Obama administration
30 Articles
What Just Happened: The Trump Administration’s Reorganization of the State Department – and How We Got Here
The Trump administration’s proposed reorganization of the State Department is not just a reshuffle. It’s a realignment of diplomatic priorities that seems set to constrain…
U.S. Policymakers’ Lessons from Yemen for Gaza
Former Obama officials write: If the White House is serious about protecting Gaza’s civilians, they need to do more than urge that Israel adhere to the law. They must make clear…
How the Expansion of “Self-Defense” Has Undermined Constraints on the Use of Force
Legal Scholar Oona Hathaway examines how expansive U.S. interpretations of "self-defense" have shaped international law.
Finally Ending America’s Forever War, Part II: Prescription
Leading legal scholar Harold Hongju Koh presents a long-term strategy for ending the "war on terror."
Introduction to Symposium: Ending Perpetual War
Marking the 22nd anniversary of 9/11, our new Symposium reflects on the enduring legacies of the "war on terror" and prospects for finally leaving the war path.
Finally Ending America’s Forever War, Part I: Diagnosis
On the 22nd anniversary of 9/11, leading legal scholar Harold Hongju Koh offers a grim diagnosis of how we got here and the challenges ahead.
Dollars Deployed: How the Weaponization of the U.S. Financial System Contributed to Afghanistan’s Collapse
The collapse of the Afghan government to the Taliban and subsequent U.S. military withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021 marked the failure of two decades of fighting to root…
Heed the Lessons From 2011 Libya to Prevail in Ukraine Today
A book by former UN Special Representative Ian Martin offers lessons from a decade-old intervention that remain relevant today.
To Check Iran’s Missiles, JCPOA Re-Entry is a Must
Iran’s missile program is a cause for international concern. Just last month, Iran launched a missile attack on Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s Kurdish region; in January 2020,…
Biden’s Guantanamo Politics are not Obama’s
To the extent that political concerns with moving aggressively toward Guantanamo closure were at one time persuasive among some executive branch officials, they shouldn’t be…
The Ballooning Biden Defense Budget
There is a bipartisan path to cut unnecessary spending in the defense budget that protects U.S. security in a cost-effective way.
Undermining Norms? How the Antipersonnel Mine Ban Has Endured in US Policy
The Trump shift became more notable for what it did not lead to than for what it did. Now Biden has a chance to set US policy on the side of humanity.