BLOG Post #218: Getting Away with Murder 15 Oct 2018 In March I wrote about the visit to Washington of Saudi Arabia’s new leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. At the time most of the media were reporting uncritically about…
BLOG Post #150: The Honeymoon is Over 14 Feb 201727 Feb 2017 President Trump is often depicted as “unconventional” and his actions “unprecedented.” But his novelty exposes him and his administration to closer scrutiny than any previous presidency. Turns out the emperor…
American Politics and the World… Post #140: The Diplomacy of Donald J. Trump 27 Dec 201627 Feb 2017 Oblivious to Tradition and Good Sense Those of us who appreciate the unconventional have to have second thoughts after watching Donald J. Trump in action. All the more so when…
American Politics and the World… Post #133: Left Unsaid at the Third Debate 21 Oct 201627 Feb 2017 Donald Trump waited one day before delivering the punch line to his sad joke, “I will keep you in suspense” about respecting the election results. “Unless I win,” he said…
American Politics and the World… Post #118: Cowgirl Diplomacy? Foreign Policy Under Hillary Clinton 24 May 201627 Feb 2017 America’s mainstream media, ever attracted to the splashy rather than the serious, has a new topic to occupy the time until Election Day: President Trump. What will he do first? …
BLOG… Post #117: Evaluating Obama’s Foreign Policy Record 15 May 201627 Feb 2017 So you’re not excited by Donald Trump’s announcement of his first foreign-policy acts as president: building the Mexico Wall, the No-Muslims Wall, the End-of-NATO Wall, and the China Trade Wall. …
BLOG… Post #96: Truth and Consequences 21 Oct 201527 Feb 2017 A recently discovered piece of Vietnam War history has new meaning today. At the same time that Richard Nixon was telling the public that the US air war in Vietnam…
BLOG… Post #84: The Engagement Critics 15 Jul 201527 Feb 2017 One of the predictable outcomes of any US effort to reset relations with an adversary is that allies start whining about their vulnerability and demanding some sort of compensation for…
BLOG… Post #78: The Middle East Quagmire: Give Peacemaking a Chance 23 May 201527 Feb 2017 The desperate state of US policy in the Middle East became apparent once again with the ISIS rout of the Iraqi army at Ramadi. It was another setback for US-supported…
BLOG… Post #73 – The Iran Framework: A Case Study in Engagement 8 Apr 201527 Feb 2017 We have every reason to celebrate the so-called framework agreement with Iran. It exemplifies the best of President Obama’s foreign policy, namely, engaging adversaries. Remember when candidate Obama’s argument for…
BLOG… Post #72 – An Enemy of Peace 30 Mar 201527 Feb 2017 Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has established himself as the biggest enemy of peace in the Middle East. His thoroughly unwelcome and error-marred speech to Congress on Iran, his last-minute…
BLOG… Post #68 – Netanyahu’s Visit and the US Opportunity 26 Feb 201527 Feb 2017 Washington is on edge these days. Democrats are bewildered, the President is seething, Republicans are salivating, K Street and J Street lobbyists are working overtime—all because Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu…
BLOG… Post #61 – A Bad Start to the New Year in the Middle East 6 Jan 201527 Feb 2017 Having been thwarted in the UN Security Council when a vote to end Israel’s occupation of the West Bank went against it, the Palestinian Authority (PA) decided last week to…
BLOG… Post #51 – Back to Basics on an Israeli-Palestinian Peace 1 Nov 201427 Feb 2017 The September 2014 issue of Harper’s carried a fascinating dialogue among eight prominent Israeli and Palestinian citizens on the future of their relationship. It took place against the background of…
BLOG… Post #47 – Mission Impossible 29 Sep 201427 Feb 2017 The New York Times editorial board has finally awakened to Obama’s “strategy” in the “war” (as it is officially called now) against ISIS. It is essentially the same strategy that…
