U.S. politicians often lecture other nations about their flawed governance as if American democracy is the gold standard, but anti-democratic measures like gerrymandering belie that self-image, says ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar. An old fear about Islamist political parties entering government is that once in power, even if they had gained their position through democratic means, they would sub [...]

President Trump boasts about his “zigzag” foreign policy as if inconsistency is an attribute in dealing with a fragile world, but his zigzagging endangers backchannel intermediaries handling outreach to North Korea, reports Robert Parry. President Trump’s bellicose speech to the United Nations General Assembly last month sparked a crisis for the behind-the-scenes diplomacy that was then [...]

From October, the US Department of Homeland Security will be able to monitor the social media activity and search histories of all immigrants - including permanent residents and naturalized citizens - and anyone they interact with. The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced it is expanding the kinds of information it collects on immigrants to include social media activity and s [...]

The US Intelligence Committee chief Richard Burr has said that the probe into alleged Russia's meddling into the 2016 US Presidential election has not come to a definitive conclusion, however no vote totals were affected. [...]

Rex Tillerson took a moment at the UN Security Council to remember Soviet officer Stanislav Petrov, who bravely called a false alarm when all computer data told him the US had launched nuclear missiles at the USSR at the height of the Cold War. [...]

The investigation into the alleged Russian meddling in the US elections and the supposed use of social media by Moscow to sway public opinion is just a “witch hunt,” former US Congressman Ron Paul told RT. The people who promote this witch hunt do not care about what [the former US presidential candidate] Hillary [Clinton] was doing and they are very biased against the Trump campaign,” Pa [...]

Russia’s engagement in the Syrian conflict has been very important, including a number of major victories both on the battlefield and on the diplomatic front. At the same time, the US involvement has done more harm than good to the situation, Australian political analyst Tom Anderson told Radio Sputnik. [...]

As President Trump taunts North Korea’s leader with schoolyard insults, the terrifying possibility is that his threat to “totally destroy” a country of 25 million people could involve the U.S. in another genocide, warns David Marks. The level of insult and hostile name-calling between world leaders was taken to a new extreme by Donald Trump in his speech before the U.N. General Assembly. [...]

Russia has provided evidence that Washington is collaborating with ISIS in attack on Russian forces. In one Washington-directed attack, ISIS tried to capture 29 Russian military policemen. However, Russian special forces entered the fray, and the result was spectacular losses for ISIS. In another Washington-directed attack, Russian General Valery Asapov and two Russian colonels were killed in an [...]

Everything the CIA does is deniable. It’s part of its Congressional mandate. Congress doesn’t want to be held accountable for the criminal things the CIA does. The only time something the CIA does become public knowledge – other than the rare accident or whistle blower – is when Congress or the President think it’s helpful for psychological warfare reasons to let the American people know [...]

A favorite tactic of U.S. propaganda is to label a foreign adversary “crazy” to justify a military attack -- as is now happening with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un although his nuclear program really makes logical sense, observes Ted Snider. The “insanity” label that America attaches to North Korea has a lot of political utility. First, it colors the interpretation of everything North Kor [...]

President Trump’s troika of generals may ease public fears about his irascible unpredictability, but they also are busy padding the U.S. military budget and fattening up friendly arms manufacturers, JP Sottile writes. Americans are really counting on President Trump’s vaunted  team of generals who are widely regarded as “the adults in the room.” Chief of Staff John Kelly, National Securit [...]

Don’t laugh or adjust your sets. Donald Trump really is going ahead with a new military campaign in Afghanistan, despite an army of experts telling him it will only worsen matters. All he needs now is a Hollywood scriptwriter and Alec Baldwin. [...]

Radio Sputnik is capable of things that you wouldn't expect from mere mortals. That's what three US lawmakers imply by saying that Sputnik's new FM station in Washington, DC influenced the recent presidential election - this despite the fact that the station started broadcasting only this summer, several months after Trump won the 2016 election. [...]

For six years, John Mark Dougan was an officer with the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office. Having witnessed widespread corruption, blackmail and nepotism, he resigned and created a website where people could post evidence of police misconduct. In 2016, he fled to Russia for fear of his life. [...]

The day after US President Trump’s barnstorming speech to the UN General Assembly decrying 'the scourge' of rogue states and terrorism, it was reported that his administration is set to greatly loosen American arms exports. The trade in question is in the private sector of so-called “non-military weapons”.   [...]

Roger Stone has demanded a public apology from leading Democratic members of Congress, accusing his rivals of conducting a “witch-hunt” against him ahead of his appearance before the House Intelligence Committee. In a statement he plans to deliver Tuesday, the former adviser to US President Donald Trump accused Committee members of “neo-McCarthyism” for alleging collusion between the [...]

On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump threatened to "totally destroy" North Korea if Pyongyang does not stop its nuclear and missile tests. In fact, the US missile defense system is incapable of shooting down North Korean missiles, according to American expert on nuclear weapons Joe Cirincione. [...]

The Russian Ministry of Defense has released aerial images which they say show US Army special forces equipment north of the town of Deir er-Zor, where ISIS militants are deployed. US Army special units provide free passage for the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) through the battle formations of Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) terrorists, the ministry said in a statement.   [...]

The Senate passed a $700 billion defense policy bill on Monday, exceeding what even Trump requested. Come you masters of warYou that build all the gunsYou that build the death planesYou that build the big bombsYou that hide behind wallsYou that hide behind desks– Bob Dylan, Masters of War, 1963 The US Senate passed a $700 billion defense policy bill on Monday that puts the US on track to have [...]

Russian President Vladimir Putin commented on the recent closure and searches of Russian diplomatic facilities in the United States. Putin blamed the American establishment for a lack of political culture regarding the situation with the Russian diplomatic facilities in the US, saying that Moscow has the right to decide whether to cut the US mission by 155 employees for full parity, but will not d [...]

Speaking at the BRICS summit this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin deplored the “low political culture” of American leaders. "It is difficult to dialogue with such people," said Putin, adding: "You can do nothing about it." Less diplomatically, what the Russian president was lamenting is this: the incorrigible stupidity of US leaders. [...]