Maureen Orth and the Peace Corps

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A close friend with whom I worked in Senator Jeff Bingaman‘s office in the 1990s, Wayne Propst, was forged into who he is today in part because of his experiences teaching people how to create fish ponds in Ghana.

Putting a Name on the Face? The Gaddafi Spelling Challenge

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Think tanks in Washington scramble and compete with each other to influence the policy debate on a variety of fronts — but what is desperately needed is for one of them to put forward a white paper on how to spell Moammer Gaddafi’s name.  This is not a trivial matter.

Musharraf the Candidate

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Pervez Musharraf, the former Army general turned (former) President of Pakistan, is a different man than the Musharraf who has now declared that he will again contest for his nation’s presidency.

America Compared

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The World Economic Forum‘s Global Competitiveness Index offers comparative rankings for 139 countries.  Here is the pdf of the United States report. Here’s how the United States ranked on the various criteria in the 2010-2011 Global Competitiveness Report.  The picture is not good.

Huntsman on Afghanistan

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Reuters This morning, Washington Post editors challenge Mitt Romney‘s foreign policy views in this morning’s lead editorial and also give Jon Huntsman a working over.

America’s New War with Pakistan

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At the 2011 Washington Ideas Forum, former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf tells Atlantic Media Chairman David Bradley that he was 500 percent sure that at least he did not know about bin Laden residing inside Pakistan.  If true, that’s very bad news.

US History Corner: The Conspiracy America Needed

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I am embarrassed not to have previously known the work of MIT historian Pauline Maier, winner of the 2011 George Washington Book Prize for her gripping account of the state by state drama over ratifying the US Constitution.

Kyl Should Rethink Supercommittee Threat

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Joshua Roberts/Reuters This article first appeared at The Atlantic. Senator Jon Kyl made news this week by telegraphing in advance the tantrums he would throw — including resignation from his responsibilities as a member of the so-called “supercommittee” –  if the Congressional group pushes for more defense cuts.