US Wars and Military Action

Secretary of defense nominee Pete Hegseth at a Senate Armed Services confirmation hearing on January 14.

Pete Hegseth Smarms His Way Closer to Running the Pentagon Pete Hegseth Smarms His Way Closer to Running the Pentagon

Stonewalling questions about his sexual behavior and excessive drinking as “anonymous smears,” the Fox host charmed the Senate Armed Services Committee’s GOP majority into submiss...

Jan 14, 2025 / Joan Walsh

Shredding while Gazans burn: Secretary of State Antony Blinken performs “Rockin’ in the Free World” in Kyiv on May 14, 2024.

Antony Blinken’s Legacy Is Buried Under the Rubble of Gaza Antony Blinken’s Legacy Is Buried Under the Rubble of Gaza

Despite valedictory speeches, the secretary of state will be remembered not for his successes—or his guitar playing—but for the humanitarian catastrophe he aided and abetted.

Jan 13, 2025 / Jonathan Guyer

The Worlds of Noam Chomsky

The Worlds of Noam Chomsky The Worlds of Noam Chomsky

If ordinary Americans know one critic of the American Empire, it’s almost certainly Chomsky.

Jan 13, 2025 / Books & the Arts / Daniel Bessner

Let’s call the whole thing off: Justin Trudeau shaking hands with Donald Trump at a NATO summit in London to mark the alliance's 70th anniversary in December 2019.

Justin Trudeau’s Fecklessness Made Him an Easy Target for MAGA Manifest Destiny Justin Trudeau’s Fecklessness Made Him an Easy Target for MAGA Manifest Destiny

The United States probably won’t annex Canada. But Trump’s imperial dreams are already destabilizing the world.

Jan 10, 2025 / Jeet Heer

Sednaya Prison and the CIA

Sednaya Prison and the CIA Sednaya Prison and the CIA

Coverage of Syria’s prisons overlooks their decades-long use as key destinations for extraordinary rendition, where terror suspects were sent for brutal interrogations.

Jan 7, 2025 / Barbara Koeppel

Donald Trump stands looking forlorn in the rain under a black umbrella

Trump Brought the War on Terror Home—and He’ll Do It Again. Trump Brought the War on Terror Home—and He’ll Do It Again.

While the War on Terror has receded into the background of our lives, its premises and tactics remain all too readily available.

Jan 1, 2025 / Karen J. Greenberg

An effigy of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol during a protest outside the National Assembly in Seoul following the second martial law impeachment vote on December 14, 2024.

South Korea's Autumn of the Patriarchy South Korea's Autumn of the Patriarchy

President Yoon Suk-yeol is the first of his country's leaders eager to be a stooge of both Washington and Tokyo. His impeachment is testimony to the strength of Korean democracy.

Dec 19, 2024 / Bruce Cumings

The new face of the resistance? Outgoing Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.

It Would Be Idiotic to Make Mitch McConnell the Face of Anti-Trump Resistance It Would Be Idiotic to Make Mitch McConnell the Face of Anti-Trump Resistance

Countering imaginary isolationism, the outgoing Senate Republican leader advocates a return to Cold War militarism.

Dec 17, 2024 / Jeet Heer

Partners for peace? Trump meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in June 2019. Instead of attacking Trump’s diplomatic initiatives as “weak,” Democrats should support negotiations.

Progressives Can’t Afford to Spend the Next 4 Years Just Playing Defense Progressives Can’t Afford to Spend the Next 4 Years Just Playing Defense

Or reflexively denouncing every Trump policy. While we mustn’t underestimate the danger he poses to our democracy, when he says he wants to end war, the left should call his bluff...

Dec 17, 2024 / Matthew Duss

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump watch during a military flyover as they host the 2020 “Salute to America” event in honor of Independence Day on the White House South Lawn.

The Military Under Trump Will Be a Disaster The Military Under Trump Will Be a Disaster

It’s no longer clear that anyone in Trump’s second term will be there to restrain him from moving forward with his worst intentions against civilians.

Dec 16, 2024 / Andrea Mazzarino

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