Right Web Features Archive

The ongoing crisis in Syria has become a litmus test for Bush-era neoconservatives, as well as the larger interventionist

Although he has developed a reputation for ideological flexibility, Mitt Romney’s campaign rhetoric on foreign policy seems calibrated to

Tensions have been reaching near fevered pitch over Iran’s nuclear program as Israeli leaders and their supporters in the

As pressure mounts to arm rebels in Syria, there is need for a sober assessment of the costs and consequences

Before a skeptical audience of delegates from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, President Obama affirmed U.S-Israeli ties

Tehran's threat to close the Strait of Hormuz, coupled with mounting threats from hawks in Israel and the United

The purported “end of the neocon consensus” has hardly meant an end to hawkishness in the GOP fold. With the

With key members of the "Israel Lobby" acknowledging the importance of providing a broader space to Israel’s critics, the

The issue of whither U.S. relations with China is an important test case for observing the divide between the

Since Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s call for an independent Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September, the

President Obama’s decision to come out against the Palestinian bid for statehood at the UN General Assembly this week

In a ground-breaking new report, the Center for American Progress reveals the small group of inter-connected foundations, think

Tunisia, Egypt, now Libya. Each of these revolutions have occurred under the watchful eye of the House of Saud, which

Anders Behring Breivik’s hateful rhetoric is part of a larger right-wing trend demonizing Islam. This kind of discourse

Despite vocal efforts by some foreign policy hawks to view the war on drugs as an extension of the war

A number of conservatives and security hawks have used the death of Osama bin Laden as a prop in their

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s demand that Israel be recognized as a “Jewish state” is unprecedented in the history of

Just as they did in their effort to push for war in Iraq, hawks are assiduously laying the groundwork for

As the Arab Spring confronts increasing resistance from entrenched interests in the region, the Palestinian cause appears to be at

The Palestinian people — and the rest of the world — have begun to realize that even an iron fist can only

Commentary Magazine’s Contentions blog recently published an entry from Michael Rubin, a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, in

Ties between Latin America and the Middle East have drawn renewed attention, in part spurred by the tepid reactions of

During the recent upheavals across the Greater Middle East, the various iterations of the neoconservative line—the optimistic pro-democracy

In a distinct echo of the tactics they pursued to encourage U.S. intervention in the Balkans and Iraq, a

Though the recent uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt were unprecedented in the history of the modern Arab world, they are

The neoconservatives have repeatedly found themselves facing the discomforting reality that democratic change in the Middle East—which they have

The continuing influence of Syria, which has been reflected in the recent power struggles in Lebanon, clearly demonstrates that U

Militarist advocacy organizations often employ exiles from Muslim countries to bolster their promotion of hardline U.S. policies. Individuals such

Right-wing supporters of Israel have countered complaints about the influence of the “Israel Lobby” by conjuring a multifarious boogeyman

The midterm elections have been hailed as a victory for the Tea Party, whose anti-establishment revolt seems to have

Siberia’s forbidden hinterlands have long been a source of friction between Russia and China. In recent years, the idea

There is little reason to think the recently revived Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations will result in success. Weakened leaders, growing

With their strategic goals discredited and their influence in policy circles on the wane, neoconservatives are making savvy use of

SpinProfiles, a UK-based website that monitors the European conservative movement, was recently forced to shut down after Alexander Meleagrou

Conservative acquiescence in the firing of Gen. Stanley McChrystal appears to be a surprising commitment to the principle of civilian

Once described as the “Everything Expert” by Time magazine, Amitai Etzioni, the renowned social scientist and public intellectual based at

In recent years, there has been a growing tendency for think tanks and military brass to jointly pursue policy objectives

The vehement attacks against President Obama’s arms control initiatives reveal the extent to which the militarist extreme in the

China is rapidly expanding its influence in the Middle East. Side-lined during the Cold War, Beijing now has both

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to arrive in Washington just in time to witness the dénouement in

Neoconservatism is generally regarded as a distinctively American worldview that is characterized in part by a deep-seated belief in

In September, a network of hawks from the Christian Right to the neocons held a conference aimed at raising alarm

Despite their political plunge, neoconservatives—and the think tanks that sustain them—have been surprisingly skilled at reinventing themselves and

