Many years ago, I was watching a televised roundtable on the media when Dan Rather, then a rock star among CBS correspondents, was asked why he had the good fortune to work in Washington while other journalists labored in, say, Tulsa. “Because,” he replied, “when things happen, I go.” I’m reminded of Rather’s response in …
Surveying the Greater Middle East, where chaos reigns from Egypt to Syria and where chances of war among any number of players are rising, you can hardly blame the typical American for wanting to wish it away. But the 43 percent of U.S. voters who think that America is “too involved” in the Middle East, …
Continue reading “Tide of war not receding; dangers will mount as U.S. exits prematurely”
President Obama’s decision to visit Israel, the West Bank, and Jordan in the coming weeks proves the continuing endurance of certain truths about our recent presidents as well as conventional wisdom about the region. What it does not prove, however, is that he will do any better than his predecessors in advancing Israeli-Palestinian peace. Second-term …
Continue reading “Obama’s visit won’t change Israeli-Palestinian stand-off”
History is an imperfect teacher. The lessons from events of the past often contradict one another, leaving policymakers the challenge of deciding which ones are most relevant to the issues of today. That challenge lies at the heart of the debate over what to do about Iran’s quest for nuclear weaponry. On that issue, history …
Continue reading “On Iran, the right lesson is Hitler, not Mao”
Good news, everyone. Nuclear talks are resuming on Feb. 26 between Iran and the P5+1 – the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany – and not a minute too soon. The Islamic Republic has been making notable progress on the nuclear front, perhaps even approaching an ominous “break-out” capability on technology …
Continue reading “Rest Assured – Nuclear Talks With Iran Are Resuming”
The Commentator’s European readers could learn lots from how we, in the United States of America, run our government. We are, after all, the world’s richest, most powerful, and most stable democracy. Nothing better illustrates our genius for governance than how we do our most fundamental business, which is to set our priorities through our …
President Barack Obama raised eyebrows in Jewish circles recently when word leaked that, according to journalist Jeffrey Goldberg, he had been privately saying “Israel doesn’t know what its own best interests are.” Obama’s comments, reflecting weariness more than anger about Israeli behavior, came when – in response to a UN General Assembly vote in late …
Continue reading “Does America Know Its Own Best Interests?”