David Ignatius
@IgnatiusPost
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I am a columnist for the Washington Post, a former Harvard Kennedy School fellow and author of twelve espionage thrillers.
Washington DC
Joined November 2011
Over the moon (so to speak) that "Publishers Weekly" has just given my new novel "Phantom Orbit" about space warfare a starred review and called it "contemporary cloak-and-dagger intrigue at its finest."
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Eye-popping story from NYT. It says, in essence, that Trump and his GOP allies have been caught in a Russian intelligence deception in their 2016 conspiracy allegations about Ukraine. via @NYTimes.
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A bad situation in Northeast Syria is about to get much worse. Sources tell me that US officials have just informed the Syrian Kurds that Turkey is likely to attack on air and ground in next 24 hours. The US will do nothing. Targets are Tal Abyad and Ras al Ayn. .
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After DOJ drops Flynn case, a simple question: If Flynn did nothing wrong, why did he conceal his actions?
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Remembering my mother, Nancy W. Ignatius, environmental activist and National Cathedral lay leader, who died Friday, January 18, 2019.
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. And finally there is the scary issue of the thousands of ISIS detainees and families, who may be breaking out of camps and prisons after Turkish attack--with NO American back-up plan. This is a major disaster coming at us because of Trump's decisions. Hours left to stop it. .
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An extraordinary warning by ex-CIA Director Michael Hayden, bravely speaking as he recovers from a major stroke, of the damage that Donald Trump is doing to U.S. national security.
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. I'm also told that Turkish attack appears coordinated with the Russians. Russian-backed forces are mobilizing to invade the Kurdish area from the south — towards Tabqa and other spots. Meanwhile, ISIS is mobilizing sleeper cells in Raqqa and attacks have taken place tonight.
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Even by Trump standards this shot at Sessions is atrocious. Attacking the AG because Justice is prosecuting corruption cases against Republicans??? This man swore an oath to “preserve, protect and defend” our system of laws. Politicizing justice is—let’s just say it—lawlessness.
Two long running, Obama era, investigations of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department. Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time. Good job Jeff. .
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President Trump is about to make major, consequential mistake in Syria. Sources say US is tonight informing its Syrian Kurdish allies that US is withdrawing from positions on Turkish border, abandoning so-called “security mechanism,” to allow an invasion by Turkish forces. .
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Trump’s coronavirus problem: “Having hollowed out senior leadership of so many departments of the government — especially in the scientific community —(Trump) is now in desperate need of professional guidance among people he has abused for three years.”
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The senators who see Trump’s offenses but decide to take a pass—like Rubio and Alexander—must imagine Trump world will write the history books and spare them future shame. I wish they had read JFK’s “Profiles In Courage” about brave senators who took risks to do the right thing.
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Mr. Secretary, with respect, your continuing reference to this as #WuhanVirus is an embarrassment that would shock your predecessors as Secretary of State.
While the #WuhanVirus was at the top of the #G7 agenda, we still reinforced other important priorities: holding authoritarian regimes accountable for malign behavior; advancing the #AfghanPeaceProcess; and continuing our vigorous fight against terrorism.
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. Ironically Tal Abyad was the main supply route for ISIS in 2014-15 through an open border from Turkey. Turkey refused repeated requests from US to shut border. That's a big reason why US decided to partner with SDF, which took the town in the summer of 2015.
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We’re lucky at the Post to have a publisher who stands so firmly with Jamal Khashoggi and all our journalists.
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People died while Trump played games with Ukraine’s military aid
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In firing Richard Spencer, Trump recklessly crosses another line
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Powerful reconstruction by @nytimes. “Mr. Modly, the officials said, was keenly aware that his predecessor in the job had been fired after tangling with Mr. Trump. But in trying to please the president, Mr. Modly miscalculated and destroyed his own career.”.
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What a gift @realDonaldTrump has given to ISIS--to affirm their sick narrative that they are at war with an anti-Muslim America #MuslimBan.
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The bipartisan Senate Intelligence Committee report has revealed the counterintelligence threat of the Trump campaign’s contacts with Russians spies in extraordinary new detail: Read it and weep.
