Wednesday, November 30, 2016

3 Brexit Lessons

Friday, November 25, 2016

Welfare - Work

My latest @ Opportunity Lives: Why Welfare and Work Go Hand-in-Hand

Special Report

My latest @ Special Report: 


My second comment at - 36m19s - on the appointment at commerce



My fifth comment at - 44m46s - on Thanksgiving and my grandfather!
  • And a piece on my grandfather as referenced in my Thanksgiving comment above.(make sure to click on The McLaughlin Group tribute - at 26m16s)

Also, here's my other grandfather, now deceased, RAF Wing Commander Harry Kerr OBE. He spent WW2 destroying, and with his sq. (269) once capturing, Nazi Submarines! Photos below are from his scrapbook.  His OBE allowed me to be christened at St. Paul's Cathedral.

Sunday, November 13, 2016

Special Report Panel

Earlier this evening, I had the pleasure of joining the Special Report panel. 

My first comment at the 25m35s mark - as linked here - concerns Trump's Chief of Staff pick and divergences in international political strategy in dealing with Trump. 

My second comment at the 32m31s mark - as linked here - concerns Trump's national security team. And why Trump is more restrained since winning the election. I reference my National Review piece (read here). Also relevant is my guest piece for CNN (read here).

My third comment at the 41m03s mark - as linked here - concerns Trump's first 100 days.


Thanks for watching! My full TV link page can be found here.


Pax Romana

My latest book review @ The Washington Free Beacon: Adrian Goldsworthy's Pax Romana
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Friday, November 4, 2016

CNN

My guest piece @ CNN: Why So Many Americans Hate Clinton
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My waltz with Obamacare

My latest @ Opportunity Lives: My Waltz with Obamacare

Brexit

5 Takeaways from Baghdadi's New Audio Message

On Wednesday, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of Daesh (also known as ISIL and ISIS), released a new audiotape. Here are my five takeaways.

1) Baghdadi is almost certainly not in Mosul. He wouldn't have risked being surrounded by the Mosul operation, and the Western Intelligence Community clearly believes he has left. This belief is attested by a comment the UK Foreign Minister Boris Johnson made suggesting that Baghdadi has left the Iraqi city. 

2) ISIS will double-down on its bloodletting strategy (my analysis here). The audio message contains threats against just about every sectarian group in Iraq. And it revels in new calls for bloodshed. 

3) The message contains a specific and explicit instruction to Daesh fighters in Mosul to stand and die. This is evidence that the group intends to hold Mosul and Raqqah as long as possible. It also suggests that Daesh intends to turn Mosul into a death trap for Iraqi forces that enter the city.

4) The length of the message (over 30 minutes) will raise concerns that it conceals an activation order for sleeper cells in the west. The message carries a lot of apocalyptic rhetoric that could have double meanings. At one point, Baghdadi says ''the sky will fall to earth'' etc. As I've noted before, Daesh cells in Europe are extremely patient. Thus far this year, Germany has disrupted two directed Daesh cells. But officials believe more cells remain at large across the continent.

5) The message includes specific threats against Turkey/Saudi Arabia and individuals therein. Daesh is desperate to destabilize Middle Eastern politics.

You can read of my thoughts on Middle East politics by clicking here.