In a stunning defeat, Democrats deserted their president on a vote for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a bill that would have bolstered his negotiating power in trade deals with 11 other Pacific Rim countries. Ironically, House Republicans largely supported the measure that would have allowed Obama to make deals with far less congressional meddling.
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US Ratchets Up Fight Against Islamic State
Posted June 11th, 2015 at 1:47 pm (UTC-4)
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With Obama’s decision to deploy an additional 450 US troops to help Iraq defeat Islamic State militants comes the inevitable question.
Are we back in Iraq?
Obama’s Tacit Alliance with Iran Against ISIS Is Doomed to Failure
Posted June 9th, 2015 at 12:20 pm (UTC-4)
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Rather than revamp a failed strategy, U.S. officials now appear ready to rely (at least tacitly) on Iran to help roll back the jihadis.
No Easy Fix for the Middle East
Posted June 8th, 2015 at 2:19 pm (UTC-4)
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The Islamic State. Iraq. Syria. The words speak for themselves: the Middle East is unraveling. US policy has been faulted – from conservatives and liberals alike – for allowing the chaos – and failing to secure a deal between Israel and the Palestinians. But there’s another narrative gaining steam, one that says Obama isn’t to blame. There’s no easy fix.
For Obama, No Middle Ground in the Mideast
Posted June 8th, 2015 at 8:42 am (UTC-4)
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Obama Administration Turns a Blind Eye to Cuba’s Transgressions
Posted June 3rd, 2015 at 9:37 am (UTC-4)
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For the sake of American security, however, the U.S. Congress should be asking more questions about Obama’s U.S.-Cuba rapprochement and whether there are any real benefits for Cubans or the United States absent any true economic or political reforms in Cuba.
Expiration of US Patriot Act Sparks New Debate on Surveillance
Posted June 1st, 2015 at 2:03 pm (UTC-4)
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Ever since former US National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, now exiled in Moscow, leaked the reach of the US government’s surveillance on the public in the name of preventing terrorism, a new energy about official “spying” has erupted across the globe.
More US Air Power Needed to Defeat IS, Defense Expert Says
Posted May 29th, 2015 at 5:54 pm (UTC-4)
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“Right now the problem with Syria, and it’s a true tragedy, is there really aren’t good options for a US strategy.” Anthony Cordesman
The State of the Islamic State. And US Policy
Posted May 29th, 2015 at 3:40 pm (UTC-4)
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Ever since Islamic State militants took control of the Iraqi city Ramadi, the success of the Obama administration’s policy to quash the extremists has been revisited many times over. The territorial gains have shaken up the debate over how to get a handle on the group, which has roiled Syria, Iraq – and US policymakers.
The Pull of Middle East Turmoil on Obama
Posted May 27th, 2015 at 3:33 pm (UTC-4)
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If one of the president’s most enduring foreign policy goals has to been to pull America out of years of deep engagement in the Middle East, the current state of affairs simply will not let him. Syria, Iraq and, most urgently, the birth of the ultra extremist Sunni Islamic State are forcing Obama to rethink US engagement in a region that some say is in the midst of a dangerous meltdown.
Challenged by Mideast Upheaval, Obama Policy Re-examined
Posted May 22nd, 2015 at 2:20 pm (UTC-4)
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Be it the Islamic State, Syria, Iraq or a possible nuclear deal with Iran, the region’s complexity is, once again, front and center. That IS militants now hold more than half of Syrian territory is just one alarming development that has President Barack Obama defending the choices he’s made to handle unprecedented upheaval in the Middle East.
You Want Hypothetical? Here’s One.
Posted May 22nd, 2015 at 9:22 am (UTC-4)
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Following six years of President Obama’s steady and determined withdrawal from the Middle East, America’s standing in the region has collapsed.