Intelligence and national security reporter at The Washington Post. Reach me securely on Signal at Ellen.626.https://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.socialhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3m6phsun2ws2hSCOOP: For the Trump admin's Sept. 2 strike targeting 11 men on a boat suspected of ferrying drugs, SecDef Hegseth gave an order, officials say, to kill them all. When two men were still alive, orders were given to strike again, finishing them off. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/11/28/hegseth-kill-them-all-survivors-boat-strike/28 Nov 2025 18:03 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3m6phsun2ws2hhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3m67vquzwbs2uNEW: White House blew past legal concerns in deadly strikes on drug boats. Work began on secret CIA finding early in the administration, prompting pushback re use of lethal force. Officials persisted in seeking, military and covert options. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/11/22/drug-boats-strikes-cia-legal-concerns/22 Nov 2025 13:30 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3m67vquzwbs2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3m4qao5cotk2vA former top State Dept lawyer, Brian Finucane, assesses the Trump admin is using "creative lawyering" in dismissing War Powers Res application to cartel strikes. "It is a power grab in the service of killing people outside the law based solely on the President’s own say so." shorturl.at/8AKIS https://shorturl.at/8AKIS03 Nov 2025 14:37 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3m4qao5cotk2vhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3m4lvvms5tc2fScoop: Trump’s OLC head tells lawmakers the War Powers Act doesn’t apply to cartel strikes, and the administration does not need to cease strikes by Monday. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/11/01/trump-venezuela-war-drugs-law/01 Nov 2025 21:14 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3m4lvvms5tc2fhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3m4haygqxok2mExclusive report by @johnphudson.bsky.social on how a U.S. govt watchdog has found that Israeli military units committed “many hundreds” of potential violations of U.S. human rights law in the Gaza Strip that would take the State Dept multiple years to review. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/10/30/state-department-report-israel-gaza-human-rights-violations/31 Oct 2025 00:49 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3m4haygqxok2mhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3m3zrg3g3cc26Cool story! Bubbes volunteer to do what they do best: Counsel troubled souls. By Sophia Solano, who was hanging out at the Sixth and I synagogue. https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/2025/10/25/jewish-grandmas-advice/25 Oct 2025 16:06 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3zrg3g3cc26https://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3m3zi2cjhbk2dThe entire NSC legal team-some half-dozen-has been emptied out, inc Paul Ney Jr.,a onetime DOD GC who served briefly as NSC legal adviser. Lawyers at NSC, State, DOJ & DOD earlier questioned the legal basis for military cartel strikes, and were able for awhile to forestall action. shorturl.at/dBKDZ https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/10/24/gabbard-intelligence-venezuela-drug-boats/25 Oct 2025 13:18 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3zi2cjhbk2dhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3m3zhl3wcvs2nGOP hawks are feeling the whiplash of Trump’s China policy. So far they've largely failed to stiffen his spine on China competition. It's a "WIP: work in progress," Rep. Young Kim (CA) told my colleague Noah Robertson. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/10/24/xi-jinping-trump-china-summit/25 Oct 2025 13:09 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3zhl3wcvs2nhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3m3xlw7oefk2jWhile legal experts say military operators are not likely to be prosecuted for involvement in the cartel strikes, junior officers are nervous, sources say. Some have asked military lawyers for written sign-off before taking part; such sign-off hasn't happened, said one source. shorturl.at/0u6Ge https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/10/24/gabbard-intelligence-venezuela-drug-boats/24 Oct 2025 19:22 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3m3xlw7oefk2jhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3m2wdnkvsxk26The president has long attacked the media as “fake news,” but the White House has found ways to bring a new crop of friendly journalists into curated presentations that have the look and feel of news to advance its policy priorities, Sarah Ellison reports. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/10/11/trump-press-antifa-maga/11 Oct 2025 13:56 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3m2wdnkvsxk26https://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lzqllmksjk2pNone of the people who spoke with The Post could recall a defense secretary ever ordering so many of the military’s generals and admirals to assemble like this. Several said it raised security concerns. "People are very concerned," one told me. "They have no idea what it means." wapo.st/4nidndf https://wapo.st/4nidndf26 Sep 2025 13:37 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lzqllmksjk2phttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lwz2wpr3as2iBREAKING: Hegseth fires head of Defense Intelligence Agency, Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/08/22/defense-intelligence-agency-kruse-fired-hegseth/22 Aug 2025 18:17 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lwz2wpr3as2ihttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lwyq3wv3zs2fFormer intelligence analyst Joseph Francescon is named NSA deputy director. “Francescon has an understanding of the mission and would be able to champion the workforce to carry it out,” said a former senior NSA official. