"BROKEN LINKS"
The Battlefield of the Future

ROBERT B. NEWMAN

Our April speaker, Robert B. “Bob” Newman, Jr., is a retired Air Force general and fighter pilot who spent much of his career preparing for traditional wars fought on battlefields on land, at sea, and in the air. But in recent years, he has been preparing for a very different kind of battle—one focused on protecting our digital communications capabilities, power grids, supply chains, and data networks. He believes that in the future, safeguarding our technological backbone will be as vital to national survival as planes, tanks and missiles ever were.

Bob has more than 30 years of leadership experience across the military, government, and private sectors, with deep expertise in infrastructure protection, energy, financial services, and cybersecurity. Most recently, he served as Director of Interagency Engagements at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, where he worked to help government agencies accelerate the delivery of essential technologies to DHS components.

Following the events of 9/11, Bob held key homeland security roles for the Commonwealth of Virginia, including serving as Deputy Assistant Homeland Security Advisor to Governor Mark Warner and later as the Adjutant General of Virginia. In 2021, he led the resettlement of Afghan allies at Marine Corps Base Quantico as the Federal Coordinator for Operations Allies Welcome.

Bob is a graduate of the Virginia Military Institute with a degree in Economics and holds a Master’s in Management and Public Administration from Webster University.

OUR HOST