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Mary Louise Kelly Mary Louise Kelly is a co-host of NPR's All Things Considered.
Mary Louise Kelly, photographed for NPR, 6 September 2022, in Washington DC. Photo by Mike Morgan for NPR.
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Mary Louise Kelly

Monday

National Security

U.S. Intelligence Officials Carry On Tradition Of Briefing Presidential Candidates

As the presidential front-runners move closer to the July conventions, they will assume the many trappings of a president, including their very own top-secret briefings. President Truman started the tradition of providing classified briefings to presidential candidates back in 1952. NPR explores how the process will unfold this summer, how much is shared with potential nominees, and the risk of a candidate leaking intelligence secrets.

U.S. Intelligence Officials Carry On Tradition Of Briefing Presidential Candidates

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Tuesday

Will An Ex-CIA Spy Go To Prison In Italy?

Sabrina De Sousa, shown here at her Washington home in 2012, is a former CIA officer who was convicted in absentia by an Italian court for the 2003 abduction of a terrorism suspect, cleric Abu Omar, in Milan, Italy. She was detained in Portugal and could be extradited to Italy. The Washington Post/Getty Images hide caption

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The Washington Post/Getty Images

Parallels

Will An Ex-CIA Spy Go To Prison In Italy?

Sabrina De Sousa could become the first U.S. official jailed for the CIA's rendition program. She was convicted of helping seize a radical Muslim cleric from the streets of Milan in 2003.

Will An Ex-CIA Spy Go To Prison In Italy?

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Thursday

National Security

Is There Evidence Of Saudi Deception In The Sept. 11 Report?

What do we know concerning Saudi Arabia's alleged involvement in the Sept. 11 attacks, and when may the report's 28 classified pages be made public?

Is There Evidence Of Saudi Deception In The Sept. 11 Report?

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Monday

National Security

ISIS Uses Cyber Capabilities To Attack The U.S. Online

The U.S. and the West aren't the only ones operating on the cyber-battlefield in the war with ISIS. The terror group has cyber-capabilities of its own. NPR takes a look at these capabilities and explores how they play into the larger expansion of cyber-strike and counter-strike throughout the Middle East.

ISIS Uses Cyber Capabilities To Attack The U.S. Online

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Saturday

CIA Veterans Gather To Honor Duane Clarridge, A Sometimes Unsubtle Spy

Duane "Dewey" Clarridge, a CIA veteran, speaks in May 2007 during an Arkansas Committee on Foreign Relations luncheon in Little Rock, Ark. The retired spy criticized the CIA's leadership and said a lack of human intelligence had led to mistakes in Iraq, Iran and North Korea. Mike Wintroath/AP hide caption

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Mike Wintroath/AP

The Two-Way

CIA Veterans Gather To Honor Duane Clarridge, A Sometimes Unsubtle Spy

Clarridge, who headed up the agency's anti-communist efforts in Central America in the 1980s and was indicted and pardoned in the Iran-Contra scandal, died April 9.

Wednesday

Rules For Cyberwarfare Still Unclear, Even As U.S. Engages In It

U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, shown here at the Pentagon in March, has said the "new breed of warrior" — cyberwarriors — will be expected to fight just as hard as their colleagues on conventional battlefields. Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

Parallels

Rules For Cyberwarfare Still Unclear, Even As U.S. Engages In It

President Obama has confirmed the U.S. is conducting cyber operations to disrupt ISIS. The Pentagon officially recognizes cyberspace as the fifth domain of warfare — after land, sea, air and space.

Rules For Cyberwarfare Still Unclear, Even As U.S. Engages In It

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Wednesday

National Security

U.S.-Led Campaign Claws Back Turf From ISIS

President Obama convenes his National Security Council at CIA Headquarters on Wednesday. On the agenda: how to defeat ISIS, how to advance peace in Syria and how to achieve those two goals quickly.

U.S.-Led Campaign Claws Back Turf From ISIS

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Monday

National Security

Director John Brennan Says CIA Will Not Torture Terror Suspects Again

CIA Director John Brennan says in a new interview that if he were ordered to torture detainees today — as presidential candidate Donald Trump said he would order if elected — Brennan and the agency would not comply. NPR explores the difficult legacy for Brennan and other intelligence officers of the George W. Bush-era actions by the CIA.

Director John Brennan Says CIA Will Not Torture Terror Suspects Again

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Monday

Law

Supreme Court Upholds 'One Person, One Vote' Standard

The challenge to the longstanding definition argued that only people who are eligible to vote should count in drawing voting district lines and other government purposes. The court was unanimous.

Supreme Court Upholds 'One Person, One Vote' Standard

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Sunday

World

Parsing A Keystone Phrase In A Controversial Deal: 'Safe Third Country'

The phrase "safe third country" is part of a European Union deal that will send refugees to Turkey starting Monday. NPR's Peter Kenyon discusses what the phrase means.

Parsing A Keystone Phrase In A Controversial Deal: 'Safe Third Country'

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Politics

Next Stop, Wisconsin: Front-Runners Face Speed Bumps In Next Primary

Both Republican and Democratic primaries are being held in Wisconsin on Tuesday. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton face different kinds of challenges in the state to maintain their leads.

Next Stop, Wisconsin: Front-Runners Face Speed Bumps In Next Primary

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Culture

#NPRpoetry, Part Deux: Listeners Bare Their Souls In Stanzas

April is National Poetry Month. And the audience is sending All Things Considered original poems in 140 characters or less on Twitter. Here's an update from the curators who have been reading along.

#NPRpoetry, Part Deux: Listeners Bare Their Souls In Stanzas

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Wednesday

NSA: Fallout From Snowden Leaks Isn't Over, But Info Is Getting Old

Former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden spoke via video conference at the Johns Hopkins University auditorium in Baltimore Feb. 17. Juliet Linderman/AP hide caption

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Juliet Linderman/AP

Parallels

NSA: Fallout From Snowden Leaks Isn't Over, But Info Is Getting Old

The National Security Agency's deputy director tells NPR he expects "other shoes to drop" from ex-contractor Edward Snowden's revelations. But "things have changed a lot" since the leaks, he says.

NSA: Fallout From Snowden Leaks Isn't Over, But Info Is Getting Old

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Friday

National Security

Former Vladimir Putin Ally Died From 'Blunt Force Trauma,' Police Say

Police say a one-time ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, found dead in a Washington, D.C., hotel last fall, was killed by "blunt force trauma." Who was Mikhail Lesin, founder of the pro-Kremlin RT network, and what could his death mean in the context of today's muscular conduct by Moscow around the world?

Former Vladimir Putin Ally Died From 'Blunt Force Trauma,' Police Say

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Thursday

Spy Vs. Spies: Why Deciphering Putin Is So Hard For U.S. Intelligence

Russia's Vladimir Putin makes a speech in 2009 after receiving an award in Dresden, Germany, where he served as a KGB officer during the Cold War. Norbert Millauer/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Norbert Millauer/AFP/Getty Images

Parallels

Spy Vs. Spies: Why Deciphering Putin Is So Hard For U.S. Intelligence

How do you spy on a country when decision-making is concentrated in the mind of one man? U.S. spooks' traditional tools — from NSA intercepts to satellite imagery to espionage — are coming up short.

Spy Vs. Spies: Why Deciphering Putin Is So Hard For U.S. Intelligence

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