Iraq: Obama Takes the Low Road to Beating Back IS

by Wayne White President Obama, under pressure to hasten the recovery of Iraqi territory held by the Islamic State (ISIS or IS), has opted to allow the participation of Iranian-backed, anti-Sunni Arab Shi’a militias. He stipulated that they must answer… Continue Reading

How to Create a National Insecurity State

by Andrew Bacevich Policy intellectuals — eggheads presuming to instruct the mere mortals who actually run for office — are a blight on the republic. Like some invasive species, they infest present-day Washington, where their presence strangles common sense and… Continue Reading

Obama’s Last National Security Strategy

by John Feffer The world of today appears to be a great deal more dangerous than the one that President Obama inherited on taking office in 2009. The Islamic State (ISIS or IS) has remade the map of a large… Continue Reading

On Iran, Ashton Carter Has Been Hawkish

by Jim Lobe Neoconservative and other Iran hawks have to be at least somewhat encouraged by Obama’s imminent nomination of Ashton Carter as Chuck Hagel’s replacement at the Pentagon. Before his service—first as Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics,… Continue Reading

The F-Word: Plane Speaking and the Sequester

by Marsha B. Cohen The F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) is a black hole in the federal budget into which hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars have been sucked and billions more seem destined to vanish. The most… Continue Reading