PAST EVENTS
Combating Misinformation with Clint Watts and Cong. Jane Harman
Combating Misinformation with Clint Watts. Moderated by Honorary Board Member Hon. Jane Harman.
ABOUT THE EVENT
Four years ago, Clint Watts warned us that the Kremlin misinformation and online manipulation playbooks were warping American politics so effectively that they would be adopted by authoritarians, dark political campaigns, and unregulated corporations. Hear from two experts in national security and cyber threats on how accurate Watts was, and what we can do to eliminate the threat. Moderated by Honorary Board Member Hon. Jane Harman
Thursday, April 22nd, 2021
5:00pm-6:00pm EST
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Chris Whipple: The Spymasters
Join us for a discussion with the New York Times bestselling author of The Gatekeepers, on his new book The Spymasters as we get a a remarkable, behind-the-scenes look at what it’s like to run the world’s most powerful intelligence agency, and how the CIA is often a crucial counterforce against presidents threatening to overstep the powers of their office.
Chris Whipple tells the story of an agency that answers to the United States president alone, but whose activities—spying, espionage, and covert action—take place on every continent.
We at The Common Good are extremely fortunate to have hosted this intimate, comprehensive and timely conversation between author and journalist, Chris Whipple and author and historian, Kai Bird, about the CIA - its innerworkings, successes and failures, role in American history, and ultimately its fundamental purpose. For an institution with so much brand recognition - the Rolls Royce of government if you will - it remains a mystery to most. However, not to these two guests - it’s clear from their research, their writing and this conversation that Chris and Kai are two of the most knowledgeable observers of the CIA living today.
To illustrate the extent of the CIA’s secrecy, Kai opens with a simple question - How many people work at the CIA?
We actually don’t even know that, but Chris’ educated guess is in the tens of thousands.
What is more clear, however, is the CIA’s role in some pivotal moments in American history.
Chris and Kai discuss Richard Helms, the quintessential spymaster - he was a career intelligence officer, who viewed the president as his only client; he was also a great dancer and loved dry martinis.
Helms was also, however, implicated in the flawed Domino Theory that ultimately drew America deeper into Vietnam - the theory purported that if one country fell to communism, the surrounding countries would also fall.
Citing another intelligence failure, Chris and Kai examine President Carter’s biggest foreign policy blunder - Iran.
American intelligence community missed the Iranian revolution entirely, illuminating a complete misunderstanding of internal Iranian Politics.
This of course had immediate consequences for American hostages, but one can also draw a line back to the Iranian revolution to explain much of American/Iranian relations today.
Fascinatingly, Chris and Kai opined that MBS of Saudi Arabia today may be mirroring the Shah of Iran in the 1970s.
They cite The Bay of Pigs and Weapons of Mass Destruction to be other monumental intelligence failures.
Intelligence Failures versus Policy Failures
Chris and Kair joked that there are only policy successes and intelligence failures - meaning the CIA gets blamed a lot, but in reality, the failure often happens when an administration either fails to act or acts in correctly in response to accurate intelligence.
In weeks leading up to 9/11, the CIA, specifically George Tenet and Cofer Black, provided the Bush administration with credible evidence that Al-Qaeda was planning to attack America at home. The Bush administration mostly ignored the warning and the rest is history.
More recently, and perhaps even more consequentially, the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment warned the Trump administration about the likelihood of an airborne, flu-like global pandemic that would kill millions and devastate the world, economically and geopolitically. As we all know now, that’s exactly what is happening.
Chris called President Trump, the “unbriefable” president in response to a question about Russian bounties on American soldiers. Moreover, Trump’s disdain and skepticism for the intelligence community is uniquely dangerous.
We had some fascinating and illuminating questions from a superb group of guests, so we do encourage you to watch the event in its entirety. However, some highlights include.
Gillian Sorenen, Ted Soresnen’s widow, asked about assassinations, their records and the importance of transparency in an institution shrouded in secrecy.
How has the CIA evolved and where is it today?
Since, 9/11 there’s been an internal battle for the soul of the CIA: Is it an information gathering agency or a paramilitary organization?
Chris noted President Obama’s escalation of drone usage in his first term despite rhetoric that would suggest otherwise.
The creation of the DNI in 2004 to coordinate between 17 intelligence agencies has also been an important development
What does the CIA need right now in its next leader?
