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After 10 Months at Sea, a Giant Carrier Returns to a Changed Nation
by Aurelia Butler 25 February 2021, 21:36
#masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The Coronavirus OutbreakliveLatest UpdatesMaps and CasesRisk Near YouVaccine RolloutNew Variants TrackerAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyAfter 10 Months at Sea, a Giant Carrier Returns to a Changed NationA mounting pandemic death toll. A contested election. A riot at the Capitol. “The world at home has become completely different and we don’t know what we are coming home to,” one sailor on the Nimitz said.Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III greeting troops aboard the carrier Nimitz on Thursday. He told sailors and pilots that he knew what it felt like to be cut off from life during extended deploymentsCredit…Helene Cooper/The New York TimesFeb. 25, 2021, 5:25 p.m. ETABOARD U.S.S. NIMITZ, off California — When this aircraft carrier and its city-size crew departed Naval Base Kitsap in Bremerton, Wash., on April 27, George Floyd was still alive.Donald J. Trump was still president, Georgia had two Republican senators, and some 56,000 people in the United States had died of the coronavirus.Now, 10 months later, the nuclear-powered warship is returning home to a country vastly different from the one it left. That difference was highlighted on Thursday when the new defense secretary — for the first time, an African-American — landed aboard to talk to a travel-weary and isolated crew.“Secretary of defense in combat!” came the announcement.Lloyd J. Austin III, his baritone ringing through the ship’s public-address system, told the sailors and pilots on the Nimitz that he knew what it felt like to be cut off from life during extended deployments: Mr. Austin, a retired Army four-star general, was posted in Iraq about a decade ago for a tour even longer than the Nimitz’s.But that was on land, in Army bases near Baghdad and flying around to Erbil and Ramadi. The Nimitz sailors and Navy and Marine pilots were at sea, spending 2020 in what sometimes felt like a time warp, sailors said.They had to quarantine for two weeks before they even boarded the ship and, once on, they basically could associate only with one another, even during port calls.On the rare occasions that the ship came into port — in Guam or in Manama, Bahrain — the 5,000-strong crew was not allowed traditional shore leave, and had to sleep on board, in berths with around 100 other sailors. They were told not to interact with the public on land, because of the pandemic.They watched the presidential election returns from the Indian Ocean and woke up the morning of Jan. 7, in the Persian Gulf, to the news that rioters had stormed the Capitol.Petty Officer First Class Christina Ray, 31, said she turned on the television in her office on the ship’s second deck, and stared at the images. She recalled being aghast at what was happening.“That type of violence was what we were supposed to be defending the country against,” she said in an interview. “The world at home has become completely different and we don’t know what we are coming home to.”The Coronavirus Outbreak More
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Biden Plans Minimalist Trip From Capitol to White House on Inauguration Day
by Aurelia Butler 4 January 2021, 02:07
#masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The Coronavirus OutbreakliveLatest UpdatesMaps and CasesThe Stimulus PlanVaccine InformationF.A.Q.TimelineAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyBiden Plans Minimalist Trip From Capitol to White House on Inauguration DayJoe Biden’s inaugural committee suggested the traditional crowd-lined ride down Pennsylvania Avenue would be replaced by a “virtual parade.”Because of the coronavirus pandemic, President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s inaugural committee has urged Americans not to travel to Washington for his inauguration.Credit…Amr Alfiky/The New York TimesJan. 3, 2021, 10:07 p.m. ETWASHINGTON — President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s inaugural committee released new details on Sunday about his trip to the White House after his swearing-in at the U.S. Capitol that further underscore the downsized and largely virtual nature of his Inauguration Day plans.After taking the oath of office, Mr. Biden will conduct a traditional review of military troops meant to highlight the peaceful transfer of power, the Presidential Inaugural Committee said in a statement. The committee also said Mr. Biden would receive an official escort, with representatives from every branch of the military, for one city block before arriving at the White House.The statement left many details unclear, including the nature of the rest of Mr. Biden’s trip of about 1.5 miles to the White House from the Capitol. By long tradition, a huge presidential motorcade rolls slowly down Pennsylvania Avenue past thousands of cheering spectators, with the newly inaugurated president walking some of the route.But because of the coronavirus pandemic, the inaugural committee this year has urged Americans not to travel to Washington for the event. The committee hopes to deter large crowds that could transmit the virus, which is killing more than 2,000 Americans every day.In place of the grand, in-person extravaganzas of years past, the inaugural committee said it was planning a “virtual parade” across the country, featuring “the iconic images of a new president, a new vice president and their families making their way to the White House” along with “musical acts, local bands, poets, dance troupes and more paying homage to America’s heroes on the front lines of the pandemic.”Committee officials are planning to mimic the varied segments from around the nation that were broadcast during the Democratic National Convention in August, when the spread of the virus similarly prohibited large physical gatherings.The Coronavirus Outbreak More
