Outside the Beltway

Whether it’s a good policy will depend almost entirely on execution.

The Asia pivot is happening very slowly.

Congressional Republicans are reminding voters of a dark hour in the Biden presidency.

Yet more evidence the man is unfit to serve as Commander-in-Chief.

A former classmate is going to be one of the US military’s most senior leaders.

Their case is less than persuasive.

As if the situation in the Persian Gulf weren’t already tense enough, the Iranians shot down an American reconnaissance drone late yesterday

Bret Stephens (and others) are overreacting.

A misleading, annoying media trope that needs to go away.

The legendary figure was in charge of strategic forecasting at the Pentagon for decades.

The Vietnam memorial helped heal a gaping wound. What purpose will this one serve?

My latest for The National Interest has posted.

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.

One freshman Senator seems to think that war with Iran would be easy, just like Republicans used to think that war against Iraq would be easy.

President Obama has opened a new front in his “war” against ISIS

Western military action in the Syrian civil war now appears likely.

The Pentagon is considering doing away with two combatant commands—and no longer calling them combatant commands.

General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, commander during Operation Desert Storm, has died at the age of 78.

The White House and the Pentagon are buildings, not unitary actors.

Marine Commandant James Amos is going all-out to keep gay Marines in the closet, saying allowing them to serve openly could get men killed.

The commander-in-chief, secretary of defense, and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff all support removing the ban on gays in the military without further delay. A long-awaited Pentagon study showed no reason not to do so. But three of four Service chiefs disagree.

Robert Lane Greene investigates the rise of acronyms, initialisms, and other informal shortenings of speech.

Of the U.S. military’s 10 combatant commands, only three are held by Army or Marine generals.

Some people are saying that David Petraeus deserves promotion to a rank last held by Omar Bradley.

General James Mattis, who some feel was snubbed for Marine Commandant last month, has landed in arguably a more important role: succeeding David Petraeus at CENTCOM.

President Obama has relieved General Stanley Chrystal of command of ISAF.

General Stanley McChrystal is opening his mouth again and, this time, it could cost him his job.