Thomas Knapp

More than half a century ago, Congress passed the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. Since mid-April, US president Donald Trump has twice invoked one of the law’s nearly forgotten provisions, ordering Commerce secretary Wilbur Ross to investigate the possibility that steel and aluminum imports “threaten to impair the national security.” If Ross says they do … Continue reading “‘National Security’: The Last Refuge of Vote-Buying Politicians”

Last July, while stumping for then-candidate, now-president Donald Trump, US Representative Mike Pompeo (R-KS) gleefully referenced nearly 20,000 Democratic National Committee emails released by the transparency/disclosure journalists at WikiLeaks. “Need further proof that the fix was in from Pres. Obama on down?” Pompeo tweeted. The emails showed that DNC officials had worked overtime to rig … Continue reading “Pompeo vs. WikiLeaks: It’s No Contest”

As I write this, two key questions remain unanswered, and a third mostly unasked, about a deadly daybreak attack on Khan Sheikhoun, a northwest Syrian city of (pre-war) 50,000. Hundreds were wounded and as many as 100 killed, apparently chemical weaponry (Turkey’s health ministry believes the agent in question was the nerve gas sarin), on … Continue reading “We’re Asking the Wrong Questions About Syria”

“Let me begin by saying that although this has been billed as an anti- war rally, I stand before you as someone who is not opposed to war in all circumstances,” Illinois State Senator Barack Obama said in 2002. Later in the same speech: “What I am opposed to is a dumb war.” Although elected … Continue reading “Trump’s Foreign Policy: Obama’s Third Term, Bush’s Fifth”

In 2011, American citizens Anwar al-Awlaki and Samir Khan were murdered – killed without charge or trial – on the orders of then-president Barack Obama. Two weeks later, al-Awlaki’s teenage son, Abdulrahman, also an American citizen, was murdered – again, killed without charge or trial – also on Obama’s orders. When questioned on the propriety … Continue reading “War Crimes: Key Decision Point for a New President”

Someone should take US Director of National Intelligence James Clapper aside for a talk. He desperately needs to be told that when you’re deep in a hole, the first step toward getting out is to stop digging. Clapper’s been in such a hole since 2013, when he got caught lying to Congress about the National … Continue reading “Who’s More Anti-American, Russia Today or the US Director of National Intelligence?”

On the Friday before Christmas – the kind of time politicians pick to do things they hope you won’t notice – US president Barack Obama signed the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act. Along with the usual terrible, horrible, very bad, no good NDAA stuff (all the little mandates involved in continuing to operate the most … Continue reading “Obama’s Christmas Gift to Trump: A Ministry of Truth”

As on most issues, president-elect Donald Trump has been all over the map on military issues throughout his campaign and post-campaign pronouncements. One day he muses about disbanding NATO, the next day he promises to “rebuild” the US military, which is already by far not just the most well-funded war machine, but the most well-funded … Continue reading “Trump on Military Spending: An Encouraging Sign”

“Freedom of expression is a bedrock of American democracy,” the Washington Post‘s editorial board writes in a November 18 jeremiad, “but its irresponsible exercise can distort and destabilize our politics.” The Post‘s editors, mining the bottomless pit of mainstream media excuses for not predicting Donald Trump’s victory in November’s presidential election, think they’ve hit the … Continue reading “The Washington Post vs. ‘Fake News’: Pot, Meet Kettle”

On July 28, London’s Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, aka “the Old Bailey,” announced the conviction of Islamist preacher Anjem Choudary on charges of “inviting support for a proscribed organization” (the Islamic State). He’ll be sentenced, likely to a long stint in prison, in September. On August 18, social networking service Twitter announced … Continue reading “War: The Islamic State and Western Politicians Against the Rest of Us”