Erik Goepner was an adjunct scholar in the Cato Institute’s Defense and Foreign Policy Department. A retired colonel from the U.S. Air Force, his military assignments included unit commands in Afghanistan, Iraq, and the Pacific region.
His research interests include national security, civil war, terrorism, and trauma. He has published in the Washington Post, Parameters, Newsweek, and The National Interest, among other outlets.
Goepner received his Ph.D from George Mason University’s Schar School of Policy and Government in 2019. He received MA’s from George Washington University and the Air Command and Staff College.