Outside the Beltway

Afghanistan was a much different place half a century ago.

Slowly but surely, we’re giving up on Afghanistan.

Questions about why the Obama administration pretended the attacks on our Embassy in Libya were a spontaneous reaction to a video rather than a coordinated terrorist attack are gaining steam.

The Afghan Surge announced by President Obama in December 2009 is over. By any objective measurement, it was a failure.

Secret surveillance of American citizens has dramatically increased under the Obama Administration.

My latest for The New Republic, “America’s Scandalous Drone War Goes Unmentioned in the Campaign,” is out.

More than two weeks after four Americans — including the U.S. ambassador to Libya — were killed in an attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, FBI agents have not yet been granted access to investigate in the eastern Libyan city, and the crime scene has not been secured.

Sacrificing our principles in the face of mob violence is never a good idea.

The Administration’s decision to stick with the meme that the Benghazi attack was about a movie becomes more puzzling.

The Obama Administration’s response to the protests in the Muslim world has been entirely wrongheaded.

The Administration’s narrative regarding the attack that resulted in the death of Ambassador Christopher Stevens no longer holds water.

The President’s poll lead has shrunk, but there are still signs of trouble for Mitt Romney.

With Mitt Romney and Barack Obama basically saying the same things about foreign policy, it’s time to take a look at an alternative.

Contrary to what was believed, it does not appear that there was any protest taking place when the Benghazi Consulate was attacked.

The Romney campaign’s critique of the President’s foreign policy record is weak, and based on bad history.

The White House’s theory of what happened in Benghazi is become less and less credible.

Capitulating to a mob is never a good idea.

The Romney campaign is doubling down on bizarre foreign policy pronouncements.

If the United States and Egypt were Facebook friends, their relationship status would be “It’s Complicated.”

The career of Larry Schwartz, who is the Counselor for Public Affairs at the US Embassy in Cairo, is over.

Senator Rand Paul suggests the GOP may want to reconsider its foreign policy aggressiveness.

Mitt Romney’s foreign policy weaknesses are starting to become apparent.

A day of protests over a film nobody has ever heard of has lead to the death of the U.S. Ambassador to Libya.

The 9/11 attacks and our response to them changed America, and not for the better.

Not surprisingly, a new study finds that repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell has not caused any harm to the military.

6% of Ohio voters think Mitt Romney deserves more credit than the commander-in-chief for killing Osama bin Laden.

An attack on Iran’s nuclear program would be far more complicated than a one-off attack.

Based on its recently passed platform, the Democratic Party has given up any pretense of putting civil liberties ahead of “national security.”