Category: Obama Administration

The Impulse to Intervene

The invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq followed by failed nation-building may have taught the U.S. government a few lessons in humility, but the temptation to intervene in crises around the world remains strong, with recent examples in Syria and South…

Ryan Pick Leaves Global Void

In picking House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan for the vice presidential slot, Mitt Romney signaled a disinterest in filling his own gap in foreign policy experience as well as a likely avoidance of international affairs as a major topic in…

Romney-Ryan Bet on ‘Greedy Geezers’

Exclusive: Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan were quick to assure U.S. seniors that they will be grandfathered in to today’s Medicare  even if younger Americans get stuck with an inferior system a bet that the selfishness of “greedy geezers” will grease the way…

Olympic Ideals and Reality of War

The Olympic ideal of replacing armed conflict with athletic competition has fallen to the pressures of nationalism and money. Now, the Olympics are celebrated even as nations continue the killing and plan for more, Danny Schechter writes from Johannesburg.

Israel’s ‘Bomb Iran’ Timetable

Exclusive: As the clock ticks down to the U.S. elections in November, another clock is ticking in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, whether Israeli forces should exploit the American political timetable to pressure President Obama to support an attack on Iran’s…

The Know-Nothings Ride Again

In 2012, the political descendants of America’s Know-Nothings demonstrated that they had seized control of the Republican Party, which for much of the past six decades has held the White House and looks to reclaim that immense power again, as…

Can Iran Help on Syrian Crisis?

Official Washington, including the U.S. press corps, depicts the Syrian crisis as a civil war between black hats and white hats with no room for talks with dictator Bashar al-Assad and certainly no role for Iranian negotiators, but Flynt and Hillary Mann…

Blaming Obama and Romney Equally

Exclusive: The U.S. press corps is lathered up over the “tone” of Campaign 2012, insisting on a more high-minded discourse. But these journalists are unwilling to make distinctions between legitimate questions about the presidential candidates and distortions in some of…

Neocons Push for Deeper Syrian Role

The neoconservatives who run the Washington Post continue to beat the drum for more U.S. war in the Middle East, now giving voice to influential neocon pundits demanding that the Obama administration begin lethal aid to Syrian rebels, as ex-CIA…

WPost Again Defends Romney

Exclusive: Mitt Romney is running the most secretive presidential campaign in modern U.S. history. He won’t give details on his policies, his principles, his business record at Bain Capital, or his tax returns. Yet, his cover-ups have found a surprising…