Ezra Cohen Explained

Ezra Cohen
Office:Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence
Status:Acting
President:Donald Trump
Term Start:November 10, 2020
Term End:January 20, 2021
Predecessor:Joseph D. Kernan
Successor:David M. Taylor (Acting)
Office1:Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict
Status1:Acting
President1:Donald Trump
Term Start1:August 10, 2020
Term End1:November 10, 2020
Predecessor1:Christopher C. Miller (acting)
Successor1:Joseph Tonon (Acting)
Birth Name:Ezra Cohen-Watnick
Party:Republican
Spouse:Rebecca Miller
Education:University of Pennsylvania (BA)
University of Chicago (JD)

Ezra Cohen, also known as Ezra Cohen-Watnick, is an American intelligence official who served as the acting under secretary of defense for intelligence during the Trump Administration. He previously served as the acting assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict, national security adviser to the United States attorney general and as a former senior director for intelligence programs for the United States National Security Council (NSC).[1]

Early life and education

Cohen was raised in Chevy Chase, Maryland. His father was a lawyer, his mother a doctor. Cohen earned a Bachelor of Arts in history and political science from the University of Pennsylvania and a Juris Doctor from the University of Chicago.[2] [3]

Career

Cohen took a position at the Office of Naval Intelligence after graduation.[4] [5] Before joining the White House, Cohen worked for the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), beginning in 2010, where he served in Miami, Haiti, Virginia and Afghanistan. Cohen was accepted into the training program for the Defense Clandestine Service.

Cohen underwent training at Camp Peary (commonly known as "The Farm"), where he was trained by the Central Intelligence Agency. He was assigned to Afghanistan, with a GS-13 rank.[6] He was temporarily assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency Headquarters in 2014. Cohen left the DIA for the National Security Council on January 20, 2017.

National Security Council

Cohen was brought into the United States National Security Council by Michael T. Flynn, the former Director of the Defense Intelligence Agency and President Donald Trump's first National Security Advisor. He was named the NSC's Senior Director for Intelligence Programs.[7] This directorship was intermittently held by detailed CIA officers. Like Cohen, the immediate preceding Senior Director from the Obama Administration was a political appointee.[8] [9] Some viewed Cohen's appointment as a sign of Trump's mistrust of the CIA.[10]

Following Flynn's resignation in February 2017, the new National Security Advisor, H. R. McMaster, attempted to remove Cohen, but he was overruled by Trump.[11] McMaster attempted to replace Cohen with veteran CIA official Linda Weissgold.[12]

It is alleged that Cohen inadvertently identified reports suggesting that members of Trump's campaign team had been subjected to incidental surveillance by the United States intelligence community, as part of an unrelated review of privacy procedures.[13] This information was passed on to Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee Devin Nunes by Assistant White House Counsel Michael Ellis.[14] [15]

It has been reported that Cohen has advocated using the American intelligence community to overthrow the current Iranian government.[16]

The White House announced Cohen's dismissal on August 2, 2017, following policy disagreements with National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster over Afghanistan, Iran, and Intelligence Oversight.[17] [18] [19] According to The Washington Post, Cohen resigned following a power shift under McMaster.[20] Upon Cohen departure, the White House commented that "General McMaster appreciates the good work accomplished in the NSC's Intelligence directorate under Ezra Cohen's leadership... General McMaster is confident that Ezra will make many further significant contributions to national security in another position in the administration."[21] [22]

In late September 2017, Cohen was reportedly succeeded by Michael Barry.[23]

Support for counterintelligence initiatives

In May 2017, Cohen and the FBI assistant director for counterintelligence reportedly advocated for strong law enforcement actions against Chinese government officials conducting operations targeting Chinese dissidents and asylum seekers inside the United States, against objections from Acting Assistant Secretary of State Susan Thornton. Cohen reportedly charged Thornton with "improperly hindering law-enforcement efforts to address China's repeated violations of U.S. sovereignty and law."[24]

On December 25, 2017, The Washington Post reported that in the weeks before Trump's inauguration, Brett Holmgren, Cohen's predecessor in the Obama White House, briefed Cohen on the actions the Obama Administration had taken to counter Russian active measures. Once in the job, Cohen sent out memos identifying counterintelligence threats, including Russia's, as his top priority, officials said. He convened regular meetings in the White House Situation Room at which he pressed counterintelligence officials in other government agencies, including the CIA, to finalize plans for Russia, including those left behind by the Obama team, according to officials in attendance. By spring, national security adviser H. R. McMaster, senior White House Russia adviser Fiona Hill and Cohen began advocating measures to counter Russian disinformation using covert influence and cyber-operations, according to officials.[25]

Justice Department

In April 2018, he rejoined the Trump administration in the United States Department of Justice, advising then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions on counterterrorism and counterintelligence.[26]

Defense Department

In May 2020, Cohen was appointed as deputy assistant secretary of defense for counternarcotics and global threats.[27] [28] By September 2020, he had been promoted to acting assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict.[29] [30] On November 10, 2020, President Trump relieved a number of senior defense officials including Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, and Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence Joseph Kernen resigned in anticipation.[31] Trump appointed Cohen to fill the role as acting undersecretary[32] with principal deputy Joseph Tonon assuming the day-to-day duties of the role of ASD SO/LIC.[33]

