Policy

Pentagon Officials Debating How Fast to Launch Space Force, Deputy Says

White House panel announces formal recommendations, while Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan confirms NRO will remain apart from Space Force.

Policy

Pompeo's Foreign Policy? Follow Trump's Lead

Pompeo has responded to the Khashoggi affair in lockstep with Trump.

Policy

Mattis Asks Trump to OK US Space Command, Pick Leaders

The Pentagon has made a number of internal moves to create the 11th combatant command.

Ideas

The Week That Tied Mideast Experts in Knots

Sanctions are not always bad, engagement is not always good, and transactional policy cuts both ways.

Policy

The Khashoggi Affair Will Change the US-Saudi Relationship

Even if the storm largely blows over, U.S. law means some aspects will never be the same.

Ideas

Trump Asks, 'I Mean, What's an Ally?'

In the president's world, there is no higher question than “who’s getting paid?”

Ideas

Human Rights Have Evaporated from America’s Saudi Policy

The administration’s reticence about the disappearance of a Saudi journalist is offensive, but it’s also clarifying.

Ideas

What Happens to the World When America Stops Standing for What’s Right?

The disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi drives home the consequences of the Trump administration’s refusal to champion democratic values around the globe.

Ideas

Congress Is Forcing a Reluctant White House to Confront Saudi Arabia

The Jamal Khashoggi crisis may finally push lawmakers to put real pressure on Mohammed bin Salman.

Ideas

Who Will Replace Nikki Haley?

Trump has increasingly sought advisers who are less apt to push back on his disruptive agenda.

Ideas

All the Times Trump Has Invoked ‘National Security’

The president does so a lot — mostly in regard to immigration and trade.

Business

Trump Wants Chinese Parts Out of American Weapons

The White House will call for targeted investments in domestic manufacturing in an industrial-base report to be unveiled Friday.

Policy

Court OKs Suit Over Foreign Payments to Trump Business

U.S. lawmakers get permission to argue in court that the president is improperly receiving payment from foreign people, organizations, and governments.

Ideas

The World According to Trump

At the end of a contentious visit to the United Nations, the American president delivered a globe-spanning seminar on his worldview.

Ideas

What Trump's UN Speech Says About What Comes Next

His General Assembly speech laid out his worldview—and offered some clues about what could lie ahead.

Policy

A Solitary and Defiant Message to the UN In Trump’s Second Speech

“We reject the ideology of globalism. And we embrace the doctrine of patriotism,” Trump told world leaders.

Ideas

The US-China Trade War is Steering the World into the Unknown

A new Cold War is a possibility — but not the most likely one.

Ideas

If Trump’s Message to the Palestinians is 'You Lost, Get Over It,' He Will Fail

Instead of acknowledging the political and national aspirations of the Palestinians, negotiators are focusing on material and economic concerns.

Policy

Trump's Order to Reveal Docs Could Undermine Secret Court System

‘No one should be happy about the weaponization of declassification.’

Threats

Trump’s Latest Warning to Iran Didn’t Come out of Nowhere

The White House condemned the Islamic Republic for rocket attacks on U.S. facilities in Baghdad and Basra. Such attacks have been common—but it’s not always clear who exactly is driving them.