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Jamal Khashoggi gets some justice in the wonderful Polk Award honor for me and @KarenAttiah in our writing about his murder. What we tried to do was to hold people accountable. That job isn’t finished.
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An eerie feeling reading this news, reminiscent of when the US invaded Iraq in 2003 to topple a brutal dictator—and set in motion a chain of consequences for which America was utterly unprepared. As Gen. Petraeus said in 2003: Tell me how this ends.
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Very powerful, and overdue, statement by Robert Mueller making clear this was no “hoax”: Stone was prosecuted and convicted because he committed federal crimes. He remains a convicted felon, and rightly so.
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After the Chris Krebs firing: Trump has the power to oust people, but not to rewrite history. This reality show has been canceled — by the American public and the officials who protected the integrity of their vote
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How do you run a "war production board" to deliver needed supplies during a national crisis? Paul Ignatius, my amazing 99-year-old Dad, recalls how he did it at the Pentagon during the Vietnam War in this brief essay he sent me today.
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. In addition to abandoning allies, Trump is opening way for Turkish power grab in NE Syria that is a guarantee of future bloodshed and instability. The Syria mission was a rare success for US military power in the Mideast—now being squandered to appease Erdogan’s ambitions.
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What the military came to understand over the past four years is that, for all Trump’s talk of patriotism, he truly is transactional. Throughout his career, he has always believed that loyalty was for chumps.
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Romney’s rebuke of craven Republicans who would challenge our democracy to appease Trump is one for the history books: “Has ambition so eclipsed principle?”.
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Bracing from @johnfkirby63 about Trumps’s sorry political talk to troops: “Let me be blunt. The United States military is not a voting bloc. It's not a MAGA rally crowd. It's not a plaything, and it's most certainly not an arm of the Republican Party.”
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George Will makes a compelling case: Amy Klobuchar may be best equipped to send the president packing
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Bolton took his time in telling us the truth, and he should have done more when it was his duty during the impeachment inquiry. But it’s all here. In boxing, you’d call it a knockout punch.
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As with nearly every word @realDonaldTrump tweets or speaks, this comment expresses a narcissism and insecurity that has been a toxic mix for our country. My prayer and admonition this Thanksgiving weekend is “resilience.”
Time Magazine called to say that I was PROBABLY going to be named “Man (Person) of the Year,” like last year, but I would have to agree to an interview and a major photo shoot. I said probably is no good and took a pass. Thanks anyway!.
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John McCain was unique in my experience of politicians in that he always tried to act on principle and was anguished in the moments when politics intervened. On so many issues—Russia, Syria, the Trump presidency—he would not compromise. Rest In Peace.
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The Hunter Biden “scandal” is smoke without a fire. Hunter Biden erred. His father has said so quietly but clearly. He should get on with the business of trying to put the country back together after Trump’s ruinous presidency.
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Trump created a third party the day he won the GOP nomination in 2016. His insurgency destroyed the GOP that had existed. Are there any Republicans brave and tough enough to take on this disgraced, twice-impeached captor of what was their party?
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Sue Gordon embodies the values of a professional intelligence officer. She is as close to universally respected as you can find in the intelligence community. How sad (and typical) that @realdonaldtrump seems to see her as his enemy.
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It’s laughable, really, that President Trump is presenting himself as the candidate of “law and order” in the 2020 presidential campaign. His record in office has been one of illegality and disorder.
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Important warning by Post editorial board that hard questions about Trump's enthusiasm for Putin must be answered.
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The military establishment’s anger at President Trump’s politicization of the armed forces has been building for three years. It finally ripped open in the aftermath of Monday’s appalling presidential photo op at St. John’s Episcopal Church.
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This isn’t just another spat. Trump compromised our security for his gain. - The Washington Post
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Gen. Milley’s stress test: He was determined to prevent politicization of the military, and the nation owes him a debt of thanks . But Milley’s efforts took him into dangerous constitutional terrain that no soldier should have to patrol.
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Why is AMLO worried about an outsider? She’s funny, profane — and inspiring.
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For U.S. soldiers, ‘it’s a dagger to the heart’ to abandon the Kurds
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After death of “whistleblower doctor,” angry Chinese speak out: “A system that won’t allow truth finally kills an honest, brave, and hard-working citizen. We should be not only angered but also ashamed! Why can’t people have freedom of speech?”
