By Malou Innocent
In today’s Washington Post, David Ignatius writes that Pakistan is reaping the whirlwind of homegrown terrorism by having “squandered the opportunity presented” with a large-scale U.S. troop presence next door and for refusing to work with Washington to stabilize its mountainous tribal region. Recent history suggests a more complex reality. Mr. Ignatius is correct when [...]
Ignatius on Pakistan: Actually, We May Have Only Had One Year is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
No Comments »
By Benjamin H. Friedman
“Al-Qaeda bombmaker represents CIA’s worst fears.” That’s the headline of a Washington Post story on Yemeni terrorists’ attempt to down a U.S. bound flight by placing a bomb on the body of an operative that turned out to be a CIA and Saudi agent. By straining to alarm readers about the bomb-maker, Ibrahim Hassan al-Asiri, [...]
Washington Post Defines Worst Fears Down is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
No Comments »
This week, the President marked the death of Osama bin Laden with a self-congratulatory campaign ad. If Lincoln had spent the entire Gettysburg Address talking about himself, it wouldn’t have been quite that crass. Now, the President zips to Afghanistan—coincidentally on the anniversary of the Seal Team Six raid. House Armed Services Chairman Buck McKeon (R–CA) wryly noted that the visit came “[a]fter nearly a year of not speaking about the war and 17 months of not visiting the war zone.” Obama’s remarks from “an undisclosed location” at Bagram Air … More
No Comments »
By Malou Innocent
President Obama’s arrival in Afghanistan and signing of the strategic partnership agreement with President Karzai supposedly represents yet another corner turned in our nearly eleven year (and counting) war. The commander-in-chief’s arrival in secrecy, under darkness, and without live coverage of the signing is reminiscent of Bush the Younger’s many trips to war-torn Iraq and [...]
Security Pact Ensures America’s Presence in Afghanistan is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
No Comments »
By Christopher Preble
President Obama’s surprise visit to Afghanistan shows that he is determined to use the bin Laden killing to his political advantage. He also hopes to win points for ending two unpopular wars. That is understandable. If nothing else, it allows him to draw distinctions between both his predecessor, who failed to find bin Laden, and the eventual GOP nominee, [...]
Obama Visits Afghanistan, Perpetuates Misguided Policy is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
No Comments »
By Malou Innocent
The killing of Osama bin Laden marked a significant achievement in America’s long war against al Qaeda. Yet, following last year’s Navy SEAL raid in Abbottabad, Pakistan, it became clear that disrupting, dismantling, and defeating al Qaeda did not require the occupation of distant lands. Indeed, even in the absence of the terrorist leader’s death, the [...]
Bin Laden’s Death, One Year On is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
No Comments »
By John Mueller
The first anniversary of the murderous raid on Osama bin Laden’s hideaway presents an opportunity to evaluate the threat al Qaeda now poses. For its part, the Obama administration/reelection campaign seems more interested in using the event to score political points against Mitt Romney. But terrorism alarmists are more focused on al Qaeda itself and [...]
Why al Qaeda May Never Die is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
No Comments »
By Malou Innocent
The U.S.-Afghan strategic partnership framework agreed to on Sunday extends America’s presence in Afghanistan beyond 2014 in a desperate attempt to stave off disaster. The pact allows policymakers to perpetuate our military involvement despite assurances that we are withdrawing. Social and economic development programs will also continue with limited gains. The United States intends to nation-build on the cheap, [...]
U.S. Offers to Defend Afghanistan Indefinitely, Afghanistan Accepts is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
No Comments »
By Malou Innocent
For years, my colleagues and I have been arguing that disrupting, dismantling, and defeating al Qaeda does not require the occupation of Afghanistan or anywhere else. Wars are incredibly wasteful and counterproductive to the goal of stopping terrorism. Would-be terrorists, moreover, have reduced their dependence on “base camps” and “physical havens” because they can plan, organize, and train from [...]
“…the American homeland is the planet” is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
No Comments »
By Benjamin H. Friedman
In three recent colums for the Washington Post, David Ignatius reveals bits of two letters found in Osama bin Laden’s compound after the raid that killed him. One is a 48 page letter from bin Laden to Ilyas Kashmiri, a senior al Qaeda operative since killed in a drone strike. In the letter, bin Laden [...]
Osama’s Feckless Plot against Obama is a post from Cato @ Liberty – Cato Institute Blog
No Comments »