In December 2020, Cohen was appointed by Trump to chair the Public Interest Declassification Board.[34] He continued serving into Joe Biden's presidency.[35]

Personal life

Cohen is a member of the Union League of Philadelphia, a Republican-leaning patriotic society.[36] He married Rebecca Miller, who served as deputy assistant secretary for public affairs at the Treasury Department, in November 2016, in a Jewish ceremony.[37] [38]

Some adherents of the QAnon conspiracy theory believed Cohen to be the eponymous "Q", a belief Cohen said he found disturbing. In a January 2021 interview, he criticized the Trump administration for not doing more to delegitimize QAnon.[39]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Ezra Cohen > U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE > Biography . www.defense.gov . October 31, 2020.
  2. Web site: Gray. Rosie. July 24, 2017. The Man McMaster Couldn't Fire. September 24, 2021. The Atlantic. en.
  3. Web site: 2016-08-15 . Public Interest Declassification Board (PIDB) - Members . 2023-06-05 . National Archives . en.
  4. Web site: https://web.archive.org/web/20100626225304/http://www.archives.upenn.edu/primdocs/upg/upg7/upg7_2008.pdf . June 26, 2010 . Bachelor of Arts [...] Ezra A. Cohen-Watnick . 21 . 2008 Commencement Program . . March 30, 2017.
  5. Web site: Office of Naval Intelligence: S'08 Burr, Kyle; Fleming; Kate; Mendel, Jordan; Stewart, Jessica; Tavana, Daniel; S'07 Cohen, Ezra; Hsu, Kimberly . Office of Naval Intelligence Penn in Washington. . The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania . April 6, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170406190222/https://piw.sas.upenn.edu/content/office-naval-intelligence . April 6, 2017.
  6. News: Cohen-Watnick: Inside the Rise of Trump's Invisible Man in the White House. Stein. Jeff. April 13, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170421225027/http://www.newsweek.com/ezra-cohen-watnick-donald-trump-devin-nunes-russia-barack-obama-wiretap-susan-583904. April 21, 2017. Newsweek.
  7. News: McMaster Interviewed CIA Operative to Replace Trump NSC Official . . The current NSC official is Ezra Cohen-Watnick, a 30-year-old former intelligence operations officer with the Defense Intelligence Agency who was brought into the Trump White House by the former DIA director, Mike Flynn. Flynn resigned as national security advisor last month. Like Flynn, Cohen-Watnick has been critical of the CIA's perceived politicization during the Obama administration. . Michael . Warren . March 31, 2017 . March 16, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170316120445/http://www.weeklystandard.com/mcmaster-interviewed-cia-operative-to-replace-trump-nsc-official/article/2007219 . dead .
  8. Web site: Brett Holmgren. trumanproject.org. en-US. May 29, 2017. June 5, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170605054439/http://trumanproject.org/home/team-view/brett-holmgren/. dead.
  9. Donilon out, Rice in; POGO releases draft IG report on Panetta, ZD30; Well, that went well: chiefs exasperate senators during sexual assault hearing; Brett Holmgren is a TSA for Ash; PowerPoints gone wild; And a bit more.. . May 29, 2017.
  10. Moran . Christopher R. . Aldrich . Richard J. . April 24, 2017 . Trump and the CIA . . April 24, 2017 .
  11. News: The Man McMaster Couldn't Fire . . Rosie . Gray . July 23, 2017 . July 24, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170724023354/https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/07/ezra-cohen-watnick/534615/ . live.
  12. News: McMaster Interviewed CIA Operative to Replace Trump NSC Official. March 16, 2017. The Weekly Standard. May 29, 2017. March 16, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170316120445/http://www.weeklystandard.com/mcmaster-interviewed-cia-operative-to-replace-trump-nsc-official/article/2007219. dead.
  13. News: Obama aide denies using intel to spy on Trump advisers. AP News. Associated Press. May 29, 2017. April 4, 2017. en-US.
  14. News: Trump removes Bannon from National Security Council. AP News. Associated Press. February 13, 2018. April 5, 2017. en-US.
  15. News: Three White House officials tied to files shared with House intelligence chairman . The Washington Post . https://web.archive.org/web/20170331005320/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/three-white-house-officials-tied-to-files-shared-with-house-intelligence-chairman/2017/03/30/de4b8c30-1589-11e7-9e4f-09aa75d3ec57_story.html . March 31, 2017 . March 30, 2017 . Greg . Miller . Karen . DeYoung . live.
  16. News: And Ezra Cohen-Watnick, the council's senior director for intelligence—the main White House liaison to intelligence agencies—has told other administration officials that he wants to use American spies to help oust the Iranian government, according to multiple defense and intelligence officials. . C.I.A. Names New Iran Chief in a Sign of Trump's Hard Line . . Matthew . Rosenberg . Adam . Goldman . June 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170602174554/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/02/world/middleeast/cia-iran-dark-prince-michael-dandrea.html . June 2, 2017.
