
Dems bring last-day spice to Aspen
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ASPEN, Colorado — Democratic heavyweights scorched the Trump administration's national security approach on the last day of the Aspen Security Forum, bringing some eleventh-hour zest to a conference that had largely avoided sharp rebukes of President DONALD TRUMP.
Sens. CHRIS COONS (D-Del.), and MARK WARNER (D-Va.) took the stage for a discussion on the 'view from the Senate.' There, Coons lashed OMB chief RUSS VOUGHT as 'incompetent' and Warner suggested that U.S. allies were reducing intelligence sharing because they didn't trust Director of National Intelligence TULSI GABBARD. (Warner's team subsequently backtracked those comments, saying he was concerned intel sharing might be reduced.)
The spice continued when former national security adviser JAKE SULLIVAN closed out the Rocky Mountain confab this year, joining a trio of former officials to discuss 'the long view from Aspen.' There, Sullivan insinuated that State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development layoffs were rooted in disrespect for federal workers, rankling former GEORGE W. BUSH administration Secretary of State CONDOLEEZZA RICE.
Sullivan also argued that pundits have misread the outcome of the 2024 election and that Americans still remain committed to international engagement. Case in point, he noted Trump's recent evolution on Ukraine.
'It's President Trump who has shifted on this issue in recent days, not the American people,' Sullivan said.
The Democratic trio's comments changed the tone of a gathering that at other times felt light on public criticism of the Trump administration. Beyond some foreign officials' expressions of concern about the impact of the Trump administration's approach to competition with China and tariffs, the conference featured surprisingly little direct criticism of Trump officials and their qualifications. The impression on the sidelines was that some speakers were wary of further alienating the administration.
Sullivan also used his time to defend the Biden administration's efforts to address some of the economic statecraft challenges the country has faced — from rare earth minerals shortages to the loss of industrial jobs. But he warned 'there are so many obstacles to the United States being able to build at speed, at scale.'
He managed to also turn that into a jab at Trump. 'We still contend with very difficult challenges of building on speed and scale, and it takes more than a statement or a speech or a tariff to get that done,' Sullivan said.
The Inbox
VENEZUELA PRISONER SWAP: Venezuela will release 10 Americans in its custody in exchange for hundreds of Venezuelan nationals the U.S. deported to El Salvador, Salvadoran President NAYIB BUKELE announced on social media today.
THE EU'S FLOATING OIL CAP: The European Union agreed an 18th round of sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine today, after Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico said on Thursday that he would no longer seek to block the measures.
'The EU just approved one of its strongest sanctions package against Russia to date,' KAJA KALLAS, the bloc's high representative for foreign affairs, said on social media.
The package includes a new floating price cap on Russian oil, which seeks to limit Moscow's ability to generate revenue to fund the war through energy sales. That will now be set at 15 percent below the average market price of Russian crude, effectively lowering the cap to around $48 per barrel from the previous cap of $60 a barrel.
DEPARTMENT OF AG'S NATSEC REVIEW: The Department of Agriculture has fired 70 foreign researchers who were working for the agency under contract, as part of a national security review designed to insulate America's food supply chains from infiltration by adversaries, including Russia, China Iran and North Korea, Reuters reported today.
The 70 people, who worked at the Agricultural Research Service, were identified to originate from 'countries of concern' a USDA spokesperson told the news agency. Most were post-doctoral researchers from China.
'CHINA IS ON THE MARCH': China's growing military threat to the U.S. and its allies in the Indo-Pacific was front and center during a panel at Aspen today.
Australian Ambassador to the U.S. KEVIN RUDD said Beijing's increasingly aggressive military footprint in the region — including deployment of aircraft carriers into the western Pacific toward Guam in May and June — is cause for alarm.
'The China challenge becomes more real, more acute, sharper each day, each week,' Rudd said. 'China is literally on the march, and therefore it requires countermeasures.'
Former U.S. Ambassador to China NICHOLAS BURNS piled on by warning that Beijing's alignment with Russia compounds the dangers its military poses to the Indo-Pacific and beyond. 'It's trying to cut the United States and our allies down to size,' Burns said. 'We've not taken this global threat seriously enough, and the Chinese are strengthening themselves.'
DRINKS WITH NATSEC DAILY: At the end of every long, hard week, we like to highlight how a prominent member of the national security scene prefers to unwind with a drink.
Today, we're featuring CLAIRE FINKELSTEIN, a law professor at the University of Pennsylvania and expert on the laws of armed conflict who leads the Penn Carey Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law. We caught up with Claire on the sidelines of the Aspen Security Forum and asked her how she likes to imbibe.
Claire told us that she's a wine fan, dating back to her college days when she and Brookings President CECILIA ROUSE, her then-roommate, led a wine tasting club at Harvard. She loves French wines — Sincère in particular. But when she's in the mood for a cocktail, she'll go for a Kir Royale. Finklestein likes her Kir Royales with a 'really good dry Brut champagne with a little bit of creme de cassis.'
'I often make it at home … but there's a place in Rittenhouse Square, unfortunately I'm forgetting the name of it, where I might sit on a Friday afternoon or a Sunday afternoon — not so much on a Saturday — and have a Kir Royale,' she said.
