WASHINGTON TIMES 11/03/13 By Michael Shank WASHINGTON, November 3, 2013 — America’s food security is at immediate risk, according to a report leaked this month by the New York Times. Americans should expect crop production to fall by as much as 2 percent each decade for the rest of the […]
AFP 10/07/13 WASHINGTON (AFP) – By ordering risky raids against Islamic extremists in Somalia and Libya, US President Barack Obama has shown a renewed readiness to use force while trying to keep the scope limited. The twin commando operations in the lawless African states came even while the US government […]
RT 10/07/13 Secretary of State John Kerry has justified the capture by US forces of a terrorism suspect in Tripoli as ‘legal and appropriate’. He thus responded to Libya governments’ demand for explanations over what happened. Kerry has reacted to the ‘kidnapping’ complaint from the Libyan government by recommending it […]
CNN 09/27/13 By Michael Shank, Matt Hoh and Danny L. Davis Editor’s note: Matthew Hoh served with the U.S. Marines in Iraq and on State Department teams in Afghanistan and Iraq and is a Senior Fellow with the Center for International Policy. Michael Shank is director of foreign policy at […]
US NEWS & WORLD REPORT 09/24/13 By Michael Shank President Barack Obama’s speech at the United Nations General Assembly today deserves some fact checking. There were multiple assertions that skewed reality and are worth debunking as a result. First, Obama questioned “whether the United Nations can meet the tests of […]
USA TODAY 9/23/13 By Michael Shank Focus on African security missing development needs. Last month, at the beginning of a trip to Somalia, my twitter feed started buzzing with breaking news about explosions in Mogadishu. A local rebel group, al-Shabab, claimed credit. Their tactic was fairly unsophisticated: break the Ramadan […]
WASHINGTON POST 09/05/13 By Michael Shank There are three fallacies floating around Washington regarding a war with Syria, rhetoric that has the potential to dangerously dictate how Congress will determine authorization. A failure to address these fallacies, furthermore, puts us squarely on the cusp of another intractable war, one that […]
FOX NEWS 09/01/13 By Michael Shank and US Congressman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) Now that President Obama has made up his mind about taking America to war with yet another Muslim country, he wants Congress to get on board. To his credit, he’s seeking congressional authorization, as required by the War […]
CNN 08/29/13 By Michael Shank and US Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) Editor’s note: Michael Shank is director of Foreign Policy at the Friends Committee on National Legislation. U.S. Congressman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) is the co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. The views expressed are their own. The Americans don’t want […]
US NEWS & WORLD REPORT 08/20/13 By Michael Shank As Doctors Without Borders announced last week that they’re quitting Somalia after 20-plus years in the country due to an increase in violent attacks, the need for new solutions to this crisis is key. The answer to the rebel group al-Shabaab’s […]