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On this six-month anniversary of Jamal Khashoggi's death, his Washington Post colleagues have put together this powerful video remembrance. The assassination of Jamal Khashoggi
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Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the JCS, on Veteran's Day: "We are unique among militaries. We do not take an oath to a king, or a queen, to a tyrant or a dictator. We do not take an oath to an individual. We take an oath to the Constitution.".
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The Turkey story — featuring an American president assuring President Erdogan he would “take care of things” in an ongoing federal criminal investigation — may be the clearest, most continuous narrative of misconduct by Trump that has yet surfaced.
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Another stunning piece of reporting by @RonanFarrow on how Weinstein used lawyers and spies to try to stop truth.
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In Ukraine, the quid pro quo may have started long before the phone call
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“By putting our own interests first, with no regard for others, we erase the very thing that a nation holds dearest, and the thing that keeps it alive: its moral values.” Emmanuel Macron.
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This is a measure of decline in US power in just 4 months. Add collapse of TPP, noisy feud w U.K. and you see global "deconstruction." Sad.
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As Trump abandons Syrian Kurds, a top commander pleads for U.S. support
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If my friend Jamal Khashoggi’s death is confirmed, it is a monstrous outrage. Those responsible will pay a severe price. We loved Jamal’s honesty; we won’t forgive those who tried to silence him.
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When it comes to his contacts with Russia, Michael Flynn has bigger problems than the Logan Act - Washington Post
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Mike Flynn's contacts with Russia and other nagging questions about Russian hacking that need answers
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We’re witnessing the reemergence of the moderate Democrat
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Judge Amy Berman Jackson for the ages: “The truth still exists, the truth still matters. Roger Stone’s insistence that it doesn’t, his belligerence, his pride in his own lies are a threat to. our democracy.
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Mattis is walking the Trump tightrope. It’s agonizing to watch.
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Trump is an obstacle to good policy. Either people don’t tell him the truth, or he doesn’t want to hear it. Whichever way, he’s defaulting on his most basic responsibility as commander in chief.
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The Khashoggi killing had roots in a cutthroat Saudi family feud
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We know an awful lot about Manafort and Russia. Trump can’t make it disappear.
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The White House should respond promptly to this appeal from @CarlosdelRio7, one of our best infectious disease doctors, for help in obtaining from China the face masks and other protection equipment needed to treat patients safely.
In this environment where there is little PPE available I have found a supplier that has plenty of PPE available in China but due to trade policies enacted by this Administration they are prohibited from exporting to the US. Can we try to get @WhiteHouse to change that?.
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The United States isn’t a family business. It’s a multi-trillion-dollar global operation. Mr. President, stop acting like you own the place.
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What did U.S. spy agencies know about threats on Khashoggi — and when?
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@realDonaldTrump Shocking, no other word, to see a failing president foment controversy about race and sports to try to bolster himself. Have you no shame?.
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Until Biden’s win is certified, the U.S. remains vulnerable
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Trump still appears to covet the permanent power of a leader like China’s Xi Jinping, of whom he said in 2018: “He’s now president for life. … Maybe we’ll have to give that a shot someday.”
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Russia’s secret weapon in 2016 was us — an open, divided, angry America.
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Note to Comey: In news business, you wouldn't publish story so thin 10 days before election, w/o providing details.
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Here's great video summarizing the 3,500-word investigation we just posted about how Jamal Khashoggi's death six months ago has rocked the U,S-Saudi relationship.
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Trump has opened the door for an Islamic State resurgence in Syria
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With 100,000 Russian guns pointed at their heads, Ukrainians appear to take a stoical pride in not seeming rattled. Their main worry is that the United States and its allies will get so nervous they will yield to Russian pressure.
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A furious behind-the-scenes battle to counter Trump’s threat to national security
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Syrian Kurdish commander, Gen. Mazloum, explains in a rare interview what Trump’s catastrophic Syria decision will mean to his forces on the front lines against ISIS
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I’m a longtime, unabashed fan of @mitchellreports but imho she outdid herself today with interview of Dan Coats at #AspenSecurity. Coats’s stunned reaction to word of new Putin visit got headlines but there were nuggets of news in almost every Coats answer.
