Tag: Paul R. Pillar

Trump’s Next Most Dangerous Possibility

Assuming President Trump doesn’t blunder into World War III, the next greatest harm he may do is reverse the modest U.S. steps toward fighting global warming, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar explains.

Behind Trump’s Anti-Iran Tough Talk

Appeasing the Saudi-Israel axis in the Mideast, President Trump is talking tough against Iran and bringing his administration even more into line with neocon orthodoxy, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar explains.

Trump Sends the World Muddled Messages

Moving from Tweets to Tomahawk missiles, President Trump enjoys sending messages with exclamation points, but those messages often are muddled and thus dangerous, says ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar.

The Scary Temptation of War in Syria

The incoherence of President Trump’s foreign policy – and his reliance on “the shows” to get his military advice – have made Syria a dangerous temptation, explains ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar.

Excusing Bahrain’s Human Rights Abuses

Team Trump remains under the Saudi-Israeli spell that Iran is the region’s strategic threat, which explains the policy incoherence of supporting Bahrain’s repression of Shiites, a dilemma addressed by ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar.

Trump’s Dangerous Government of No

President Trump wants to show how different his policies are from President Obama’s, but that negative approach is careening his young administration into trouble, observes ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar.

America Digs Its Own Afghan Grave

Afghanistan has long been called the “graveyard of empires,” the site of failed invasions. But the U.S. – in its 15-plus-year endeavor – seems determined to dig its own grave there, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar describes.

Trump’s Team Embraces Iranian Myths

Key players in the Trump administration have stuck to the neoconservative insistence on “regime change” in Iran rather than take a fresh look at the reality, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar explains.

Reasons for Rise in Anti-Semitism

Anti-Jewish vandals have defaced cemeteries and other Jewish targets, raising the question of whether anti-Semitism is on the rise in the Age of Trump, writes ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar.

Trump Hides Behind the Military

While addressing Congress, President Trump turned to the gallery and pointed to the widow of a Navy SEAL killed during a botched raid in Yemen, just one way Trump exploits the military, says ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar.