Patrick J. Buchanan

Visualizing 150 Iranian dead from a missile strike that he had ordered, President Donald Trump recoiled and canceled the strike, a brave decision and defining moment for his presidency. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, John Bolton and Vice President Mike Pence had signed off on the strike on Iran as the right response to Tehran’s … Continue reading “Trump: War President or Anti-Interventionist?”

President Donald Trump cannot want war with Iran. Such a war, no matter how long, would be fought in and around the Persian Gulf, through which a third of the world’s seaborne oil travels. It could trigger a worldwide recession and imperil Trump’s reelection. It would widen the "forever war," which Trump said he would … Continue reading “War With Iran Would Become ‘Trump’s War’”

"History is repeating itself, and with a vengeance," John Dean told the judiciary committee, drawing a parallel between Watergate, which brought down Richard Nixon, and "Russiagate" which has bedeviled Donald Trump. But what strikes this veteran of Nixon’s White House is not the similarities but the stark differences. Watergate began with an actual crime, a … Continue reading “Russiagate Is No Watergate”

For a president who won his office by denouncing the Middle East wars into which George W. Bush and Barack Obama plunged the nation, Donald Trump has assembled the most unabashedly hawkish conclave of foreign policy advisers in memory. And he himself seems to concede the point. If foreign policy were decided by my security … Continue reading “Do Trump’s Hawks Speak for Trump?”

Speaking on state TV of the prospect of a war in the Gulf, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei seemed to dismiss the idea. "There won’t be any war. … We don’t seek a war, and (the Americans) don’t either. They know it’s not in their interests." The ayatollah’s analysis – a war is in neither … Continue reading “Who Wants This War With Iran?”

In 2003, George W. Bush took us to war to liberate Iraq from the despotism of Saddam Hussein and convert that nation into a beacon of freedom and prosperity in the Middle East. Tuesday, Mike Pompeo flew clandestinely into Baghdad, met with the prime minister and flew out in four hours. The visit was kept … Continue reading “Are All the World’s Problems Ours?”

Last week, it was Venezuela in America’s gun sights. "While a peaceful solution is desirable, military action is possible," thundered Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. "If that’s what is required, that’s what the United States will do." John Bolton tutored Vladimir Putin on the meaning of the Monroe Doctrine: "This is our hemisphere. It’s not … Continue reading “Is Bolton Steering Trump Into War With Iran?”

"Who would be free themselves must strike the blow… "By their right arms the conquest must be wrought." So wrote Lord Byron of Greece’s war of independence against the Turks, though the famed British poet would ignore his own counsel and die just days after arriving in Greece to join the struggle. Yet Byron’s advice … Continue reading “Let Venezuela Decide Its Own Destiny”

"The president has said that he does not want to see this country involved in endless wars… I agree with that," Bernie Sanders told the Fox News audience at Monday’s town hall meeting in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Then turning and staring straight into the camera, Bernie added: "Mr. President, tonight you have the opportunity to do … Continue reading “Is Bernie Stealing Trump’s ‘No More Wars’ Issue?”

On Monday, President Donald Trump designated the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps a terrorist organization, the first time the United States has designated part of another nation’s government as such a threat. Iran’s Supreme National Security Council responded by declaring U.S. Central Command a terrorist group. With 5,000 U.S. troops in Iraq and 2,000 in Syria, … Continue reading “Where Trump’s and Bibi’s Interests Clash”