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Trump Was Briefed on Uncorroborated Intelligence About Chinese Bounties
by Aurelia Butler 31 December 2020, 02:40
AdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyTrump Was Briefed on Uncorroborated Intelligence About Chinese BountiesThe unverified intelligence echoes a similar report, deemed credible by the C.I.A. but dismissed by the president, that Russian military agents had offered payments for attacks on Americans in Afghanistan.President Trump and the first lady, Melania Trump, this month at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington.Credit…Erin Scott for The New York TimesDec. 30, 2020President Trump was briefed this month about intelligence reports that China had offered to pay bounties to fighters in Afghanistan who attacked American soldiers there, but the information was uncorroborated and comes months after Mr. Trump dismissed as a “hoax” a C.I.A. assessment that Russia had paid for such attacks.It is unclear whether the intelligence on China shows that any bounties were paid, or whether any attacks on American personnel were even attempted. United States intelligence agencies collect enormous amounts of information, much of which turns out to be false or misleading.The information, included in the president’s written briefing on Dec. 17 and relayed verbally by the national security adviser, Robert C. O’Brien — was earlier reported on Wednesday night by Axios and confirmed by U.S. officials.It comes at a time when Trump administration officials, including the director of national intelligence, John Ratcliffe, have sought to put more pressure on China, partly in the hope of limiting any plans by the incoming Biden administration to ease tensions with Beijing.Mr. Trump, Mr. Ratcliffe and other officials have also sought to direct attention toward Chinese misbehavior in areas where other American officials consider Russia to be a greater threat, including computer hacking and the use of disinformation to disrupt American politics.After the disclosure this month that the United States government had been subjected to a huge cyberbreach that American officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, confidently attributed to Russia, Mr. Trump angrily cast doubt on that notion and sought to implicate Beijing. “Russia, Russia, Russia is the priority chant when anything happens,” Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter, charging that the news media avoids “discussing the possibility that it may be China (it may!).”The Axios report said on Wednesday that the underlying intelligence on the bounties, about which it obtained no further details, would be declassified, although it was unclear why or for whom. White House officials would not elaborate but did not dispute that the intelligence was uncorroborated.Although tensions between the United States and China have escalated significantly during the Trump era, Beijing is not known to provide substantial support to anti-American proxies in combat zones like Afghanistan, and some national security experts were initially skeptical that Beijing would support attacks on Americans. By contrast, many considered similar reports about Russian bounties to be credible.If confirmed, and particularly if traced to political leaders in Beijing, such an action by China would constitute a grave provocation that might demand a response by President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. after he takes office in January.A Biden transition official would not say on Wednesday night whether Mr. Biden, who now receives official daily intelligence briefings, had been presented with the same information as the president.But the official said that the Biden team would seek to learn more about it from the Trump administration and that it underscored the importance of a fully cooperative transition process, including with the Defense Department, which Mr. Biden on Monday accused of “obstruction.”“Right now,” Mr. Biden said in Wilmington, Del., “we just aren’t getting all the information that we need from the outgoing administration in key national security areas.”Months before the report involving China, the Pentagon and U.S. intelligence agencies were investigating reports collected this year, and first reported by The New York Times, that Russian military intelligence agents had offered to pay Taliban-linked fighters in Afghanistan for the killing of American soldiers there.The C.I.A. assessed with medium confidence that Russia had covertly offered and paid the bounties to a network of Afghan militants and criminals. The National Security Agency placed lower confidence in the intelligence. But Mr. Pompeo, for one, took the reports seriously enough to issue a stern face-to-face warning this summer to his Russian counterpart.Mr. Trump was similarly provided with a written briefing on that intelligence, but publicly he dismissed it as “fake news” and an extension of what he called the “Russia hoax,” including the investigation into his 2016 campaign’s ties to the Kremlin. At the same time, the president suggested that subordinates had not done enough to draw the report about Russia to his attention.“If it reached my desk, I would have done something about it,” Mr. Trump said in July. United States officials have said that the assessment regarding Russia was included in his written intelligence brief in February, but that he rarely reads that document.In multiple subsequent conversations with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, Mr. Trump did not raise the matter.Many questions are outstanding about the unverified intelligence regarding China, including when such bounties were said to be offered, by whom and to whom. The United States and its coalition partners in Afghanistan are fighting not only the Taliban but also Al Qaeda, the Islamic State and various other militant and criminal groups.The reportedly planned release of more information comes at a time when Democrats and many career intelligence officials are concerned that Trump officials like Mr. Ratcliffe have sought to selectively declassify intelligence for political purposes, like the Russia investigation and election interference.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More
