On June 5, 2014, hundreds of ISIS militants launched a lightning assault on Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city. As a result of the mass surrender and desertion of the Iraqi forces, ISIS took full control of the city on June 10, just 5 days later. The group looted...
Foreign Policy
Forever War at the End of the World
by Connor Freeman | Nov 17, 2022 | Featured Articles, Foreign Policy
Uncle Sam now has nuclear weapons held to humanity’s head. Washington’s recently released Nuclear Posture Review clarified that launching nuclear weapons in a first strike is indeed on the table, to “achieve U.S. objectives if deterrence fails.” This came after...
Blinken, Sullivan Oppose General Milley’s Appeal for Diplomacy in Ukraine
by Dave DeCamp | Nov 14, 2022 | Featured Articles, Foreign Policy
While Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley has publicly voiced support for diplomacy between Ukraine and Russia, other Biden administration officials are against the idea, CNN reported on Friday. Citing unnamed administration officials, the report...
Western Politicians Tried (and Failed) to Legislate Tides of Russian Oil
by Marcel Gautreau | Nov 9, 2022 | Economics, Featured Articles, Foreign Policy
Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Western sanctions program can best be compared to an interrogator who first amputates a victim’s arm and then, brandishing the severed appendage, threatens to begin slitting its wrist and tearing out...
It’s True, Joe Biden Used to Be Right about Weapon Sales
by Jordan Cohen and Jonathan Ellis Allen | Nov 9, 2022 | Featured Articles, Foreign Policy
U.S. arms transfers have become a salient issue during the Biden administration given the Saudi‐led war in Yemen, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and continued sales to risky neighbors. Over the past few weeks, the Biden administration has had to balance supporting...
The Murder of Mahsa Amini, Iranians’ Quest for a Democratic State, and the Role of Outside Forces
by Muhammad Sahimi | Nov 7, 2022 | Featured Articles, Foreign Policy
On September 13 Mahsa Amini (called Zhina by her own family), a 22-year-old woman from the Kurdistan province in western Iran, was in Tehran to visit her family and friends. She was detained by Iran’s “guidance patrol” (referred to as “morality police” in the Western...
Remembering Daniel Webster This Election Day
by Dan McKnight | Nov 7, 2022 | Featured Articles, Foreign Policy, Politics
Tomorrow is Election Day. There’s going to be a lot of candidates and a lot parties on the ballot—Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians, Greens, etc. Someday, when I enter the booth in my local polling station to pull that lever of democracy, I hope to see the words...
Biden Goes Begging for Saudi Barrels
by Jim Bovard | Nov 7, 2022 | Featured Articles, Foreign Policy
Why don’t you talk about something that matters?” President Biden replied to a journalist asking about why he fist-bumped Saudi dictator Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) during his “begging for barrels” trip to the Middle East in July. Biden hoped the Saudis would rescue his...