Outside the Beltway

Half a century have passed since a botched burglary changed history.

We’re hurting the feelings of those trying to destroy the country.

On the op/ed page of WaPo, the 10 living former U.S. secretaries of defense say things that shouldn’t have to be said.

President Trump’s first choice to replace John Kelly as Chief of Staff turned the job down, leading one to wonder why anyone would want the job.

Michelle Obama can’t forgive Donald Trump for his role in spreading the racist birther conspiracy. I can’t say I blame her.

After eight months in office, the pressures on Chief of Staff John Kelly continue to mount under a President who cannot be controlled and whose behavior will not change.

One freshman Senator seems to think that war with Iran would be easy, just like Republicans used to think that war against Iraq would be easy.

A surprising change at the top of the military’s civilian chain of command.

Fifty years after the Stand in the Schoolhouse door, there’s another standoff with recalcitrant states on civil rights.

Raymond Pritchett longs for the good old days of Tom Donilan, Hillary Clinton, and Leon Panetta.

The Army and Navy are finally doing something about brass bloat.

The sequestration cuts are two months old, and it seems pretty clear that the claims of doom we heard before they went into effect were heavily exaggerated.

Yesterday’s hearings shed more light while also raising yet more questions to which we’ll likely never get a satisfactory answer.

Chuck Hagel has countermanded his predecessor and canceled the Distinguished Warfare Medal.

Targeting terrorist leadership may be counterproductive.

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta ordered a lifting of the ban on women in ground combat.

John Cornyn tells Jennifer Rubin that he’ll oppose the confirmation of his former colleague, Chuck Hagel, for Secretary of Defense.

While no official announcements have been made, President Obama’s second term national security team appears to be taking shape.

President Obama seems to have given away the store when it comes to the defense sequestration cuts.

Several key members of the Syrian government were killed in a suicide bomb attack today in Damascus.

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

What’s worse: Leon Panetta spending $860,000 in taxpayer money flying home? Or the GSA spending $823,000 on a conference?

What the hell was Leon Panetta thinking when he got dressed? He’s surrounded by fit Marines in battle dress and he’s wearing a poorly fitted blue short-sleeved “dress” shirt,* pleated slacks, and perhaps the most askew gig line ever, calling attention to his pot belly.

We need to have opinions on a subject as serious as war with Iran.

Not surprisingly, Republicans are trying to reverse the automatic cuts to defense spending agreed to in August.

Michael Hastings has yet another credulous story attempting to smear the United States military.

Philip Hammond addressed the Atlantic Council this morning in advance of a meeting with Leon Panetta.

Despite the opposition of the SECDEF and Joint Chiefs, the latter expanded yesterday.

With the Super Committee dead, 2012 is likely to see a fight over the defense cuts set to take place starting in 2013.

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

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

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