The White House only heard about an urgent warning of Afghanistan’s collapse after reading news reports.
National Security
Posted inAmerica and the World
The Futility of Military ‘Solutions’
Reflecting on what Biden gets right and wrong, and the lessons for Iranian diplomacy
Posted inMoney, Politics, and Power
The Investigator: Sen. Carl Levin (1934–2021)
The anti-kleptocracy campaigns of the Michigan lawmaker were ahead of their time.
Posted inBooks
Lawful Carnage
Scholar Samuel Moyn and journalist Spencer Ackerman consider the inherent contradictions of the endless war on terrorism.
Posted inAmerica and the World
The Truth About Intervening Powers in the Middle East
And the title ‘biggest meddler’ goes to … the UAE, not Iran.
Posted inEconomic Policy
Holding Electricity for Ransom
The electric grid is a prime target for hackers, but the private companies that dominate the sector often put dollar signs before cyber sense.
Posted inAmerica and the World
With the Iraq Withdrawal, U.S. Wars Expand
All the ways Biden isn’t ending the forever wars
Posted inAmerica and the World
Biden Can Do Better Than Trump’s China Policy
Great-power competition was never great.
Posted inMoney, Politics, and Power
Biden Advisers Ride on Pegasus Spyware
The NSO Group, now part of a Washington Post exposé, has for years enlisted powerful consultants to save its reputation.
Posted inEconomic Policy
When the Chips Are Down, We Need an Industrial Policy
The semiconductor shortage and its impact reveals the need for much better coordination of trade, industrial, national-security, and supply chain policy.