It would be easier to forgive the Obama administration’s lackluster handling of the political crisis in Egypt over the last couple weeks if things were going our way elsewhere in the Middle East. Unfortunately, that’s not even close to happening. Start with Iran. Despite two years of engagement, Tehran is still developing nuclear weapons and significantly…

THE revolution in Egypt presents policy through a looking glass: what you see depends on who you are. If you want stability, you see a failed state. If you value freedom, you see it in the streets. If you fear autocrats, you see the 30 years of emergency rule. If you fear Islamists, you see the Muslim Brotherhood in the alleys. Egypt may be all of these. Or it may be…

There's lots of speculation going on over the fast-breaking events in Egypt -- but Director of National Intelligence James Clapper's claim yesterday on Capitol Hill that the Muslim Brotherhood is "largely secular" and has "eschewed violence" doesn't need to be speculated upon. The Brotherhood has not only described itself as an Islamist group, committed to…

In Egypt we are still not at the end of the beginning. Its future remains in the balance. President Mubarak now has raised expectations, only to dash them. This will greatly raise tensions and could lead to an explosion of violence if the army tries to clear the square. If violence escalates, the army will be discredited as a stabilizing force, which will greatly…