Rowan Scarborough
Articles by Rowan Scarborough
Climate change ‘urgent and growing threat’ to national security: Pentagon
A new Pentagon report says that climate change is an "urgent and growing threat to our national security" and blames it for "increased natural disasters" that will require more American troops designated to combat bad weather. Published July 29, 2015
U.S. troop withdrawal let Islamic State enter Iraq, military leaders say
A number of former and current military leaders who were in power when all U.S. troops left Iraq are saying today that the complete exit left the door open for the Islamic State's land grab. Published July 26, 2015
Ashton Carter: Obama failed to anticipate Iran’s role in Yemeni rebellion
Defense Secretary Ashton Carter says the Obama administration failed to anticipate that Iranian-backed Houthis rebels could, or would, oust the Yemeni government which had been a strong U.S. counter-terrorism ally. Published July 23, 2015
Navy admirals lack strategy training and experience, scholars warn
Maritime scholars say in a report that the U.S. Navy is not doing enough deep thinking. Published July 22, 2015
Green Beret tells of shooting Taliban in CIA job interview, loses Silver Star for it
A Green Beret who was awarded the Silver Star, then saw it stripped away because he killed a Taliban bombmaker, is telling why he did it, as conveyed in a CIA job interview he conducted nearly four years ago. Published July 19, 2015
Transgender service members to require host of new policies, congressional report says
Opening the U.S. military to transgender service members will require a number of new policies on berthing, sex-designated uniforms, I.D. card processing and physical fitness testing, which include different standards for men and women, says a new report to Congress. Published July 16, 2015
Iran deal seen as economic lifeline for struggling nation
The nuclear agreement announced on Tuesday promises to be an economic boon to Iran, allowing the Islamic state to gain broad access into the United States' and Europe's financial and trade markets. Published July 14, 2015
Hillary Clinton classified emails require government to seize server, Judicial Watch says
The president of a conservative watchdog group says now that it is known that classified information was contained in Hillary Rodham Clinton's private stash of State Department emails, it is time for the government to seize her personal server and related storage disks to determine whether security was breached during her tenure as secretary of state. Published July 5, 2015
Admission of Hillary Clinton’s classified emails opens door for feds to seize her servers
The State Department on Wednesday conceded that two dozen of Hillary Rodham Clinton's emails did contain classified information, a fact that could trigger a U.S. policy that authorizes the government to take control of her private server and sanitize the contents. Published July 1, 2015
Afghani forces inadequate to fight Taliban: Pentagon
Afghanistan defense forces suffered a whopping 59 percent increase in battlefield casualties the past six months compared with 2014, mostly by the national police force, which remains ill-equipped to counter Taliban offenses and/or to hold recaptured territory, says a new Pentagon report. Published June 30, 2015
Army board clears Green Beret war hero of murder but gives him general discharge
A board of inquiry has ruled the Army failed to substantiate its contention that a Green Beret hero murdered a suspected Taliban bomb maker, but nonetheless recommended a general discharge because of his battlefield conduct. Published June 29, 2015
Islamic State uses downloadable apps to hide attack plans, recruit followers
The Islamic State terrorist army is snatching up the latest off-the-shelf encrypted applications to hide their military planning, with fighters publicly thanking former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden for tipping them on U.S. spying tactics. Published June 28, 2015
Iran bullies region, broadens influence outside Persian Gulf
Iranian diplomats have sat down for a series of cordial negotiations with the West over nuclear arms, as all handshakes and smiles were captured in network news photo ops. Published June 24, 2015
New Pentagon manual declares journalists can be enemy combatants
The Pentagon's new thick book of instructions for waging war the legal way says that terrorists also can be journalists. Published June 21, 2015
Green Berets held back in Islamic State fight by flawed intelligence system
Army Green Berets planned for a wide range of actions in Iraq this year but bemoaned the sorry state of U.S. intelligence assets in the country to help the local security forces find and kill Islamic State terrorist targets, an internal Army memo says. Published June 16, 2015
Jason Amerine, Green Beret aiming to free U.S. hostages, caught in FBI web
When Lt. Col. Jason Amerine, a decorated Green Beret, took the big step last summer of contacting a member of Congress on the gnawing question of freeing American hostages, he never suspected the bureaucratic minefield that awaited him, especially from the FBI. Published June 14, 2015
Green Beret Lt. Col. Jason Amerine: Army trying to court-martial him for whistleblowing
A Green Beret war hero under investigation for unauthorized communications with Congress will testify on Thursday that the Army is out to court-martial him on criminal charges. Published June 10, 2015
Army Gen. Randy Taylor introduces his husband at Pentagon Gay Pride event
A married Army general on Tuesday introduced his same-sex spouse at a Pentagon event that featured lots of top brass, including Defense Secretary Ashton Carter as the keynote speaker. Published June 9, 2015
Air Force, Navy restocked with planes, missiles as Congress counters U.S. air power decline
American air power is declining at the very moment U.S. warplanes have been thrust into a long war in the skies over Iraq and Syria and must contain aggressive militaries in Russia and the Pacific. Published June 7, 2015
U.S. Army stops paying Green Beret war hero amid whistleblower probe
The Army has stopped paying an active duty Green Beret war hero who is under investigation, prompting his lawyer to threaten to ask a military judge to intervene. Published June 2, 2015
