One of the ugliest post-9/11 trials was the terrorism prosecution of a Palestinian immigrant, Dr. Sami Al-Arian, for using strong words in criticizing Israel and backing Palestinian rights, a case that amounted to thought crimes. It has now ended with…
From Tiger Cages to Soup Kitchens
Exclusive: As a young man, Don Luce crossed paths with history in Vietnam, evolving from a gung-ho U.S. aid worker into a persuasive opponent of the war, famously exposing the use of “tiger cages” to hold political prisoners, but his…
Why Syria’s Assad Must Not Go — Yet
America’s neocons and liberal war hawks still want a U.S. military intervention in Syria to enforce their “Assad must go” mantra, but President Obama has realized that such a “regime change” could bring the Islamic State to power, a worse predicament, as ex-CIA…
Foreign Policy, Intelligence, Lost History, Obama Administration, Right Wing, The Bush-43 Administration
Al-Qaeda, Saudi Arabia and Israel
Exclusive: Saudi Arabia is under a new cloud after a jailed al-Qaeda operative implicated senior Saudi officials as collaborators with the terror group and the shadow could even darken the political future of Israeli Prime Netanyahu because of his odd-couple alliance with Riyadh, reports…
Constitution, Foreign Policy, Human Rights, Intelligence, Media, Obama Administration, Secrecy, The Bush-43 Administration
Convicting Sterling to Chill Whistleblowing
In the cause of protecting government secrets, the CIA and Justice Department made an example of ex-CIA officer Jeffrey Sterling by convicting him of exposing a dubious covert operation without presenting clear-cut evidence that he did, a chilling message to others, notes Norman…
Foreign Policy, Human Rights, Intelligence, Lost History, Media, Obama Administration, Right Wing, Secrecy, The Bush-43 Administration
A Pointed Letter to Gen. Petraeus
Exclusive: As retired Gen. and ex-CIA Director David Petraeus was about to speak in New York City last Oct. 30, someone decided to spare the “great man” from impertinent questions, so ex-CIA analyst Ray McGovern was barred, arrested and brought to trial, prompting…
Entangling the US in a War with Iran
Since the early days of the Republic, foreign countries have sought to entangle the United States in their wars with some Americans collaborating in those efforts. Today, that country is Israel as it works with Republicans to expand hostilities toward…
Twisting Diplomacy to Hurt Iran
Neocon-domination of Official Washington continues to put an eminently reachable deal to constrain Iran’s nuclear program in jeopardy because the neocons favor bombing Iran on a path for “regime change.” But their obstructionism hurts U.S. interests, says ex-CIA analyst Paul R.…
Did North Korea Really Hack Sony?
Exclusive: The Obama administration has accused North Korea of hacking Sony in retaliation for “The Interview,” a goofball comedy about assassinating the country’s real-life leader, but the case may be another politicized rush to judgment by the U.S. government, writes…
Foreign Policy, Human Rights, Lost History, Media, Obama Administration, Right Wing, The Bush-43 Administration
How Human Rights Can Build Haiti
American interventions in Haiti are often sold as paternalistic charity for a basket-case country, but the U.S. interference has often done more harm than good for the impoverished nation where two lawyers have tried to a different approach, building human…
Haiti and America’s Historic Debt
From the Archive: Some Americans view Haiti through a lens of racial bigotry, seeing the poverty-stricken Caribbean country as proof that black people can’t govern themselves. But there is a very different historical narrative regarding America’s profound debt to Haiti,…
The Israel Lobby Shows Its Clout
House Speaker Boehner’s unprecedented invitation to give Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu a platform of a joint session of Congress to undercut President Obama’s foreign policy is just the latest example of how much power the Israel lobby wields, as Gareth…
The One Percent’s Great Escape
F. Scott Fitzgerald once wrote that the rich “are different from you and me,” which remains true today except now they don’t even want to be around regular people, seeking more and more remote locations to escape from the increasingly…
What Syriza’s Victory Means for Europe
Exclusive: The Greek election of the left-wing Syriza party sent shock waves across Europe with establishment parties fearing more populist resistance to years of austerity and to putting bankers first. The question now is whether European voters will follow Syriza’s lead, says Andrés…
Foreign Policy, Human Rights, Lost History, Media, Obama Administration, Right Wing, The Bush-43 Administration
‘Group-Thinking’ the World into a New War
Exclusive: The armchair warriors of Official Washington are eager for a new war, this time with Russia over Ukraine, and they are operating from the same sort of mindless “group think” and hostility to dissent that proved so disastrous in Iraq,…
Why FDR Matters Now More Than Ever
On the 133rd anniversary of his birth, Franklin Roosevelt remains a relevant figure for America, the president who gave meaning to the Constitution’s mandate to “provide for the general Welfare” — and who is still a target for those who made…
An Israeli Insult to America
House Speaker Boehner arranged for Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to address Congress without clearing the move with the White House and with the clear intent to challenge President Obama’s foreign policy, an unprecedented affront that calls for a reaction, says…
Constitution, Foreign Policy, Human Rights, Intelligence, Obama Administration, Secrecy, The Bush-43 Administration
Honoring NSA’s Binney and Amb. White
In our age of careerism, it’s rare for high-ranking officials to sacrifice their powerful posts for principle, but that was what NSA’s William Binney and the late U.S. Ambassador Robert White did. Their sacrifices and integrity were honored by likeminded…
China’s Drive for a ‘New Silk Road’
As the United States lets its national infrastructure decay, the Chinese are pressing ahead with ambitious plans to construct a “New Silk Road” to expand commercial and diplomatic ties to Central and Southeast Asia, report Flynt Leverett, Hillary Mann Leverett…
How Roy Cohn Helped Rupert Murdoch
Special Report: Through Fox News and a vast media empire, Rupert Murdoch wields enormous political clout in the United States, but his entrée into the world of Washington power came from the notorious McCarthyite Roy Cohn who opened the door into…