Outside the Beltway

As expected, Donald Trump yesterday signed Executive Orders targeting Muslims and refugees.

Delegating the morning briefing to advisors isn’t actually that unusual.

Three of the top four national security positions in Donald Trump’s Cabinet will be filled by retired Generals. This isn’t necessarily a good thing.

I’m in the New York Times’ “Room for Debate” with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Duke’s Peter Feaver.

For Donald Trump, it appears that ignorance is bliss.

The United States and Russia have reached an agreement to end fighting in Syria, but it seems unlikely to succeed given that it doesn’t involve the parties actually doing the fighting.

President Obama’s ISIS policy has been far from perfect, but to call him a “Founder” of ISIS is to ignore both history and reality.

American forces will continue to stay in Afghanistan well after Barack Obama leaves office thanks to a new policy announced today.

Marines, especially female Marines, will be allowed to be heavier in the new year.

Unlike previous civil rights changes, this one came without much fanfare, fight, or even discussion.

The Senate has passed an amendment to a military spending bill that would require women to register for the draft.

President Obama’s visit to Hiroshima left just the impression it should have.

A journalistic legend has passed away just days after his retirement was officially announced.

A treasure trove of documents from a law firm in Panama could prove problematic for a large group of international leaders.

Given the stakes headed into the latest version of ‘Super Tuesday,’ last night’s Republican debate was surprisingly subdued.

My latest for RealClearDefense, “The Forgotten Veterans of Desert Storm,” has posted. The headline belies the argument.

The U.S. is poised to send troops to the front lines of yet another war we have no reason to be involved in.

The President has another plan to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay. It’s as likely to be well-received on Capitol Hill as all of his other previous plans on this issue.

American forces will be deployed to a combat area in southern Afghanistan, reversing current policy and calling the President’s promised withdrawal date into even further doubt.

The Army Chief of Staff and Commandant of the Marine Corps told Congress that women should be required to register for the draft just like men are.

Get ready for an expansion of the war against ISIS into Libya, because it’s probably not far away.

New email headaches for Hillary Clinton, but it’s not clear what impact they will have on the race for President, if they have any impact at all.

Ten American sailors detained by Iranian forces late Tuesday were released early today, something that seems to clearly demonstrate the value of diplomacy.

Donald Trump’s plan to exclude Muslims from the United States is provoking condemnation, and confusion, around the world.

Tensions between Russia and Turkey remain high in the wake of yesterday’s incident, but there are some signs that things are starting to cool down.

Hillary Clinton’s recently announced policies toward the ISIS fight are as incoherent and misguided as President Obama’s and those of her Republican opponents.

Disturbing reports over the weekend that American leaders may not be getting the kind of unbiased intelligence analysis about ISIS that they need to make decisions.

An apparent ongoing terrorist attack in Central Africa.

Ben Carson displays incoherence and ignorance on foreign policy issues that disqualify him from being considered a serious candidate for President of the United States.

Ben Carson’s campaign now admits that he fabricated a key portion of his biography.

American intelligence officials are saying that a Russian passenger jet that went down over Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula was most likely brought down by a bomb.

President Obama came to office inheriting the legacy of one unnecessary war, and another that had faded from memory. He will leave office with Iraq and Syria in crisis, Europe uneasy, Yemen and Libya unstable breeding grounds for terrorism, and China doing whatever it is they’re doing.

Another day, another military escalation in the Middle East.

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.

In the wake of failure that could have been easily foreseen, the Obama Administration is ending a program to train so-called “moderate” Syrian rebels.

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.

Lindsey Graham recently retired as a colonel in the Air Force Reserves after 33 years of service. He missed most of the last twenty.

The Defense Department is working to fully integrate transgender troops.

My latest for The National Interest, “America’s Military Needs a New Retirement Plan,” has posted.

In what seems to be a clear signal to Russia, the U.S. is considering pre-positioning military equipment in nation’s very close to Russian borders.

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