Outside the Beltway

My latest for The Atlantic, “It Isn’t the Military’s Place to Weigh In on the Syria Debate,” has posted.

I’ve been up since 3 am and drinking since 6 pm, so my reaction to a presidential war speech at 9 am may not be the definitive word

Score one for Team Bush?

Some Members of Congress are calling for a debate before any strikes on Syria. They’re absolutely right.

Andrew Bacevich argues, persuasively, that “absence of leverage does not preclude options” with respect to Egypt.

As Congress eyes the Defense budget for cuts, some are drawing attention to the lavish housing of our top brass.

Secretary of State Kerry becomes the latest American official to wade into the Middle East’s longest lasting quagmire.

David Bosco wonders, “Why is the United Nations Ambassador in the Cabinet?”

The Senate may be headed for an historic confrontation today if an 11th hour deal isn’t reached.

The latest NSA leaks are likely to prove to be diplomatically embarrassing.

Does it matter if political leaders like each other on some personal level? Sometimes it does.

Syria isn’t Libya.

Is the White House distancing itself from the President’s “red line” remarks about Syria?

So what, exactly, is going on in North Korea? And how should we respond to Kim’s bluster?

There’s no money in wri

A theory on why Benghazi will not die as a political issue.

North Korea’s latest provocations may be testing the patience of their patrons in Beijing.

Falling on the sword?

One of Mitt Romney’s own supporters didn’t like his foreign policy speech very much.

Iran’s currency has collapsed and there are riot police in the streets of Teheran. It appears the sanctions may just be working after all.

Wherein I engage in a little intra-blog debate.

In another sign that things may not be going so well between Washington and Jerusalem, President Obama will not be meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu when he’s in the United States.

Jimmy Carter’s ex-presidency has lasted the equivalent of 26 Iranian hostage crises.

President Obama didn’t blow the doors off the Time Warner Cable Arena last night, but he didn’t need to.

A new IAEA report may make an Israeli strike on Iran in the near future more likely than it has ever been.

The presumptive Republican nominee has sent a strong and welcome signal about his governing philosophy.

The President’s Cabinet is less a Team Of Rivals and more a Team Of Managers.

The Diplomacy By Other Means Edition OTB Caption Contest^TM is now over.

Is there a Romney Doctrine?

There’s a big hole in the latest sanctions against Iran.

To Republicans, even thinking about engaging in diplomacy is enough to accuse the President of appeasement.

Newt Gingrich’s foreign policy vision leaves much to be desired.

Not surprisingly, the Supercommittee is a Super Failure.

The Secretary of Defense has some words of warning for those advocating military action against Iran.

The CIA’s drone war in Pakistan has gotten so out of hand that the Pentagon and State Department are reigning it in.

What’s the logic behind Iran’s alleged plot to commit terrorist attacks inside the United States?

The key to my understanding of Mitt Romney’s foreign policy rollout is the assumption “this is fundamentally a campaign document rather than a governing platform.”

CNN may deny Jon Huntsman a spot in its October 18 debate.

Political journalists are asking clumsy, ignorant, and intolerant questions. Film at 11.

The Supreme Court is being asked to decided if Congress can overrule a foreign policy position the U.S. has held since 1948.