Rexit (and Pompin)

Ken AshfordForeign Affairs, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

And now, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is out. To show you how ineffective this White House is, there isn’t a straight story about when/how this occurred. The news reported Tillerson found out due to a tweet, according to Steve Goldstein, undersecretary for public diplomacy: Rex Tillerson found out he was fired by President Trump’s tweet on Tuesday morning, according … Read More

Trump To Send Missiles to Ukraine

Ken AshfordForeign Affairs, Russia, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

The news services are reporting that the United States plans to arm Ukraine with Javelin armor-piercing missiles and other lethal military equipment to help Kiev battle Russian-backed separatists in the east. The Trump administration wants to approve a $47 million military aid package to Ukraine, including 210 anti-tank missiles and 35 Javelin launchers. Russia has warned that the plan, a departure from the previous … Read More

National Threat Assessment

Ken AshfordCybersecurity, Foreign Affairs, Russia, Trump & Administration, War on Terrorism/TortureLeave a Comment

It may not be in the news much today, but there is an important open hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee, where the directors of the all the intelligence agencies testify: Director Daniel R. Coats – Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Director Michael Pompeo – Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director Admiral Michael Rogers – Director of the National Security Agency (NSA) Director Lieutenant General Robert Ashley – Director of … Read More

Trump Recognizes Jerusalem As Capital Of Israel

Ken AshfordForeign Affairs, Godstuff, Middle East, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

Trump’s speech in a nutshell: “Today we finally acknowledge the obvious: That Jerusalem is Israel’s capital,” Trump said. “This is nothing more or less than a recognition of reality. It is also the right thing to do. It’s something that has to be done.” This is the actual presidential proclamation on Jerusalem. PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP’S PROCLAMATION ON JERUSALEM AS THE … Read More

Decertification Of Iran?

Ken AshfordForeign Affairs, Iran, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

BREAKING: Tillerson: Trump will not withdraw from Iran nuclear deal but will say pact is not in US national security interests. — The Associated Press (@AP) October 13, 2017 TRUMP on the Iran nuclear deal: “I am announcing today that we cannot and will not make this certification.” — Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) October 13, 2017 These tweets are two hours … Read More

Trump’s UN Speech

Ken AshfordForeign Affairs, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

Let’s be clear about Trump’s speech to the United Nations yesterday — it was an example of what he was elected for. Bombastic and in-your-face. That’s what people who voted for Trump wanted, and that’s what he displayed. It was “bad” in the sense that it was Trumpian. It was also “bad” in the sense that it projected a horrible … Read More

How Britain Voted

Ken AshfordForeign AffairsLeave a Comment

It’s a hung parliament folks. PM Theresa May thought she had more conservative support, called for a snap election, and was unable to find a conservative majority, thanks largely to large amounts of young voters going Labour, and the decline of smaller parties. What is going to happen? With the blessing of the Queen, it looks like the Conservative Party … Read More

Day 117. Wow.

Ken AshfordForeign Affairs, L'Affaire Russe, Polls, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

1/ Trump asked James Comey to shut down the Michael Flynn investigation in a February memo he wrote shortly after meeting with Trump. “I hope you can let this go,” Trump told Comey. The request is the clearest evidence that he tried to directly influence the Justice Department and FBI investigations. Comey kept detailed notes of his meetings with Trump, … Read More

The Bannon Downgrade Isn’t Just About Palace Infighting; It Means Globalists Are Beating The Nationalists

Ken AshfordForeign Affairs, Trump & AdministrationLeave a Comment

“America First” might still be the motto of the Trump White House, but what that means might be something than it originally meant.  Bannon’s removal from the National Security Council could mean that Trump is starting to see America’s interest as inextricably linked to global events, rather than as something separable.  The New Yorker gets it: For students of White … Read More

Possible Terrorist Attack In Berlin

Ken AshfordBreaking News, Foreign Affairs, War on Terrorism/TortureLeave a Comment

In a day that has already seen a diplomatic assassination, it looks like we might have a terrorist attack on our hands. A truck ran into a Christmas market an hour or so ago in a major public square in Berlin. There are reports of several dead, 50 injured. The incident happened in Breitscheidplatz in western Berlin. Because of the similarity between … Read More

Trump’s Non-Convention Fire: His Foreign Policy Interview

Ken AshfordElection 2016, Foreign AffairsLeave a Comment

Well, we know why Trump doesn’t discuss policy much.  Because when he DOES, oooooh my.  The New York Times has yet another interview with Donald Trump, foreign policy genius. Let’s listen in: He even called into question whether, as president, he would automatically extend the security guarantees that give the 28 members of NATO the assurance that the full force … Read More

Hail The New PM

Ken AshfordForeign AffairsLeave a Comment

Theresa May just became the 76th prime minister of the United Kingdom. May was first elected as a Conservative member of parliament in 1997. She earned a reputation as a modernizer, calling in 2002 for a more inclusive party and warning that many voters saw the Conservatives as the “nasty party.” She briefly served as party chair before assuming her … Read More

Tony Blair Lied Britain Into The Iraq War (P.S. Bush Did, Too)

Ken AshfordForeign Affairs, Iraq, War on Terrorism/TortureLeave a Comment

Across the pond, rather than running bullshit investigations like our Benghazi hearings, the parliamentarian body did something useful and tried to discern how they got involved in a huge quagmire. Sir John Chilcot delivered a devastating critique of Tony Blair’s decision to go to war in Iraq in 2003, concluding that Britain chose to join the US invasion before “peaceful … Read More