Some Israelis fear that Barack Obama is the second coming of Charles de Gaulle—a leader of a powerful global

Even as the Obama administration ramps up military engagement in Afghanistan, the motives for why the country went to war

The near simultaneous reappointment of a sacked Supreme Court judge and the signing of an agreement to allow Sharia courts

On Norouz, the day when Iranians celebrate the coming of spring and the new Iranian calendar year, President Barack Obama

President Barack Obama might turn out to be a foreign policy pragmatist, eschewing the grand strategies and big-label crusades

Cheney has from the beginning served as the most aggressive hawk among the top administration leadership. His public pronouncements on

With change coming to Washington in the form of a new president who campaigned on a slate of foreign policies

Neoconservatives, despite their appreciable influence on President George W. Bush’s administration, have never numbered very many people. By forming

Wracked by the devastation wrought in the violent aftermath of their own presidential election a year ago, Kenyans across the

The steep reversal of financial fortune for one of the most generous donors to hawkish causes could likely impact the

Pakistan is facing one of the worst internal crises in its history. The turmoil—intimately tied to the Bush administration

This year’s race to the White House has been billed as a thing of historic proportions, and in

Sen. Joseph Lieberman, the Independent Democrat from Connecticut who is closely affiliated with neoconservative-led advocacy efforts to push an

The aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks proved a watershed moment for entrepreneurs intent on profiting from militarist U

With ongoing peace talks between Israel and Syria, a new political settlement in Lebanon, and the specter of confrontation with

Members of Washington’s band of foreign policy realists are high-fiving each other these days. First there was

The same neoconservatives who dominated the Bush administration for almost eight years are now screaming like stuck pigs over the

Businessmen with ties to the GOP and right-wing ideologies and pedigrees are not uncommon. What makes Erik Prince special

With pressure on both houses of Congress to pass legislation imposing more sanctions against Iran, and without key opposition from

The website of the Project for the New American Century went offline last month, spurring conspiratorial rumors regarding the once

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, under fire at home for a deepening corruption scandal, left behind his political trouble in Israel

As he was drowning politically and personally in scandals that would lead eventually to a humiliating resignation from office

Over the course of the Iraq War, the Pentagon has used hand-picked retired military officers as “message force

In the wake of the congressional hearings earlier this month featuring Gen. David Petraeus and Amb. Ryan Crocker, during which

Last week, the commander of the U.S. occupying forces in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus, and the overseer of what

A missile strike on March 16 by an unmanned U.S. drone inside Pakistan’s terrorist-infested tribal areas

Predictably, the fifth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq is being marked with zeal by national media and

After close to eight years during which the relationship between the United States and much of the international community has

Each of the three major presidential candidates left standing would make major changes to the national security and foreign policies

“Iran is today the world’s leading state-sponsor of terror,” declared President George W. Bush in

As critics of George W. Bush’s foreign policy begin to count down the final days of his presidency

On December 18, as Congress was about to head out of town, the Senate took three last votes on the

The conventional wisdom de jour in Washington, DC, can be summed up in a catchphrase popularized by Bill Clinton's

First, a flashback: On February 11, 1985, President Ronald Reagan welcomed Saudi Arabian King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz during a

Just as a flicker of hope emerged to bring back elected civilian rule to Pakistan, the ideological warriors of neoconservatism

Imagine Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice telling a group of leading U.S. policymakers that Iran's nuclear weapons program

The drumbeat of a possible march to war with Iran reached a new intensity in recent weeks. Although the campaign

This month, the Pentagon launched the U.S. Africa Command (Africom), spurring debate and showcasing two contrasting worldviews within

Many people in Washington thought that September would produce a marked change in the Iraq War policy. A number of

There is an old Jewish story about a man who lives in a very small house with his wife, many

In late July, U.S. presidential hopefuls discussed Iran's uranium enrichment program at a news conference sponsored by the

A television adaptation of Nebula Award-winning author John Kessel's short story "A Clean Escape," which aired

Though the Bush administration has repeatedly emphasized its desire for democratization and regime change in Iran, there are serious questions

One of the neoconservatives' lasting achievements was the construction of a new pillar of foreign policy—namely, democracy promotion

When they took control of both houses of Congress in November 2006, Democrats were determined to shake things up and

