Author Archive
Kevin Baron
Executive Editor
Kevin Baron is the founding executive editor of Defense One. Baron has lived in Washington for more than 20 years, covering international affairs, the military, the Pentagon, Congress, and politics for Foreign Policy, National Journal, Stars and Stripes, and the Boston Globe, where he ran investigative projects for five years at the Washington bureau. He is a frequent on-air contributor and previously was national security/military analyst at NBC News & MSNBC. Baron cut his muckraking teeth at the Center for Public Integrity and he is twice a Polk Award winner and a former vice president of the Pentagon Press Association. A member of the Council on Foreign Relations, Baron earned his M.A. in media and public affairs from George Washington University, B.A. in international studies from the University of Richmond, and studied in Paris. Raised in Florida, Baron now lives in Northern Virginia.
Kevin Baron is the founding executive editor of Defense One. Baron has lived in Washington for more than 20 years, covering international affairs, the military, the Pentagon, Congress, and politics for Foreign Policy, National Journal, Stars and Stripes, and the Boston Globe, where he ran investigative projects for five years at the Washington bureau. He is a frequent on-air contributor and previously was national security/military analyst at NBC News & MSNBC. Baron cut his muckraking teeth at the Center for Public Integrity and he is twice a Polk Award winner and a former vice president of the Pentagon Press Association. A member of the Council on Foreign Relations, Baron earned his M.A. in media and public affairs from George Washington University, B.A. in international studies from the University of Richmond, and studied in Paris. Raised in Florida, Baron now lives in Northern Virginia.
Defense
Biden Orders New Review of Sexual Assault Policies in Military
Combatant commanders are to send plans and best practices within two weeks.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
Purity Tested, Senators Confirm General Austin for Secretary of Defense
With little actual opposition in the end, members voted for the waiver and the man.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
Viewpoint: Pentagon Won’t Throw Traditional Farewell Ceremony for Trump
It’s a shame, and a missed opportunity — not despite recent events but because of them.
- Kevin Baron
Management
Viewpoint: This is Not a Coup
The mob riot on the Capitol Building was disgusting, violent, and deadly. It’s still not a coup. And that matters.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
Biden Selects Retired Gen. Lloyd Austin for Defense Secretary, Reportedly
Austin, the last commander of the Iraq War, would be the nation's first Black defense secretary.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
As Spotlight Fades, What's Next for Special Operators?
Under Trump, the Pentagon's "service secretary" in charge of special operation forces has changed hands eight times between seven people.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
Viewpoint: The Danger of Treating National Security Like a Political Sideshow
Monday was a dangerous day.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
From Racism to Russia, Top General Says Army Must Change
Gen. McConville addressed the nation’s internal unrest, trust of the military, even QAnon, in a wide-ranging interview with Defense One.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
Service Chiefs Acknowledge Racism in the Ranks, Pledge Dialogue, Change
After days of civil unrest and several Esper missteps, each one of the service branch chiefs has begun to speak out.
- Kevin Baron, Marcus Weisgerber and Bradley Peniston
Defense
62% Disapprove of Trump’s Coronavirus Response, Reader Survey Finds
Most respondents feel “less safe” because of the president’s actions. Esper gets higher marks, but many fear premature reopening.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
Aircraft Carrier Captain Fired For ‘Poor Judgement’ In Sending Coronavirus Letter
Acting Secretary Modly’s Thursday decision to sack the skipper of Theodore Roosevelt was quickly criticized as retaliation for embarrassing Navy leaders.
- Kevin Baron and Bradley Peniston
Defense
Pentagon Bars Most Guests, Travelers Starting Monday
New restrictions apply to visitors, foreigners, ceremonies. International travelers must wait 14 days for entry.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
General Takes Blame for ‘No Injuries’ Declaration After Jan. 8 Iran Strike
“I was never under any pressure at any time to shade this reporting,” CENTCOM’s Gen. Frank McKenzie told Congress. More than 100 troops later were diagnosed with TBI.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
Now It's 64. Wounded Troop Tally from Iran Missile Strike Rises Again
Trump “understands the nature” of brain injuries, says Defense Secretary Esper after the president downplayed Americans’ wounds as not “serious.”
- Kevin Baron
Defense
Eleven U.S. Troops Were Injured in Jan. 8 Iran Missile Strike
The troops were medevaced this week to Germany and Kuwait to be treated for traumatic brain injury after experiencing concussion symptoms.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
Pentagon Vows to Guard the Syrian Oil That Trump Wants to Seize
That includes warding off Syrian and Russian forces, SecDef Esper says, with murky justification under domestic and international law.
- Kevin Baron and Katie Bo Williams
Defense
ISIS Leader Baghdadi Killed Himself During U.S. Special Ops Raid, Trump Confirms
Trump claims, against the evidence, that killing Baghdadi was administration's "top national security priority."
- Kevin Baron and Katie Bo Williams
Defense
Trump Declares Victory in Syria, Claims Credit for It All
“Let someone else fight over this long-bloodstained sand,” the president says, as Congress fumes.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
Viewpoint: The Mattis Two-Step
The forever general’s attempt to "stay out of politics" is bringing him right into it.
- Kevin Baron
Defense
General’s Sexual Assault Accuser Was Deemed a ‘Toxic, Self-Centered Abuser,’ New Docs Reveal
Hundreds of previously unseen pages of two investigations paint Army Col. Kathryn Spletstoser as an abusive coworker with motive for revenge against Gen. John Hyten.
- Kevin Baron and Marcus Weisgerber