  17. News: Top Intelligence Official on National Security Council Is Out. Groll. Elias. August 2, 2017. Foreign Policy. McLaughlin. Jenna.
  18. News: H.R. McMaster Cleans House at the National Security Council. August 2, 2017. The Atlantic.
  19. News: Flynn holdover Cohen-Watnick removed from Nat'l Security Council. August 3, 2017. United Press International.
  20. News: Analysis Thirty-seven administration officials who've resigned or been fired under Trump. Bump. Philip. February 8, 2018. The Washington Post. February 13, 2018. en-US. 0190-8286.
  21. News: Gray . Rosie . H.R. McMaster Cleans House at the National Security Council . September 17, 2022 . . August 2, 2017 . en.
  22. News: Johnson . Eliana . Toosi . Nahal . Watkins . Ali . McMaster dismisses another Flynn hire from National Security Council . September 17, 2022 . . August 2, 2017 . en.
  23. News: CIA Officer Joins NSC Staff As Agency Vows To Be More "Vicious". BuzzFeed. January 3, 2018. en.
  24. News: China's Pursuit of Fugitive Businessman Guo Wengui Kicks Off Manhattan Caper Worthy of Spy Thriller. O'Keeffe. Kate. October 23, 2017. The Wall Street Journal. December 17, 2017. Viswanatha. Aruna. en-US. 0099-9660. Podkul. Cezary.
  25. News: Kremlin trolls burned across the Internet as Washington debated options. Entous. Adam. December 25, 2017. The Washington Post. January 3, 2018. Nakashima. Ellen. en-US. 0190-8286. Jaffe. Greg.
  26. News: Trump National Security Aide Ousted From White House Re-emerges at Justice Dept.. Goldman. Adam. April 11, 2018. The New York Times. April 11, 2018. en-US. 0362-4331.
  27. News: Aide Ousted From White House Reappears Again in Administration Job . Helene . Cooper . May 11, 2020 . The New York Times.
  28. News: Jennifer . Jacobs . Anthony . Capaccio . Ex-Trump Security Aide Who Left in Controversy Rejoins Pentagon . Bloomberg . May 11, 2020 . May 13, 2020.
  29. News: Agenda . October 1, 2020 . . https://web.archive.org/web/20201002000713/https://www.ndia.org/events/2020/10/2/2020-virtual-solic/agenda . October 2, 2020.
  30. 1309852758531604480 . Paul . McLeary . September 26, 2020 . Remember Ezra Cohen-Watnick? He landed as DoD's acting (unconfirmed) secretary for Special Operations, and he's speaking at a Special Ops conference Friday. https://ndia.org/events/2020/10/2/2020-virtual-solic/agenda . paulmcleary.
  31. News: Macias . Amanda . Trump loyalists elevated to powerful roles at the Pentagon after firing of Defense Secretary Esper . November 11, 2020 . CNBC . November 10, 2020 . en.
  32. News: Mehta . Aaron . November 10, 2020 . Top policy, intelligence civilians resign amid Pentagon shakeup . November 11, 2020 . Defense News . en-US.
  33. Web site: Altman. Meghann Myers, Howard. November 19, 2020. Pentagon shakeup means more civilian oversight for special operations. November 30, 2020. Military Times. en-US.
  34. News: . Trump nominates Hope Hicks, Ric Grenell to government posts . Nick . Niedzwiadek . December 22, 2020 . Trump also tapped Ezra Cohen-Watnick, the acting undersecretary of Defense for intelligence and security, to chair the Public Interest Declassification Board..
  35. Web site: Bender . Bryan . How a former Trump aide is pressing Biden to loosen national security secrets . September 29, 2021 . . October 24, 2021.
  36. Web site: Ezra A. Cohen-Watnick . Banner . 15 . . June 2012 . 22 . 7 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170330230429/http://www.unionleague.org/files/webbannerspecial0612c.pdf . March 30, 2017.
  37. News: Report: Trump overrules national security adviser in order to keep NSC aide Cohen-Watnick . . March 15, 2017 . March 30, 2017 . Cohen-Watnick celebrated his engagement to Rebecca Miller in November at Ohr Kodesh Congregation, a Conservative synagogue outside Washington, D.C., according to a synagogue newsletter. . https://web.archive.org/web/20170330204014/http://www.jta.org/2017/03/15/news-opinion/politics/report-trump-overrules-national-security-adviser-in-order-to-keep-jewish-nsc-aide . March 30, 2017.
  38. . Meet Ezra Cohen-Watnick, The Secret Source At The Center Of Trump Russia Probe . Nathan . Guttman . March 30, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170330231153/http://forward.com/news/367690/meet-ezra-cohen-watnick-the-secret-source-at-the-center-of-trump-russia-pro/ . March 30, 2017 . Cohen-Watnick grew up in Chevy Chase, Maryland, just outside the nation's capital and attended the nearby Conservative synagogue Ohr Kodesh. Last November he celebrated his engagement to Rebecca Miller at the synagogue..
  39. News: 'Are you QAnon?': One Trump official's brush with an internet cult gone horribly wrong . June 15, 2021 . January 19, 2021 . Politico . en.

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