The Things Hillary Says
Politico's estimable Laura Rozen has some thoughts about my new print piece on Hillary Clinton's verbal missteps, hiccups, and maybe-intentional-maybe-not taboo breaking as she travels the world. READ MORE >>
Reset Button
Murtha: Obama Can't Count on Dems for Afghanistan Escalation
A striking passage buried in today's NYT lead story on the massive cost of the war: Representative John Murtha, Democrat of Pennsylvania and chairman of a subcommittee on defense appropriations, said in an interview that because of concerns about President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan, he thought a majority of the 258 Democrats in the House would vote against any bill to pay for more troops. “A month ago, I would have said 60 to 70,” he said. READ MORE >>
Would Obama Have Nuked Japan?
At a press conference in Tokyo today, a Japanese reporter asked Obama whether Harry Truman made "the right decision" to drop nuclear weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Obama dodged the question (easy to do because it was a multi-parter. Note to reporters: Multi-part questions usually ensure non-answers to the toughest bits). I wonder what he really thinks. It seems likely that, like the overwhelming majority of Americans, Obama thinks the bombs had to be used. READ MORE >>
As Feared: Iran vs. Saudi Arabia
If you'll recall one of the big foreign policy nightmares circa 2005-2006 was the possibility that U.S. withdrawal from Iraq would lead to a destabilizing proxy war between Sunni-led Saudi Arabia and Shiite Iran. We stuck around and that didn't happen. But we may now be getting it anyway... in Yemen. READ MORE >>
Exit Greg Craig
ABC's Tapper on the White House counsel's departure: "There is a firm belief from the President on down that Greg is taking more blame than he deserves for Gitmo," a senior administration official told ABC News. "This was a decision made by the President and supported by many officials." READ MORE >>
Who Leaked the Eikenberry Cables?
From whence came the leak of two cables from the US Ambassador to Kabul, Karl Eikenberry, warning against an escalation in Afghanistan? It's not clear, though most of the speculation assumes that Eikenberry himself publicized it to shift the public debate away from how many more troops to send to whether to send more troops at all. READ MORE >>
Gates "Appalled" Over Leaks on Afghanistan, Ft. Hood
He is a former CIA man, after all. He knows how to keep secrets and wishes others would do the same. READ MORE >>
Dobbs '12?
A USAID Pick, Finally
I've been diverted with a print story so this is a little belated, but it's great news that the Obama administration has finally chosen someone to lead USAID. The vacancy of that post more than 10 months into an administration that has pledged to prioritize foreign aid was a minor scandal, even if the vetting process is a "nightmare." READ MORE >>
