Covert Ops

Michael Ledeen on floral sofa in front of plants and a window facing trees in sunshine.

Michael Ledeen Was the Forrest Gump of American Fascism Michael Ledeen Was the Forrest Gump of American Fascism

From Iran-contra to Iraq war WMD lies to Trumpism, this right-wing pundit kept subverting democracy. 

May 30, 2025 / Jeet Heer

Why Pete Hegseth Still Has a Job

Why Pete Hegseth Still Has a Job Why Pete Hegseth Still Has a Job

Hegseth is terrible at every part of his job except the one that matters to Trump—a willingness to break with norms that keep the military in check.

May 12, 2025 / Laura Jedeed

Laura Loomer, a right-wing pundit and supporter of former president Donald Trump, outside the United States Federal Courthouse where Trump is scheduled to be arraigned later in the day on June 13, 2023, in Miami, Florida.

Trump Is Loomering His Own Administration  Trump Is Loomering His Own Administration 

The ongoing internal witch hunt led by the far-right provocateur is a sign of a GOP crack-up.

Apr 7, 2025 / Jeet Heer

All Vance Is Saying Is Give Peace a Chance

All Vance Is Saying Is Give Peace a Chance All Vance Is Saying Is Give Peace a Chance

The vice president has doubts about the Yemen war, but will Democrats find the courage to oppose it? The GOP’s fractures offer a chance to push for an anti-interventionist agenda....

Mar 28, 2025 / Jeet Heer

A Yemeni walks over the debris of a destroyed building after it was struck by US air strikes in Sanaa, Yemen, Monday, March 24, 2025.

Bombing Yemen: Signalgate Deserves to Be a Major Scandal Bombing Yemen: Signalgate Deserves to Be a Major Scandal

But the assault on Yemeni civilians the hapless conspirators discussed in their private chat group is an even bigger disgrace—though so far the press haven’t paid much attention.

Mar 27, 2025 / Phyllis Bennis

Four men in suits sit in the Oval Office.

Group Chat War Plans Provide a Window Into Trump’s Mafia State Group Chat War Plans Provide a Window Into Trump’s Mafia State

American foreign policy is now all about incompetent shakedowns and cover-ups.

Mar 25, 2025 / Jeet Heer

JKF riding in a car through a parade.

JFK Assassination: The Final Secrets JFK Assassination: The Final Secrets

The release of the John F. Kennedy papers sets a standard for transparency that must also be applied to the current administration.

Mar 21, 2025 / Peter Kornbluh

The Making of a Cold War Spy

The Making of a Cold War Spy The Making of a Cold War Spy

The life and work of Frank Wisner, one of the CIA’s founding officers, offers us a portrait of American intelligence’s excesses.

Mar 11, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Adam Hochschild

Hundreds of Congolese protesters gather outside the BBC Broadcasting House to condemn the capture of Goma in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo, and denounce the exploitation of coltan mining, believed to be an underlying motive in the offensive.

Soundtrack to a Complicit Silence Soundtrack to a Complicit Silence

Where silence becomes an accomplice, and absence is a refrain.

Feb 14, 2025 / Maliyamungu Muhande

The Brown Berets, who newly declassified documents reveal were the target of illegal CIA surveillance in the 1960s and ’70s, are still active, as seen here in this 2017 protest against white supremacist activists in San Diego. What we don’t know is whether the CIA has ever really backed off.

The CIA Illegally Spied on Puerto Rican and Mexican American Activists for Decades The CIA Illegally Spied on Puerto Rican and Mexican American Activists for Decades

And is probably still at it. As newly released classified documents confirm activists’ long-held suspicions, the disclosures should also alert us to current dangers.

Jan 16, 2025 / Roberto Lovato

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