Having worked for years on the issues of drones and Guantanamo, I was delighted to get a pass (the source will remain anonymous) to attend President Obama’s speech at the National Defense University. I had read many press reports anticipating what the President might...
Finally, the Backlash Against Drones Takes Flight
Rand Paul’s marathon 13-hour filibuster was not the end of the conversation on drones. Suddenly, drones are everywhere, and so is the backlash. Efforts to counter drones at home and abroad are growing in the courts, at places of worship, outside air force bases,...
Rand Paul’s Message to Obama: Don’t Drone Me Bro
The most positive outcome of Rand Paul’s 13-hour filibuster – which ended when Paul was forced to take a bathroom break – was giving the American public a sense of the treacherous path that President Obama’s drone program could take, i.e. the targeted killing of...
John Brennan vs. a Sixteen-Year-Old
In October 2011, 16-year-old Tariq Aziz attended a gathering in Islamabad where he was taught how to use a video camera so he could document the drones that were constantly circling over his Pakistani village, terrorizing and killing his family and neighbors. Two days...
Pushing Obama’s Arc Toward Peace
Foreign policy played a minor role in a presidential election that focused on jobs, jobs, jobs. But like it or not, the United States is part of a global community in turmoil, and U.S. policies often help fuel that turmoil. The peace movement, decimated during the...
Americans Take Anti-Drone Stance Directly to Pakistan
"You’re not really going to Pakistan, are you?" "You’ve seen the State Department travel warning?" "Don’t they hate us over there?" There are questions our friends and relatives are asking as we embark on a delegation to Pakistan to protest the drone attacks that have...
At Drone Convention, Zero Tolerance for Peace
Why I Interrupted Obama Counterterrorism Adviser John Brennan
Counterterrorism adviser John Brennan spoke at the Woodrow Wilson International Center in Washington, D.C., on April 30 to mark the one-year anniversary of the killing of Osama bin Laden. It was the first time a high-level member of the Obama administration spoke at...
Obama Administration Silencing Pakistani Drone-Strike Lawyer
When is the last time you heard from a civilian victim of the CIA’s secret drone strikes? Sure, most of them can’t speak because they’re deceased. But many leave behind bereaved and angry family members ready to proclaim their innocence and denounce the absence of due...
10 Reasons to Keep an Eye on AIPAC
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) is one of the most powerful lobby organizations in the country. On March 4-6, AIPAC will hold its annual policy conference in Washington, D.C. The speakers include Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, U.S....