Outside the Beltway

Without Congressional authorization, any attack on Syria would be illegal, but don’t expect Congress to do anything about it.

President Trump took to Twitter this morning and decided poke a stick in the eye of the Russian bear.

The nominations of Mike Pompeo and Gina Haspel could be in trouble in the Senate.

While the nature of Rex Tillerson’s firing as Secretary of State was shocking in its abruptness, taken in context with the rocky nature of his tenure it was hardly surprising.

Service members deployed to Algeria, Burundi, Cameroon, Chad, Congo, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Libya, Mali, Niger, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Tunisia, and Uganda qualify.

Continuing a long-standard tradition, the Trump Administration claims it doesn’t need to get legal authorization to keep American troops in Syria.

The Trump Administration has acted in a manner to create the impression that there is “no daylight” between the United States and Israel. This is a myth, and pursuing such a goal poses real dangers for America’s national interests.

With the Administration set to commit the United States to a forever war in Syria, it’s time for Congress to act.

While everyone is paying attention to the government shutdown, the Trump Administration is preparing for a never-ending, unwise, and unauthorized military commitment in Syria.

Yesterday was the seventy-sixth anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. For most Americans, though, it was just another day. That’s only natural.

America has become involved in conflicts around the world, largely without the knowledge of the American people or the consent of their representatives, and it doesn’t appear that’s going to end anytime soon.

Once again, Congress is abdicating its Constitutional responsibilities.

At some point, it will be time to move on.

Trump isn’t going to win any regional popularity awards in LA.

Donald Trump’s first overseas trip went about as badly as you’d expect it would.

President Trump’s speech on Islam was a change of tone. However, as critics noted, it was short on substance and is unlikely to accomplish anything.

Donald Trump took to Twitter again this morning with predictable results.

A new Pentagon proposal would place more discretion in the hands of field commanders, removing the need for Presidential approval.

A military judge has rejected a motion to dismiss the case against Bowe Bergdahl based on comments made by Donald Trump when he was a candidate for President.

Today in “Alternative Facts.”

Republicans are afraid to oppose Donald Trump for fear that his supporters will come after them.

A controversial member of George W. Bush’s foreign policy team is up for a post in Donald Trump’s State Department.

As America prepares for a Presidential transition, an old conflict with a history of turning dangerous rears its head.

A controversial retired General has been tapped to be President-Elect Trump’s top White House foreign policy voice.

The sense of national ‘unity’ that existed in the wake of the September 11th attacks didn’t last for very long.

Stopping the next Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, Syed Farook, or Omar Mateen is likely to be a lot more difficult than the politicians on either side of the aisle are leading us to believe.

National tragedies, whether man-made or natural disasters, used to bring Americans together. Now they just seem to pull Americans apart.

Donald Trump has insinuated that President Obama is not fighting the War On Terror aggressively because he somehow identifies with terrorists.

The rise of Trump and Sanders has resurrected a debate as old as Western civilization.

Should we treat terrorists as trolls?

President Obama has selected his nominee to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court, now the question is whether the Senate will act.

As if to further demonstrate just how fair off the rails the GOP has gotten, Donald Trump’s unconstitutional, wrong-headed, racist notions are supported by wide majorities in the party that still claims to the by the “Party of Lincoln.”

Polling shows that most Americans oppose Donald Trump’s plan to bar Muslim’s from immigrating to the United States, but Republicans are far more receptive to the idea.

As we deal with the fall out from the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, we need remember the years after September 11th, 2001 and avoid holding an entire religion responsible for the actions of fanatics.

The attack in San Bernardino has seemingly left the Administration’s anti-terror strategy in disarray, so the President is addressing the nation tonight to say, well, something I guess.

Donald Trump’s demagoguery and disdain for individual liberty enters a new phase.

Republicans insist that uttering the words “Radical Islamic Terrorism” is somehow important in the fight against ISIS and other terror networks, but it is entirely unclear what doing so would accomplish.

President Obama is set to sign a military spending bill that effectively guarantees that his 2008 campaign promise to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba will go unfulfilled.

A political earthquake north of the border.

It’s a Donald Trump debate, where the facts are made up and the truth doesn’t matter.

A well-founded fear of ISIS seems to be drawing many of the former Soviet Republics in Central Asia closer to Moscow.

Fool us once, shame on you. Fool us twice, shame on us.

The Senate passed a bill that renews, and modifies, the Patriot Act

Jeb Bush told a group of supporters that his brother is his top Middle East policy adviser. This strikes me as being a bad idea.

U.S forces in Afghanistan have been involved in missions that go far beyond the counterterror mission the Obama Administration said they would be limited to.

Pot, meet kettle.

An attack on al Qaeda outposts in January resulted in the death of two hostages, but also resulted in the death of two high value al Qaeda targets.

Unlike most world leaders, Pope Francis is wiling to call a genocide a genocide.

Daniel Larison is far less ambivalent about our war on ISIL than me.

I don’t Think that Means What you Think it Means (Huckabee Edition)