“‘If confirmed to be true, the death of Droukdal removes one of the most senior and most durable leaders of AQIM, a longstanding Al Qaeda affiliate,' said Nicholas Rasmussen, the former head of the National Counterterrorism Center in Washington. 'Droukdal remained doggedly loyal to Al Qaeda’s senior leadership...'” Read the full article here: Full Article

"Doomsday planners can’t conjure up every possible future calamity. But their warnings can prompt the government to react quickly, to adapt to ambiguity, and to treat uncertainty as a feature of good social science, not an excuse to avoid prudent precautions. Nicholas Rasmussen, who participated in national-security continuity planning as a senior counterterrorism adviser to George W. Bush and Obama, told me that, at the moment, the U.S. government doesn’t 'really have a plan for a scenario where we are down [...]

"Amid questions about the ability of the House and the Senate to function in regular order during a pandemic, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence will hold an open hearing on May 5 at 9:30 a.m. to consider the president’s nomination of Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe of Texas to serve as director of national intelligence. The hearing will be held in person, not remotely. "The revival of this controversial nomination—which had been announced and then withdrawn last summer—is certain to raise [...]

"'How do you know it’s going to work?' That is a question Nick Rasmussen hears a lot, often from Members of Congress. Like Munter, Rasmussen spent most of his working life in government, most recently as director of the National Counterterrorism Center. When he left the public sector and went to work at the McCain Institute in 2017, he was inspired by a vision to address 'gaps' in national security that government can’t fill. As part of that, he now leads [...]

"The United States — and the world — faces a historic threat to its health, well-being and economy. The global covid-19 pandemic challenges all of us: the public, cities, states and, of course, the federal government. But as we collectively fight this deadly disease, the intelligence institutions that help protect us all from current and future threats are also under attack from an insidious enemy: domestic politics. We cannot let the covid-19 pandemic be a cover for the deeply destructive path [...]

"'I’m encouraged that the administration is turning to a career national security professional for this job as opposed to picking a career politician or some known ideologue,' said Nicholas Rasmussen, who led the NCTC from 2014 to 2017. "'What’s important is whether Chris Miller or any nominee can do what needs to be done most — which is to preserve the integrity and independence of the NCTC as an intelligence organization,' he said..." Read the full article here: Full Article

"Once again, the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC) finds itself exactly where intelligence officials never want to be: in the headlines and being talked about on cable news —without the ability [to] speak publicly to defend their work or their professionalism. Instead, IC leaders and professionals are left playing defense against a president who routinely demonstrates his lack of understanding of their craft, his disregard—and even contempt—for their work product, and his mistrust of any IC leader who hasn’t affirmed personal fealty [...]

“'AQAP [Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula] remains a significant, lingering concern, in part because the group was so fixated on aviation as a target, and the kind of bomb-making expertise that the group developed was unlikely to have been contained to just a few select individuals,' said Nicholas J. Rasmussen, a former director of the National Counterterrorism Center. “'That kind of knowledge and expertise is of course shareable and transferable — not just within AQAP but beyond to other Al [...]

“'The focus on immigration to me has meant the senior leadership could not possibly have as much of an in-depth feel for the terrorism and counterterrorism set of issues,' Nicholas Rasmussen, former director of the National Counterterrorism Center who worked on the issue under the last three administrations, said in an interview. 'When you get into crisis mode, you can’t just acquire that experience.' "Rasmussen and some former DHS officials and security specialists applauded aspects of the department’s response, however, pointing [...]