Jed Babbin
Columns by Jed Babbin
Who’s to blame for the COVID-19 pandemic?
We don't know whether Chinese virologist Shi Zhengli created the COVID-19 virus or whether it was released, accidentally or not, by the Wuhan Institute of Virology. Published June 4, 2021
Biden’s silence on Colonial Pipeline’s ransom payment sets dangerous precedent
Colonial Pipeline's payment of ransom to extortionists who seized control of its east coast pipeline has set an enormously dangerous precedent. That danger is magnified tenfold by President Biden's silence on the incident. Published May 24, 2021
Why believe John Kerry or Mohammad Javad Zarif?
On April 25 an audiotaped an interview with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was "leaked" to and broadcast by Iranian International, a satellite news channel. Published May 8, 2021
Putin’s Ukraine blackmail
Russian aggression against Ukraine is mounting quickly on Ukraine's eastern border and in its partial Black Sea blockade. Published April 22, 2021
Europe’s AstraZeneca vaccine fiasco erupts
The European Union, in its obtaining and distributing anti-COVID-19 vaccines, demonstrated the charm of the IRS and the speedy efficiency of the DMV. Published April 7, 2021
Biden’s woke military
There are two types of senior military leaders. One always seeks ways to maximize the lethality and readiness of the forces under his command. The other is so sunken in the political swamp that those concepts are nearly forgotten. Published March 30, 2021
It’s time to divorce the F-35 ‘hangar queen’
The F-35 has been plagued by myriad serious problems and extremely high cost since the contract for it was signed 20 years ago. Published March 15, 2021
Biden’s Obama-style bumbling of foreign policy begins
Addressing the G7 security conference on Feb. 19, President Biden said that "America is back," adding that the United States is "determined to reengage with Europe, to consult with [them], to earn back our position of trusted leadership." Published February 26, 2021
Joe Biden gives Ayatollah Ali Khamenei a reason to smile
Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, wasn't given to smiling for photographs except while in the company of people such as the late Gen. Qassem Soleimani. Published February 12, 2021
Biden’s blunders, chapter one
We haven't even reached the two-week mark in Joe Biden's presidency but his serious mistakes in foreign policy and national security are already piling up. Published February 1, 2021
Biden’s first hundred days of foreign policy
President-elect Joe Biden is about to begin the first 100 days of his administration. Published January 16, 2021
SolarWinds cyberattack demands U.S. enact a long-overdue deterrent strategy
The months-long cyberattack on SolarWinds' Orion software, used by most U.S. government agencies and hundreds of U.S. companies, is the latest proof that our efforts to deter such attacks have failed. Published January 1, 2021
China’s relentless spying on Mr. Swalwell’s neighborhood
CIA veteran Avril Haines is President-elect Joe Biden's choice to be the next director of National Intelligence. If confirmed, she will be confronted with the problems that plague congressional oversight of the intelligence community. Published December 20, 2020
Biden’s limp from recent injury foreshadows his foreign policy strategy
A fractured foot is causing presumptive president-elect Joe Biden to limp for the next several weeks. The actions of many of our allies and enemies indicate that they believe Mr. Biden's limp will become a metaphor for his foreign policy. Published December 6, 2020
Joe Biden: Iran’s economic savior
No nation will gain more from the apparent election victory of former Vice President Joe Biden than Iran. Its gloating response to that event sounds a lot like a gangster selling "protection." Published November 21, 2020
Can the world stop China’s surge into biological warfare?
China's focus on genomic warfare has attracted the attention of both the FBI's biological countermeasures unit and the Air Force's Office of Special Investigation. Published November 5, 2020
Iran, China and North Korea have the most to gain from a Biden presidency
While Americans have much at stake in next week's election, our major foreign adversaries and allies have at least as much. Russia, China, Iran, North Korea and the NATO nations anxiously await the result because it will determine how we deal with them in the next four years. Published October 24, 2020
Will the U.S. answer China’s aggression or become a paper tiger?
President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden have espoused similar positions on China, but whoever wins the election will have to deal with the stubborn facts of the threats it poses. Published October 10, 2020
Trump stands alone as nations refuse to stop Iran from producing nuclear weapons
War with Iran should not be inevitable, but the same sort of "unwisdom" displayed by China, France, the United Kingdom and Germany over the past few weeks have likely made it so. Published September 27, 2020
Congressional leakers like Adam Schiff need to be investigated and prosecuted
Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe informed congressional leaders that they would no longer get in-person briefings on election security because of "... unauthorized disclosures of sensitive information." Published September 12, 2020