Someone who avoids group-think, brings fresh eyes to old problems (Middle East)
Chris cited some contenders: Darrell Blocker, Michael Morell and Sue Gordon, but noted that the lag in Biden’s announcement has been odd.
Interestingly, Chris mentions Pete Buttigieg as someone who would have been good.
Leon Panetta was the gold standard - “an iron fist in a velvet glove”
Gina Haspel is a “fascinating figure” - and importantly, has surrounded herself with women as deputies, so for the first time ever, there are women effectively running the CIA.
With recent cyber attacks and political interference, where is intelligence heading as it relates to Russia and Putin? Why haven’t we hit back harder?
President Obama decided not to pull the larger trigger, and was followed by a president who a lot of people in the intelligence community think is compromised - financially or otherwise.
President Obama didn’t want to retaliate even though we could have taken down the Russian economy with a cyber attack, because we are better at offense than defense. It would have meant an escalation that we might not have been ready for.
This current hack is likely to be a monumental intelligence failure - we just don’t know the extent yet.
In memory of John le Carré, we're watching the Cold-War spy thriller “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” (Netflix) this weekend.
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Chris Whipple is one of the most accomplished multimedia journalists of our era: a writer, documentary filmmaker, and speaker. He is a multiple Peabody and Emmy Award–winning producer at CBS’s 60 Minutes and ABC’s Primetime.
He is currently the chief executive officer of CCWHIP Productions and is a frequent guest on MSNBC and CNN. Chris served as the executive producer and writer of Showtime’s 2015 documentary film The Spymasters: CIA in the Crosshairs.
His writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Newsweek, Vanity Fair, Politico, theDaily Beast, and many other publications.
Kai Bird is an author and columnist who has written on numerous topics and won a Pulitzer Prize for his biography on Oppenheimer. His books have received critical acclaim and popular success, including The Good Spy: The Life and Death of Robert Ames, which was a New York Times best-seller. His memoir, Crossing Mandelbaum Gate: Coming of Age Between the Arabs and Israelis, was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Dayton Literary Peace Prize.
In January 2017 he was appointed Executive Director and Distinguished Lecturer of CUNY Graduate Center's Leon Levy Center for Biography. He is also the recipient of the McArthur Genius Grant for research and writing.
"Longest War - How Do We End It?" with Ret. Col. Christopher Kolenda & Secretary Jeh Johnson
For Nearly two decades America has been in war with Afghanistan. The Common Good was joined by Ret. Colonel Chris Kolenda, the man who pioneered a new approach to counterinsurgency, led soldiers in successful battles against the Taliban and was later hand picked by the US government to be involved in early talks with the Taliban. We covered the impact of the war, how it can be ended, and recent events with our military that have made headlines. Moderated by former Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson.
For Nearly two decades America has been in war with Afghanistan. The Common Good was joined by Ret. Colonel Chris Kolenda, the man who pioneered a new approach to counterinsurgency, led soldiers in successful battles against the Taliban and was later hand picked by the US government to be involved in early talks with the Taliban. We covered the impact of the war, how it can be ended, and recent events with our military that have made headlines. Moderated by former Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson.
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Ret. Colonel Christopher Kolenda recently served as the Senior Advisor on Afghanistan and Pakistan to Under Secretary of Defense Michèle Flournoy, and three 4* Generals in Afghanistan. He was decorated with the Department of Defense’s highest civilian award for his work on strategy. In 2007-08, he commanded an 800-solider task force in Kunar and Nuristan provinces where he pioneered an innovative approach to counterinsurgency in one of the most violent areas of the country. His unit is the only one in the history of the war to have motivated a large insurgent group to stop fighting and join the government. His advice has been adopted by three Secretaries of Defense and the President of the United States. He was selected to be the Secretary of Defense’s representative in exploratory talks with the Taliban from 2010-2013. He is the only American to have fought the Taliban in combat and engaged them in high-level diplomacy.
He is the founder of the Strategic Leaders Academy, which helps nonprofits and small businesses maximize their impact by developing their Leadership, Culture, and Strategy. He is the editor and coauthor of Leadership: The Warrior's Art, which has appeared on the professional reading lists of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. His most recent book, The Counterinsurgency Challenge, maps the journey of a leader in a difficult and dangerous conflict.
