Outside the Beltway

The president has declared an end to combat operations in Iraq. But soldiers assigned there still draw combat pay.

Aging Vietnam vets are being treated for diabetes and other ailments unrelated to their service on the taxpayers’ dime. We can’t afford it.

President Obama didn’t use the words “Mission Accomplished” last night, but the message was the same.

Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff has proclaimed, “The most significant threat to our national security is our debt.” Is he right?

FOX reports that the entire combat phase of the Iraq War will cost less than President Obama’s stimulus. That’s not a useful comparison.

Terrorism dry-run or just weirdly packaged items and a few coincidences?

The Army and its officer corps are becoming increasingly Southern and rural. Is this a bad thing? If so, what can we do about it?

Not surprisingly, Radical Islamists are taking notice of the tone of debate in the United States over the so-called “Ground Zero Mosque.”

OTB’s James Joyner and Salon’s Glenn Greenwald discuss WikiLeaks and its implications for journalism on Al Jazeera’s “Inside Story.”

While American politics concerns itself with trivial issues, Pakistan finds itself dealing with a devastating natural disaster that could have real geo-political implications.

America’s mission in Iraq is shifting from an active combat role to a smaller security presence. But the war that gripped our attention for years is now off the radar screen.

Park51 opponents are trying to depict Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf as an anti-American radical. Read his speech at Daniel Pearl’s memorial service and judge for yourself.

America’s obsession over the fate of the Burlington Coat Factory in Lower Manhattan, and a general rise in anti-Islamic rhetoric, plays right into the hands of the people that are actually our enemies.

Steve Emerson has reportedly found 13 hours of tape of Cordoba Initiative chairman Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf and found him to be a “radical extremist cleric who cloaks himself in sheep’s clothing.” Does it matter?

Glenn Greenwald asks, “Why won’t the Pentagon help WikiLeaks redact documents?” For the same reason we don’t negotiate with terrorists.

The United States has promised $150 million in aid to flood-ravaged Pakistan. Should we have?

Some Republicans are start to wonder if it’s such a good idea for their party to be so closely associated with the heated rhetoric surrounding the future of this former Burlington Coat Factory.

It has never been illegal to wear military medals and uniforms to costume parties or while portraying a soldier in a movie.

Colombia’s Constitutional Court has struck down a US basing rights deal.

The 9th Circuit yesterday ruled that Stolen Valor laws violate the 1st Amendment and that there is a limited right to lie.

Either Obama’s Defense Secretary and commanding general are conspiring to undermine his July 11 deadline for withdrawal from Afghanistan or that they’re carrying out his intent.

As many American soldiers have died in Afghanistan under Obama as under Bush.

Robert Gates says he wants to retire next year, but will the call of duty cause him to stay longer ?

Barack Obama has significantly widened his predecessor’s global war on terrorism, even if he’s no longer calling it that.

Every new report out of Iran seems to bring us closer to the moment when Israel has decided it’s heard enough. What happens if that day actually happens ?

Tish Long, the new director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), is the first woman to head a major U.S. intelligence agency.

Remember when dealing with the utterances of Hugo Chávez that you should take them with a grain of salt (or twelve).

Protests against mosques aren’t just limited to Manhattan. And that’s a problem.

There’s a war of words developing between the Pentagon and the information-sharing website Wikileaks.

Holland became the first NATO member to pull out of Afghanistan. How long before the rest follow?

The American military is on a mission in Afghanistan that the public is increasingly starting to question.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi won’t say whether she thinks the war in Afghanistan is worth the increasing toll on American blood and treasure.

The requirement that “members act at all times in a way that reflects creditably on the House” has a parallel in the UCMJ’s “conduct unbecoming” clause.

The Obama administration wants the FBI to be able to look at your Internet records without the inconvenience of respecting your 4th Amendment rights.

While President Obama is pushing the Afghanistan surge, large numbers of elected Democrats are demanding we get out.

The Pentagon can not account for 95 percent of the Iraq oil revenue from 2004 to 2007.

Barbara Boxer has offended some veterans again. This time, she’s right and they’re wrong.

Humor me for a moment: if your life was in danger, would you trust Julian Assange to keep your identity a secret? – Joshua Foust