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Mulling Martial Law
by Aurelia Butler 22 December 2020, 20:25
AdvertisementContinue reading the main storyOpinionSupported byContinue reading the main storylettersMulling Martial LawA reader thinks a report that President Trump was considering Michael Flynn’s idea was downplayed. Also: The prison at Guantánamo; cancer care in the pandemic; Black writers; a case of hacking.Dec. 22, 2020, 4:25 p.m. ETMore from our inbox:What Right Do We Have to Guantánamo?Don’t Put Off Medical CareBarriers for Black AuthorsOur Very Predictable PresidentPresident Trump has been in contact with Sidney Powell in recent days, even though his campaign last month sought to distance itself from her as she aired baseless claims about Dominion Voting Systems machines.Credit…Samuel Corum for The New York TimesTo the Editor:Re “Trump Discussed Making Conspiracist Special Counsel” (news article, Dec. 20):This reader is disturbed not to see the following headline on the front page: “President Considers Using Military to Overturn Election.”Have we reached the point where it is not major news when our president mulls a proposal to declare martial law and use the army to override American democracy? Perhaps Donald Trump’s cogitations are now deemed too unhinged to take seriously. Yet for the last four years his bizarre, reality-free tweets have been deemed newsworthy.That Mr. Trump cannot get America’s military to join in perpetrating a coup scarcely makes it a minor matter that a president of the United States has explored the possibility. Equally significant is the nonresponse of Republican officeholders.When Mr. Trump pinned his hopes on judges reversing the voters’ verdict, the attitude of silent G.O.P. leaders appeared to be “not likely to work, but more power to you, Mr. President, if you can pull it off.” Perhaps they have the same attitude toward militarizing American politics.Mitchell ZimmermanPalo Alto, Calif.What Right Do We Have to Guantánamo? Credit…Doug Mills/The New York TimesTo the Editor:Re “Decaying Buildings and Sluggish Justice System at Guantánamo Prison” (news article, Dec. 16):Over the years, there have been discussions over Guantánamo Bay prison and its inmates, but there has not been enough discussion about what right we have to be there in the first place.The colonial treaty we imposed on Cuba in 1903 (modified in 1934) allowed the American use of the base only as a coaling and naval station, which certainly did not include a prison complex. In any case, colonial-imposed treaties should not be viewed as valid.We have long felt that Cuba should be our property. President James Polk offered Spain $100 million to buy the island. President Franklin Pierce increased that to $130 million, while President Willliam McKinley upped the offer to $300 million. When Spain still refused to sell, we invaded Cuba and turned it into a colony or protectorate that lasted until the Castro-led overthrow of Batista in 1959.The 1903 treaty, which we had compelled the occupied Cubans to sign, gave us the naval station in Guantánamo Bay. But we nullified it by violating Article II, which declared that the base was “for use as coaling or naval stations only, and for no other purpose.” This does not include a prison complex. The real issue is our imperialism.Roger CarassoSanta Fe, N.M.The writer is professor emeritus of political science at California State University, Northridge.Don’t Put Off Medical Care Credit…iStockTo the Editor:The prolonged Covid-19 pandemic has led to an increase in the number of patients who present with late-stage, previously undiagnosed cancers, and recurrence of a previously diagnosed malignancy.This is probably due to the reluctance of people to seek medical care because of fear of contracting Covid-19 at medical facilities; the closing or reduction in clinical services; the requirement to obtain Covid-19 testing before some medical procedures; and the use of telemedicine without physical examination instead of an actual office visit.It is important that people not defer their medical care during the pandemic. It is especially important that those who previously received a cancer diagnosis continue their treatment and follow-up. Those who experience new or unusual signs and symptoms that may indicate aggravation of their condition or a new ailment should seek medical care without delay.Postponing care or ignoring symptoms may lead to complications and deterioration, making future care more difficult and leading to increased morbidity and mortality.Itzhak BrookWashingtonThe writer is a professor of pediatrics at Georgetown University.Barriers for Black Authors Credit…Cj Gunther/EPA, via ShutterstockTo the Editor:Re “Just How White Is the Book Industry?,” by Richard Jean So and Gus Wezerek (Opinion, nytimes.com, Dec. 11):The authors posit that the disparity in publishing rates between Black and white authors is primarily due to the dearth of Black gatekeepers