In the News

Potomac Institute hosted Marine Lt. Gen. William Faulkner to discuss how the Marine Corps is resetting its equipment, as the service faces the challenge of downsizing and becoming a lighter and more agile force.

Afghanistan retrograde moving fast

Marine Corps Times

Speaking at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies in April, Lt. Gen. William Faulkner said the reset is a “good news story.” The Corps has reduced the total number of equipment items remaining in Afghanistan by 60 percent in the past 15 months

Senior Vice President of National Security Policy Jamie Barnett, Jr., RDML USNR (Ret.), is a retired Navy admiral, a cyber security analyst, and a former Chief of the Federal Communications Commission's Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau.  In an interview with Federal News Radio, he offered his observations on the top three challenges facing the Department of Defense in 2013.  At the top of the list: critical gaps in oversight of the supply chain for the Pentagon's electronic systems.  Click below to listen to the interview. Click here to read more.

Potomac Institute for Policy Studies Senior Fellow Amb. David Smith (Ret.) is the Director of the Potomac Institute Cyber Center. He is a cyber security and cyber policy analyst, and a former US arms negotiator.  In an op-ed for Defense News entitled "Hackers Join the Fight," he writes that the recent Israeli-Palestinian conflict in Gaza not only made it clear that cyber attacks will  be a part of warfare henceforth, but also marked the arrival of "warfare’s newest actor — the freelance cyber warrior."  Click here to read the article in full.

On December 4, The Potomac Institute Press launched the new book #CyberDoc: No Borders - No Boundaries, at a special conference entitled A National Cyber Doctrine:  The Time Is Now, at the National Press Club.  The book is co-edited by Potomac Institute CEO and Chairman Michael Swetnam and by Timothy Sample, Vice President and Sector Manager for Battelle Memorial Institute’s Special  Programs Organization, and it addresses the urgent need for a national cyber doctrine to guide the US in this challenging new security environment. The book and event transcript were both cited on the Government Technology news website, which states that the event provided "a wealth of information regarding why a doctrine for dealing with cybersecurity is important." Click here to read the Government Technology piece. The book and event were also cited in National Defense, which called for action on formulating a cyber doctrine.  Click here to read the National Defense piece.  #CyberDoc is available for purchase on Amazon.com;  click here for the Amazon listing.

Senior Vice President of National Security Policy Jamie Barnett, Jr., RDML USNR (Ret.), recently served as Chief of the Federal Communications Commission's Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau.  In comments to Hawaii's Civil Beat news website, he reacted to officials' decision to move Hawaii's tsunami siren system to cellular and satellite networks.  RDML Barnett says that decision raises questions about whether the siren system will be effective in an emergency.  Click here to read the article in full.

Potomac Institute for Policy Studies Senior Fellow Amb. David Smith (Ret.) is the Director of the Potomac Institute Cyber Center. He is a cyber security and cyber policy analyst, and a former US arms negotiator.  In comments cited in Foreign Policy's "Killer Apps" column, he noted that the online theft of US intellectual property is supporting technological advances in Russia, China and elsewhere. The comments were part of a report noting that the 2013 defense authorization bill includes a new requirement that all defense contractors promptly report any cyber intrusions into their systems.  Click here to read the article in full.