Robert Gates just retired from his job as secretary of defense. Now, of course, he is writing not one but two books.
The first, to be published in 2013, will be a memoir about his experience as the only secretary of defense to serve two different presidents from both parties while at war the entire Read More
On Monday morning, Defense Secretary Robert Gates was en route to Egypt.
Over the next several days, Mr. Gates, according to the Associated Press, will be on a “delicate mission” to “reassure long-term U.S. allies in the Persian Gulf region that efforts by Washington to reach out to Iran will not Read More
Barack Obama’s selection of Eric Shinseki to head the Department of Veterans Affairs, a position that has only been Cabinet-level for 20 years, is receiving an unusual level of attention. This is understandable, given the celebrity that Mr. Shinseki has accrued these past five years, as his pre-invasion estimate that the U.S. had sent hundreds Read More
When the journalistic pack bites into a tasty cliché they often refuse to let go, lazily chewing and regurgitating a phrase like “team of rivals” long after the flavor is gone. Derived from the Doris Kearns Goodwin book on Lincoln’s cabinet, that morsel had scant relevance to the cabinet being assembled by Barack Obama, as Read More
Just over six years ago, as legend has it, George H. W. Bush weighed in on the invasion of Iraq that his son seemed hell-bent on pursuing, deputizing his old confidante Brent Scowcroft to deliver a very public warning to the president.
Mr. Scowcroft’s resulting op-ed, published in The Wall Street Read More
The Gates debate is over, but Barack Obama’s decision to keep Secretary of Defense Robert Gates upset many of the president-elect’s progressive supporters — including Chris Bowers of Open Left, usually a very astute analyst, and my friend Greg Sargent at TPM. But their objections seem to be based on a misunderstanding of Read More
As Barack Obama makes his way through the transition to power, he is learning the steps of an old dance. Having promised change, he now surrounds himself with experience. Having poured scorn not only on the Bush administration but at times on the Clinton administration as well, he now welcomes those who served his Democratic Read More
Ben introduces us to Joe Bruno’s nemesis.
Bruno owes these unions some Christmas cards.
Michael Barone says it’s time to start calling Rudy a “frontrunner.” (Via Andrew Sullivan.)
The Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats have been giving some money away. Hey, ’tis the season!
Gawker hit the New York Press Read More
Senator Reid just now said a smart thing on the floor of the Senate: the way out of the Iraq mess involves talking to Syria. “Even talking to Syria.” The grieving David Grossman told Israel the same thing last week. And Americans for Peace Now reports that the intelligence head of the Israel Defense Forces Read More
The White House pushed yesterday to hold the confirmation hearing for Defense Secretary appointee Robert Gates before the newly elected Democratic Senate comes into session.
I asked Chuck Schumer today how the votes might go in a Democratic chamber.
“Gates is hardly a new visionary thinker,” he said.
Still, he would Read More
