Outside the Beltway

An American freed from captivity, and potentially huge changes in America’s diplomatic and trade relationship with Cuba.

Hackers who have divulged embarrassing secrets from deep within Sony Pictures are now threatening violence if a film about a plot to kill Kim Jong Un is released.

A day of terror at a school in Pakistan.

Was Man Haron Monis a terrorist, or just a lone nut who had latched on to the rhetoric of ISIS to justify his own delusions? In the end, it hardly matters.

The “ticking time bomb scenario” is a TV trope and, therefore, is a terrible guide for making policy.

Vice-President Cheney’s amoral defense of torture has come to define how most conservatives view the issue, and that’s a problem.

A hostage crisis has been unfolding overnight at a cafe in Sydney, Australia that has apparent links to international terrorism.

What now?

A dark and regrettable time in American history is finally seeing the light of day.

The Navy has stripped Navy veteran Bill Cosby of an honorary promotion in the wake of unproven sexual misconduct accusations.

The Obama Administration took some fire yesterday for recent Ambassadorial Appointments, but the President’s record has been consistent with those of his recent predecessors.

The next President will have a profound ability to shape the future of the Supreme Court, but that is unlikely to be the most important issue on voters minds in 2016.

The abrupt departure of Chuck Hagel says much more about Administration policy than it does about Chuck Hagel.

A surprising change at the top of the military’s civilian chain of command.

Our supposed Syrian allies seem to have a different idea of who the enemy in Syria actually is.

A critic of the imperial presidency becomes an imperial president.

The shocking has become routine. We’re no safer because of it.

The House Intelligence Committee has concluded that the conspiracy theories regarding the 9/11/2012 attack in Benghazi are not supported by the evidence. That’s unlikely to change anyone’s mind, though.

You thought the American combat role in Afghanistan would end on December 31st? Think again.

The idea that the U.S. does not negotiate with terrorists is simply not historically accurate, so should we be reconsidering the policy of not negotiating with ISIS for the release of Western hostages?

The CIA has always separated its core spying and analysis functions; that may soon change.

The latest ISIS video is horrible and barbaric but we should not take the bait they are offering before considering the consequences of our actions going forward.

As things stand right now, there is no legitimate legal authorization for the President’s war against ISIS, and that’s largely because Congress has failed to act.

There’s not much good news in the initial review of September’s fence jumping incident at the White House.

Some people didn’t like the song selection at last night’s Washington, D.C. concert for Veterans Day.

Civil asset forfeiture gives “highway robbery” a whole new meaning.

Good news for two released Americans, but no clue what’s motivating North Korea’s latest actions.

Mission creep.

Not surprisingly, a law passed in the wake of the September 11th attacks has been used mostly for things that have nothing to do with terrorism.

The Supreme Court will decide if Congress can override American foreign policy when it comes to declaring who has dominion over Jerusalem.

Always as many military personnel identify as Independents as with the GOP.

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul continues to challenge Republican orthodoxy on foreign policy, and that’s a good thing.

Facing a tough re-election battle, Kansas Senator Pat Roberts is engaging in abject fearrmongering.

We’ve handed off operations in Helmand Province to the Afghanistan army.

Yesterday’s apparent terrorist shooting in Ottawa reveals again a phenomenon that seems difficult if not impossible to stop in advance.