Julie Smith quoted in Business Insider article, “The Coronavirus Pandemic Could Leave ‘A Profound Economic Impact’ On the Pentagon”

"'The bigger question among Democrats that we haven’t sorted out... is to determine exactly what to do with the defense budget,' with different camps advocating freezing, reducing, or imposing drastic cuts, said Julianne Smith, a foreign-policy adviser to former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, at the same event. "'That’s a debate that the party’s going to have to have, and frankly all Americans need to have,' Smith added..." Read the full article here: Full Article

2020-05-01T14:49:49-04:00April 23, 2020|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Julie Smith quoted in Der Spiegel article, “How Trump Is Fueling a Corona Disaster”

"'Trump has systematically bled the government dry,' says Julianne Smith, who served as deputy national security adviser to Joe Biden when he was vice president. Trump has failed to fill many important positions in the government or he has dissolved them altogether. In one particularly disastrous move, he abolished the pandemic task force in the National Security Council that President Barack Obama set up after the Ebola outbreak in West Africa..." Read the full article here: Full Article

Julie Smith quoted in The New York Times article, “The Coronavirus Inflicts Its Own Kind of Terror”

"There is a similar sense of helplessness, however, said Julianne Smith, a former security adviser to Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and now at the German Marshall Fund. 'You don’t know when terrorism or the pandemic will strike, so it invades your personal life. With terror, you worry about being in crowds and rallies and sporting events. It’s the same with the virus — crowds spell danger...' "Unlike Sept. 11, 'when a single set of events united the country in [...]

WestExec Partners, Principals, and Senior Advisors featured in the Wall Street Journal article, “U.S. Foreign-Policy Experts Call for Cooperation With China on Coronavirus”

"A large group of prominent American foreign-policy experts, including former high-ranking White House officials from both parties, is calling on the Trump administration to work more closely with China to stem the coronavirus epidemic..." Read the full article here: Full Article

2020-04-14T13:34:55-04:00April 3, 2020|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Julie Smith quoted in POLITICO article, “Coronavirus Rattles America’s National Security Priesthood”

"'Members of Congress have factories in their states and districts that produce these weapons. There are not a lot of members of Congress who can say "My state is going to be the pre-eminent producer for N95 masks,"' said Julie Smith, a former Obama administration official now with the German Marshall Fund..." Read the full article here: Full Article

2020-04-03T10:02:21-04:00March 28, 2020|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Michèle Flournoy, Bob Work, and Julie Smith cited in the Wall Street Journal article, “National Security Veterans Urge Trump to Invoke Emergency Mobilization Law”

"A bipartisan group of more than 100 former national security officials are urging President Trump immediately to use a Korean War-era defense mobilization law 'to the full extent' to support companies making supplies critical to combating the coronavirus outbreak. "In a letter Wednesday, the former officials said the Defense Production Act was designed precisely because the private sector "lacks the ability to process incoming requests, prioritize the most urgent needs and coordinate with other companies absent more concerted government involvement..." Read [...]

2020-03-30T10:49:34-04:00March 25, 2020|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Julie Smith quoted in The Wall Street Journal article, “Trump’s Coronavirus Travel Ban Deepens Tensions With European Allies”

"'There’s considerable friction between Europe and the United States on many fronts,' said Julianne Smith, who served as deputy national security adviser to former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic front-runner in the race to face Mr. Trump in the November election. "'One of the things that’s irritating the Europeans the most, though, is the administration’s failure to consult with our European allies on a number of issues,' said Ms. Smith, a geopolitics expert at the German Marshall Fund..." Read the [...]

2020-03-30T11:41:20-04:00March 13, 2020|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Julie Smith quoted in Newsweek article, “Trump’s Coronavirus European Flight Freeze Will Create ‘Grave Uncertainty’ For Americans In EU, Expert Warns”

"'In some ways Europeans have become accustomed to not being consulted,' she explained. Nonetheless, she said the European perception has generally been that in a time of real crisis the administration would still look to collaborate with allies. "'But alas, what we saw last night was the president intent on issuing another ban, essentially for political gain, it enables him to say that this is a foreign threat...' "'There's so much we could be learning right now from Italy's experience, from [...]

2020-03-13T15:57:00-04:00March 12, 2020|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Julie Smith quoted in The New York Times article, “For a President Who Loves Crowd Size, India Aims to Deliver”

"'World leaders have learned to shorten or scrap the historical tours, remove local delicacies from the menu and focus on one thing only: feeding his ego,' said Julianne Smith, the director of the Asia program at the German Marshall Fund of the United States. 'That’s taken different forms in recent years, but the goal is always the same—make Trump feel like he’s getting something unique: a parade in Paris, a grand state dinner at Buckingham Palace or a sumo match with [...]

2020-03-04T11:00:44-05:00February 23, 2020|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Julie Smith writes in War on the Rocks: “Germany’s 5G Debate Ought Not Be A Referendum on Donald Trump”

"Chancellor Angela Merkel can’t seem to make up her mind. For months, her administration, the Germany Parliament, and outside experts have been debating whether to rely on high-risk vendors for the construction of the country’s 5G telecommunications networks. Unfortunately, this important debate keeps getting sidetracked. Because the Trump administration is using another one of its ill-conceived “maximum pressure” campaigns to persuade Germany to ban Huawei, this debate has morphed into a black and white choice between the United States and China. [...]

2020-02-24T15:35:21-05:00February 16, 2020|Geopolitical Perspectives|
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