Former President and President-elect Donald Trump has been tarred, inconsistently with his actual record, with the charge of being soft on Russia. He has never been charged with being soft on Iran. Trump unilaterally and illegally pulled out of the JCPOA nuclear agreement with Iran. He imposed devastating sanctions on Iran. He ordered the assassination … Continue reading “A Common Thread Runs Through Trump Appointments: Look Out Iran!”
Will Gabbard Be Able To Direct the Intelligence ‘Community’?
This originally appeared at Consortium News. President-elect Donald Trump’s selection of Tulsi Gabbard to be director of national intelligence (DNI) will cause shockwaves in and among the 18 fiefdoms that now comprise the U.S. intelligence community. Gabbard will be fighting an uphill battle if she tries to herd those 18 cats into a cohesive whole … Continue reading “Will Gabbard Be Able To Direct the Intelligence ‘Community’?”
Israel Unmasked
“You can cut all the flowers, but you cannot keep Spring from coming.” ~ Pablo Neruda For over a year, the masters of war in Israel and the United States, abetted by the corporate media, have buried truth under the rubble of Gaza. The U.S. mainstream media have acted as the hewers of wood and … Continue reading “Israel Unmasked”
Trump’s Hegseth Caper and the Delusion of ‘Peace Through Strength’
Well, you can say this much about the Donald’s off-the-wall pick of Fox’s weekend news commentator, Pete Hegseth, for Secretary of Defense: At least it wasn’t a hard-core neocon like House Armed Services Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala), Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) or the horrid Senator Tom Cott0n of Arkansas. Better a cheerleader for patriotism and … Continue reading “Trump’s Hegseth Caper and the Delusion of ‘Peace Through Strength’”
Voting Against Genocide – How Gaza Defeated the Democratic Establishment
Arab and Muslim American voters did not remove Democrats from office, nor did they cost Kamala Harris the Oval Office. They merely sent a strong message that Palestine matters, not only to Arabs and Muslims but to many Americans as well. The ones who cost the Democrats the elections are the Democrats themselves. Their humiliating … Continue reading “Voting Against Genocide – How Gaza Defeated the Democratic Establishment”
Will Trump End or Escalate Biden’s Wars?
When Donald Trump takes office on January 20th, all his campaign promises to end the war in Ukraine in 24 hours and almost as quickly end Israel’s war on its neighbors will be put to the test. The choices he has made for his incoming administration so far, from Marco Rubio as Secretary of State … Continue reading “Will Trump End or Escalate Biden’s Wars?”
Thawing Russia-US Relations?
This originally appeared at Consortium News. A former and future U.S. president talked with Vladimir Putin last Thursday! At least that is what The Washington Post reported today. In a highly detailed account, the Post wrote: “During the call, which Trump took from his resort in Florida, he advised the Russian president not to escalate … Continue reading “Thawing Russia-US Relations?”
The Political Price Being Paid for Being in the West
The concept of “the West” is a complex and difficult one. At times it excludes countries in the geographical west, like Cuba and Venezuela and sometimes Brazil. At times it includes countries not in the geographical west, like Japan and Australia. As Richard Sakwa has explained, the West can refer to a 500 year old … Continue reading “The Political Price Being Paid for Being in the West”
Make Way for the Colonel
Reprinted from The American Conservative with the author’s permission. In the wake of the former and future president Donald Trump’s historic electoral victory, the mandate for an America First foreign policy has never been clearer. The American electorate has expressed a desire for a departure from the entrenched globalist strategies that have long characterized U.S. … Continue reading “Make Way for the Colonel”
Waltzing Toward Disaster
It was announced on Monday that President-elect Trump has named Rep, Mike Waltz of Florida as his new National Security Advisor. Trump continues his streak of choosing some of the most hardline men in the Republican Party to run his foreign policy. Waltz may not be as well-known as John Bolton or Michael Flynn, but … Continue reading “Waltzing Toward Disaster”