James Zogby

President, Arab American Institute; author, 'Arab Voices'

What is at stake for Republicans is far more than just Israel and Iran. It is the entire neo-conservative enterprise that led the U.S. into two failed wars in Afghanistan and Iraq (which they cannot admit were failures) and has them still advocating for more aggressive military engagements in Syria and Iran.

Bob Burnett

Berkeley writer, retired Silicon Valley executive

Republicans have no use for government. They hold tight to the zombie view that government is America's number-one problem, even when it comes to providing aid for American disaster victims.

Ed Crego, George Muñoz and Frank Islam

Bloggers on 21st-century citizenship

We define "Creation Nation" as a country in which the private and public sector collaborate to develop and commercialize innovative products and services that create businesses or business opportunities that grow the economy and generate good-paying, value-added jobs.

Franz-Stefan Gady

Foreign Policy, Military Analyst and World Affairs Commentator

The Obama administration should nevertheless carefully evaluate its relationship with India in the next four years and beware of the unintentional but often hazardous consequences of Great Power politics.

Stephen Zunes

Professor of Politics and Chair of Mid-Eastern Studies, University of San Francisco

The Obama administration's reaction to November's Israeli onslaught on Gaza is emblematic of the contradictions in its foreign policy. Though the administration deserves credit for preventing greater carnage, why did it apparently give Israeli the green light during the first week of fighting?

Rick Horowitz

Milwaukee Public TV Commentator, Writing Coach, Writing & Editing Consultant

The fiscal-cliff deal was far from perfect -- but don't sniff at a serious surrender from the GOP. ...

Christine Pelosi

Chair, CA Democratic Party Women's Caucus

We must insist that as Defense Secretary, Chuck Hagel would meet with military rape survivors, describe a zero tolerance plan and show the world how the Obama administration will combat -- and win -- the invisible war against military rape.

Valerie Jarrett

Senior Advisor and Chair of the White House Council on Women and Girls

Chuck Hagel is uniquely qualified to be Secretary of Defense. He is a decorated war hero who earned two purple hearts for his heroism in Vietnam. He knows the sacrifices that we ask our brave service members to make because he has made them himself.

Raymond J. Learsy

Author, 'Oil and Finance: The Epic Corruption Continues'

This torrent of money flowing into OPEC, especially into the Persian Gulf States, raises the question how this massive windfall is being put to use other than providing fresh capital for the world's largest sovereign wealth funds, as those of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Kuwait.

Lisa Haugaard

Executive Director, Latin America Working Group

If we could keep these resolutions, 2013 would be a banner year for U.S.-Latin American relations.

Daphne Eviatar

Senior Counsel, Law and Security Program, Human Rights First

This is one of the best reasons I've heard yet for why the Obama administration should release the legal memos written to justify its overseas targeted killings of terror suspects, regardless of whether any court ever orders it to.

David Coates

Worrell Professor of Anglo-American Studies, Wake Forest University, Department of Politics

Amid the scampering up and down the fiscal cliff that now dominates political life in Washington, some more important and basic questions are in danger of vanishing from view, questions about the general character and progressive potential of Barack Obama's second term.

Joseph Blady, M.D.

Former program officer for the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy and senior analyst for the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence

Who in his or her right mind thought that the former KGB agent and president of Russia would simply accept our rebuke without response, or that the response would not be designed to make a point?

Jeff Danziger

Political cartoonist syndicated by the NYTimes worldwide

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Patricia DeGennaro

Senior Fellow, World Policy Institute

Frankly, all this "my right to a gun" stuff is getting old. It is high time we look beyond "to have or not to have a gun." There is a reason these things are called weapons. Alternatively, let's take action so these horrific situations end.

Richard (RJ) Eskow

Writer; host, 'The Breakdown'; Senior Fellow, Campaign for America's Future

News reports say the president's proposed deal includes the "chained CPI," which would impose drastic Social Security cuts and tax hikes for everybody but the wealthy. And House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi says that "Democrats will stick with the president." They should both think again.