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/08/21/nsa-deputy-director-francescon/22 Aug 2025 15:03 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lwyq3wv3zs2fhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lrjpnjoi2k2pUS scrambles to bring back VOA’s Persian service amid Iran-Israel conflict politi.co/3HHsTQ4, via @politico.com https://politi.co/3HHsTQ414 Jun 2025 00:39 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lrjpnjoi2k2phttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lqxkzixo522iFormer Manhattan U.S. attorney Damian Williams leaves Paul Weiss, which cut a deal w the Trump administration, for Jenner & Block, which didn't and chose to fight. wapo.st/3HIdsXK https://wapo.st/3HIdsXK06 Jun 2025 19:29 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lqxkzixo522ihttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lqx2famrwc2vThe MAGA faithful celebrate the end of the Trump-Musk bromance. Patrons of the pro-Trump Butterworth’s Restaurant hope that a feud that broke out between the two men marks the end of Musk’s influence in Washington. wapo.st/4jBvtEk https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/06/06/butterworths-trump-musk-feud-maga/06 Jun 2025 14:31 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lqx2famrwc2vhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lquydejke22lNEW: DNI Gabbard has placed a top adviser inside the ODNI’s watchdog office, U.S. officials say. The move potentially compromises the integrity of the Intelligence Community Inspector General as it is conducting an investigation of Signalgate, they say. wapo.st/4dUcEey https://wapo.st/4dUcEey05 Jun 2025 18:49 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lquydejke22lhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lqrt5dg3fs2pNEW: “Any country that has strategic bombers, strategic missiles and silos, or strategic nuclear submarines at port is looking at [Ukraine's drone] attack and thinking the risk to our arsenal from a containerized set of drones disguised as a semitrailer poses a real risk." wapo.st/4mJRALK https://wapo.st/4mJRALK04 Jun 2025 12:38 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lqrt5dg3fs2phttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lqagge4ahs2v“Some of our best recruits aren’t going to tell you what Xi Jinping thinks,” a former senior U.S. intel official said.“They work in communication departments & have access to those key systems.That’s why we target them.'' NEW: CIA faces stiff test in bid to revitalize human spying. wapo.st/4jpfaKO https://wapo.st/4jpfaKO28 May 2025 14:35 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lqagge4ahs2vhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lpmpefo7vc2pNEW: The WH has rebuffed Pegasus spyware-maker, NSO Group, which is in town this week, in its effort to get off a trade blacklist that has dented its financial fortunes. U.S. officials tell WaPo they are not seeking to get NSO off the Entity List. wapo.st/4jaClsk https://wapo.st/4jaClsk20 May 2025 18:22 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lpmpefo7vc2phttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lpeuixpuec2cTrump’s actions are pushing thousands of experts to flee government. NIH. FAA. Treasury. First round saw 75k fed workers leave. Second round could potentially hit hundreds of thousands, reports hannahnatanson.bsky.social and colleagues. wapo.st/43fc1aw https://wapo.st/43fc1aw17 May 2025 15:33 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lpeuixpuec2chttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3loy2tzp2vs2dTrump is repeatedly bypassing Netanyahu on urgent issues like Iran nuke talks, Houthi rebels conflict, hostage talks with Hamas, stoking dismay among Israelis.Trump is visiting 3 countries in the MidEast this week - Israel is not among them. WaPo's Gerry Shih reports from Jerusalem. wapo.st/4mbKn6Z https://wapo.st/4mbKn6Z12 May 2025 13:22 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3loy2tzp2vs2dhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lowk5uowws2iQatar is discussing with the Pentagon donating an aircraft for POTUS to use as his new Air Force One, an idea that ethics experts say violates the Constitution. No final agreement has been reached. Trump will visit Qatar on his Middle East trip this week. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/05/11/trump-air-force-one-qatar/11 May 2025 22:50 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lowk5uowws2ihttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3loqpuqhsuk2xNEW: How a little-known Japanese American battalion freed Jews from a Nazi death march 80 years ago. Some of the soldiers had been in relocation camps in the U.S. In Europe, they helped liberate prisoners on a Dachau death march. Their example resonates today. wapo.st/44x0Ig6 https://wapo.st/44x0Ig609 May 2025 15:17 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3loqpuqhsuk2xhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3loqb4v62fc2sJoseph Nye, who extolled ‘Soft Power,' died this week. “Seduction is always more effective than coercion,” he said in 2005. “And many of our values, such as democracy, human rights and individual opportunity, are deeply seductive.” https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/08/us/politics/joseph-nye-dead.html?unlocked_article_code=1.F08.Qsqu.TZXasWIwFcNu&smid=url-share09 May 2025 10:53 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3loqb4v62fc2shttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lojshtczk22tSCOOP by @mradamtaylor.bsky.social: Trump team urged Ukraine to take U.S. deportees, documents show --an extraordinary request of a nation at war & dependent on U.S. military & financial support. w/ Sarah Blaskey and @siobhanogrady.bsky.social wapo.st/430jcmO https://wapo.st/430jcmO06 May 2025 21:14 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lojshtczk22thttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lnw5n5jc422bNEW: FBI, security agencies using polygraphs for ‘leak’ hunts as part of what current and former officials say is a crackdown that is creating a climate of fear and intimidation -one that jeopardizes national security. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/04/28/leak-polygraph-fbi-justice-odni-dhs/29 Apr 2025 01:41 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lnw5n5jc422bhttps://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lnomucmchs27WaPo Exec Editor Matt Murray on AG Bondi's new media guidelines: "The 1st Amendment is central to our democracy & an enshrined constitutional right for all Americans.Any govt effort to subpoena reporters and their records threatens those constitutional rights for the indpt press." shorturl.at/k9YbB https://shorturl.at/k9YbB26 Apr 2025 01:52 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lnomucmchs27https://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lnokwtuwtc22The 21-year-old son of a senior CIA official and an Iraq war vetran was killed last year fighting with Russian army in Ukraine. The young man, passionate about saving the environment, struggled with mental illness. His family is devastated. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/04/25/cia-son-michael-gloss-killed-ukraine-russian-army/26 Apr 2025 01:18 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lnokwtuwtc22https://bsky.app/profile/ellenwapo.bsky.social/post/3lndnkzyzyc24It is unclear precisely when Musk will leave; his status as a special government employee is expected to expire at the end of May. He is tired of fielding what he views as a slew of nasty and unethical attacks from the political left, a source tells @hannahnatanson.bsky.social wapo.st/42H9aab https://wapo.st/42H9aab21 Apr 2025 17:06 +0000at://did:plc:gfk2bbvvis26inro73taws7q/app.bsky.feed.post/3lndnkzyzyc24