Andrew Bennett @irgetsreal.bsky.social
@IRgetsreal
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Professor of International Relations, Georgetown. Former DoD and Senate staff. Foreign policy, political science, case study methods, environment, snark.
Washington DC
Joined July 2014
Interesting response (not the real Elon but that is interesting too)
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In the NYT “faces of 2024” quiz I typed in Asshat for Assad. It came back with “Close enough” and gave me full credit. For more valuable insights find me on Bluesky
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Great thread on possible internal, regional, and global implications of the toppling of the Assad regime.
1/ Developments in Syria going so fast that reports become obsolete moments later. I've reported from inside Syria since 2011 and I live in the MidEast. So, let me explain in this thread what the implications could be for Syria and wider region in case the Syrian regime falls:
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This leads to a race to the exit, and even preference falsification in the opposite direction: people pretend they were anti-Assad the whole time. Such cascades are by their nature fast and surprising. This is what keeps Putin up at night.
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There are reports that Hegseth has promised Senators he will stop drinking if he is confirmed as Secretary of Defense. Did not go so well last time: NYT Feb 27, 1989: John G. Tower took a public pledge of sobriety today in an extraordinary effort to salvage his nomination as Secretary of Defense and promised to resign if he ever took a drink.
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Think of it as John Tower with some embezzlement thrown in.
.@JaneMayerNYer reports on a previously undisclosed whistle-blower report on Pete Hegseth’s tenure as the president of a veteran advocacy group, which indicates that Hegseth misused funds, harassed women, and was repeatedly intoxicated on the job.
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Headline in Washington post: “The unconventional economic theory behind Trump’s sweeping tariff plans” Actually it’s called mercantilism and it has been debunked in the economics profession since David Ricardo.
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One aspect of Trump’s choice of Gaetz that deserves more attention is that Trump chose him after Senators Lee and Schmitt said they didn’t want the AG job. It turns out that when you destroy the lives and careers of everyone who works for you only underqualified sycophants want to work for you. Trump’s terrible picks arose from qualified people saying no (probably many of them preemptively and privately) as well as from posers saying yes.
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RT @NormOrnstein: Dems have the Senate majority for the next 60-plus days. Use it! Not just to confirm judges. Hold your own pre-confirmati…
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RT @MBielieskov: Timeline where major nuclear armed country is able to overwhelm non nuclear country conventionally using nuclear threats t…
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RT @arthur_spirling: hey guys, just tossed a coin and it came down heads. My prior was ~Bernoulli(p=.5). What are some good political expl…
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What could be more efficient than creating a new government efficiency organization headed by two men with huge egos who both lack any government experience?
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By suggesting that he should bypass the Senate confirmation process and then nominating Noem and Hegseth for positions for which they lack qualifications, Trump is practically daring Republicans in the Senate to defy him in their secret ballot leadership vote today.
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Rubio has gone from sponsoring the Never Yielding Europe ‘s Territory (NYET) Act in 2022 to calling for a negotiated settlement that in the current context would involve a major loss of Ukrainian territory to Putin. I guess for Rubio never = about 29 months.
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Interesting Sen. Leader race: Trump backs Scott vs McConnell pals Thune and Cronyn. All in a race to the bottom to flatter and appease Trump. Vote Wednesday Is secret ballot so will show whether Senate will be a rubber stamp for Trump.
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Markets and the Fed are anticipating that Trump’s policies will push mortgage rates and inflation in the exact opposite direction of what Trump’s voters want. NYT today:
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Fantastic thread on why incumbents have lost world-wide (usually by far more than Harris) and why this trend was far weaker in Wisconsin.
Here’s what happened in Wisconsin. And a note of gratitude. 🧵
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