Secretary Jeh Johnson was appointed by President Obama on December 23, 2013, following confirmation by the U.S. Senate by a vote of 78-16. Between 2013 and 2017 he served as Secretary of Homeland Security. Previously, Secretary Johnson was appointed by President Obama to be General Counsel of the Department of Defense from 2009 through 2012. In that position, Johnson was one of the legal architects for the U.S. military’s counter terrorism mission during President Obama’s first term.
In 2010, Johnson co-authored a 250-page report that paved the way for the repeal by Congress of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell law that prohibited gays from serving openly in the U.S. military. From October 1998 to January 2001, Johnson served in the Clinton Administration as General Counsel of the Department of the Air Force. From 1989 through 1991, Secretary Johnson was an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York, where he prosecuted public corruption cases.
“Global Challenges: Facts and Fears in our New Era” with Richard Haass and Robert Wolf
The Common Good presented a timely conference call with President of the Council on Foreign Relations Richard Haass as he speaks to us about international affairs, national security, and what the next chapter in humanities book will look like, moderated by former Chairman and CEO of UBS America Robert Wolf.
The Common Good presented a timely conference call with President of the Council on Foreign Relations Richard Haass as he spoke to us about international affairs, national security, and what the next chapter in humanities book will look like, moderated by former Chairman and CEO of UBS America Robert Wolf.
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Dr. Richard Haass is a veteran diplomat and a prominent voice on American foreign policy who is currently serving his seventeenth year as President of the Council on Foreign Relations, an independent, think tank, publisher, and educational institution dedicated to being a resource to help people better understand the foreign policy choices facing the United States and other countries.
Haass previously served as the Director of Policy Planning under President Bush from 2001-2003. Dr. Haass also served as U.S. coordinator for policy toward the future of Afghanistan and U.S. envoy to the Northern Ireland peace process.
Robert Wolf is the Founder of 32 Advisors, a holding company which includes the direct investing arm 32 Ventures, the bi-partisan economic insights platform Strategic Worldviews and the Flint, Michigan accelerator group 100K Ventures.
Prior to forming 32 Advisors, Robert spent 18 years at UBS, a global financial services firm. There he held several senior positions including Chairman and CEO of UBS Americas and President and Chief Operating Officer of the Investment Bank.
Robert held three Presidential appointments under President Obama; as a member of the Economic Recovery Advisory Board from 2009-2011, the Council on Jobs and Competitiveness from 2011-2013 and the Export Council from 2014-2016. In 2012 Robert was on the Homeland Security Advisory Council's Border Infrastructure Task Force.
The Great Hack
The Common Good hosted a special screening and discussion of the Netflix documentary “The Great Hack” with Q&A following with Directors Karim Amer and Jehane Noujaim, producer Geralyn White Dreyfous, and Brittany Kaiser, whistle-blower formerly at Cambridge Analytica.
The Common Good hosted a special screening of the Netflix documentary The Great Hack, and a riveting conversation with Brittany Kaiser, whistle-blower formerly at Cambridge Analytica, Director Jehane Noujaim, and Founder & CEO of The Common Good Patricia Duff.
Data has surpassed oil as the world’s most valuable asset. It’s being weaponized to wage cultural and political warfare. People everywhere are in a battle for control of our most intimate personal details. From award-winning filmmakers Karim Amer and Jehane Noujaim, The Great Hack uncovers the dark world of data exploitation with astounding access to the personal journeys of key players on different sides of the explosive Cambridge Analytica/Facebook data scandal.
The Great Hack is alarming - it shows how data is being used to hijack our elections and our democracy and how the internet is being used not only for information, but as a weapon. Citizens’ data is collected without their knowledge or permission, often for alarming reasons. Data is being used to drive wedges of fear and hate between us in order for one side to win elections, undermining our democracy and putting us all at risk. What do we give up when we tap that phone or keyboard and share ourselves in the digital age? Are our old democratic institutions too susceptible? What reforms do we need?
Brittany, Jehane and Patricia dove into these topics in discussion following the film, looking at legislation on the table to protect us and addressed how we can educate society to be less vulnerable to online targeting, sharing shocking revelations about the extent of information collected on us through digital data, and warning that even if social media ceases to exist, the data never does.
