The sun never sets on the American Empire, which is no less extensive than the British Empire. What makes Washington's imperial domain unique is that it regularly expands without conquest. Now members of the ever-hawkish Republican Party want make Taiwan an official...
Turkey Is No Longer Much of an Ally: US Should Say Goodbye and Set Both Nations Free
U.S. policymakers long have viewed the Republic of Turkey as a critical ally. However, Ankara has been racing away from America. Today the former is more likely to impede than advance Washington’s policy objectives. Instead of desperately attempting to preserve the...
Destroying Libya: It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time
You must break a few eggs to make an omelet, Washington's social engineers apparently believe when intervening in other societies. Sure, a few people might die. Others might end up disabled or displaced. But think of all the good that will be done when America's plans...
Allies Are Supposed to Help the US, but Americans Always Do the Paying
U.S. foreign policy is dominated by a constant search for allies. Big or small, rich or poor, strong or weak. It doesn’t matter. The more the merrier, rather like acquiring more Facebook Friends than anyone else, thereby winning bragging rights. This incessant search...
George Washington Tried To Warn Americans About Foreign Policy Today
Ben Rhodes, Barack Obama's deputy national security adviser, unkindly characterized the foreign policy establishment in Washington, D.C., as "the Blob." Although policymakers sometimes disagree on peripheral subjects, membership requires an absolute...
When George W. Bush Aides Back Joe Biden, You Know the Presidential Campaign is Getting Ugly
The 2020 election campaign is likely to get much uglier before November 3rd. Both parties face internal wars that will shape future U.S. foreign policy. In Democratic primaries younger progressive candidates continue to challenge establishment paladins. And leading...
Remember When America Killed Moscow’s Soldiers
Policymakers who spent years treating Russia as an enemy are now enraged over unverified claims that Moscow paid the Afghan Taliban to kill American military personnel. That would be outrageous, of course. Perhaps US policymakers now know how Soviet officials felt...
Why Are American Forces Still Guarding the Korean Peninsula?
Seven decades ago Americans found themselves at war in a country most people couldn't locate without a map. That included two young army officers, Charles Bonesteel and Dean Rusk, a future Secretary of State. On August 10, 1945, the Pentagon tasked them with...
Remember America’s Great Kosovo Ally? Never Mind the War Crimes!
The Trump administration, in the personality of Richard Grenell, former U.S. ambassador to Germany, has become intricately and bizarrely involved in Balkan politics. His effort to reconcile Kosovo and Serbia, from which the former seceded in 2008, risks an...
Destroying Syria: Congress Declares “I’m from Washington and I’m Here To Impoverish You”
Another round of sanctions, the ironically named Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, has taken effect in Syria. Through the magic of secondary sanctions, Washington will forbid everyone on earth from dealing with the Syrian regime. Even before the penalties took...