WATCH: Director of Nat'l Intelligence Coats reacts when @mitchellreports informs him that the Trump administration is planning to invite President Putin to the White House:. "Say that again? Did I hear you? Did I hear you? Okay. That's going to be special."
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Here’s a clear discussion of Coronoavirus issues from the best expert I know, my daughter Dr. Elisa Ignatius @elisaignatius, a fellow in Infectious Disease at John Hopkins.
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The US Navy announces the commissioning Saturday of USS Paul Ignatius, named after my father, who served our country in combat in World War II and as secretary of the Navy. The indomitable spirit of my late mother, its sponsor, will bless this ship.
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The political strangulation of the intelligence community by the Trump administration hasn’t been a sudden snap of the rope, but a slow, suffocating squeeze — choking off the normal flow of unbiased information the country needs.
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A brief thread to explain why the bitter conflict over Nagorno Karabakh may be entering a dangerous new phase, based on a phone call I received tonight from Stepanakert from Ruben Vardanyan, the state minister for Artsakh, as #Armenians call the disputed territory.
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Judge Cannon doesn’t seem to understand the national-security stakes in the MAL documents case. If the classifications on the documents Trump retained are accurate, these are the secrets for which spies risk their lives, and traitors are imprisoned.
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Among Russia’s most costly mistakes when it invaded Ukraine was the expectation that it would dominate the electronic warfare part of the battle. Instead, Russia has stumbled and lost its way in the little-known realm of combat.
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Dr. Brzezinski was a great man who lived through hard times but never lost his intellectual honesty, sense of humor or his basic decency. So nice to see his spirit honored.
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Devastating from @jeffreygoldberg: “The president believes that nothing is worth doing without the promise of monetary payback, and that talented people who don’t pursue riches are ‘losers’”
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A humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding in the Caucasus
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Exactly right from @JoeNBC: Trump’s Republican Party has. lost any claim it ever had at being the U.S. military’s bulwark against left-wing attacks
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Ingalls Shipbuilding delivers 31st Aegis destroyer Paul Ignatius, DDG 117, to Navy. (The ship is named after my 98-year-old father; the sponsor was my mother, Nancy Ignatius, who died Jan. 18, 2019, at age 93.)
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A spectacular--and terrifying--piece of environmental reporting by my Post colleagues @chriscmooney and Jonathan Newton. Across the Arctic, lakes are leaking dangerous greenhouse gases. And one lake is behaving very strangely
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Warning to Vladimir Putin other klepto-dictators around the world: The U.S. intelligence community has just been tasked to investigate how and where you hide your money.
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My thanks to Adm. Jim Stavridis and so many other friends who have joined in celebrating the commissioning of the USS Paul Ignatius and its namesake, my amazing 98-year-old father. This ship and its superb captain and crew embody what makes us proud of our country.
Congrats to my friend David Ignatius, his entire family, USS Ignatius and Navy family on the commissioning of USS Paul Ignatius DD-117 @IgnatiusPost.
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John Brennan's scary assessment of 1 in 4 or 5 risk of North Korea conflict in our conversation onstage tonight at @CNSFordhamLaw
Fmr CIA Dir Brennan puts chances of military conflict over #NorthKorea at an alarming 25%.
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Cell-phone videos of Iranian protestors in a half-dozen cities, distributed today by my former Newsweek colleague @maziarbahari, suggest something important happening there. Need more reporting to understand how broad and deep movement is—and what it means for Mideast in 2018.
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A powerful evocation of Jamal Khashoggi by one of the Americans who knew him best, @lawrence_wright. Worth reading every word. A Memorial for Jamal Khashoggi
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Trump’s shell game on Russia makes everything look suspicious
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From Adm. William McRaven, a national hero, on firing of Joe Maguire: “We should be frightened. when facts are inconvenient, when integrity & character no longer matter, when presidential ego & self-preservation are more important than national security.”
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Navy Secretary Richard Spencer should get a salute from everyone who loves the Navy for his efforts to defend discipline and accountability in his service. An example of public service at its best.
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Rest in peace, Jim Lehrer. A great journalist and a wise and generous friend. If the journalistic world of Washington had a mayor, it was Jim.
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