Outside the Beltway

President Obama is reportedly considering a plan that would put American forces much closer to the ground war in the war against ISIS.

The U.S. and Russia have reached a much-needed deal to avoid inadvertent confrontations over the skies of Syria.

Missed it by that much.

With Russia now launching its own airstrikes in Syria, it’s become obvious that U.S. policy in the Syrian Civil War is irrational and contradictory. And Russia’s policy isn’t any better.

The U.S. is set to ramp up its contribution to dealing with the Syrian refugee crisis, but there’s a lot more we can do.

President Obama now has enough votes in the Senate, and probably the House, to ensure that Congress cannot block the nuclear deal with Iran.

Congress is set to debate the Iran nuclear deal next month, but as far as Europe is concerned the debate is already over.

Another poll shows that a majority of Americans oppose the Iranian nuclear deal, but the effort to defeat it in Congress is still likely to fail.

To lose something one has to have it in the first place. (It is pretty basic logic).

Like many Republicans, Jeb Bush continues to be willfully blind to the truth about the Iraq War.

President Obama’s confrontational approach to opponents of the Iran Nuclear Deal ignores legitimate questions.

Recent polling has shown the American public to be highly skeptical, at beast, of the Iran Nuclear Deal. That may not be enough to kill it in Congress, though.

After 30 years in prison, Jonathan Pollard will be released later this year.

In bringing Holocaust imagery into the debate over the Iran nuclear deal, Mike Huckabee has displayed the intellectual bankruptcy of his position.

Reports are circulating that the Obama Administration is considering releasing Jonathan Pollard, and many are seeing it as an effort to placate Israel in the wake of the Iran deal.

Good news for the President.

The U.N. Security Council has approved the Iranian nuclear deal, and now the ball is in Congress’s court.

In the end, the odds that Congress can actually stop the new deal regarding Iran’s nuclear program are pretty low.

Depending on who you listen to, it’s either peace in our time or an epic catastrophe.

The Administration announced changes to the way the government handles hostage situations, but it really doesn’t amount to much.

A well-founded fear of ISIS seems to be drawing many of the former Soviet Republics in Central Asia closer to Moscow.

In a case that took seven months to decide, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Presidency’s broad authority in foreign affairs, and inserted itself just a little bit in the thorny politics of the Middle East.

Turkey’s governing party suffered big setbacks at the ballot box yesterday.

Some unusually blunt, but true, language from the U.S. Secretary Of Defense.

Mohammed Morsi, Egypt’s first truly-elected president, has been sentenced to death by the government which ousted him in a coup.

The relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia has seen better days.

The Vatican has announced that it will recognize Palestinian statehood, but this is not going to resolve the underlying issues that prevent a Palestinian state from actually coming into existence.

A plan to distribute migrants from the conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa across the entire European Union seems destined to cause political conflict.

Like most Republicans, Jeb Bush either fails or refuses to recognize what an utter, unjustifiable disaster his brother’s decision to invade Iraq actually was.

Jeb Bush told a group of supporters that his brother is his top Middle East policy adviser. This strikes me as being a bad idea.

Saudi Arabia’s new King has shaken up the Royal Family, and that could have interesting results.

Pot, meet kettle.

For months, Ted Cruz said the nomination of Loretta Lynch must be blocked. Then, he failed to show up when the Senate voted on her nomination.

An attack on al Qaeda outposts in January resulted in the death of two hostages, but also resulted in the death of two high value al Qaeda targets.

Conditioning an Iranian nuclear deal on recognition of Israel is foolish, unrealistic, and very bad diplomacy.

Unlike most world leaders, Pope Francis is wiling to call a genocide a genocide.

One freshman Senator seems to think that war with Iran would be easy, just like Republicans used to think that war against Iraq would be easy.

Rand Paul has changed position on several foreign policy issues, but he doesn’t seem to want to talk about it.

Scott Walker’s response to the Iranian nuclear deal is perhaps the most irresponsible so far.

The Iranian nuclear accords are barely 24 hours old and some people have already made up their mind about them.

Talks in Geneva have reached a framework agreement regarding Iran’s nuclear program that, if it’s complied with, appears at first glance to be about the best deal available under the circumstances.

More than ever before, even mild criticism of Israel seems to be verboten among Republicans.

Yet another probable rift between the U.S. and Israel over Iran.

Rand Paul now says he signed the Cotton Letter to strengthen the Administration’s bargaining position.