens of billions of dollars to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Homeland Security Investigation (HSI). The influx of funding of that scope and size will significantly expand the role DHS and immigration enforcement agencies play in American life.What are the the institutional constraints on the FBI and law enforcement agencies compared to those on DHS and immigration enforcement?  To help unpack what these differences might mean for achieving policy objectives while protecting civil liberties and providing political accountability, host David Aaron is joined by Steve Cash, who comes with a wealth of high-level experience in Congress and the executive branch and who most recently served as Senior Advisor to the Under Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.  Show Note:Just Security’s FBI Archive Just Security’s DHS Archive 

President Donald Trump this week put weapons behind his growing irritation with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s intransigence on negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. Meeting at the White House with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, President Trump announced that the United States will work with European allies in NATO to send advanced weapon systems, including Patriot missile batteries, to Ukraine. He also threatened tariffs and additional sanctions against Russia and countries that do business with it if it doesn’t ease its assault on Ukraine and make progress on stalled peace talks within 50 days. What impact is this policy shift likely to have on the war in Ukraine? Will the combination of military support for Ukraine and economic threats toward Russia succeed in forcing President Putin to the negotiating table, or could they spur further escalation? On this episode, host Viola Gienger is joined by Ambassador Daniel Fried and Dara Massicot to discuss Trump’s policy shift on Ukraine and its impact.Show Notes:The Just Security Podcast: A Ukrainian MP Takes Stock of the NATO Summit and the Prospects for Peace, with Ukrainian MP Oleksiy Goncharenko, Lauren Van Metre, and Viola Gienger. Ambassador Daniel Fried’s “Can Trump Seize a Win in Ukraine?” in Just Security Ambassador Daniel Fried’s “How to Land the Emerging Deal on Peace for Ukraine” in Just Security Just Security’s Russia-Ukraine War Archive Russia's Eliminationist Rhetoric Against Ukraine: A Collection by Clara Apt in Just Security

In a picturesque valley in the mountains of eastern Bosnia, thousands of white gravestones bear witness to a mass atrocity that still struggles for a place in Europe’s conscience. Nearly 8,400 names are etched into a stone memorial, a stark reminder of the Srebrenica Genocide committed by Bosnian Serb forces against Bosnian Muslims in July 1995 – 30 years ago this year. And yet, too many political leaders and others continue denying the scale and scope of the travesty that unfolded there.What has the world learned about genocide denial since Srebrenica? How has that denial echoed persistent efforts to negate or diminish the Holocaust? And how does denial and the politics around it tie into efforts to prevent a repeat elsewhere in the world?Viola Gienger, Washington Senior Editor at Just Security is joined by Sead Turcalo, Professor of Security Studies at the University of Sarajevo and author of Thirty Years After the Srebrenica Genocide: Remembrance and the Global Fight Against Denial, published in Just Security; Velma Saric, founder and president of the Post-Conflict Research Center in Sarajevo; and Jacqueline Geis, Senior Director at the consulting firm Strategy for Humanity and a Research Fellow at the Human Rights Center at the University of California Berkeley School of LawShow Notes:  Sead Turcalo’s “Thirty Years After the Srebrenica Genocide: Remembrance and the Global Fight Against Denial,” published in Just SecurityJackie Geis’ “From Open-Source to All-Source: Leveraging Local Knowledge for Atrocity Prevention,” published in Just SecurityVelma Saric’s Post-Conflict Research Center and the associated blog Balkan Diskurs.Michael Schiffer and Pratima T. Narayan’s “Trump Administration’s Proposed Cuts to Accountability for Mass Atrocities Undermine Its Own Strategic Goal,” published in Just Security Menachem Z. Rosensaft’s “Refuting Srebrenica Genocide Denial Yet Again, as UN Debates Draft Resolution,” published in Just SecurityJust Security’s Bosnia-Herzegovina archives Just Security’s genocide archive