*This article was updated and corrected on August 17, 2007. Five years after U.S.-funded groups were associated with

President George W. Bush's decision to nominate Robert Zoellick as the new World Bank president continued the president's

When President George W. Bush announced the formation of a military command for Africa (AFRICOM) this past February, it came

These days, conventional wisdom in Washington, DC holds that the Iraq War has been lost, that the Bush Doctrine of

On May 24, Congress gave overwhelming approval to the Supplemental Appropriations Bill, which approves about $100 billion to fight the

During the second GOP presidential debate, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani experienced what mainstream media pundits have termed

While Congress has focused on the war in Iraq during the first four months of 2007, it has now begun

Let us imagine for a moment that the years of George W. Bush as president have already passed us by

What's Fred Thompson got that Rudy and "Straight Talk" John don't? For those excited about his

On March 23, after a long, passionate debate, the House of Representatives voted 218-212 to mandate the withdrawal of

From high-brow intellectualism to tabloid spin, the neoconservative movement has evolved in ways that its early progenitors could hardly

Republicans, like most Democrats, would prefer to keep immigration issues out of presidential politics. But restrictionist Rep. Tom Tancredo (R

The full-page ads appearing in newspapers across the country are wrenching: children in the last stages of starvation, terrified

Ideology and faith are stirring new calls to arms among influential political factions in the United States. At a time

Once upon a time, an American president would have been a leader in the effort to bring peace between Israel

Although Newt Gingrich, the former Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives who was forced to relinquish his post over

After the swift fall of Somalia's Islamic Courts Union (ICU) in December 2006, the capital city of Mogadishu has

Rejecting the notion that the United States was planning to attack Iran and Syria, White House Spokesman Tony Snow called

When the 110th Congress was sworn in on January 4, a new cast took charge, making very complicated dynamics the

President George W. Bush's plan to "surge" more than 20,000 additional U.S. troops into Iraq without any

When Congress slunk out of town early the morning of Saturday, December 9, it left behind a mixed record on

One of Aesop's fables recounts how once upon a time Mount Ida, the birthplace of Zeus, experienced a huge

What does Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) have in common with national security hawks at the country's leading right

Summary: Shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States, an influential, neoconservative-led pressure group called the

There is an element of Schadenfreude in the reaction of critics of Washington's neoconservatives to the policy setbacks and

The October publication of President George W. Bush's new space policy marked a definitive victory in a long-fought

While the November 7 midterm election will doubtless change the atmospherics in Washington, DC, it is unlikely to have a

One of the Bush administration's top foreign policy priorities before the end of the year is to secure congressional

Two groups in Britain urge foreign policies that reflect key aspects of the American neoconservative agenda. One group has even

Stumping for Republican candidates across the country in recent weeks, Vice President Dick Cheney has honed in on a particular

Nikolas Gvosdev, editor of the National Interest, a foreign policy magazine affiliated with the Nixon Center in Washington, DC, has

The recently released staff report on Iran issued by the Republican-controlled House Intelligence Committee and the new National Intelligence

This past June, the Israeli Embassy in Washington held a reception for several high-powered leaders of the Christian right

John Bolton's renomination as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations appears moribund as Congress finishes its final

Divergent political camps have found common ground in support of "energy security" and "energy independence." As high gas prices and

In 1996, a group of American neoconservatives participated in a study group organized by the Israel-based Institute for Advanced

If asked to point to the main victims of the recent crisis in the Middle East, most objective observers might

As the midterm elections approach, the Democrats must decide where they stand. Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-CT) stood his ground

During the 35-day conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was accompanied on her shuttle diplomacy

U.S. President George W. Bush has fancied himself playing Gary Cooper's role in High Noon. Yep, Sheriff W

This summer, the immigration debate in the United States has heated up as conservatives of all tendencies-social conservatives, neoconservatives

For more than five years, the Bush administration's aggressive and unilateral national security policies have been triumphant in the

Over the past year and a half, the State Department has reemerged as the preeminent force in U.S. foreign

The neocons are largely united over Iran policy, which they say should have three pillars: avoid diplomacy, which they call

Rep. Tom Tancredo, the leading voice of the immigration restrictionist movement, believes that the United States should wall in our

At a time when the Republican Party is divided on immigration reform and when the Democrats and the Republicans are

