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Former Secretary of State James A. Baker III, a foreign policy adviser to former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday evening at the Washington gala dinner for J Street, a Soros-funded left-wing group that is devoted to disrupting the close U.S.-Israel alliance. Baker said that Netanyahu had been too forceful in his opposition to a nuclear deal with Iran, and that he had shown insufficient commitment to peace with the Palestinians. “If the only agreement is one under which Iran agrees to cease all enrichment, then there will likely be no agreement,” Baker said....

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the top commander in Iraq, voiced confidence Saturday that the United States would not abandon its mission in this violence-racked country amid a post-election re-evaluation of Iraq strategy. "The weeks and months ahead will require courage and determination," Casey said at a Veterans Day naturalization ceremony for 75 U.S. troops at Baghdad's Camp Victory. "But succeed we will." His comments were among his first public statements since the resignation of Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld last week. Washington political insiders have speculated that Casey and U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, who was also...

WASHINGTON - Former Secretary of State James A. Baker III, an architect of the U.S. war with Iraq (news - web sites) in 1991, is advising the Bush administration to consider a phased withdrawal of some of the 150,000 U.S. troops in Iraq. Otherwise, Baker says, the United States risks being suspected of having an "imperial design" in the region. A protracted U.S. military presence in Iraq is probably unavoidable since attacks on U.S.-led coalition forces and on Iraqi security forces are likely to continue, Baker said Tuesday in a speech at Rice University in Houston. "Even under the best...

Statement by Secretary James A. Baker, III, Bush-Cheney '04 Debate Negotiations Team Leader and Vernon Jordan, Jr. (title edited for length)  NEW YORK - Secretary James A. Baker, III, Bush-Cheney '04 Debate Negotiations Team Leader and Vernon Jordan, Jr. today issued the following statement:"We are pleased to announce today that President Bush and Senator Kerry will participate in three debates.  The first debate is on Thursday, September 30 at the University of Miami, in Coral Gables, Florida, the second is on October 8 in St. Louis, Missouri at Washington University, and the third at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona...

<p>I used to back a balanced budget. Now I'm a "reformed drunk."</p> <p>Our newspapers and television screens are filled with stories of combat and victory, images of empty torture chambers and cheering crowds, and concerns about what happens next, after all the statues and bullies have fallen into the Iraqi dust. This is understandable and proper. Issues of war and peace always come first. But very soon it will be time to emphasize our economy here at home.</p>