An Era of Moral Crisis
Five Things You Need to Read Today
1. A Serious Foreign Policy and an Unserious President
President Trump celebrated the 18th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks a few days early this year by announcing that he had planned to hold personal negotiations with the top leadership of the Taliban--and to do so at Camp David, no less. He canceled it, he said, when the Taliban admitted responsibility for a bombing in Kabul that killed an American soldier. Trump asked: "What kind of people would kill so many in order to seemingly strengthen their bargaining position?"
Is this a serious question? Of course it isn't, because it isn't being asked by a serious person. The answer to "what kind of people would do this?" is "the Taliban," which is why negotiating with them on a peace agreement was an absurdity to begin with.
The rest of this edition is available only by e-mail to paid subscribers.