Guy Taylor
Articles by Guy Taylor
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stocks election to replace Ahmadinejad with loyalists
Iran's June 14 elections are expected to produce a president loyal to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and do nothing to improve prospects for an end to its nuclear standoff with the West or support for President Bashar Assad's embattled regime in Syria. Published May 27, 2013
Drug tests ordered for State Department contractors in Israel, Afghanistan
The State Department is pushing a new initiative to ensure contractors and others serving in the department's diplomatic security corps in Afghanistan and Israel are not abusing opiates, amphetamines, steroids, cocaine and other hard drugs. Published May 26, 2013
Letter highlights need for public diplomacy champion at State Department
A group of influential retired diplomats urged the Obama administration to move carefully in filling a key State Department post focused on growing interactive programs with the citizens of America's allies and adversaries around the world. Published May 24, 2013
Pickering complies with House request for Benghazi interview
The career diplomat who led the internal State Department probe into the Benghazi terrorist attacks has agreed to a private, transcribed interview with investigators from the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which had issued a subpoena after his initial resistance. Published May 22, 2013
House panel urges Obama to expand sanctions on Iran
A key House panel pushed through legislation Wednesday calling on the Obama administration to significantly broaden U.S. sanctions on Iran, just as the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency released a report saying the Islamic republic's nuclear program had made measurable advances. Published May 22, 2013
Senators call on Obama to arm Syrian opposition
President Obama faces mounting bipartisan pressure for the U.S. to become more deeply involved in Syria's civil war, with a key Senate panel pushing through legislation Tuesday that would clear the way for the administration to supply weapons to rebels fighters in the Mideast nation. Published May 21, 2013
Freedom of religion scarce in Iran, China
Declaring that "freedom of religion is a core American value," Secretary of State John F. Kerry Monday released his department's annual worldwide religious freedom report, which found "worrying" and "negative trends" around the globe. Published May 20, 2013
Obama takes security measures, but Benghazi questions still loom
The Obama administration is trying to move beyond Benghazi, saying Monday that it has tightened security at diplomatic posts and created an official position to ensure "high-threat" missions are properly protected — but House Republicans are pressing on with investigations into the Sept. 11 attack. Published May 20, 2013
Republicans weigh risks, benefits of select committee on Benghazi
House Republicans want their party leaders to name a special committee to take control of the inquiry into the Benghazi terrorist attack, but House Speaker John A. Boehner, Ohio Republican, has resisted — largely, analysts say, because the long-term political risks of a high-profile probe could outweigh any short-term benefit. Published May 19, 2013
Obama administration looks to cut Iran’s access to gold
Democrats appeared eager Wednesday to poke holes in the seriousness of President Obama's vow to deter Iran from developing a nuclear warhead, raising tough questions about whether the White House is squeezing hard enough on sanctions against the Islamic Republic's economy. Published May 15, 2013
Benghazi talking points carefully trimmed; possible terror links scrubbed
Under growing pressure, the White House on Wednesday released emails that showed the talking points crafted to explain the deadly terrorist attack in Benghazi last year were changed at the behest of a State Department worried about political fallout. Published May 15, 2013
Russia employs Cold War-era flair in spy charge against U.S. diplomat
The Obama administration responded cautiously to the very public detention, then release by Russian authorities, of an American diplomat accused of spying in Moscow, saying that the U.S. remains committed to close relations with Russia and downplaying the possibility of retaliation against Russian intelligence agents in the U.S. Published May 14, 2013
John Kerry urged to pressure China over treatment of Chen Guangcheng’s family
In a letter written Friday and released to the public Monday, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle expressed concern to Secretary of State John F. Kerry over "harassment and abuse" that Chinese authorities are believed to be inflicting on family members to Chen Guangcheng, a blind Chinese activist living in the United States. Published May 13, 2013
Defensive Dems reject Benghazi ‘misperceptions’
Democrats said Friday this week's dramatic House oversight committee hearing on the Benghazi terror attacks had created "potential misperceptions" among the public, charging Republicans had "attempted to distort and manipulate" the record at the hearing. Published May 10, 2013
Boehner sees proof of Benghazi cover-up in Obama administration emails
House Speaker John A. Boehner on Thursday called on President Obama to release a cache of emails that Republicans say clearly prove senior White House and State Department officials sought to mislead the American public about the Benghazi terrorist attack during last year's election campaign. Published May 9, 2013
Hillary Clinton absent from Benghazi hearing, but ‘What difference’ words were looming
Hanging over Wednesday's hearing on administration failings during the Sept. 11 attack in Benghazi, Libya, was former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's question: "What difference at this point does it make?" Published May 8, 2013
Obama’s Libya pick vows to press Benghazi probe
President Obama's nominee to be the next ambassador to Libya vowed Tuesday to keep up the hunt for those responsible for the September attacks that killed Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans in Benghazi. Published May 7, 2013
Obama, South Korea’s Park are likely to temper any tensions
South Korean President Park Geun-hye and President Obama no doubt will look to project a unified front when the two leaders meet Tuesday at the White House to discuss how best to address the North Korean nuclear threat. Published May 6, 2013
Benghazi investigations included CIA activities; personnel had secret base in Libyan city
Raising the stakes in the high-profile clash with congressional Republicans over last year's terrorist attack on the U.S. diplomatic post in Benghazi, a person familiar with the State Department-chartered inquiry said investigators talked last year with CIA personnel who were on the ground during the attack and were briefed about the CIA's activities at their secret base in the Libyan city. Published May 2, 2013
White House denies any Benghazi muzzling; hearings planned to probe cover-up
The White House denied Wednesday that State Department officials are muzzling would-be whistleblowers about last year's terrorist attacks on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi by blocking security clearances for their attorneys. Published May 1, 2013
