Documentary filmmakers understand the power of moving images and the candid moment.

Call it the revenge of the nerds, Washington-style. The gun-toting F.B.I. agent and the swashbuckling C.I.A. undercover officer are being increasingly called upon to share their clout, their budgets and even their Hollywood glamour with the humble, desk-bound intelligence analyst.

In both wars and nation building, America has sacrificed the good to pursue the perfect. We need to temper our ambitions.

Last week I explained how the Obama administration might extend it constitutional arguments for disregarding statutory detainee transfer restrictions in the Bergdahl context to the restrictions on transferring GTMO detainees to the United States.

The Pentagon may need reforms, but return to conscription? That would be double marching in the wrong direction.

General Jim Mattis on what US fighting forces need most: a clear mission and clear goals.

David Scharia is an Israeli national security lawyer with experience prosecuting Israeli terrorism cases before the Israeli courts, including service on the Attorney General of Israel’s legal staff.

A retired four-star Marine Corps general on the clarifying effect of combat experience, the poison of cynicism and how veterans can help revive American optimism.

In a recent New York Times opinion piece, “Where Terrorism Research Goes Wrong,” social psychologist Anthony Biglan argues that, given the importance of antiterrorism programs and the huge resources devoted to them, far too few are subjected to randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating their efficacy.

Co-Authors: Eli Berman, Jacob N. Shapiro, Ethan B. Kapstein