Outside the Beltway

A major backer of Republican and Libertarian causes is under fire.

During last night’s debate, Mitt Romney repeated a charge that has become part of the conservative zeitgeist. But is it true?

President Obama explained his position on the Palestinian statehood resolution today, but one wonders if anyone listened.

Where do we stand after 224 years?

Is America’s political system to blame for our current problems?

My first piece for CNN has been posted at Fareed Zakaria’s Global Public Square.

My latest for The National Interest is posted under the somewhat misleading headline “NATO Fails in Libya.”

Either a bunch of bloggers or one of the world’s smartest economists doesn’t understand economics.

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta gave the strongest signal ever that there will be some U.S. military presence in Iraq after December 31st.

Not only is the US outspending all our allies and competitors combined in real dollars on defense, we’re doing so in terms of GDP as well.

Dan Drezner believes those worrying that we’re seeing the global meltdown of 2008 repeat itself are kidding themselves.

A political science-y response to the question of whether the system is broken.

Like the rest of us, financial analysts across the globe are trying to figure out what the U.S. debt downgrade means.

So, it happened………

International options with respect to Syria are limited and likely to have little impact on the governments treatment of civilians.

The world is starting to denounce the crackdown in Syria, but the reaction seems unlikely to go much beyond strongly worded statements.

A take on the conflict that’s probably different from the one you’ve been reading.

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

Move eases way to providing funding to the rebels.

Some thoughts on the American experiment at 235 years and counting.

While it’s always dangerous to extrapolate too much from high profile cases to the system as a whole, the strange case of Dominque Strauss-Kahn practically invites it.

Further thoughts on Dominique Strauss-Kahn and our justice system.

Remember Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the arrogant French aristocrat whose career was ended by a courageous chambermaid, shedding light on a corrupt social system? A funny thing happened on the way to the slammer.

Last night, the President basically announced that America’s longest war had entered it’s end game.

The Netherlands is considering a new animal cruelty law that would effectively ban kosher and halal slaughter practices.

My latest piece for The Atlantic, “Is the U.S.-European Relationship Really in Decline?” is posted.

The United States is pressuring the Netanyahu government to move off its hard line.

Palin has some odd things to say about US history.

The French Connection Edition OTB Caption Contest^TM is now over.

Business Week has a fascinating profile of Dietrich Mateschitz, whom they dub “Red Bull’s Billionaire Maniac.”

It has now been 60 days since American involvement in Libya commenced. Congress has failed to act, and that’s their fault.

A judge granted Dominique Strauss-Kahn bail on Thursday, allowing the former managing director of the International Monetary Fund to be freed from Rikers Island to stay in a Manhattan apartment while his sexual assault case is pending.

Bowing to the inevitable, Dominique Strauss-Kahn resigned overnight as head of the IMF amidst high-level calls for his ouster in wake of a rape scandal.

Ben Stein seems to have been out to lunch when he wrote his column about Dominique Strauss-Kahn

Some French politicians and intellectuals seem offended that Dominique Strauss-Kahn is being treated like a common criminal.

Changing our relationship status to Complicated.

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

Why, yes, my iPhone has indeed been tracking me since last summer.