Axis of Anger
The Machiavellian VIRTUs

Sanctioned and scorned, Venezuela, Iran, Russia, and Turkey are increasingly cooperating to frustrate American aims and dodge sanctions.

(Dan Kitwood – WPA Pool/Getty Images)
Saudi Statecraft
Mohamed bin Salman Unhinged? Maybe Not

For all his impulsiveness, the Saudi Crown Prince’s domestic priorities place serious constraints on his foreign policy.

(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Decline Time in America
America, the Forever Has-Been

Predictions of America’s inevitable decline are like repertory theater, put on stage once every decade since the 1950s. For all his arrogance and nastiness, Donald Trump may flummox the doomsayers again.

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Living History
John McCain Speaks to the Ages

The Senator’s parting words bring to mind famous farewells, invoking values we all should live by.

(Michael Masters/Getty Images)
The View From Down Under
Reading the Tea Leaves in Canberra

Political chaos in Australia masks growing political cohesion on national security issues—and a hardening line on China.

(Alex Wong / Getty Images)
Fool’s Errand
Rand Paul’s Bizarre Mission to Moscow

Senator Paul’s misguided trip to Russia didn’t just undermine his own credibility on foreign policy. It also hurt the President’s own push for better relations.

Composite by Danielle Desjardins
English Irony
The New British Exceptionalism

For all their differences, Jeremy Corbyn and Boris Johnson both link humor, national identity, and an attachment to England’s imperial importance in ways that point to common national pathologies.

(Lior Mizrahi/Getty Images)
Toward the Brink
The Great Middle Eastern War of 2019

The next war on Israel’s north will not simply be a more destructive replay of the 2006 Lebanon War, but will likely involve many more actors on multiple fronts, unprecedented challenges for escalation management, warfighting, and conflict termination—and the possibility of a regional conflagration.

(Win McNamee/Getty Images)
The New Speech Wars
The Costs of Policing Ideas

Between shaming, outrage mobs, and self-censorship, our free speech crisis goes far beyond the First Amendment.

(Jasper Juinen/Getty Images)
Turkey Crisis
The Fallout of Qatar’s Bailout

Doha’s bailout of Ankara is a slap in the face to Washington, and will jeopardize Qatari efforts to mend strained ties with the United States.

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