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DOGE Is Hacking America  (Bruce Schneier and Davi Ottenheimer, Foreign Policy)
The U.S. government has experienced what may be the most consequential security breach in its history.

Assessing Claims That the CIA Supports the Lab-Leak Hypothesis for COVID  (Alex Demas, The Dispatch)
The agency announced last month that it deems a research-associated origin more likely.

How Edward Snowden’s Leaks Benefited China  (Dan McKivergan, The Dispatch)
The CCP shuffled its tech and infrastructure priorities following his disclosures.

Extremists Who Were Targeted by FBI Cheer Trump MAGA Pick to Head Agency  (Ben Makuch, Guardian)
Experts warn if Kash Patel is confirmed the agency will “abandon any serious efforts to confront far-right groups.”

Senate Confirms Gabbard as Top Intelligence Official (Julian E. Barnes and Robert Jimison, New York Times)
The success of one of President Trump’s more divisive cabinet candidates shows his domination over the Republican Senate.
Her defense of Bashar al-Assad, the former Syrian dictator, and her sympathy toward President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia also gave some Republican lawmakers pause.
But in the end only one Republican was willing to oppose her. Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky and the former majority leader, voted against her.
Mr. McConnell said he voted against her because the director of national intelligence should not be someone “with a history of alarming lapses in judgment.”
“Entrusting the coordination of the intelligence community to someone who struggles to acknowledge these facts is an unnecessary risk,” he said in a statement.

Trump’ W.H.O. Exit Throws Smallpox Defenses into Upheaval  (William J. Broad, New York Times)
Health experts see his retreat from international cooperation as disrupting the safe-keepers of one of the world’s deadliest pathogens.

Ukraine Will Give U.S. Rare Earth Minerals in Exchange for “Security Shield”  (Connor Stringer, The Telegraph)
Donald Trump wants $500bn in elements for continued US support.

California’s Insurer of Last Resort Runs Out of Money to Pay L.A. Fire Claims  (Anna Phillips, Washington Post)
In the aftermath of the fires, the FAIR plan will get a $1 billion bailout —the latest indication that California’s home insurance market is on shaky footing.

At Daily Threats Meeting for Justice and FBI, Veteran Staff Are Absent  (Perry Stein and Mark Berman, Washington Post)
Trump administration shake-ups at the Justice Department and FBI have eroded continuity on national security matters, people familiar with the situation said.