Most everyone remembers where they were and what they were doing on September, 11, 2001. It was one of those days never to be forgotten, like Pearl Harbor or the day President Kennedy was assassinated. Published September 10, 2019
Donald Trump wins again in 2020, no matter who runs against him. This even if the Republicans rip themselves apart as they did with Ross Perot in the 1992 Clinton- GHW Bush election. By the way, this was the same election — we should recall — that started the tawdry "Clinton Dynasty," which has thankfully come to an end. Published March 12, 2019
President Trump's recent executive order, "Establishment of the United States Space Force," represents a major positive turn in U.S. national security policy. In many ways, this new order is as significant as was President Reagan's famous March 23, 1983 "Star Wars" speech leading to his Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) that "got the attention" of the Russians — and was cited by many as a basic reason for ending the Cold War. Published February 26, 2019
President Trump has announced that, unless the Russians reverse their violations of essential and "material" provisions of the 1987 Intermediate Nuclear Force arms control treaty (INF) signed by Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev in 1987, we will withdraw from the treaty in six months. Published February 6, 2019
The Trump administration is taking seriously the entire spectrum of economic challenges related to China that impact our nation. For decades, prior administrations have either ignored the issues or accepted Chinese lies, fabrications and excuses without any pushback. Fortunately, there are no internal political battles over this area — so we can expect the excellent team President Trump has assembled to "work these issues" will succeed. Published February 5, 2019
The Trump administration inherited the "Afghanistan problem," now going into its 18th year. The U.S. presence in this conflict consumes some $45 billion to $50 billion of taxpayer dollars annually as well as the lives of our service men, women and contractors. Published January 30, 2019
Immediately following President Trump's rollout of the Pentagon's Missile Defense Review (MDR), Russia responded that the new U.S. strategy was proof "Washington's desire to ensure uncontested military domination in the world will inevitably start an arms race in space with the most negative consequences for international security and stability, will not strengthen security of the U.S. and its allies and will have the opposite effect and deal another heavy blow to international stability." Published January 28, 2019
The national security talking head and op-ed circuit these days is full of "clucking" about how we can recover lost ground from the Russians and Chinese in the post-Cold War competition of world powers. Not surprisingly perhaps, there is little discussion of how we got ourselves into this mess — this because many of the op-ed authors and talking heads were complicit in our great power demise. Published January 16, 2019
The Trump administration is quietly pushing ahead with a plan for a new security and political alliance with six Gulf Arab states, Egypt and Jordan, in part to counter Iran's expansion in the Middle East. The plan, which some in the White House and Middle East are calling an "Arab NATO" of Sunni Muslim allies can clearly be seen as one way to counter expansionism by Shi'ite Iran and referred to as the Middle East Strategic Alliance (MESA). Published August 6, 2018
Where do we go from here? Published June 18, 2018
Assuming Kim Jong-un has — so far — agreed to "complete denuclearization," whatever that means, in exchange for the suspension of U.S.ROK military exercises. Where do we go from here? Published June 12, 2018
No Washington establishment — especially the party in power — took Donald Trump seriously as a presidential candidate. Accordingly, the early decisions made in the imbedded intelligence bureaucracies — often called the "deep state" — were clearly made with the assumption that there would never be any review or accountability. Published June 4, 2018
Story after story comes out about the extent to which partisan politics played a key role in the Obama Department of Justice (DOJ), intelligence community and FBI during the 2016 presidential campaign. It's especially so in the context of the Hillary Clinton email investigation, and the more recent suggestions of a "mole" or "spy" inside the Trump campaign. Published May 23, 2018
If one were to make a list of "what Kim really wants" in his discussions with the U.S., such would be quite straightforward, however — at least so far — they have not been expressed as such. Published April 22, 2018
Napoleon Bonaparte said: "China is a sleeping giant. Let her sleep, for when she wakes she will move the world." Now, of course, China has long been awakened — and all the world knows it. Published February 26, 2018
Our news-hack kids — or, as Obama chief spinner Ben Rhodes called them, the "27-year-old know-nothings" — don't have a clue as to the operative history of the North Korean nuclear threat to Asia, the Pacific and the United States. Published December 12, 2017
Washington has always had lots of lawyers — it's the very nature of this power town; lots of liars — it's the very nature of politics; and, as we have recently discovered, yet again, lots of real horndogs — it's the very nature of power politics. Published December 4, 2017
If China doesn't decide to intervene and essentially "denuclearize" North Korea — and soon — the Pacific region will "nuclearize" itself, in reaction to China's inaction and the growing North Korean nuclear threat. Published November 20, 2017
Ignored by the "inside the Beltway" media has been the heroic efforts of Rep. Mike Rogers, Alabama Republican, as he struggles against the "corporate" Air Force to establish a separate Space Corps service. Published October 24, 2017
If you're one of the 63 million who voted for President Trump, you agonize as you watch the evening news -- because you know it's going to be mostly negative coverage and commentary. Published August 30, 2017