Brittany Kaiser is an American former business development director for Cambridge Analytica which collapsed after details of its misuse of Facebook data were revealed to have potentially impacted voting in the U.K and the U.S. Kaiser testified about her involvement in the work of Cambridge Analytica before the U.K. Parliament and in private before the Mueller Investigation. She is the founder of the #OwnYourData campaign and cofounder of the Digital Asset Trade Association (DATA), a nonprofit lobbying firm advancing legislative and policy reform to protect the rights of individuals to control their own digital assets.
Jehane Noujaim is an Academy Award nominated director and one of two non-fiction directors to have won the Directors Guild Award twice. Her Oscar nominated film, The Square (2013), won the Audience Award both at Sundance and Toronto. Noujaim has produced and directed other award-winning films including Rafea: Solar Mama (2013), Control Room (2004) and Startup.com (2001). In 2006, Noujaim was awarded the TED prize which she used to create Pangea Day. Noujaim’s work has been nominated by the DGA, IDA, Independent Spirit and several Critics Association Awards. Noujaim’s most recent release was an animated feature, The Breadwinner (2017) which she executive produced with Angelina Jolie and which was nominated for a 2018 Academy Award.
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The Assault on Intelligence: American National Security in an Age of Lies: General Michael Hayden
Hayden spoke about current US perils – from a nuclear North Korea, an emboldened Russia, a rising China, among others—and the effect of the assaults on the American intelligence agencies meant to defend us and on our democratic institutions.
The only person ever to lead both the CIA and NSA, General (Ret.) Michael Hayden, warns that the American intelligence community is being threatened by a breach in trust and the politicization of their work. Hayden spoke about current US perils – from a nuclear North Korea, an emboldened Russia, a rising China, among others—and the effect of the assaults on the American intelligence agencies meant to defend us and on our democratic institutions.
In the face of a President who lobs accusations without facts, evidence, or logic, truth tellers are under attack. Meanwhile, the world order is teetering on the brink. North Korea is on the verge of having a nuclear weapon that could reach all of the United States, Russians have mastered a new form of information warfare that undercuts democracy, and the role of China in the global community remains unclear. There will always be value to experience and expertise, devotion to facts, humility in the face of complexity, and a respect for ideas, but in this moment they seem more important, and more endangered, than they've ever been. American Intelligence--the ultimate truth teller--has a responsibility in a post-truth world beyond merely warning of external dangers, and in The Assault on Intelligence, General Michael Hayden takes up that urgent work with profound passion, insight and authority.
General Michael Hayden is a retired four-star general who served as director of the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency. Hayden is currently a principal at the Chertoff Group and a distinguished visiting professor at the George Mason University Schar School of Policy and Government. (1)
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(1) Material from The Chertoff Group website.
Special Discussion with Michael Morell - March 1, 2018
The Common Good was pleased to present an important off-the-record conversation with Michael Morell, former Acting Director and Deputy Director of the CIA, with Jeh Johnson, former Security of Homeland Security. Morell discussed the most worrying dangers to national security and how current US policy does not align well to meet these perils.
The Common Good was pleased to present an important off-the-record conversation with Michael Morell, former Acting Director and Deputy Director of the CIA, with Jeh Johnson, former Security of Homeland Security.
Morell discussed the most worrying dangers to national security and how current US policy does not align well to meet these perils. He will cover global conflict zones from China, North Korea, Russia and Middle East with particular emphasis on the rising threats from the Pacific Rim area.
Michael Morell is the former CIA Acting Director and Deputy Director, has a great depth of experience in intelligence and foreign policy with over three decades in the CIA. He has receiver the Distinguished Intelligence Medal, the Agency’s highest honor, for his role in the successful operation to take down Osama bin Laden, and authored the New York Times best-seller The Great War Of Our Time. He is also a Senior National Security Contributor for CBS News and a regular op-ed writer on foreign policy, as well as a member of the council on Foreign Relations and American Economic Association.
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Conversation with Admiral (Ret.) Mike Mullen
The Common good was honored to present an intimate conversation with Admiral (Ret.) Mike Mullen, former Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, with hosts Maureen White and Tom and Ingrid Edelman.
The Common good was honored to present an intimate conversation with Admiral (Ret.) Mike Mullen, former Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, with hosts Maureen White and Tom and Ingrid Edelman.
