On AlterNet: robert gates

Stories, blog posts, and videos tagged as "robert gates"

Obama's Defense Chiefs Make Public Endorsement of Allowing Gays to Serve in Military Openly

Daniel Tencer, Raw Story. February 2, 2010.

The US's two highest-ranking defense officials have thrown their weight behind President Barack Obama's call to repeal the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

Robert Gates Confirms What U.S. Government Has Denied for Months: Blackwater Is in Pakistan

Jeremy Scahill, The Nation. January 22, 2010.

No sooner did Defense Secretary Gates admit during a visit to Islamabad that Blackwater is in the country, than the Pentagon rushed to "clarify" his remarks.

Afghanistan: How the War Hawks Caged Obama

Robert Parry, Consortium News. December 12, 2009.

How a desire for bipartisanship and peace within his own party led Obama to appoint a hawkish cabal that pushed him to a renewed war in Afghanistan.

Obama Advisers Backpedal on Afghanistan: "There Is No Timetable;" "We're Not Talking About an Exit Strategy"

Faiz Shakir, ThinkProgress AlterNet: World. December 7, 2009.

Over the weekend, David Petraeus, James Jones, Hillary Clinton, and Joe Biden told various news outlets that 2011 is not a hard deadline for withdrawal.

President Obama's Escalations in Afghanistan Far Exceed Troop Increases Discussed in Campaign

ZP Heller, AlterNet: Video. December 2, 2009.

President Obama's latest escalation exceeds the increase contemplated in his campaign speeches by almost 20,000 troops.

It's Official: Run-off Vote in Afghanistan

Stephen Collinson, Agence France Presse. October 20, 2009.

Washington spent several days pressuring Afghan President Hamid Karzai to enter a second round of voting following his fraud-tainted election win.

Can the U.S.-Iran Talks Succeed?

Robert Dreyfuss, TheNation.com AlterNet: World. September 28, 2009.

Even hawks admit there's no military option. But will Obama stop blustering about sanctions and really deal?

Two Years After Nisour Square Massacre, Blackwater Still Armed and Dangerous In Iraq

Jeremy Scahill, The Nation. August 14, 2009.

Despite Iraqis' perception that Blackwater was kicked out of their country, the State Department has confirmed the mercenaries remain.

Robert Gates Holds Stealth Meeting With U.S. General on Afghan War

Agence France Presse August 3, 2009.

The meeting on Sunday was not publicly announced beforehand and Gates did not bring reporters with him as he usually does on foreign trips.

Maliki Hints at U.S. Troop Presence Beyond 2011

Agence France Presse July 23, 2009.

"If the Iraqi forces required further training and further support, we shall examine this then at that time based on the needs of Iraq," Maliki said.

Gates Vows to Fight Congress on Defense Budget

Agence France Presse July 16, 2009.

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has proposed cuts to the wasteful F-22 fighter program. "If we can't get this right, what on earth can we get right?" he said Thursday.

No Tobacco Ban for U.S. Soldiers in Combat: Pentagon

Agence France Presse July 16, 2009.

"The situation [soldiers] are confronting is stressful enough as it is," said a Pentagon press official.

Human Rights Groups Slam Obama's Move to Suppress Torture Photos

Willam Fisher, IPS News. May 14, 2009.

Two factors reportedly led to Obama's U-turn: objections from military brass and the president's upcoming speech in Egypt.

94 Billion Reasons to Rethink Afghanistan

ZP Heller, Brave New Foundation AlterNet: Video. May 11, 2009.

Veterans urge members of Congress to vote no on the $94 billion supplemental war funding bill.

After U.S. Strikes, Afghans Describe 'Tractor Trailers Full of Pieces of Human Bodies'

Jeremy Scahill, Rebel Reports. May 7, 2009.

Rage spreads in Afghanistan after a U.S. bombing kills some 130 people; Meanwhile the Pentagon spins a cover-up and Obama readies more troops.

After US Strikes, Afghans Describe "Tractor Trailers Full of Pieces of Human Bodies"

Jeremy Scahill, Rebel Reports AlterNet: War on Iraq. May 7, 2009.

How many innocent civilians will die before the US changes its approach to this war?

Breaking: New Chief Prosecutor Tapped For Military Commissions At Guantanamo

Andy Worthington, AlterNet. May 6, 2009.

Capt. John Murphy led the prosecution of Salim Hamdan and is helping prosecute Omar Khadr, who was just 15 years old when he was captured.

Andrew Bacevich Asks Congress If We Can Afford the "Long War"

ZP Heller, Brave New Films AlterNet: Video. April 27, 2009.

Why progressives should dump the "war on terror" in favor of another frame.

Katrina vanden Heuvel and Lawrence Korb Debate Military Escalation in Afghanistan

Katrina Vanden Heuvel, Brave New Foundation AlterNet: Video. April 20, 2009.

Why more substantive debate and non-military solutions are needed in this war.

Krugman Calls Out GOP Hypocrisy on Job Creation and Defense Cuts

Amanda Terkel, ThinkProgress AlterNet: War on Iraq. April 13, 2009.

GOP up in arms over jobs losses only when it comes to cuts in defense spending.

For All the Rhetoric, the New Pentagon Budget is No Revolution in Defense Spending

Daniel Luban, Ali Gharib, IPS News. April 9, 2009.

The new budget proposed by Defense Secretary Gates is higher than any of the Bush budgets that preceded it.

New Public Database Reveals First-Hand Accounts of How Toxic Burn Pits Are Making U.S. Troops Sick

Nora Eisenberg, AlterNet. April 3, 2009.

"Two months in, everyone was coughing up black stuff. Three months, in my black stuff started to include blood."

Gitmo Lawyers Sue Obama Administration, Call for Sanctions Against Defense Secretary Gates

Liliana Segura, AlterNet AlterNet: Rights and Liberties. March 24, 2009.

One lawsuit challenges Obama's position on indefinite detention, calling it merely a "partial retreat" from Bush-era policies.

Seymour Hersh: "Executive Assassination Ring" Answered to Cheney, Had No Congressional Oversight

Eric Black, MinnPost.com. March 12, 2009.

Investigative journalist Sy Hersh dropped a bombshell revelation on Monday about international killings ordered under Bush.

The Myth of U.S. Military Dominance in the Middle East

Gareth Porter, IPS News. March 9, 2009.

The notion that U.S. military presence has definitively shaped the region has been thoroughly discredited.