The Debate: What Cipher Brief Experts Want To Hear from Biden and Trump

SUBSCRIBER+ EXCLUSIVE — As the first 2024 US presidential debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump approaches (a debate that may prove to be one of the most consequential showdowns of this unusual campaign) The Cipher Brief wanted to know what was top of mind for our network of national and global security experts. Many of them have served in positions that report directly to the president, others have spent their careers working undercover in difficult locations around the world, some have led analysis efforts that inform policy makers and others have served as deep subject matter experts on the regions of the world that matter most right now.

We asked all of them what issues they thought were most important in today’s complicated global security environment and in particular, in this debate. Their answers – collectively – tell us what’s top of mind for some of the most experienced national security experts in the world, and what they are looking to hear from the candidates vying to serve as the next president of the United States.