Conference Presentation, Fireside Chat, Panel
Threats Aren’t Partisan: Securing the Health and Safety of a Nation
- Representative Harmon anticipates that continued Taliban-Al-Qaeda associations and troop reductions without the Afghan government will result in "trouble ahead," while predicting that ISIS and Al-Qaeda fighters may return to the United States or Europe and that the current peace deal is flawed and prioritizes a pre-election "press release" over strategic stability.
- Harmon warns that active terrorist plotting abroad and domestically is occurring during the pandemic, and she fears a resurgence of the virus combined with "customer fatigue" and insufficient resources will leave US states unable to handle another attack or fund a major crisis response.
- Regarding the Trump administration's negotiation tactics, Harmon and Johnson describe the approach as resembling a real estate deal focused on photo opportunities without groundwork, citing previous failures with North Korea and predicting the Kim regime will not disarm without guaranteed regime survival.
- Harmon expresses concern that insufficient preparation for North Korea talks could lead to an arms race in Asia as South Korea and Japan nuclearize, while noting that gun sales increases, anxiety, and food insecurity make it difficult to suppress anger without substantive gun control.
- Both speakers predict that the current political climate will shift toward a sustained movement on racial justice, with Johnson suggesting the public is "all in" and Harmon expecting a shift in the landscape despite skepticism that Congress will resolve police force issues without local action by mayors and city councils.
- Johnson anticipates that the Lafayette Square photo op will be overshadowed by demonstrators, creating a negative visual outcome, and expects the Supreme Court rulings on LGBTQ issues and DACA, along with the military's condemnation of domestic troop deployment, to further challenge the administration.
- Johnson predicts the White House's handling of John Bolton's book review may result in Bolton forfeiting his $2 million advance due to pre-publication review violations, while also warning that the removal of U.S. Attorney Berman undermines checks and balances.
- Harmon and Johnson emphasize that threats like ISIS and the Taliban are not partisan and require bipartisanship to prevent them from spreading, with Johnson highlighting interest from figures across parties to heal the country and Harmon warning of severe security consequences if cooperation fails.