Doug Bandow

President Joe Biden is visiting Europe, spreading hugs and kisses to lovelorn European officials traumatized by Donald Trump’s oft-expressed disdain. Fearful that the good times of American security guarantees might end, Europeans contemplated a world in which they might have to do their own heavy lifting when it came their defense. Oh, the horror, the … Continue reading “Another NATO Summit, Another Endless Subsidy for Europe”

Fifty years ago the Pentagon Papers exploded politically in a nation weary of the Vietnam War. Daniel Ellsberg worked on a Defense Department study about Washington’s involvement in Vietnam. He was so appalled with the findings that he leaked the document to the New York Times. The embarrassed Nixon administration sought to block publication. Attorney … Continue reading “Five Decades After the Pentagon Papers: Presidential Lies and Foolish Forecasts”

President Joe Biden has proposed his first budget and the Pentagon won’t go without. Biden followed his Republican predecessor in pushing higher military spending. Although the proposed increase, from $740 billion to $753 billion, isn’t a lot, he invited Congress to spend more by playing the Washington game of underestimating expenditures for politically popular programs. … Continue reading “Cut Military Spending, but Restrain Foreign Policy First”

Even the biggest, toughest, meanest movie characters go wobbly when facing the Great Panda. At least when Chinese nationalism demands they kowtow to its demands. The latest Hollywood wimp who plays a real man on screen is John Cena. The former wrestler, when promoting his role in Fast & Furious 9, stated that Taiwan was … Continue reading “Taiwan Is a Country in All But Name: Still, That Doesn’t Mean America Should Defend It”

Two successive U.S. administrations were complicit in war crimes in Yemen. The Saudi royals did the killing, both directly through air strikes and indirectly through a blockade. Tens of thousands of Yemeni civilians have died in more than six years of conflict. However, America provided, armed, refueled, and serviced Saudi warplanes. Washington also dispensed targeting … Continue reading “The US Cannot Bring Peace to Yemen, But It Can End America’s Involvement in Yemen’s War”

The serried ranks of graves at Arlington National Cemetery never fail to simultaneously impress and sadden. So many lives forfeited. So many families bereaved. So many communities disrupted. For what were so many and so much sacrificed? Alas, only rarely for freedom, as preening politicians piously proclaim. That rhetoric is cheap is never more evident … Continue reading “Memorial Day: A Day for Politicians To Preen and People To Remember”

Losing a war is never pretty. Leaving behind thousands of people who risked their lives to fight with you is truly ugly. If the Biden administration’s timetable for Afghanistan holds firm, American forces will be home by fall. And a multitude of Afghans will be vulnerable to retaliation if the Taliban wins the ensuing struggle, … Continue reading “Leaving People Behind After Twenty Years in Afghanistan”

What a difference a presidential campaign and deadly pandemic make. Although the U.S. and People’s Republic of China long had been at odds over important issues, the bilateral relationship remained civil if not always friendly. Despite occasional spats, no one imagined a cold war, let alone actual hostilities. But 2020 changed everything. Today the possibility … Continue reading “As Seeming Consensus Hardens for Cold – or Even Hot – War Against China”

One aspect of American exceptionalism is undoubtedly true. American policymakers believe that they have been anointed by heaven to rule the world. Just as God cares if a sparrow falls to earth, U.S. officials believe anything anyone does anywhere on the planet is a matter of Washington’s concern. That is reflected in a foreign policy … Continue reading “Who Elected America To Rule the World?”

Germany will soon have a new chancellor. It could be Annalena Baerbock from the Greens, once a minor party focused on the environment. She promises a tougher foreign policy, but so far refuses to back the stronger military necessary to implement her rhetoric. The incumbent, Angela Merkel, is not running again. A member of the … Continue reading “Germany’s Greens Plan a Tough Foreign Policy”