If the month of January is a sign of Bush administration troubles to come in 2006, it could be a

Rep. Tom Tancredo, who has represented Colorado's Sixth District since 1999, has in the last six years succeeded in

Corrected on June 6, 2006. Of all the personnel changes that have occurred in the Bush administration during the first

If people know of Sibel Edmonds at all, they know her as an FBI whistleblower. Since mid-2002, her face

They are the glue that binds American conservatism—in all its flavors: neoconservative, libertarian, evangelical, triumphalist—into an

With John Roberts seemingly a shoo-in for the Supreme Court, Republicans can hardly be blamed for their excitement on

One of the major achievements of the neoconservatives over the past two decades has been to integrate the missionary impulses

The “world’s democratic movement” is not another one of the transnational citizens’ movements, like the

The top U.S. government official in charge of arms control advocates the offensive use of nuclear weapons and has

A career diplomat and foreign policy operative, Eric S. Edelman is slated to replace the controversial Douglas

Move America Forward (MAF), a California-based advocacy group, believes that moving the country forward requires kicking the United Nations

When Americans ponder why the rest of the world regards it with less respect, they could turn to the recent

Since the founding of the CIA in 1947, it has been under attack, mainly from the right. Although left-center

Just two weeks ago conventional wisdom both here and in European capitals was that President George W. Bush's second

The most intriguing aspect of U.S. President George W. Bush's nomination of Karen Hughes to take charge of

The CIA has long been caught in the crossfire from the left and the right. Human rights critics and left

Michael Chertoff, who served as the head of the Justice Department's criminal division under Attorney General John Ashcroft, has

Elliott Abrams, a figure from the Ronald Reagan-era Iran-Contra scandal who describes himself as a "neo-conservative and

The State of the Union Address and Bush's second Inaugural Address focused U.S. and international attention on Natan

The neoconservative Project for the New American Century (PNAC) has signaled its intention to continue shaping the government's national

Stephen Hadley is a fire-tested Vulcan--a hardliner close to Vice President Dick Cheney and to the neoconservative camp

Shortly after 9/11, Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Douglas Feith began coordinating Pentagon planning for a regime change in

Overview The Coalition for Democracy in Iran (CDI) is one of numerous pressure groups created by neoconservatives that focus on

Feith served as the number three civilian in the George W. Bush administration's Defense Department, under Donald Rumsfeld and

Blame the CIA. That's a political agenda that has found bipartisan support in Congress. Both the right and the

In the heat of Iraq the neoconservatives are seeing their visions of Pax Americana turn into nightmares and headaches. But

(This is the third article in the Chronicle of the New American Century series written by Tom Barry for the

(The following is the final statement of the BRussells Tribunal, an international commission of inquiry held in Brussels on April

(In the interests of explaining the logic of the foreign policy agenda developed by the Project for the New American

A not-so-fine line exists between foreign support to foster democratization and the direct funding of a single political

The cold war is long over, but with the support of U.S. supremacists in both parties NATO lives on

A band of neoconservative pundits with close ties to Israel have mounted a campaign against American scholars who study the

(Editor's Note: This is the second in a series of investigative reports on the influence of a web of

(Return to the original article, Baghdad and Beyond, available online at rightweb.irc-online.org/rw/764.). Bruce Jackson, of

Abram Shulsky and Gary Schmitt credit the teachings of Leo Strauss, a German Jewish émigré philosopher, with helping

In the days after September 11 terrorist attacks, Paul Wolfowitz and Douglas Feith started cooking intelligence to meet the needs

(The first in a series of investigative reports on influence of a web of right-wing organizations and individuals--chiefly

Abram Shulsky and Gary Schmitt have shuttled back and forth between government and right-wing institutes like the NSIC. In

The most notorious attempt by militarists and right-wing ideologues to challenge the CIA was the Team B affair in

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has been one of the few U.S. politicians willing to depart from accepted political discourse

It may be that four or five months from now:. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz will have heard the siren

It’s hard to believe, but the Bush administration’s foreign policy and the invasions of Afghanistan and

In the growing debate over whether the Bush administration should get "boots on the ground" in the war-torn West

We meet here during a crucial period in the history of [the United States], and of the civilized world. Part

Understanding politics in America and U.S. foreign policy means knowing