Five Favorite Foreign Policy Debate Gaffes
October 24, 2012 9 min. read

Monday’s debate on foreign policy marked the end of the presidential debate season for 2012.  Much has been said about past gaffes — both in foreign policy debates and in general — but we’re going to take some time now anyway to reflect on what could have, and what did, go horribly wrong in this […]

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The Problem With “42 Allies”
October 23, 2012 5 min. read

You might think most foreign policy wonks were looking forward to last night’s presidential debate but most I know were actually dreading it. It was well known that the difficult and pressing questions on foreign policy would not be asked, and to be honest, foreign policy requires far more nuance and complexity than can fit […]

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Climate Change and the Economy? Not in this Presidential Debate
October 17, 2012 4 min. read

While climate change is an established reality in much of the world, the United States continues to lag behind in recognizing the truth, despite recent gains. The U.S. is the second largest emitter of greenhouse gases, behind China, but it does not have an official dedicated policy to confront that fact. One need not look […]

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GailForce: A Man Has Got to Know His Limitations
October 10, 2012 9 min. read

I’m currently in Alabama helping out my 85-years-young mom so I haven’t had time to blog, but the following paragraph in a recent New York Times article caught my eye: The United States military has secretly sent a task force of more than 150 planners and other specialists to Jordan to help the armed forces there handle […]

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Thoughts on Mitt Romney’s Foreign Policy Speech
October 9, 2012 4 min. read

On the campaign trail, Mitt Romney has faced accusations of being vague about the policies he would pursue as president. Today, in his foreign policy speech at the Virginia Military Institute, he appeared to deliberately emphasize detail, particularly on defense issues, though some argue that the speech as a whole was itself vague. As he […]

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Foreign Policy and the First Presidential Debate
October 5, 2012 3 min. read

Last night’s presidential debate on domestic policy offered a brief preview of the upcoming foreign policy debates. When it comes to popular perception, China arguably embodies the threat to U.S. competitiveness more than any other country. Last night, only Mr. Romney brought up China, and his remarks include the following (transcript available here): My plan […]

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Romney Takes on Foreign Aid at CGI 2012
September 25, 2012 6 min. read

This week marks the official opening of the UN General Assembly in New York. As a result, several other events are taking place in New York to take advantage of the heads of state in town for the General Assembly and to focus on the many different facets of international affairs. This morning at the […]

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The Candidates and the Attack in Benghazi
September 20, 2012 6 min. read

The protest and violence associated with a film highly offensive to Islam is sure to play an outsized role in foreign policy discussions for the rest of the presidential race. Mitt Romney’s initial reaction to the Obama administration’s handling of unfolding events—and the backlash against Romney that this criticism generated—was a topic of frequent, well-covered […]

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Presidential Candidate Romney: AWOL on Afghanistan War
September 6, 2012 3 min. read

The United States has been fighting a war in Afghanistan for over ten years. Over 2,000 our bravest men and women have died there during that time period. We still have over 60,000 troops on the ground fighting in the land that hosted Al Qaeda’s leadership a decade ago. Even though, President Obama, the current […]

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Foreign Policy and the Republican National Convention
August 29, 2012 5 min. read

Like many of you, I’m eager to see how the candidates and their supporters will discuss foreign policy at the Democratic Convention (DNC) and the Republican National Convention (RNC).  Over the past month, as a result of Mitt Romney’s overseas campaign trip and Paul Ryan’s entry into the race, major news outlets and the blogosphere […]

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Oslo, So Long
July 30, 2012 5 min. read

  As a rite of summer in U.S. presidential campaigns, the nominee of the challenging party takes a trip out of the country to buff up his foreign policy credentials. Republican Mitt Romney is no exception, and his trip, not surprisingly, included a stop in Israel. Romney has a long friendship with Israeli Prime Minister […]

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Powell Wants You to “Call Him, Maybe”
June 13, 2012 3 min. read

“Those guys didn’t think I would do it. I told you I was going to do it!” That’s what internet-savvy President Obama said in New York City several months ago after belting out a few lines from Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together.”  He’s sung at the Apollo and the White House, slow jammed the news, and nominated […]

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