Conflicts of Interest

September 5, 2021

On COI #157, Connor Freeman – writer at the Libertarian Institute – returns to the show to discuss Biden’s Israel policy. Biden entered office with a prime opportunity to revive the Iran nuclear deal, but has instead caved to the demands of Tel Aviv. Now the deal is nearly dead and Israel is plotting more […]

Robert C. Koehler

September 4, 2021

“Ten members of one family – including seven children – are dead after a US drone strike targeting a vehicle in a residential neighborhood of Kabul . . . “The youngest victims of Sunday’s airstrike were two 2-year-old girls, according to family members. “Relatives found the remains of one of the girls, Malika, in the […]

Daniel Larison

September 3, 2021

Kori Schake wants Congress to take more responsibility in foreign policy, but this proposal would effectively block almost all diplomatic agreements and make it practically impossible for the US to negotiate with almost anyone: Agreements with foreign powers, whether states, international institutions or organizations like the Taliban, should be submitted to Congress for a vote. […]

Conflicts of Interest

September 2, 2021

On COI #156, Kyle Anzalone discusses the departure of the last US soldiers in Afghanistan. After 20 years, the occupation has finally ended. However, the US war in Afghanistan may not be over as Biden has vowed to continue drone strikes in the country. The latest strike left seven children dead. The Biden administration says […]

Edward Hasbrouck

September 1, 2021

On September 1st the House Armed Services Committee joined the Senate Armed Services Committee in voting 35-24 to expand registration for a possible military draft to include young women as well as young men. Following this House committee vote and an earlier Senate committee vote in July (before Congress’s summer vacation), the versions of the […]

Connor Mortell

September 1, 2021

In the wake of the withdrawal from Afghanistan, calls to impeach Biden have been coming from everywhere. In the past few weeks "Impeach Biden," "President Harris," and "Biden Resign Now" have all trended on Twitter. Representative Lauren Boebert recently said in a press conference referencing the flaws in the withdrawal claiming "It is time for […]

Daniel Larison

September 1, 2021

The president delivered a good speech yesterday defending his decision to withdraw from Afghanistan and end the U.S. war there. Here was the key point: So we were left with a simple decision: Either follow through on the commitment made by the last administration and leave Afghanistan, or say we weren’t leaving and commit another […]

Jacob D. Witte

September 1, 2021

More American troops in Afghanistan were killed in the August 26 suicide bombing of Hamid Karzai International Airport than all of 2020. The attack was perpetrated by a member of ISIL-Khorasan, an appendage of the Islamic State that was founded in 2015. Anytime an American servicemember dies in the line of duty the pangs of […]

Daniel Larison

August 31, 2021

Stephen Wertheim makes a good case that Congress needs to take up its responsibilities in matters of war: Mr. Biden inherited this situation, but he need not perpetuate either the ongoing wars or the legal evasions that enable them. He could tell Congress this: It has six months to issue a formal declaration of the […]

Conflicts of Interest

August 31, 2021

On COI #155, Kyle Anzalone and Will Porter update the situation in Afghanistan, including the aftermath of a deadly suicide bombing outside the Kabul airport on August 26. President Joe Biden authorized two separate retaliatory drone strikes on what the government claims were ISIS-K targets in Afghanistan. The first was launched Friday in Nangarhar province and […]