Your hosts are eager to know which bar in the area makes the best ones, so Philly readers send us your tips! Maybe you'll catch us there soon.
Cheers, Claire!
IT'S FRIDAY! WELCOME TO THE WEEKEND: Thanks for tuning in to NatSec Daily! This space is reserved for the top U.S. and foreign officials, the lawmakers, the lobbyists, the experts and the people like you who care about how the natsec sausage gets made. Aim your tips and comments at ebazail@politico.com, and follow Eric on X @ebazaileimil.
While you're at it, follow the rest of POLITICO's global security team on X and Bluesky: @dave_brown24, @HeidiVogt, @jessicameyers, @RosiePerper, @nahaltoosi.bsky.social, @PhelimKine, @ak_mack, @felschwartz, @connorobrienNH, @paulmcleary, @reporterjoe, @JackDetsch, @samuelskove, @magmill95, @johnnysaks130 and @delizanickel
Keystrokes
NOVEL RUSSIAN SPY TOOLS: Britain's National Cyber Security Center said today that Russian spies have developed sophisticated new malware that has been used to steal the log-in credentials of online Microsoft products.
The tool was developed by cyberespionage group APT 28, also known as Fancy Bear, which is part of Russia's military intelligence agency. The U.K. also announced today that it had sanctioned Russian spies, hackers and agencies over what it described as a 'sustained campaign of malicious cyber activity' targeting agencies and institutions in the U.K. and Europe.
Moscow's spooks have increasingly used sabotage and cyberattacks in Europe in a bid to destabilize the continent and undermine support for Ukraine.
The Complex
TARIFF ANXIETY: Despite NATO's recent boost in defense spending, representatives from the defense industry, technology companies, venture capital and consulting firms are treading carefully out of concern that Trump's tariffs could fuel instability and eat into their profit margins, our own Felicia Schwartz writes in Aspen.
'You can't plan when they continually create new crises and kick the cans down the road,' one of the attendees at the forum told Felicia. This year's summit offered a peek into how companies are tiptoeing around the mercurial Trump administration.
Many panelists were unwilling to say anything negative about the administration, while some companies pared back their presence after the Pentagon withdrew a host of its officials from the gathering. Sponsor logos, which have in past years typically framed the stage, were also far less prominent this year and were instead displayed on TV screens in the lobby, Felicia writes.
On the Hill
DEFENSE APPROPS STICKS THE LANDING: House Republicans muscled through their first take on the Pentagon budget overnight. The full House cleared the annual defense appropriations bill in a close 221-209 vote, with just five Democrats joining Republicans to support it.
The $831.5 billion spending bill aligns with the Trump administration's plan to keep the regular Pentagon budget even with this year's funding levels, instead relying on the $150 billion investment from the GOP megabill to boost defense programs. The legislation was written before the administration submitted its full defense budget plan to Congress, which opponents contend effectively renders the bill irrelevant in spending discussions.
Democrats opposed the measure in large part over a raft of conservative policy riders included by Republicans, including provisions curtailing abortion access and diversity efforts in the military. They also balked at the exclusion of annual Pentagon funding to arm Ukraine.
Republicans, though, teamed up with Democrats to defeat hardline GOP amendments on the House floor to block any Ukraine assistance and to slash hundreds of millions of dollars for security assistance for Taiwan and defense cooperation with Israel.
Broadsides
LULA LASHES TRUMP: Brazilian President LUIZ INÁCIO LULA DA SILVA didn't mince words late Thursday about the Trump administration continuing to stick its nose into criminal proceedings against the country's former president and Trump ally JAIR BOLSONARO.
In an address to the Brazilian people, Lula said Trump's actions represent 'unacceptable blackmail' and insisted that his government will respect the independent judiciary as it prosecutes Bolsonaro on charges of trying to organize a coup and overturn his electoral loss in 2022.
The harsh response from Lula follows the release of a letter from Trump — no not that one — to Bolsonaro offering support as the ex-Brazilian leader faces criminal charges. It follows the threat to impose 50 percent tariffs earlier this month against Brazil over the judicial system's treatment of Bolsonaro.
Transitions
— Have a new job? Starting a new venture? Write to ebazail@politico.com to get your good news featured in your favorite natsec newsletter.
What to Read
— Matthew Duss, Foreign Policy: Biden's team lied about Gaza. It's time to hold them accountable.
— Benoit Faucon and Adam Chamseddine, Wall Street Journal: Iran is moving to rearm its militia allies
— M. Taylor Fravel, Foreign Affairs: Is China's military ready for war?
— Neal Urwitz, National Security Journal: ANDREW SCHWARTZ Must Be Remembered
Monday Today
— The Atlantic Council, 9:30 a.m.: Atlantic piracy, current threats, and maritime governance in the Gulf of Guinea
— The Hudson Institute, 11:00 a.m.: Tokyo as a window for global Japan
— The Center for Strategic and International Studies, 2:00 p.m.: Under the Nuclear Shadow: China's Information-Age Weapons in International Security
— The Council on Foreign Relations, 6:30 p.m.: The Democratic vision for the future of U.S. foreign policy
Thanks to our editors, Heidi Vogt and Ester Wells, whose comments never bring needed zest to our lives.
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