When I served as counselor of the State Department, I advised the secretary of state about America’s wars with Iraqi insurgents, the Taliban, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and al-Qaeda. I spent a good deal of time visiting battlefields in […]
Invading Canada Is Not Advisable Read More »
One response to the egregious, often cruel actions of the Trump administration is outrage. That’s understandable, but mostly counterproductive, and, worse, a reaction that Donald Trump’s supporters enjoy. Ice is more advisable than fire in this situation, and the situation
You Can’t Trust Us Anymore Read More »
The sacking of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the chief of naval operations, and the Air Force’s vice chief of staff, as well as the judge advocate generals of the Army, Navy and Air Force on Friday
Lawful, but Enormously Destructive – The Atlantic Read More »
There is a rule in politics never to ascribe to malignity what one can explain through incompetence and stupidity. This approach has become difficult to sustain in the case of the Trump administration. But there is another possibility: Both explanations
Incompetence Leavened With Malignity – The Atlantic Read More »
A friend of mine, an old-fashioned and very capable scholar, views analogies as the first step on the road to perdition—and, even worse, to political science. These days, he is right to scowl more than ever, because on top of
American History Is Key to Understanding Trump Read More »
“After a long illness, the world as we know it has passed away,” a European friend recently said. A slightly premature obituary, perhaps, but not by much. The world has changed in fundamental ways, of which the Trump administration is
Listen Closely to What Hegseth Is Saying Read More »
Many friends of mine are pretty deep in the slough of despond. I occasionally plead with them to make their predictions of catastrophe less hopeless and categorical, but with less success than I wish. I respect their points of view
How to Navigate the Era of Trump Read More »
International affairs often present policy makers with a choice, not between good and bad options but between very bad and truly awful ones. The task of statesmanship is to recognize those alternatives, swallow hard, and go for the very bad.
How to End the War in Ukraine Read More »
When Hamas’s Yahya Sinwar launched Operation al-Aqsa Flood against Israel on October 7, 2023, he intended to deal a decisive blow against a powerful nation state—and he succeeded. But the state his attack has devastated turned out not to be
Khamenei Loses Everything Read More »
Those of us who first became politically homeless in 2016 have lately been in a quandary: We need to figure out who we are. If we are not to succumb to the Saruman trap—going along with populist authoritarians in the
A Guide for the Politically Homeless Read More »
