Obama Reiterates Statements On Israeli-Palestinian Talks In AIPAC Speech

President Obama doubled down in his speech before this year’s AIPAC conference. Why he did so only he understands.

President Obama Wades Back Into The Middle East Quicksand

Once again, an American President thinks he can bring peace to the Middle East.

Presidential Reading List

Foreign Policy’s David Kenner has a reading list for President Obama to help him get read for his big speech to recast our relationship with the Arab world. Topping the Persian Gulf section is Crossroads Arabia, by our own John Burgess.

Ron Paul: I Would Not Have Ordered The Mission Against Bin Laden

Texas Congressman Ron Paul, who will enter the Presidential race tomorrow, says he wouldn’t have tried to have Osama bin Laden killed.

Musing About the Near Future of U. S. Security Policy

I’ve begun to wonder about the future of U. S. security policy. This isn’t a serious analytical post; it’s just what I call “musing”—committing disorganized thoughts to writing.

Report: Decade Old “Secret Deal” With Pakistan Authorized Raid Against Bin Laden

Did a deal between the U.S. and Pakistan during the infancy of the war against al Qaeda play a role in the raid against Osama bin Laden?

Pakistan Tries, And Largely Fails, To Explain Itself

Pakistan is trying to explain how the world’s most wanted man was able to hide in plain sight for six years, and failing badly.

Bin Laden Was Mostly Disconnected From The World

Bin Laden spent the last half-decade in a compound where his only contact with the outside world was a few couriers.

Is There Anything That Washington Can Do About Gas Prices? Not Really

Congress is coming back to Washington and gas prices continue to rise. Expect a lot of demagoguery, but very little in the way of solutions.

Economic Growth Slows In First Quarter. What If This Is As Good As It Gets?

Will days of strong economic growth ever return? And what happens if they don’t?

Superman Renounces American Citizenship

Superman will renounce his American citizenship!

Leading From Behind: To Where?

An aide’s compliment about the president “leading from behind” has generated controversy.

High Gas Prices Hurting Obama

President Obama is suffering in the polls because of high gas prices, but is there really anything he can do about them?

NYT: Put Boots on the Ground in Libya

The NYT says it’s time for U. S. advisers and military air traffic controllers on the ground in Libya.

OTB Caption Contest Winners

The The Clash Of The Tight-uns Edition OTB Caption ContestTM is now over.

Syria Reveals The Moral Bankruptcy Of Obama’s Humanitarian Interventionism Doctrine

Events in Syria, and the world’s response to them, are revealing the moral bankruptcy of the justification for the war in Libya.

A Magic Formula for Gas Prices?

Is there a magic formula to fix soaring gas prices? A Washington Examiner editorial claims to have found it.

Francis Fukuyama on Origins of Government

Francis Fukuyama: “In the developed world, we take the existence of government so much for granted that we sometimes forget how difficult it was to create.”

Obama’s Conventional Foreign Policy

Stephen Walt doesn’t expect Obama’s foreign policy to change along with the names on the org chart.

War Isn’t for Everyone

My first piece for The American Conservative, which they’ve titled “War Isn’t for Everyone–The military needs civilian control, not citizen soldiers,” is in the May issue.

Gates Hints U.S. Could Stay In Iraq, But It Looks Like The Iraqis Don’t Want Us

Defense Secretary Gates hinted this week that the U.S. would stay in Iraq if the Iraqis wanted. It doesn’t seem like they do.

Libya: You Fight Like You Train

Continuing problems with the coalition operation in Libya reinforce an old military adage: You fight like you train.

Blame The Afghan Rioters For Murder, But Condemn The Demagogues Too

The only people responsible for the murders in Afghanistan are the people who committed them, but the demagogues like Terry Jones deserve condemnation as well.

Trust vs. Outsourcing Judgment

Modern life requires us to put a high degree of trust in those to whom we delegate responsibility

Libya and the Intervener’s Dilemma

President Obama has pledged no slaughter and no ground troops for Libya. He may well be forced to pick one.

Taliban History Lesson: Not Our Boys From the 80’s

The groups we supported were defeated by the Taliban in the civil war that followed Soviet withdrawal. The Taliban and Usama bin Laden were supported by the separate “Sayyaf” group of Mujahideen supported by Saudi Arabia and Deobandi fanatics in Pakistan.

Joe Lieberman: Hey, Let’s Go To War In Syria Too!

Senator Joe Lieberman said today that we should intervene in Syria using the same rationale we did for Libya. Because, you know, what’s the big deal about a fourth war?

Gingrich: Libya Most Badly Executed War Since WWII

Newt Gingrich on Libya: “This is as badly executed, I think, as any policy we’ve seen since WWII, and it will become a case study for how not to engage in this type of activity.”