Free Republic

“The Obama administration did not know ahead of time about the highly unusual military intervention….” That’s how the Washington Post describes a recent series of airstrikes in the Libyan capital of Tripoli by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The secret attacks, according to the New York Times, were aimed at Islamist-allied militias battling for control of Tripoli; and they represent “a major escalation of a regional power struggle set off by Arab Spring revolts.” In what could be a sign of increasingly strained international relations, the Times also reports: The United States, the officials said, was caught by surprise: Egypt and the Emirates, both close allies...

(CNN) -- The United States warned Syria again on Monday not to use chemical weapons amid intelligence reports indicating President Bashar al-Assad's regime could be preparing to take that step as it escalates its fight against rebel forces. "I'm not going to telegraph in any specifics what we would do in the event of credible evidence that the Assad regime has resorted to using chemical weapons against their own people," Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Monday. "But suffice it to say, we are certainly planning to take action if that eventuality were to occur."U.S. officials are concerned that with...

This evening's presidential debate, the second between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, featured some very sharp disagreements over facts that almost no viewers can judge (such as the licenses issued for drilling in federal lands) and agreement on the topics where viewers have strong opinions (such as capitalism). Perhaps this debate will move those few undecided voters in Ohio, Virginia, and Florida, but it leaves the rest of us judging the debate according to which candidate we'd rather have as a dinner companion. Put differently, Romney missed an opportunity by not discussing larger issues but letting himself get mired in...

Today I’m going on the radio in Los Angeles to accuse the Obama administration of deliberately attempting to stage a hostage-taking in Benghazi as part of a manufactured “October Surprise” that Obama intended to make himself look great on the foreign stage in the lead up to the election. The plan — if you were paying attention — was set in motion at the Democrats’ convention in Charlotte in early September when repeated mentions of Obama as a “foreign policy president” were made. This was timed to lead up to September 11th…when deliberately lowered security at the Benghazi consulate (and...

A Democratic congressman from Northern Virginia claims Congress is partly to blame for the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.. Rep. Gerald Connolly (D-Va.), in an interview with Washington, D.C., radio station WTOP on Monday, stood by comments he made that Congress deserves some of the blame for the deaths of U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three others because it failed to give President Obama all the money he had requested for embassy security – and had cut the State Department’s budget overall. Here is a transcript of Connolly's comments: WTOP Radio: Right after this...

1 hour, 37 minutes ago WASHINGTON - Three Democratic congressmen Thursday asked Vice President Dick Cheney to testify on Capitol Hill about the disclosure of a covert CIA officer's identity, saying "there are many wide-ranging questions about your involvement." The congressmen asked why Cheney's office was gathering information about Valerie Plame, the wife of Bush administration critic Joseph Wilson in 2003; whether the vice president directed his top aide, the now-indicted I. Lewis Libby, to speak to the news media about Plame; and whether Cheney was aware Libby was doing so. The indictment against Libby says he was told by...