By definition, “terrorism” applies to attacks on civilians for political ends. But the U.S. government has revised the term to cover any attack on Americans, including soldiers fighting anywhere in the world, a misuse of the concept that is hampering…
Mitt Romney, the Bully
As a privileged preppy, Mitt Romney enjoyed humiliating suspected gays and other vulnerable people. But his bullying didn’t stop when he grew older. Instead, he applied similar tactics to make a fortune as a corporate raider, writes Marjorie Cohn.
Reflecting on Mother’s Day and War
The original idea of Mother’s Day was to promote peace so mothers would not have to suffer the grief that many American moms faced after the slaughter of the Civil War. But some of today’s most powerful women, including moms,…
Adding Hurdles for Iran to Clear
The current head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, who was essentially installed by Western powers, is adding new hurdles for Iran to clear before an agreement can be reached on its nuclear program, a standoff addressed by Gareth Porter…
Honoring a ‘Terror War’ Architect
Exclusive: In this season of graduations and the rush to bestow honorary degrees on the “great and powerful” one ironic moment will play out at Fordham University, where Jesuits are giving top billing among its honorees to White House counterterrorism…
Setting the Stage for More Wars
U.S. news correspondents often compete to cover Americans wars with an eye to making a name or building a career. But when the wars drag on or when problems are just festering the news media quickly loses interest, ironically setting…
Bin Laden Files Dispel Iran-Qaeda Link
To build support for “regime change” in Iran, neocon operatives and U.S. officials have tried to link al-Qaeda to Iran by exaggerating intelligence and ignoring evidence of mutual hostility, including new data in Osama bin Laden’s captured files, writes Gareth…
To Save the Republic, Tax the Rich?
From the Archive: The urgent question facing the advanced capitalistic societies of Europe and the United States is: can “free markets” still meet the people’s needs or will those needs be sacrificed to the market’s demand for “austerity” — and…
A ‘Treason’ Trial for Barack Obama?
Exclusive: Right-wing propagandists have gulled many of their followers into accepting a false narrative of America’s Founding, a made-up history that now has become the basis for some extremists to call for President Obama’s trial for “treason,” an idea that…
Democracy Fights Austerity
Much of Europe has swallowed the bitter medicine of austerity on orders from conservative economic theorists, only to find that the supposed cure has made matters worse. Now, elections in France and Greece indicate that Europeans want a new approach that…
Last Day for Spring Fund Drive
From Editor Robert Parry: Our spring fund drive ends at midnight Tuesday and we are now only about $3,500 from our goal of $25,000. If you can, please help so Consortiumnews can continue offering its unique perspective on politics, history…
Hiding the True Jesus
In reshaping American politics and society, the Christian Right has applied a distorted version of Jesus’s teachings, downplaying his pacifism and his contempt for wealth while emphasizing later revisions that didn’t threaten the powerful. That’s why Rev. Howard Bess says…
Can the Left Change the Democrats?
Over several decades, as the Right built a powerful political/media infrastructure and effectively took over the Republican Party, the Left squandered its advantage in holding many positions that mesh with popular sentiment by too often insisting on political “purity” and refusing to work within the Democratic…
Lost History, Media, Obama Administration, October Surprise, Politics, Right Wing, The Bush-43 Administration
Obama Gets Tough, Finally
Exclusive: President Obama looks ready for a political fight, telling his supporters “Let’s go get ‘em. It’s game time.” But is the U.S. political/media system ready for a Democrat turning the tables on the Republicans in terms of toughness after…
US Democracy’s Looming Iceberg
As Campaign 2012 shifts into high gear, American democracy is careening toward a crash with little protection against the outsized influence of Money, used to confuse the voters, and the downsized ability of Media to keep the public adequately informed, reports…
Wrapping Up Spring Fund Drive
From Editor Robert Parry: We are wrapping up our spring fund drive and need your help to get at least halfway to our goal of $25,000. Our ability to provide important information on Election 2012 will be impaired if we can’t…
Method to Republican ‘Madness’
From the Archive: Robert Draper’s new book, Do Not Ask What Good We Do, describes Newt Gingrich and other Republicans plotting on Barack Obama’s Inauguration Day how to sink his presidency. But that plot has been obvious for years in GOP obstruction of Obama’s…
Declaring War on ‘Political Islamism’
Exclusive: If Mitt Romney wins in November, the neocons have made clear they will reclaim full control of U.S. foreign policy and reverse President Obama’s few halting steps toward peace. The neocons even want to move past George W. Bush’s…
How US Hubris Baited Afghan Trap
Exclusive: Despite what Official Washington thinks it knows, the real error on Afghan policy after the Soviets left in 1989 was not the abrupt cutoff of U.S. aid but nearly the opposite, continued CIA support for the Islamist mujahedeen and…
The Secret in the US-Afghan Deal
The secret of President Obama’s strategic agreement with Afghan President Karzai is that U.S. Special Forces will continue raids to kill Taliban leaders who won’t make peace — even as the new accord is sold to the American public as…