Jim Lobe

Jim Lobe served as chief of the Washington bureau of Inter Press Service (the other IPS) from 1980 to 1985 and again from 1989 to 2015. Best known for his coverage of the neoconservative movement’s influence on U.S. foreign policy, he has directed LobeLog.com, which has focused primarily on U.S. Middle East policy, since 2007. In 2015, LobeLog became the first weblog to win American Academy of Diplomacy’s Arthur Ross Media Award for Distinguished Reporting and Analysis on Foreign Affairs. Proud native of Seattle, Jim graduated with Highest Honors in History from Williams College and received a law degree from the University of California at Berkeley (Boalt Hall).

Latest

AIDS Appointee Shows that Business Still Rules the Roost

Jim Lobe | July 3, 2003

he appointment of a former top executive of a major U.S. pharmaceutical company and major Republican contributor as President George W. Bush’s global AIDS co-ordinator has stunned and outraged AIDS experts and activists.

Bringing the War Home: Right Wing Think Tank Turns Wrath on NGOs

Jim Lobe | June 13, 2003

Having led the charge to war in Iraq, the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), an influential think tank close to the Bush administration, has added a new target: international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).

Pentagon Moving Swiftly to Become “Globocop”

Jim Lobe | June 12, 2003

Much like its successful military campaign in Iraq, the Pentagon is moving at breakneck speed to redeploy U.S. forces and equipment around the world in ways that will permit Washington to play “Globocop,” according to a number of statements by top officia

Departure of Key Aide Marks New Powell Setback

Jim Lobe | June 6, 2003

The announcement on June 5 that the State Department’s director for policy planning, Richard Haass, is leaving to become the next president of the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations, marks the latest sign of the eclipse of Secretary of State Coli

Credibility Gap over Iraq WMD Looms Larger

Jim Lobe | June 3, 2003

Arguments over what the administration knew about weapons of mass destruction and when it knew it–to paraphrase the famous Watergate questions–are now claiming the limelight, to the administration’s clear discomfort.

A Threadbare Emperor

Jim Lobe | June 2, 2003

Like Caesar, Bush expects others to show due respect for the global hegemon, suggesting, for example, that he was ready to forgive if not quite forget those, like French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who doubted his wis

Is Tehran Back in the Crosshairs of the Neocon Crusade?

Jim Lobe | May 28, 2003

Reports that top officials in the administration of President George W. Bush met Tuesday, May 27th to discuss U.S. policy toward Iran, including possible efforts to overthrow its government, mark a major advance in what has been an 18-month-old campaign b

New Global AIDS Bill Meets Activist Skepticism

Jim Lobe | May 20, 2003

Africa and anti-AIDS activists complained after the vote that the bill retained serious flaws and warned that the $15 billion provided by the package still faces a number of legislative and executive obstacles before the money can actually be spent.

Council on Foreign Relations Urges Bush Administration to Commit Seriously to Diplomacy with North Korea

Jim Lobe | May 20, 2003

The administration of U.S. President George W. Bush should commit itself seriously to resolving the nuclear impasse with North Korea if only to line up support from regional states if stronger measures are needed, according to a new report by the influent

China Hawk Settles in Neocons’ Nest

Jim Lobe | May 12, 2003

China specialist and Princeton University professor Aaron Friedberg has been named deputy national security adviser and director of policy planning on Cheney’s high-powered foreign policy staff headed by I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, one of the most influenti

From Baghdad to Tehran?

Jim Lobe | May 7, 2003

With Iraq under U.S. occupation and Syria’s leaders shaken by a series of high-level threats from top Bush administration officials, Iran has come under increased U.S. pressure.

House Passes $15-Billion Global AIDS Measure

Jim Lobe | May 2, 2003

In a key victory for President George W. Bush and anti-AIDS activists, the U.S. House of Representatives Thursday approved a five-year, $15 billion package to fight HIV/AIDS in 14 African and Caribbean nations

Poll Shows Public Supports Iraq War But Rejects Unilateralism and an Imperial Role for the U.S.

Jim Lobe | May 1, 2003

If the unilateralist hawks in the administration of President George W. Bush were hoping that the easier than expected military victory in Iraq would bring the U.S. public closer to their views, they are likely to be very disappointed by the latest public

Bringing the War Home: Neocons Attack the State Department

Jim Lobe | April 23, 2003

As U.S. forces consolidate the occupation in Iraq the neoconservatives are bringing the war home.

U.S. Public Rallies to Bush and Supports the UN

Jim Lobe | April 1, 2003

While a strong majority of the U.S. public is rallying behind President George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq, they also support the United Nations Security Council and back multilateral diplomacy rather than unilateral U.S. action, according to a major poll

Multilateralism Under Siege

Jim Lobe | March 21, 2003

While Bush has moved U.S. soldiers around the world, invented new strategic doctrines, created a whole new cabinet agency, and driven a federal budget that was comfortably in the black just two years ago into a $300 billion, going on $400 billion, hole th

When the Where Conveys More Than the Words

Jim Lobe | February 28, 2003

If Secretary of State Colin Powell, British Prime Minister Tony Blair, the U.S. public, and other moderates ever had any doubts about the extent to which the most hard-line hawks have captured U.S. foreign policy, President George W. Bush’s Wednesday nigh