Kori Schake
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kschake.bsky.social
Kori Schake
@kschake.bsky.social

Leads AEI’s foreign and defense team, author of The State and the Soldier, contributing writer at The Atlantic. 2025-2026 Kissinger Chair at the Library of Congress. Californian. https://www.aei.org/profile/kori-schake/

Kori N. Schake is an American international relations scholar currently serving as Director of Foreign and Defense Policy at the American Enterprise Institute. She has held several high-level positions in the U.S. Defense and State Departments and on the National Security Council. She was a foreign policy adviser to the McCain-Palin 2008 presidential campaign. Schake is a contributing writer at The Atlantic. She serves on the board of advisors of Foreign Policy Research Institute and the Alexander Hamilton Society. Schake is a member of the Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee. .. more

Political science 84%
Economics 10%
Pinned
I just received my first copy of the book!

Reposted by Kori Schake

"By which the world may know, that so far as we approve of monarchy, that in America the law is king."

@lmchervinsky.bsky.social and I dive into the origins and meanings of Thomas Paine's Common Sense at 250 for @inpursuitusa.bsky.social

Watch Now: youtu.be/6cB7BljBWJw?...
The number of ways this is unconstitutional lunacy
is…a lot
Trump on Venezuela oil:

Reposted by Kori Schake

I believe Jim Mattis had a letter of reprimand in his USMC file at nearly every rank he held. I expect Hegseth’s letter of reprimand to be a similar credit to Senator Kelley’s record. It’s still terrible for SecDef attempting to penalize obviously protected political speech.

Reposted by Kori Schake

Pentagon will begin review of 'effectiveness' of women in ground combat positions www.npr.org/2026/01/06/n...
Pentagon will begin review of 'effectiveness' of women in ground combat positions
The review, outlined in a Pentagon memo obtained by NPR, comes after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told admirals and generals in September that women must meet the "highest male standard."
www.npr.org

A sobering and important set of reflections from the good and great @philklay.bsky.social
Do I think all that will happen in Venezuela? No. I have no idea. But those spiking the football should remember that when we use our military and roll the dice with the fate of nations, the consequences play out in a much longer time frame than social media trends.

Reposted by Kori Schake

Noting the current mood, I’ll re-share this piece I wrote back in February 2025 on European NATO without the USA. The points still stand firm despite developments.

crackingdefence.substack.com/p/nato-witho...
NATO without the USA?
A discussion on European defence without American power
crackingdefence.substack.com

Reposted by Kori Schake

some people love quoting "the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must." That was Athens saying that at the height of its empire. Few of those people seem to remember what happened to Athens the very next year.

Reposted by Kori Schake

Do I think all that will happen in Venezuela? No. I have no idea. But those spiking the football should remember that when we use our military and roll the dice with the fate of nations, the consequences play out in a much longer time frame than social media trends.

Reposted by Kori Schake

Reposted by Kori Schake

"America’s greatest successes after the second world war came not from extracting resources from #Europe or Japan, but from providing public goods." www.economist.com/by-invitatio...
Peace and prosperity in Venezuela will come from democracy, not oil, writes Ricardo Hausmann
Wishing otherwise, as Donald Trump does, is delusional
www.economist.com
Joint Statement of major EU/NATO countries on Greenland, together with Denmark:
I’ll never forget the blackshirts who attacked our Capitol and its honorable police officers, five years ago.

Their mass pardon, as friends and collaborators, is the opposite of Conservative and will endure as a historic atrocity against American ideals.

Reposted by Brendan Nyhan

Smart piece by @hoanssolo.bsky.social: "the raid’s very success poses a strategic danger: It reinforces a U.S. military culture excessively focused on precision strikes and special operations raids."

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The Maduro raid reinforces a U.S. strategic culture favoring quick tactical fixes over long-term planning.
The Venezuela Raid Is Great TV—but Won’t Win America’s Next War
Donald Trump’s obsession with quick strikes and flashy successes is bad news for military readiness.
foreignpolicy.com

Reposted by Kori Schake

Let’s say there was covert-action finding encouraging regime-change in Iran. If you were part of the Iranian opposition, would you trust the US to support you in any substantial way whatsoever down the road? The IRGC could just “do a deal” to gave the US access to Iranian natural resources.
So there was a deal: “Rodríguez, a canny political operator, was envisaged as head of a transitional government in secret talks that her politician brother, Jorge, led with Washington last year about a post-Maduro future.”
The woman with Donald Trump’s nod to lead Venezuela
Washington has built its transition plans around vice-president Delcy Rodríguez, a canny operator close to the oil industry
www.ft.com

I can’t think of a case in which DOD invoked the UCMJ against a retired officer, & there are many instances of dangerous behavior (Mike Flynn inciting violence or impugning elections) where it might be appropriate. Attempting to penalize anodyne speech by a sitting Senator is not one of those cases.
NEW: Sen. Mark Kelly RESPONDS to Pete Hegseth for censuring him, cutting his military pension, threatening to demote his rank, and warning of possible criminal prosecution for telling soldiers to obey their oath.
NEW: Sen. Mark Kelly RESPONDS to Pete Hegseth for censuring him, cutting his military pension, threatening to demote his rank, and warning of possible criminal prosecution for telling soldiers to obey their oath.

Reposted by Kori Schake

The US President’s goal of invading and occupying a NATO ally will destroy NATO.

The gift to the Put*n regime is immeasurable; the harm to both Conservative and Liberal Americans will be permanent.
It's wild that the PM of a NATO member feels compelled to put out a statement like this vis-à-vis the US government.

Another smart assessment of civ-mil issues from @eustisbellusaf.bsky.social
The US military doesn't exist to be a restraint on the civil government. The kinds of militaries that do aren't found in free societies. By starting with civilian control of the military, the onus for responsible control is always on those civilians. Those civilians must be held accountable. 14/x

Reposted by Kori Schake

The US military doesn't exist to be a restraint on the civil government. The kinds of militaries that do aren't found in free societies. By starting with civilian control of the military, the onus for responsible control is always on those civilians. Those civilians must be held accountable. 14/x

Important thread from @uticaeric.bsky.social, who walked the walk.

Reposted by Kori Schake

In summary, status quo ante and status quo are sometimes victories because the only place to go from the top is down.
It's wild that the PM of a NATO member feels compelled to put out a statement like this vis-à-vis the US government.

Reposted by Kori Schake

Germany’s foreign intelligence agency (BND) intercepted phone conversations of former President Barack Obama while he was aboard Air Force One over several years. The interceptions exploited vulnerabilities in the aircraft’s encryption and known frequencies.

www.zeit.de/politik/ausl...
Spionage: BND hörte jahrelang US-Präsident Barack Obama ab
Der deutsche Geheimdienst überwachte regelmäßig Telefonate des damaligen US-Präsidenten an Bord der Air Force One. Erlaubnis von Angela Merkel hatte der BND nicht.
www.zeit.de

Reposted by Kori Schake

But they don’t know what orders are illegal and which aren’t. If everything flows from that fact, everything falls apart.

Reposted by Kori Schake