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Home / People / Daniel Davis
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Land power, Afghanistan, Asia, China, Combat planning and operations, Counterterrorism, Grand strategy, Israel-Hamas, Israel-Iran, Middle East, Military analysis, NATO, North Korea, Syria, and Ukraine-Russia

Daniel Davis

Senior Fellow & Military Expert

Daniel L. Davis is a senior fellow and military expert at Defense Priorities.

Davis retired from the U.S. Army as a Lt. Col. after 21 years of active service. He was deployed into combat zones four times in his career: Operation Desert Storm in 1991, Iraq in 2009, and Afghanistan twice (2005, 2011). Davis was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for Valor at the Battle of 73 Easting in 1991 and awarded a Bronze Star Medal in Afghanistan in 2011. He is the author of The Eleventh Hour in 2020 America. Davis gained some national notoriety in 2012 when he returned from Afghanistan and published a report detailing how senior U.S. military and civilian leaders told the American public and Congress the war was going well while, in reality, it was headed to defeat. Events since confirmed his analysis was correct. His work on defense and foreign affairs has been published in The Washington Post, The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, USA TODAY, CNN, Fox News, The Guardian, TIME, POLITICO, and other publications. Davis was also the recipient of the 2012 Ridenhour Prize for Truth-telling. He is a frequent guest on Fox News, Fox Business News, NBC News, BBC, CNN, and other television networks. He lives in the Washington, DC, area.

In the mediaIsrael‑Iran, Middle East

Trump’s rebuke of Gabbard signals an uneasy moment

Featuring Daniel Davis

June 20, 2025

“The president needs someone who will give him the right intelligence information, whether he likes it or not,” said Daniel […]

In the mediaIsrael‑Iran, Middle East

Inside the clashes between Trump and Gabbard

Featuring Daniel Davis

June 17, 2025

In the mediaIsrael‑Iran, Iran, Israel, Middle East

Lt Col Daniel Davis: Iran & Israel—We best not put a target on our back

Featuring Daniel Davis

June 16, 2025

More from Daniel Davis

In the mediaIsrael‑Iran, Middle East

Trump’s rebuke of Gabbard signals an uneasy moment

Featuring Daniel Davis

June 20, 2025

In the mediaIsrael‑Iran, Middle East

Inside the clashes between Trump and Gabbard

Featuring Daniel Davis

June 17, 2025

In the mediaIsrael‑Iran, Iran, Israel, Middle East

Lt Col Daniel Davis: Iran & Israel—We best not put a target on our back

Featuring Daniel Davis

June 16, 2025

In the mediaUkraine‑Russia, Drones, Europe and Eurasia, Russia, Ukraine

Daniel Davis on NBC News discusses Ukraine’s recent drone attacks inside Russia

Featuring Daniel Davis

June 2, 2025

In the mediaUkraine‑Russia, Europe and Eurasia, Russia, Ukraine

Daniel Davis analyzes the Trump administration’s Ukraine-Russia strategy on NewsNation

Featuring Daniel Davis

May 26, 2025

op-edUkraine‑Russia, Europe and Eurasia, Russia, Ukraine

Ukraine faces a growing risk of outright military collapse if no deal struck

By Daniel Davis

May 21, 2025

RSVP

Daniel Davis Past Virtual Events

virtualMiddle East, Basing and force posture, Diplomacy, Houthis, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Israel‑Hamas, Military analysis, Syria

Past Virtual Event: Trump in the Middle East: Impacts, implications, and alternatives

May 16, 2025
virtualUkraine‑Russia, Air power, Drones, Europe and Eurasia, Land power, Military analysis, Russia, Ukraine

Past Virtual Event: Can U.S. military aid to Ukraine turn the tide?

April 24, 2024
virtualUkraine‑Russia, Russia, Ukraine

Past Virtual Event: Can Ukraine still win? Evaluating U.S. interests and policy options

February 20, 2024
virtualAfghanistan, Middle East

Past Virtual Event: One year later: assessing the Afghanistan withdrawal

August 30, 2022
in-personMiddle East, Counterterrorism, Israel‑Iran

Past In-Person Event: Recalibrating Middle East policy

November 27, 2018
in-personCounterterrorism, Middle East

Past In-Person Event: Evaluating regime change and its alternatives

June 27, 2018

Daniel Davis Featured Symposia

ukraine flag
symposiumUkraine, Russia

Lessons from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

February 13, 2023

symposiumAfghanistan

Lessons from Afghanistan

September 10, 2021

symposiumNATO, Alliances

Antique alliance: Rethinking NATO at 75

July 2, 2024

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