Today's Headlines and Commentary

In a sentencing memo released Tuesday night, Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office said that former national security adviser Michael Flynn should receive little to no prison time for lying to the FBI due to his cooperation with Mueller’s investigation into the Trump campaign’s potential collusion with Russia and record of service, reports the New York Times.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that the Trump administration would commence withdrawal from the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty within 60 days unless Russia resumes compliance with the treaty, says the Times.

Russian President Vladimir Putin alluded to the prospect of an arms race with the United States if Washington withdraws from the INF treaty, says the Wall Street Journal. Putin indicated in a speech on Wednesday that Moscow would follow through on the development of shorter and intermediate range missiles if the U.S. sought to do so as well.

Rep. Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said that President Trump’s Tuesday tweets praising Roger Stone for refusing to testify against him amount to obstruction of justice, reports the Washington Post.

A Turkish court issued arrest warrants on Wednesday for two aides of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman who are accused of murdering Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, says the Post. The aides are currently in Saudi Arabia, and it is unlikely that Riyadh will surrender them to Ankara.

Bill Priestap, the current assistant director of the FBI’s counterintelligence division, will retire from government service before the end of the year, according to the Journal.

ICYMI:Yesterday on Lawfare

Arthur P.B. Laudrain assessed French President Emmanuel Macron’s new “Paris Call for Trust and Security in Cyberspace.”

J. Dana Stuster posted this week’s Middle East Ticker on CIA director Gina Haspel’s testimony to the Senate about murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, peace talks in Yemen, Qatar’s departure from OPEC and the fraud and corruption charges against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Jack Goldsmith shared the Winter 2018 Supplement for Bradley & Goldsmith, Foreign Relations Law: Cases and Materials.

Gabriel Schoenfeld reviewed David Preiss’s new book, “How to Get Rid of a President: History’s Guide to Removing Unpopular, Unable, or Unfit Chief Executives.”

Robert Chesney shared a revised version of his “open source” syllabus on a new course on cybersecurity law and policy.

Quinta Jurecic shared the special counsel’s sentencing memo for Michael Flynn. Jurecic also shared the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia’s denial of a request to stay injunction in the transgender servicemember case.

Jen Patja Howell posted a new episode of the Lawfare Podcast, which featured a conversation between Jim Baker, Cindy Cohn, Adam Ingle and Ian Levy on encryption, surveillance, and law enforcement capabilities.

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