A top economic adviser to Sen. Barack Obama describes his views on how to harness globalization and energy diversification to improve U.S. fortunes.

Stephen Biddle, CFR’s top military analyst on Iraq, says the only analytically sound alternatives in Iraq are to either pull out now, or to stick with a revamped “surge.”

Philip K. Verleger Jr., an energy policy expert, says meetings of natural gas exporting countries in Qatar are not likely to be very significant in short term, but in time “could be very significant.”