Ideas
The Trump-Kim Summit Is Diplomacy. Democrats Should Support It.
Trump has wisely shifted tactics. Democrats should not let politics undermine reasonable diplomacy.
Policy
The Impossible Job of Speaking Truth to Trump
How do you offer intelligence to a president who’s not interested—and keep your job?
Threats
Pentagon Wins a Reprieve with Trump Approval of ‘Residual’ Forces in Syria
General Dunford is “confident” U.S. allies will now agree to stay, but for how long remains undetermined.
Ideas
Rethink 2%: NATO ‘Defense Spending’ Should Favor Cyber
Today, a dollar or euro spent on network security goes farther than one spent on conventional arms.
Policy
Trump Officially Directs Pentagon to Create Space Force, Within Air Force
If Congress approves, Space Force would exist like the Marine Corps within the Navy Department.
Ideas
The Moment the Transatlantic Charade Ended
At the Munich Security Conference, Europe and the Trump administration stopped pretending to respect each other.
Policy
The Senate’s Russia Probe Is Facing a Reckoning
Meanwhile, the Democratic-led House committee is gearing up for a reinvigorated inquiry.
Policy
The Trump Administration Can’t Get a United Front Against Iran
But the Warsaw conference did bring together Gulf Arabs and Israel against their common enemy.
Ideas
Trump’s Emergency Declaration is Going to Run into Four Hurdles
They fall into the broad buckets of legal, legislative, political, and constitutional issues.
Policy
Trump Declares National Emergency, Calling Gov’t Border Drug Stats ‘Lies’
In a dark, rambling speech, the president repeated long-debunked arguments — and provided ammunition for likely court challenges.
Ideas
Why Withdrawing from the INF Treaty Might Be Unconstitutional
No one really knows who gets to cancel treaties, but courts may defer to a Congress that prefers not to.
Ideas
South Korea Becomes a Testing Ground for Trump’s Grievances With Allies
The motto for the U.S.–South Korea alliance isn’t “We go together, if I get enough money as reimbursement,” one analyst observed.
Threats
Trump: US Will Be Working with Mideast Partners ‘For Many Years to Come’
The president acknowledged that the Islamic State continues to pose a threat even though U.S.-led coalition forces have retaken 99 percent of its territory.
Policy
Trump Announces Second North Korea Summit in State of the Union
The president stuck to the teleprompter in his 82-minute SOTU speech, the second-longest in history.
Policy
Senior Officials Downplay Trump Plan to Keep Troops In Iraq to ‘Watch Iran’
Some Baghdad watchers say the president’s remarks could imperil the U.S. troop presence in Iraq.
Ideas
The US Needs a Real Plan to Counter China in Africa
The current toothless strategy won’t prevent Beijing from, say, squeezing supply lines to America's biggest African base.
Ideas
The Unpredictable Rise of China
Xi Jinping seeks national rejuvenation, but his nation’s mounting power masks increased instability.
Policy
Trump Administration Downplays Fears of Post-Treaty Arms Race
"Nothing the U.S. is currently looking at is nuclear in character,” a senior administration official says, after announcing INF withdrawal.
Ideas
Trump, Nukes, and No First Use
Two bills aim to enact a long-overdue policy that will make the world less dangerous.
Policy