Rational Security: The “Pawing at Scott” Edition

Jan 29, 2026

Guest

Eric Columbus

Eric Columbus, a legal reporter tracking DOJ tactics; Molly Roberts, a political and policy analyst; and Alan Rozenshtein, a constitutional law professor, dig into the national fallout from Border Patrol killings and shifting federal tactics. They then unpack Anthropic’s “constitution” for its AI model, debating persona-first design, governance choices, and what it means for AI behavior and status.

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ANECDOTE

Storm Kitten Becomes Unwanted Roommate

Molly Roberts tells a short story about a kitten showing up before the storm and becoming an adopted houseguest.
She jokes the kitten is 'pawing at the screen' and causing household discord over allergies.

ANECDOTE

City Feels Occupied By Federal Forces

Alan Rozenshtein describes Minneapolis/St. Paul as feeling oppressed by masked, armed federal paramilitary forces in the streets.
He notes the deployment feels pretextual given the small unauthorized-immigrant population and local political motives behind targeting Minnesota.

INSIGHT

Rhetoric Shift Gives GOP Permission To Push Back

Molly Roberts observes that Trump's softened rhetoric created political cover for moderate Republicans to criticize ICE tactics.
She notes personnel swaps (Bovino out, Tom Homan in) may change tactics but not the administration's immigration aims.

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This week, Scott sat down with his Lawfare colleagues Alan Rozenshtein, Eric Columbus, and Molly Roberts for a deep dive into two of the week’s big national security news stories:

“Slipping Down the Slope.” Last week’s killing of 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis, Minnesota, has triggered what increasingly appears to be a national backlash against the Trump administration’s immigration policies and ICE’s violent tactics. Republicans and Democrats alike have been increasingly public in their criticism of the administration’s actions—and, in particular, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem—while state officials have begun exploring more legal avenues for pushing back against federal officials. The Trump administration, meanwhile, may be shifting tack, as it has replaced Border Patrol commander-at-large Greg Bovino with immigration czar Tom Homan on the ground in Minneapolis and adopted a more conciliatory tone. Is this a real turning point for the Trump administration’s flagship policy? Or more of a feint?
“Now We’re Just Waiting on Artificial Strength, Dexterity, Wisdom, and Charisma.” Last week, the artificial intelligence company Anthropic released what it’s calling a “constitution” for its premier AI model, Claude. The constitution seeks to instill a moral framework, value system, and even a personality in the AI model, taking an unprecedented step in both private AI governance and AI personhood. How does Claude’s constitution factor into broader discussions about AI development and regulating how models should interact with users?

In object lessons, Eric sticks to classic Rational Security orthodoxy by recommending an actual, physical object: his wife’s beloved migraine-slaying device, The Tingler. Alan flagrantly violates the show’s informal norms with a repeat recommendation—season 2 of The Night Manager (plus some unsolicited fawning over Tom Hiddleston). Scott, desperate for warmth, throws the rulebook into the fire with a double object lesson: 1) Metro’s Fire Snake to satisfy your basic human need for fire, and 2) long underwear to satisfy your base-layer needs. And Molly restores order with a hat that truly captures how we’re all feeling: America is in trouble, and we’re tired.

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