Conor Friedersdorf

Conor Friedersdorf is a staff writer at The Atlantic, where he focuses on politics and national affairs. He lives in Venice, California, and is the founding editor of The Best of Journalism, a newsletter devoted to exceptional nonfiction.

If There Was a 60% Chance He Wasn't Bin Laden, Would You Still Kill Him?

If There Was a 60% Chance He Wasn't Bin Laden, Would You Still Kill Him?

Because those were the odds estimated by one of Obama's top national-security advisors. More »

The Most Ignorant Debate Analysis in America

The Most Ignorant Debate Analysis in America

Asked who won the town hall between Mitt Romney and Barack Obama, Los Angelenos were emphatic. The problem: The event hadn't yet happened. More »

A Surrogate's Surprising Claim About Romney and the Kill List

A Surrogate's Surprising Claim About Romney and the Kill List

Tom Ridge made that surprising, unsupported claim on debate night -- and went on to offer an unusual critique of Obama's drone strikes. More »

You'll Never Guess What Barack Obama Said About John Roberts

You'll Never Guess What Barack Obama Said About John Roberts

In a forgotten interview, he ruled out supporting the chief justice based on Roberts' excessive deference to executive power. More »

Everything You Need to Know About the Debate Exchange on Libya

Everything You Need to Know About the Debate Exchange on Libya

Did President Obama call Benghazi an "act of terror" the next day? It's actually ambiguous -- and beside the point. More »

Jennifer Rubin Takes a Cheap Shot at Hillary Clinton

Jennifer Rubin Takes a Cheap Shot at Hillary Clinton

The Washington Post blogger attacks the secretary of state's feminist credentials, but in doing so calls her own into question. More »

The Bizarre Story of How Drones Helped Get Us Into the Iraq War

The Bizarre Story of How Drones Helped Get Us Into the Iraq War

Senators were told that Saddam Hussein could deliver biological and chemical weapons to America via unmanned drones. More »

The Present Congress Isn't the Worst Ever, or Even Lately

The Present Congress Isn't the Worst Ever, or Even Lately

Take the 107th Congress, which passed the PATRIOT Act, approved the Iraq War, and created the Department of Homeland Security. More »

A Debate-Night Mystery: Will Mitt Romney Hedge on Foreign Policy?

A Debate-Night Mystery: Will Mitt Romney Hedge on Foreign Policy?

In his last match-up with President Obama, he moved toward the center on domestic matters. Is national security or civil liberties next? More »

This Is Why Conservatives Can't Have Nice Conservative Policies

This Is Why Conservatives Can't Have Nice Conservative Policies

Mitt Romney's story is a case study: Movement publications and think-tanks put electoral victories before principles. More »

Pointless Shame: The English-Speaking World's Issue With Women's Breasts

Pointless Shame: The English-Speaking World's Issue With Women's Breasts

A reflection on the useless taboos that surround female nudity. More »

Small-Town Spanish Life in 1943: 'No Decent Woman Is Ever Seen on a Bicycle'

Small-Town Spanish Life in 1943: 'No Decent Woman Is Ever Seen on a Bicycle'

The 12 rules a local church leader prescribed for his community More »

The Little-Known Debate Format That Oozes Empathy

The Little-Known Debate Format That Oozes Empathy

Naive or genius? You be the judge. More »

The VP Debate Cinches It: Paul Ryan Is Unqualified to Step In as POTUS

The VP Debate Cinches It: Paul Ryan Is Unqualified to Step In as POTUS

On foreign policy, the transcript shows what many missed during the broadcast: he is prone to absurdity and totally out of his depth, with little to guide him but ideology. More »

How a 17-Year-Old Changed the Politics of 'Stop and Frisk'

How a 17-Year-Old Changed the Politics of 'Stop and Frisk'

Listen to the audio he secretly recorded of police disparaging his mixed-race appearance and threatening to break his arm. More »

Television Is an Atrocious Format for Presidential Debates

Television Is an Atrocious Format for Presidential Debates

What if candidates sparred in live, text-based exchanges? More »

Conservatives Preach Diversity of Thought Without Practicing It

Conservatives Preach Diversity of Thought Without Practicing It

Ideological diversity is less present in right-leaning institutions than in their mainstream analogues, especially in media. More »

Chutzpah at the Ritz-Carlton: Obama Claims Advantage on Civil Liberties

Chutzpah at the Ritz-Carlton: Obama Claims Advantage on Civil Liberties

He's made it much more likely that future presidents will abuse the powers of the office, which he has recklessly expanded. More »

The Strangest Mitt Romney Endorsement Since Clint Eastwood

The Strangest Mitt Romney Endorsement Since Clint Eastwood

Buzz Bissinger, the writer who brought America Friday Night Lights, backs the GOP nominee, which would be fine if his arguments for doing so made more sense. More »

Mitt Romney's Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Foreign-Policy Speech

Mitt Romney's Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Foreign-Policy Speech

The GOP nominee traffics in sweeping ideological statements, skimps on specifics, and promises to increase American belligerence. More »

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Early Monsoon Rains Flood Northern India

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