in the industry. In addition, it is critical to understand the systemic barriers that prevent countless Black authors from getting to the gate.Writing a book requires access to critical resources: books as a child, formal classes that teach the craft of writing, a community of writers, the kind of financial support required to write an entire novel with no pay, published Black role models, the insular network of literary agents, among other barriers.Success requires access to an ecosystem of knowledge, networks and support. Until aspiring Black authors are embraced and bolstered at the same rate as aspiring white authors, the literary canon of the future will never be as glorious and impressive as all the people who have a story to tell.Deborah L. PlummerKatherine A. SherbrookeThe writers are authors and board members of GrubStreet, a creative writing center.Our Very Predictable PresidentPresident Trump returning to the White House after the Army-Navy football game earlier this month. Mr. Trump has made few public appearances in the last few weeks.Credit…Stefani Reynolds for The New York TimesTo the Editor:A week ago, our discussion over dinner regarding President Trump and the massive hacking of our government and American industry turned into an exchange of predictions.“I bet he blames China,” I suggested. My husband replied, “He’ll say it’s a hoax.” In our final exchange on the topic, we predicted he might even blame the breach for the election results.So there was no surprise when we read “Trump Shifts Hack Blame From Russia” (front page, Dec. 20), which confirmed we were right on all counts.Mr. Trump’s supporters often say they like him because he is unpredictable. Au contraire, after watching and listening to him ad nauseam for four years, we find him very predictable. And dangerous.Patricia WellerEmmitsburg, Md.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More
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Trump Administration Is Criticized Over Proposal to Split Cyberoperations Leadership
by Aurelia Butler 20 December 2020, 23:15
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The World Is Full of Challenges. Here’s How Biden Can Meet Them.
by Aurelia Butler 18 December 2020, 09:00
AdvertisementContinue reading the main storyOpinionSupported byContinue reading the main storyThe World Is Full of Challenges. Here’s How Biden Can Meet Them.The incoming administration needs to update American policy to meet the challenges of the 21st century.Mr. Gates served as secretary of defense for Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama from 2006 to 2011.Dec. 18, 2020, 5:00 a.m. ETCredit…Erin Schaff/The New York TimesPresident-elect Joe Biden appears to be framing his foreign policy around three themes: re-engaging with America’s friends and allies, renewing our participation in international organizations and relying more heavily on nonmilitary instruments of power. Considering the challenges posed by China and other countries, as well as transnational threats that range from pandemics to climate change, these are, in my view, the correct priorities. (Though, of course, unparalleled military power must remain the backdrop for America’s relations with the world.)In each case, however, a return to the pre-Trump status quo will be inadequate to the task. In each, it is necessary to reform, revitalize and restructure the American approach.Our NATO allies, as well as Japan, South Korea and others, will welcome America’s reaffirmation of its security commitments and its switch to respectful dialogue after the confrontational Trump years. But the new administration ought to insist on our allies doing more on several fronts. President Trump’s pressure on them to spend more on defense was a continuation of a theme across multiple presidencies. That pressure must continue.But it’s not just on military spending that the new administration needs to take a tough stand with allies. Germany must be held to account not just for its pathetic level of military spending, but also for trading the economic and security interests of Poland and Ukraine for the economic benefits of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline running from Russia to Germany.Turkey’s purchase of the Russian S-400 air defense system against repeated American warnings must have costs. (Recently imposed sanctions are a good start.) And Ankara must also be held to account for its actions in Libya, the eastern Mediterranean and Syria that contravene the interests of other NATO allies and complicate efforts to achieve peace. Actions by member states contrary to the interests of other allies ought not be ignored.The United States needs to take the lead in NATO, an “alliance of democracies,” to devise consequences for member states — such as Turkey, Hungary and, increasingly, Poland — that move toward (or have fully embraced) authoritarianism. There is no provision in the NATO Charter for removing a member state, but creative diplomacy is possible, including suspension or other punitive steps.Mr. Biden’s embrace of the international organizations that Mr. Trump has spurned must be accompanied by an agenda for their improvement. Despite their many problems, these organizations serve useful purposes and can be effective conduits for American influence around the world.In the 1970s and 1980s, the Soviet Union had an elaborate, long-range strategy for seeding its officials throughout the United Nations and associated institutions. China seems to be pursuing a similar strategy today. When we walk away from the World Health Organization and other such organizations, we provide the Chinese with opportunities to dominate them and use them for their own purposes.The new administration must insist