Clifford D. May

CLIFFORD MAY: Why Turkey is now a target and a tinderbox

"We will manage the wave of change in the Middle East. Just as we have an ideal in our minds about Turkey, we have an ideal of a new Middle East." Published October 13, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Alberto Nisman Argentine murder mystery

When heads of state gather, as they did for the United Nations General Assembly last week, you have a choice: Tune out or prepare to be bathed in blather, boilerplate and blatant lies. Published October 6, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Vladimir Putin’s progress

Not long after the implosion of the Soviet Union, I attended a conference in Moscow. The topic: how Russia would evolve in the post-communist era about to begin. Most participants were confident and optimistic. A few of us Americans -- not so much. Published September 29, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Why Republican presidential candidates support Israel

So last week during the Republican debate, hundreds of thousands of people read your tweets lambasting four of the candidates -- Gov. Chris Christie, former Gov. Mike Huckabee and Senators Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz -- for expressing their strong support for Israel. Published September 22, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: The exodus to Europe’s promised lands

Hundreds of thousands of migrants are leaving the Middle East, heading to what they see as the promised lands of Europe and, if possible, America. Notice where they are not going. Published September 15, 2015

Iran deal: The deadly danger of appeasing Iran

"Appeasement" gets a bad rap but, strictly speaking, the word implies nothing more than an attempt to make peace. If aggrieved adversaries can be pacified by reasonable concessions, what's wrong with that? Published September 15, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Awful Iran deal can be undone

The debate over the deal President Obama has cut with Iran's rulers is supposed to end this week. The New York Times, The Associated Press and others in the media are reporting that the White House has achieved a "victory." On what basis? Published September 8, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Peril in appeasing Iran

"Appeasement" gets a bad rap but, strictly speaking, the word implies nothing more than an attempt to make peace. If aggrieved adversaries can be pacified by reasonable concessions, what's wrong with that? Published September 1, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: The Parchin Precedent

Initially, I thought the news was beyond parody. The Associated Press last week ran a story headlined: "U.N. to let Iran inspect nuke work site." Published August 25, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Reversing Obama’s military downsizing job one for next president

Here's a question I might suggest be asked of our presidential hopefuls: In a time of war, would unilateral disarmament be a good idea? Published August 18, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Chuck Schumer right to reject Iran nuclear arms empowerment deal

I've been thinking about writing you for a while regarding your vote on President Obama's Iran deal. I knew you'd recognize that, from a policy perspective, this deal doesn't get a passing grade. But, from a political perspective, I understood that voting to disapprove would not be easy. Then, last week you announced your decisions in an incisive 1,670-word essay. Kudos to you. Published August 11, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Mounting a defense against economic warfare

Attempts to exterminate Israel through what we have come to call "kinetic warfare" began immediately following Arab rejection of the U.N. Partition Plan of 1947 -- the first offer of a "two-state solution." Published August 4, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: West needs more determination to defeat Islamic State

"The enemy has to be defeated," U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter last week told American forces stationed in the Middle East. That is a simple truth, one that, regrettably, is not heard often from officials in the current administration. Mr. Carter then added: "It will be, because the barbarians are always defeated by civilization." That is a comforting sentiment -- one that, regrettably, is not supported by historical evidence. Published July 28, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Scuttle Obama’s Iran deal, or surrender

The fundamental flaws in President Obama's deal with Iran have become well known. Among them: Iran's rulers will have the power to delay or even prevent inspections of suspected nuclear weapons facilities; Iran's rulers will receive tens of billions of dollars that they can spend as they please, including on terrorist groups; Iran's rulers will have several paths to nuclear weapons -- they have promised only not to rush. In the past, such promises have hardly been ironclad. Published July 21, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Iran’s deal of the century

On Friday, large crowds in Tehran and other Iranian cities burned American flags and chanted "Death to America!" On Saturday, Iranian media outlets reported that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had instructed university students to "continue the struggle against arrogant powers" -- with the United States at the top of that list. On Tuesday, President Obama announced a historic agreement between Iran and the United States. Published July 14, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: U.S. can’t appease Iran

Imagine if, on Sept. 12, 2001, I had written a column predicting that within less than 15 years, the president of the United States would be offering the world's leading sponsor of terrorism a path to nuclear weapons and tens of billions of dollars. You'd have thought me a lunatic. But that's what President Obama means to do. Published July 7, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Palestinians and an Israeli discuss the West Bank

Last week, I paid a couple of visits to the West Bank or, as Israel's enemies call it, "the illegally occupied Palestinian territories." Israelis who live and work there are more likely to use the biblical name: Judea and Samaria. Published June 30, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Deadlines worsen the Palestinian-Israeli conflict

JERUSALEM - The "peace process" between Israelis and Palestinians has ground to a halt. What should American and European leaders do? Try not to make the situation worse. Published June 23, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Obama’s faith in Iran misplaced

Lt. Gen. Michael T. Flynn served 33 years in the U.S. Army. Being named President Obama's director of the Defense Intelligence Agency in 2012 was the culmination of his career. He thought his job was to relate facts, not fables. It soon became clear that his superiors didn't agree. Published June 16, 2015

CLIFFORD MAY: Muslim extremist culture glorifies mass murder

You probably didn't know it, but Osama bin Laden was a poet. In fact, according to Yale's Robyn Creswell and Princeton's Bernard Haykel, "Of all jihadi poets, bin Laden was the most celebrated, and he prided himself on his knowledge of the art." Published June 9, 2015