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Admiral (Ret.) Michael Mullen has much to share on national defense, foreign affairs, and our nation’s security - from combat readiness to economic strength. Considered one of the most influential Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in history, he has contributed much to the evolution of our defense thinking. Mullen was only the third officer in the Navy’s history to be appointed to four different four-star assignments, including the Chief of Naval Operations; Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe; Commander, Allied Joint Force Command Naples; and Vice Chief of Naval operation. He retired form the Navy after over 43 years of service. He serves on many boards and is now a Professor at Princeton University
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Special Screening and Conversation on “Nobody Speak: Trials of the Free Press”
The Common Good screened ‘Nobody Speak: The Trials of the Free Press’, followed by a lively discussion on threats to freedom of the press followed with director Brian Knappenberger and legendary first amendment defender, James Goodale, best known for his courageous and brilliant leadership role in the Pentagon Papers, developing protections for reporters and their sources, as well as National Security Act limits,
The Common Good screened ‘Nobody Speak: The Trials of the Free Press’, followed by a lively discussion on threats to freedom of the press with director Brian Knappenberger and legendary first amendment defender, James Goodale, best known for his courageous and brilliant leadership role in the Pentagon Papers, developing protections for reporters and their sources, as well as National Security Act limits,
The film starts with the legal proceedings of professional wrestler Hulk Hogan, who (with the financial backing of billionaire Peter Thiel) had filed a lawsuit against Gawker Media, seeking $100 million in damages for releasing a sex tape featuring him and Heather Clem. Gawker Media subsequently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, as a direct result of the lawsuit. Thiel had reportedly wanted to bring Gawker down for having published an article nine years earlier which outed him as gay.
The film then covers an incident where casino mogul Sheldon Adelson bought the Las Vegas Review-Journal, while keeping his identity as the buyer a secret, even to the journalists employed by the company. The management also did not reveal the new owner of the company to the employees, and denied that the Adelson family was involved when asked about the possibility. Adelson himself had also denied his ownership in an interview with CNN. This caused a couple of its journalists to start investigating it on their own by calling their contacts. They eventually uncovered that Sheldon Adelson was indeed the new owner, and after publishing an article with the revelation, were forced to step down.
Brian Knappenberger is an award-winning documentary filmmaker, known for The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz, We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists, and his work on Bloomberg Game Changers.
James C. Goodale was the former vice president and general counsel for The New York Times and, later, the Times' vice chairman. He is the author of Fighting for the Press: the Inside Story of the Pentagon Papers and Other Battles. The book was named twice as the best non-fiction book of 2013 by Alan Rusbridger, editor in chief of The Guardian, and Alan Clanton, editor of the online Thursday Review. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit cited "Fighting for the Press" in its decision May 7, 2015, limiting the controversial National Security Agency (NSA) domestic phone monitoring program.
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The Changing World Order: Richard Haass
Richard Haass addressed the current issues and the critically important long-term trends arund the globe that challenge the relative stability of our post-World War II geopolitical and economic framework. How do we navigate, as Haass puts it, a “world in disarray?” A timely discussion with one of the globe’s top foreign policy practitioners, authors, and thought leaders.
With President Trump, foreign policy issues are front and center. New ballistic missiles tested by North Korea, possible Russian interference in our election, a US attack on a terrorist site in Yemen and loss of a Navy Seal, new restrictions on visitors from six Middle Eastern nations, conflicting statements of policy to European allies and others from various administration officials - these are just some of the most recent issues raised within the first two months of the new administration.
Richard Haass addressed the current issues and the critically important long-term trends around the globe that challenge the relative stability of our post-World War II geopolitical and economic framework. How do we navigate, as Haass puts it, a “world in disarray”? A timely discussion with one of the globe’s top foreign policy practitioners, authors, and thought leaders.
Dr. Richard Haass is at the apex of expertise and leadership in foreign affairs and national security as President of the Council on Foreign Relations- a position he has held for fourteen years. Until 2003, Richard Haass was director of policy planning for the Department of State, where he was a principal adviser to Secretary of State Colin Powell on a broad range of foreign policy concerns. Richard Haass is also the author or editor of eleven books on American foreign policy, including his recent book, A World in Disarray. He regularly writes and speaks on global issues.
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The Common Good has been hosting events since 2006 that cover important issues of today, highlighting speakers who have worked to bolster our democracy and can provide great insight on the issues that matter.