on the far-reaching organizational reform of international organizations (such as the W.H.O.), using all the diplomatic and economic leverage we can muster to make effective reform actually happen. Simply showing up again is not good enough.Closer to home, as the new administration commits to far greater reliance on nonmilitary tools like conventional diplomacy, development assistance and public diplomacy to protect America’s interests and advance our objectives, it needs to recognize that those tools overall are in serious need of investment and updating. Our national security apparatus — designed in 1947 — needs to be restructured for the 21st century.The multidimensional competition with China and transnational challenges require the formal involvement of agencies previously not considered part of the national security apparatus and new approaches to achieving true “whole of government” American strategies and operations.The State Department, our principal nondefense instrument of power, is in dire need of reform, as many senior active and retired foreign service officers attest. In return for meaningful structural and cultural change, the State Department should get the significant additional resources it needs.In recent years, our international economic tools have centered mainly on punitive measures, such as sanctions and tariffs. We need to be more creative in finding positive economic inducements to persuade other countries to act — or not act — in accordance with our interests. No other country comes even close to the United States in providing humanitarian assistance after disasters, but nearly all other major assistance successes in recent years — such as George W. Bush’s President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief or the creation of the Millennium Challenge Corporation — were put in place outside the normal bureaucratic structure or processes.While the United States cannot compete directly with China’s Belt and Road projects and development assistance, we should look for ways to leverage the power of our private sector. American corporations can partner with the United States government in countries around the world that offer both sound investment prospects and opportunities to advance American interests. The creation in 2018 of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation was a good start. President Barack Obama’s 2013 “Power Africa” initiative, which was passed unanimously by both houses of Congress and aimed to bring universal electricity access to sub-Saharan Africa, is an example of successful partnering between the private sector and the government.Finally, America’s strategic communications — our ability to spread our message and influence governments and peoples — are pitifully inadequate and outdated.In the early 2000s, President Hu Jintao of China committed some $7 billion to vastly expand China’s international media and influence capabilities. By way of contrast, in 1998, Congress abolished the U.S. Information Agency; subsequently, “public diplomacy” was tucked into a corner of the State Department in an organization that today doesn’t even report directly to the secretary of state.There is no coordination of messaging across the government, and efforts to make better use of social media and other new technologies have been laggard and disjointed. Surely, the country that invented marketing, public relations and the internet can figure out how to recapture primacy in strategic communications.Misgivings linger abroad about whether American re-engagement (and reliability) will last beyond this new administration — and about the new president’s views on the use of military power. That said, there is considerable relief among most of our allies and friends that Mr. Biden has won the election.This provides the new president with considerable leverage to revitalize and strengthen alliances and international institutions and to show at home that doing so advances American interests around the world and the well-being of our own citizens. This would be an enduring legacy for the Biden administration.Robert M. Gates served as Secretary of Defense for Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama from 2006 to 2011.The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips. And here’s our email: letters@nytimes.com.Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook, Twitter (@NYTopinion) and Instagram.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More
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Your Tuesday Briefing
by Aurelia Butler 15 December 2020, 02:10
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Michèle Flournoy Again Finds Her Shot at the Top Pentagon Job Elusive
by Aurelia Butler 9 December 2020, 02:18
#masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The Presidential TransitionliveLatest UpdatesFormal Transition BeginsBiden’s CabinetDefense SecretaryElection ResultsAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyMichèle Flournoy Again Finds Her Shot at the Top Pentagon Job ElusivePresident-elect Joe Biden’s decision to instead nominate retired Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III enraged many of the women Ms. Flournoy elevated from the trenches of national security policy.Michèle A. Flournoy was thought to be a leading candidate to be President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s defense secretary, the third time she has been believed to be in contention for the job.Credit…Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call, via Getty ImagesBy More

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Michèle Flournoy Again Finds Her Shot at the Top Pentagon Job Elusive

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