Before the French Revolution and its Reign of Terror, Louis XV predicted, “After me, the Deluge.” Before being overthrown, Libya’s secular dictator tried to warn the West of a new Reign of Terror, essentially foretelling, “After me, the Jihad.” This was disclosed with the recent release of phone conversations from early 2011 between Muammar Gaddafi and former … Continue reading “After Me, the Jihad”
Tag: libya
Benghazi: Who Cares?
Now that Republicans have legitimate and troubling scandals on which to criticize the Obama administration—the Internal Revenue Service’s targeting of conservative groups and the Justice Department’s broad seizure of the Associated Press’s phone records—hopefully they will forget their inane focus on the “cover up” involving the attack on the Benghazi diplomatic compound in Libya. But … Continue reading “Benghazi: Who Cares?”
What No One Wants to Hear About Benghazi
Congressional hearings, White House damage control, endless op-eds, accusations, and defensive denials. Controversy over the events in Benghazi last September took center stage in Washington and elsewhere last week. However, the whole discussion is again more of a sideshow. Each side seeks to score political points instead of asking the real questions about the attack … Continue reading “What No One Wants to Hear About Benghazi”
Political Decentralization Might Help in Conflict-Ridden Countries
What do Libya, Somalia, Yemen, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan have in common? Although it’s true that the United States has conducted recent military interventions in all of them, the more fundamental answer is that they are all artificial countries. That is, they are each made up of feuding ethno-sectarian groups or tribes. And perhaps the instability … Continue reading “Political Decentralization Might Help in Conflict-Ridden Countries”
Libya Intervention More Questionable in Rear View Mirror
While the tenth anniversary last month of Washington’s invasion of Iraq provoked overwhelmingly negative reviews of the adventure except among its most die-hard neo-conservative proponents, a more recent – albeit far less dramatic and costly – intervention has faded almost completely from public notice. Nonetheless, nearly 18 months after Western-backed rebels killed Moammar Gaddafi in … Continue reading “Libya Intervention More Questionable in Rear View Mirror”
Did John Brennan’s End Run Lead to the Death of Ambassador Stevens in Benghazi?
Benghazi: The Definitive Report is the title of an e-book published on February 12 by William Morrow. It’s written by two editors at SOFREP.com, the unofficial special operations site: Brandon Webb — a former Navy SEAL — and Jack Murphy — a former Army Ranger and Green Beret. What’s unique about the report is its bipartisan … Continue reading “Did John Brennan’s End Run Lead to the Death of Ambassador Stevens in Benghazi?”
Is Rand Paul Right About Benghazi?
Hillary Clinton’s last hurrah at the State Department – her appearance before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Benghazi – was outrageous in many respects, although the partisan fury of her Republican interrogators did more to obscure the facts than reveal them. However, perhaps their partisan zeal provoked her into the kind of response … Continue reading “Is Rand Paul Right About Benghazi?”
The Mystery Behind the Benghazi Attack
A reporter found the evidence of our folly in the ruins of the American consulate in Benghazi, scattered on the floor where it had been overlooked by looters. Amid the rubble and ashes were documents left there since the attack — clearly State Department correspondence — including “two unsigned draft letters” both dated Sept. 11: … Continue reading “The Mystery Behind the Benghazi Attack”
Ignoring American Decline
Failure and unintended consequences: these are often hallmarks of U.S. military interventions. Who could have imagined, for instance, that forcing open the Kingdom of Japan at the point of U.S. Navy guns would eventually lead to bombs falling on ships from that same navy at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii? Or who could have foreseen that attempting … Continue reading “Ignoring American Decline”
Silence on Libya
The final presidential debate earlier this week was a tailor-made opportunity for Mitt Romney to rip into President Obama’s inconsistent, value-free, and at times incoherent foreign policy. And it was also an opportunity for the president to explain his administration’s material misrepresentations on the murders of our ambassador and others in Libya. Instead, we heard … Continue reading “Silence on Libya”