Michael A. Levi and Daniel P. Ahn say, "If lawmakers decide to go ahead with further deficit reduction, they would be remiss not to take a hard look at higher oil taxes as part of the deal."

Micah Zenko says, "Most analysts and journalists have focused on President Obama's expanded scope, intensity, and institutionalization of targeted killings against suspected terrorists and militants. However, perhaps the enduring legacy of the Obama administration will be its sustained, rigorous effort to shape and define-down the idea of war."

In a review of Al Gore's The Future, Jagdish N. Bhagwati says the former vice president mispredicts our future by misunderstanding our present.

Throughout Chuck Hagel's marathon confirmation hearing, America's decade-long war in Afghanistan was noticeably overlooked. But it is curious to see the next secretary of defense receive so few inquiries from senators about the war whose end he will presumably oversee in the coming years, says Gayle Tzemach Lemmon.

Adam Segal says the recent Chinese cyberattacks on Bloomberg and the New York Times highlights both the willingness of Beijing to shape the narrative about China, as well as the vulnerability the top leadership feels about how they are portrayed.

Shannon K. O'Neil says after Republicans' election-year drubbing, the United States has an historic opportunity to fix its broken immigration system. And the arguments against reform simply don't hold up anymore.

With the recent revelation of a United Nations inquiry into U.S. drone strikes policies and practices, Micah Zenko says the UN has actually been investigating U.S. drones for ten years—but to no effect.

Though the results of Israel's recent election point to the creation of a new and potentially more conciliatory government, Steven A. Cook says tensions between Jerusalem and Ankara run too deeply for a single election to make much difference.

In order to gain more congressional support for national security and foreign policy measures, "The Obama administration will need to pick its legislative priorities more deliberately, engage with allies and opponents in Congress more actively, and be willing to negotiate compromises or wage aggressive campaigns on key issues," says Matthew C. Waxman.

Max Boot gives his top five recommendations for books on guerillas.

The Pentagon's decision to allow women in combat elates female veterans, who say all they are asking for is not guaranteed spots, but a chance to meet the same standards and have the same opportunities as men, says Gayle Tzemach Lemmon.

Gayle Tzemach Lemmon says, "Even as the battle in Afghanistan begins its slow wind down, America and its leaders still struggle to engage with it in a serious way."

Gender inequality remains widespread in India. Women could combat it by asserting their rights, says Jagdish N. Bhagwati.

Micah Zenko says, "The Obama administration's lack of a military response in Algeria reflects how sovereign states routinely constrain U.S. intelligence and military activities."

Unconventional wars are our most pressing national security concern. They're also the most ancient form of war in the world. Max Boot describes the lessons of insurgency we seem unable to learn.

In the third of three excerpts from his new book, Democracy in Retreat, Joshua Kurlantzick says that emerging powers like India, Brazil and South Africa were supposed to be democracy's greatest proponents, but that it hasn't worked out that way at all.

In this excerpt from his forthcoming book, Democracy in Retreat, Joshua Kurlantzick argues that voting is losing its cachet in the developing world and in the West.

In an excerpt from his new book, Democracy in Retreat, Joshua Kurlantzick argues democracy cannot flourish unless the middle class embraces it, warts and all.

Edward Alden discusses a new assessment from the Government Accountability Office, which concludes that crossing U.S. borders illegally has become far more difficult than the American public realizes.

Micah Zenko asks why we aren't asking Chuck Hagel about the stuff the secretary of defense actually does.