Doug Bandow

Testimony Before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs: Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade, Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa Introduction Without doubt, the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) represents a significant failure of U.S. policy. However, such a reverse was not entirely unexpected. The Iraqi government … Continue reading “The Rise of ISIS: Iraq and Beyond”

Former Antiwar.com columnist Doug Bandow writes this week in The National Interest President Barack Obama has unveiled his new budget, which proposes continued increases in military outlays. What for? The United States is spending far too much on the Pentagon. There is no more important federal role than providing for the common defense. But what … Continue reading “Squaring the Pentagon”

Former Antiwar.com columnist Doug Bandow writes this week in The National Interest After a rough start with the EP-3 spy plane confrontation, the Bush administration forged a good relationship between the United States and China. Washington realized that it needed Beijing’s help in dealing with North Korea, winning UN Security Council approval for U.S. objectives, … Continue reading “Balancing Beijing”

Former Antiwar.com columnist Doug Bandow writes this week in The National Interest Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is off on her first foreign trip, and the destination of Asia is well-chosen. Economic, cultural and political ties with Europe remain strong, but Asia is likely to dominate the future, containing two possible superpowers as well as … Continue reading “The Asian Century”

The Bush administration came to represent everything bad about American foreign policy. George W. Bush is gone. But the foreign policy remains. The battle for peace, prosperity, and liberty continues. It’s a difficult and frustrating struggle. Although the two big political parties create endless sturm und drang when fighting for votes, they actually disagree on … Continue reading “Peace, Prosperity, and Liberty: The Battle Continues”

Much of the world has greeted the transfer of power from President George W. Bush to President Barack Obama with sighs of relief if not shouts of joy. Although President Bush won a few friends in a few countries – his administration aided India and Israel and kept good relations with China, for instance – … Continue reading “Diplomatic Means to Militaristic Ends”

Barack Obama has taken the presidential oath of office at a time of bitter war and economic crisis.  He promised to meet the many challenges facing America, but within our tradition of constitutional liberty: "we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals," he told the nation in his inaugural address. Those ideals … Continue reading “Investigate and Prosecute the Bush Administration”

President George W. Bush has been using his last weeks in office making the case that he was not a disaster as president. There’s not much else for him to do – after all, no one cares what he thinks about the issues. Everyone, even those who voted for John McCain, are waiting for Barack … Continue reading “Assessing the Bush Administration: A Foreign Catastrophe at Every Turn”

On Monday US Marines raised the Stars and Stripes over America’s $700 million embassy in Baghdad. Opined Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte, America’s first ambassador to the new Iraq: “It is from the embassy that you see before you that we will continue the tradition of friendship, cooperation and support begun by the many … Continue reading “An American City on the Euphrates: US as Iraq’s Friend or Overlord?”

For a decade Russian academic Igor Panarin has been predicting that the US is going to fall apart. He says D-Day will be in 2010. For years he was ignored, but now he’s being sought out by the media and invited to Kremlin receptions. Could America’s time be over? Despite the burst of interest in … Continue reading “Coming Soon: The Disunited States?”